Thursday, March 28, 2013

March Madness

I'm not talking about that little ole basketball tournament taking place around the country either.  Although I could be what with the Cinderella darling of the tourny, FGCU,  residing a mere 20 miles to our north.  Folks around here are down right giddy about that formerly unknown team.

What I'm talkin about is the WEATHER.  What happened to spring?   Did it hybernate with the bears and forget to set the alarm clock?  Did it take an extended European vacation and lose its passport?  Seriously, I want to know.  What's up with the weather?

We have lived in south Florida for 17 years (now there's a blog post in and of itself) and this is by far the coldest March we have ever witnessed.  Typically March comes in like a lamb and exits like a playful puppy.  Not this year.  March roared in on the lion express and has held south Florida hostage ever since.

I see those northern eyes rolling.  You have no sympathy for my plight.  But seriously folks, a frost warning?  In south Florida?   On the 27th of March?  Impossible.  Unthinkable.  Unheard of.  Rediculous.  I am more than a little tired of the cold and the wind.  Usually by this time the pool temperature is hovering around the 80 degree mark.  This year?  It is a whopping 62 degrees.

My babies are coming tomorrow.  What's a Grammy to do?

wJump

I guess I'll start boiling water.






Monday, March 25, 2013

Little Red Update

This was me upon arrival at the cottage two weeks ago.  I was a sreaming gull swooping in on an unsuspecting contractor and his crew.  I was frustrated, angry and screeching at anyone who came within ear shot.

wIncoming_gull

The cottage was a mess.  I am aware that it is currently a construction zone and that dirt and debris come with the territory.  What I was upset about was an apparent lack of concern for protecting what was there that would be saved i.e. the wood flooring installed 15 months ago and the bathroom that was finished last summer.  Add to that the disappointment of what I had invisioned versus the end product and you could say I was bummed.

More than a little.

After returning to Florida on Sunday evening upset and disappointed, I received an email on Wednesday announcing that the kitchen cabinets had arrived earlier than expected.  A little tinkering with the contractor's schedule and some smart travel research on The Kid's part had me hopping a plane on Saturday morning and making my way back north.

What a difference a week makes. What I found when I arrived was a much tidier Little Red.  Most of the trash and debris had been removed from the premises. The wood floors had been cleaned and recovered (there was concern that the entire floor might have to be replaced) and the bathroom emptied of its junk.  My spirits were lifted.

The second trip was a quickie with my entire visit minus one night spent at the cottage.  Apologies to family for sneaking in and out but there just wasn't time for anything else.

Little Red is now sporting 70% of her new red coat.  A break in current weather conditions will be necessary to complete the job.

wfront_fromsouth

The exterior will require some "creative" landscaping in order to minimize some of the design flaws.  Flaws on the exterior only, inside the placement of doors and windows makes perfect sense and works well for good traffic flow.  On the exterior we have large spaces with no windows and one area where several windows are clustered together.  It's all about compromise people.

Ext._southside

This is the view as you step inside the new entry, much lighter and brighter.

wlivroom_south

And the view from the kitchen looking north.

wlivroom_west

I was extremely excited to see the crew who arrived to install the cabinets.  They are my favorite team of workers and I had not expected to see them again.

wkitchen_2

wkitchen_1

Down the hall is our brand new second bedroom.  Well actually it is the original bedroom reconfigured.  It remains small but serves the purpose.  No more sleeping on the porch for overnight guests.  That is unless they want to!

wguest

The new master is a nice size and looks out on the lake.

wmaster_2

The dresser in the photo (covered in sheet rock dust), is our new bathroom vanity.  I'll let you know how that works for us.

wmaster_1

The doorway in the upper left-hand corner leads to a utility room.  It's a little unconventional having the laundry room off of the master bedroom but we think it will work well.

wmbath

Above is the new master bath.

And below is the lake side view of the cottage taken on my first trip north.  The siding on this side is now completely installed.

wlakeside

And there you have it.

The contractor and I worked on some of my concerns during my last visit.  A couple of brain storming sessions with The Kid on speaker phone and the design team standing by for consult did the trick.

The next time I see her she will be finished.

At least that's what they tell me.

I'm not holding my breath.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Friends With Benefits

It is one week before Easter.  The height of "season."  Traffic is snarled.  Shops are crowded.  Check-out lines at the grocery store are long... and slow.

wShadow_palms

Yesterday, out of necessity, I found myself in one of those slow moving lines at the local Winn Dixie.  The friendly clerk rang up my order while I bagged groceries and placed them in the cart.  (You would think that their corporate office would have enough data accumulated to warrant the approval of additional staffing during this busy time of the year.  They certainly seem to be aware of all of our other buying habits.  But once again, I digress)

The clerk offered up my total, $134.78 and I quickly moved around the counter to pay for my purchase.  You can imagine the look of shock and dismay when I opened my wallet to retrieve my credit card and found it empty.  That's right peeps, no cash, no credit card, no check book.  Zip. Nada. Nothing.   (I had been traveling earlier in the week and had moved my credit cards and drivers license to a more travel friendly purse and failed to return them to my wallet.)

