Hooray for me!

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

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!

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

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

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!

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

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!

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

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

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....

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

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....

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

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

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

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!!!

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

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...

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

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

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

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

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!

So much rain!

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!

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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!

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....

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?

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

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

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!

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

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

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!

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!

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!

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

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........!

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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!

 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..........

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

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???

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

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

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....!

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!

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

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!

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?