KnitKnacks

We didn't stay all day...

Hrumph...I didn't even GET to the zoo today. I didn't even get onto the metro to get to the zoo today. I didn't even get out of my car to get onto the metro to get to the zoo today. You want to know why????? hmmm??? I couldn't find a place to PARK my car in order to get out of it and get onto the metro to go to the zoo today. Maybe I'll try going a little earlier than 11:30am tomorrow.

They put me in the driver's seat....

...of a Mercury Sable!!!!!!!!!!!! Blech blech dog tongue! Bad Hertz...I don't consider this an upgrade from the Standard Sporty 2/4 door vehicle I specified! ( Ford Mustang or similar...this is NOT similar) OOOOO the horrors....they can't trick me...I know this is a silver Ford Taurus even if it does say Mercury Sable on it.....with NY plates no less. I wasn't even hoping for the Jaguar...really I wasn't...maybe the damn Mustang I asked for and possibly a convertible as the upgrade?? Sigh. I knew you were all waiting patiently to see what we got for a car so I didn't want to keep you in suspense longer than necessary. Oooppss least I forget to mention Ms Never Lost is with us too...she is always caustioning me to proceed to the route she mapped out for us. Blech blech....

So needless to say, I was able to check us back into the Summerfield Suites again early...2nd floor this time facing the courtyard AND a corner room...I like it. I got here in time to snag some coffee and oatmeal from the breakfast buffet too. Good timing. The weather is beautiful...they have the outdoor furniture out which is exactly where I plan to park my pasty lilly white appendages for most of the week. Yes with plenty of sunscreen although I do have to get some color before I hit the beach/ocean in FL next week. In the meantime, I think a day at the national zoo again this week will be nice...maybe the Pandas will be romping around some.

Ok...I've checked us in...unpacked...didn't get the wireless network to work again for me but then again I should have made sure I knew how to get my computer to recognize it. I've had my oatmeal and coffee so maybe I can be trusted to go to the grocery store for supplies and come back with something other than carbo trash. Maybe some nice fruit and veggies....and jelly donuts!!

Byebye for now

Sprung!

You get up in the morning and you just never know what spring will spring on you next! the sparkly stuff on the wings didn't photograph real well but they certainly meet the "Criteria"....colorful...tasteful..(snort) and certainly no expense was "spared" (spent). Lover-ly. Thanks Lizzie! ( although I think she might have exceeded the expense allowance this year...these boys are metal, doncha know!)

readings...

I just finished another Jennifer Crusie book Welcome to Temptation I don't know why I never got into reading it before since I've had it for 3 years and enjoyed her other books I've read. I enjoyed this one too...strange I couldn't get into it before and had no trouble this time. Reading her book Fast women is where I found and became obsessed with finding/owning Carlton Walking Ware (it's only fitting I give an eBay url for it since one of the characters in the book bought her egg cups from eBay...ahem...as did I)

I dislike it when a book I'm enjoying ends especially when there are recurring characters from book to book...sigh...

Now I think I'm going to start Lorna Landvik's book Your oasis on Flame Lake. Will let you know how I like it or not...I have a new Stuart Woods book ( Dirty Work) to read too but it's hard cover and I don't think I want to drag it to MD with me.

Speaking of MD...I'm getting a little excited...2 days til we see what Hertz gives us this trip...oh o/'o/'o/' Henry o/'o/'o/'!!!

Counter Trip...

What it takes to go get home from seeing my grandchildren and their parents and uncle and Nora...

Lots of resolve to actually leave...many hugs and kisses and byebyes... umm..that's me; Kieran was sleeping and Maura was saying "byebye Mommy" and all but shoving me out the door. She must be that strong mushy type like her grammy..;-D snort.

Reverse directions on the side roads to the Merritt Parkway and finding my way despite no set route....then I-91 and I-89...booooorrrrr-ing.

I bought coffee, fuel and general garbage in my old hometown.

