Rave: DH and I celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary yesterday!!! Quiet, we went to dinner.

Rave: Leave in one week for Switzerland and France

Rant: Gotta make it thru one more week of work - probably will be the Looooongest week ever!!

Rave: Great weather here in NY. The best kind of sleeping weather. Gonna be a nice weekend too - a little touch of fall in the morning hours. Aaaaaahhhh.

RANT: Yet another hurricane in the sunshine state. It has battered south Florida and appears to be headed for the panhandle (my turf). UGH

RAVE: It could have been a lot worse! After all it was only a category one when it went ashore. Let's pray it doesn't gain too much strength before hitting the land again.

Meethsare, I'm so sorry about Worfcat!

Meesthare,
I am so very sorry to hear about Worf. My heart goes out to you. You will be in my thoughts!!! I can only imagine how hard it is. He is looking down from the Rainbow Bridge smiling upon you and thanking you for all you've done for him. You did your best and I'm sure he appreciates it.

GoTravel,
I'm very sorry to hear about your loss.

That's quite an offer Jersey...a bratty 15 y.o.

Sorry I can't help as I'm barely coping with a nearly 14 y.o. exhibiting some of the same tendencies.

Rave: The hurricane has passed us by in Naples. It's dark and a bit windy out, but only a few light showers.

Rave: Gas came down 10 cents this week at my regular station.

Rant: They just stopped must clubs for high school kids as they can't pay the teachers. Half the kids are in portable classrooms. Yet the new superintendent's package is a little over $300,000 and they just built a TajMahal of an administration building. A friend of mine just landed a newly created "secretary for special needs" job at $75,000, but in her first three weeks on the job they haven't figured out anything for her to do. Meanwhile the teachers are SO underpaid.

Rave: No heat & humidity for 1st time in a LONGGG time.

Rave: Football is right around the corner. (I like football more than my DH)

Rant: My oldest son wants to drop out of college.

Rave: My youngest son doesn't.

Rave: "Feather-Lifts" will be the next "Big Thing"..

Have a great weekend!!

Rave: Closed on the "townhouse" yesterday.

Rant: The unsupervised workers at the new house continue the MX two step foward, one step back completion process.

Rave: Utilities run about $50. USD a month in SMdA.

Rave: 3rd group of SO's visiting family far less barbarian than the priors.

Rave: SO's dog's first encounter with the burros carrying topsoil and firewood in town.

Rant: Were planning a NCL POAm cruise of Hawaii, but the feedback (very small cabins and terrible service, food, etc.) has been so awful we cancelled those plans.

Rant: The largest Brown Recluse I have ever seen hitched a ride to the BJX A/P with SO's family last Friday.
Fortunately, only her DIL was terrified and no one was bitten.

Rant/Rave: The September fiesta season is nearly here.

M

Jersey,
Will trade two widowed sisters in law for bratty 15 y.o.

Rave:
Ships reunion (DD-530) in RI next month and a then a couple of days afterward in ME eating lobster.

Becoming a foster home for kittens when we get back. County shelter is loaded. House has been empty since the beginning of year when our last cat had to be put down.

rave: it's the weekend! no big plans.

rave: my dad-reliable, supportive, smart. my mom-the very picture of strength and grace. :->

rave: my bf's birthday weekend was a great one! one of the best meals i've ever had last friday night in new york!
what's the smiley for heart?

rave: i've been volunteering at a cat shelter (no kill) and there is significant rotation week to week. these kitties are getting adopted! gives me my fix between the times when i see my cat at home.

dwooddon: alaska sounds great!

meetshare: warm and kind thoughts to you.

gotravel: what sad news. this too shall pass.

rant: my cell phone company, verizon. terrible!

Hi to all you fodorites!!
Mikemo - I was at a conference in the Ozarks last week, and they put little flyers in the Hotle rooms to be alert to all the spiders - brown recluses on the list!!! Yikes...
Rant- gas prices, fog outside,college daughter ALWAY asking for money.

Rave - great freinds, my job, watching my kids do well in school and who are not always asking for $$!! Not like the one in Dallas in college!

Rave--Spent last weekend backpacking in the Wallowas (NE part of Oregon). Truly an amazing trip!!! Came across an old mine that is now private property, but the caretaker invited us onto the property and gave us a tour and invited us into his home. Cabins and such all date back to 1910, and it felt so great to see such history up close. Such a great part of our state!

LoveItaly--DH said the same thing recently about what people wore to traffic court. I was shocked when he told me, then when I read your post. What are people thinking???

Ryan--So glad to hear your good news!

Meetshare--So sorry for your loss.

Rave: All the smiling faces, some new, moving onto campus.

Rant: Sad goodbyes for others and arthritis.

Rave: Old folks like jorr's dad. I have one too, jorr. An energizer bunny at 86.
Also hear you on the septic, did one in IN and altered one in MI. Yours sounds huge and proper.

Rave: That I do not have a bratty 15 yr old girl. For that and colic babies, my empathy is HUGE. Mine is now 35 yrs old and boy does she think I learned a lot in the last 20 years.

Rant/Rave: My big black eyed boy is starting kindergarten full time Monday and cried going home last night. No more jet tub at Grandma's on Thursday night. But we will do it on Saturday, Roman.

RAVE RAVE: Ryan, so glad to hear good news, and don't forget you said to talk to you in September. It's only 5 days away. I have a big sign over my desk depicting Alf. E. Newman with a White Sox shirt saying "What me Worry? Go Sox!"

Everyone have a wonderful weekend- just chores for me this time and a Scrabble fest with my best friend.

oops, forgot

Rave: Military base closings.

Rant: Keeping the New England bases open due to lobbying and political pressure.

Rant/rave: Losing Walter Reed AMC/consolidation at Bethesda NH.

Annesherrod, one can never have enough dinero at SMU, lol.

M

Ahem.

Rave: BRAC saved our Base!!! A truly myopic and senseless decision was overturned...

Rant/Rave: jor (and others dealing with house stuff) - I feel your pain. Just signed to get a new roof and gutters to the tune of $6800. But since asphalt is petroleum-based, the price will only go up (that's what I keep telling myself).

Rant: After a busy week doing other things I suspect psycho-Mr.-Fix-it husband is gearing up for this weekend.

Rave: Finally bought a body pillow. Have named it "Brad"

PM: Hang in there!
Mees: I am so sorry for the loss of your furry one.
GoT: Yikes! I hope you have a better, less tumultuous week.
Ryan: Welcome back and best wishes for good health.
Hugs to the rest of fodorville dealing with illness, teenagers, and the like.

Happy weekend, all!

Rave: Friday and not too much planned for the weekend!

Rave: Mint is growing well in the garden; guess we'll just have to have Mojitos this evening.

Rave: Daughter has learned to say "Bye Mom" and blow kisses when I leave for work.

Rant: Daughter managed to pull up several flowers in the flower bed and give her bear a bath in the dog's water dish while we were clearing the table last night.

Rave: No real rants!

Rave: a weekend off and GARDENING, wine tasting and all things enjoyable.

Rave: began planning November's trip before we have October's trip!!

Good wishes to all facing adversity.
Life's trials seem unending.

Ryan, I was wondering how you and your family were doing the other day. I'm glad to read your good news!

Rant: the guy who went off his meds and murdered five people here last week - a state employee, two employees at a motorcycle shop, and the two policemen who went to pick him up for a mental evaluation. The last funeral was yesterday.

Rave: Dd made her first solo drive to the library and home again without wrecking the van.

Lee Ann

Rave: "W" may still do the right thing and add the NE bases to the closed list. The Pentagon and the Navy do not want them.
M