Common Ground Coffee House #116

[Melanie]

Loved your post Ann......here in New Zealand we have broken records for the most Antarctic week. Snowed here in mild Wanganui....snow in a lot of places usually not snowed on. The ski fields are booming.

My neighbour was distressed the other day after her post box was vandalised by louts. We live on a "busy" street (busy by rural town standards). I had my post box graffitied by louts who could not even spell the obscenity correctly!!!

This morning I had to ring 111 to get the fire brigade to put out a fire which had been maliciously started on the other side of the fence, fortunately my elderly and at times irritating neighbour was on the ball.

Not much work to be had in our little town. I was working in the catering section today for a hockey tournament and our takings were disappointingly small...again not much spare money around at the moment.

 

[menageriekeeper]

I gotta tell ya, Melanie, if someone had misspelled a bad word on my mailbox I'd have been tempted to hang a sign under it that said something like, "hey dummy, @#$&* is spelled @#%%^!" (how is New Zealand on gun control? Cause if they'd set my fence afire, I'd have set their hind quarters alight with rock salt. No patience here for such foolishness)

Good Morning Everyone!

I'm about to head outside and mow for a while. Again. My front yard requires little mowing, but my back gets to be a jungle within days. All it takes is a little rain and we've had a lot!

Did the "family thing" all weekend. T and I both had uncles to die (go figure) which is about the only time we see the extended families. My poor kids were like "there is no way we are related to all these people!" LOL! Total culture shock for them to meet my side of the family, who are just plain country folk without much education. I've grown such city kids!

T's side was better. The kids had at least met them before, so they knew what to expect.

All in all, it was quite the weekend!

 

[Melanie]

I was indeed tempted to leave a note for the donkey who could not spell but caution dictated that it might cause the problem to escalate.

Fortunately it was not MY backfence but certainly my neighbours was in danger and eventually mine also. Sadly, no-one saw the dopes who lit it, but I did let the local constabulary know about it, in case of related problems.

Today saw me working through a mountain of ironing. I have been reading books by Nicholas Monserrat and have just completed "The Nylon Pirates". I have also read "The Tribe that Lost its Head" which was rather confronting and based on the MauMau Wars I think of the 1950s. I loved the book "The Kappillan of Malta" which is about the seige of Malta during the second world war....it ws bombed flat and sounds a hideous ordeal to endure. I am searching for a copy of "The Cruel Sea" and some other works...I troll through second hand bookstores....a great source of innocent pleasure.

 

[menageriekeeper]

I love second hand bookstores! I see no reason to pay full price for a book when I can be patient five minutes and someone will donate or trade in what I want!

Good morning everyone!

No mowing for me today. The heat index is way to high. What is left out there will have to wait until cooler temps later this week. (which is why my backyard resembled a jungle this weekend lol) Most of it is done however so life won't end if the rest waits.

Instead I'm going to be cleaning the big closet upstairs. A friend of mine is making a haul to the dump and I have things to dump! Namely a big ole tv that is kaput, but the last time I put something glass out to the curb the garbage guys broke it and left the pieces everywhere. Grr! So to the dump with it and anything else I happen to find that has just been shoved in there until "someone" decides to deal with it. I'm someone and I need the space up there so I can clear out a different closet down stairs to use with the rearranged laundry space. (this project has been ongoing for a while now and I'd like to get it done!)

After that, I'm gonna plop somewhere and not move the rest of the day.

Ya'll have a good one!

 

[Gina B]

Ah, a day off work. Sort of, couldnt go because of a meeting concerning one of the children, falling in the middle of the day so couldn't take just a half-day, which is fine with me as I'm worn out from yesterday!

Gonna take advantage of the time after this is over and go swimming with my husband. With the kids in school, any time off means we can go jump in the pool and we're usually alone. LOVE IT!

 

[Melanie]

I am off into the wilds of New Zealand for a retreat, 5 days of conferences and things spiritual. It is great once you get into the swing of it......no talking at all:laugh:. It is always hard to return to the everyday world.:godisgood:

 

[Gina B]

No talking?! Sounds peaceful. How about singing? I might be able to manage not talking if I could sing.

Nothing overly exciting this way, just work, kids, work with kids, sleeping, medicine, life. Kinda getting TIRED!

 

[annsni]

Ann, if you can post a pic or 2, Martha's Vineyard is such a romantic sounding name and I believe it to be a beautiful place indeed.

