A RANT ABOUT ....

I have a peeve about movie theater restrooms for women. First of all, why does the commode flush just AFTER YOU SIT DOWN????? Is it a Bidet in disguise or something????? 

And IF you actually have a place to sit down why are the toilet tissue dispensers so low that you cannot get your whole bottom (well, for some of us more endowed than others) on the toilet seat? What's wrong with the rest of the wall??? And trying to get your hand down low enough to get the paper takes a contortionist! You have to squeeze your hand and arm down between your thigh and the darned toilet tissue dispenser and hope that your arm is long enough to reach up into the bottom of the dispenser because have you noticed that always, ALWAYS the paper has been torn off inside the dispenser and there is nothing to pull on when you need some?

And what about the hand towel dispensers....wave your hand in front of them like you are waving goodbye to a dear friend leaving on a train and maybe, MAYBE you will get a tiny towel. Well, the tiny towel won't even try your thumb and first finger, so you wave and wave again like a loony and finally get the second and sometimes third piece of hand towel. 

Sometimes - NO, ALL THE TIME I wonder who sets the "standard" for where things go in a stall in a women's rest room anyway! I just bet it's a man, who has a skinny butt and who NEVER EVER sits down!!!

If you have the same peeve as I do I would love to hear from you!!

I am adding a new Zentangle I did today. It is on a parchment colored paper with dark brown pen but in this photo it looks purple. I think I like this look!!

I wish you a day with as little aggravation as possible!!

Janie

Parchment colored paper with Dark Brown pen....looks purple to me!

Parchment colored paper that looks white with Dark Brown pen that looks black...hummm!

IT'S WHAT???

OK, I live in Alaska and in Alaska you expect to get snow....in fact you expect to get a lot of it! Right? So, I come to the RAINY and SUNNY city of Seattle and what happens????

You guessed it! It is snowing!! Not little flakes drifting aimlessly out of the sky...landing here and there. OH, NO!! It is a fricking blizzard!! Well, not like a Montana blizzard, but a blizzard nevertheless! 

Outside the back door of my son's home.

My rental car covered with snow.

Snowy street in my son's neighborhood. The foggy look is the snow falling.

I hope everyone has a dry, warm, non-snowy kind of day!

Janie

A COUPLE OF THINGS

LUNCH WITH MY SON

My son, Aaron, invited me to lunch and a tour where he works at Microsoft. I was delighted to go! I mean, how often do I get invited out to lunch by my son! So, he works in the Xbox Division which is on a new campus built a few years ago. He told me that this campus has the largest parking structure in the world!

Waterfall and patio outside the Commons at Microsoft

Now, I'm sure that you have had a few choice words for Bill Gates and his little company while working in Microsoft Office, but I have to give him credit for understanding employees and how to keep them happy!! Where my son works they have a volleyball court, outdoor waterfalls, free beverages, and a food court like I have never seen any place before! 

Man on stilts in Commons at Microsoft

 

When we walked into the Commons (food court, etc), the first thing that struck me was that there was lots of light, big windows, soft chairs and couches everywhere, and since it was a holiday there were things for kids to do. There was face painting, ring toss, and people dressed in costumes walking around on stilts! The Commons also has "stores" for the athlete, 4 phone companies, a post office, a bank, and large screen TVs everywhere. Other options were a hair salon, massage therapy, a Microsoft store, and a Visitors Center showcasing all of Microsoft's "hardware" that is available...phones, computers, touch table tops, etc.

The food options were mind-boggling! I won't remember then all but here goes.... Mexican, deli, Organic, Seafood, Burgers, Soups, Oriental Noodles, and these were just to name a few. The prices for lunch were very reasonable and the food was yummy. We opted for the Seafood.

Seafood Cafe at Microsoft

 

Fish Sandwich for Aaron and Shrimp for me! YUM!!!

I remember back many years ago when my son-in-law worked for Microsoft on an older campus. They had pinball and video games in the hallways. My son said that sometimes they have a Farmer's Market set up in the courtyard outside of the Commons, or they have other entertainment such as live bands playing, etc. 

Well, Bill Gates, my hat is off to you....but could you please explain why I can't find the ............?????

WHAT'S LEFT OF MY BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS

The roses are almost all finished but there are 9 Stargazer Lilies left! This is still a beautiful arrangement!! Thank You again and again!!

