Hi Pap!

A Chat With Uncle Martin

Just got off the phone with Uncle Martin.  I had heard that he wasn't well and had been told that he suspected that he had the same thing as you.... the big "C".

We chatted for a bit. I wished him happy belated birthday. He told me that he turned 75 - a quarter of a century.

I spoke to him about his illness.  He then gave me good news.  Apparently, he had fallen this past winter and had hurt his back.  NO, that's NOT the good news part. The Doctors and specialists did tests on him and they couldn't find anything... THAT'S the good news!

At the end of our conversation, I asked him to call us, every now and then.  He then told me that he wasn't much to chat on phones.

I reminded him that he used to talk to you, every day and asked him if he missed you and he said "Yes", telling me that he had your picture and Uncle Edmond's picture near the phone, on a side table.

Then, my tears started welling up and I got choked up.  I had trouble finishing our phone call.

Pap - Is there any way we could possibly pick up the phone to talk with you... or is it only through prayer?

I miss you terribly....

Rosa

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

I've decided to write to my father, who passed away 

on a Sunday, the 2nd of February, 2014.

I miss him terribly, each and every day....

http://www.fundyfuneralhome.com/notices/Eliz-Robichaud
 

Granite Gnome's Not Well

Hi There!

As for Granite Gnome, he hasn't been feeling well, lately.
Hubby mentioned it a few days ago. It appeared as if Granite Gnome was cracking up... no one dared touch him, even.
This evening hubby said, "Granite Gnome is now tilting and looking some of his granite. He looks like those melting icebergs that we see on those TV documentaries."

I sincerely doubt Granite Gnome will survive our 20 cm of snow, tomorrow. Time will tell.

Rosa

Spring Had Sprung!

Hi There!

Green Gnome went for a little walk in the garden bed and look what he noticed - SPRING HAD SPRUNG!!!
Fortunately, for Green Gnome, he can't surf the Weather Network and see what's coming here tomorrow.... frown emoticon
Is HE in for a surprise!!!!

They're calling for 25 to 30 cm of snow tomorrow.

NOT a good thing, in my opinion....

Rosa

Snow Gnome's Gone?

Hi There!

Yesterday, Green Gnome grabbed his head and exclaimed, "OH MY ST. PATRICK!!! Where did this Alien Snowman come from?!?!?"

 

Now... This morning, Green Gnome was perplexed. 

Did the lunar rays try to pick up Alien Snowman, during the night? And why did it leave behind the bottom part of its body and 1 eye?"

Green Gnome asked Granite Gnome if he saw anything but he remained stoic and standoffish. 

Green Gnome had hoped that although Granite Gnome was all cracked up and old, he might have seen something. But this was not the case.

The mystery plot thickens.....

Mini Snowballs Falling From the Sky?

Hi There!

A few years back, I remember some lady called into our local radio station and wanted to wish her brother a Happy Birthday. It happened to be St. Patrick's Day and it was also a crappy, weather day, She said that ever since she could remember, it was ALWAYS a crappy day, on St. Patrick's Day.

Well, we had no snow on the ground and the temps have been nice. That was this past week or two.

Unfortunately, this morning, I woke up to snow falling.

"HUNH??? What's up with this white crap?", I asked myself.
Then, around noon time, it stopped. YEAH!!!

And, around 4 or 5 pm, it started up again and we got the BIGGEST snowflakes coming down.

I went outside, with my new Canon Rebel and shot a few pics.
The flakes were truly bigger than in my pictures. It almost looked like someone was throwing tiny snowballs, from the sky.

Rosa

Snow Gnome!

Hi There!

Today, we had an intruder among us - "squatters".... 

A primitive snowman....

Kinda looks like an Alien Snowman, even... LOL!!!

 Rosa

Happy St. Pat's Day!!!

Hi There!

Wishing you all a very, VERY.... Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Rosa

Our New and Ever Growing Family!

Hi There!

Let me introduce to you some of our "squatters", that have taken up residence our deck table.

