Retiring, but not Shy

Jeff is gone

2012-02-16T11:57:00.006-05:00

The funeral home page: http://www.sollevinson.com/notice.php?id=23018

His obituary: http://current.org/obituaries/obit1203jeff-kaye.html

Link to the streaming memorial ceremony: http://memorialstreams.com/ms/sollevinson
Number: 3908
Password: levinson

This is the slideshow our cousin Bradley Kaye created with help from Jackson and Nathan...That's Jeff singing along with his guitar in the background.

Jeff Kaye Slideshow from bradkaye on Vimeo.

"Eye" see you!

2012-02-10T19:03:00.000-05:00

My laser-ing follow-up after cataract surgery 3 months ago was this morning and went well. Dr. Cohen tells me I'll be seeing much better now. Yay. (and the next eye is early March...then I'll be perfect!) :-)

Things have been busy with tax season and all, but there is always time for dancing!
I have a bio on the H & R Block site. (You have to put in my name-Roberta Sallee to find me) Does that make me famous?

Looking for Mr. Groundhog....

2012-02-01T01:02:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe it is already February....Tom was out golfing in 60 degree weather (although we did have cumulative snow of sorts one day in Jan...). Tax season is in peak week and I am working every day in a variety of places (including High Street with Dorothy today).

I'm thinking dancing is in order for tomorrow.......hope I'm not too tired! :-)

Winter rears its (white) head

2012-01-22T03:39:00.000-05:00

Jeff and the boys didn't get here until midnight the Friday of the week-end they headed to Washington, D.C., but we were so glad to see them and had fun that night and Saturday morning too.
(See Photos )

I am busy working at H & R Block, but luckily I had off today(Saturday) for the snow and ice day!
We had to cancel our plans to meet with The Brunch Group, but we'll try again for next Saturday!

I went to the gym for the first time in a long time on the way home from my Contact shift the other day and it was fun to be back. My second round of eye surgery is coming up in Feb. and I hope it fixes all my ills in that regard.

I am looking forward to dancing at Sugarfootin' Sunday later after work.

Shoutout to Margie: Hi! Hope you are having/had fun on your cruise! :-)
(Being retired means never ever knowing what day it is or how much time has passed!)

Kaye family visits-film at 11

2012-01-13T09:48:00.001-05:00

Jeff and the boys are arriving tonight en route to Washington, D. C. They'll be here for a fun night, ice cream for breakfast, and then be on their way to the big city to check out the new school and digs...and mom.

Meanwhile, back at the morning of this fun filled Friday the 13th, I'm looking at Eastampton cards, consumer workshop, and work at HRB til 8. (Speaking of which, I made my first Craigs List "ad" last night!)

Tom has been golfing on these (relatively) warm January days. He's such a sports enthusiast!

On the other hand, the wind is just HOWLING outside my computer room window right now. What's up with that?

HR Block 2012--Day 1

2012-01-03T09:07:00.000-05:00

Tom and I ushered in the New Year happily and merrily.
Now it's time to get to work. I am leaving soon for my first day of work in tax season 2012. I hope we have a great season!
I'll be bouncing between HR Block offices- Sears, Burlington and Liberty Square (also in Burlington). Should be fun!

On another note, we have seen Mission Impossible and Sherlock Holmes. If choosing between the two, I'd recommend the former.

I also saw Hugo and then read the book. Brian Selznick is my new hero.

New Year's Resolutions? What? Oh, well...see Doreen and George, for sure!

Hooray for me!

2011-12-30T04:25:00.000-05:00

Not to brag or anything, but I have taken a lot of classes and learned a lot since last tax season ended and as of today I am officially three certification levels higher than last year. My final test (for Tax Advisor 3) was today. Whoohoo! Bring on tax season.. I am ready!!

December in photos

2011-12-27T18:19:00.000-05:00

I didn't do a very good job of keeping up with all our December adventures, photographically speaking, as we went along, but now all are posted. From the Florida vacation(s) through Jill's Chanukah brunch, Mark and Char's Christmas open house, Prospectors reunion with Janine and Jim, and breakfast with my former fifth grade colleagues. All that and more at TomRo

Now it's the always inspiring week between Christmas and New Year's Eve and Day. Another year draws to a close...What will 2012 bring?

Jersey Boys....yes!

2011-12-22T11:24:00.000-05:00

I finally got to see Jersey Boys (yesterday at the Forrest Theater in Philadelphia) and it was every bit as wonderful as I expected. Tom enjoyed it, too!

You're never far from HR Block

2011-12-15T12:43:00.000-05:00

So you're vacationing in Florida. What's on the itinerary? Sun, water, dancing, golf, tennis, HR Block's 2011 Tax Update class.......... :-)
Many thanks to all my new Tampa, Florida friends...especially Rita Fowler and Tom Osborn.

Seeing Linda

2011-12-12T09:41:00.000-05:00

One of our favorite things to do when we come to Florida is to visit with friends. Linda is coming over at 11 and we can't wait to see her. I think it was March last year and December the year before.........? Anyway, we are so looking forward. Too bad it's not sunny. :-(

Florida!

2011-12-10T19:55:00.000-05:00

Tom and I are en route to The Roundup in Tampa. Looks like we're going to miss the lessons, but at least we'll be dancing. :-)
We had fun with John, Helen, and Bill at the Villages. Tom golfed every day...I joined them for two of the days (oh, I am such a good golfer....not!). Helen gave me some pickleball tips and we line danced with at least fifty people in one of the community centers.
Now we are in Ruskin at Little Harbor which seems very nice and we are looking forward to seeing Linda on Monday.
I wasn't expecting it to be really hot...just a lot warmer than NJ...but it was surprisingly uncomfortably hot while we were golfing on Thursday. There are heated pools here, so I am thinking swimming is not out of the question.

Giving Thanks

2011-11-25T03:54:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving 2011 has come and gone (although chances are we will be revisiting the dinner portion frequently over the next week or so!)

Seeing is believing!

2011-11-13T11:20:00.002-05:00

Ok, first of all, the golf clubs are recovered, so all is well.

I have 20-20 vision now in my de-cataracted eyes and it is so much fun to drive without worrying about "where are my glasses!??" before leaving the house. :-) I love Dr. Cohen and everybody at S. Jersey Wills Eye (especially Gail) were so so nice. Tom, of course, has been a big help with eyedrops and driving and waiting around for me. <3

I took the train to AC for the NJEA Convention. It was somewhat of a dismal day, and I overslept (don't ask who turned off the alarm by accident) so I missed the planned early train. Still, things were fine. I made some new friends and explored some new websites at Tech Hall. It would be nice to have a class to use them with, but I still prefer retirement! :-)

I am reviewing tax info like crazy in preparation for upcoming certification level exams. Wish me luck!

I am looking foward to Sugarfootin' Sunday at Prospectors. I've been staying in to get my eyes healed and all, but I figure even if the kids bump into me, it'll be only like up to my knee, not eyes! LOL

Stolen

2011-11-05T13:42:00.000-04:00

Tom's golf bag...full of clubs and other golf related clothing and goodies... is missing. It was in his car and now it isn't. :-(

Once Upon a Time

2011-10-23T21:17:00.000-04:00

I caught the lst half hour of this new series. Looks interesting. Tom assures me I'll be able to watch the first half hour in a catch up kind of way soon. Ah...the wonders of modern technology!

So today's highlights were documenting the TPAF meeting on my newly revised formerly "DEA Companion" website: http://deawebber.wordpress.com , eating at our favorite place, and dancing at Prospectors. Jeff tried to console me by letting me know they were even sicker today than yesterday, so it was good they didn't come. But ....we will get them here one of these days........

Tomorrow is gym, Eastampton book club, dentist appointment and Contact. I am looking forward to the President's Dinner Wed. night (but I have no poodle skirt......hmm.....if I find something good it could double for Halloween! :-)

I have a feeling Sue is a little shell shocked from website work for the time being, but I hope she likes the webs one I started for her! http://susanmay.webs.com

Some changes in the plan....

2011-10-22T17:57:00.000-04:00

I found out on the way home from the TP&AF meeting that Jeff and family aren't coming after all. We are so sad and disappointed. Hopefully when everyone is feeling better they will give it another try.

Sue and I have totally given up on flavors as a viable website. I made her one on webs.com but although I had fun setting it up and gathering some old photos for it, I found it to be almost as frustrating as flavor. I suppose word press will be the next venue, but ick...that is so complicated and frustrating at times, too. Why can't they all be as easy and fun as my homestead.com (now turned Intuit)? Free vs paid. Maybe. But I can't imagine the same troubles not haunting us for flavor and webs even on the paid versions.....They are just so not WYSIWYG and/or user friendly. I'm talking HOURS! wasted here. Ew ew ew.

On a consoling note, I guess we'll be dancing tonight. Tony and Wanted will be fun at Prospectors. (Dina didn't make it on Thursday, by the way. Another time for her, too, will have to be planned one of these days...) [I hope Jill and Mike have had a wonderful time in London and a safe journey home tomorrow].

What's Up

2011-10-20T06:02:00.000-04:00

We're looking forward to seeing Jeff and the fam this week-end!
Jeff discovered the flavors site and Sue and I have been painfully working our way through trial and error discovery of how best to use it.

On tap for today: a morning HR Block tax class (Advanced Education Benefits) and an evening HR Block class focusing on the NJ state tax return. Then, hopefully, Dina will be joining us at Prospectors!

And the week-end winds down....

2011-10-16T20:20:00.000-04:00

Tom played golf and I went to the gym for our big physical activities today.

Yesterday I had big big fun at the NJEA Communication Tolls Workshop (see my newly revised BCEA website). Also, we hooked up with the Brunch group at The Pub which brought back some fond old memories but we didn't realize what a difference in price these years have caused! Good food, good friends, good time.

Dance update: we were at Prospectors Wed. and Thurs. but never quite made it out for Friday and Saturday was the sold out Joe Nichols concert.

I've been trying to check out free website hosting spots for Sue. Still working on it.

We're so looking forward to the Kayes coming to visit next week-end. Whoohoo!

Tornado on Carolina Beach

2011-10-15T07:53:00.000-04:00

I am getting ready to head out to the long awaited NJEA Communication Tool Workshop. Meanwhile, along with the video of a tornado that crossed a VA highway on Thursday, Oct. 13th I found this video of a terrifying phenomenon on Joanne and Allen's Carolina Beach.

Week-end

2011-10-08T23:12:00.000-04:00

I'm still recuperating from the Arkansas trip....or maybe just sleep deprivation in general.....We had so many choices of what to do tonight we ended up just staying in. Last night at Prospectors was fun and today we ate at our favorite restaurant for dinner. Tomorrow's Sugarfootin' is cancelled because of a private party (how disappointing!), but we have plenty to do to keep us busy!

Our plans for more gym and healthier eating are moving from the planning stages to action very soon. :-) No, really.

Home from Arkansas

2011-10-04T08:39:00.003-04:00

The weather in Arkansas was amazing...hot, sunny, and beautiful.
We really enjoyed the resort time we had.

When it came time to move from the resort to the Reunion Hotel, we were overwhelmed by the amount of "stuff" we had to pack into the car. It was stuffed!

The whole reunion scene was fun and I met so many of Tom's classmates! I took tons of photos and they seemed to appreciate it. I made them a website to share photos of the event: Hot Springs High School Class of 66 on shutterfly.

Sunday after we checked out of there we headed to Stepanie's for Kaelin's birthday party and got to see her family and friends as well as Miriam and Jessica and Matt. I put all of those photos up at Kaelins Party Pictures .

We left about four ish with Nashville as our goal, but fell a bit short and ended up crashing around midnight at a little motel called the Scottish Inn. Our room was quite a-typical. We were flabbergasted, to say the least!

The bed was just the first clue!
We tried out the disco ball/light. Too bad we didn't realize the blacklight was there, too!

We headed out Monday morning and stopped in Nashville to visit Nashville Cowboy for some boot dealings (and had to get ice cream and fudge at Diane's!)

It was a lo..o..o...ng ride home, but we finally pulled in about five a.m.

Fore!!!

2011-09-26T23:05:00.002-04:00

Tom and I played golf at Belvedere today. It was a beautiful day and we had fun, but it was a lot of hills and I did a lot of walking between holes, so I am exhausted! LOL

Hot in Hot Springs

2011-09-26T10:42:00.002-04:00

Yesterday the kids were here at our Hot Springs Resort. The last time we had them here was 2008. What a difference three years makes!

2008

2011

Austin

Tom Linda Austin Tim

Austin and Tim 2011

We played pool, ping pong, tennis, miniature golf, 5000, watched a movie and ate.

They looked a lot different, but interaction between them was similar.

Ethan 2011

Packing, unpacking, packing, unpacking, packing...

2011-09-21T18:17:00.001-04:00

I hate packing and unpacking. That being said, I do like traveling, so I guess it's worth it.
Our September week in Brigantine was ill-timed in terms of weather. We had a few on the beach days, but mostly wet and/or windy and cool. Plus we had to go home twice for my commitments with Eastampton and Contact. Now we've decided to cut the whole thing short by a day or two due to predicted heavy rains and also getting (packed!) ready for the Arkansas reunion trip.

Funny story... (not so) ...the moment we got here, Tom remembered he left the key to the place at home. But we had a plan B, so it may save us from wasting 3 hours going back for the key.

We may or may not stop at a casino. Film at 11.....

Sad to see Sue go

2011-09-16T20:41:00.002-04:00

I took Sue to the train this morning and bid her a fond adieu. We had such a good time while she was here visiting.

Our festivities included dinner at our favorite place, going to see "Contagion", dancing at Prospectors twice, going to the gym, visiting Philadelphia, and working on Sue's blog among other things.

Now Sue is at Jeff's and having a great time there, I'm sure.

We, meanwhile, are just back from our first day at the place in Brigantine. I have the Eastampton Fun Day tomorrow and then some more back and forth stuff (Contact's Golf Event on Tuesday, for example). The place seems very nice. I imagine there will be some visits to Atlantic City while we are there....

Winter now

2011-09-15T23:58:00.000-04:00

Well, that was fast. Yesterday 88 degrees and sunny; tonight 50's (and dark? lol)
Seriously, a cold wave flew in after the rain stopped today while we were having fun with Sue in Philadelphia (South Street and the Italian market). We were freezing on the walk into and out of Prospectors and I am lending Sue my winter coat for her journey to Jeff's tomorrow.

Fun with Sue

2011-09-14T15:24:00.003-04:00

Sue arrived and we are so happy to have her. We did dinner and a movie after the pick up. (Favorite place, yum yum, and Contagion which was thought provoking, if not that realistic).

We went to the gym this morning and then Aldi's for fun and now we are working on her Australia blog. She loves the embedded slide show concept and is going to work on including one or more in her blog.

River line, live and learn

2011-09-10T12:59:00.002-04:00

Our Toby Keith experience yesterday was overshadowed by the big deal of the night....a return trip that ended up lasting from 10:30 when we left the concert early to avoid the mob scene and get the first train out until 12:45 when we pulled into the Prospectors parking lot to hook up with Teri. The problem was, they didn't start the (only one) train home until the show was not only over, but everyone was out (and mostly all out of the parking lots, too....but not enough to keep the roads clear as the train waited in street traffic!!! oy!) We sat outside the Susq. Center for an hour or more. It was air conditioned and comfortable, but still!

Meanwhile, the concert was good and we had fun with the Baums.

Toby Keith

Big Dog Daddy

On the river line

Eric Church-drinking songs

So much rain!

2011-09-06T23:11:00.004-04:00

I was out umbrella-less in the rain today like eight times! (and it was raining hard, too!)I had to drive to Westmont for my HR Block class, then on to Prospectors, then over to the BCEA office, and then finally home. What a day! [We have this intermittently working GPS that makes me crazy, too!)

But enough about me....Today was the first day of school with kids. I hope all went well for my friends and former colleagues. Here's to a happy and successful 2011-2012!

September already!

2011-09-01T09:40:00.000-04:00

Today is the first day of school for Delran teachers. I wish all of them luck and a successful school year. I hope to see some of them...and some of my retired colleagues... for lunch at Otts today (12-2). The annual end of summer Delran get-together has always been a favorite activity of mine.

I started my HR Block classes and had my interview with Michael on Tuesday. It was a beautiful day. While I was sitting on a bench outside the Ellisberg Circle office, I met a lovely woman who has moved here recently from Montana. Emily, and she lives in Mt. Holly. I wonder if I'll ever see her again.

I also stopped in to the dr's office to change my pre op appointment to October since I had to change the dates for my cataract eye surgery (due to Tom's reunion and our time at Brigantine). My glasses are bothering me a lot now, but then, I have a headache, so that doesn't help. (It's probably psychological).

On the sibling front, Jeff and family got home from LA after a daunting series of plane, taxi, bus, and train rides (Irene's aftermath disrupted their original travel plans). Sue is not only working on her blog (yay) (http://www.susanmay.blogspot.com) but is planning to come out for a visit soon (even yay-er!) I don't know what's up with Jenn, but I will keep trying to call.

Home again, home again, jiggedy-jig

2011-08-29T22:30:00.000-04:00

Tom did a masterful job of driving home from South Carolina, and we were happy to find our house intact and none the worse for Irene's wear and tear.

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-27T01:42:00.000-04:00

It sounds really bad for the Northeast. I hope our house is ok when we get home Monday. It's only been rainy and windy here today. We have had the tv on all day and they haven't stopped the coverage for even a minute.

I don't know if the Commans are still vacationing in Cape Cod. I am thinking they may have gotten out, early if necessary. The NY Kayes are stuck in LA having had their Sunday flight cancelled for closure of NY airports noon tomorrow. Joanne and John were heading home to NC while Allen and Judy were evacuating to Raleigh. I hope everyone is okay...

We've had a good time in vacation part 2. The room is smaller, but the view is great and the weather til today was awesome. We saw Doug at Legends and then he and Joanne came over to our beach for awhile the next day. Fun. We went back and rented those Blockbuster movies and have watched all three now. They were good too: The Source Code, Lincoln Lawyer, and Limitless.

Two movies

2011-08-22T00:16:00.001-04:00

Another fun day in Myrtle Beach!
Before heading to the beach/pool for the day (Sunday) we went back to Donny's to pick up my left jacket from Saturday night. We also went to (a still functioning store of) Blockbusters to trade in our mail ordered from NJ movie envelopes. We took some time picking out three we liked only to realize we hadn't brought the trade-in ones. Oh well...another time....
So after we cleaned up from the beach we headed to Carmikes to see The Help--which was really good...better than the book, imo....and then decided to go to another one. We saw Spy Kids (4?). It was entertaining (the "smell cards" were a bust, though).
Tomorrow (aka later today) we need to pack for the big move to Shore Crest I (on the beach side).

Dancing at long last!

2011-08-21T09:01:00.000-04:00

Last night we headed out to Donny's Saloon and enjoyed the lessons and dancing. Jackie and her crowd were there and it was great to see them (although poor Jackie had a leg injury and couldn't dance...maybe next time).
With Tom's h.s. reunion in AR conflicting with the date for my second eye surgery, I don't know what is going to happen with the whole thing. Meanwhile, psychological or otherwise, my eyes seem to be bothering me worse than ever. :-( I'm fine, just was looking (no pun intended) forward to it.
The rest of Saturday was fun, too.... aqua fitness, hot tub, beach....what a life! :-) Oh and I heard from Sue, too. Hope they all had fun at the picnic!

One Day

2011-08-20T03:37:00.001-04:00

Golf today (Friday) was fun. We saw One Day at the movies ( I do not recommend it!)
Yesterday was our first sight of rain, but only in the late afternoon. We went to Captain George for dinner and it was awesome, as usual. Apparently Donny's Saloon is only hosting country dancing on Saturdays (oh, do we miss The Beachwagon!)
We're looking forward to seeing Doug at Legends on, I guess, Tuesday night....

Beach, pool, beach, pool, beach, movie

2011-08-18T01:11:00.003-04:00

Actually, I started the day with the river walk, and then moved into the beach to pool and back pattern. What a beautiful day, weatherwise, and the water was warm and wonderful. (Why can't the Jersey ocean water be this fun and do-able?)
The movie was "The Rising of the Planet of the Apes" and we really liked it! (I forgot to say yesterday we ran into an Eastampton teacher at Fat Harold's. Small world!)
...and once again our burglar alarm went off while we were on vacation. Dang! All appears to be fine, according to the police. (Slomins is great! If anyone reading is interested in using their service, please give our name as recommenders! Thanks!)

Let there be sun and fun!

2011-08-17T01:28:00.002-04:00

We arrived in MB about 3 on the 15th, having left almost 12 hours earlier from NJ. Poor Tom started the trip with a trip (falling at the gas station while I was grabbing a fast cappacino). He did a heroic job driving us down here.

We were pretty zonked Monday. We went to dinner and dealt with a few minor room issues and then caught up on sleep. Tuesday was "the talk", the beach, the Shag lesson (at Fat Harold's) and the movie (Cowboys and Aliens....not impressed and hated the ending....)

And the rains came....

2011-08-15T01:18:00.000-04:00

In another part of the world is coming to an end saga, heavy heavy rains hit South Jersey today and there are places that are totally under water to the point of evacuated. (And did you hear about the stage falling apart and blown on top of the audience at the Indiana State Fair Friday night? )

We are all packed and ready to head down to Myrtle Beach when Tom wakes up. I wonder if the highways are flooded too?

It appears our niece Jessica in AR has started blog. Yay. Now we just need sister Sue (en route home from Australia? already in CA?) to fill us in on what happened during her trip of a lifetime..........

Hope Jenn and Jassy are having fun with the visiting NY Kayes...........

Here's to world peace as well...........

What's worse than not having a car?

2011-08-11T04:06:00.000-04:00

A not so funny thing happened while attempting to get in my car and head to the DKG summer gathering; my car wouldn't start. :-( My wonderful husband Tom "jumped" me, and I was off and running.
Then, on the way to leave, guess what? Dead battery again. ew ew ew....After attempting to handle it in house, I finally called Triple A. I headed to a friend's for a swim and dinner and they had to jump me again to get me to Prospectors to hook up with my golf-playing soul mate. Time to leave Prospectors and.....nope. fooled you...It started right up! Nonetheless, it is new battery shopping for me tomorrow!

So Sue wrote yesterday and sent a photo and future itinerary for the remainder of the trip. They are having a wonderful time in Australia!

From the dentist to the opthamologist

2011-08-05T00:56:00.000-04:00

I didn't get a final affirmation, but it sounds like Sue and her wayward girls were reuniting in Melbourne yesterday.....finally! Throw some shrimp on the barbie, mate!

My teeth are in their best shape in awhile, my eyes not so much....but will(s) be again (pun intended). Just a little scary, but I have the best eye doctor ever, just sayin'......

Side blog re Susan May

2011-08-01T19:56:00.000-04:00

Well, it seems we won't be getting daily blog updates from sister Sue in Oz. It's pretty expensive to get online and access isn't all that forthcoming, not knowing where they are going to be from day to day.

I was happy to get an email from her from her new iphone. They were having fun in Melbourne and Tasmania at that point, but, sadly, they had to leave two kids in Los Angeles. It turns out unbeknownst to niece Zoe, her passport was [wrongly] cancelled. She and thoughtful sister Caitlin had to stay in L.A. for the weekend, awaiting an appointment at the passport place today. They'll be making the 15 hour flight out tonight at 11 p.m. to rejoin their long lost family.

Tom and I are enjoying a quiet barbecue at home on this somewhat rainy, thunder booming in the area day.

It's August!

2011-08-01T04:57:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's August already. That was fast........

No word from Sue via her blog....or anywhere else..yet. I'm sure they are having a great time!

Tom's mom is in the hospital.......in Arkansas........and Doreen is packing for her move to the new house.......
It appears there has been some compromise reached and America won't be defaulting after all....I don't think it's final yet though. What a horrible mess this has been.

I have a busy week ahead......

Aiding and Abetting

2011-07-30T11:13:00.000-04:00

This has nothing to do with gambling, but I bet Sue and her family are going to have a great time in Australia!
It's going to be a little hard to keep track of where they are when, what with the 14 hour ahead time difference and all. If they had a six hour wait in the airport before their 15 hour flight....are they there yet?
Is it Saturday like here or Sunday with the shift? Hmm....too early to think about it.

Anyway, I hope they had/are having a good flight and that Sue gets to see the photo I posted for her....and write something about it! soon.

Meanwhile, we had fun at Prospectors last night and are looking forward to the Blues and BBQ in Mt. Holly today.

Planning ahead

2011-07-28T17:38:00.000-04:00

Tom and I aren't that used to planning things...we are more quite the last minute adventurers, but as of today we have some upcoming vacations planned for the time ahead........Jersey shore, west coast Florida, and oceanfront Myrtle Beach. (Hmm....I see a pattern here....)We also got our tickets for next year's CMA Fest in Nashville (landlocked! Well, except for the river.....)

Talking about traveling.....the Mays are heading to Australia in a couple of days and I am so excited for them! We can all follow along because Sue will be blogging on her new site, currently in the emerging stage.

