Beautiful Day In SoCal

After I did my housework this morning, I went for a 3-mile walk on the bike trail that runs along Soledad Canyon Road here in Canyon Country. I had never walked this trail before. Did real good the first mile and a half, but my feet started hurting me really bad on the way back to the car.
It is really beautiful here in SoCal today.

My Mom and Dad

Today would have been my mom and dad's 71st wedding anniversary.
They met at a roller skating rink in Tulsa, OK back in 1938. My dad worked at the rink and my mom went there with some of her friends. They dated for three months and married on November 15, 1938. They were together for almost 45 years until my dad passed away from a heart attack at the age of 67 in 1983. My mom lived another 15 years. She passed away at the age of 77 in 1998. Today, they are celebrating together in Heaven.

That Time Of The Year

Well, it's that time of the year where when you go to a mall or to a "membership store" like Sam's Club or Costco, you start to see all of the sample booths where you can taste the Christmas goodies that will be on sale in the store.
This morning Ben and I went over to Sam's Club to pick up a few things we needed. Just inside the door we saw a booth for "FudgieWudgie". There was no representative at the booth when the store first opened but we were told someone would be there later.
After lunch, Ben said he wanted to head back over to Sam's to see if we could get a sample of the FudgieWudgie fudge. It sells for $22.96 a pound, but Sam's Club Members could buy it for $11.48 a pound and we wanted to taste it before we decided if we would buy any of it.
I sampled the Belgian Chocolate/Walnut Fudge and Ben sampled the Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge. It was so creamy and delicious that we bought one of each. Now I know that this fudge is NOT good for my high cholesterol, but I have to indulge every now and then.
Here is a link to the site:
http://fudgiewudgie.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=47&Itemid=53

You Go Girl!

CONGRATUALTIONS TO TAYLOR SWIFT FOR WINNING THE CMA ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR AWARD.

UP YOURS KANYE!

New Blog

I've started a new blog that I hope everyone will check out/follow/comment on. It has to do with Cholesterol and Statins.

http://http://statins-vs-natural.blogspot.com/

Latest On My Cholesterol Problem

If you recall, I took myself off of the Fenofibrate (Tricor) my new doctor had prescribed for me last week after it started causing the muscle/joint pain I always experience when I try statins and/or other cholesterol reducing medications. I emailed my doctor and told him I was going to stop taking it. I had also told him that when I was in his office a week ago.
Well this morning the nurse in my doctor's office called me. She said the doctor wanted me to start taking flush Niacin. I told her, as I had told him last week, that I had tried using flush Niacin about 2 years ago and that I was told by the doctor I had at that time that Niacin does not lower cholesterol unless you take very high amounts of it. I can take up to 250MG before it too gives me the muscle/joint pain.
Then she said the doctor also wanted me to start taking low-dose aspirin. I had told the doctor that I've been taking low-dose aspirin for almost 4 years.
So now we are back to square one. I have once again started taking Bayer Heart Health Advantage to see if it helps. They still want me to watch my diet and do the blood work the doctor ordered for February.

Remember The Edsel?

The Ford Edsel was a "bomb" according to the public and Ford had to quit making them as they were losing money on them. I always thought it was one of the neatest cars ever built. I'm not a "Ford person" but this vehicle was so unique. I was just a little kid when they came out, but I would love to have one now.

Short Hike

Ben worked today so I went for a hike over in Placerita Canyon, however, it ended up being a short hike because my leg muscles were hurting so much from that stupid statin I took for 5 days. Still I did about 1.75 miles in about 40 minutes, so at least I got outside and did a little exercising.
It was really nice out this morning. Weather was perfect.
It always takes about 2 or 3 days for the side effects from the statins to go away from my body, just about the same amount of time it takes for them to show up when I start taking the statin.
Maybe once the pain is gone, I can do a better hike.

Muscle & Joint Pain

Well I was hoping the Cholesterol lowering medication my new doctor gave me would do the trick, but I guess not.
I've been on it for five days now. I had not noticed any problems until after I took it tonight with my dinner. Just before I went to bed around 9:00 PM, I started having a "tingling" feeling in my calf muscles. My first thought was "Oh no, here we go again".
I went to bed and tried to go to sleep, but I started getting the same muscle/joint pain that all of the other Cholesterol lowering medications that I have tried gave me. I got up and took some Tylenol, hoping that would take some of the pain away and I could get some sleep, but I just kept tossing and turning. So now I am up and on the computer.
That makes a total of five Cholesterol lowering medications I have tried and all five have ended in the same results....muscle/joint pain and fatigue.
I've tried Lovastatin, Pravastatin, Lopid, Zetia and now Fenofibrate (Tricor). Each time I try one, it takes less time for the muscle/joint pain to start. The first time it was ten days, the second time it was seven days and after that each one took between three and five days before the side effects kicked in.
I have already emailed my doctor and told him I was taking myself off of the Fenofibrate. I had told him in the office on Monday that I would do that if and when the muscle pain started. I told him that I am going to try to lower my numbers with diet and exercise, so I still want to do the blood work he ordered for me in February.
I did NOT tell him that I am going to start taking the Bayer Heart Health Advantage again. I didn't tell him I was on it before. I want to see if it helps me any. That is mainly why I want to do the blood work in February.
So I GIVE UP on the stupid Cholesterol drugs!

Bomb Shelters

Do you remember Bomb Shelters?
Some people were so afraid that "someone" was going to attack us with a nuclear bomb. Some people were so afraid that they built underground bomb shelters in their backyards.
The were usually built with thick concrete but the one advertised below was made with plywood. I would have worried that maybe the plywood would collapse from the weight of the dirt or that if we were bombed, the radiation would leak through the porous wood.



There was usually just enough room for a family of four. There were cots or bunks for sleeping, camping stoves for cooking and stored canned or boxed foods.



It still amazes me today that when we were in school, they would tell us "duck and cover" under our desks and that this would "protect" us from the radiation. Obviously they had no idea what radiation could do. Here in California, we now "duck and cover" when we have earthquakes.

