EXCUUUUUUUUSE ME!

I am sitting up at the laundry room, a cement block room with a cement floor, that sits under a bunch of trees, making it shady all day long. But when it's a cool day, and no sun is reaching the cement, it remains as cold as if it were a giant cooler. And this coming from one who is usually too warm. Anyway, as my four machines approached the almost done mark, I got up from the computer and reading my email, and went to the four dryers, putting a dryer sheet in each one and lining up my quarters on the little ledge so I could start each one right as I threw the clothes in. The first machine stopped and I carried those clothes across the room, loaded them into the dryer, and plugged in the quarters to start the dryer. As I was unloading the second washer, a gentleman, and I use that term loosely, came in and started to put his clothes, already washed I'm assuming, into one of my dryers! I said, "ah, I have that one ready to go for this load" or some such thing, and he barked "YOU NEED ALL FOUR DRYERS?" I quietly said I had used four washers, so I would be needing four dryers. He had the unmitigated gall to put his hands on his hips and stare at me! I backed down. Took my dryer sheet out of HIS dryer and gathered my quarters, mumbling that I supposed I could try to combine my loads. He said not a word to thanks, shoved his quarters into the dryer, and stormed out of the building under my watchful glare. He just came back in as I was starting to write this and said that he was finished and I could now have HIS dryer. I said "no thank you" and continued writing. He left with his few clothes, probably not dry because it's only been about 12 minutes, and went to his RV. I got up to check my loads, and apparently he had opened the wrong dryer when he went to get his things, and the dryer my load was in was stopped! Half dried! And he didn't restart it!

I hope he has a wonderful Christmas. And I hope his clothes weren't dry when he took them out and folded them, and that they will smell moldy when he wears them.

TRAFFIC: WHY I'LL NEVER LIVE HERE

I have almost recovered from our trip up to Oceanside, north of here, yesterday. The nail biting, temper flaring, blood pressure rising, nerve shattering trip has been over for almost 18 hours now, and I have just about returned to normal. There is no way (sorry Maren) that I could live out here. The weather is delightful, the scenery is also, but the traffic is more than enough to keep me away. Add to this the cost of living and the horrendous amount of people already living here, and I am a dedicated small town mid-westerner. I want to survive and keep my sanity.

And with my sanity intact, I'll be healthier, too. My breakfast this morning, lucerne's green tea and peach yogurt, has only 15 grams of the dreaded high fructose corn syrup as opposed to the 42 grams from yesterday's breakfast.

Which brings me to the songs going through my head this morning: I'll be Home for Christmas and There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays.

Oh , there's no place like home for the holidays,
For no matter how far away you roam,
If you want to be happy in a million ways,
For the holidays you can't beat home sweet home.

My sentiments exactly.

THREE MORE SLEEPS

Only three more sleeps until we will be on our way from San Diego to Minneapolis. I am getting excited. I know Ernie is spending a lot of money to give me my grandkid fix, but I guess he feels it's worth it to keep me from bawling every hour of every day, blubbering that I miss my grandkids. So, Minnesota, here we come! I can't wait.

I still haven't posted pictures of our Wednesday trip to the San Diego Zoo. I've been occupied (see last paragraph about the bawling) and just haven't had the energy or desire to post them. I have a couple of cute ones though, so I will do so, soon.

The guys decided that today we are driving up north of San Diego, to check out our next camp spot at Camp Pendleton. We will move there on January 5, after we return from Minnesota. And, yes Jacob, it's close to Hollywood, and the Hollywood sign on the hill. And if we get close enough to take a picture, yes Jacob, I will take one for you. (See you Christmas Eve, I hear!)