We have been to the movies.....Harry, of course, and, more recently Captain America (not bad) and Transformers 3 (not the best of the lot,but it was air conditioned in the critical time when we lost our electricity in a storm). We have Blockbuster cd's pouring in and Netflix, too.

It's hard to believe July is almost over. Time just flies and flies now....kinda scary.....

Hi, Sue!

2011-07-20T13:06:00.000-04:00

My sister is going to Australia and I hope she creates a blog so I can follow along on her trip! (Hi, Sue!)

I am running out the door, but we survived the Jamboree and it was great! Film at 11.

Jamboree in the HIlls!

2011-07-12T02:54:00.000-04:00

We had a successful adventure at the airport and Tom's mom arrived safely in Texas. Now we have a whole day to get ready for our annual honeymoon country-music-on-the-mountain style in Ohio! (and the last Harry Potter movie will be out on Friday!)

July!

2011-07-07T10:41:00.002-04:00

I'm heading up to New Brunswick today to meet Gee Gee for lunch. Tom's mom will be heading out to Texas Monday night and we'll be gearing up for the Jamboree in the Hills (sadly, without Dor and George this year).

Jennifer isn't coming to NJ after all, but Sue might. Tom doesn't have gout, so what is causing his distress? I signed up for a gazillion tax classes for the fall (love those classes!) and I am looking forward to talking to our NEA delegates about what went on in Chicago. The Mays are going to Australia! (Wow! How fun!) Hopefully we'll be able to share some Seaside fun with the NY Kayes (when they get back to America, that is!) :-)

I'm thinking healing thoughts for my sister out-law, Ann, and birthday greetings to the July babies...Jeff, Jackson, and Harlan.

Woe is NJ. :-(

80 is a good age

2011-06-18T20:02:00.000-04:00

Today we went to Pat Hummell's 80th birthday party. It was a surprise for her from her children. She looks great and a good time was had by all! https://picasaweb.google.com/rosallee/Pats80thBirthdayParty#

In a fit of catch up time, we attended and enjoyed the XTU concert on June 4th , and then drove down to Nashville for our third annual CMA Music Fest. It was REALLY HOT! but we had a great time. As many or more stars playing than ever. Highlights for me other than wonderful performances included meeting Kerry Edees, lunching with Sage Keffer, bumping into fellow Prospectors dancers, dancing at the Wildhorse, and hooking up with Kim Carnevale (formerly of NJ, now living in TN).
https://picasaweb.google.com/rosallee/CMAFest2011

On the way home from Nashville we stopped at Amy' s and picked up Tom's mom (who is 82, speaking of octogenarians...) The Goffs are moving to Ft. Hood and needed some alone time.

I've been rallying in Trenton and will continue to do so. Legislation looms which would be incredibly detrimental to public sector pension and benefits here in NJ.

Early Monday morning is Delran's Retirement Brunch and I am going to be in attendance. (and then head on up to Trenton .....)

Hard to believe another school year is over (5th without me....no problem!!! (except I don't know anybody anymore :-( ). I'll bet everyone was ready for a vacation!

June is bustin' out........!

2011-06-01T10:08:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I attended the Eastampton walking club. Then I zoomed down to Medford for an XTU X-stop for a pair of tickets to the concert (who knew there was an Ott's that wasn't in Delran???) and bumped into an old friend from dancing named Bernie and her husband Skip (they both won tickets after I sat with them, too!)
After that I met up with Tom at our gym. (I started reading The Notebook there. Raise your hand if you LOVED that movie!!!)

Today's agenda includes a bunch of errands before I head out to the Community Resource Fair. I hope it is as interesting and informative as the Virtua lecture on herbal supplements was last week.

Raphael's dad picking up info!

Me with Mary and Deb from Riverview Estates

The Senior Expo on the 25th was packed and I met some new friends there.

Memorial Day Week-end

2011-05-30T01:18:00.001-04:00

Today we had brunch with the group at Prospectors. It was really great to see everyone after all this time. (I've missed the last two for one reason or another. :-(

I loved the Eastampton Memorial Day Celebration at the Manor House. I really think more people would have been there if they knew about it.......

Gee Gee and I met for lunch in New Brunswick at a posh restaurant in a hotel. The restaurant part was called Christophers. It was across from the State Theater. Great buffet!!!

I was the official photographer for the First Annual Contact Wine Tasting and Food Pairing Event. It was delightful.

We went to the Randy Montana concert at Prospectors.

Randy Montana and me

I've been to a number of XTU ticket runs and I think we're good to go. I hope it's a sunny lovely day....And the good news is it looks like Dina is going to join us this year. :-)

We are really looking forward to this year's Fan Fair in Nashville!

Food for thought

2011-05-11T02:18:00.001-04:00

I've been eating up a storm these last few days, but it's not my fault! I have to blame it on BCEA for The Merion's amazing pre dinner array of food and prime rib dinner, BCREA for the prime rib lunch, and my fellow DKG members for the sumptuous "pot luck".
The events were the Legislative Dinner (Wendell's speech was powerful and inspiring: Unity!!! and Diane Allen, Jack Conners (who is retiring :-( , and Herb Conaway were there to try and answer some big questions we have about what's going on; the BCREA Spring Meeting/Luncheon (Brian Baker stole the show at this one with his "the good, the bad, and the ugly" of what's going on in NJ politically; and the last DKG meeting of the year at Vickie's- the highlight of which was Charlotte's initiation.

Tomorrow's another ticket run for XTU...wish me luck! (At least they won't try and stuff me with food, eh?)

May 2, 2011

2011-05-03T05:29:00.000-04:00

I heard about bin Laden's death first on Facebook, as reactions to the announcement burst forth in excited jubilation. It took ten years, but it's done. I hope this is the beginning of the end.

On a happier note, May 2nd was also the 21st birthday of the second May child, Zoe. How exciting! I remember when she was born, and now she is all grown up. :-)

We are in Myrtle Beach enjoying the sun. We met some new friends on the golf course yesterday. It turns out they live right by the Jamboree Hills site in Ohio, so we are going to check in with them while we're out there this summer. (Ah, the Kevin Bacon six degrees lives on!).

What a day!

2011-04-28T10:36:00.000-04:00

Yesterday on the way home in the morning I stopped at the gym. While I was in the parking lot getting a book out of my trunk, I heard a huge crashy sound. When I looked up I saw what appeared to be a car out of control, hitting a curb, flying through the air, and eventually stopping in an adjacent parking lot area.
Long story short, a girl named Michelle was coming to the gym, too, but her brakes failed, just as she was turning in. (6 mos. old used car she'd purchased at Car Sense). I waited with her through police report and Triple A drive by guys and hope she'll be ok.
Moral: I am going to the Chevy place today for an annoying dashboard noise check-up, aka always investigate car issues you think might be harmful in the future.

Ok so then I went home and slept a few hours.
It was XTU ticket stop day at Lincoln Tech in Moorestown, so I went and was like the 14th person to win. (lawn seats)
On the way home I (finally!) went to Borders with my overabundance of gift cards and was delighted to discover that they were still viable. That was the good part.

The bad part was after I had my purchases, I put them on a table in the cafe, bought a delicious vanilla cinnamon coffee and promptly spilled it all over me, the table, and my yet unpaid for items. Not a happy scene. :-(

Later, Tom and I went to the school to vote for the school budget (The budgets were approved in Eastampton and Delran. Yay!) and then went dancing at Prospectors.

Vacation time

2011-04-28T10:23:00.000-04:00

Before I talk about the next vacation, here's a slide show version of our last one...Florida in March 2011

A Visit with the Kayes

2011-04-24T22:34:00.001-04:00

We got to celebrate Easter with not only chocolate bunnies, jellybeans, and peeps, but Jeff, Alex, Nathan, and Jackson as well.

Yes, the NY Kayes were here and we were so happy to have them!

Gee Gee!

2011-04-19T18:01:00.001-04:00

Gee Gee and I met for lunch on this cold, rainy April day at the River Road Tavern.

Gee Gee was astonished at the fact that it was exactly the same as she remembered from when she was nine years old and there with her grandfather.
We had a great time eating and catching up and then taking a fast driving tour around old neighborhoods, remembering childhood friends of yesteryear.

Tax season is now a thing of the past and we are looking forward to seeing Jeff and family and taking some vacation time.

It's beginning to look..........

2011-04-12T16:39:00.000-04:00

Tax season 2011 is so almost over! It will be fun to have free time and act like a real retired person again!

Tom's birthday is the 18th, which, coincidentally, is the last day to file the 2010 tax returns this year (a little more time than usual). So we are going to really celebrate big time!!!