Was nostalgic enough to take a trip down the old Avenue and peek at the house I grew up in. hhhmmmm....SOMEONE seems to have chopped at the huge "nest" of lilac bushes in the backyard. The place doesn't look the same at all with a lot of it's bushes and other vegetation gone. Snort...actually it looks like a naked cardboard box. Still brown shingles with cream color trim.

CDs...Polar shift...Roy Orbison..Righteous Brothers and Billy Joel.

Water...potato sticks..peanut butter crackers.

More nostalgia around Bernardston, MA where my mother grew up and dragged us for visiting her long time friends and to her family cemetery site when we were growing up. I decided to stop and see how it was all looking...bid howdy-do to my grandparents and found their head stone had a bit of lichen on it. Next trip I guess I'll clean it off. Found that my mother's friend Mrs Gibson is still alive albeit not exactly kickin'. I'm not sure she knew who I was although she got a little teary...it's not like I look anything like my mother at all ...yeah maybe a little. ( Mrs G is 90 now) Her son Warren was there which was great...he is around my brother's age and they would torture me when I tried to follow them around 40-45 years ago. Even Grandmas have therapy stories..

I didn't speed too much....saw several troopers and only once did I feel like I might have been a little suspect...however, it was in VT...my radar detector detected nothing even when I SAW the man in Green and Yellow pointing his gun at me ( um, that would be radar gun). I also looked at my speedometer at the time and was surprised I was going under 10 miles over the speed limit even while in the passing lane. ( got that?)

Ack...I hope this isn't another sign of old age creeping up! The horrors of it all! Geesh the next thing you know I'll be getting an automatic transmission and... and...and( taking a deep breath) maybe even a Ford Taurus!

::::::::shudder:::::::: This would make me start twitching....

Oh well...I stopped at the grocery store just before getting home to get milk and such for the weekend. Guess I'll go back there now...I forgot the milk.

The Trip...

This is what it takes to get to see my grandchildren:

I-89 from Burlington to White River Jct VT....I-91 to someplace South of Hartford CT...Ct Route 15 ( AKA the Wilbur Cross Parkway/Merritt Parkway....or as I call it the CT Speed Trap) a few side roads of the Merritt and 4.5-4.75 hours give or take. No speedie; no tickie this time.

CDs: The Best of John Denver, Josh Groban, Double CD Best of ABBA, various instrumentals on a CD entitled Polar Shift ( Which Morgan has tried to pilfer on many occasions) I also replayed a few songs and I'm a little horse. I'd really like to be able to sing well, but alas...it's just not going to ever happen.

Cruise Control through the MA/CT speed traps........it was painful having all those people pass me and give me dirty looks. Ok Ok..I confess I took off the cruise control but still maintained a slower speed than most. I confess to being gun shy...still. MA had a unassuming unmarked...an old Pontiac GTO no less. The rack with the blue lights on the front bumper was a dead giveaway though but you didn't get to see them until it was too late. *I* had been being good though or else the guy in front of me was being good...something like that.

Oh yeah...I liked it when the pain in the butt who really blew passed me was seen pulled over to the side of the road with a lot of flashing blue lights and the nice man in knee high boots chatting to him. He deserved a good talking to if he passed me in VT.

One banana...one package of peanut butter crackers...one bottle of water...one bathroom stop... one cup of coffee from the bathroom stop place. One mini Kit kat.

A field of turkeys...or moving rocks. One lone patch of ice and snow along the interstate rock ledge. Rain, fog...or some might refer to it as a very low cloud since it really didn't touch the ground. Road crews cleaning up the litter... more than one someone had some major community service to do.

...and it was definitely all worth it since there was one little girl who exhibited some excitement to see me...she knows how to get Grammy/Mommy's attention. Kieran didn't say anything to me directly but he did let me walk and rock and bounce him to calm and cat nap a little. He's a sweetie.

Maybe now I've calmed enough to go to sleep...I got a little excited to see them and their parents, too. :-D

April Showers bring...

