SUNNY SUNDAY WITH ANY LUCK!

[Nasoosie]

GOOD MORNING TO US ALL!!!

It's about 35 out there...just high enough to avoid a heavy frost, which is a good thing as I left my plants out last night. The trailer was chilly, so I turned on the furnace for a few minutes, and then it was HOT in there! That's one bad thing about forced air furnaces---when they're on, it's hot, and when they're off, it gets cold before they come on again! BUT----I'm not complaining that much, as it's good to be able to get it warm in there in a hurry!

It's still warm in here (the house) too, as the wood fire from yesterday still has some hot coals in the bottom of the stove.

Today I will mow the trails and as much of the field as I can get done before any more rain. The brush hog is parked in my yard, so I'm assuming that whatever it needed got fixed and that I can use it. I just hope there is enough diesel fuel to run it more than a few minutes. A pet peeve of mine was that, no matter how many cans of fuel I had around this property, they were always emptied without ever getting refilled. It got so that I was HIDING my cans so I would have some to run the tractor and the lawn mower and the vehicles.

Cedar, they are saying that next Saturday will be totally sunny! I haven't heard the Sunday and Monday predictions, yet-----it would be GREAT if we could get one more nice weekend under our belts! And Carol could head our way, too!

Time to get dressed in warm clothes and go start the tractor, after I read my email and the latest posts. Coffee is perked and hot and strong and Hazlenut flavored! I hope you all come in for a while and let us know what's up with you today. It looks as if the sun is trying to come out here, so far, anyway.

Happy Sunday!!

[Shirlv]

I am off to a Fall Festival at the 4H park today. The weather has been beautiful so need to soak up as much as I can before winter. Bought apples yesterday so apple crisp is on the menu for today. I tell myself I can eat 3 pieces of apple crisp because there is no crust and apples are good for me.

[Cedar518]

Temperature is right on the button of 50° here, with bright sunshine and clear sky. Going to be a great day!

Soos and Carol....I've decided to not hit the road this coming weekend. As I can't go to the campground on the St.Lawrence River where I always spend Columbus Day weekend, I'm going to stay home. I had an amazing number of nights in the camper (both of them!) this season so i can just focus on doing things around home. Just isn't the same unless I can go to the river. Instead I'll be supporting a local high school band at a gig and taking my 6th grader grandson shopping to use his b'day money. Not the same, but will be fun. Forecast shows Sun and Mon at 60% chance of rain anyhow. May turn out ok, but I've got my plans made now. So,.... let's look ahead to another year in 2010!

Sunshine is wonderful here this a.m. I've got some mowing to do, too. And laundry is underway. Hope to catch a Netflix movie later this afternoon when I am tired and want to put my feet up after the outdoor work.

Hope you all have a great day!

[oregontocal]

A day off here but I'm not sure what to do yet. It looks like a beautiful day for a long walk or bike ride. Considering I spent most of yesterday either sleeping (can't get used to working at night yet), reading, and eating candy corn, it's probably time for something outdoors. Have downloaded lots of geocaches to find, so that might be fun. I've found 45 since getting here to Kansas last month. Got the brakes fixed on the pickup, so no excuses now.

[avalen]

good morning ...............
I've been up for a long time, actually, just before 4, had my coffee and was ready
to get outside as soon as it started getting daylight, that was about 6. Brought
the big trash bin in through the gate and went right into cutting down the oleanders.
Got the two end ones done, they are smaller and I can kill them easier with the
stump remover spray. Closed off the grey tank and running a load of laundry so I
have some water to flush the hose after I dump the black tank. Its almost full but
its not a chore I like to do when I have to go to work during the week so I'll get
that done today and I'll be good for a couple weeks.
Yesterday I stopped by the casino, (not the one near me) but up the road a couple
miles they have shuttles that run around the parking lot and I stopped in to inquire
about a driver position for evenings and weekends. It was a whim actually, a friend
at work goes there all the time to play poker and wins alot but I'm not a big casino
go'r, cause first off I don't have the money but anyhoo, while I was there I put a 20
dollar bill in the machine and in 5 minutes walked out with 119. LOL, time to leave!
Got the address of where to go for the shuttle driver job and will check into that
during the week when they are open. Its funny how sometimes a "whim" can lead
you into something good

[AlmostThere]

Ava, I think the gambiling gods are trying to get you hooked!!
Good luck with finding a weekend job there!
Chlly here. I could easily see my breath when I last let Choco out before bed. It rained on and off during the night but calling for mostly cloudy today. Later in the week it's to be sunny and highs around 70. I'm thinking after bowling on Tues. I'll take off a for a couple days in Little Missy, venture a bit further up I-5.
Coffee is hot, oatmeal, too, with some cranberies and sliced almonds.
Have a great day everyone!

[Cedar518]

That was a nice "withdrawal" at the casino, Ava! Good for you!