The biggest news of late has been the recent week-end trip to York, PA for former fifth grader of mine, Debbie's, wedding.
We had fun with the DiPillas and then left for Carlisle, PA where we finally got to visit the Goffs (before they move out again...this time to Texas) and see Tom's mom (currently in the hospital there).

Gas prices are flying through the roof ...just in time for all our spring/summer traveling.....speaking of which, the good news is Dor and George may be coming out to Jamboree in the Hills with us after all! Yay!

Tonight I am hoping to learn a new dance at Prospectors (and if I'm lucky, Tom can come too, before bowling tonight).
But the big question is.....when is the next Brunch Group get-together???

Elections and more

2011-04-03T17:51:00.003-04:00

I called my old friend and BCEA fellow officer, Joanne Sanferraro, yesterday as I was filling out my ballot for the NJREA election. It turns out she is running for a position on the Marlton School Board. She would be great! I recommend making an effort to get out and vote for Joanne on April 27!

Last week-end I travelled to Somerset, NJ (twice!) to attend the DKG State Convention. It was really great and I have lots of photos to remember it by http://dkgsigma.shutterfly.com

While I was up in the "rendezvous with Gee Gee" area, I did! She looks good and I was happy to see her after this winter's travel and injury woes that kept us apart temporarily. March was our mutual birthday month. (Hey, we're just getting better, ok?)

Saturday I did a walkabout of sorts with the Eastampton Rec Committee. The only park I knew of ours after all these years of living here was Buttonwood where they always had the Eastampton Fun Day. Now I know two more! And maybe we will get some more and varied use from the farther away from me ones...like a skateboard area and roller hockey........and additional parking for the soccer fans!

Tonight's country awards show are the ACM's. Razz is there. Someone at Prospectors asked me why I wasn't in Las Vegas. Ha ha. (But it would have been awesome!)

Tom's birthday (and the last day of tax season) is coming up April 18th. It's time to celebrate and party!!!

Did someone say snow???

2011-03-23T10:37:00.000-04:00

Well, it isn't snowing, but it is raining and cold and kinda overall miserable out...
So yesterday I ran into a big stereotype come true at the oil change place I went to. They told me (a woman...this is the stereotype part) that I needed brakes...badly... and the charge they quoted was 500 dollars (front brakes only). So I said ok. (!!!) But then I cleverly called Tom and got out of it and now I am waiting to hear from the Chevy place where we took the car this morning. It is going to be like 300 max.
So what do you think of that?

I am continuing with H&R Block work...but not at such a frantic pace as earlier in the season.

The DKG convention is this week-end and I'm hoping to hook up with Gee Gee too. It's been too long!

Movie recommendation: the Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston funny one called...I think...Just Go With It. We laughed and enjoyed it in FL.

Florida March 2011

2011-03-12T14:39:00.001-05:00

I put some photos of our Florida trip on the Sallee myfamily.com website. Click the link to see them! :-)

Florida March 2011

Watching the world news

2011-03-11T16:45:00.001-05:00

Big earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Big flooding in CT and North Jersey. Big snowstorm in Ohio and the midwest. Tornado watches in Arkansas and elsewhere. Political underhandedness in WI..attacks on unions nationwide...collective bargaining hard hit....FL attempts to kill tenure; teacher success tied to student test scores...merit pay...oil prices soar...stock market dives...Charlie Sheen goes crazy and Ghadafi at war....

Meanwhile, Tom and I are enjoying our Florida mid tax season vacation in Florida.
After leaving Orlando we headed out for a fast visit with Wilma and Harry and then continued on to Miami. (We invited them to come down and stay with us, but it didn't work out this time...) We had some very nice weather for the beach and pool and jacuzzi and also really enjoyed driving up to Davie for dancing (and a Justin Moore concert!) at the Round Up.
(Well, we did have one panicky moment of on the highway and running out of gas...but all was ok....in part due to a brave four lane transverse course to the Mobil station!)

We chose a Nook for our electronic reader of choice (Happy birthday to me!) and so far it is working out great for beach reading!

Tomorrow we check out and head back to Orlando...with visions of Linda and Bob dancing in our heads. (Linda is in Lakeland now...) Who knows...we may even hit up one of the Orlando attractions one day before we head home. Another possibility is using the (Bluegreen) Fountain resort facilities as not actually staying there owners....

Give me a V....!

2011-03-03T17:27:00.000-05:00

Len's house is gorgeous! I feel like we're living on a movie set for House Beautiful!
We talked to Linda on the way home from food shopping and have tentative plans for sometime between the 12th and 16th. Wilma is going to call when she gets home tonight so we can coordinate calendars with her.
So it was like 11 degrees in Mt. Holly this morning? Oy! Good timing!

Warm weather at last!

2011-02-18T07:48:00.000-05:00

Rumor has it today the temperature may be as high as 71 degrees! Tom is going golfing (of course!) and very happy.

Yesterday was warmer than it's been too. I went out with Chris on one of her smoke breaks just so I could enjoy the outside air! (well, there was some smoke, too, but the experience was worth the drawback!)

I have been so so busy with hours at HR Block, my online time for the computer has been severely diminished....it's like withdrawal...painful when I think about it.

I get to go in an hour later than usual today, and neither office scheduled me for Saturday so hooray! A day off!

I threw a Contact overnight into the mix. Bad idea. I mean, I'm glad I had a chance to help out, but it really wiped me out for the next two days (as usual, but this time I had to work those days, not just recover!) Oh, well, I'm pretty caught up now.

I'm looking forward to March :-)

No shadow for Phil this year

2011-02-03T07:50:00.000-05:00

Early spring in sight? Hard to tell right now, but at least this week's weather incident wasn't snow accumulative...or even that much ice...not while I was out and driving around afterward, anyway....

Not much new is happening....I am working in my two HR Block offices a lot of hours and then I come home really tired (especially if I meet Tom for dancing at Prospectors on the way home first!) I've met some really nice people.

I still am getting a lot of family news via Facebook and enjoy the regular updates, indirect though they may be! (e.g. Sarah home from China and heading to AR with Mary Grace to visit Hannah and Isaac and Gina and Cait heading to NYC).

If I get some sleep first, we may be able to hit the gym before I head out to work this afternoon.

Time flies when you're having fun!

2011-01-26T08:11:00.000-05:00

My faithful reader, Margie, reminds me that I haven't been very blog faithful. Has it really been a month? Wow.
Okay so currently it is snowing out (millionth time this winter....ok...more like once a week since mid December....)and my adventure will be driving to Sears to work at the HR Block office there today.

One reason I have been so off my blog routine is tax season. It's been a big adjustment for retired old me to be back in a work scenario. I like it, but it tires me out (not tired enough to skip dancing though....especially since we were picked for Prospectors King and Queen and are lucky to get in for free all year! Whoo hoo!)

I also try and make time to play online Scrabble with the aforementioned Margie (hi, Margie! How are you feeling?) who is currently home (and NOT working...omg we have switched lives!)recuperating from two of three total surgeries this season....
and also my sister Jennifer in CA. I love playing with these oh so worthy opponents!

Remember my friend from fifth grade...Gee Gee Otto...that I've been meeting for lunch and stuff monthly since we re-connected the end of last year? She fell in the snow and broke her wrist right after Christmas while walking the dog in the poorly plowed Westfield neighborhood. :-( She is not having a lucky year so far, for sure. And we weren't able to get together this month between that, the snow, and my job. But I have high hopes for next month!

In the watch your bank dept, I'd like to mention that some place in CA cashed a birthday check I'd sent my nephew over a year ago (which had been misplaced and replaced since) and TD bank here approved it. (What ever happened to the 6 months or void rule???) Just sayin'.....

I'm thinking the Dessert Show this year that the Bridgeplayers are performing...Gypsy....will be another winner and I am looking forward to attending this February.

The monthly brunch group met for dinner recently (Saturday night)at Maggianos in Cherry Hill. We ordered (way too much food!) family style (remember Buca's?)and it was delicious! We had a great time! (reality check...and don't be shocked...I told Tom I would have had to work at HR Block 11 hours to pay for our dinner...isn't that kinda sad?)

And on that note...I'm heading downstairs to evaluate the getting ready for work scenario....

Have a great day, Margie, and I'll Scrabble with you later...is it a date?

Christmas with the Kayes in Pelham

2010-12-26T23:58:00.000-05:00

It only took us an hour and a half to get to Jeff's. (Apparently it sometimes takes that long just to get across the George Washington Bridge, but this must have been the lowest traffic time of the week-end!)