I am in love. For breakfast I often have yogurt, the plain kind, but I haven't found a brand out here that I like. So the other day I bought some of the little containers of flavored yogurt. WOW! The lucerne brand of LOW fat (read HIGH sugar) in the pomegranate raspberry flavor is to die for! With the 42 grams of sugar in the little 8 ounce container, I guess I won't be eating that very often. It doesn't seem right that yogurt, which is really good for you, can be made so unhealthy with the addition of high fructose corn syrup, the ingredient that is making America obese.

HOUSE PRICES

The home prices in San Diego have been dropping steadily for the last four years. The news just out this morning is that the prices have reached a new low. The median cost of a home in San Diego is now $440,000. How do people afford to live here? I guess the beautiful coastline and the lovely weather, combined with no heat bills, make it all worth while, but that seems like a lot of money to me!

SCRIPPS OCEANOGRAPHY INSTITUTE

There are so many beautiful sights at this aquarium that it is hard to pick what to share with you. I really liked the different starfish, especially the bright orange one.

And this guy reminds me of one of those gold sunbursts that were popular wall decorations in the 1960's.
I also really like the jellies......this one especially.

And this special little guy, Shane, along with his dad Kevin, accompanied us today. Then we came back to our RV, and just hung out for the afternoon. My niece, Maren, came by after she got off work, and we had an easy dinner of brats and store bought potato salad. Dick and Bev came carrying an apple pie and ice cream to round out the meal.
We sure miss our grandkids after being with Shane for the day. It's so good to have little ones around. Thanks for coming to visit, Shane!

IT WAS A QUIET WEEKEND IN SAN DIEGO

Yes, it was a quiet weekend in San Diego. On Friday we used our second day ticket at Sea World, and we enjoyed the Shamu show even more the second time. The weather was lovely, and we have now seen all the sights there are to see at this attraction. And it was a lot of fun.On Saturday we just vegged out in the morning, did the laundry in the afternoon, and then headed to the base for a few groceries and for military discount tickets for a couple more things we want to do while we're here. We got tickets for Scripps Oceanography Institute for today, and to the world famous San Diego Zoo for tomorrow. Saturday night the guys took us out to a restaurant for dinner. I guess it was supposed to be my birthday dinner....my birthday was over a week ago....and we had a delicious steak dinner.

Yesterday was another quiet day. We headed to one of the big box stores to pick up a few items, and as usual, I almost had a meltdown. The pushy, shovey, obnoxious and rude people are just too much for me to handle. And there is so much stuff in the stores! Who needs it? So after purchasing the Q-Tips, TP, moisturizer, and a couple of other things, we went back home. And it was good to get back to the RV before the football game was over. We are only about a mile from Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers. There was a home game yesterday, and thousands of cars filled the parking lot to overflowing. We missed the traffic, thank goodness.

Today we are going to be joined by my niece's husband and son on our visit to Scripps. Later we'll cook some brats for supper. It looks to be a fun day. Hope you have a good one too.

INCREDIBLE ANIMALS

How on earth do they make these creatures do the things they do? You can sure tell that the trainers absolutely love their jobs. They are so enthusiastic! Much fun!

FIRST TRIP TO SEA WORLD

We have tickets for two days at Sea World. We were there yesterday for about five hours, and we will spend the second half of our ticket today. It was so much fun! I felt like a kid for those few hours as I laughed at the antics of the trained seals, otters, and dolphins. The Shamu show was incredible and I may have to attend that again today. It would have been so much fun to have my grandkids with me as they would have loved it, too. Again, as is my normal, I took tons of pictures, and, again as is my normal, I will share them with you.
These seals were very vocal, constantly begging the audience for food, which you could buy, and feed to them, for $10.
Standing watch over the seal pool
Look carefully to see five flying dolphins.

Flying Shamu.
This is for my second oldest granddaughter, Katie. When Katie was little, she loved the pink flamingo plastic lawn ornaments. Except she called them "Pink Mingos." So, Katie, here's some live Pink Mingos for you!

