Heat, Hail and Honey

You know you're on vacation when you don't shower for the day until 1:20 p.m. the first time... and then have so much fun outdoors, you need 2 more showers later!

It was a hot one again today. Temps were in the 80s but the heat index (that lovely humidity formula) put the temperature at 97 by early afternoon. Uff da!

I actually spent the morning indoors in the A/C getting some "chores" done that I never got around to yesterday. I sat out on the deck a little bit reading my hometown newspaper before putting it in recycling and got hot pretty quickly out there! It did rain a bit but that just steamed things up later.

Took shower and hubby and I went into town on a mission to find some corn on the cob. Thanks to a hot tip from a neighbor, we found a stand of "candy corn" in a parking lot on the main drag. Probably farmers from Minnesota. For some reason they come over with good sweet corn long before ours (as in people who actually grow it, not us) is ready.

Stopped at the store to grab some steaks and a watermelon and had ourselves a real summer supper! We wisely ate indoors -- not necessarily because of the heat, but because the hail was falling like crazy and bouncing around. It didn't really develop into much of a storm though and thankfully it was done before my second cob of corn!

This evening, while Carter watched Rocky III, Jim and I took a walk around Lake Wazeecha. Thanks to the hail, it was a bit cooler out. Saw plenty of water puddles from the hard rain but, knock on wood, no mosquitoes. The only animal we saw was a big ol' turtle who was not making any better time than we were. Thankfully.

The trail around the lake is just about a 4-mile path so I had a good hour of bonding time with my honey. Not sure why we only find time to do this when we're on vacation.

But I like it!

Racin'!

Talk about a day of one extreme of racing to another.

Woke up and decided that I was going to do the 5K in town associated with our Betty Boop Festival. Yes, there is a festival for everything imaginable in the world. And yes, Wisconsin Rapids holds one for Betty Boop in honor of her artistic creator at Disney -- Grimm Natwick -- who hailed from Rapids.

The 5K is a fundraiser to help provide vaccines for polio. Now that's something we don't think about every day. But we got a good reminder. The woman who started the race today with a "on your mark, get set, go," stood there with crutches and told her story of having polio since she was 5 years old. She thanked us today for running because we can.

That's about the only thing that kept me going, too! I swear, it was already 80-some degrees by the time the race started and my next-door neighbor Niki and I had a heckuva time with the heat. I had a slow time and felt plain yucky with the humidity. I wisely decided not to push it and make myself sick or something. I sure hope it's not like this for my "big race" in 2 months!

Oh well, we got cool shirts as usual and we did our little part to fight polio.

This afternoon, the temps just kept climbing so I stayed indoors. Jim had a golfing engagement with some guys over in Green Bay for the afternoon/evening so Carter and I hooked up our new surround sound and watched a movie -- Rocky II. He loved the first one and now we have the 2nd through 4th ones rented for the hot-must-stay-indoors days coming up. (Don't be surprised if you hear about Carter boxing in the near future!)

Our nephew Colin was racing in a special two-night event at the speedway in Wausau so Carter and I went up there. They had some wicked rain in the late afternoon so everything was delayed -- which is why I am blogging at midnight!

Anyway, Colin was in a 150-lap special and ended up finishing 8th. It was an exciting, close race and he had to fight to keep that spot. Great racing. Had a good time.

We got home just before the stroke of midnight and I am ready to go turn into a pumpkin now.

Carter already has.

Vay Cay Shun!

The Austins are officially on vacation for the next 9 days. Whoo-hoo! And we don't have any plans. Double whoo-hoo!

I guess this is called a stay-cation. We're sticking close to home with some potential day trips to golf, perhaps watch racing, maybe see some interesting sights. We're sort of playing it by ear.

The first "event" we knew we had to get to was Carter's eye doctor appointment. He's been counting down to this like we have been to vacation. Why? Because he's going to get contacts! At least that was the plan going into today's appointment.

The exam went fine but the "insert contact here" part did not. With some great guidance and patience from the optical assistant, he managed to get the right contact in. But after many, many tries and some frustration, he just couldn't get the left one in. Dang.

The doc put them both in for him and he was able to test it out. A little blinky but I think something he could get used to. The doctor's rule of thumb, however, is that a patient can't leave with contacts unless he can put them in and take them out on his own. So it's sort of like failing your driver's license test on the first attempt. You get another try, but it's best to wait awhile until you can practice some more.

So he's going to sort of practice the concept of opening his eye up and, well, sticking his finger in there for now. I hope it works. We'll try again next week.

After that appointment, he had another social engagement. This is the second Friday in a row he has had a "party" to go to. Spoiled.

Not to be outdone, hubby and I went to the drive-in, picked up fish fries and took them to the park to eat. When we got home, we even went for a 2-mile walk. How's that for a date?