We found their house with no trouble and it was a great house!

We had snacks and games and music and then Millie and her crowd came and we had more fun and dinner and called Jennifer to touch base with the other half of the family on the West coast of America.

A good time was had by all!

We had a bit more traffic on the way home, but no snow.

Today, on the other hand, it started snowing at 11 a.m. and never stopped. NJ is a disaster area and there was no football game and no Sugarfootin' Sunday dancing. Boo hoo. We were cozy and comfy indoors, though, and had a lovely Boxing Day!
(I even got to play Scrabble with Jennifer....online!)

It's beginning to look..........

2010-12-18T17:49:00.000-05:00

We will be heading out to the Prospectors Christmas party soon. I'd love to stop in and say hi (and take photos!) of the DIS crew at Lisa's too, if that works out.

Tom and I saw Tangled in 3-D today. It was cute.

I was happy to see Gee Gee the other day. I'm pretty sure I liked the movie (Burlesque) a bit better than she did, but it was great to see her, as always.

The Goffs are all heading for PA; I hope we will have a chance to visit them. We are also looking forward to being with Jeff and family!

The less than one inch of ice fall the other night created such a traffic nightmare. Poor Tom was heading to bowling and he called to give me a minute by minute accounting...for hours! Then, right he before he got there, it was canceled! So I met him at Prospectors instead and danced the night away!

We danced there last night, too, and it was a lot more populated! :-)

Fun at the Burlington County Library

2010-12-14T12:37:00.000-05:00

Today I went to the Burlington County library for a refresher on Power Point presentation creation. It was fun and Joan Divor did a great job.
After the class Joan and I discussed some other things and in the process I made this really neat wordle from my delicious tag

Year's end approacheth

2010-12-13T12:52:00.000-05:00

So yesterday I spent all day working on the family assortment book on shutterfly. (Major project thrust upon me suddenly.) It was fun sorting through all my old photos, though.

I missed Sugarfootin and I missed my window of opportunity to stop by Vicki's show :-( but I did get to the BCEA Officers dinner in Burlington City and had a great time.

I have been eating a lot! and it's time to meet Vicki and Sky at the gym to try and work some of the delicious holiday meal producing calories off!

Family Assortment

2010-12-12T15:59:00.001-05:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

December already!

2010-12-05T18:03:00.000-05:00

Just checking in.....
Happy birthday to Jassy......
Yesterday I officially started my tax (pre) season with H&R Block helping people get Emerald Advances at the Lumberton office. We were quite busy, to say the least!
Friday night I won a pair of tickets to the New Years Eve party at Prospectors, so I am still on that lucky streak (where's the nearest lottery ticket selling store???)
I went to DIS to gather up checks from my former colleagues who wanted to attend the BCEA Holiday social on Tuesday. And then I left my camera there, so I had to go back and get it on Friday to be able to take pictures of the decorated Manor House for Louise. Next was our Friday pinochle game at the Rec Building. Then the Tree Lighting was that night. Very nice, but cold. Throw in a haircut before and dancing afterward and that was a pretty busy day!
Oh, and not to forget the brunch group's get together today at Prospectors. (and I picked up new movies at Blockbusters and got gas).
Hmm...I'm starting to sound like some Facebook people I know....LOL!
Looking forward to the social and lunch with Gee Gee and Megan's Open House among other things this month!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-21T16:06:00.000-05:00

I am so thankful for my wonderful husband, Tom, and our life together!

We had a fun week-end catching up with Fringe, dancing, enjoying the new Harry Potter movie (I knew it was only the first half, but it was still disappointing to have it end right in the middle of the story!), and eating with The Brunch Group at Little Marrakesh in Dresher, PA You know how you never leave an Atlantic City casino with any quarters? Well, when we left this Moroccan eatery, none of us had any dollar bills left!!! The seven course meal was tasty and filling and the belly dancing was quite entertaining!

This is going to be a busy week with HR Block training and Contact In-services and Eastampton Book Club along with the big holiday. (I thought I'd never want to eat again after all that food last night, but apparently that isn't how it works...)

We're going over to Kristen's later to buy her bookcases and a microwave. This is step one in organizing my "stuff". My fingers are crossed!

More publicity

2010-11-17T16:29:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Lindsey and Rose there is an article about our Nashville adventure in today's Burlington County Times. Here's what it looked like online (well, the printed version of it) SALLEES IN NASHVILLE

We were just watching our recording of the show and took this photo from the TV so you can get an idea of where we were sitting. (It's the yellow splotch!)

After we got home, I attended the H&R Block orientation for this season on Saturday and then had lunch with Gee Gee on Sunday.

I had fun at the Zumba class at the Eastampton Community School
Monday night, too.

Slide show of CMA trip to Nashville

2010-11-13T02:46:00.000-05:00

Trip to the CMA Awards in Nashville

2010-11-11T21:48:00.002-05:00

We are home now. What a fun trip! The funny part is we were interviewed and three people came up to us to congratulate us because they recognized us from being on television (Channel 2, the Nashville ABC affiliate). You can see our interview .
We flew in on Tuesday, Nov. 9th, stayed at The Renaissance Hotel, did the Nashville tourist routine :-) , went to a private show with Josh Thompson and Montgomery Gentry performances, got interviewed by tv folk twice, went to the CMA Awards show and post party and then flew home today. It was so much fun! Many thanks to Greased Lightning and CMA for this fabulous gift!

We saw the Josh Thompson/Montgomery Gentry private acoustic performances at the Ford Theater in the Hall of Fame Museum. They were great!

Legends was just one of the famous
Broadway honky tonks we visited. One group we really enjoyed
watching there Tuesday night was Barefoot Renegades.

After reading that Razz had eaten
at The Palm, we checked it out and
had a delicious lunch.

We passed the Ryman
many a time.

Our second interview was here

We got a tip from Jerry about Dierks' sound check
the day before his GMA appearance.

Our seats at the CMA Awards show afforded us an interesting perspective of some behind the scenes set-ups as well as the performances themselves.

The after party was very cool with great food!

Raining and cold; welcome to winter :-(

2010-11-05T10:24:00.001-04:00

I attended the DEA wordpress workshop on Monday. It was interesting and I am now on contributor mode for the DEA website.
I met Vickie at the gym Wednesday (fun!) and baked cookies for and attended the Eastampton Rec Building Open House (disappointing turnout, but the people that came were great and potential Committee members/helpers).
Yesterday I went to the NJEA Convention (by train for the day). It was rainy and cold on the way, but I had fun when I got there. I mostly hung at the huge technology area they had set up. I learned about thinkfinity and glogster among other things and I a set of headphones with microphone as a gift for attending some of the sessions (thank you, Verizon Foundation!).
I didn't see a lot of people from Delran on the convention floor, but I saw more at the BCEA Hospitality reception (which had really good food!)
On the way home from the train station I pulled in to the Prospectors parking lot (if I'd gone home, I'd never have gotten back out again; trust me!) I had fun dancing (Tom came, too, after bowling) and really enjoyed a special group that played onstage for us- Thompson Square. (We may see them again in Nashville this week!)

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T22:09:00.000-04:00

The itinerary came for our Nashville trip and it sounds like so much fun. Something I didn't know we were included in is a private acoustic performance event with Montgomery Gentry and Josh Thompson. Very cool.

I just went through three other (old) blogs I have on blogger....so interesting to see what I was doing and caring about in those days. I added to all of them today, of course! One, two, three....if you want to look!

Too bad I finished all the candy corn :-(

Tomorrow is meet Vickie and the gym and later attend the (second try!) DEA workshop on using WordPress for a website. I tried one: http://www.deawebber.wordpress.com
Hopefully, it will be much improved after I learn everything I need to know tomorrow! :-)

Lots going on....

2010-10-28T03:13:00.000-04:00

Marge Gessmann was so surprised to get the Jim McAndrew Local President award. She so deserves it! I was happy to be there and see her well deserved recognition.

I hate my cell phone! It makes enough inexplicable noise other times. Why doesn't it keep me posted when I have voice mail? I missed playing with Wilma today because of it...and missed a potential meeting with Louise too. (Twice now!) Grrrr.....

In the last few days I have had lunch with Wilma and friends at Marcia's (very nice), attended the HR Block PTIN sign up with IRS session, manned the BCEA office, worked on the BCEA website, attended the TP& AF meeting in East Windsor, went to the memorial service for Tania, went on a Fall Foliage (and bird watching) walk in Smithville Park, took photos at and participated in the BCEA Presidents Dinner, and danced at Prospectors....among other things.....