...April flowers. I love these little flowers; bloodroot I think they are. One spring, one plant just sort of showed up out by the sunroom; I don't know how they multiply or how it ended up there but I'm glad it did. They don't last long, they bloom really early and I almost always miss it! I have quite a few more this year in this clump and one lone one among the lilacs. ahhhh haaaa..I miss them because they are usually still covered up by the leaves and debris! The boys did a good job on the yard. One of the problems with having a house built in a swamp....the lawn sinks in a few places......it's just sort of wavy. Makes for a great work out when mowing. yeah yeah, I know...I should get a roller and flatten out the yard...especially those ruts near the driveway. Yup...I'll get right on that.

Easter..Time for Renewal

Zen Peeps.....

Easter...Spring clean-up..Time to take down those Christmas wreaths! Well, if no bird has decided to make a nest in the wreath, that is. None this year. I uncovered the little Hosta shoots..I get very excited to see them all, especially when a very small plant sells for $10 at the nursery. Sure, many plants come from that one small plant..it also takes many years!

I've become the "old lady next door" who hires the neighborhood boys to rake her lawn. I think I will also see if they will mow it for me whenever we are gone too. Hey, they have the gear...tractor and wagon; they are always doing stuff in their yard so I know they know what they are doing. Snort...it did crack me up when I looked out at them earlier; the big one was driving the tractor around and the little one was raking leaves into piles. Now, isn't that just the law of birth order? At least they got crafty...used the lawn tractor to "move" the leaves into some order too. Works for me...you don't see ME out there raking anymore. They are doing a fine job too...they just might get a bonus.

Ahhhh...the fruits of someone elses labor to my benefit...I like it.

If it's Friday...

...we must be going home!

I'm all packed up and ready to go...well, except for my computer...and power and mouse and network cable BUT that's almost all........the suitcases are actually in the car.

While I'm off touting traveling preferences, I might as well get on with plugging my hotel of choice.

I have a new favorite place to stay...Summerfield Suites by Wyndham. I had not had the opportunity to stay at one before now but I like it. It's an extended stay suite type place...full size kitchen...meaning full stove and oven...full size fridge and microwave, dishwasher/disposal Well equipped dishes, bowls and pots and pans. This works very well for us AND with a Wyndham by request number, you get high speed internet access...;-D For that, I might even forego the oven....well maybe 2 of the 4 cook top burners. hehehe. They were also very accomodating when I wanted to check in early and stay later. At least this week when they have had the openings. the only thing negative I have to say is I had trouble reserving a room a couple of times here because they were full!

In between packing suitcases, I enjoyed playing with Demian and Maura We had voice enabled Yahoo messenger and webcam and everything...I heard counting and the alphabet..."G is for mommy!" ( Lori is Mama and we Grammies are Mommy) "K is for kiss, Kieran, Kitty and Knoel" The poor child will be so confused.

hhhmmm.... someone better finish eating up these Chocolate covered grahams... want not waste not, you know. I'll leave the fettuccine, butter, milk, OJ and Pesto partials...and fizzy water...not bad this time.

I've packed the cell phone charger...the camera battery charger...those are frquently overlooked. I've also got new reservations for when I think we are coming back.

Tap tap tap...I'm ready...sort of. Too bad our flight doesn't leave for another 9 hours!

Ta Ta...have a good weekend.

A little humor....

This is just terrible...snort...poor bunnies. It's also one of my favorite cartoons. (Thanks, Gail) Well I do have a perverse sense of humor as once tested out in one of "those" quizzes. I wish I could find the test I took several years ago....there were four jokes with the result being which type of humor you had depending on the type of joke you found the funniest. I do remember the joke though:

A blind man walks into a drug store with his seeing eye dog at his side. He wanders up and down the aisles for a while then stops, picks his dog up by the tail and swings him around over his head. Upon seeing this, the store clerk runs over to him and says " Sir may I help you?" " No, thanks" says the blind man, " I'm just looking around."

Do you have a Sense of Humor?