We could probably make a habit of this. For a week anyway.

But let's not make any plans.

Over the Rainbow

They say when it rains, it pours. Sometimes they're actually talking about the weather!

This evening, I had a picnic supper in town with a group of friends. On the way there, the rain started coming down hard. By the time I got into town I could hardly see in front of me. I was tempted to wait it out in a parking lot. But I'm glad I didn't because it didn't let up for a good 45 minutes. I would have missed all that food!

So we parked as close as we could to the park shelter and ran as fast as we could. Which didn't really matter because the water was a few inches deep already so we couldn't avoid getting wet shoes. Thanks to my rain jacket, though, I saved my hair. And the Jell-O salad. Hurray!

Had a nice time visiting and watching the rain fall.

When we left, I had to stop at the store for a few things. When we came out, the sun was shining and there was a double rainbow!

Do you know what's at the end of a double rainbow?

Wal-Mart! Well, that's how it looked from the parking lot. Then, as we traveled home quickly to get to my camera, the rainbows were fading fast. Their location was shifting as well. By the time we got home, guess what was at the end of a double rainbow?

The Kellner ball fields!

Now that makes more sense. I mean we can spend a pot of gold at Wal-Mart, but we can make memories worth their weight in gold at the ball park.

Even on nice, sunny days.

Simple Rewards

Remember back in grade school when the teacher would put those gold star stickers on our perfect papers? Man, if I had a dollar for every gold star I got, I could retire.

In 20-some years, if all goes as planned.

When I think about it, the gold star was a nice gesture of encouragement, but certainly not necessary. I mean, they were teaching us something and we were supposed to learn it, right? We shouldn't really get rewarded for doing something that is expected. We don't get gold stars for doing a stellar job at work, do we? No. We get a pay check! They could just write "We're even" at the bottom of each check, and they'd be entirely correct.

There are times, though, I think a simple reward is warranted. There are people who go above and beyond the norm of expectations.

Today, hubby got a pin from the Red Cross to mark his 5th gallon of blood he's donated! I give him major kudos for that! I've previously shared my difficulty giving blood. They just can't keep me conscious. Kind of important. So I had to give that up. But Jim gives religiously when the bloodmobile comes to our workplace every 8 weeks. That's awesome!

I honestly don't know where he keeps all these pins for valor. He definitely doesn't boast about them -- so I do it for him!

And I don't mean to brag, but I'm pretty close to earning a 5-gallon pin myself.

For eating ice cream, that is. Hey, we all have to have goals.

Not-Book Computer

I noticed with the back-to-school sales already going on that my little Netbook computer I got on Black Friday is on sale for a pretty good deal -- but nowhere near my $179 steal. So I'm glad I got it when I did.

And why did I just have to have it?

It wasn't to check email and Facebook every morning over my bowl of high-fiber cereal. It wasn't so hubby could check his fantasy baseball team lineup when we're out of town in a hotel. It wasn't to "borrow" my friend's books from her Kindle account, either.

No, that's not why I got it. But that's definitely how I've been using it!

You might recall, though, that my argument for getting it was that I needed it. I could use it every day on the commute to and from work to write. And not just write anything. Write a book!

Yup, my memory was jogged when one of my sisters just asked me how the novel was coming along. Novel? What novel? Oh, THAT novel! Uhm, fine.

I did look on my computer tonight -- the big, normal computer, not the Netbook -- and see I have the beginning chapters of 3 very different books started. Very different story lines. Not even the same genres.

That's not a bad thing. One, that means I have plenty of stories to tell. And two, it means the hardest part is done. Seriously, starting is the hard part!

How do I choose which one to tackle first? That's easy. The one where I am well into Chapter 2. Doncha think?

I'm saving it on a flash drive -- because they are also on sale with the back-to-school supplies -- and plugging it in to my Netbook.

Now I just have to find that switch to turn on the creativity...

...Of the Day

Challenge of the Day: By 9 a.m. I was neck-deep in Monday and treading water. I suspect this is going to be a hell-acious week trying to get 2 weeks' worth of work done so I can be on vacation next week! Come Friday, it will be worth it.

Talk of the Day: It seems Carter and I weren't the only ones to see Captain America this weekend. Most people I talked to today agree it is probably the best super-hero movie made to date. I still might like Iron Man 1 a little better, but Captain America was a great flick. In fact, I think both Carter and I cried. But he's man enough now not to admit it. If you like this kind of movie, go see it!

Good News of the Day: The NFL lockout is over! I don't say that it's good news because we're excited about cheering for the bottom-feeder Vikings and getting our hopeful hearts ripped out and stomped on again. I say that because we can experience it in high-def this season! Yay, new TV! Yay, football!