Beautiful Flowers - Day 9

NEW ZENTANGLE 

Yesterday I got a large piece of paper and put it on my son's dining room table where He does a lot of photography and turned on the light above the table and it was the most perfect work space I have ever used! The lighting was perfect and there was plenty of room for the 12x24 piece of paper. I think it turned out good. Hope you like it too.

 

I hope your day is filled with Love, Good Food, Sunshine, and Flowers!

Janie

RELATIONSHIPS

The one thing all humans have in common is that we are either wanting to be in a relationship, we are in a relationship, or we have been in a relationship.When I say "relationship", I mean a Loving Relationship....

Love is complicated at best. It is totally different for every person. Love can be kind, it can be selfish, it can be giving, it can be hurtful....but pure love is found in many aspects of our lives. The love of a small child for his/her mother, for instance or the love that a pet has for it's owner. Loving and unconditional. 

Most love, however, is conditional....at least in some way. If we give it, we want it returned, don't we? Do you remember the pain of unrequited love? Do you remember the crush you had on a boy/girl at school who did not return your feelings and how physically ill that made you? Boy, I do! And when we "fall" in love....wow! Talk about a swirl of activity between my heart and stomach!!! The feeling was wonderful and terrible all at the same time!!! LOL

Grown-up love feels just like adolescent love but usually has the "lust" factor thrown in for good measure. Especially when we are in our 20s and 30s, boy that lust factor is really humming! 

I have been "in love" 7 times in my life. Some were returned and some were not. 

When I was a kid growing up in the mountains of Montana I "fell in love" with Grover, a young Mexican boy who was like the "bad boy" of the school. He didn't know I existed. Then during the summer my family would go to Flathead Lake for two weeks and rent a cabin from a family who became close friends. They had a son that I was "in love" with...Jamie. Cute, red hair, and freckles. I think he liked me back too. 

One other summer my mom's best friend came to visit with her husband and son named Rob. I was instantly in love with him. He was cute and nice and well, as charming as a 10 year old can be. When he went home he sent me a sandstone bracelet which I kept for many years afterward. I never saw him again. 

During high school I had a boyfriend, Jim, but I wasn't "in love" with him...he was just a date for every high school event. Then in my Junior year I met and fell in love with Bradley who played trombone in the high school band. I was "really" in love with him and he actually returned my feelings! We were together until I graduated from high school and then went our separate ways.

After high school I went to my home town and worked for a year and met my best friend's cousin, Arthur. He was 11 years older than me but he was really smitten with me and I think I liked him a lot, but never really loved him. At one point he asked me to marry him and I accepted but right after that I met my first husband, Jim, and really felt love so broke it off with Arthur. 

Jim was 7 years older than me and drove a brand new car, had a wallet full of money, was a great dancer, and Japanese. I thought he was the best thing since sliced bread. The best part of our union of 37 years was 4 terrific children. The rest was not so good and why I stayed with him as long as I did, I have no clue. I guess I was just raised to believe that marriage to one person was for life. Well, I'm so glad that I realized that it isn't if it's not good.

Then the love of my life came along and my whole world turned upside down! He was romantic, charming, loving, sweet, sensitive, and most of all, He loved me almost as much as I loved Him. Alan...and He had the same thoughts and feelings about life that I had, and someone I could talk with for hours on end. And to make things so much sweeter, the "lust" factor was present too. (sorry, kids, that's reality!!)

Loving someone is complicated, even at it's best, but if the love we have for someone means enough to both parties, all obstacles can be overcome and worked out.

GROW OLD ALONG WITH ME
 
Grow old along with me, The best is yet to be
When our time has come, We will be as one

Grow old, go on with me, Two branches are one tree
Face the setting sun, When the day is done

Spending our lives together, Man and the wife together
World without hurt, World without hate 

Grow old along with me, Whatever fate decrees
We'll see it thru, For our love is true

                                                                       Author: John Lennon


I wish you a day filled with love, affection, and friendship. Most of all, I wish you a life filled with Love returned.
Janie

ADVENTURE EATING AT ITS BEST!!

Yesterday my daughter-in-law, Amy, son, Aaron, and daughter, Tamara went to an authentic Chinese Restaurant. Amy, who is Chinese, ordered dinner in her native tongue. We decided we were up for some adventure eating, as I like to call dining out in Seattle sometimes. It is an activity that I enjoy very, very much because you never know what you will really get AND because there are so many options here in the food department.

Sizzling Chicken

Aaron had the Sizzling Chicken and a plate of white rice. Tammy, Amy, and I shared a Hot Pot! 