"Old Ladies" Lunch

Today I had lunch with 10 of my retired girlfriends from Lockheed (where we all used to work). Several of us have known each other for about 35 years. We all try to get together at least once a year. Sometimes it's a little hard to do as even though all of us live in Southern California, some of us live up to 100 miles away from each other.
We always have so much fun together. We talk about old times, movies, health problems, vacations, etc.
Had a great time.

Do You Remember.....

Remember Saddle Oxfords?

They were the shoes everyone wore in the 1950's. They went with everything....your poodle skirt, your jeans, your shorts, whatever you wore.

I remember in the mid-1960's they came back into style, but they were made of patten leather then. And once again, everyone wore them. I remember in high school, there was not a girl on campus who did not have them.

I see that you can still buy them online. How cool!

New Meds

Started taking my new cholesterol meds this evening with dinner. From my experience, it takes anywhere between 3 to 10 days for my muscles and joints to start hurting from the statin. The first statin I ever took 4 years ago hit me in 10 days and all the others after that took less time to bring on the pain. I hope that this one won't cause pain, but if it does, I'm done with them forever. I know....I said that before, but I keep thinking that just maybe there is one out there that will not effect me like the others. Maybe I'm crazy too.

Today's Appointment With New Doctor

Well this morning I had my first appointment with my new doctor at Kaiser. He is very young...maybe 35 at the most.
He "talked me into" trying one more statin for my high cholesterol. I told him that my last doctor said I was allergic to statins because of the muscle pain and fatigue they cause me. He said that a lot of that has to do with the dosage of the medication and that maybe they gave me too much at once before. He said that with my high numbers, he really thinks I need medication to control my cholesterol, which I agree since I have not been able to do it with diet, exercise and natural methods.
Anyway, I agreed to try this statin he has recommended. Don't know if that was a wise decision or not. It is Tricor (Fenofibrate). I told him that the minute I feel any muscle pain or fatigue, I will STOP taking this medication. He agreed and told me to email him if that happens.
I'll go over and pick it up tomorrow at the Kaiser Pharmacy. I will go back for blood work again in February. I'll stop taking the Bayer Heart Health Advantage while I'm taking the Fenofibrate. If I don't and my cholesterol is lower next time, I would not know which was lowering it....the Fenofibrate or the Bayer. If the Fenofibrate causes muscle pain or doesn't work, then I will start up the Bayer again.
More to come.....

Cholesterol Part 2

Well, I've gotten some interesting comments about my last blog here and over on my "Not Over The Hill" web community.
I was told that many people have the same problem as me, they cannot tolerate the statins. Some of them say they are afraid to take statins because they have heard how they can harm our bodies in other ways, like destroying the liver. My grandmother and aunt died from liver disease, so that is another reason I do not want to be dependent on statins.
My older brother and I read up on some of the things that statins cause and one of them is Congestive Heart Failure. It seams that statins destroy muscle. That is why I worried when I started getting the muscle pain when I tried them. Anyway, my brother found an article that said doctors know that COQ10 will help protect your muscles when you are taking statins and since your heart is a muscle, taking the COQ10 will help prevent Congestive Heart Failure.
Our mother died of Congestive Heart Failure and she had been taking statins for many, many years. She never knew about COQ10 and she was never told about it from her doctor, so my brother believes that it was the statins that killed her.
You can search the Internet to find facts about COQ10.
One friend over on "Not Over The Hill" told me that her husband refuses to take statins. He has started using a product called "Benecol Chews". Supposedly these caramel chews have been proven to lower cholesterol. She said he swears by them. Has anyone heard of them or tried them?
I want to see if the "Bayer Heart Health Advantage" tablets help me any before I jump into trying something else.

Cholesterol

I was wondering if anyone who reads my blog has a problem with high cholesterol and cannot take statins.
I cannot take statins. They give me muscle pain and fatigue.
My cholesterol problem is genetic from my mother's side of our family. The only way I can lower it is with diet and exercise, but because my liver produces more cholesterol than it should, mine is always going to be high.
I tried 3 different statins, also tried Zetia. Have tried flush Niacin and Red Yeast Rice. I already take 3000 MG of fish oil every day. I also take Flax Seed Oil, Garlic Tablets, Vitamin E and COQ10.
I take low dose aspirin, but my cholesterol is still high.
I had a friend over on "Not Over The Hill" tell me that her husband also has genetic high cholesterol. He was put on statins but they were destroying his liver, so the doctor took him off of them. She said he started taking Centrum Cardio and his cholesterol level went from 256 down to 180. Centrum Cardio is a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement that also contains 400 MG of Phytosterols which have been proven to lower Cholesterol.
I already take a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement, but I found a product called Bayer Heart Health Advantage. It is nothing but 400 MG of Phytosterols per tablet. You take 2 of them a day. I'm hoping that they will help me to lower my cholesterol.
If anyone has taken either of these products, I would love to hear from you.

Friday

Did not get a walk in today. For some reason, when my husband (Ben) does not work, I can't find the time to get out there to exercise. He is always wanting to jump in the car and go somewhere.
Nice weather here in SoCal again today. Blue sky and sunny. They are saying that we may get up to around 90 degrees by middle of next week.

Got Started Early

I got started early today.
As soon as Ben left for work, I headed over to WalMart. I wanted to pick up a bottle of Bayer Heart Health Advantage. I was told by several on-line friends that they or someone they know was using Centrum Cardio Multi-Vitamins to help lower cholesterol. I started checking it out on-line and came across the Bayer Heart Health Advantage. The Centrum Cardio has phytosterols plus vitamins and minerals. I'm already taking a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement, so I saw that Bayer Heart Health Advantage has nothing but the phytosterols so I decided to get it instead and give it a try to see if it will help me to lower my high cholesterol.
Picked up a few other things at WalMart too....a couple of DVDs....."Mamma Mia" and "Bruce Almighty", a new bath mat and some mouthwash.
When I got home, I drove over to our Central Park and did a 1.4 mile walk. The weather is beautiful outside today. Started out at 37 degrees this morning, but now it's in the 60's and the sky is blue and the sun is shining. Just beautiful.
Well, need to go check out my friends on NOTH and Facebook.
TTFN

My Day

It was cold for us this morning when we awoke....39 degrees. After Ben left for work, I hand my breakfast (egg and muffin) and then mopped my floors.
My older brother called. He is getting ready to have cataract surgery so he keeps calling me to tell me what's going on with him.
Then I went for a 1.5 mile walk. By that time the weather had warmed up into the 60's and it was really nice outside.
Came home and made my lunch and watched my soap (Y&R) and then started to work on my home-made Christmas cards. Took the photo of Ben and I for the cards over the weekend.
How was your day?