Accomplishment of the Day: I'm not sure if I'll be capable of getting out of bed tomorrow morning, but for now I am sitting here reveling in the fact I just ran 10 miles! Yes, 10 -- I counted them on my toes! I've never gone that far and don't really want to do it too many more times, either. But, just 3 more miles and I've got me a half-marathon under my belt!

Quote of the Day: I fully admit I have a black thumb. It always becomes more evident when I visit my mother -- the one with green blood in her veins -- and see her mini-greenhouse in the dining room. That gene has skipped a generation. I guess Carter has noticed, too. He was shooting hoops by a little landscaped area in front of the house that has been neglected this summer while we've been away at work and baseball, etc. He says, "Mom, look at how those weeds grow and you don't do anything to them. Maybe you should water them so they die."

Ahhh. I gotta love my life!

Reunited

Some things are better left unsaid. In a blog anyway. I think I've downloaded and processed my class reunion in my mind enough to conclude a few things -- one being that this was my last reunion!

OK, it's not because it was bad. I had no expectations and those were met. Plus, there are always a few things that make me shake my head -- really shake my head -- and feel grateful that I am a long ways from Luck or anywhere north of Highway 8. But I'm trying not to be judgmental, in print anyway.

Let's just say it was good to see classmates I haven't see in awhile and especially good to visit with my twin Raylene (next to me in red in the photo above) and my BFF from high school Julie (right of me in photo). Which is what I thought after the last one. So I'm good with being done now. (And sharing a few entertaining stories in a different venue.)
We ended up having 18 out of 45 class members show up. Here, we are trying to get a group shot and Julie and I are goofing around in the center since no one else was taking the photo seriously. My husband the photographer was the only one taking a picture and still not everyone looked at the camera!

I think they were concerned about our next stop across the street. It was Lucky Days after all, so there were people to see and beverages to consume elsewhere. At that point, Jim and I left and went to pick up Carter -- who had fun working on a puzzle and playing cards with Grandma and Grandpa. We stayed at Raylene's and hit the road by 10 a.m. today.

On the way home, we saw something that hubby would say we typically would see north of Highway 8, but this was a little bit south.

What the ? I do not know the story behind this but I sure could make one up!

Just like with the reunion, though, I better take Thumper's advice from the Bambi movie: If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.

OK, mum's the word.

As Luck Would Have It

It's not even noon and I've already lost my Mother of the Year Award.

Not that I was really in contention. But it probably didn't aid my campaign when I woke the teenager with the sound of a vacuum cleaner.

In his room.

In my defense, it was 11:15 a.m. and really, we had to get lots done this morning so we can leave town. Since we were gone last weekend, I hadn't dusted, swept, vacuumed in 2 weeks. My house was about to grow feet and walk off on its own. So after getting some other cleaning done, I really couldn't hold off on the vacuuming any longer if we are to make our 12:30 departure time.

Carter grumpily claims he only got 8 hours of sleep anyway. Says he didn't feel good (too much partying a.k.a pizza eating, I'm sure) so didn't fall asleep right away. Now he says his stomach hurts a bit. If I didn't know better, I'd say he's trying to get out of this trip. Hey, it's not his class reunion -- if anyone tries that, it's me!

So yes, we are going up to Luck for the Class of '86 reunion. You can do the math. I'm expecting a small crowd -- we had a small number to begin with (45) -- but it will be nice to see a handful of friends that I have kept in touch with over the decades. Yikes, that's sounding old.

While my twin and I are there with our willing husbands, Carter will entertain Grandpa and Grandma Hedberg. Then after our fun, we'll pick him up and stay at Raylene's.

Another short and I hope sweet trip. But no expectations, of course. I'm too old for that.

Just Hangin' Out

Since Carter was invited to a party tonight ("Mom, it wasn't a party. We were just hanging out.), hubby and I decided to hang out together, too!

Carter's non-party started at 5 p.m. We said we'd be gone so he could go if he got a ride there and home at 10. He found a ride. Like you had any doubt.

After work, we went to a Rapids Rage softball game in Stevens Point to see the the next-door neighbor girl play. Just can't get away from the ball field, you know. Rapids lost 1-0 to a team from Madison. Hopefully they'll turn things around and win some this weekend.

Since we were in Point, we went to Polito's for pizza. That's the place where they sell it by the slice and the slice is as big as a paper plate. We each just had one slice so we could save room for ice cream. Unfortunately, I just didn't have room for ice cream. What? I know, right? There's something wrong with this picture.

We went straight from Point to Golden Sands Speedway and got there in time to catch qualifying. Our nephew Colin, who started the evening 3rd in points, qualified 5th and finished a very exciting 75-lap feature in 5th place as well. So that should help him stay pretty high in the Late Model point standings. We had a good time with friends and family there. And for once I did not need a sweatshirt or jacket. Not in the least!