 

Have a great day!

Rosa

Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas?

Hi There!

Some of you may have noticed the bru-ha-ha on the media in the past few years about how you're now greeted at stores and in public areas with a "Happy Holiday" rather than a "Merry Christmas.

Apparently, somebody or somebodies mentioned that they were offended with the employees' "Merry Christmas" and, just like Chicken Little who thought the sky was falling, merchants went into panic mode and now their employees must greet us with the non-offending "Happy Holidays".

Mind you, I live in a small city but not ONCE have I ever offended anyone with my cheerful "Merry Christmas", while I'm shopping.

If I were to visit Jewish friends, I certainly would NOT be offended if they wished me Happy Hanukkah nor would I be insulted if I were not offered any food while visiting my Muslim friends during Ramadan.  I try to understand and accept.  To each his or her own, right?

Now... here's my rant.

If... and this is a big IF... this is true.... that there are people out there that are offended with the "Merry Christmas".... and they've asked the stores to stop saying it.... 

Then WHY are there still Christmas decorations all over the darn stores?!?!??!?

Oh... and let's not forget ALL the Christmas music blaring throughout the stores.... in hopes that it puts the customers in a "Christmas Spirit".... AKA open up your wallet and buy, buy, BUY!

If the merchants are so worried about offending people, then why have the Christmas decorations and Christmas music remained?

Because they understand marketing.

That's why.

And, on that note, I will wish you all a "Merry Christmas"!!!

Rosa
A gal who happens to LOVE Christmas decorations and Christmas music.

How I Create

Hi There!

I'm sure everyone creates in their own way.

Me, I start with an idea.

Sleep on it.

Wake up to the idea.

Go to work and think about the idea.

Repeat this a couple, consecutive days and finally, I put "idea" down on paper.

Hoping to pick up some different kinds of "whites" .... hopefully some whites with tiny, almost invisible snow flakes tomorrow, when I go down to Mardens, in Calais, Maine.

This piece will be called "My Snow Family". 

From the top, there's Mom and Dad.  Dad will have shimmery, snowish colored Angel wings and maybe a plaid vest.

Down below them, will be me, hubby and my 2 boys.  They're skiing down the hill.

On the next hill, is my sister, Tina and her hubby and their daughter.  Haven't figured out what my niece will be doing but she'll be doing something.

And, at the bottom of the hill is my sister, Sylvie, her hubby and their 3 children.  The kids are sliding down the hill.

My next step?  Dig through my stash and pick up the appropriate different "snow" fabric.

After that?  Figure out the finished size I want, grab some newspaper, scotch tape pieces, if necessary to make it the required finished size.  Once I have the correct size on (news) paper, then I take a pencil and draw what I want on the newspaper.  Once THAT is done, I take a black marker and re-draw over the pencil lines.

I start with a background fabric and start layering the different "snow hills".  Machine applique those "snow hills" and then, start appliqueing the houses and snow people.

Easy smeasy!  But, time consuming.  And most certainly fun!

:-)

I'll try and post some progress pictures.

Have a great weekend!

Rosa

Oh Paris! My heart and soul aches for you....

My heart and soul are aching....

YES, I know that I can step outside and get shot down by a nutbar.

YES, I know that nutbars can be anywhere and everywhere.
 
YES, I know I'm not to let these terrorists win. By putting "terror" in my heart and soul, they win.

And YES, my heart is truly saddened by what has happened in France.

But, nevertheless, last month, I told hubby that I was removing a once-in-a-lifetime trip to France off of my Bucket List. I don't think I would feel safe there, anymore.

And my heart and soul ached when I shared with him, these thoughts.

A Gorgeous Morning!

Hi There!

Beautiful sunshine!

We managed to sleep in, for another hour....  And nice warm coffee to start my morning.

Today's gonna be a great day!  I can feel it on the back of my throat where the taste of coffee is still lingering and in the bottom of my tummy - that delicious brew has settled in, nicely. 