Blood Work Results

Started getting the emails with my blood work results from Kaiser last night and the final result email came early this morning.
I HAVE BEEN A VERY BAD GIRL!
My cholesterol and triglycerides are the highest they have ever been. I admit that I have NOT been watching what I eat. Since I cannot tolerate the cholesterol medications, diet and exercise are the only way I can lower my numbers. When I was very first diagnosed with high cholesterol, it was 305 total. With diet and exercise, I was able to lower it to 265, which is the lowest it will go without medication. Mine is genetic, so it is even harder to get the numbers down.
In January 2005, I weighed 205 lbs. By October 2005, I had lost 45 lbs, but then gained back 5 lbs right away and it leveled off and stayed at 160 lbs for about 3 years.
I gained back another 10 lbs because I stopped watching my diet and I'm sure that is why my cholesterol levels also started going back up. Right now my total cholesterol is 326.
I go to see my new doctor this Monday and I know he will be all over me about my numbers. I know what has caused it and I am determined to start watching my diet once again and trying to get out and do more exercise.
Will just have to wait and see what happens.

Blood Work Day

Had to go over to the Kaiser Lab this morning and have blood work down before my appointment with my doctor next Monday. The lab is only about 4 miles from my home, so that is nice, and the technician there is so friendly. Today I mentioned to her that I would be seeing my new doctor for the first time next week. She told me that he is really nice and really listens to his patients. My new doctor is in the same building as the lab, so he is only about 4 miles away too. When I first joined Kaiser last year, there were no doctors taking new patients at the facility near me, so I had to sign up with a doctor over in the big Kaiser facility across the valley. That doctor was nice, but he kept suggesting that I try to get a doctor at the facility nearer my home so when I saw this young doctor was taking new patients, I called and had them make him my PCP. His nurse called about a month ago and said I needed to come in for an office visit and she scheduled the blood work. I don't take cholesterol meds as they give me muscle cramps and cause fatigue, but they always run a complete lipid panel on me.

More Memories....

Do you remember Lincoln Logs?

One of my brothers received a set of them one Christmas back in the 1950's when we were all little. Of course we shared our toys so all three of us would play with them. We would spend hours on end building log cabins. We built them so much we got to where we didn't even need the instructions on how to do it.



The logs we had came in a round can like the one below. We had to put them in there just right or the lid would not fit on top. I remember many happy times building the log cabins with my brothers.

Do You Remember.....

Wax mustaches and wax lips?
I remember they would show up in the stores every year around Halloween and my brothers and I would run out and buy a bunch of them. We'd wear them for awhile and then we would always end up chewing on them. Don't know if you were supposed to chew on wax, but that's what we did.
I see that you can still buy them online. Don't know if they are still in stores.

Foreign Coins

I am so tired of getting foreign coins in my change when I go to the store!
Most of the time, if it's a penny or a nickle, I let it go, but not today.
We went to Sam's Club to pick up a few things. I always pay cash and my change was 84 cents. The guy at the register hands me 3 quarters, 4 pennies and a foreign coin with a big "5" on it. It looked like a "toy coin" or a "token" for a game.
For some reason, it just struck a nerve today and I told him I wanted a "real" nickle instead of the "phony" one he just handed me. Well he had already closed the register drawer and they always tell you they cannot open it again until the make a sale. I think he thought I'd say "OK, we'll just let it go", but I didn't. I told him I'd wait.
So many times I've received foreign coins in my change without realizing it until I get home and then when I try to pass it off to another store, they will not accept it.
I stood there and waited for the next customer but she paid with a credit card, so once again, the guy at the register told me he could not open the register drawer. Again I said "I'll wait". Well, there were no other customers in line, so he had to go get a supervisor to come over and open the drawer. They were both mumbling about it when they handed me an American nickle, like I was being a bitch or something.
THIS IS AMERICA! Why should I accept a foreign coin that I would have trouble passing on? The stores should look at the coins all of these foreigners hand to them when making a purchase and the stores should refuse those foreign coins.

Autumn Morning Hike

This morning I hiked the 1.9 mile Canyon View Loop Trail in Towsley Canyon neat Santa Clarita, CA. My total hike from the parking lot, to the trailhead, over the trail and back was 2.6 miles. I don't know what the elevation increase was on this trail, but I know it got pretty high up. I could also tell that I had not been out on a "strenuous" hike for awhile because my heart was pounding, I was gasping for breath and I had to stop and rest several times on the climb up, but once I hit the summit and started back down, I had no problem.

If you would like to see all of the photos I took on this hike, please visit this album on my photosite at:

http://public.fotki.com/KaysWay/my-hikes--2009/towsley-canyon-view/

A TV Show To Remember

Do you remember the TV show "Gunsmoke?" It was one of my family's favorite shows. It was on CBS (our channel 2) on Saturday nights and 9:00 PM. We would all head for the kitchen around 8:30 PM and start fixing snacks, then right at 9:00 PM, we'd all sit down in front of the old black and white TV and watch the show. Below are the "original" characters....Chester, Miss Kitty, Matt and Doc.

Some of the episodes were filmed right here in the city where I live at a place called "Melody Ranch" which was once owned by Gene Autry. I have been there once and saw some of the sets for "Gunsmoke". Here is a link for Melody Ranch:

http://www.melodyranchstudio.com/

And here is a photo I found online of the real Long Branch Saloon in Dodge City, KS.

Shoddy Merchandise

Why is it every time I buy some kind of electronic device, it always ends up being "shoddy" and I have to return it to the store to exchange it?
A month ago, we purchased a new cordless telephone for the computer room. It had an answering system and two handsets, one remote and one base. It was working fine until today when my brother called and left a voicemail but the volume keep cutting out on it. I kept messing around with it trying to get the volume to stay on but it just wouldn't.
We took the phone back to Best Buy where we purchased it 28 days ago. Luckily it crapped out within the 30 day return time. I told them what it was doing so they said I could either replace it with the same model or pick out a different model. Well I went for the different model because once burned.....
Took me over an hour to get the new one all set up with our family members phone numbers, set up the answering system, etc.