Here's a little quiz for you....I thought I had a whackier sense of humor than this:

My Results:
Do you have a sense of humor?

Your score = 65

What does your score mean?
Your sense of humor is pretty good. It may not be as wacky as that of some people (like us apparently) but you're pretty cool in our books! You can laugh at most things and maybe even get a kick out of the non-sense you say and do from time to time as well. Good for you! Hey, if you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at right? Just kidding.

Henry, Hertz and My Blog

Weeeeellllll, it seems I've gardnered some attention ... some (ie.The man with the Gold Card) would prefer I was a little less visible when it came to him, his business et al. Can't blame him there. ( Here I go again??)

Hi Henry! Sorry you were outed...not really...but you have found a treasure trove of geeks & travelers. I'll try to be a little more discreet however when it comes to other family members......and the use of company names.

Feedback for Henry and Hertz. (BTW...I would be very interested in what you used for search criteria to find me as well... ) The Man with the Gold Card likes a low BS level. The fact that he has to travel in order to eat is BS enough... getting to a job site should not be fraught with obstacles. He will pay (within reason) for hassle free services. Getting off the airplane and into the rental car with Hertz gives him that...if he doesn't have to get on the rental car bus at all it's more of a plus...but at least the car is waiting for him and he is out the parking lot on to the job site. He is happy. This makes me happy. If Hertz makes him unhappy more than likely I'm going to hear about it instead of Hertz. If Hertz makes him unhappy too much...then Hertz will simply lose him as a customer.

I make his reservations....online, as I said before I hate to use the phone. being able to reserve, modify and even cancel online is invaluable to me since business travel plans change frequently. We are obviously both loyal to Hertz...at the moment. I think we DO pay for these services..I believe we can get less expensive rates for vehicles at other rental car companies BUT the BS level increases.

Soooo, basically you want to know what drives ( Demian's pun intended) your clients....what else I'd like. One thing that drives me absolutely crazy is not being able to do things as an authorized agent in The Man with the Gold Card's name. I realize I can drive the car rented in his name but I can't pick it up for him and I can't rent one in my name using the company account when it's for business. ( A whole other blog may be needed for inter-spousal accounts.) I also realize as far as Hertz online is concerned, it's the Man with the Gold Card making all the reservations anyway...wrong.

The reward system for frequent rentals. The corporate discount is good...it's automatic. The upgrades are good ...when they are automatic. Get my drift? I hate coupons. (I don't use them even at the grocery store..just lower the damn price and save the expense and BS level of issuing coupons!) I have a stack of Hertz coupons for free days and discounts and upgrades accumlating on my desk...they are easy enough to use when making reservations online...just enter the coupon code BUT then the Man with the Gold Card has to carry and locate the coupon at the end of the business trip....up goes the BS level. Just as I love to see what surprise we get for an upgraded rental car...wouldn't a better reward be at the end of the trip receiving a notice with the receipt that states we had earned and received a free day rental?? Automatic...I love it. That's a real reward compared to a perceived reward. *I* buy the service...Hertz supplies and I'm happy with what I'm buying. However, if Hertz chooses to reward, then I'll accept...just don't ask me to jump through any hoops at all to receive it and call it a reward....I'm not using Hertz for the rewards.

Any questions??? Feel free to email me. Don't hold the Man with the Gold Card accountable for me and my opinions...We are happy with Hertz...we are still doing business with them right??

...and about that Jaguar? Well let's just say, the Man with the Gold Card does NOT want to arrive at a job site in a Jag....I don't think that sets the right tone. Besides...as I said before...the Jag has a Taurus chassis.

Put me in the Driver's Seat

I just love traveling....the best part is still making a reservation with Hertz and waiting with anticipation to see what kind of vehicle they give us. I swear there is no rhyme or reason to any of it! It used to be that no matter what I put in for a car request, we ended up with a Ford Taurus. I hate those cars so I finally put in a request excluding Ford Taurus. Nooooo they didn't give us Mercury Sables instead but I was afraid of that too. Anyway, with Greg's GOLD status, he was always upgraded a level so I always put in for a compact car anyway....the one time I asked for an intermediate in an attempt to prevent the Taurus, we got some yacht...a Caprice I think it was. whoooaaa big boy. All Greg needed to drive that thing was a white belt and matching shoes!