I was screwed.

Panic set in as I looked down that long line of impatient Easter shoppers.  Their faces were grim.  I explained my predicament to the now not so friendly clerk who wishes only to banish me from her sight.  She informed me that the purchase would need to be voided and re-rung "if" I returned.  "I'll return," I pleaded.  "I'll only be ten minutes.  Please don't move my cart.  I don't want to have to start over."

Defeated and humiliated I kept my head down, refusing to look at my fellow shoppers who have mutiny on their collective minds when suddenly I heard a small voice in the distance.

"Susan, do you need something?"

My head snapped up as I searched the faces of the angry mob for the source of that voice.  And there she was, like manna from heaven, my neighbor both here and there, my walking buddy, my good friend, DiAnn.

"Yes," I yelled down the line.  "I need cash."

"I have money," she hollered back.  "How much do you need?"

"$135."

Eight heads turned in unison with each volley of words.  It was a ping pong match of hope.

Finally a deal was struck and Dianne made her way to the front of the line; added her items to my purchase and presented a credit card that put an end to my pain and suffering.  I offered a heart felt apology to the clerk and the other now smiling shoppers and crept out the door.  Actually I  think I danced out the door, relieved to have escaped the lynch mob.

As for DiAnn, she is my hero.

I am forever indebted to her for being at the back of my check-out line on that fateful day,  engrossed in the National Enquirer, with a credit card in her pocket.

It's nice to have friends with benefits.




Sunday, March 17, 2013

Milky Way Distraction


Up.  Down.  Up.  Down.  That's the sad saga of my weight issues.

Last winter intentional & I skipped our way to Down.  Upon arrival intentional took an unauthorized spa vacation & forgot to return leaving me stranded and alone.  I did what I usually do when left to my own devices, began to overindulge and before you can say peanut butter ice cream I was back at Up.

Intentional is now settled in at the spa, addicted to the holistic hot stone treatments & refusing to come home. Looks like I'm on my own.   Every other day or so I begin packing my bags in preparation for the return trip to Down.  The trip requires a lot of prep work as it is a lengthy journey made on foot at a snail's pace.  There is no bullet train or Dreamliner with scheduled stops at Down.

Inevitably there are distractions.  This week it was this.

REE_2523 

Pioneer Woman's ridiculously decadent Milky Way cake.  (Not my photo, hers.  I was too busy indulging in the gooey goodness that is this cake to stop & take a picture!)  This delightful little ditty boasts 11 (yes, you read that correctly), 11 full sized Milky Way candy bars  divided between the cake and the topping.  It is to die for and the return trip to Down is being postponed until the cake pan is licked clean.

If intentional doesn't ditch the spa life soon I'm afraid I'm going to look like this.

wRhinoRear

Perhaps I should seek council with the new Pope.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Ice, Ice, Baby

Traveling messes with my mojo.

With each passing year my attention span grows shorter and shorter.  A week away from routine leaves me scattered and unfocused.  Fortunately this morning I awoke with the thread of a thought that has managed to stay with me.  This means you're in luck.  There will be a post today.  Whether or not it makes sense is still up in the air.

Last week western Pennsylvania was sporting it's spring finery..grey skies, snow flurries, and temperatures that fluctuated from 28 degrees to 66 on the day I left for Florida.  There were occasional breaks in the cloud cover allowing the sun to peek through, but for the most part it was typical western PA gray.

wIce_1

When I arrived I was excited to find the lake still frozen over.  In all the years I lived in PA, I had never seen this sight.  (Apparently when the temperatures dropped and the snow fell, we stuck close to home.)

wice_3

The only thing missing was sunshine and the foot of snow I was hoping to find.
wIce_4

There were hopeful signs of spring along the edge of the lake.  Not a good sight for the ice fisherman dotting the horizon, but a welcome reprieve for the ever present Canadians.


wgeese

Do you think their feet ever get cold?

My visit to PA went quickly.  Time was spent with my big sis, our Moms and the Principal.  I checked on Little Red (more on that later) and got a shopping fix with Marcia.

I'm thinking that a winter vaca to the cottage should become an annual event.

wIce_2

Perhaps then I'd get that foot of snow.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Friendly Skies

Yesterday I took to the friendly skies,  rocketed through the dense cloud cover of a dreary day and into the the calming blue that is life above the clouds.  The last time I made this trip life was a whirlwind of uncertainty.  This time it is all for the joy of it.

A visit with my big sis, time spent with Mom, checking in with Bubba, and perhaps the most anticipated of all... a sneak peek at Little Red.

I am posting from my iPad and not able to add new photos so you will have to wait until next week to see her progress.  The good news is that the "mother of all firewalls" has been breached and I have access!

This morning I am content to  sip coffee and watch the flurries fly.  The next two days carry the promise of laughter, for this weekend is all about family.

On Monday, I am BAA bound.

I'll be spending a lot of time in the Principal's' office next week and I can't wait.