Later today I'll be making political phone calls at the BCEA office, meeting with Louise (finally!), possibly seeing Joanne on her way up to her Mom's ( or maybe on her way back home...), and more. But now sleep sounds good.

It gets better

2010-10-24T11:23:00.001-04:00

I just watched Joel Burns on You Tube What a powerful message. Children are committing suicide. The bullying and harassment in schools has to stop. It gets better, Joel says. Allow the time to let it.

Today is the memorial service for Tania Reath. I am planning to go over earlier than the starting time of 3, in case there is anything I can do to help. I have some photos on my computer if they want to display them....

Yesterday's TP&AF meeting (pension fund) was pretty sad. The Director wasn't there to answer questions and our concerns about the pension fund being sued by the SEC and also reports of it being out of money by 2019 also remained unanswered. Martha was officially voted in on the board (although she's been in the position since last Jan). It lasted just under an hour and it seemed somewhat pointless for us to be there--but I was happy to see some friends I hadn't seen in awhile, and the cookies were good.........

We saw "Flynnville Train" at Prospectors last night. They were really good! Tom and I danced the whole time and the sound system they had hooked up was amazing.

The Bonfire/Hayride Rec Committee activity in Eastampton Friday night was awesome! So many people were there! We sold the rides and a lot of flashy things. There was a pumpkin contest and good music and fire! (There were two fires, actually...a big bonfire and a little one for toasting marshmallows). I took pictures, of course! http://multiply.com/slideshow/eastampton:photos:16

Lots of fun!

2010-10-10T10:06:00.000-04:00

It's Dina's birthday and I send her good wishes and hope this is her best year ever!

At Harvest Diner

Yesterday Tom was in a bowling tournament in New Brunswick, so GeeGee and I changed our lunch plans and watched Tom bowl instead. It was the first time they met and we all had fun. (Tom's best game was a 279! Awesome!)

It was Witches Ball night in Mt. Holly and Vickie was covering the Home Fine Arts Gallery, so I drove around for 20 minutes to find parking and then walked in to visit her

before I headed out to Marissa's play with the Bridgeplayers.
When I walked into the theater I was happily surprised to find Dan, the DIS computer teacher in the audience! Then, two seats down, I found Debbie Light! So I got to watch Marissa's great performance in the company of good friends. Interestingly enough, it turns out some of the cast, crew, and friends were dancing at Prospectors Wednesday with us! Small world!

Our current household crisis is with Comcast not coming out until Tuesday to fix the DVR's. Tom is inconsolable (and had to stay home to watch the games since he can't "tape" them).

My plan for the day includes Sugarfootin' at Prospectors. I'm looking forward to NYC with Sue, Jeff, and the boys tomorrow and a week filled with tax classes, exercise, dancing, and fun! Oh, and the BCREA Fall lunch/meeting is this week, too! (and remind me to return some library books......)

Busy times

2010-10-07T02:56:00.001-04:00

We joined another gym today...and tested it out after a night of dancing at Prospectors! It was fun and we look forward to being in good shape!

I've been taking a myriad of tax classes with H&R Block (love them! :-) and Tom has three bowling leagues going as well as some tournaments interspersed here and there....

I'm looking forward to lunch with Gee Gee Saturday, and hanging out with Sue and Jeff (and the boys) in New York City Monday.

I am using my in car travel time to good purpose as I listen to the audio tape of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It's an amazing story. I have a bunch of books I'm reading with my eyes, too!

Tom and I finished the last season of Lost this week. I miss it.We did the whole six seasons worth of DVD's in a row. It was great not having to wait a week after each cliff hanger ending like people who actually followed it while it was airing originally had to. It was confusing, but we loved it.

Busy day!

2010-09-23T09:00:00.000-04:00

Call me a procrastinator...In 20 minutes I have to leave for my current HR Block class and a filled dance card, as it were..... That's the start of a 12 hour-filled day including volunteer work, book club, and an in-service, as well as the aforementioned class. Whew! I hope Tom remembers me by the time I get home tonight!

We had fun at Prospectors last night! I'm looking forward to Eron's Ren Fair, Delran Day, Sugarfootin' Sunday, more tax classes, lunch with Gee Gee, Sue's visit in NYC, visiting DIS one of these days (photo ops!), lunch with Suzanne sometime, and.....oops! Gotta run!

overdoing the opening?

2010-09-13T01:56:00.002-04:00

I went to Sugarfootin' Sunday at Prospectors today. That made it five days of dancing in a row! I am glad my favorite dancing place is back and I think they did a good job, overall, with the renovations.

Today we also went to Cleopatra, the exhibit, currently at Franklin Institute, with The Brunch Group. Awesome! (And I bumped into Suzanne Brooks! :-) What a great surprise! I haven't seen her in such a long time!

Soda? Pop? Where do you live?

2010-09-08T11:34:00.001-04:00

I remember when Tony moved to Indiana and had a heated discussion with people there regarding the soda vs pop term for carbonated beverages. Of course, there's no right or wrong answer (and according to this fascinating map compilation of date, we of the soda bent are in the minority...) but he really raised their hackles by querying at a bar, "Well do they call the drink "Scotch and pop"?
Here's the map! http://popvssoda.com:2998/countystats/total-county.html Wow, eh? (and kudos to the folks who researched it!)

Patty and Kathryn

I believe we are heading to the beach soon...........Yesterday was really the first day of school (with kids) but I was tied up (Capital Assets class in Delran, stopped by DIS for a fast hello and a few 1st day pics,

Jason in my old classroom

Cindy, hard at work

stopped by BCEA to update the website more, ran to kickboxing class with Daryl....) but we need to be back for tonight at Prospectors. They're letting us on the dance floor at last!!! (and Teri Nickerson just called and she'll be there, too! Whoo hoo!)

Just Scrabbling Around..........

2010-09-06T10:29:00.000-04:00

I'm hoping to hook up with Margie today for some Scrabble fun.

Standing outside Macy's

Meeting up with Sue and Kym in NYC was big big fun! I hope the rest of Kym's USA adventure is going well!

Tom and I were headed to Brigantine to celebrate the first day of school this year, but en route we saw people having fun on the beach at Atsion Recreation, so we went there instead. Nice find!

Meeting online friends

2010-09-02T02:16:00.000-04:00

I'm taking the train to NYC for lunch with Sue and our first time in America Australian friend from megalottso, Kym. How exciting!

I was very happy to see my Delran friends for the Ott's get-together and hope we can do it ....or something like it...again soon. (Number one reason some could not attend: babysitting grandchildren! Hmmm.....)

Tom and I ended up at Atsion for our first "First Day of School Trip to...." instead of Seaside, or our actual original destination, Brigantine. (Can you say cedar water?) It was a nice find; too bad they are closing for the season on the 6th.

Oh, guess what? We're going to the CMA Awards show in Nashville in November, courtesy of Greased Lightning. They called today to tell me we were picked! Whoo hoo!

Getting together

2010-08-16T02:50:00.000-04:00

One fun part of summer is getting together with people. Since the Brunch Group eating at the Cheesecake Factory, I've met Linda for lunch in Lambertville, Gee Gee for lunch in Highland Park, danced at Michael's and Parx, made boxes with the DKG sisters, and I'm going to be visiting an online friend from Australia when she vacations in NYC later this month, and we're trying to get a big bunch of Delran folk together for lunch at Otts before school starts up again! :-)

....and the living is easy.................

2010-08-09T04:10:00.000-04:00

Happy birthday (yesterday) to my sister Sue....who will never be quite as old as I....

It was good to see the Brunch group and catch up on all the news and events. I liked my lettuce wrap at the Cheesecake Factory....not all of our company were as lucky........but it all worked out. We made plans for Cleopatra and a show and Marrakesh for some future dates...

We have seen plenty o' movies in the last month or so....and had big big fun at the Jamboree in the Hills and in Myrtle Beach (love that warm water!)

Randi and Greg's annual pig roast was the usual fun time....and it was great to have a dance floor (did I mention they closed the Beachwagon down in Myrtle Beach? Boo hoo!)(But we did go to Fat Harold's for some shag lessons..and history of the dance....)