Sooo I realized yesterday morning that I was just giddy with anticipation while on the rental car bus....I just couldn't wait to see what we got. ( sort of like a birthday present) Last time was the SUV..yeah we need that in DC. I also thought we'd be getting to the point where there would be no surprise..sort of back to the Taurus thing again. Well I was wrong...

Before I tell you what we got....I should explain the process. I reserve online ( of course, since you know I dont' make phone calls). The deal is, we have a profile and we put in the dates and times and other pertinent information and basically we ask for "their best rates" on anything. A menu comes up with a choice at the top which is what I usually take but I can look at other choices. This time it popped up with: $34.99/day..Standard Car (rate class) a Ford Mustang or Similar. Not only is that nearly half what we usually have to spend but it's two classes up from the compact rate so I said to myself...woo woo...we'll take it and maybe they wil upgrade to a convertible! It happens. Of course it usually happens in the dead of winter or rainy season but it has happened in good weather too....once. Anyway, Greg was walking around it this morning shaking his head in wonderment. Do you think there is a red flag on our account? Do you think they will ever get around to giving us the Jaguar? I would think they would since rumor has it that the "new" Jaguars have Taurus innards..........;-D

Oh ok...so maybe it doesn't have the flames and it's just Navy Blue but it's still not your basic Mama's rental car!

I can't wait til next time! You'll recognize us...we'll be the ones with the weird rental car!

Saturday's Summaries..

Good Morning Fans......glorious day out there! Ok ok...the sun is out and it's not 30 below, raining or snowing...THAT is glorious.

We are both alive and well and in Vermont this weekend...both of us...both vehicles...both cats...we are set.

Going back to Maryland bright and early Monday morning....I have plans to visit the sites again...leftover cherry blossoms...Nordstrom's...and venture off to a town named Kensington ( I think)...supposed to be a big area of antique stores there. I was watching the Flea market Finds with the Kovel's on HGTV last night and they mentioned The Big Flea in DC....gggrr..it was in March BUT I see that there is another one mid July too....hope we are there then. I'm still hoping to make it to Brimfield this year! Ahem...maybe I ought to consider getting rid of the junk I have first.

Hmmm...I just went looking for a good photo of a dumpster ( yes I NEED to rent one again) and found a whole lot of websites devoted to Dumpster Diving I think that just might be the way to go this year...put all the stuff in the dumpster and just let people come by and dive in...take what they see. None of this cleaning, pricing and sitting out in your yard with people thumbing their noses at your "stuff" business. Yard sales/garage sales are just way too much work, you never get rid of all of it; the same junk you thought was too good to just heave is still there at the end of the day...and you heave it. I wonder if I could even get away with putting up signs directing people to my dumpster! Can I charge people to dive into my dumpster or does that defeat the whole point of dumpster diving?

hhhmmm.......maybe the whole neighborhood could chip in on a BIG 18 wheeler size dumpster...we can name it The Big Haul ;-D

What's that you say?

Seems some German Professors are raging word wars over English terms used in everyday life, preferring the French terminology instead. As I was reading it, it sounded a little like a blacklash from "Freedom Fries" ....ah yes...they denounce that as the objective...yeah right. Please..have neither side anything better to do with their time...obviously, *I* don't or else I wouldn't be commenting on it...snort.

I watched the toppling of the statue of Saddam Hussein in the Center Square of Baghdad ( on TV) this morning. Interesting analogy drawn by CBS Correspondant David Martin. He said Iraqi civilians worked for a long time to take it down by themselves...using rope and even sledgehammers. Finally, they asked help from the US Marines who were there and they brought in their tank to aid in their endevour. Together it was still not an easy operation and it didn't fall completely the first time...........the whole ordeal symbolic of the Liberation of Iraq. Okay okay...so I buy into that sort of thing....it had a Berlin Wall-ish feel to it, too. pppssstt...it sort of looked like they pulled his legs right out of his pants there for a minute...supports holding the statue on the base.