Hot Pot!!

It is a pot with two different broths (you can get it with just one if you want) that sits on a propane burner in the center of those eating this dish. The broth comes with some very small cut up veggies in it already. They brought two different dipping sauces, one of which turned out to be a bit spicy.

Huge Plate of Raw Food!

Aaron, or Taki as I affectionately call him, is SO funny!!!

The plate they brought to the table was piled high with uncooked mushrooms, fish balls of two different types, chicken, beef, and pork, clear noodles, and a Chinese cabbage. We put these things in which ever broth we wanted and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Then we each had a little dipping net that we used to get the cooked food out of the broth and put in our dipping sauce to eat. 

In a word....it was YUM!!!!! We ate until our first plate was almost empty, ordered more veggies and noodles and ate some more!!! It was so much fun and really good too. 

Amy (on left) and Tammy (on right) - Two Asian Beauties!!

I came back to my son's house and slept for over 2 hours....what an awesome afternoon!!! On top of that, the sun was shining too!!

I wish you a day filled with good food, loved ones, and a little adventure eating!!

Janie

New Restaurant Experience

I love good food and Seattle is like a candy store to someone who loves good food. There are still an over-abundance of fast food places, but really....why would any sane human being want to eat at a fast food place with everything that is available to them??? So, the only fast food place I have gotten anything from was Dairy Queen and that, well, I think that could DEFINITELY be excused!! LOL 

Yesterday my daughter, Tambo, and I went to her (and my new) friend's home, which, by the way was sooooo cute! Small, but every room was a different vibrant color and she has it decorated soooo awesomely!! Did I just make up a new word? LOL The colors seem to bring the house to life and when you walk in it has this warmth and charm that makes you just want to stay and never go home, She has some antiques and some pho-antiques (which look like the real deal) and those along with the colors really make this a cozy, comfortable, home! Of course, when we walked in the smell of baking chocolate chip cookies hit us and then we REALLY didn't want to ever leave! By the way, the cookies were to die for!!!

My new friend, Sandra.

The reason we went to her house was so I could teach Sandra and Tambo a Zentangle class. Never taught one before but thought "what the hay"....so we sat in her living room on her over-stuffed sofa with two darling cats keeping us company. Tambo and Sandra are naturals at this new art form and did a wonderful job and I really enjoyed my afternoon teaching my new passion! 

Afterwards we decided to go out for some Italian food to one of Sandra's favorite places. It is called Pasta Bella and it is small but the food is Divine!! 

Caesar Salad.

Spinach salad, I think??

Halibut "Something" Special.

Cannoli "Something"

Chicken, raisins, apples, onions, etc. YUM!

I ordered a chicken dish with apples and raisins among other things, Tambo ordered the special which was a Halibut "something", and Sandra ordered Cannoli which looked like they night have been made with spinach. Everything from the salads to the main course was so wonderful and not with the usual heavy Italian sauce, either. Needless to say, we each walked out with a take home box! 

It was a wonderful afternoon and evening and I want to thank my new friend, Sandra, for sharing her wonderful home with me and for being such a delight!!

Tambo and I at Pasta Bella.

I hope your day is filled with good food and great companions!

Janie

A ROCK STAR

MY ROSES AND LILIES - DAY 5

Last night I was a Rock Star! As I have blogged before, I always wished I had been a Rock Star. Well, last night I was one! We went to my daughter's house and had pizza and then the rocking commenced!! Rock Band is a game that is projected onto a screen, television, or, as in our case, onto the Living Room wall. The participants play instruments that have been developed for the game. The instruments are a guitar, bass guitar, drum set, keyboard, and then there are three microphones for vocals. My daughter has over 300 songs in her Rock Band account so there was lots to chose from.

Everyone knows that I love Bon Jovi music and my wonderful daughter had several songs from Bon Jovi in her account and I got to sing them all and some a couple of times. It really feels like you are in a Rock Band! All around me was my daughter on drums, my son on keyboards, and my son-in-law on base guitar or as a back-up singer for me. IT WAS AWESOME!!!!

We did other songs that I knew as well....Janis Joplin, Chicago, just to name a couple. My son sang some while I played the bass guitar which is a lot of fun too, and my daughter-in-law sang some Lady Ga Ga while I rested. My daughter and son=in-law sang a couple together and were so awesome....reacting to each other as if they were really on stage in a concert! I was playing drums at the time and was laughing so hard I got off beat. 