[oregontocal]

Speaking of casinos, my friends Carol and Tom invited me to go geocaching with them today. Who am I to turn down a chance to do more geocaching with a pro? She's found over 2300 caches to my 80. So, we did that, then Tom wanted to check out a football game, so we drove to the casino near Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Ate a delicious lunch at the buffet, then tom headed to a spot with a TV and Carol and I played the slots. We even walked out with about as much as we went in with. Didn't really win anything, but it was fun. Did a few more geocaches on the way home. After we got back to the campground, I entered my caches online and discovered I had 79. C'mon - it should have been 80 to make a round number. So, I found one close-by, in a cemetery, after dark. Interesting experience.

[Nasoosie]

So, am I to understand that geocaching is no longer just a fun weekend/spare time hobby but has now become a daily addiction with some people? With a drive to find more and more and more, and break records, and all that??

Guess that will NOT be something I would find a fun thing to do, unless it was a one-time event at a party somewhere, or something. Addicting games of any sort turn me off, as I have an addictive side to me which I don't like! Sort of like climbing the 46 highest peaks in the Adirondacks in all kinds of weather and seasons, day and night, rain and snow, for a record number of times has become an addiction with many tourists (and perhaps some natives) rather than a fun challenge, as it was back when I did them all. It is too much like internet games that draw you in to break records of some sort or another. And I was hoping that geocaching was a fun, spare-time hobby that made exploring the environs a bit more challenging. I suppose I could make it just that, eh? (IF I could count on getting my addictive self in harness!)

Alone in a cemetary after dark, looking for something??? ACK! THAT does NOT sound like fun to me! More power to you!

[oregontocal]

No, I really wouldn't use the word addicting as it isn't that at all, at least for me. I'm sure just about anything can be addicting if one makes it their reason for living, if they can't do without it. I don't watch TV, yet so many people make that tube their reason for living. They can't do without their daily fix of whatever is on. They have at least one or two sets on all day long. My first husband was an alcoholic, in fact, died because of it, so I'm well aware of what an addiction actually is.

Competitive? Perhaps. But I think my reason for geocaching is the chance to do something outdoors on my days off, to discover new areas I wouldn't have found before, and yes, to even challenge myself to go into a cemetery after dark. I never want to be someone who spends all her time camped in a beautiful place yet never actually sees anything other than the inside of my RV. If I can find a geocache in the cemetery where Ma and Pa Barker and their boys are buried, or discover a new trail in a park I didn't know was there, or look for the zip code on a small post office building at the Little House on the Prairie site, or climb an old WWII training tower in the middle or the desert, that's my competition--finding new things. Sure, Carol has found over 2000 caches. However, I'm not competing with her. In fact, she's the one who introduced me to geocaching, the reason why we've become good friends.

I guess if someone wants to equate getting out into the fresh air, meeting new people, discovering new areas, and challenging oneself as addicting, that's fine. But it's probably better to try something a few times first. At least IMHO. I admire you for recognizing the addictive side of yourself, and perhaps geocaching wouldn't be for you. But, try it first, okay?

[Nasoosie]

I don't know quite how to put my feelings about geocaching, but obviously, in your eyes, they are way off base. I am really sorry you thought I was putting you down for being a geocacher, and for being brave enough to get out in the dark of the night in a cemetery! Obviously, any activity that gets people out of their chairs in front of a TV or video games is a healthful and beneficial one. Congrats to you for making the move!

I have geocached several times, and personally found it way too competitive and intensely antisocial for my liking. I had thought it was like the old-time treasure hunts, which I LOVED, but it is a far cry from those. And, as I mentioned, I felt I could become so addicted to 'finding' that I would lose track of the fun of 'searching', along with the time spent with friends just talking and sharing. I could become one who strives to become the geocaching gold medal champion of the world!

I have several friends who are now geocaching addicts, and, if geocaching is not on the menu at a party, they can no longer come for fear of lost time in the game of 'finding' Am I sorry, disappointed, and a bit bitter about this? Yes, I really am. And I have this horrible uneasy feeling about what this great passtime has seemingly become.

When geocaching became an online clue-getting activity, I began feeling great unease about it. Perhaps it is just my skeptical nature that is causing me anxiety about this new craze---obviously the majority of people who try it love it!

However, when in Saranac Lake last summer at one of the evening music festivals, I noticed a man frantically looking for something in the park. I finally asked him if he had lost his wallet, or something, and asked if I could help him find it. His response was, "I'm following clues to find something hidden at this festival, and I can't accept any help, so please leave me alone." Stunned, I sat back down. Later, I learned that he was a geocacher trying to find something he read about on the internet. He spent nearly the entire time looking and following the online clues, in a most frustrated manner. The man missed a wonderful concert.

I know that I am in the minority with my feelings about geocaching, but I certainly don't begrudge others the chance to have some really great outdoor fun----just please be careful to not lose sight of the fun of the search and the companionship of others while trying to pocket the prize.

OMIGAWD---I sound like a teacher! ACK! Sorry about that!

[JanetA]

wow!