Book I'm reading: "Faking It" by Jennifer Crusie ( paperbook) nooooooooooo no that kind of "faking".

Book I finished over last weekend: "Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd.

Today's accomplishments: Went to the dentist for the "last" time which just probably means I will have to start paying again for my visits since it won't be part of my on going reconstruction. I remembered to go to the cleaners although I had forgotten what all was waiting for me there. At least I knew I had to go. Couldn't shake the image of almond croissants from Klingers bakery from my mind after discussion of them at the dentist's office. Evil women...they made me buy them which of course I shared with all of them. Did some real work, ie. quarterly reports for the company. Now just when I start getting annoyed that the Feds haven't sent the quarterly tax form, it shows up in that day's mail. I really only want/need the envelope, ya know.

I have also managed to ignore the mess in the laundry room created while the Ant Hunter was here Monday. Crikey!...he WILL find that illusive nest of carpenter ants yet! In the meantime, I nearly gaged when I uncovered one ( ant) buried in my sugar bowl this morning...I was not impressed and had to start my day over with a fresh cup of coffee and "clean" sugar. :::willies:::

I'm a bit tired of the daily dusting of snow and cold temps....please can it be Spring now? Oh right, This IS Spring in Vermont.

Reader's Digest Disease...

I can't remember if my hip started hurting when I walked before or after my cousin died from cancer....she had been treated for an arthritic hip for a couple of years. Hhhhmmm.....

Then my shoulder/neck started aching, also....hhhhmmm...taking lipator has a side effect of joints aching. That's it for sure....

Now I have a respiratory issue...coughing...chest aching. I just know it must be SARS. I WAS in a major airport/city recently where there are high percentages of international travelers! Didn't I comment on the elderly Asian woman who was arguing with the security guards about not wanting to be parted from her luggage? Wait Wait...Greg had flu like symptoms a couple of weeks ago....that's it! Hmmm...I seemed to have skipped over the fever, chills and body ache symptoms and gone straight for the dry coughing. Must be I have a cold huh?

Whew...self diagnosis is hard work....

Yet again I have just

Yet again I have just lost what I've been writing in my blog for the last 20 minutes. gggrrr....I have got to stop opening going to other web papges from here without opening a new window.. or at least saving this in some draft form frequently. gggrrrr.

( save)

I wasn't writing anything exciting anyway.....

I did a lot of real work once we got home from MD...stuff that involved sending and receiving $$ so that is useful.

We went to Montpelier to visit my MIL...bought lobster salad at Shaws for sandwiches...that was tastey even if I did wash off 75% of the mayo first.

( save)

We are also receiving late winter snows...I'm not impressed and was even less impressed with the 20 minute crawl up French Hill on the interstate with a few hundred other vehicles. Since the road was just wet, I expected to come upon some grizzily accident scene but we crested the hill to find....smooth going with traffic speeding up...no problem. I was somewhat annoyed, Ahem...the fact I'm mentioning it here after 2 days ought to be a clue as to the level of annoyance.

(save)

I have aches and pains...I tried Icy Hot....it smells. I think it works ok but the smell is sort of too minty or something. I don't think I can go out in public after using this product. I might as well wear a sign that says " Hey Look, Everyone! This woman is old and has aches and pains and she obviously didn't get them by running in marathons!"

I think it's time for breakfast.....going to eat crumpets....one of the many carbs I bought yesterday.

(save)

Assault on my Batteries

I'm beginning to get a complex....

First the cordless phone in the den won't hold a charge....

Then the camera batteries won't hold a charge....

NOW my cell phone didn't charge and it was plugged in overnight.

Maybe I'm one of those people ..you know the ones who can't wear wrist watches because they screw up the time?

Must be my magnetic personality or something.... ;-D