My August calendar is filling up quickly. The good news about being retired is August isn't like the end of the world (read that...summer vacation) anymore. :-)

Who has the best husband in the world? Me!!! <3

Hooray for Slomins

2010-07-31T17:48:00.000-04:00

So there we were in the movies and the phone rang and it was Slomins (Home Security System) letting us know the police were checking our house after the alarm went off. Everything seemed to be fine and it is now reset...but hopefully the bad guys (?!) got scared and ran and won't be back.
Hooray for Slomins and if you don't have a security system in your house and want one, I recommend them highly (and if you decide to go with them, please say Roberta and Tom Sallee sent you, so we get some kickback credit! Thanks! :-)

We have been having lots of summer fun with our friends at the beach and golf and movies and dancing!

Summertime and the living is...........hot!

2010-07-08T14:45:00.002-04:00

Post Fourth of July...and didn't that used to mean summer vacation was on the downside? Of course it's always vacation time now (sorta...)!

So....Margie's party was great, as always. I just realized we drove off with her Scrabble game so I really have a great excuse now to get back there and play!

I met GeeGee Otto for lunch in New Brunswick and had big big fun! I'm going to see her again in August and Linda (Kepnach) Price is coming to NJ in August, too, and we are making plans as well. :-)

We did a quick turnaround drive to Baltimore airport yesterday to pick up Tom's mother for a visit. Then we spent four hours on the internet and phone trying to work out a plan to get her wheelchair fixed.

Prospectors is closed for summer renovations. We headed to Parx Casino Tuesday to enjoy Cowboy Kenn and NicoleLineDancing at their new venue for music and dancing. Big crowd! It was fun seeing a lot of familiar faces from yesteryear (as well as yesterweek! lol)

We were disappointed to miss George and Dor while they were in NJ. Turned out we independently enjoyed 4th of July week-end fireworks, but we look forward to seeing them soon at Jambo.

It has been extraordinarily hot this summer (and spring, too) this year so far.(Is the world more and more like a disaster movie, or is it just me noticing all the weather extremes, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, oil gushes, and accidents?)

Happy 70th birthday, Ringo Starr!

Four years and counting.............

2010-06-26T10:08:00.000-04:00

My Eastampton Recreation Committee held a successful Movie Night last night. I missed dancing, but it was my first time working this event and it was fun. We didn't have that many people, but they all had a good time, I'm sure!

After over a month of having a flag-dotted lawn indicating digging for new electric underground wiring (and the added necessity of removing and replacing the flags for each lawn-mowing session), they finally got to us this morning. It's noisy and I'm nervous about them hitting anything while digging and my power going out, but other than that it's a fine day. We're looking forward to Margie's party.

We're up in the air with details about Tom's mom's upcoming stay with us while the Goff's make their transition to their new home in PA. (This is their fifth move in six years, I believe.....) Meanwhile, Dor and George will be here Fourth of July week-end and I'm hooking up with Gee Gee again soon, too. Then the start of HR Block classes, JITH, MB (Joanne?), hopefully getting some beach time with the NY Kayes upon their return, and other summer fun.

I am really looking forward to seeing my former colleagues at the Retirement Breakfast Monday. The whole current economic climate and its devastating effect on our public schools and the rest of us in NJ is of great concern to me.

Weather-wise it's been like walking into an oven once I get out the front door. (Can't wait to see the PSE&G bill this month.... :-(

Fun in Nashville

2010-06-09T23:31:00.000-04:00

Well, sorry the Flyers didn't win, but times are happier here in Nashville. The CMA Fest officially starts tomorrow, but we have been enjoying the city's sights and sounds for a day or two. The 14 hour drive here was long but smooth sailing and the parade and entertainment today were fun. If a huge downpour and thunderstorm hadn't interrupted the Joe Nichols set it would have been perfect.
A big part of the fun here is meeting new people and sharing experiences with them. The dash to the shelter of the Visitor's Center with lightning flashing around us was a major bonding opportunity!

Big Decision

2010-06-04T16:16:00.000-04:00

I made a big decision today. I hope it all works out. Don't ask.

Meanwhile, the XTU concert is tomorrow and that should be fun. Then on to bigger and better things......!

We had a lot of fun on the nature walk today. I learned a lot, too. I wish I had notes, but I do have pictures (not that I remember what anything is!)

Busy week-end

2010-05-24T00:13:00.000-04:00

The weekend in a nutshell: Friday night dancing, 6:30 a.m. Saturday set up for the 5 K run for the Eastampton Township Rec Committee, race to the bus for the Trenton rally, met George, Dor and Carol for dancing at Prospectors;Sunday met at Prospectors again for brunch, went to Tom's bowling tournament - where he had a 300 game! Whoohoo! - then to Moorestown Presbyterian where friend Sky McClaine was singing a Mozart Mass with her church choir.

Tomorrow I have to call the jury people and see why they put me back for another tour of duty for June after they had me on hold but unneeded..."thank you for serving"....in May. ??

The quest for financial planning continues, as does the search for an explanation of some bumpy skin itching issues. (ew)

Counting down the days to country music bliss blitz time.......

Lots of eating!

2010-05-14T10:37:00.001-04:00

Despite my good intentions for regular attendance at the gym we belong to, I haven't made it yet (Tom, on the other hand, has been doing great!). AND a lot of my recent activities have included inordinate amounts of food consumed. But they were fun occasions. There was lunch with Gee Gee in Piscataway, the BCEA Teachers Day Social at Carlucci's, Marrakesh with Marc in Phila (remember the parking ticket? :-( I just paid it. Ick.), DKG pot luck meeting, Eastampton Ladies Night Out Dinner and Chinese Auction at Charlies Other Brother, Ultimate Girls Day Out in Robbinsville, Brunch Group dinner at Casamari in Burlington, and the BCREA Spring Luncheon at Charlies Other Brother (again!)

Coming up we have some workshops, a local ticket run ( hope I remember to go this time!), George and Doreen in town (yay!), the Trenton Rally (same day as Eastampton 5 K run event...but I can do both), an HR Block seminar, the XTU concert and more!

I started listening to my first book on tape! It is interesting (but will I be able to find 10 and a half hours by the time of my book club meeting?!) I'm pretty sure I read faster than I hear. (Is that like lightning and thunder, ya think?)

Tom's been doing a bunch of bowling and golf and the perfect eyeglasses pursuit. The knee injections have been successful for the most part. That's a good thing!

Vote for my school, thank you very much!

2010-05-06T14:20:00.002-04:00

They have some contest going. DIS could sure use the $20,000. It's over May 21st, so if you see this, please vote for my school.... VOTE LINK
and tell your friends, too, ok? Thanks

I actually have to go now and make deviled eggs for the upcoming DKG meeting. (Thanks to Tom for boiling the eggs last night after we got home from dinner with Marc at Marrakesh in Philadelphia and I fell asleep.)

Talking about Marrakesh, seeing Marc was very cool, but we ended up with a $76 ticket. We had no idea, even after inspecting the sign by where we parked thoroughly, that the space we were in was not legal. So when we saw the violation envelope on the dash, we were appalled and dismayed.

It was not the happiest moment of the day, to say the least......
But other things in our life are good (well, not the stock market) so we are still overall really happy.

Hooray for Facebook!

2010-04-25T15:30:00.000-04:00

We didn't get to Jessica's wedding last month, but now, thanks to her Facebook album posting, we were able to share the beautiful experience. Thanks, Jessica!

In other Facebook news, I've been busy adding old photos to the "Everything I Know I Learned in Fifth Grade" group. I enjoy the comments from the now grown-up former fifth graders!

Next week I get to see Gee Gee Otto again. I am so looking forward to it. There's a whole Piscataway High School reunion of sorts coming up in June, too, but, unfortunately I have to miss it; we'll still be in Nashville for the CMA Music Fest. The good news is, it's not a conflict with the XTU concert this year, so we get to go to both. :-)

May is just around the corner (happy birthday to Zoe May!). The years just go faster and faster, don't they?

Jessicas Wedding

2010-04-25T15:16:00.000-04:00

Jessicas Wedding

Tax season is almost over....no fooling!

2010-04-01T11:10:00.000-04:00

We were delighted to have Jeff, Alex, Jackson, and Nathan with us for a short visit Tuesday/Wednesday.

They came in a rain-stormy day, but our Philadelphia touring weather was sunny and comfortable. How fun to revisit historic Philadelphia (well, I have done it 27 times with classes before....) with some English folk who knew little of our American Revolution history! We left some areas untouched, and have promised to return for more in the future.

The lack of ice cream for breakfast was, I hope, adequately compensated with the chocolate bunny substitute.....

On a sad note, I learned that Janice Lilley Fisher passed away last Saturday. Losing touch with friends of yesteryear is something I hope to remedy. Facebook has been helping with that, and I am inspired now to redouble my efforts.