Do You Remember.....

Wringer Washing Machines?

My mom had one. She did not have to wheel it into our kitchen like the photo below because we actually had a "service porch" inside the house, between the kitchen and the bathroom and the "service porch" had a big sink in it. Funny we did not call it the "laundry room".

Anyway, I remember my mom washing the clothes in the tub and then having to wring the water out of them manually with the wringer that was connected to the top of the washer. Guess they didn't know how to make the tub spin the water out of the clothes back then. I remember the towels and clothes would come out all flat and hard, like a piece of wood.

Mom would put the "pieces of wood" into a laundry basket and carry them outside to the clothesline in the back yard and hang everything on the line to dry in the sun all day.

This is what our clothesline looked like.

Then, after the laundry was dry, it had to be ironed. But you could not iron the wrinkles out of everything unless you used a "sprinkle bottle". This is because they did not have steam irons back then. It was any bottle you had, like a soda pop bottle and you bought funny little corks with holes in the top that you would put in the mouth of the bottle and the water would sprinkle out from the holes.

I Do NOT Believe This!

So I head over to the Sears Optical Department in our mall again this morning since my new eyeglasses had not come in yesterday when I got there.
This morning the eyeglasses were there but......
The technician who measured the lenses for the trifocal lines messed up. She had the measurements about 1/2" off and now they have to remake the lenses and I won't have my glasses for another week.
The technician that was there today said she cannot believe that the other girl could make that big of a mistake on the measurements.

Not Again!

I just HATE it when things do not work out the way they are supposed too. I went to Sears Optical last week and had my eyes examined and then ordered a pair of eyeglasses. I was told that I could pick up my new eyeglasses today after 1:00 PM. I left home around 1:05 PM to head over to the Valencia Mall where Sears Optical is located. It's about 8 to 10 miles over there. Got there around 1:15 PM and was told that the UPS driver never made his delivery for the day. They said that he is "always" there between 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM every day, but today, they had not seen him. The called UPS and were told that their package was on the delivery truck and would be there "sometime" today. Girl at optical department said there was probably a substitute driver and he didn't know the route. So now I have to go back over there tomorrow afternoon to see if my eyeglasses came in. Can't go in the morning. They don't open until 11:00 AM and we have a lunch we have to go to at 11:15 AM so will have to wait until we get back home.

Remember These?

Do you remember Formica topped kitchen tables and chrome and vinyl chairs? I think we all grew up with them. The one in my mom's kitchen when I was growing up was gray and it was oval shaped. We did not have a formal dining room, just a "dinette", but the Formica table sat in the corner of our very small kitchen. I don't know how five of us (my parents, me and my two brothers) all fit around that little table in that little area, but we did.

We were not allowed to have the television or radio on while we were eating at the table with the family. This time was set aside for discussing school, my dad's work, etc. and of course for eating our meals.

My mom had that table up until the time my dad died and all of us kids had moved away. She replaced it with a small wood table.

Do You Remember.....

SLINKY?


They had absolutely no purpose! But I thought they were one of the coolest things ever. I used to love to put it on the top of our cement steps that were outside our backdoor and just watch it "somersault" itself down to the bottom, or just hold it in my hands and "shimmy" it back and forth. It didn't take much to entertain us back then. We didn't need all these electronic things to occupy our time.

Do You Remember?

Do you remember S&H Green Stamps?

You would receive them at grocery stores, department stores, gas stations, etc. You would receive so many according to how much money you spent. You would lick them and stick them in little books and then redeem them for merchandise.

You would get the S&H Green Stamps "IdeaBook" catalog filled with all kinds of things. Dishes, lamps, sheets, towels, and many, many other things.

I remember my mom would get all kinds of neat "stuff" with the stamps we collected. She got pots and pans, wall hangings, flatware and so many other useful items.

What Happened To Fall?

Well on Monday and Tuesday, we had cool weather, clouds and rain. I thought fall was FINALLY here!
Yesterday and today it is clear, windy and hot. We hit 95 degrees so far today.
Went and picked up my "spare" pair of new eyeglasses this morning. Now I'm waiting on the "main" pair. The "main" pair will have Transitions Lenses. The "spare" pair does not. They charge so much for Transitions. I wear trifocals. The "main" pair cost me $307 with Transitions. The "spare" pair cost me $164 without Transitions.
And don't even get me started on the price of the frames! I was lucky to find two inexpensive pairs. One was $59 and the other was $69. Most of them are "designer" frames and cost from $99 to $200. That is outrageous!

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere

Lombardi Ranch - Saugus, CA

Every year, I drive over the hill to Lombardi Ranch in Saugus, CA. This is a family-owned ranch that has been in business for many years and I love to go there each year and take "Fall Photos".
Here is a link to their site:
http://www.lombardiranch.com/

Remember drive-in movie theaters?

I heard awhile back that the Skyline Drive-in in Barstow, CA reopened after being closed since 1987.

It’s nice to see this icon coming back. I have a lot of fond memories of the Edwards Drive-in Theater in Sunland, CA.

My younger brother worked there as an usher so he could get me and my friends in for free. I always enjoyed the movies more at the drive-in than I did at the walk-in theater. I could wear my jammies to the movies. Never cared for the food at the snack bar, so when Ben and I were dating, we would stop by “In-N-Out Burger” to pickup some food, drive over to the drive-in, eat and then relax and watch the movie. Sometimes it got very cold in the wintertime, but in the summer, we’d open up the windows and let the summer breeze blow through. When I owned my Chevy El Camino, we’d back into the parking space and have chaise lounge pads in the back. We’d bring lots of pillow and sit in the back of the truck to watch the movies.

Those were the “good old days”.

California Storm

Here's what our sky looked like here in SoCal around 8:30 this morning.

