The Front Porch Swing

[perchie.girl]

For what its worth right now the ocean is delivering 14 foot surfer waves right now.... from storms off in the pacific.... Not the one coming.

The news here offers surfer reports too.

deb

 

[Tomtommom]

That's my slice of heaven.. I love the rocky coast of the Mediterranean. Ofcourse, it's been 15 years since I last snorkled around those rocks and it's now overly touristy.

I need peace and quiet, I don't do touristy. My brother climbed to the top of that big rock... dare devil, that boy.





Only been to the coast in the US once... In January!

We were meeting someone from a rescue to take one of our dogs, after that we drove another hour and a half to gulf shores and spent an hour on the beach. We promised we'd come back in the summer, but we never did.

I love the mountains, I love the beach.. As long as it has some form of water. We're all water rats.

I carried a stroller up a mountain in the rain to see Triple falls and Hooker falls in Dupont state park, NC. Yes, I'm insane.

I think if I had to pick another state to live in I'd pick Tennessee or North Carolina.


We've got some fossil places in AL too, by the way. Kids gotta be a little older though, it's some serious hiking.

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2014/04/this_weekend_your_family_can_d.html

 

[bruceha2000]

Last time I went to the doctor, she asked the same old questions they always ask, one of which was, "do you exercise? Regularly?" I am always perplexed by that question. So, I asked her to clarify... and of course, she said... walking program, go to the gym, etc. I told her that the only exercise I do is "functional exercise". She asked me to clarify: My response: building stone walls, building a coop, shoveling manure, carting stones and lumber from one end of the yard to the other, building a coop... I shake my head and ponder to think how someone can live such a life style that they don't have any real work they have to do, and have to pay for the privilege of raising their heart rate.

Alice, I so love your decorations, especially your little tree. And your son's drawing... I had to read the caption to see what he had drawn as well! That first pic? HMMM???!!!

My wife's last biannual visit to the Rheumatologist elicited questions about her starving herself to lose weight. "Heck no" she says, "I eat 4 times a day!!!" Breakfast usually only lasts through the morning mail sorting. The mail gets put into the PO building early in the morning before she arrives. Some days she has to take some of it out so SHE can get in the building (yeah, small PO). Imagine 14 linear feet of envelopes on their thin edges each which must be placed in the proper location for the route it goes out to or the one for PO boxes, then putting those IN the PO boxes then the same for the packages. And the flyers that go to every house, etc. Then it is snack time to make it through to lunch. "WHEN IS DINNER" is often heard not long after she gets home from work and "what's for dessert" right after dinner. Nope, not on a starvation diet!

I have often thought of starting up a health club.... x amount of post holes.... y amount of horse poo.... z amount of chopping wood..... all for a small membershp fee....

sigh.

Don't they call those "farm vacations"?

lindz - you have my prayers and I hope everything gets better for you.

Well, woke up to a white world this morning, less than 2 inches, so no big deal, but pretty.

I still can't get over how big that barn is.

Would love my barn to have a nice foundation like that! Part of it doesn't even have sills anymore. Yep that sucker is big, full story at the foundation level and two above that!

Ok guys, this is going to be a long one. I was hoping to get some of your guys opinions on this.... Here it goes.

I was at a friends house when a commercial came on. In the commercial a woman said that a man bought her a stove and a refrigerator as a gift. Another woman looked horrified and made some comment like "I would have gotten rid of him then" or something to that effect. Anyways, my friend turned to me and said "well that is a pretty horrible gift." I completely disagreed. I said I would be thrilled if I got a new stove or refrigerator as a gift. We went back and fourth on this for a bit. I said maybe if it was a bad one or if it was in bad condition I wouldn't be happy, but if I went to the store and said "I love this stove or this fridge" and my husband got it for me for my birthday or Christmas I would be thrilled and I still thought its a great gift. We went back and forth a bit more and then I said how it's such a practical gift. My friend responded with "that's why it's a bad gift!"

obviously we weren't going to agree. Now to be fare, my friend is old enough to be my mom and was raised in a different generation, but I still think it would be a great gift and something I would use every day. I was just wondering what you guys thought. My friend said that it shouldn't be given as a gift and could be bought another time. We know my thought. Anyways, chime in if you would like. I was just smoked by her response and it's been bugging me.

Alice I would marry you and send your friend to "gold digger" camp

I don't know how old you or your friend are but MY mom and Dad were born in 1928. My wife's father was born in 1925 though he did grow up with a lot more money than either of my parents. Still, he is not one to waste. I think some of us kids inherited the "depression frugal" gene. We wash our ziplock bags and reuse them. We might have to buy some Xmas wrapping paper this year. My MIL (born in 1933) dutifully saves every piece that is in decent shape and big enough to wrap something but you can only reuse it so many times.