OK - I meant to get you some pictures but I really don't have any!! I have to upload a video of the storm damage at the end of the harbor but that's all I have! I don't know why I don't have more pictures but I guess it's because we were walking just through town most of the time and one afternoon took me on a decent length walk to get to the grocery store for some provisions. But here are some links to pictures of Martha's Vineyard online:

First off, here's the satellite picture of Edgartown Harbor and you can see at the bottom the area that's called Katama Bay. At the bottom of the bay where you see the opening in the land, that wasn't always there. That happened in a storm in '96, I believe and it now really messed a LOT of things up for the town/boating world but they seem to have it under control for now. The weird thing is that they have NO clue about how to chart the tides there and all it says in the chart book is something like "There is not enough data to be able to determine tides". That means "We have NO idea how the heck this thing works even after 5 years!!" LOL

http://maps.google.com/?ll=41.368822,-70.492916&spn=0.062352,0.145397&t=h&z=13&vpsrc=6

Here's a pic of Edgartown village. It was really nice but EXPENSIVE stores!
http://images.world66.com/ed/ga/rt/edgartown_mainstre_galleryfull

These are some of the gorgeous houses in Oak Bluffs, another town on the island
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01466/marthas-vineyard-o_1466770c.jpg

These are the SWEETEST homes in Oak Bluffs. It was once a location of an annual revival and eventually, people started building platforms for their tents around a centrally built "tabernacle" so that they would not be sleeping on the ground. This was back in the 1800s. Soon, those platforms became homes and in a circle around the newer tabernacle, are these adorable gingerbread style homes. They all have the same basic layout and structure but the details are each individual. It's GREAT to walk around in here and we went to church at the tabernacle a couple of times. They have guest preachers there each week.
http://static.travelmuse.com/docs/a...ineyard-off-season-colorful-cottages-full.jpg

Here is the tabernacle. It has no walls but does have the very good roof. It's great to sit in during bad weather.
http://irishhillpostcards.com/img/new1023pc/44a-1023.JPG

Inside the tabernacle
http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/f0/04/e8/the-interior-of-the-tabernacle.jpg

There are other areas there including Menemsha, where Jaws was filmed, but we didn't get there this trip.

 

[menageriekeeper]

LOL on Jaws. Jenna loves those movies! We bought her the set of them last year so she wouldn't have to wait on them to come on tv. :laugh:

Oh my. I am STILL working on my laundry area!!!! And do you know how much laundry baskets cost me yesterday???? $15 a pop and I had to have 4!!!! They are nice baskets though and I think I might spring for another one or two to go in the bathrooms. For the time being though, I'll use the old baskets which are still in good condition but didn't have lids and were round and I need squares to better fit the space.

Today I have a linen closet to clean out and rearrange and I need to work on emptying the old entertainment center because it is going to a new home and should have been there weeks ago! But mostly, I'm going to go have my hair done. It's pain going gray when you are only 47!

Ya'll have a good day!

 

[Melanie]

Thank you Ann, it is picture postcard stuff, remnds me a bit of Thomas Kincaid romantic and fantasy art.

Well, back to civilisation after my retreat. Took a couple of young ladies who had flown over from Australia to participate. We ended up going a scenic route because the Manawatu Gorge was closed because of a large land slip (this is fairly common in NZ). The day was sunny and cool and it was lovely to see the ewes with their lambkins, all fairly white (not a common sight in dusty Australia, sheep are reddish from the soil), there was flowing water and beautiful green pastures that looked like velvet.

The retreat place was in a valley with a river running through, and the NZ bush all about. A great many imported plants have gone wild and it is a delight to see the daffodils and freesias adding a bright spot amongst the greenery.

The retreat followed the St. Ignatian Spiritual Exercises and it is not a holiday one is on...up at 0600hrs and finally into bed at about 2100hrs. The accommodation was basic but cosy enough provided you did not need to go to the bathroom during the night......it is very very black indeed at night. I won't witter on as it was very Catholic but it is beautiful to be able to meditate and pray.:godisgood:

 

[following-Him]

Another bookshop addict here! It has been a busy summer for me so I am really looking for ward to the fall and catching up on my reading!:laugh:

 

[Melanie]

Well, it has been a funny couple of days...the cat has been glued to me after being seperated for a week. The wretched beast got into a brawl and had a nasty bite to one ear, my bed looked like a slaughter table....yuk. Her tail was down and she surely was low in mojo....the wonderful vet sorted it out and she is being silly again.

I have been busy with the housekeeping I do and visiting some folk up from Dunedin in the South Island. All the young folk have been whizzing up to Mt. Ruhapahu for skiing and snow frolics. I have been in the garden shed which gets lovely and warm so there is always an excuse to fiddle about there.

Our wee town has hosted the American Eagles rugby team as a part of the hosting for the World Cup. I hope they enjoyed it as much as the town.....there were American flags and bunting galore and an enormous turn out of folk to watch them come up the river by waka (native canoes) and of course there were haka and feasting to be had.:thumbs:

 

[annsni]

Today is the first day of 4th and 6th grades and sophomore year of college for my home. I'm homeschooling the younger two and the other two are out in college (living at home though). My oldest started school last week. It's exciting and a privilege to be able to teach my children another year!!