Some people drink coffee and have to chew gum or brush their teeth because they now have "Coffee Breath".  I say, "Perish that thought!  Bring it on!"   LOL!!!!

Have a great day, everyone!  If you happen to smell coffee breath on me, smile and know that I am happy. 

*chuckling over here*

Later!

Rosa

(Mostly) Veggies + 13 Days = 10 lbs!

Hi There!

How'm I doin', you might be askin' yourself....

Well, most days, I stick with the veggies.  These past 3 days ....  I've been slowly sliding off the wagon.

Today's my day off. 

I've got laundry goin', this morning.

This afternoon, dishes.  PLUS, I'm hoping to do some cooking and meal prep.  I'm back at work tomorrow, for the rest of the week.

I've noticed that when I haven't planned ahead of time and I have no food with me - GOD FORBID I SHOULD STARVE.... that's when my brain and Mr. Belly get together and they start talkin' pizzas and subs and... well, you know what I mean.  :-)

Planning and prepping is the secret to getting and staying healthy, I believe.

Gotta run!  Final laundry load - #4 - is ready for action!

Have a Super Sunday!

Rosa

Weigh-In: Week #1

Hi There!

Progress Report - Week #1

I've basically stopped juicing.  Either my cousin's (borrowed) machine is just so-so or I'm too frugal.

I could spend $100 to $300 to try and purchase the right machine for me, but will this make me happy?  Not Sure.  And I'll tell you why.

I'd like a machine that would give me a dry pulp.  I've done a wee bit of research on juicers and read people's comments and there doesn't seem to be the perfect juicer, out there.  You know?  Dry pulp AND easy clean-up.

Did I mention I was frugal?

I think I'd rather eat the fiber and pulp, for now.  I've convinced myself that its better for me AND I'll still loose weight while getting healthier.  AND, since I'm eating ALL of the vegetable or fruit, I fill up better and cheaper than just drinking a glass of juice.

And compared to the cah-zillion calories I used to inhale in a day, the mere nano-thousands calories I'm NOW eating... well, those pounds are just rolling off.   :-)

I've lost 8 nasty pounds, in 1 week!  

Pretty darn good, eh?  Normally, I'd have given up after 2 or 3 days.

8 pounds of butter.
An 8 pound baby.
Almost a bowling ball weight.
Almost a 10 lb bag of potatoes.

Imagine carrying around, day after day, any one of the above items?

Sooooo, this is Rosa's World, right now.  Looking for a full time permanent job.  I know the right one's just around the corner.... just gotta find it and convince the employer that I'm perfect for the job!

Have a Terrific Tuesday!

Rosa

How Zit Goin'?

Hi There!

Well, yesterday was my first day of "Juicing".

Breakfast was DELICIOUS!!!

Lunch wasn't so good.  No, I'm not blaming it on the food but rather on the juicing machine, itself.

I was supposed to have 3 heads of broccoli, 2 pears and 2 stalks of celery, right?  Well, I started with the 3 heads of broccoli.  While the pulp container was almost full, when finished, I might have had 1/2 cup of juice?  And, the pulp was VERY wet.

Soooo, as per internet instructions, I scooped up the pulp to pass it through, once again.  It jammed it!  What a mess!!!  Gritty broccoli stuff all over!!! And I'm thinking, "Gosh!  What a waste of good broccoli!!!"

When I did the 2 pears, I only got 1 tablespoon of juice... which didn't make sense at all!

Soooo, drank my cup of juice and when I cleaned up the machine, I saw a lot of pear juice had pooled INSIDE one of the parts of the machine!

Afternoon, I ate an apple - I was STARVED!

Supper time, I eyed the machine and thought, "No, I'm too hungry and this machine isn't doing the trick for me.  Let's have a salad."

Soooo, I ate a big salad and brought 3 carrots upstairs with me, to munch in front of our TV.

And peace was restored, within Rosa's soul and belly!  :-)

Rosa
Weight loss since 12 Aug. 2012?  6 lbs