FLOWERS AND FISH

Yes, these guys are swimming around outside without a layer of ice above them! The fish are huge....keepers in Minnesota fishing terminology.
Is there anything more beautiful in God's creation than a flower?
I love the greens, and the different horizontal and vertical lines of the trees, fence and shadows.

More shadows.
Doesn't the inside of this fern say spring to you?
When I think of living in heaven, I picture fields of flowers blanketing the land as far as I can see.

BALBOA PARK

Well, I suppose you don't want me to post all 125 pictures I took yesterday. It was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for a trip to Balboa Park, and I could have spent the whole day there. I love the buildings and trees and flowers, and we were fortunate that the place wasn't too crowded.
The fountain in the entrance area.
Beautiful sights in all directions; this building framed by the arch of the colonnade on the other side of the street.
The lush green grass had it's thirst quenched by the recent rains.

Pretty flower pots in a courtyard, next to the entrance to a restaurant.
As I said, beauty in all directions.
When we left Balboa Park, we drove across the bridge to Coronado.

FOR THE KID IN ALL OF US

Yesterday we went to Balboa Park. We only visited one of all the available museums and viewed only part of the fabulous buildings, but we enjoyed it very much. We went to the train museum, and while most of the train displays were probably more correct in size and detail, I loved the Lego train display. Kind of dark photos, though. Sorry.

Hagar on a snowboard!
Even found the Starbucks!
I wonder if the guys running all the train setups actually get paid, or if they just come to play!

THE MIDWAY

Yesterday we toured the aircraft carrier, USS Midway. We were aboard the ship for 4 hours, and still didn't see everything. The Midway is a huge ship, with a flight deck about the length of 3 football fields. It was built for $90 million in 1945, and received a $260 million overhaul in 1966-70. The Midway was decommissioned in 1992, and is harbored in San Diego as a Museum.

A few interesting facts about the Midway:
When it was commissioned in 1945, it was, and it remained, the largest ship in the world for a decade.
It was the first ship to be too large for the Panama Canal.
The Midway spanned the years from the end of WWII to the liberation of Kuwait in 1991.
In 1965 the Midway pilots shot down the first MiG of the Vietnam War.
In 1973 the Midway pilots shot down the last MiG of the Vietnam War.
In 1975 it lead the evacuation of Saigon, rescuing 3,073 refugees in two days.
In 1991 it was the flagship of the Persian Gulf air operations in Operation Desert Storm.
It carried a crew of 4,500 men of which 225 were cooks.


And it got one mile per 260 gallons of gas!

From the flight deck of the Midway, you can see, in a small park across the harbor, this statue based on the famous photograph of Alfred Eisenstaedt which captured the famous kiss on V-J Day in 1945 of a sailor and a woman. (This photograph is Time-Life's most requested and reproduced image. Another interesting fact about this photo is that a re-enactment of this kiss takes place annually in Times Square by many couples dressed in replicas of the clothing of the original couple.)

Excuse quality of this photo. The statue was qite a distance from where I was and I had to zoom as far as my camera would zoom.

MY BORROWED GRANDKID!

My niece, Maren, and her husband, Kevin, live in San Diego and have a three year old son named Shane. My sister, the grandmother of Shane, told me I could spoil him while I was here, so that's what today was all about. Maren invited us over for waffles this morning, and we were entertained by Shane while we ate the delicious banana waffles and drank a couple of cups of Maren's excellent coffee. Thanks!
After our breakfast we went to a playground and watched Shane play on the slides and make several new friends with the other kids who were there. The most fun was going down the slide in a train of three kids, then climbing back up on the slide, not the steps.
Shane is a very bright little guy, full of fun, inquisitive and all boy.
Thanks Betsy for letting me borrow him for a day. Hope it's okay if we do it again!

A LITTLE COLOR FOR THOSE OF YOU IN A WHITE WORLD

This colorful display of poinsettias sits close to the entrance to Old Town. They look so Christmasy, and are of course growing outside. The temps are quite a bit higher than the zero to ten above temps that are expected back home this weekend. Don't worry, I'll enjoy these beautiful displays of flowers for you all!