So it's quiet around here right now. We had a funeral last night and so yesterday was spent getting the service ready and a slideshow done for the funeral/family and so today is catch-up day on chores as well. Later is my daughter's first day of ballet as well and she's moved up even though she is a year too young to be in this class. Her instructor (who apparently is well-known in the ballet world) feels she's ready. I'm proud of her!

 

[Gina B]

Been sleeping like crazy, but wide awake this morning and ready to teach...Spanish. Whoo-hoo. Lots of memories flooding back, the human brain is pretty cool how things stay in your head after years!

It's been a crazy month. September always seems to be somehow dramatic and something new (and not good) happens every September. This year it was the loss of an awesome teacher at the high school and one at the middle school due to a murder/suicide. Both very loved, but everyone seems to be getting over the initial shock, the memorial was Tuesday, and it's good to see the kids keep their spirits up and keep smiling like she would have wanted. Not sure how the middle school is doing. My oldest two were close to her but they know what she would have wanted and they're keepin' on.

The weather is finally cooling off and that is a much needed break from the daily hundreds we've had for months. I'm loving it! Seems the fires we've had out here are getting under control, though the air quality still isn't too great. It's improved though.

Time for school. Another day, another dollar. Almost literally. HA! Last state I lived in paid double this amount, but can't complain much...actually not at all considering the number of people who want ANY job and can't get one right now. I'm lucky to have it and blessed on top of it to get to work with teens. They're a riot!

 

[annsni]

It's cooling off here too, Gina. We've had rain for the last three days thanks to Lee and so it's just been so dreary for the start of school. But we've started and I'm TRYING to get a handle on this house. It's been such a mess and each day, I've committed to doing SOMETHING to organize it. I feel like I'm beginning to come near the surface and not be drowning all the time!!

So, I'm getting on top of things and feeling like I can do this when I get a call from church yesterday asking me to put together a slideshow with the song Blessings by Laura Story for the 9-11 Commemoration on Sunday. OY!! Sure! It only takes about 6 hours to do something like that justice!! So that will be my big project for today. :type:

 

[Gina B]

"Blessings" is a beautiful song, someone on here linked it before and I saved it!
House...that's where DH is my salvation. I come home from work and he usually has it in decent order. Makes life oh so much easier.

Last day of work before the weekend. I'm really tired so hope the day goes okay. Can't wait to hop back in bed with my nice cool pillow! Think I'll stick it in the freezer before I leave. :smilewinkgrin: I've seen ads for a pillow that is supposed to stay cool. I may have to invest in that as cold pillows are soooo nice.

 

[Melanie]

Off to Mass shortly so just a quick note. I will pray for all you folk on this memorial day of that awful day 10 years ago ( how time flies, but probably not for those who lost dear ones).

THe cat has her nose covered and is catching up with her sleep in preparation for mischief. I am inheriting another verminoid.....SilliJilli.


My backyard which I can see from my window here is a mass of blossom....I love spring don't you.

God bless you all

:type:

 

[Gina B]

What a beautiful morning! I'm at the end an SLE Lupus flare that seemed to last forever. On top of that, it's a full moon, which usually ends me in the ER with an uncontrollable migraine and I don't even have the migraine aura that's typical of full moons even if the migraine doesn't come.
It's a cool morning, which helps, and I can't help but feel like walking around shouting that GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME! All the time.

I'm ready to go to work and take on the day. It's a school and class I don't normally do (computer apps) so a little switch-up will be nice, as always is on occasion.

Feeling love towards the world today. It's SO wonderful to not have pain and discomfort overwhelming my day and be able to focus on things and people around me instead.

I am blessed beyond measure, more than I deserve. Thank you Father, for this good day. :godisgood:

 

[menageriekeeper]

Good Morning Everyone!

Melanie, I've had two cats already this morning trying to talk me out of my banana bread! Silly things. I'm not sharing!

Gina, if we have a aura here it is bad news! I hate migraines!

Welcome to Monday. I'm hoping to stave off my arthritis pain long enough to do some much needed cleaning upstairs where we have been painting and still have more painting to do! Who knew two teenage boys could collect so much JUNK! I'm about to have a trash party and start throwing things AWAY! Just waiting until Chris goes to school. (we need a smiley with horns lol)

In the meantime I need to dust and vaccuum my bedroom and clean the bathroom.

Normal day at the menagerie!

 

[annsni]

Hmm - full moon and migraine? Maybe that is why I had one yesterday!! I almost stayed home from church but decided to go - and then stay home last night. I'm glad I did because a friend stopped by and we had a wonderful visit over a cup of tea. Spontaneous and satisfying.

Today I already hung a load of laundry on the clothesline and I want to clean the bathrooms. I also will be riding this afternoon so that will take up a few hours. I think we'll BBQ burgers tonight for dinner so I need to plan side dishes as well. We'll see what I do. Maybe a pasta salad? Hmmmm - that could work!!