Eye Exam

Went for my every-2-year eye exam today. Found out I have "the beginnings of cataracts" or "Baby Cataracts' is what the eye doctor called them. She said that I didn't have to worry for awhile because they are just starting. My older brother is going in for his cataract surgery consultation tomorrow, so it's a little strange that I was diagnosed with beginning cataracts today. I always thought that cataracts were genetic. Neither of my parents had them, but the eye doctor told me that EVERYONE gets them sooner or later. So I guess a few years into my future, I will have to get surgery for them. I sure will not look forward to that since they keep you awake when they do it. Cannot stand the thought of seeing a scalpel heading for my eyes. Been drizzly here in SoCal most of the day, but it's been no way the huge storm that they kept telling us we were going to get, unless we get more overnight.

Rain Coming?

It's been cloudy and gray all day here in SoCal. They say we are going to get 1" to 2" of rain from our first rainstorm of the season. We need the rain, but if we get too much, it will cause mudslides where the resent fires burned last month.
I had to light the pilot for our central air furnace today. The furnace seems to be working OK this year. Last year we had to call the Gas Company to come and put a new thermal couple in it. Two years ago, we had a plumber put a new thermal couple in and it cost us almost $400. Last year when we tried to light the furnace, it would not stay lit so we called the Gas Company. They came out and said the thermal couple we had gotten the year before had gone out again. They installed a new one for around $56. Obviously the plumber ripped us off the year before.
I had planned to go over to Lombardi Ranch today, but since the sun was not out, I decided against it. Lombardi Ranch is a family farm in Saugus, just over the hill from us. Every fall they have a big pumpkin patch and a corn maze, plus their Scarecrow Alley. I love to go over there and shot fall photographs. Maybe I'll get to go another day this week.

It Never Fails

It never fails. Every time I think I'm getting a good deal on something I buy, within the next few days, I see a better deal.
Yesterday I mentioned that I found an 8GB USB Flash Drive at Best Buy that was normally $44.95 on sale for $24.95. Sounds like a great deal right? Well today I saw that Target had an 8GB USB Flash Drive on sale for $18.99! It figures. Anyway, I decided to keep the one I bought at Best Buy, but also pick another one up at Target. What the heck? I can always use another one. The are great for holding all of my photographs, of which I take a lot of.
Started out this morning all overcast and gray but the sun came out this afternoon. They keep saying we have our first rain storm coming in on Tuesday. Hopefully they are right because we really need the rain badly. Just have to wait and see I guess.

Busy Saturday

Been keeping myself pretty busy today. Ben had to work.

Got up and had my home-made "egg mcmuffin" for breakfast then went outside and trimmed back my 4 rose bushes. The were really getting out of hand. Had stems sticking out 3 or 4 feet in some places.

Went up to Bed, Bath & Beyond to return a laptop table I had bought a couple of days ago. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but after using it, didn't like it. Then headed over to OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware) and picked up some weed killer, some potting soil, some drain cleaner and a new American flag since mine is starting to tear some. The went over to Best Buy and bought an 8GB flash drive. I like to keep my photographs on them and my 4GB was getting full. I bought a "GeekSquad" brand one for $24.95. Was on sale. Normal price was $44.95 so I thought I got a good deal.

Came home and made my lunch (a tuna patty and salad), and settled down to watch the episode of "Desperate Housewives" I recorded last Sunday night.

After lunch I went out and planted my lettuce seeds, sprayed some weeds, and now I am downloading my photographs to my new flash drive.

Not Much Happening

Well, since I've been back from my second trip to northern California, I still have not been able to really get myself back into my "normal hum-drum". I got back into my morning walks and I've still been trying to get back to my web communities and friends, but it's taking me a little time to do it. Guess since I'm getting older, I'm slowing down. (Sounds like a good excuse).
Ben and I went to lunch at Denny's today. We had a coupon for "buy one entree get one entree free" so that was a good thing. We went over to WalMart to pick up a few things. Watched our soap opera (Y&R). Maybe by Monday I'll start to be back in my own little "rut".
Tomorrow I need to trim back the rosebushes in my front yard. They are getting really out of hand. Stems reaching out about 4 or 5 feet into the air. I also need to get my lettuce seeds planted. Bought them about 2 or 3 months ago and the package says to plant them between September and February, so I guess I'd better get around to doing that. I'm rambling, so I'll go away now (LOL).

Home Again

Well I'm home from my latest trip. This should be the last extended trip for awhile now. I'm trying to catch up on things around the house and trying to get back into my community websites. I love going on vacations, but sometimes it's so hard to get back into the swing of things after you get home.
Hope everyone is doing well and that you have been able to check out my photographs and videos of my trip. We had a fun time. Weather was perfect. Paradise, CA is a really nice place to visit, but I don't think I'd really want to live there.
Weather is nice here at home now too. Looks like maybe the HOT weather has gone away. Hopefully I'll be able to start getting some hiking in soon.

Links to Videos and Photos

Well, my brother Keith and I will be headed back down to SoCal first thing tomorrow morning. Had another great day with both of my brothers. We went over to the Paradise train depot museum and walked along the "TrailWay" which is the old path of the railroad right-of-way that used to run through the middle of Paradise, CA. They don't have trains here anymore, so they took the tracks up and paved the right-of-way for a walking/biking trail.
Then we went over to take photos of Feather River Canyon, then over to Billie Park and hiked the path to the lookout point to take more photos of Butte Creek Canyon, then Keith and I hiked down the path that leads to the Grotto while Ron waited for us up above.
Went out for Mexican food at lunch and then came back to the apartment.
I'm not looking forward to the long, boring drive home tomorrow, but I am looking forward to seeing my husband (Ben) and sleeping in my own bed again.
Here are the links for my videos on YouTube and for my photos on Fotki.com

Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/kayben80#play/all/uploads-all/2/UCbHi03bCuY

http://www.youtube.com/kayben80#play/all/uploads-all/1/BVuSILLeYhg

http://www.youtube.com/kayben80#play/all/uploads-all/0/qwO9tdb_ers

Photos:

http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/trip-to-paradise-ca/

Exploring

Yesterday my brothers (Ron and Keith) and I went exploring. We went to "Lookout Point" between Paradise and Chico and took a few photos then drove down to Butte Creek Canyon and to the Honey Run Covered Bridge. Beautiful area there.