We played until midnight and came home and crashed. I woke at nine this morning with the sorest neck muscles from playing the drums!! I haven't had anyone to speak to yet so don't know if my voice is shot or not. LOL

I am adding more pictures of  my flowers - now on Day 5 and going strong for your enjoyment. Their smell is incredible!! 

I hope your day is filled with sunlight, warmth, and love,

Janie

More Fun in Seattle and Other Thoughts

While I'm not really in Seattle for a vacation, in the "fun" sense of the word, there are so many things to see and do here. In some ways it's distracting....which can be good and bad, I guess. I'm really here to do some thinking and resting and "regrouping". The winter, my depression, and some other factors got so bad that I just had to make a change for a while. My Seattle children are ecstatic that I'm here and have given me more love and kindness than any mother has a right to enjoy. They are just plain awesome!! 

When I say my Seattle children, that also includes my daughter-in-law and son-in-law. I have made some new friendships that I hope endure after I return to Alaska. I'll be returning home a week from tomorrow and I have to say that an extended stay "Outside" in February is highly recommended!!!! I don't think think I really understood how slick roads and the cold negatively affected how I physically felt...and emotionally too. 

-enough said on that subject-

As I have shared places where I have been out to eat, so that theme continues. I was out and about by myself on Wednesday downtown and when lunchtime came around I found a place called Johnny Rockets. It was really cute in a 50s kind of way and the food was excellent!

Is there anything more American than a coke and a jukebox??

Three yummy mini-chili dogs!

Then yesterday morning my kids took me out for breakfast at their favorite place called Luna. I should have taken a picture of my breakfast because it was sooooo yummy! I had french toast and it was perfect, along with orange juice and two sausage links. I wish I was there right now! But Luna has a "flavor" all it's own and these images are from Luna.

My Tambo and "son" Mark

I hope your day includes something good to eat, sunshine, and happiness beyond measure!

Janie

RETIREMENT

I was fortunate enough to be able to retire last August 27, 2010. I had worked all my life, since the age of 14 with short breaks when I had each of my 4 children...short breaks ranging from 2 months to 4 months. I have had a lot of different jobs: 

Flunky on a cattle ranch (kitchen helper), working from 4:30 am to 11:30 pm daily, making $14/day. 

 
Burger flipper in a small town cafe...don't remember what I was paid.

Telephone Operator...small town PBX-type board, with different rings for every person in the system. Lots of fun, really...worked from 7 pm to 9 am and made 90 cents/hour.

Waitress in a restaurant. Which became Assistant Manager in a Denny's Restaurant.

Transcriptionist for a Psychiatrist who specialized in Abnormal Psychology, and for a Dermatologist who measured the margins of my work with a centimeter ruler!! 

Back office "nurse" for two Cardiovascular Surgeons (say that fast!)

Volunteer Coordinator for Campfire Inc.

Administrative Assistant for Outpatient Services with a Community Mental Health Center.

Office Manager for Kids Voting Alaska.

Office Manager for a Chronically Mentally Ill program.

Afternoon Secretary in a Grade School.

Proposal Coordinator in a Fisheries Research Institute at a University.

Lead Proposal Coordinator in a Geophysical Research Institute at a University.

WOW! That's a lot of jobs...but I learned a whole lot from each of them. My "longest run" was the last one, and it was by far the most stressful. I loved the work. But when a person gets to a certain age...it could be any age, really...the need to NOT work becomes important. Combined with "age" and my heart episode (previously blogged about), it became a driving desire to be finished with that phase of my life. 

What a frightening thing it was to turn in my letter of retirement! I was totally shaking and nervous about it. And then came the count down. With my retirement system I was required to turn in my paperwork two months prior to retirement. You know, when you decide to leave....you need to leave!! But in my case I had to stay for 2 months....talk about torture!!! It became increasingly more difficult to get out of bed in the morning and get ready to go to work. It became more difficult to even "care" about my work, to maintain the level of dedication that I had always given to my employer. On top of all that, I was still dealing with serious health issues and had run out of sick leave. I had a couple of co-workers who took me "under their wing" and rounded up people who gave me hours and hours of their sick leave so I didn't have to take a big hit in my pay check because I had doctor appointments all the time. I shall ALWAYS be thankful for these two wonderful ladies!!!!! 

