January 31, 2011 One Month!!!

What's it called when you can't go to work because work is closed due to ice? Not a snow day, certainly. An ice day? A miracle? Good karma?

I don't know the exact name, but Kansas State University was closed today because of ice - and more ice and snow (maybe 12 inches!) is expected.

I called my mom and said that Curtis and I would be over to check on her, get her newspaper and go to the grocery store. The picture is Curtis scraping the car windows while I sit warmly inside! We took the car that sits outside so if we wrapped it around a pole it wouldn't be that big a deal. Okay, so it'd be a big deal but less so than if we ruined our pick-up.

While the roads are icy and nasty and horrible to drive on, we made it okay to Mom's, to the grocery store, and back home.

I hear a book calling my name so I'm off to read. In the nature of full disclosure, very often I get confused between a book calling my name and taking a nap.

***Today ends the first month of my POTD project. I don't think I have ever kept a resolution this long. Any chance I could transfer this success into weight loss? Nah, I didn't think so.

January 30, 2011

My two sons! Ryan was home for the weekend and the whole family went to breakfast at the Early Edition in Manhattan.

Ryan asked the popular question: What's the craziest case you've ever had at K State? Luke, Curtis and I started laughing and the stories started. It was funny that Curtis and Luke had nearly as many stories as I did. Guess I do bring my work home a bit, eh?

I love that in addition to Luke, I've had the honor to "mother" Priya, Louise and now, Ryan.

Love you kids!

Janaury 29, 2011 Happy Birthday, Kansas!

It's a special day in Kansas, where the deer and the antelope play. It's our 150th birthday! We've been a state longer than any other state in America. Here in Kansas, where the skies are not cloudy and discouraging words are never heard (you know, set this to music and you might just have something...), some people get really excited about celebrating the day the pilgrims landed on our shores.

One way Kansans show their pride is to dress up their fake cows in special Kansas Day clothes. One might note in this case that the cow seems to be decked out in purple, perhaps in an effort to support the Kansas State University Wildcats who played the KU Jayhawks tonight. "Played" might be a bit of an overstatement.


I must get this posted because it's almost midnight!
Happy Birthday, Kansas! I'm glad you're mine.

January 28, 2011

You know how sometimes you are driving along, minding your own business, and you see a shoe in the middle of the road? And you say to yourself "What the hell? How did someone lose a shoe in the middle of the frickin' road? Is someone walking home with only one shoe and wondering where the other shoe is?" Or how about the shoes tied together that are hanging on a telephone line? WTF? Who does this shit belong to?

Today, the sun was shining. It was 50 degrees. A beautiful day was coming to an end. I walked to my car on the top level of the KSU parking garage and there I saw it. My POTD.

On the ground, in the parking spot next to my car, were these:

Underpants, I think, some kind of crazy "half there" underpants. I am calling them "underpants" only because you probably wear them under pants, not because I am personally familiar with this type of under garment. (Honey, if they aren't Grandma undies, they aren't in my dresser.)

Some kind of French writing on the front, in rhinestones.

Oh yes I did, I picked them up to get better lighting for the picture and so you could see the rhinestone writing. No need to thank me.

Questions roll out of me like drool: does this woman/girl/toddler know she has lost her panties? How does one lose panties like this? Why does one WEAR panties like this? What is the point? How do they even work? How can you be sure if they are on the right way? What is the point of French writing on the front? Why in rhinestones? What goes on the KSU parking garage when no one is looking? At what point is the pantie owner going to slap herself on the forehead and say "SHIT! I left my panties in the parking garage?"
Just so you don't have to ask: yes, I left them there. No, I did not bring them home for show and tell with Curtis. (The poor man would have had a stroke.)

January 27, 2011 (2nd post)

This the the door to my office. This is what I see when I sit at my desk and look out the door to my office.

Yesterday afternoon while sitting at my desk and glancing out the door to my office, I saw United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor walk by the door to my office.

It was my most recent brush with greatness. The door to my office may never be the same.

January 27, 2011

Camera in purse? Yup.

Camera at the ready for a great photo? Yup.

Camera left on desk at work? Yup.

Photo to be posted tomorrow evening? Yup.

January 26, 2011

Finally, it happened! I was driving home and I saw, by the side of the road, a message stomped in the snow. It was so cool. "That's just the kind of thing that should be a POTD," I thought to myself. Or, perhaps, I said it out loud. One can never be sure.

I turned around and drove back to get the picture.

This "I heart U" message made me smile.

What love struck college student thought to express his (her?) feelings on the side of Fort Riley Blvd. in such a big way? Good for him (her?). I hope their love is always this big.

Even bigger.

January 25, 2011

CB is such a good guy. This picture captures his typical evening....a jigsaw puzzel in progress and a basketball game on tv. He didn't even mind being my POTD (Picture of the Day). He must have known it was a slow picture day in my life.


Now that I think about it though, I was at the KSU Dairy Barn this afternoon - gave a student/client a ride to work. (I'm nothing if not a full service law office. Root canals done every other Tuesday.) Should have snapped some shots of the cows. Cows who were lounging around in the warm sunlight.
Wish they had been pigs, because then I would have taken the picture and captioned it "Happy as pigs in shit."
"Happy as cows in shit" just doesn't have the same ring.

Here's the picture from yesterday. Is it any wonder that Luke should be under the care of a mental health professional? Twenty nine years of having me as a mother would make anyone crazy! Frankly, being a mother for 29 years hasn't done much for my mental health, if you know what I mean.

January 24, 2011

You'll have to just take my word for it.