Went to WalMart in Chico where Ron bought a new 22" wide screen computer monitor then we headed over to Upper Bidwell Park to do a little hiking. We did about 3 miles. Saw a lot of acorn woodpeckers, squirrels and lizards.

All in all we had a really fun day. Weather was perfect!

Here is a short video of me inside the Honey Run Covered Bridge:

Greetings From Paradise, CA

Hello from Paradise, CA.
I did not get any photos yesterday because I did all the driving. I took a few here in the apartment, but have not gotten them uploaded yet.
We got here late in the afternoon yesterday and we were having problems getting my laptop logged on through my brother's router so I was not able to post. Today has been mostly cloudy, so we really did not get out and do much, plus we were trying all day to get my computer to log on. Finally got it hard-wired as his "wireless" would not let me log on that way.
Tomorrow we are going to head down towards Chico, CA and I'll start taking photos of Butte Creek Canyon and other things.

Almost Ready To Go

Have packed everything, washed the car and filled it up with gas, put suitcases in trunk. Now all I'm waiting for is my brother to get here in a little while, put his stuff in the car and then we will be all ready to head out first thing tomorrow morning.
Will take us about 8 hours to drive up Interstate 5 to Paradise, CA. It's a long boring drive as there is not much scenery on that highway. But my brother and I love to visit so we'll talk and enjoy our time. We also listen to a radio station up in the Central Valley called KingsRadio which plays "nostalgia" music from 1945 to about 1965. Some of the songs we've all but forgotten about when we hear them.
Hopefully I'll be able to log on to my laptop through my brother's router and be able to get on line so I can post on my blog while I'm up there. Otherwise, I'll have to see if my brother will let me log on to his computer for a little while.

Windy Thursday

It's very windy here in SoCal this morning. Went for my morning walk and thought I'd get blown away! But I love the wind as long as it is not destructive. I brings back memories of when I was a kid on Halloween. It was ALWAYS windy on Halloween night here in SoCal, windy and warm. October brings our "Santa Ana Winds" but that also means it brings brush fires. It was two years ago this month that Ben and I had to evacuate our home because the hill half a block up the street from us was on fire. That was really a scary time for us.
Anyway, I'm sitting here with the front door open, listening to the wind and watching leaves blow by. I'm also thinking about all of the last minute things I need to remember tomorrow before my brother Keith gets here to spend the night so he and I can leave early Saturday morning for our drive up to Paradise, CA to spend 5 days with our brother Ron.

Beautiful Day In SoCal

Sure is a beautiful day here in SoCal today. It was about 46 degrees or so when we woke up this morning. I went for a nice walk in the cool morning air. It's so nice outside that I'm thinking about taking another walk in an hour or so. It's about 82 degrees right now. After my morning walk, I had breakfast and then headed up to Kohl's for their "early bird sale". I normally don't shop at Kohl's, but every time they have a grand opening somewhere, they send me a free $10 gift card to spend. They have done that 3 times in the past year or so. I don't know why because I do not have a charge account with them. I prefer WalMart. They are more my "style" and they are less expensive. Anyway, I found three tops that were on sale, one short sleeve T-shirt and two long sleeve T-shirts. I got all three of them for $6.55 using the $10 off gift card. They claim I saved over $50 on those three tops. To me, there is NO WAY those three T-shirts are worth that much money! One of them was originally marked $26.00 and I got it for $5.99 on sale. Anyone who would pay $26.00 for a long sleeve T-shirt is OUT OF THEIR MIND!

These are not the colors I bought, but you get the idea.

Preparing For My Next Trip

Well, I've begun preparing for my next trip away from home which takes place this Saturday. My younger brother Keith and I are heading up Interstate 5 here in California to the township of Paradise, CA to visit our older brother Ron for about 4 days. Ron moved up there with his family about 27 years ago. He is now divorced and all of his kids are grown. Keith and I try to get up there to visit with him at least once a year. I'll be taking more photos and I will post them (or the link to them) here when I return. Hopefully I'll be able to get online while I'm there so I can check out your blogs and post a few of mine.
But I'm still here at home for a few more days until we leave, so I'll be hanging out in cyberspace.

Last Vacation Video

This is the last video I took while we were up north. We went to Ft. Humboldt State Park and they had a little steam engine giving people rides. There was also an old guy playing the fiddle there.

Battery Point, Pebble Beach, St. George Point

One of our favorite places in Northern California is Crescent City. It is just a few miles south of the Oregon boarder right on the coast. There are two lighthouses there. The Battery Point Light is right off the coastline. When the tide is out, you can walk out to the island that the lighthouse sits on. The other light is 6 miles off the coast and can only be sceen on a clear day, which does not happen very often in Crescent City. It is foggy there about 300 days out of the year. We drove up there from Ferndale on the Monday we were up there and it was pouring down rain, so we went back up again on the Friday because they predicted sunshine, but it was so foggy, we could hardly see the Battery Point Light. Pebble beach is one of the most beautiful coastline drives in the state. The day we were there it was foggy.

The Lost Coast Of Northern California

One day when we were out sightseeing, we noticed some people on a cliff over one of the jetties between Ferndale, Ca and Eureka, CA. We drove over to see what they were doing and found them para-sailing. The prepared for each flight for almost an hour only to have a short 2 or 3 minute sail down to the beach.

The River Walk in Fortuna, CA

This is a nice walking trail along the Eel River near Fortuna, CA

Animals in Humboldt County, CA

In the middle of Old Town Eureka, CA there is a pen that holds two geese. These two geese have been there for years. Even Huell Howser did a story on them once on California's Gold on PBS. No one really "owns" these geese, but people in town feed them and watch over them.
The cows are near Ferndale, CA which is a dairy town.

Another Vacation Video

Today my vacation video is from The Founders Grove along the Avenue Of The Giants which runs between Phillipsville, CA and Pepperwood, CA. This drive is one of the most beautiful drive in the world. Towering groves of redwood trees and lush ferns. You almost expect to see dinosaurs walking through the forest here like in "Jurassic Park". These trees are the tallest living things on earth.

Fall?????