Aren't these beautiful?
And these, too?
How about these?

Gotta love the bird of paradise!
These are so sweet and dainty looking.

And for a little more color, this is the interior of the restaurant where we had lunch today. MMMMM good!

OLD TOWN

This morning we drove to Qualcomm Stadium where the San Diego Chargers play, only a short distance from our campground, and we parked the truck and rode the lite-rail or trolley train to Old Town. We shopped around for awhile, read about and viewed some of the historical exhibits, and ended this visit with a nice lunch.

Qualcomm Stadium decorated for Christmas. The train depot and tracks are right behind where I am standing to take this picture.
The entrance to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
This picture should be called "Grumpy Old Men" as Ernie and Dick weren't too happy with Bev and I. We were shopping....well, actually just looking.....but the guys got tired of watching us check out the pottery shop, the candy shop, the coffee shop, and, well you get the picture. We went in each store and looked, but the guys seem to think that there is no need to keep looking if you aren't going to buy. They just don't know how to shop!

This was such a nice, tall, clean looking palm tree. Some are so messy that I don't like them at all, but this one looked good.
Lots of beautiful blooming flowers......another blog.
I thought the poinsettias decorating the simple black iron rail were so pretty. It was kind of a dark corner, so it's not the best picture, but you get the idea.

Ernie doesn't remember what this was called, but it had chicken in it and was kind of a huge taco thing. He ate every single bite.

BIRTHDAY DAY

Today is the big birthday day for our family, as my dad and two of my grandsons were born on this day. My dad, who has been living with Jesus since 1982, would have been 93 today. I can't believe it's been 25 years since we've celebrated together, but I would not have taken these past 25 years of celebrating with Jesus from him. I miss him and envy him.

Today is also Caleb's birthday. His is 15. Caleb is the spunky redhead we took to Alaska with us last (2006) summer. He, and his brother Jacob, are the sons of our daughter that came to us as a 13 year old. I was present in the delivery room when Caleb was born, and held him when he was just minutes old. He possesses great determination, much energy, and is intelligent and hard working, qualities I admire greatly. And I love his red hair! Caleb is so much fun to be around, and he has many friends. Happy birthday to a special kid. I love you dearly, Caleb.

Ben also has a birthday today, his 10th. He is also a very special kid and I cannot imagine life without him. He has a real sense of humor, is intelligent and fun loving. I fell in love with Ben the minute I first saw him and that love has only grown. I wish there was some way I could zap him out here to San Diego and take him down to the ocean to run and play, and to investigate all the neat things we'd find there. Have mom show you the videos I posted yesterday Ben, and just imagine what it would be like playing down by the waters edge. Wouldn't that be fun? I love you so much, Ben. Hope you have a happy day.

FOR THE GRANDKIDS

This guy was sitting on a garbage can, right in front of our truck. I was carefully trying to walk up to him, but those concrete bars were right in front of me, so I had to slowly shuffle my feet along so I wouldn't trip. He finally decided I was too close, and wasn't giving him any food, so he took off.

CAN YOU HANDLE ONE MORE OF THE OCEAN?

This is at the Tidepools out on Point Loma.

I LOVE THE OCEAN!

This was taken from the pier at Ocean Beach. They are experiencing larger than normal wave action because of all the intense storms in the Pacific and on our Northwest shores. During the night they had much larger waves. We are heading out right now to see what action is out there today, as the weather man said today should be the peak waves.

MOVING DAY

Today is moving day again. We are heading West to one of my favorite cities, San Diego. We hope to secure a spot in a military campground there; if we do, we'll stay awhile.

Hubby has never been to San Diego, so he has a treat coming. And, my niece and her husband and three year old son live there, and I have my sister's permission to spoil her grandkid until I can get back to my own! That will be fun.