Nine Square Zentangle

  
At first, after I retired, it felt like I was on a much-needed vacation....and it felt sooooo good! Then, after about 3 weeks, it felt like I was "playing hooky" and needed to stay home and not go to town....like I was on "sick leave" but not really sick? I know that none of you have ever done that...LOL. But finally, I knew I was really retired and that I needed to come up with a schedule of some sort. Over a period of time my schedule has sort of developed and I no longer feel "strange" about being retired. 

The best part of being retired and of the "age" is that there are Senior Discounts for all kinds of things, from shopping to restaurants to movie theaters. 

The psychology of being retired is interesting...no longer was I in demand because I "knew everything" about my "JOB"....no longer did I feel needed.....and these feelings caught me "off guard". I wanted to be home, take care of the house, cook better meals, spend time with my puppy and my Love, and most of all, become the full-time artist that I had dreamed about for so long.....but when the reality of retirement set in I felt useless. Thankfully, these feelings didn't last forever....and I was able to move past them. 

Now? Now it is so wonderful to be able to rest when I want to, to nap if I need to, to exercise more, to cook better meals...from "scratch" more than from prepared foods, to be able to spend the whole day in my studio and being creative, and to go out to shop or whatever during the day without worrying that I have to get back to a job right away. What a joy to meet with other friends who are retired over a long leisurely lunch! But I am convinced that the trick is to keep active...and for as long as possible.

A Large Canvas with my "Steampunk" Zentangle.

 

I found this poem on retirement and thought I would share it with you:

There's quite an art to falling apart as the years go by,
And life doesn't begin at 40.That's a big fat lie.
My hair's getting thinner, my body is not;
The few teeth I have are beginning to rot.

I smell of Vick's Vapo Rub, not Chanel #5;
My new pacemaker's all that keeps me alive.
When asked of my past, every detail I'll know,
But, what was I doing 10 minutes ago?

Well, you get the idea, what more can I say?
I'm off to read the obituary, like I do every day;
If my names there, I'll once again start -
perfecting the art of falling apart.

                               — Unknown Wise Person

I wish each of you a day filled with something to do...fun or otherwise.

Janie

My Son's Electronic Dog

My son, Aaron, has a cute little electronic dog. She came from Korea. She is absolutely adorable!! The programmers really did a good job, absolutely amazing what she can do!

uh, huh...uh, huh...oh, yeah!

So tonight Aaron showed me how "all inclusive" Maya is. Oh, yeah, that's her name. She sits, will respond to voice commands of giving you her paw, rolling over, and lots more. 

Some pretty awesome arm and leg moves to the music.

Happy Maya, dancing to her music.

Maya has preprogrammed songs and dances to them. I took a video on my camera but for some reason it just won't upload here! GRRRRR   However, I did get it uploaded to facebook so if you go there and are my friend, you will see it.

Maya gets tired and settles down just like a real dog does and almost goes to sleep and then jumps a little bit, half waking herself, and then settles down in a sleep mode and you can hear her light snore. She has the cutest tail that wags and twirls around too.

Maya dancing.

More dance moves.

Maya has colored eyes, so you know what her mood is. Her eyes are Blue when she is happy, Purple happens when she is doing something like a command, and Red is for when she doesn't like what you are doing, such as picking her up, or tapping her nose or head, or when she doesn't want to do something.

Maya recognizes voices and she also has a router so Aaron can log in on his computer and then he can see what Maya is "looking" at. He can do other things with this as well. Maya is pretty spectacular for an "electronic toy"! 

I hope your day is filled with electronic and non-electronic fun!

Janie

Brunch in a Lovely Place with Loved Ones

My wonderful daughter-in-law made reservations at brunch at a lovely little restaurant called "Lola". We had a simply delightful brunch!!

Me and my wonderful son, Aaron

My beautiful daughter-in-law, Amy and I at Lola.

My son, Aaron, ordered the "Lola breakfast"....scrambled eggs, toast, and sausage. 

My daughter-in-law, Amy, ordered the Eggs Benedict and a very peppery Bloody Mary.

I ordered the pancakes with a side of two eggs, which came with the sausage also. The sausage also had apples in it which was really interesting.

For the appetizer we had their special Doughnut plate! Life if short....eat dessert first!! This was sooooooo yummy with a sweetened flavored butter spread and pear butter. It was so yummy!!!

We had a really wonderful time, eating, taking pictures of everything, and talking and laughing. I love these two so much!

Light fixture on the ceiling - I love the colors and design!!

I hope you have a wonderful day filled with family and good food,

Jane