You certainly would not know that today was the first day of fall here in SoCal. It got up to 101 degrees and was extremely windy. We do have wind in the fall, but 101 degrees?
Another brush fire has broken out over in Fillmore, CA which is about 25 miles west of us. We have been in a red-flag warning/fire warning for about 2 days. I think the arsons love to hear that on the news so they know they can go out and get their jollies.

Short Videos

I filmed a few short videos while I was on vacation. I spliced them all together into a longer video and tried to upload it to YouTube, but they came back and told me it was too long. They only allow up to a 10 minute video and mine was almost 15 minutes. Oh well, I fooled them (LOL). I made shorter individual videos and have been uploading them a few at a time so I can post them here.
Here's the first one:

Last Photos Of Trip

Here is the link for the last few photos I took on our way home from our vacation yesterday. Soon I will have some short videos to post too.

http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-8/

Day 7 of Vacation

Today being our last day, we decided to just do some last day sight-seeing and pick up some things we wanted to take home.First we stopped by Fort Humboldt State Historic Park. Here is a link about the park:
http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=665

We drove up to Arcata but could not find anywhere to park and walk around the town square because they were having a big farmer's market. We headed back down to Woodley Island again and spent a little time there, then went over to Ben's favorite chocolate shop, Partricsk in Eureka. Then we drove back uptown and had lunch at Sizzler then headed back down to Loleta to hit the cheese factory again and buy some cheeses to take home. Here is a link for their website:
http://www.loletacheese.com/

After stopping back by our suite in Ferndale to put the cheese in the fridge, we headed down to Fortuna because they were having a Civil War Reinactment. I stood up on the hill and shot some photos of the battle.The we drove down some backroads on the way back to Ferndale.

Here is the link for todays photos:
http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-7/

Day 6 of Vacation

Today we decided to head up to Crescent City again hoping that the weather would be better than it was Monday. It was nice and sunny when we left Ferndale and beautiful all the way up, but when we got to Crescent City, the fog started to roll in. We were standing in the parking lot for the Battery Point Light and couldn't even see it. We decided to go check out some gift shops and then headed back. The fog had lifted a little, but we were not able to see the St. George Reef Light as it is 6 miles off the coast. I did walk to the end of St. George Point to take some photos. On the way back along the path, I scared a little snake that went slithering across the path in front of me. He scared me too. We left Crescent City and headed back to Klammoth to have lunch at the Forest Cafe again, which is where we ate last Monday. Then we drove back down to Trinidad, CA and took more photos since it was a better day than when we were there Monday.
Here is the link for today's photos:

http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-6/

Day 5 of Vacation

Today we drove around on the back roads just sightseeing. We drove over Grizzly Bluff to Rio Dell and Scotia. Scotia was once the home of the Pacific Lumber Company and they used to have a really neat self-guided tour there but the lumber company was sold. There is an old Inn there that had been closed down for many years and I had always wanted to see the inside of it. It was refurbished and reopened last year so we went inside and they let us wander around and take photos.We went over to the Bear River Indian Casino in Loleta. I told Ben before we got there that we may as well hand the Indians our money and walk out. We may should have just done that since we dropped $40 in about 15 minutes.Then we went over to the Wildlife Refuge and up to the Jetty where we watch some people para sailing off the bluffs. Then we drove over to a couple of small covered bridges on a back road near Eureka. Here is the link for today photos: http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-5/

Day 4 of Vacation

Wednesday we decided to roam around Woodley Island Marina and Old Town Eureka. Old Town was really a mess until about 2 or 3 years ago when they started to refurbish it back to it's original beauty. The buildings were falling apart...broken windows, paint peeling, bums living in them. Now Old Town is a beautiful tourist area with quaint little shops. We also took a drive through Sequoia City Park in the middle of Eureka, CA. Had lunch at Jalisco Mexican Restaurant in Eureka. They have a great buffet. After we got back to Ferndale, I went exploring again. I found a dirt road that went behind the cemetery and followed it until it came to a dead end.
Here is the link to my photos from today:
http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-4/

Day 3 of Vacation

Today we drove south to drive through The Avenue of the Giants. If you have never been on this drive, you are really missing one of God's greatest gifts to us...the giant Coastal Sequoias. These trees are over 300 ft. tall and average 12 ft. in diameter. They are over 2000 years old, so remember, they were here when Jesus walked the earth.
After we returned to Ferndale, I walked around and took some photos of the homes and buildings here in town. For those of you not familiar with Ferndale, CA it was the town of Cedar Creek, CA in the movie "Outbreak" starring Dustin Hoffman and about 80% of the movie was filmed here. It was also the town of Lawson, CA in the movie "The Majestic" starring Jim Carrey. Also, for those of you who watch The Food Network, Ferndale is the hometown of Guy Fieri.
Here is a link to Ferndale's website:

http://www.victorianferndale.com/

And.....here is the link for today's photos of The Avenue Of The Giants:

http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/day-3/

Day 2 of Vacation

Today when we got up, it was very cloudy outside, but we decided to head up the coast to Crescent City, CA. As we got farther north, it started to rain again. It rained off and on all the way up and when we got to Crescent City, it was pouring, so we decided to turn around and head back south and try to go back up on Friday because they say it will be sunny all day up there then. On the way back, we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants, The Forest Cafe. It is in Klammoth, CA just across the street from The Trees Of Mystery. It is such a cool place. They have two themes going on in the cafe. The first is the forest theme. It makes you feel like you are in the middle of the redwood forest (which you are). The second is the under the lake theme where you see duck feet, boat bottoms, fish, etc. when you look up at the ceiling. Makes you feel as though you are eating under the water. Headed back down to Ferndale and the farther south we got, the more the sun came out and it was a beautiful day here the rest of the day. I walked over to the Ferndale cemetery and took some photos. There are some really old head stones there. Enjoy the first photos of our trip in the blog below this one.
BTW......What Kanya West did to Taylor Swift really pisses me off! I felt so sorry for her. She is such a sweet little thing.

First Photos Of Our Vacation

Here is the link to the first photos of our vacation:

http://public.fotki.com/kayben80/vacation-september-2009/

Enjoy!