After Colin's race was done, we ducked out and headed over to the Grand Rapids Lions Park, where they are holding a music festival all weekend. Tonight's entertainment was the Spicy Tie Band. They are really good. We were there less than half an hour, though, since it was almost over when we got there. Plus, we didn't run into anyone we knew so we thought we better head home before I forced Jim to dance. (Though he said on the way home he would have. Now you tell me!)

We actually got home BEFORE Carter. By only 15 minutes. Still, I'm not ready for this "hanging out" business quite yet.

Though, I'll admit hubby and I had fun doing just that today!

The Gods are Smiling

I can tell you the Scrapbooking Gods must be smiling. Wherever they are.

Typically in our house we don't rely on Total Recall. My memory is not as crisp as it should be and, in fact, my mind is perhaps on its way out. For example, I couldn't for the life of me remember this week which day is Garbage Day. Honestly, I didn't know if it was Tuesday or Wednesday. And we've lived here 10 years.

They say forgetfulness is one of the signs of menopause. I'm not going there with this blog. My point is that if we forget when something happened, I can rely on my blog or, better yet, one of my scrapbooks. We'll wonder "When did such and such happen?" And I'll say, "Oh that was in year XYZ because I remember it in that scrapbook." It's our historical resource, so to speak.

Tonight when the Schwan's man stopped by, he noticed my Twins shirt (because I have one on almost every day) and mentioned he was going to Target Field this weekend. Now I knew he wasn't a Twins fan because he always makes fun of my Twins checks. Then he admits he's a Tigers fan. Really? Who in Wisconsin is a Tigers fan? Well I guess they are the other neighboring state. Plus he said he grew up in the Detroit area, but has been back to see the new stadium.

Immediately my scrapbooking mind starting spinning. I said, "Can you hold on a minute so I can show you something or do you have lots of customers?" He said I was the second to last one so he could wait "but you've got me scared now." Who can blame him? I'm one of the Desperate Housewives of Blue Jay Drive, after all.

So I went into the living room and in record time found my 1999 scrapbook which shows a nice two-page spread of Jim and his friend Jeff Sherry at one of the last games at Tiger Stadium before they tore it down that fall. Mr. Schwan's thought that was darn cool. So yes, it does help that I scrapbook AND that I remember what's in every scrapbook.

As far as my fading memory goes, I guess if it ain't in the scrapbook, it didn't happen!

For the Record

I'm sitting out on the deck typing on my Netbook, enjoying the cool breeze. And by cool, I mean it's now down to 89 degrees and feeling downright pleasant!

Our temperatures today haven't been seen in quite some time. In fact, not since 1955 when the record was 95 degrees in Wisconsin Rapids on July 20. Today we broke that record when we reached 96 degrees, officially, with a heat index somewhere between 105-110. I don't know who to believe. Let's just say it was hot and leave it at that.

Right now is my kind of heat. Probably because the sun is setting rather than beating down on me!

I honestly didn't spend much time outside other the short walks to and from the car a few times. Yup, it was a bit on the warm side. Even knowing no hair spray could hold up to this, I had (yes had) to go to a previously scheduled appointment with my hair artist. Even though I failed to lose 20 pounds for my class reunion this weekend, I can at least show up without gray hair! And the hair spray she uses held up pretty good today so I had that going for me.

I won't complain about anything else, though. We had a wicked storm come through during the night but we in Rapids did not get the winds they got up in Stevens Point -- where they actually had to ban all traffic in the city for 4 hours today just to clear roads from fallen trees and power lines. What a mess!

So grateful we once again escaped unscathed. Does this mean our time is due? I hope not. With me and my black thumb, our yard already looks like a disaster area. We certainly don't need Mother Nature's help.

It's Not the Heat...

Those old-timers who used to insist it's not the heat, but the humidity, that makes us suffer were onto something.

I don't even want to talk about this heat wave. It's just going to make things hotter! But I will...

This is the kind of weather where you can stand outside 5 minutes, yes just 5, and feel that little trickle of sweat dripping down your back. And you're thinking "Eww." Then you hope no one notices what look like tears streaming down your face when it's really salty sweat dripping from the top of your head.

Yup. I love humidity.

Well, I do love heat. But I lied about the humidity part.

The one good thing about this stretch of extreme warmth -- and by extreme we're talking days of heat index reports in the 100s -- is that a person (pick me, for example) can have ice cream for supper. Just ice cream. That's it. And it counts for supper.

But that would be it on the positive side.

The negatives besides the obvious are wicked storms that keep cropping up, worrying about the safety of my elderly parents, peeling off my damp clothes at the end of the day... and tragically realizing once again that even industrial-strength hair spray can't hold a candle to Mother Nature when she's having these hot flashes.

Darn her!

Hangin' with a Hall of Famer

I continued my Summer of Stalking today. Yes, it was another veteran baseball player and, yes, it was another former member of my Minnesota Twins.

Paul Molitor was in town. Don't ask me how our Wisconsin Rapids Rafters minor minor minor league baseball franchise gets these Twins here, but I'm not complaining. He was here to sign autographs and throw the first pitch.

Thanks to our friends Christine and Mike, we had early admittance tickets that also got us all we could eat and drink before the game. The important thing was that we were the first (almost) in line for autographs. Christine has waited 27 years for Molitor's autograph. Apparently when she was a teen, he was supposed to come to town but failed to show. That hasn't stopped her crush, but it did make us keep our fingers crossed that he would show.
And he arrived, looking cool as ever!! Molitor played for the Brewers for most of his career and finished up with the Twins the same year Carter was born. He was always a very likable player and just cute enough -- not that I notice that about baseball players. I did stress to Carter that that we don't come across Hall of Fame ball players every day so this is a big deal.

And Carter was suitably impressed. He now has a signed baseball to start his own collection!

And Christine, well, just blushed right out of her flip-flops when it was her turn in line! So cute!

Here she smiles with her niece Allie -- who may have to be Photoshopped out for future framing.

The only downside of the day was that we are experiencing a slight heat wave in the Midwest and it was wicked, wicked hot! Here the guys are a little sunny and sweaty.

And so am I! But happy, of course!

My one failure was that I barely got my camera out in time for the ceremonial pitch. I'm losing my stalking touch! So it's a bit blurry but you can see old #4 still keeps himself in great shape anyway.

And he still has that nice smile for me -- just because he knew I was taking this picture for Christine, I'm sure.

Sigh. I need to take a cold shower! We are in a heat wave, after all.

'Fond' Memories

We're home -- hot, sweaty, dusty and dirty after a final day in Fond du Lac. With predicted record temperatures, we were actually relieved our first game was at 8 a.m.

The importance of the 8 o'clock game was that if we lost, we were going home. If we won, we'd play for 3rd place at 2 p.m. As much as sitting in the A/C sounded good, we would rather sweat it out, knowing we were playing for hardware!

And that's how it worked out, too. We had a close first game but beat Fond du Lac 7-3. We all cooled off in the hotel a bit, had lunch, checked out and went back to the field, where it was waaaay warmer than when we'd left at 9:30! There was a hot breeze that didn't really cool us off, but kept the dust flying in our faces.

We give the boys credit for hanging in there. De Pere was a tough team with good hitters. The first 4 batters hit to the fence and we were in a hole quickly. At one point, we were behind 9-3, but rallied to 9-8. Ended up losing 12-9. Good game but not quite good enough.

The boys still got a 4th-place medal so hopefully they'll think of that fondly and be motivated to return next year!

I did not end up getting to see my lighthouse in Fondy this weekend, but still took some good photos. I'd rather stare at pictures of Carter all day anyway, wouldn't you?


He saw a lot of action in right field during the last game especially, when he made 2 outs!

At bat at letting what looks like a strike go by. A very fast one.

If you look closely, the ball is in the air from the pitcher to Carter. Had I waited one more second, I would have gotten Carter's great hit! Ah well.

Here Carter swings at a high one and fouls off to right -- where Dad is coaching first base.

He's reaching here. It's no wonder there was no power behind it and the 3rd basemen threw him out at first.

He hits a nice single up the middle.

Hanging out with Coach Dad at first base.

Sliding into 2nd but just not getting there in time. See how dusty it was?

Crossing home plate to score!

The Rapids Rage 12U team with their 4th-place medals. No, they did not feel like smiling...

but ended up laughing after their final huddle which they humorously "dedicated" to Coach Austin.

Gosh, we're going to miss this!

Breaking Even

We were up with the sun this morning and seemed ready to kick some butt, but that's not exactly how it played out.

In our first game we played a Plover team that we've faced before and just can't seem to beat. As a team, they didn't do well, but Carter had a good outing, going 1 for 2 and hitting a fine double! That was a good confidence builder for the day despite a loss.

The second game started at noon. We played Beaver Dam. And we seemed a bit better matched. Carter was 1 for 2 again with a single. He and the whole team did well on defense and shutout the other team. We had a slim 1-0 lead for the longest, nerve-wracking time. Was so glad we added 2 more runs as a little insurance. We won 3-0!

Let me tell you, it was a much better afternoon with a win under our belt. The boys had fun in the pool and there was no whining or pouting. Nice.

Also nice was that we escaped the rain and the heat. We had clouds and a breeze so the fan base was not whining or pouting either.

We went to eat at another good bar and grill -- had delicious food again and plenty of it. My pedometer hasn't registered many steps this weekend but I am OK with that, too!

Right now Carter is swimming with his teammates again (since we're all in the same hotel now) and hubby is with the other dads talking silly over beverages somewhere. I expect I'll join the group shortly but then definitely get to bed earlier than last night since we play at 8 a.m. again tomorrow.

Hopefully, like our games today, my weekend sleep will come out even, too!

Finale in Fond du Lac

We're sitting here in Fond du Lac, hoping to sleep fast so we can play our first baseball game at 8 a.m.!

Good thing we found a hotel room for tonight. If we had it our way, we could have been here all day today.

We had some server issues at work that prevented us from well, working, today. So really it would have been the perfect day to play hooky and go golf. But since the car and trunk are full of a giant cooler on wheels plus baseball bag and 2 overnight bags, there was no room for clubs. So hubby and I stuck it out at work, doing any work that doesn't require a computer -- which isn't much, I tell you.

We hit the road by 2 and headed east. Carter came with us to Iola today so we didn't have to circle back home. That was wise. We had enough circling around with all the road construction and detours -- and later when I was trying to find a place to eat supper.

I am very thankful for the GPS I got for Mother's Day. Even if it drove us right to road construction at times, it still got 4 car loads of baseball families to a restaurant that fed us all good American bar food -- and got us back to our hotels.

I say hotels because we are staying at one hotel tonight and the "team" hotel tomorrow night. We had booked Saturday early on and didn't anticipate an 8 a.m. game. So when I called back last week for Friday night, there was nothing available. Now we're just down the road, so not a big deal.

Just need to shut up, brush my teeth and sleep fast. Then hopefully everyone has energy to kick some butt!

Knot Funny

The massage therapist dragged me through the wringer today -- and I'm old enough to know what that feels like!

I blamed the car show for killing my back. But other contributing factors included, but aren't limited to, running, sitting, lifting and oh, trying a new push-up regimen with Carter. That's a killer, even if we are easing into it. For me, one push up is more than I'm used to.

So my 15-minute chair massage turned into a 30-minute chair massage and the digger (that's what I'll call Ms. Deep Tissue Massage) said I could go for 2 hours! Sometimes it's just that bad.

In general, I can blame a 17-year-old license-less inattentive driver who ran me over 18 years ago yesterday, as a matter of fact. But he was sort of the icing on the cake. (Except I love cake and frosting so that is not a good analogy.)

By the time I was 20, I'd already been flipped off a motorcycle in an accident and been a passenger in 2 whiplash fender benders. I'd also ridden 20 miles on bumpy roads strapped to a backboard in an ambulance when I flipped out (flipped up, flipped over) in one of those silly banana-peel type mishaps.

So yeah, my back has its problems.

My chiropractor can probably thank me for putting his kids through college. And now I've got these Digger ladies on my payroll. Oh well, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

Amazingly, the minor lifting, twisting, standing too long and all that normal stuff aggravate my back. But it usually feels really good when I'm running. I have terrible running form to avoid jostling my backbone too much, but at least I'm out there! Just don't look at me.

Except when I cross the finish line. That's when I'm smiling and saying to my back: "You ain't the boss of me!"

Good Spending, er Sleeping, Weather

We turned the air off and enjoyed some temps in the mid-50s last night. And slept hard. Tonight and tomorrow night should give us the same relief. But then, as you'd expect in Wisconsin, it will get up to 98 by Sunday.

Seriously.

So we'll enjoy this while we can. Not that I mind the heat. I just like having the windows open and getting a breeze through the house. Our spoiled kitty likes that, too!

Amazingly, with the A/C off here, in the car and at work, I have been sneezing less and blowing my nose less today. Coincidence? I don't think so. I think I just cured myself! (For a few days anyway.)

I really have no excuse about not getting outside to go for a bike ride or pull some weeds or sit on the swing on the deck. But I'm too tired!

I tell you, one trip into town to the store with Carter will do that to you. He had some of his babysitting money with to buy an iTunes card. But then we're looking at all kinds of stuff -- ignoring the school supplies! -- and I find myself adding things to the cart I probably shouldn't. So the walking part isn't draining. I think it's the spending dough on Mr. Money Pit (not to be confused with Mr. Brad Pitt). You parents out there know -- it's exhausting.

Between that and our perfect sleeping weather, it looks like I'll totally have Mr. Sandman on my side tonight. I hope he's not charging us. I can't spare a dime right now.

All-Star Break

Tonight's the All-Star Game in the Major League Baseball world. I pay attention to things like that -- not because I am going to stay up and watch the entire game -- but because there are things I like about the All-Star break.

This almost always signals a positive turn-around for the Twins. In typical fashion, they started in a slump and somehow have climbed out of the cellar in time for the mid-season break. Which means, cross my fingers, they will continue to get hot and tick off the White Sox, Tigers and Indians fans.

Tee hee.

We'll see how that goes.

The thing I don't like about the All-Star break is that it also signals the middle of summer. Wait. Where did the first half go?

I have an inkling.

We are in our last week of the baseball tournament season, wrapping up 6 tournaments over 7 weekends. Thanks to Mother Nature, we were robbed out of 2 final rounds, so part of me is thinking we shouldn't be wrapping up so soon. Another part says, yay, we'll get a little "down time" before we have to go back-to-school shopping!

That should also mean a little more time to finish up some scrapbook projects, maybe get some inside and outside house projects done, perhaps golf a bit more, find some more deck time and oh yeah, keep training for that half-marathon!

I am proud to report I logged 9 miles on these chubby knees tonight! That calls for a shower and, you guessed it, a yummy fruit smoothie. I blended some up for Carter and me. What a great summer treat!

I'm thinking as far as summer goes (and it's going), I'd like to think my glass if half full.

But it's going to be emptied pretty quickly! M-m-m good!

Manic Monday

Oh is it hard getting back to the daily grind when you've essentially been away from your desk for 4 days.

I still had some car show "cleanup" to get done today, but I had so much other catching up to do, I never made it outside. When we did step out at the end of the work day, it was pretty stinkin' toasty out! I would have been disgustingly sweaty if I had "worked" outside earlier. Probably a good thing I can't get to it until tomorrow.

After work, we went to pick up Carter at his babysitting job. All in all, that's going pretty good for him. He enjoys the kids but has had a few challenges now and then. I think that's good. That maybe gives him a little insight into how frustrated Mom and Dad can get when he cops an attitude. Not an attitude, really, just answering in that annoyed tone that sounds disrespectful. (Sort of like my mother heard when I was, oh, about 13!)

Got home and Jim went to drop the CRV off for an oil change and I went grocery shopping. Don't you love when you make out a nice organized list (in order of buying from the back of the store to the front), then get to the store and realize the list is sitting at home on the counter? Grrr. Well I still managed to spend almost a hundred bucks so I figured I got everything.

Close. All but one thing so that's pretty good!

The guys don't care anyway. They are too busy watching the All-Star Home Run Derby, which, like everything else, looks great in HD. Our only challenge now with our new TV is that our DVD player is so old it can't connect to the TV without some expensive converter. We like our surround sound though, so I had to "browse" at Wal-Mart for some sort of replacement in-home theater system. I didn't buy anything without talking to hubby first, but it's amazing we can get it for less than half of what we paid for our system about 8 years ago.

Why is it that technology keeps getting cheaper but gasoline costs keep going up? Unfortunately, we're dependent on both!

These days, I am also dependent on drugs. Can't seem to shake that congestion and cough crud I started a week ago. I am treating it as allergies -- but now recall that this is what I did last summer and I ended up having bronchitis. So we'll keep close tabs on this.

It's quite possible this is a side effect of going too many days without ice cream! Sorry, Mr. Pharmacist, I've got my own cure for that.

The Sequel

Today ended up being part 2 of the "Mother Nature screws up our tournament" show. Just like she did in Stevens Point a few weeks ago, she rained out our Sunday games and chances for a trophy.

It rained during the night and through the morning so the field conditions were awful and not playable -- even though the rain stopped by noon. What a bummer we won't know how the boys would have done. At least they can be proud they were undefeated through the first 2 days.

Since we had an unexpected free afternoon, Carter and I finally got to see an even better "sequel." We went to the Cars 2 movie. We've seen the first Cars together at least 50 times, I am sure. The second one had a much different story line than the first one but still very entertaining. And nothing beats good movie theater buttered popcorn for lunch!

It was very warm and muggy out after the rain, so we kept inside in the A/C for the most part. I did read a little on the back deck until I discovered a busy bee hive next to me. Why do I always find these dangerous animals in and around our house?

Late this afternoon, our friends the Jacksons came over for awhile. Christine and I relaxed in the hot tub for awhile. She's dealing with a stiff neck and my back hurts from all the lifting and sitting at the car show. Yes, we're getting old!

By the way, Carter's back feels much better now after he did some icing and hot-tubbing last night. So he really was all set to play some ball today. I sure hope Mother Nature gives him another chance next weekend!

We did awesome in Fond du Lac last year. I'd like to see the sequel to that!

Car Show Day 3 :: Limited Time Only

I was only working the car show from 7 a.m.-noon today so I did not have a ton of opportunities to shoot photos. I didn't mind. My main focus was getting out of there promptly at noon so I could get over to Nekoosa (south of Rapids) for Carter's 1:15 p.m. baseball game.

Yes, while I have been "out," there have been other things going on! Carter's team won last night and today so we are going into Sunday's playoffs undefeated. This is our chance for a trophy so I hope they can keep the bats hot!

Carter didn't actually play today's game. I got there and he was sitting out, on the DL I guess, because his back was in much pain. Not sure when or how that came on, but we have been icing it on and off ever since and it seems to be improving. Keep your fingers crossed.

After the game, we trekked up to Stratford with Jim's sister and we attended a graduation party for their cousin's daughter. She graduated second in her class (like me) and is going to UW-La Crosse (like me), so she must be awesome! (Seriously, she is.) Had a nice time visiting with relatives we don't see often enough.

Got home by 7 p.m. so I went for a little 2-mile run just to stretch the legs out. It was really too hot and humid out to try much more than that. No sense being a hero. Now the boys are watching their Reds (in HD) try to beat the Brewers for a change. And I am about to share few photos from my slim pickings today.

No one likes to carry too much around so you see all kinds of wagons and carts. I'm sure these kids thought this was fun -- for the first 20 minutes anyway. I bet they'll have some strong feelings for Daddy and Grandpa by the end of the day!

Of course a wagon also provides a portable rest stop, too.

Thousands of people mill through the Swap Meet and Car Corral looking for "new" cars or just parts and pieces. If you really want to sell something, a good mobile marketing plan can't hurt.

At least the message is clear, right?

And if they run out of ink, they can always borrow some from this guy!

I wasn't sure what prompted me to take this picture, but I just had to. After I zoomed in, I saw that his t-shirts says "Where the Wild Things Are." That's appropriate.

This got me on a t-shirt kick. This guy proves old guys with pony tails rule.

And this guy isn't sure who rules.

And this guy is just plain pushing his luck. If you can't read it, it says: "Your lips are moving but all I can hear is blah, blah, blah." And yet she says with him.

After my recent post mentioned the Hamm's beer commercial, I had to snap a photo of this hotrod with the Hamm's bears featured on the hood.

Every day I walked past this 1960 Plymouth Fury with fins at the entrance. It looks nice but wait 'til you see what it was towing...

Who knew vintage boats had fins, too? This 1959 Herter's (with antique water skies) looks pretty darn cool!

Something tells me there probably is a whole separate show circuit for old boats, too. But I'm not signing up. My shift is done until next year!

Car Show Day 2 :: Indecent Exposure

Day 2 of the Iola Old Car Show was a hot one. So you know what that means. As the heat was turned on, the clothes came off. And we had skin-tastic car show as people tried to beat the heat and live by the motto: "If you got it, flaunt it."

Too much flaunting, in my opinion, but here are some of the day's highlights... or low lights. It's all a matter of personal preference.
By 10 a.m., the shirts came off. Just like that. I found myself not taking a lot of pictures of the indecent exposure, though. (And you'll appreciate that!) I didn't know if it bordered on freak porn. But I wasn't short of material for other categories.

I can't really pick on this guy because I have a hard time squeezing into my summer clothes from last year, too.

Always a go-to method of cooling off at the car show is the umbrella hat.

Which evidentally was popular with all ages!

Either this guy is striking a pose for the ladies or someone needs to tell him 1995 called and they want the Macarena back.

And now for our celebrity sightings...

Bret Michaels enjoys some greasy cheese curds.

And ZZ top looks for his video car!

I used to see baskets on bicycles but never on a scooter.

Then again, I usually see air fresheners hanging from the rear view mirror -- not roosters in cages!

Just in time for Wisconsin's new law allowing concealed weapons, we have the walking stick shaped like a hammer.

"Back off, man who wears flannel in summer, I was in line first." Intimidating, isn't it?

Not as intimidating as the chainsaw brothers, though.

Or this member of the chain gang.

If you really want intimidating, check out this guy's tattoos and piercings. Ouch.

And they were everywhere! He might as well wear a sign that says: "Don't hire me. Ever."

This tattoo lover must have have been told by his momma to keep his elbows clean.

Speaking of mothers... I know Carter would be caught dead before he'd be seen riding shotgun on his momma's scooter.

Then there was the mom who fell off the wagon and got another tattoo...

But was back on the wagon to stay... as long as her little one could pull her around. Actually, this was taken out of context. The little boy didn't have to pull her around. But her boyfriend did. I just can't confirm if the boyfriend is the "Vincent" she has tattooed around her belly button. I just plain forgot to ask.

Ever wonder what Santa does in the off-season? Does he don a cool shirt and hang out with Jimmy Buffett?

Or does he take Mrs. Claus to the car show?

I bet he finds a cool red sleigh with wheels and cruises.

This is a car show after all!