For our wedding 24 years ago my step-father gave us a table saw because we were going to be rehabbing the house. Wife was quite happy with that even though she's not touched it even once. She's not a jewelry person, practical is a good description. Her X-Mas present this year is a new purse because her old one is dying after a decade or more. She has VERY specific requirements and geez I was lucky to find it the last time after searching just about every store imaginable. I stopped by the leather store downtown a month ago JUST IN CASE they had something. They did though not exactly right. Too big, missing some features but pretty similar and it was one of the items he makes at the store. So at the shop keeper's suggestion I bought it, brought it home and returned it with instructions on how she wanted it modified. They asked several times if it needed to be blue (because I had mentioned the old one was blue) or was brown OK. I kept saying no it does not need to be blue. The current one is blue because that was the ONLY purse I could find the last time! And yes, she said the dark reddish brown is good, a lighter colored one would get dirty. Picked up the custom made purse last week. Usually XMas is like a lot of you mentioned - trying to find something she needs/wants when in reality like Sietske said, if we need it we already bought it. For example, she already got the new winter coat a few weeks ago. Can't wait until the end of December to get a winter coat that fits, not in Vermont anyway.

ETA Forgot to mention a DEFINITELY bad gift. A friend of mine once received from her husband a gift of ... wood stove glass cleaner. I don't care how practical you are, a $10 bottle of glass cleaner is NOT a gift item.

I hope my wife is the "acts of service" type or I didn't need to clear her car and the driveway of snow at 5 AM both yesterday and today so she could go to work

I got very lucky in the better half lottery. Mine is very logical, save for a few days per month when for some reason she becomes mentally unstable. I'm thinking it might be some form of werewolfism.

Don't worry about it Felix. The werewolf disappears after some years. Though you might wish for her to come back and replace the "constant hot flash/cold flash" version that will likely hang around for a couple of years.

Um, like that's gonna happen in this lifetime! The only surfing I do is on my computer!

I think he meant LITTLE Diane, everyone knows your name is Blooie

 

[tntchix]

@Blooie, I am a forest person. No need for waves or sand. Nice to visit but I will take the trees any day.

 

[Alice28]

@Blooie, I am a forest person. No need for waves or sand. Nice to visit but I will take the trees any day. 

I am with you there. The one thing I will say that is pretty amazing about where I live is hiking through the redwoods and hearing the ocean or being surrounded by these massive trees and then climbing up to a lookout and seeing the ocean. My grandparents lived here, my dad grew up here, so I have been visiting this area my whole life, I've lived here for nine years and I still am must amazed hiking around and looking at these trees. For the four days we were off for thanksgiving, everyday we went on a hike in the morning. I think everyone should hike through the redwood forest at some point in their life. Just standing and looking up at them is crazy.

 

[Alice28]

For what its worth right now the ocean is delivering 14 foot surfer waves right now.... from storms off in the pacific....  Not the one coming.

The news here offers surfer reports too.

deb

Yah, here there have been all these warnings for higher surf and crazy weather. It was a let down! I was so excited for wind and rain. The power was out for a few hours this morning, but that was about it and it has yet to rain all day. Although my husband called to say it's hailing and very windy where he's working and to make sure the windows are shut.

This is the picture he sent me earlier today.

 

[Alice28]

@bruceha2000 Your wife sounds like a smart lady. Nothing wrong with being practical! My husband sometimes gets annoyed because he says I'm hae to buy for because everything I need I sooner or later find at a thrift store or yardsale! I want a small freezer and some canning stuff this year. I'm pretty sure he will get me the canning stuff. I'll have to get a freezer sometime soon.

 

[Amberjem]

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote: what general area are you located Alice?

deb

 

[perchie.girl]

@bruceha2000 Your wife sounds like a smart lady. Nothing wrong with being practical! My husband sometimes gets annoyed because he says I'm hae to buy for because everything I need I sooner or later find at a thrift store or yardsale! I want a small freezer and some canning stuff this year. I'm pretty sure he will get me the canning stuff. I'll have to get a freezer sometime soon.

I always liked moms big honkin chest freezer.... I have an upright dedicatd freezer... Loved it till the roomate killed it.... I had a nice REfrigerator only that went with it... they are called side by sides.... Full on Freezer full on refrigerator... Both dead and gone...

I want to replace them eventually but have to have the kitchen rewired to do it... dedicated breaker and brown out protection... I am at the end of the grid.

deb