Greetings From Ferndale, CA

Greetings from Ferndale, CA!
We arrived here around 4:45 P.M. (PDT). Started out a really nice sunny day but became more cloudy as we headed up Interstate 5. When we got to SR20 to head west toward Hwy. 101 the clouds started getting really dark. By the time we reached Hwy. 101 it started to rain and then it started to pour and it poured all the way to Ferndale, about 150 miles or so. It is still dripping a little outside, but not like it was. When we checked in, they told us that it started out really sunny and beautiful here this morning so they said we must have brought the rain up with us. Actually the rain was a nice change from the hot hot hot weather we've been having down in SoCal.
Well, I need to check out some of my other sites and my email now, so I'll try to post another blog tomorrow evening.

Saturday

Well today I will be busy doing the "last minute" things to be ready to leave on our vacation tomorrow morning.
Finish packing, do a load of laundry, fill the gas tank in the car, wash the car, etc.
Ben works today, so I'll be on my own doing it. No walk for me this morning!

NEVER FORGET - Silent Friday

9-11 Tribute Page

Please visit my 9-11 Tribute Page at NotOverTheHill.com

http://notoverthehill.com/KaysWay9-11Tribute

Vacation Is Getting Closer

Good morning all.
Ben is back at work today then he is off tomorrow and works again on Saturday, then Sunday morning we leave for our long awaited week long vacation.
Weather is beautiful here this morning. I need to get going on my walk before the temps heat up.

THANKS!

Ben says THANKS to everyone who sent birthday wishes.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN!

This is Ben my husband. Today is his 59th birthday.

Mixed Up

Because of the way the holiday fell and Ben's days off, he ended up getting 6 days off in a row. Today was day 5. I am so confused over what day of the week today is since he's been home for so long. If and whenever he retires, I won't know what day it is at all!
Went for my morning walk while Ben took the Corolla over to the tire store to have the tires rotated and checked for our vacation.
Had lunch at Der Wienerschnitzel the watched "Young & Restless".
Went to Kaiser Pharmacy and picked up my medications for the next 3 months.
The rest of the day I've been "creating" email signatures at http://www.gif-mania.net/animated-signatures/your-own-figurines.html
Ended up make some for my brother and a couple of friends too.
How was your day?

Labor Day 2009

Didn't really do anything today. We never do on holidays as there are just way too many people on the roads and we don't like crowds.
I went for my morning walk then we did a little packing for our trip. I have enough clothes that I was able to pack all of my clothes, but Ben doesn't. So we will have to do most of his packing the end of the week.
Went over to the Kaiser Pharmacy to see if my medications that I ordered online yesterday were ready for pickup, but they weren't. Since today was a holiday, they didn't get their delivery so they told me to come back tomorrow.
We had lunch over at Del Taco. Love their bacon cheeseburgers.
Mostly just been staying around here at home watching "The Golden Girls" on the Hallmark channel. They are having a marathon.
Hope all of you have had a great day.

One More Week Until Vacation

Was able to go for my walk again this morning. While I was out, I started hearing sirens and I heard helicopters flying around. Then I started to smell smoke. I thought "oh no, here we go again". I could see a little plume of brown smoke to the east, but it hadn't gotten too bad yet. When I got home, I turned on our scanner and found out the the fire was up Sierra Highway about 3 or 4 miles from us "as the crow flies". Thank goodness, there are a lot of fire personnel in the area right now with the fire camp being over at Central Park. They had the small blaze out in no time. Ben and I drove up that way this afternoon and saw where it had burned maybe an acre or so on the side of the hill.
As I mentioned in the blog title, we are not only one week away from the start of our vacation. We will be leaving around 6:00 AM next Sunday morning and arrive in Ferndale, CA probably around 3:00 PM or 4:00 PM in the afternoon. We used to do the drive in two days with a stop over in Williams, CA but this year we have decided to drive the entire 600+ miles in one day which should take us about 10 hours. We will alternate the driving so neither of us will get too pooped to pop.
Tomorrow we need to get our huge duffle bag down from it's storage place so I can start doing some packing during the week.
We are really looking forward to this trip. Our suite has WiFi, so I should be able to be online in the evenings and maybe post some photos or videos and do a little blogging about what we've been doing.

Good Saturday Morning

Got to finally go for a morning walk and it felt great to be outside with no smoke.
They have the Station Fire 50% contained now and they are going to start releasing some of the fire crews and let them go home. The state of California offering a $100,000.00 reward for the arrest of whoever started the fire.
Can't believe that it's only one more week until Ben and I leave for our vacation. I am getting excited. When we get back I have only 2 weeks to get ready for my next trip with my younger brother. We are going up to see our older brother for 5 days. Looking forward to that too.
Maybe by the time I get back from both trips, the Fall weather will be here and I'll be able to start hiking again.

Finally, A No Smoke Day

Finally we had a day without the smell of smoke in the air and without the plume of smoke billowing into the skies. I still did not go out for a walk yet as they are still saying that the air quality is very unhealthy, but hopefully things are getting better.
I just hope they find the SOB who started the fire and caused the death of those 2 firefighters.

Arson Fire

They have just announced that the huge Station Fire here in SoCal was arson. That means that the death of the 2 firefighters is now homicide.

Update On The Station Fire

Today it is extremely smokey here again. We cannot even see the mountains that surround our valley and they are only about 4 miles away. Even though the fire has not come over the mountain onto our side, they have a fire camp set up over in our Central Park in Saugus. Everywhere you go, you see caravans of fire engines, forestry truck, and bulldozers. You see fire personnel at WalMart and the grocery stores. It's like being in a battle zone.
Here is a link to the latest official on the fire.

http://www.inciweb.org/incident/1856/

Clouds or Smoke?

Today we cannot tell what is clouds or what is smoke. We are getting the outer bans of Hurricane Jimena that is now at the tip of Bajo, California so we know there are some clouds, plus we actually got some big rain drops earlier when we were out this morning. I wish it would POUR! That's what our firefighters need to help them put this monster fire out. Because of the layer of clouds, the smoke is staying closer to the ground than it has for several days so it really stinks and it is really thick.
Below is a photo I got off the Internet from the Mt. Wilson web cam. On Mt. Wilson is an observatory and also all of the communication towers for Los Angeles and the outlying cities. These towers are used for television and radio signals plus the fire, police and sheriff communications. They are afraid that the fire may get to them and stop all communication in most of Southern California.