themartianchick

I have found that cemeteries often have nut and apple trees growing. Look for older cemeteries, not the well-manicured or modern ones.

Hi!!! Can't wait for you to jump in with the rest of us. I look forward to reading your posts!

Tonight's dinner was ridiculously unbalanced...Fried cajun shrimp, Checkers french fries and homemade cheddar biscuits. Yeah, I know...Not a real vegetable in sight, but I swear that we don't eat this way very often!

Noooo!!!!!!! I was geo-caching and hid my gold stash there! How am I going to buy stuff if ?

Someone that I am related to was staying in a hotel and just happened to pull the comforter back on the bed (before getting in) and saw a used condom stuck to the underside of it. He was so skeeved out by the situation that he reported it to the hotel...got a refund...got a new room...and slept in the recliner chair in the new room after asking for new sheets to cover it with. Though I've stayed in hotels since hearing that story, I still think we need an RV and I often frequent websites that sell them.

You are definitely missed around here! I hope you are able to find more time to come play with us...

Late to the party but had to stop by for a piece of cake to celebrate with you, Mother! I hope that you had a wonderful birthday!

Tell them to ...Go fish for dinner!

I remember my mom used to say, "Good night. Sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite!" I thought it was just a rhyme too make me giggle, but I asked her about it once. She said that they were very common in the 1920's and 30's. She said a lot of the older homes had them when she was growing up. Many older homes had unfinished upstairs walls. The walls were lathe and plaster, but usually had no paint or wallpaper on them. Bedbugs would go into the walls during the day and emerge at night. That is one reason why getting rid of the bedding never solves the issue. Today, people travel a lot more than they used to and they stay in hotels. American hotels used to be a place for the wealthy and for business travelers. With inexpensive airfare, everyone around the world can afford to travel. Not to make everyone itchy, but how many people sleep in a hotel bed over the course of a year? If it is a busy hotel, there could be 365 different patrons to any hotel. Sheets and blankets may get changed, but the mattresses aren't replaced even on an annual basis. Blankets/comforters can stay on a bed for month by law before getting changed. (Most people don't know that!) It only takes one of those 365 guests to infest that hotel room. Hotels often have 50+ units and others have hundreds. One room can infest an entire hotel. The larger the hotel, the more rooms there are that can be infested. If Guest # 10 in a particular hotel room brings in bedbugs, then every guest after that could potentially take them home. As they spread through the hotel, the numbers affected increase exponentially. (Sheesh! I just made myself start scratching again!)

I saw a headline about this about a month ago and opted not to read it. I didn't want to get the heebie-jeebies from looking at the story. The whole bedbug thing has made me rethink a lot of our fun activities, like traveling, going to yard sales, etc. My parents used to buy antique furniture and put it in the back of their pickup(with the cap closed) and spray it all with Raid before bringing it into the house. Mom hated spiders and some old furniture came out of attics and basements. Unfortunately, Raid doesn't work on bedbugs and they can get into clothes, furniture, and now books!

Migraines and TMJ here! The TMJ caused me to gnash my teeth at night. My almost cure for the migraines was to get off of birth control pills. I also solved some of my TNJ issues with sugar free gum. I can always tell when things are going to be rough, so I will go to bed with a piece of gum in my mouth. The gum acts as a shock absorber for the teeth gnashing and I avoid the neck and jaw pain, too.

The nerd in me is giddy over the implications of this! A replicator, indeed! I do like the idea that Philbe posted. Around here, there are lots of homes that are about the same size and shape of the ones in the Manor House links. We could definitely do something like that! Real estate has been undervalued here for years.

I hope that you both enjoyed your afternoon! Don't overdo!

Excellent point, Granny! A lot of the stores still have turkeys, too. I'm planning to nab a smoked turkey for the freezer this weekend.

I have an article in Issue # 132. It is about Fighting your Property Tax Assessments.

I'm with Violet... I think Zpaks are Zithromax which is in the same family as Biaxin. (Biaxin and Augnmentin are my personal favorites for tough illnesses.)

Awwww!! I hope that you're feeling better soon, Michael! Stay off your feet and give yourself a rest. Let Lori take care of you...You'd do the same for her if the situation was reversed.

A few years ago, I got really sick and thought it was just a cold. I missed a few days of work and it never got any better. My nose wasn't running, but a co-worker thought it might be a sinus infection because my head hurt. She gave me some over the counter pills and they kept me going for a few more days until I crashed...HARD! Fever and nausea were the only symptoms. The doctor checked me out and decided that he didn't know what it was, but he gave me antibiotics anyway. That worked! I still don't know what the heck it was...

I'm in! I laid off from jogging about a week prior to Christmas. Now I'm back on my game...

The new book is entitled A Slice of Heaven and it continues the story that I teased readers with at the end of Christmas in Bystander. At the end of A Slice of Heaven, there is a preview of a story entitled, Of Twigs and Branches, which is Starr's story. You aren't dating yourself, MtRider! I never took shorthand in school, but I have a mother that was a whiz with it. She still uses it when she goes to public meetings or doctor appointments. We did have a home-study course (on records, no less) for how to do speed writing. I do use a lot of those abbreviations when taking notes, but I was never good enough to take dictation. The term courtroom recorder is quite an accurate description of how I feel about the writing process.

Whew! Nice job, Snowmom!

I swear, I don't have a crystal ball!! (Of course, tonight's weather does look suspiciously like the New Year's eve described in the book!)

Thanks, Jeepers! Starr's book is coming soon, but I want to finish the next Bystander book first. The preacher with the colorful clothes is the same one that is mentioned (in the beginning of the 2nd story) in Christmas in Bystander. He may make another appearance in one of my stories. I never can tell just how they will turn out since I always feel as though they've taken on a life of their own and I'm just taking dictation! The name of the law firm came from my sister. She was visiting one day and began telling me a story about one of her friends. The friend has been married 4 times and I was amazed that my sister was able to remember all of the first names of the husbands: Earl, Ricky, Dick & Paul. I wrote them down on a post it note after saying that they sounded more like a law firm than ex-husbands!

We've had vehicles with either 4WD or AWD (all wheel drive) for several years. The one thing that I would caution you on is that they really can guzzle gas! I'd actually like to pick up a small car that we can use for everyday running around and save the gas and wear and tear on the 4WD vehicle. In a bug out situation, you might need to be able to go farther or you could end up stuck in traffic. A gas sipper would be preferable, even if it means that you can't take everything with you.

Hope that you had a wonderful day, Motherearth! And lots of CAKE!! :bdaycake: :bdaycake: