Claudia n' friends

2012-02-17T18:25:00.002-05:00

The weather is so strange one day goes down to 32F and then two days later the temperature goes up to 80F. Today it was around 76F with rain.In spite of the weather we decided to go to Hollywood Disney. It wasn't raining when we left but it looked like it might rain any minute. We didn't stay very long, it was very humid and our skin felt warm and clammy, uncomfortable so we decided to leave. We have annual passes so it's not a problem. We often go for a couple of hours just to walk around, maybe do a few attractions, most of the time we just walk around and take a couple of pictures then go back to the home.

Mickey greeted us at the entrance of the Park

Muppet Vision 3D at Streets of America

New York Subway at Streets of America

Disney's Hollywood Studios presents Jim Henson's Muppet-Vision 3D

Mermaid Fountain from the movie, "SPLASH" at Disney Hollywood

Street performers at Hollywood Studios

Happy Ground Hog Day

2012-02-02T08:01:00.002-05:00

Happy Ground Hog Day! Let's hope Spring is just around the corner for all my friends back home. Newsflash at 7:25 a.m. this morning, Groundhog Phil saw his shadow in the little town of Punxsutawney, Pa.According to folklore, Phil’s sighting of his own shadow means there will be 6 more weeks of winter. Had Phil not seen his shadow, it would have meant “there will be an early spring.” Have a wonderful day!

2012-02-01T13:32:00.001-05:00

Last Sunday Tony and I met Marge and Dick at the Cracker Barrel for Breakfast. I had Scrambled Eggs with Bacon and Sour Dough Toast, Tony and Marge had Sweet Potato Pancakes, Eggs and Bacon.After breakfast, we headed over to the Marketplace at Disney. Dick got Marge a watch for Christmas and the wrist band needed a few links removed. I started looking at the watches and guess what I couldn't resist and bought a watch!

2012-01-29T17:13:00.000-05:00

We were at Disney Animal Kingdom a couple of days ago. One of the attractions at the park is the Kilimanjaro Safaris. The Safari provides the chance to see African animals including giraffes, black rhinos and lions, as they roam the 100-acre savanna in the Africa area of the Disney Animal Kingdom theme park.After boarding a jeep we headed into the animal reserve, off our jeep went, down the bumpy dirt trail and into Africa! Our driver pointed out the various wildlife -- but didn't stop long enough for photos, barely paused. The first time we went on the Safari the driver paused longer. Below are a couple of pictures taken during the Safari. Despite the short stops (not more than 5 seconds) below are some pictures that hubby took.

The Hippopotami don't seem to mind the Vultures and vice versa.

Gazelles are known as swift animals – some are able to run at bursts as high as 60 miles per hour (97 km/h), or run at a sustained speed of 30 miles per hour (48 km/h).[1] Gazelles are mostly found in the deserts, grasslands and savannas of Africa, but they are also found in southwest and central Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. They tend to live in herds and will eat less coarse, easily digestible plants and leaves.

This Giraffe was about a foot away from our jeep!

The wildebeest also called the Gnu. Gnus belong to the family Bovidae, which includes antelopes, cattle, goats, and other even-toed horned ungulates

After the Safari it was onto the Maharajah Jungle Treck.

A Komodo Dragon, the world's largest lizard, resides near a waterfall at the beginning of the Maharajah Jungle Trek. It is the largest living species of lizard, growing to a maximum length of 3 meters (9.8 ft) in rare cases and weighing up to around 70 kilograms (150 lb).

One of the highlights of this tour is the Asian tigers. There are 3 separate viewing areas where you can watch these majestic animals play. The tigers must have been tired from all their playing as they were sleeping soundly when we passed. It didn't matter, they are beautiful creatures.

Oops don't know what these are.

Continued on to the Bat Cliffs and observed the Rodrigues Fruit and Malayan Flying Fox bat species.

Malayan Flying Fox, I think

There are more than 50 species of exotic birds. These are a few that we encountered.

2012-01-17T18:11:00.001-05:00

Dogs unleashed inside Zynga's offices

Social gaming company Zynga is named after founder and CEO Mark Pincus' beloved dog Zinga. The company lets dogs roam unleashed inside its new San Francisco headquarters and offers pet insurance to employees.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

2012-01-14T18:04:00.000-05:00

I caught Tony's cold, it's a head cold stuffy nose and head-achy no sore throat no fever. It's 4:43 PM, 57F and overcast. Glad I went for a walk this morning when the sun was out.

I was getting a little restless this afternoon, so I put on some music and started to dance around to it. Then I found a couple of Zumba videos on the internet and followed along with them. It was fun, not as much fun as doing it in a class but it did the trick.

Have you watch The Firm? Based on the best-selling novel by John Grisham, "The Firm" is a new series that continues the story of attorney Mitchell McDeere. I watched the pilot and the second episode, the writing acting and plot so far is excellent. It's the best thing I've seen on TV in a long time.

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T20:21:00.001-05:00

I started this post a week ago left it and forgot to come back and finish it.

Oh my it's been two months since the last time I posted, maybe I should just give it up but I cannot bring myself to give up my blog. I am too attached to it.

I terminated the contract I took last May. I did have an option to continue working for a few months more but we wanted to get away from the cold. I miss working but hopefully I will get another contract in the Spring. I also miss working out at the gym. Can't find a gym with a class schedule that suits me. When I feel guilty (about once a week) I play one of my exercise videos.

We will be staying in Florida until April. Tony has been sick with a bad cold for the last couple of days, so we haven't done much. Hopefully he will start feeling better soon so we can both enjoy the nice weather.

Now I know why I haven't done any blogging, lack of things to write about.

I don't do much web surfing but this site David Lebovitz, living the sweet life in Paris
caught my eye. David Lebovitz was a professional cook and baker who has worked in restaurants in San Francisco and Paris. He left the restaurant business to pursue writing books. The photos and recipes are inspiring and of course it helps that the many of the stories are about food and Paris.

2011-10-29T16:53:00.000-04:00

The end of October already, time sure goes by quickly. It was below zero last night and very chilly today, but the sun was out and turned out to be a beautiful day. I woke up early this morning and decided to make Holiday Left-Over Sweet Potato Cake, a recipe I found on Allrecipes. You can use your left-over sweet potato from the holidays. The cake is very moist and goes great with a fresh brewed cup of java. I micro-waved a large sweet potato for 7 minutes, it came out perfect, the skin peeled away easily. I used 1-2/3 cups of sugar and substituted half the amount of sugar with Splenda. I used cut the oil to 2/3 of a cup. I didn't have beer so I substitued chicken broth, sounds weird but it worked.

2011-10-15T09:16:00.003-04:00

Last weekend was beautiful sunny and warm, this weekend it's the opposite. Cooler temperatures and rain lots and lots of rain in the forecast. I'm thinking maybe they got it wrong as I see some blue skies in the distance.

The week went by quickly, probably the weekend will fly by as well. Nothing special planned. I have blueberries in the freezer so I will try this recipe Blueberry Apple that I found on Allrecipes.com

2011-10-10T19:11:00.002-04:00

Wow over a month since I posted, time flies!

It's our Canadian Thanksgiving. Didn't cook a Turkey, I've been fighting a cold for the past five days. I was going to go an aerobics class but fell asleep and missed the class. Guess I needed to rest a bit, feeling a better now, just in time to go back to work tomorrow. When I woke up I made an Apple Crisp, yummy.

We have had beautiful weather the last three days sunny and warm, 26C today. If only it could stay this nice for a few more months.

An Apple A Day

2011-09-04T03:48:00.004-04:00

Does an apple a day “really” keep the doctor away?

Growing up, I am sure many of us were told, “have an apple a day and it will keep the doctor away!”.

Did you know that this fruit is a member of the rose family? Well, you do now :)

While an apple a day is no guarantee in keeping the doctor away, eating apples does have several health benefits:

• Vitamin C –Apples have vitamin C that helps the immune system to do its job, fighting off bacterial infections and viruses. Vitamin C also promotes healing.
• Flavonoids – Apples are high in flavonoids. Flavonoids are powerful antioxidants that promote heart health and help prevent cardiovascular disease.
• Calories – Apples are low in calories. At 100 calories for a medium-sized apple, this is much improved over candies or foods high in fat.
• Phenols – Phenols help take care of cholesterol. Not only do they reduce bad cholesterol, but apples also increase good cholesterol.
• Phytonutrients – Phytonutrients are substances in apples that are shown to help prevent brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
• Lungs – While apples don’t have lungs of their own, they can help yours. Studies show that people who eat 5 or more apples per week suffer from lower rates of respiratory disorders such as asthma.
• Fiber – Apples are high in soluble fiber. New studies have found that soluble fiber is not only good for digestive health, but it also boosts the immune system

The average person eats 65 apples a year. I eat an apple each day after my lunch. Eat Up!

Apple Crisp

Makes 8 portions

Ingredients

4 cups Granny Smith apples (4 to 5), peeled, cored, and sliced
1/2 cup (125 ml) packed, light brown sugar
1/2 cup (125 ml) whole wheat flour
1/2 cup (125 ml) oats
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) nutmeg
4 tablespoons (60 ml) non-hydrogenated margarine
Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 oF. Place the apple slices in a small baking dish.
Combine the brown sugar, whole wheat flour, oats, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Using two knives or a pastry blender, cut in the margarine until the mixture is crumbly.
Sprinkle the mixture over the apples.
Bake for about 25 minutes or until the apples are tender and the topping is golden brown.
Enjoy with some low fat ice cream!

Calories: 163 kcal
Carbs: 26 g
Protein: 1.7 g
Fat: 6.2 g

2011-08-29T18:40:00.002-04:00

I had planned on making the banana bread I posted below but thanks to the remnants of Irene (hurricane) we had a power failure after I posted that lasted the whole day up until 10:00 AM this morning.

When I woke up this morning at 5:00 AM I decided to get ready and take the 6:00 AM bus downtown. I needed to wash my hair but with no electricity I wouldn't be able to dry it after washing it so before going to work I stopped at the gym and took another shower washed and blow dried my hair and put on my make up.

I was at work at the usual time, 7:30 AM. At 10:00 AM the network went down and we had no computers for the rest of the afternoon. Could do much of anything, so I filed and took phone calls and answered best I could without the use of a computer. Couldn't blame it on the weather as it was a nice bright sunny day today.

2011-08-28T11:45:00.001-04:00

Since it's such a dull day I was searching around the Internet for things to make. I remembered the Banana Bread we use to get in the CN station, it came from
the Beaver Club in the Queen Elizabeth Hotel. It wasn't too difficult to find, thought I`d share it with you.

The Beaver Club's Famous Banana Bread

Makes 2 loaves

1 pound (about 4), bananas, peeled and very ripe
2 1/4 cups sugar
7 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
3 1/4 cups flour
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F and set the rack in the middle of the oven. butter and flour 2 loaf pans.
Combine the bananas, sugar, baking soda, and salt, and blend at high speed in a blender for one minute. Pour the mixture into a bowl and mix in the eggs one at a time. Blend in the flour alternately with the buttermilk and oil, and beat the mixture for two minutes or until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 2 1/2 hours.
Note: For a rich banana flavour, be sure to use very ripe bananas and bake for the full 2 1/2 hours. This banana bread improves with age and can keep for several days.

2011-08-21T08:58:00.003-04:00

Oh my almost a month since I posted.

A few of my friends are on vacation, they are visiting my favorite destination, Paris!
The last time I saw Paris was in 2008. We are not able to go right now so for the moment I satisfy my love of Paris by reading articles and blogs about Paris and looking at pictures. These are a couple of my favorites:

Bonjour Paris

David Lebovitz Living the sweet life in Paris

The festivals continue in Montreal, it was Nascar Montreal on Thursday thru Saturday, streets were closed with cars on display and concerts in the evening, not to mention traffic more traffic conjestion for those using their cars.

Also on is the Reggae festival and the Montreal World Film Festival. I used to enjoy the Film Festival but haven't attended for the past couple of years. Ever since Toronto started and hold their festival at the same time, the stars opt for Toronto instead of Montreal.

Last Saturday the town that I live in put on an International Festival complete with a live concert and fireworks. We live just up the street from where the event was held, I could see the fireworks from our house and took this picture

A little more from the Garden

2011-07-23T15:42:00.004-04:00

It's a little too hot to do too much in the garden except water. It's about 32C at the moment.

On Thursday it was 35.2C with humidity it was 47C. We beat the last high recorded on the same day in 1955 (the year I was born) which was 35.0C. I remember my Mom saying that it was hot that July, no kidding!

Creative Adventures #1
An Old Abandoned Town

1. While driving through an old abandoned town you take a turn down a side road and spot a railroad yard with an old train station, thinking it might be fun to explore it, you stop your car and walk up to the abandoned station.

2. Walking through the old train station you get a funny feeling you are not alone, you turn to see a door closing.

3. Rushing back to your car and just about to cross the old tracks you hear the sound of a train whistle pass you by but there was no train anywhere to be seen.

4. Once in your car driving away you think to yourself what just happened?.

From the Garden

2011-07-16T04:49:00.004-04:00

They say it is going to be a hot one today! The lilies are in all in bloom. Here are a few from my garden. I can't seem to kill them and they don't need much care.

2011-07-03T15:46:00.004-04:00

25C but feels much hotter. We are supposed to have thunder storms but so far it doesn't look like rain.

We went to the Jazz festival but didn't stay long because it was too darn hot!

I caught this little robin cooling off in my neighbor's birth bath. So cute!

Happy Canada Day!

2011-07-01T10:23:00.007-04:00

If you were not awake at 6:00 AM this morning then you missed the sun. By 9:00 AM it turned cloudy, it doesn't look lie rain. It felt very hot when the sun came out few seconds while I was in the garden.

I did a little weeding but there are still lots of weeds, a result of lots of rain. I find that this year the garden is flowering more and a little earlier than the past couple of years. Last year I was so discourage that I was ready to take everything out and put in grass. I decided to give another year and so far I'm a little encouraged. It still needs some rearranging and thinning out.

Here are a couple of pictures I took this morning.

2011-06-26T19:21:00.002-04:00

Oh dear what a terrible blogger I am. I've been working since May 9th and enjoying it a lot. It's a five month contract and I do not feel the same pressure as when I was working at my regular job. I will be sorry when my five months are up.

It was a long weekend here in Quebec unfortunately it rained for two days and it was overcast today, the sun is shining now. Tomorrow is supposed to be a hot day and then rain again on Tuesday. Only four days to work and another long weekend. Yippee!

2011-04-30T07:05:00.003-04:00

Oh dear I haven't posted since I came home. It's almost three weeks since we have been back from Florida. I've been busy cleaning, scheduling appointments, doing taxes, going to the gym and getting my haircut.

Yesterday I went to the Dentist for a cleaning. I also went on a job interview for a five month contract. It wasn't exactly an interview it was more of a get to know me meeting. My ex boss asked me if I wanted a contract and since it is a job very similar to the one I was doing I said yes. Still a few things to settle, I should start in about 1 week.

Did you watch the Royal Wedding, I did. I thought the bride looked lovely and I couldn't help thinking about the other Royal Wedding that took place 30 years ago.

It's a sunny day today so I think I will try to get out in the garden and do a little cleaning.

Beauty and The Beast - Disney's Animal Kingdom

2011-03-31T14:48:00.000-04:00

The Tree of Life

2011-03-31T14:27:00.002-04:00

Did You Know? The Tree of Life at Disney's Animal Kingdom has more than 325 animals carved into its trunk.

Thunder Boomers

2011-03-31T08:18:00.002-04:00

We have had big Thunderstorms since Monday, there's is one going on as I write. I know I should close my computer...

Ouch a big boom! I took this video but it's rather tame compared to what's been going on. The thunder is so loud I practically jump out of my skin. Only good thing about Jack being deaf is that he can't hear the Thunder (another flash of lightning)otherwise he would be shaking and panting for the past three days.

We did get a bit of a break from the storms yesterday, the sun was out for most of the day, then around 5:00 PM the winds came and there was a tornado warning for the area. There are tornado warnings again this morning although I don't see the wind whipping around like yesterday. We were out grocery shopping when the storm passed over our area, let me tell you it's pretty scary when the wind picks up and debris is flying all over the place.

Here is a video I took just a few moments ago, not too much action going on didn't want stay out there too long, just call me chicken.

2011-03-27T08:23:00.002-04:00

This picture was taken at Hollywood Disney, I'm sure you know these characters well!

Yes my friends you are correct the picture I posted was the Queen of Hearts! You know your Disney characters!

2011-03-23T08:21:00.002-04:00

Picture taken yesterday at Disney (where else?). Do you recognize this Disney character?

What's this tree?

2011-03-19T20:51:00.004-04:00

The picture of this tree was taken at Disney, I've never seen it before and don't know what kind of tree it is. If anyone knows please let me know.

Update - Thanks to Liz I now the name of the tree, it's a Bottle Brush Tree!

2011-03-16T06:42:00.003-04:00

As I mentioned before we go to Disney every other day. At the moment Disney is hosting a Flower and Garden Festival at Epcot. One of the attractions is the Butterfly house where I took the following pictures. The first shows 3 stages of the beginnings of a butterfly, from cocoon to butterfly and the second is one of the butterflies I managed to take a picture of. The house is packed with all kinds of plants and flowers that butterflies are attracted to.

Picjoke.net

2011-03-06T18:41:00.007-05:00

I've been having fun trying out photo effects on Picjoke. There's a new effect everyday.

Here are a couple of effects I tried.

2011-03-04T07:18:00.005-05:00

We go to Disney every other day. We don't stay long 3-4 hours. On our last visit we went on Mission space, a motion simulator ride at Epcot theme park, Disney says it's as close as you can get to blasting off into space without leaving Earth. The ride was a blast.

Before going in you select the Green or the Orange team. The Orange Team is more intense and is the original version of the attraction, where you experience forces up to 2.4G—more than twice the force of the Earth's gravitational pull.

The Green Team has a less intense experience. You do not feel forces up to 2.4G or spinning. We opted for the Green Team. Before boarding the simulators, each of us was assigned an on-board role (navigator, pilot, commander and engineer. The less intense ride was just right for me, although I would like to feel what the 2.4G experience I think we made the right choice with the Green team. I want to go again.

The Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival started this week. A special event filled with Disney character topiaries, a colorful array of flowers, gardens, live music and special presentations.

2011-02-15T08:29:00.003-05:00

Beautiful sunny day here in Central Florida. Sorry for those freezing back home, -25C with the wind factor. Crazy weather. Not sure if I heard correctly, it is supposed to be 8C by the end of the week.

We went to the vet yesterday with Jack, because he started shaking his head on the weekend and had a gray bump on his ear, we thought it was a tick. The good news is that it's not a tick, it's a small cyst. The bad news is that he has another ear infection. He gets 2 to 3 ear infections a year. He is on antibiotics and tresaderm ear drops. Poor Jack!

Finally finished reading Eat, Pray Love: One woman's search for Everything across Italy India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert. I had a hate/love relationship with this book. The books is divided into three parts, I found the first two parts, Italy and India difficult to get through but by the time I got to the third part; Indonesia it picked up a little.

First part, pleasure: savoring Italy's buffet of delights — the world's best pizza, free-flowing wine and conversation. — 'I came to Italy pinched and thin,' she writes, but soon fills out in waist and soul. Then, prayer and ascetic rigor: seeking communion with the divine at a sacred ashram in India, Gilbert imitates the ways of yogis in grueling hours of meditation. Finally, Bali, 'betwixt and between' studies with a medicine man and has a love affair.

A little Humor

2011-02-14T08:48:00.002-05:00

Those fabulous Comedians

You may remember the Old comics of Vaudeville Days:
Shecky Greene,
Red Buttons,
Totie Fields,
Joey Bishop,
Milton Berle,
Jan Murray,
Danny Kaye,
Henny Youngman,
Buddy Hackett,
Sid Caesar,
Groucho Marx,
Jackie Mason,
Victor Borge,
Woody Allen,
Joan Rivers,
Lenny Bruce,
George Burns,
Allan Sherman,
Jerry Lewis,
Peter Sellers,
Carl Reiner,
Shelley Berman,
Gene Wilder,
George Jessel,
Alan King,
Mel Brooks,
Phil Silvers,
Jack Carter,
Rodney Dangerfield,
Don Rickles,
Jack Benny
Mansel Rubenstein
And so many others.

And there was not one single swear word in their comedy. Here are a few examples:

I just got back from a pleasure trip. I took my mother-in-law to the airport.

I've been in love with the same woman for 49 years! If my wife ever finds out, she'll kill me!

What are three words a woman never wants to hear when she's making love? "Honey, I'm home!"

Someone stole all my credit cards but I won't be reporting it. The thief spends
Less than my wife did.

We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.

My wife and I went back to the hotel where we spent our wedding night; only this time I stayed in the bathroom and cried.

My wife and I went to a hotel where we got a waterbed. My wife called it theDead Sea .

She was at the beauty shop for two hours. That was only for the estimate. She got a mudpack and looked great for two days. Then the mud fell off.

The Doctor gave a man six months to live. The man couldn't pay his bill so the doctor gave him another six months.

The Doctor called Mrs. Cohen saying, "Mrs. Cohen, your check came back. " Mrs. Cohen answered, "So did my arthritis!"

Doctor: "You'll live to be 60!"
Patient: "I am 60!"
Doctor: "See! What did I tell you?"

Patient: "I have a ringing in my ears."

Doctor: "Don't answer!"

A drunk was in front of a judge. The judge says, "You've been brought here for drinking."

The drunk says "Okay, let's get started."

A man called his mother in Florida ,

"Mom, how are you?"

"Not too good," said the mother. "I've been very weak."

The son said, "Why are you so weak?" She said, "Because I haven't eaten in 38
Days."

The son said, "That's terrible.

Why haven't you eaten in 38 days?"

The mother answered, "Because I didn't want my mouth to be filled with food if you should call."

Slow news day...

Incredible Basement

2011-02-02T11:43:00.000-05:00

An awesome Chicago basement.
This man can just go down in his basement and visit whenever he wants.
Talk about a "blast from the past ..."

An Early Spring??

2011-02-02T07:30:00.001-05:00

Puxatony Phil has made it official. An early Spring!

2011-01-31T08:37:00.002-05:00

I want to write, but what to write that is the questions. I am not a writer, the words do not flow, I wish it were so but alas it is not.

Last day of January. I hear a lot of people saying how they found that the month was never ending, for me it flew by. Maybe it had something to do with being in Florida and not having to bear the cold weather, but it always went by quickly for me since it was the busiest period at work. February on the other hand seemed to drag and drag and drag.

I am reading Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I am having a difficult time getting through the book, I started it in December, I am nearing the end of the 2nd part "Pray" of the book. If you haven't read the book or seen the movie, here is a short video from Oprah.

Traces of Reality - The Last Furlong

2011-01-19T11:36:00.007-05:00

Stopped by Toni's place a couple of mornings ago and picked up this great meme of sorts from her. I found it fun and since it gives me a chance to psp I decided to give it a try.

Make your own band and album cover!

You pick a name for the band, title for the song and album cover all randomly.
Combine them and see what you end up with.

1 - Go to'wikipedia' and hit random. The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
2 - Go to 'quotationspage.com' and hit random. The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.
3 - Go to 'flickr' and click on “explore the last seven days”. Third picture no matter whatever it may be, will be your album cover.
4 - Use photoshop or similar (picnik.com is a free online photo editor) to put it all together.
5 - Post it with this text in the "caption" and ask friends to join in.

I was pleased that the third picture on Flickr was of a Paris Metro station sign.

THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU SPEAK!

2011-01-19T11:24:00.001-05:00

Since I promised I would blog more often, however due to lack of content here is another joke for you. Sunny and warm so I'm off to sit by the pool.

Here are six reasons why you should think before you speak -the last one is great!
Have you ever spoken and wished that you could immediately take the words back...
Here are the Testimonials of a few people who did....

FIRST TESTIMONY:
I walked into a hair salon with my husband and three kids in tow and asked loudly,
'How much do you charge for a shampoo and a blow job?' I turned around and walked back out and never went back
My husband didn't say a word...he knew better.

SECOND TESTIMONY:
I was at the golf store comparing different kinds of golf balls. I was unhappy with the women's type I had been using.
After browsing for several minutes, I was approached by one of the good-looking gentlemen who works at the store.
He asked if he could help me.
Without thinking, I looked at him and said, 'I think I like playing with men's balls'

THIRD TESTIMONY:
My sister and I were at the mall and passed by a store that sold a variety of candy and nuts.
As we were looking at the display case, the boy behind the counter asked if we needed any help.
I replied, 'No, I'm just looking at your nuts.'
My sister started to laugh hysterically.
The boy grinned, and I turned beet-red and walked away.
To this day, my sister has never let me forget.

FOURTH TESTIMONY:
While in line at the bank one afternoon, my toddler decided to release some pent-up energy and ran amok.
I was finally able to grab hold of her after receiving looks of disgust and annoyance from other patrons.
I told her that if she did not start behaving 'right now' she would be punished.
To my horror, she looked me in the eye and said in a voice just as threatening,
'If you don't let me go right now, I will tell Grandma that I saw you
kissing Daddy's pee-pee last night!'
The silence was deafening after this enlightening exchange.
Even the tellers stopped what they were doing. I mustered up the last of my dignity and walked out of the bank
with my daughter in tow. The last thing I heard when the door closed behind me, were screams of laughter.

FIFTH TESTIMONY:
Have you ever asked your child a question too many times?
My three-year-old son had a lot of problems with potty training and I was on him constantly.
One day we stopped at Taco Bell for a quick lunch, in between errands It was very busy, with a full dining room.
While enjoying my taco, I smelled something funny, so of course I checked my seven-month-old daughter, she was clean.
Then I realized that Danny had not asked to go potty in a while.
I asked him if he needed to go, and he said 'No' ..
I kept thinking 'Oh Lord, that child has had an accident, and I don't have any clothes with me.'
Then I said, 'Danny, are you SURE you didn't have an accident?'
'No,' he replied.
I just KNEW that he must have had an accident, because the smell was getting worse.
Soooo, I asked one more time, 'Danny did you have an accident ? This time he jumped up, yanked down his pants,
bent over, spread his cheeks and yelled 'SEE MOM, IT'S JUST FARTS!!'
While 30 people nearly choked to death on their tacos laughing,
he calmly pulled up his pants and sat down.
An older couple made me feel better, thanking me for the best laugh they'd ever had!

LAST BUT NOT LEAST TESTIMONY:
This had most of the state of Michigan laughing for 2 days and a very embarrassed female news anchor who will,
in the future, likely think before she speaks. What happens when you predict snow but don't get any!
We had a female news anchor that, the day after it was supposed to have snowed and didn't,
turned to the weatherman and asked: 'So Bob, where's that 8 inches you promised me last night?'

Not only did HE have to leave the set, but half the crew did too they were laughing so hard!

Now, didn't that feel good?
Pass it on to someone you know who needs a laugh
and remember we all say things we don't really mean,
so think before you speak!!!

Should I really join Facebook?

2011-01-13T07:49:00.001-05:00

Received this in my e-mail, too good I had to share

A good laugh for people in the over 50 group!!! Also for those who know people like us.

When I bought my Blackberry I thought about the 30-year business I ran with 1800 employees, all without a cell phone that plays music, takes videos, pictures and communicates with Facebook and Twitter. I signed up under duress for Twitter and Facebook, so my seven kids, their spouses, 13 grandkids and 2 great grand kids could communicate with me in the modern way. I figured I could handle something as simple as Twitter with only 140 characters of space.

That was before one of my grandkids hooked me up for Tweeter, Tweetree, Twhirl, Twitterfon, Tweetie and Twittererific Tweetdeck, Twitpix and something that sends every message to my cell phone and every other program within the texting world.

My phone was beeping every three minutes with the details of everything except the bowel movements of the entire next generation. I am not ready to live like this. I keep my cell phone in the garage in my golf bag.

The kids bought me a GPS for my last birthday because they say I get lost every now and then going over to the grocery store or library. I keep that in a box under my tool bench with the Blue tooth [its red] phone I am supposed to use when I drive. I wore it once and was standing in line at Barnes & Noble talking to my wife and everyone in the nearest 50 yards was glaring at me. I had to take my hearing aid out to use it, and I got a little loud.

I mean the GPS looked pretty smart on my dash board, but the lady inside that gadget was the most annoying, rudest person I had run into in a long time. Every 10 minutes, she would sarcastically say, "Re-calc-u-lating." You would think that she could be nicer. It was like she could barely tolerate me. She would let go with a deep sigh and then tell me to make a U-turn at the next light.. Then if I made a right turn instead. Well, it was not a good relationship..

When I get really lost now, I call my wife and tell her the name of the cross streets and while she is starting to develop the same tone as Gypsy, the GPS lady, at least she loves me.

To be perfectly frank, I am still trying to learn how to use the cordless phones in our house. We have had them for 4 years, but I still haven't figured out how I can lose three phones all at once and have run around digging under chair cushions and checking bathrooms and the dirty laundry baskets when the phone rings.

The world is just getting too complex for me. They even mess me up every time I go to the grocery store. You would think they could settle on something themselves but this sudden "Paper or Plastic?" every time I check out just knocks me for a loop. I bought some of those cloth reusable bags to avoid looking confused, but I never remember to take them in with me.

Now I toss it back to them. When they ask me, "Paper or Plastic?" I just say, "Doesn't matter to me. I am bi-sacksual." Then it's their turn to stare at me with a blank look. I was recently asked if I tweet. I answered, No, but I do toot a lot."

2011-01-12T06:15:00.004-05:00

Woke up to this story on the radio this morning: Eyeball' in watermelon ID'd as blueberry. It doesn't look like an eyeball to me, what do you think?

We went to Disney's Animal Kingdom yesterday and did the Safari. We saw giraffes, gazelles, elephants, rhinos and lions. I love the giraffes!

Going to get Jack groomed this morning. We were supposed to have him groomed last week but turned out he had a fungus in one of his pads. It looks like it's almost healed. We will just have him trimmed not washed and nails clipped, Tony and I will wash him.

Disney's Animal Kingdom

2011-01-10T09:57:00.008-05:00

The other morning we were walking Jack and we saw a lady walking what we thought was a small medium brown dog. We only got a glimpse of it, since the lady immediately turned around and disappeared around the corner. Unsociable, we thought.

When we got to the place where she had turned around we saw that it was not a dog the lady was walking but a dark orange long haired tabby.
She had a material type leash on Fred (we later found out that that was his name) and at that point he was just lying in the grass. Jack wanted to visit but Fred was not open to that and quickly started to walk/run the other way. He needn’t worry as Jack can not run after him but he did find Fred interesting.

Haven’t seen any stray cats around but did see an Armadillo in the back early one morning. Snapped the picture below. The picture was taken when we were walking around the grounds, don't know if it is the same one that we saw in back of the house.

We went to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, we only spend about 3 hours at a time when we visit Disney (worried about Jack)
so we didn’t get to see the wild animals. Next time we will head directly to the attraction that takes us in an open-air vehicle to where the animals roam freely.

I took this photo of Spoonbills building a nest. A lady working at Disney was watching them also, she says she loves to watch them they will stay on the nest for months.

It's about time

2011-01-08T08:24:00.002-05:00

Long time no post. Wish I could get into the routine of posting even if it's one line or a picture.

I am officially retired, but may return to work as a consultant in the Spring.

Jack continues to have problems with the osteoarthritis but is doing much better since he has been on the Hills Prescription Diet, Joint Mobility food. He also takes a Glugosamine with Condroitin and an anti inflammatory tablet. We put indoor boots on his back paws to help him get up when we go out. We only go out when he is sleeping as he gets rather agitated if he sees us leave the house. He is also on meds for a fungus he developed on on of his paws (probably due to the boots). It's healing and we only put the boots on when we leave. We were using the boots as a protection for the bones spurs that he has from the osteo.

Felix is fine, continues to wake the dog up at 4:30 AM who in turns wakes us up.

Zumba Montréal

2010-10-20T05:45:00.002-04:00

It's been on the cool side lately sun mixed with clouds, there is rain in the forecast. It rained and was so windy last Friday that most of the leaves have been blown away. Although you can see the mountain downtown between the office buildings downtown and the way the sun reflecting on the mountain turned it into a sea of yellow and gold, reminded me that it's been a long time since I've taken a walk on the mountain.

Below is a video my Zumba group did in a Montreal Metro Station. It's part of a promotion for Zumba Fitness. I was supposed to go but I was sick.

Thanksgiving weekend

2010-10-09T08:38:00.002-04:00

I've been sick with bronchitis for the last nine days. I've had fever everyday and every night. I haven't caught a cold or grippe since 2008, but when I catch something I catch it well. I think the antibiotics are kicking in as I had just a bit of fever last night.

Although retired since September I am still working on contract until December 1st, I was supposed to finish last Thursday but they asked if I would stay for at least 2 months. I said yes as the transition is not going that well and I hate to leave things the way they are.

Ash-throated Flycatcher Identify - Whatbird.com

2010-10-07T16:05:00.002-04:00

Ash-throated Flycatcher Identify - Whatbird.com

Two little birds came to visit my balcony this morning. They didn't quite look like the ones in the link I posted above, they were dark gray with white bellies, I can't identify them. Not possible to snap a pic, by the time I would have got the camera out they were gone. If you have any idea what they may be let me know.

Orange Dragonfly

2010-10-03T09:28:00.002-04:00

Tony took the picture of the Orange Dragonfly sunning himself on the brick wall.

It's a sunny Sunday. I have come down with a cold so haven't been able to take advantage of the nice weather.

Happy October 1st

2010-10-01T07:48:00.003-04:00

As of today I am supposed to be retired however at the last minute they asked me to work another two months so I am working on contract.

It's a rainy Friday morning, from what I hear on the news there is quite a bit of rain all around. It wasn't raining when I got up but it has started again, I knew I should have taken the do off for a walk.

I haven't taken a picture of my retirement gift, I'll have to get around to that.

I started to have a sore throat yesterday, with a bit of fever. A lot of people seem to have colds this week. I thought I would escape it, but no.

The pumpkin photo that Toni posted on her blog reminded me of a photo taken 2 years ago on a Autumn walk.

Thought I would post it today in honor of October 1st!

Alive, well and soon to be Retired

2010-09-24T21:19:00.002-04:00

Yes after working 33 years at the same company I am retired. I worked an extra month after my official retirement for the transition. Next Thursday will be my last day. I will take the winter off and come Spring I may return to work.

Today the department took me out for lunch and presented me with beautiful necklace and bracelet. I will take a picture and post it.

Now that I am retired I have no excuse not to blog but I am sure that I will find one.

I need to find something interesting to blog about. I will try to think of something.

2010-06-12T07:03:00.002-04:00

It rained on and off all week, there is a light rain this morning hopefully it will clear so I can do some gardening. Everything is growing nicely, the lawn is nice and green, just need a little more sun for the flowers to come out.

Nothing planned for today, except for breakfast at the restaurant after our walk and a bit of grocery shopping, yuk.

Work is the same, the restructuring plan for the company has been deposited and we are supposed to come out of chapter 11 in the fall. It will be a new company with new pension plans. The new type of plans along with new government legislation will reduce the company's future liabilities, not as good as the old plans but needed since one of the largest debt for the company was the deficit they had to pay to the plans. Haven't hear if the legislators have made the necessary changes yet.

Even with the new plan, how long can the company survive I wonder...

Hot and humid

2010-06-04T04:56:00.003-04:00

We got lots of rain yesterday, I hid my flower containers away so they wouldn't get soaked. I've lost so many flowers to root rot, because it would constantly rain with no sun in between. They were in the rain the night before, hopefully the sun will come out today and dry them out.

Last week I started an Invisalign treatment to straighten my teeth a little over a week ago. I've been thinking about it for two years, ever since I notice that my front tooth which had been straight all my life was all of a sudden sticking out. Although that it seemed that my tooth moved overnight, the dentist said that teeth move over the years and that all of a sudden it looks like a tooth has moved but in actual fact it's been moving bit by bit and then one day you look in the mirror and notice that it's crooked.

The Invisalign treatment consists of a series of nearly invisible, removable trays that you change every two weeks for the next set of aligners. Each aligner is individually manufactured for your teeth. As you replace each aligner, your teeth will move – little by little, week by week – until they have straightened to the final position prescribed. This is my first set, I wear them all the time day and night, I take them out only to eat.

The dentist said that they will become part of me and when I don't have them on I will feel like something is missing, hope that day comes soon.

2010-05-30T15:05:00.010-04:00

I decided that it was about time I posted something. My keyboard is not working well, I think the batteries are dead again. That's not the only thing that isn't working well. The computer I am using is a Desk Top, it is not that old, although I guess 2 years is old for a computer nowadays. It still works but I hear it working or doing something in the background, this can go on for hours. Sometimes I get fed up and just shut it down. I have a laptop but it's not connected to the large screen, I guess I'm hoping for some kind of miracle that is going to make my desktop magically work perfectly again.

We have had some awesome temperatures and very little rain lately, the thermometer in the car registered 104F on Monday. It's a little cooler today and overcast, we had a bit of rain but not much.

I took advantage of the nice weather last weekend to do some gardening. The garden is shaping up, it always looks nice at the end of May and in June before the hot weather takes a toll on the plants.

There are not too many flowers in my garden yet, Here's what's growing in my garden so far.

The birds are noisy this year, they start feeding around 5:00 AM and keep going to about noon. I don't mind I just find it unusual for around here.

Work is going ok, the company may come out of Chapter 11 in the fall and then it will be a new company with a new name and new everything. If all goes as planned retiree pensions will remain intact but active employees will get a salary cut. Glad for the retirees, not so glad for me.

Happy Earth Day!

2010-04-22T19:57:00.002-04:00

Lately we have been receiving e-mails with a comment at the bottom that reads something like, 'before printing this e-mail think of the environment'

At our company we rely on the forest to make our products, and respect for the environment is a fundamental part of everything we do. Too often, however, we see the use of paper singled out as something ‘bad’ for the environment, which is the reason why some people include “do not print this e-mail” notes to the end of their electronic messages. There has been ongoing discussion concerning this matter in the media recently, given the proliferation of electronic readers. Here is a link to a March article that appeared on PBS’s website, which raises this issue. It is an eye opener.

In my case I print e-mails to keep the history of important decisions that were taken. When I leave the company although my e-mails will be given to my supervisor they often get left by the wayside and forgotten, the only way to trace it will be the paper file. Some companies have chosen to scan all their files, after reading the above article I'm not sure that this is the best solution either, think of all the energy that is needed to generate digital documents.

So from today on this is what will be at the bottom of my e-mails:

It's OK to print this e-mail. Paper is made from a renewable resource. Please choose paper sourced from independently certified sustainable forests and recycle.

Happy Spring Almost

2010-04-13T19:42:00.009-04:00

It's been a month since I posted, bad bad girl. The bathroom renovations are finished and I am very happy with the way everything turned out.

Here are some before and after pictures. It was difficult taking pictures in this small space.

In this picture the mirrored door of the pharmacy were already removed.

New sink and vanity.

New Tub

Flickr

2010-03-14T11:40:00.001-04:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

http://beta.blip.fm/Hip_Mixer

2010-03-14T08:13:00.000-04:00

http://beta.blip.fm/Hip_Mixer

Sun sun sun!

2010-03-11T06:05:00.002-05:00

Yes friends it is sunny and warm here! Dare I say Spring. We are enjoying the great weather, it's so nice to catch a break from the cold and snow. We hardly had any snow this year, they even took down the hockey rink two weeks ago. The bicycles are out and I see more people taking walks. I'm not getting too excited because we know how quickly the weather can change, there is usually a snow storm the last two weeks of March, hopefully not this year!

Not much to report, working and going to aerobics. We are having the bathroom renovated, it was due. It dates back to the late 70's. The fixtures were yellow gold, you know the same color as the refridgerators were in the 70's . When we moved in the sink and toilet were white so we had the yellow bath covered with white acrylic. We removed the towel rack which was in yellow gold ceramic, but kept the soap holder next to the tub. The tile on the floor was changed but not the tile on the walls. I think the vanity may have been changed before we bought the house, but I'm not sure, it's white melanmine with a white melamine counter. The renovation will be done in two weeks, it was supposed to be done next week but there was a delay in the delivery of the vanity. I can't wait!

New Layout

2010-02-27T19:12:00.004-05:00

I managed to change the layout today. St-Paddy's day will be here soon!

It's been a mild winter with very little snow. We had a bit of snow mixed with rain this pas week. Today it went up to 6C. I feel Spring is just around the corner, fingers crossed.

We have finally decided to have the bathroom renovated. We needed to change the vanity, one thing led to another and most of the bathroom will be new except for the floor. The tile on the floor is only a couple of years old and I still like it! The renovation gives me something to look forward to. I find the winter so long!

Are you watching the Olympic games? I am watching when I can, Canada is doing better than I expected. I was so afraid that Joannie Rochette would not be able to skate, after he learning of her mother's death just days before she was to skate but skate she did and won a Silver medal.

Another silver medal winner, Marianne St-Gelais, this time in the 500m short track speed skating race. Her father works for the company I work for, in the woodlands division, Saguenay area. Way to go Marianne!

New Blog Home

2010-02-26T06:10:00.002-05:00

It was time to renew my hosting service for my blog on WP and since I'm not posting on a regular basis I decided it was time to give it up. So here I am on Blogspot which is just as good a place to post as any.

Excuse my layout. I haven't the time to change it right now, I'll do that on the weekend. Wanted to let those who were still visiting where I was and that all is well.

Bring Sexy Back

2009-05-09T06:51:00.004-04:00

Made this new tag a layout from a scrap kit from Pound Store Scraps HERE

The Bring Sexy Back tutorial is here

New Layout

2008-12-21T08:43:00.000-05:00

This layout is from Allie Brown's Layouts I think it's really pretty.

Auntie Lauries

2008-12-06T19:49:00.001-05:00

I came across this new template at Auntie Lauries

I thought it was really pretty and a nice setting for the season.

JT Samples

2008-11-16T06:50:00.002-05:00

I was looking for a scrapbooking kit and came accross this site JT Samples

The main purpose of the blog is to test and preview blog templates that she makes.
I got this template and the instructions on how to add it and edit the template on her site.

The 99 cent Chef

2008-09-09T06:18:00.001-04:00

DSC01794
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

I forgot to put a link to the 99 cent Chef. You can find his blog here: http://the99centchef.blogspot.com/. Yesterday's Deal of the Day is Orecchiette with Broccoli, yum yum.

I went to the dermatologist yesterday morning, I have a couple of white spots like whiteheads, on and below my eyelid, not always visible. He said to leave them alone, he'd have to make a larger incision to remove, I'll wait and see if they get bigger.

When I came out of Aeobics class last night it was raining and sunny south of me. Tony came to get me after class and when we got home there was a rainbow in the sky in the back of our house. I got the camera and Tony managed to get a few pictures.

Giant Zinnia

2008-07-05T07:27:00.001-04:00

Giant Zinnia
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

I started this Zinnia from seed, I knew it was going to be nice but I didn't expect such a vibrant pink.

A gorgeous sunny day, the weather man says it will go up to 29C today and 30C tomorrow. I am so ready for the hot weather.

We are seeing more and more people getting on public busses with SUV-sized baby stroller. It use to be that mothers came in the bus with folding umbrella type strollers, pick-up the baby before getting on the bus and fold the stroller. Some may say that this is more dangerous and I would tend to agree if no good samaritan gives up his/her seat. The person with a stroller usually but not always moves to the handicap seats, flips them up and stands with the stroller out of the way. This is good because on city busses you can be squished like sardines and thrown back and forth from sudden stops and starts. On the other hand the person with the stroller takes up the place of three people and she/he has only paid for one.

I think the system in Paris is a little better, there is a large place at the back of the bus near the rear exit where a person can stand with their stroller, I've seen two women with two strollers fit in the space. It can be used for a wheelchair, no seats to lift less space lost. They can also board the bus from the back door eliminating the need for the person to fight their way to through a crowded bus to the designated area. They also don't seem to use SUV size strollers,but they are not the umbrella type either.

The other day a man and woman boarded the bus I was on, they had a baby with a stroller and another child. The lady took the child out of the stroller (he was able to walk) folded the stroller and asked the man sitting on the handicapped seats to move while she raised the seats folded the stroller down and stored it under the seats and then lowered the seats again. I thought this was very smart of her, at least people would be able to sit and not much space was lost. Of course this is easy to do when your sitting in a terminus and the bus isn't moving, not so easy when the bus leaves before you walk down the aisle.

Jack in the Garden

2008-06-30T06:22:00.001-04:00

Jack in the Garden

Originally uploaded by claudiam15

While trying to get some interesting photos of the flowers in the backyard I snapped this picture of Jack. After this picture was taken he got up and turned his back on me. You think he was trying to tell me something?

It isn't raining yet but I'm sure it won't be long before it does since it is overcast and grey. I did go out early and do some trimming but everything was so wet that I had to stop. I'll try to go out again after Jack's walk.

I did get my manicure and pedicure.

Heuchera 'Lime Rickey'

2008-06-05T20:48:00.001-04:00

Heuchera 'Lime Rickey'
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

This is a picture of the Heuchera I bought and planted a couple of weeks ago. With all the rain we got the grass green and everything is growing. No flowers yet except for the annuals and some pansies. I love the pansies, they self seed and they start flowering in the spring and go on thru the summer.

I've been a little busy at work, I start early working from home then continue at the office until around 5:00PM. We are working on the annual pension statements and need to be finished by the end of the month. No word or plans yet on how the transition will be handled. Something tells me that it won't be done by August 1st.

I'm still going to aerobics classes, I went three times this week. I was going to go tomorrow but I witnessed two people get injured in two classes this week so I'm skipping tomorrow, because you know what they say back luck usually comes in threes.

It is supposed to climb to 30C this weekend, and thunderstorms don't mind the warm weather but could do without the thunderstorms.

The Formula 1 is in town and creating big traffic jams downtown, not that the traffic bothers me. They have closed off several may streets downtown for the festivities. Watching cars go round and round is not my idea of a fun time, but a lot people like it and it's good for the city. This event is the first of many summer festivals held here in the summer.

I'm off to make some visits!

Flowering Tree

2008-05-18T10:35:00.000-04:00

DSC01501

Originally uploaded by claudiam15

Gorgeous day yesterday. I saw the sunlight reflecting on my neighbor's tree so I took my camera along when I took my walk with Jack and snapped this picture.

Got lots of gardening done yesterday. Went to Wal-Mart early to pick up a few plants and stuff. I bought another hanging basket and found a pretty frame for the dining room and will put it up today or tomorrow. Will take a picture.

There's a spot in the front where the grass doesn't grow and it's difficult to mow. I decided to put a row of Hostas which will cover the spot nicely, I think. I have some in my garden but not the variety that I wanted for the front. I found them at Wal-Mart at $5.79 a pot, a little pricey, since I needed three. One the way home I saw a lady who had divided her perenials and was selling them. She had lot's of hostas so I got three at $2.00 a piece. I also bought another type of perennial (forgot the name) with yellow flowers that will grow as high at the fence, at least hers did. We'll have to wait and see how mine do.

Galaries Lafayette

2008-04-27T05:56:00.001-04:00

12C and partly sunny yet windy yesterday. This morning it's 12C and overcast. I think summer is over, lol. It will only be in the low teens next week and rain. Oh well it will be good for the grass and flowers.

This is a photo of the glass dome inside Galeries Lafayette. We had lunch at the Lafayette Café　on the
6th floor of the main store/Self-service restaurant. We had a nice grilled steak with vegetables and a small bottle of red wine. Our table had a veiw of the Opera.

Martin Biron the Philadelphia Flyers goalie stymied the Canadiens in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinal. Once the first period was over and the Habs woke up, they played very well. Unfortunately, Biron had a great game the Habs lost. Still, not a game that we really need to get all upset about.

Yesterday my sister and hubby came over. I wanted to make a Habs sweater for a teddy bear that we bought in Miami Beach over 30 years ago. I tried to make a pattern for the logo but when I was almost finished my graphics program froze and I lost my work. I had googled to try to find one with no luck. I decided to try again and finally found at Handmade by Jennifer, she has lots of stuff on knitting with links to other knitting blogs.
My sister, who is a great knitter made the back while I searched. She had to leave otherwise she would have finished the whole sweater. She started the front before she left. I got half of the log done when I realized the "C" was backwards, so I ripped it up and started over. I'm half finished, when the sweater is finished I will take a picture.

Feels like summer

2008-04-24T19:42:00.000-04:00

24C and sunny. Wow it was worth going thru the winter to have this wonderful weather in April.

Last Saturday I burned my arm. It wasn't that bad I put Polysporin on it and some gauze and tape. It was getting better until Tuesday I decided to put on a bandaid with antibiotic on it to keep from getting it caught. When I pulled off the band aid I took the skin off with it. I put more polysporin and gauze but by Wednesday afternoon it was sore and I knew I had an infection on it. When I took it off in the evening there was an inflamation and it looked swollen. Not wanting to get worse, and risk losing my arm (you never know, lol) I saw the doctor and he told me it was ok and gave me a stronger antibiotic cream and not to put a band aid on it. It already feels better.

Besides work and aerobics nothing else going on, so I bid you goodnight, sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite!

Saturday Special on Sunday

2008-04-20T08:12:00.000-04:00

Felix
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

Clear and 4C this morning. It was a beautiful sunny day yesterday it went up to 22C. It's going up to 20C today and the nice weather is supposed to continue all week. Yippee!

Tony cleaned the front and back lawns. The front lawn was loaded with gravel since the city would blow all the snow from the street onto our lawns when they ran out of place to dump the snow.

I made a vegetable soup and rice and lentil pie. I don't cook as much as I use to and it shows. I used brown basmati rice instead of white and I didn't have vegetable broth so I used beef. The pie was was good but a little salty, I don't salt but the beef broth had a lot of sodium in it. That's what you get for not checking if you have all the ingredients before starting a recipee. I also burned my arm on the top of the oven.

Tony was going to grill some salmon for me but the barbeque wouldn't light, we thought we might be out of propane but it was full. He fooled around with it and got it started, he'll grill the salmon today.

As you may know hockey is big in Montreal. Hockey fever returned big time when the Montreal finished first in their division. After winning the first two games they have now won three games each and the deciding game will be tomorrow night. I can't watch!

Saturday Special

~An Hour, A Day, A Month, A Year~

1. How many hours a day do you watch TV?: Maybe 1 hour
2. How many days in a week do you cook at home?: 2 or 3, Tony cooks the other days.
3. How many times a month do you go to the movies?: None, watch movies on DVD at home.
4. How many vacations do you take a year?: 1 or 2.

MacDonalds

2008-04-14T05:18:00.001-04:00

MacDonalds
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

1C and partly cloudy this morning. It was cold and grey all day with a few seconds of sun. The temperature only mad it up to 6C.

The only thing we did yesterday was go to Wal-Mart to get a few things. It started to snow why we were there.

This is a picture of a MacDonalds in Paris. I don't know about where you live but I've never seen one here decorated like this one, if there were some like this I would be inclined to go. We were cold so we dropped in to get coffee. Tony noted that the Big Macs sell for 6 euros, thats about 9.72 Cdn, about the same in US dollars.

As you can see I'm posting on blogger again today. My blog on WP worked for a while but it's not working again this morning. I may have to delete it and start over again. Please bear with me while I get it sorted out.

Flowering Tree Promenade des Plantes

2008-04-13T07:58:00.001-04:00

DSC01318
Originally uploaded by claudiam15

0 C and Cloudy, partly sunny this afternoon, I'll believe it when I see it. They said sunny for tomorrow but now I see it will be 8C and partly cloudy.

Yesterday was a miserable day, part rain part snow cold and dreary. We need 5 days of sun and two days of rain and some warmer weather please.

Does anyone know the name of this tree? I would like to plant one in our front yard but I think it's too big. It would be a shame to hide it in the backyard.

My First Post

2008-04-13T07:19:00.000-04:00

This will be my alternate blogging page. If my host goes down this is where I will post.