I shut my coat in my car door (which was locked) and I was facing away from the car so I couldn't reach the lock with my keys. Crisis averted because Luke was with me.


Being committed to my resolution, instead of asking him to unlock the door, I asked him to take my picture!


It's right there in my camera. I can see it. See? It's right there. Picture number 88.


I plugged in my camera like I've done for the last 23 nights. I turned everything one in the same order as the last 23 nights. But tonight? Tonight I get some bullshit error message that says "USB mode connecting...Switch on (MENU)"


I went to MENU and switched on. Still the same message.


Why now?


Why on this great picture? (Seriously, I look like a dementia patient who should not be out wandering around.)


So, I promise. I took the picture. I'll just have to post it later.


Trust me. I'm a lawyer.

January 23, 2011

I'm in bed, thinking the end is near, when it hits me. I can't leave this world without tasting a warm chocolate chip cookie just one more time. Since I live with 2 men who are not bakers (although they each have wonderful qualities, cooking making is not among them...), if I wanted a warm chocolate chip cookie, I'd have to haul my ass off my deathbed and bake them myself.

So I did.

Yeah, it could be that some of the cookies were missing my the time I took the picture.

And, I've decided that I feel better.

I shall live to bake again.

January 22, 2011

For the record, I wanted to take a photo of the Kleenex box with ALL the Kleenex I have used today.

Curtis said no. That it would be gross.

I said gross, yes. But not boring.

A Kleenex box with one used Kleenex does not

make the statement that a Kleenex box with 10,002 used Kleenex would make.

You'll just have to use your imagination.

Ah-Chooooo!

January 21, 2011

What do you get the guy who has everything he needs and doesn't make a list for Christmas? If he has a dog he loves, you get him a doggie DNA kit. No shit. That's what you get him.

You take 2 swabs of the dog's check (and our dog, Buddy, is a 60 pound lap dog so getting a check swab wasn't a big deal), send them in and wait for 2 weeks.

Today the results came in the mail.



Here are the results and they are a HOOT!!! Buddy is, officially, a mutt! Twenty to thirty six per cent of his DNA is bulldog. No surprise there. Especially when the information describing bulldogs mentions that they have a tendency to fart a lot. Oh yes, that's our Buddy. Can I just say that his flatulence comes in handy when you need to blame someone for a horrible smell?

There were 5 breeds which represented 10 -19% of his DNA. The first (and I am certain that they are listed alphabetically - you'll see why...) is a Chihuahua! Seriously! My 60 pound lap dog is NOT by any stretch of the imagination a Chihuahua. I guess somewhere, sometime, a little Chihuahua got out of his fenced in yard and found a Bulldog and it was love at first sight.

The other breeds: Collie, Labrador Retriever, Newfoundland and Yorkshire Terrier are all reasonable. Loyal, water loving, eager to please, protective, patient, playful - all descriptors which fit our Buddy.

But a Chihuahua? Pluh-ease!

P.S. I have a cold. Ah-chooooo! Pictures for the weekend could be boring. Oh, I guess that presupposes that the pictures thus far are not!

January 20, 2011 Curtis Helped!

Because of the snow, and my fear that I would end up in a ditch and starve to death, Curtis drove me to work this morning. I want to say that the roads were terrible and we crawled, literally crawled, to Manhattan, but that would be an exaggeration. I'm not one to exaggerate, as many of you know.

Ahem.

Anyway, while we were driving, Curtis noticed the cloud line west of Highway 24. It looked like mountains in the distance. He was so taken by the clouds that he asked if I had my camera. (Of course I had my camera! I'm taking a picture every, single day this year!)

I whipped out my camera and shot the following pictures, from a moving vehicle which was going faster than a crawl, maybe closer to a moisey. With the window down. And cold air blowing in on me. Nearly causing frostbite. My eyelashes did frost over.

Glad I don't exaggerate.

January 19, 2011

It's snowing and blowing outside. Miserable day and evening.

Chili sounds great. Have all the ingredients? Yes.

Ham and beans sound great. Have all the ingredients? Yes.

Pork chops sound great. Have all the ingredients? Yes.

But, what do I fix? A chicken pot pie, of course!

I haven't had a pot pie since I was a kid living in Dodge City. It was wonderful!

Not sure what Curtis and Luke did for supper.

By the way, I still don't eat the carrots.

January 18, 2011

Andrew stopped in to see me.

We talked about sports, his crazy brother, my printer, his search for a house that will take pets.

I told him about my new year's resolution and my blog.

He said "What's your picture for today?"

I said "I don't have one yet. Nothing picture worthy has happened."

He said "Can I be the picture?"

I said "Yep," and got my camera.

I said "Say cheese!"

He did.

Snap!

This is Andrew.

January 17, 2011

Yes. This is a picture of my laptop computer. The reason? Because although I have had a laptop for nearly 2 years, I have not yet made the leap from my desktop computer to my much newer, much faster, much more convenient laptop.

Today was the day! My desktop started eating pictures and while I knew the photos were in there some place, I couldn't find them and was well on my way to a temper tantrum of epic proportions. Frankly, I didn't have the energy for a tantrum, so I decided to try my laptop.

So far so good, except that I don't have any idea what the hell I'm doing so I am learning as I go. Just think, you checked in to see what kind of pictures I'm going to take this year and as an added bonus you are going to see how much I learn about this silly computer (or don't learn, as the case may be.)

Gotta go, Big Monday is taking place without me!

January 16, 2011

Tonight we had Christmas with a 2 year old who wasn't in Wamego on Christmas day. MacKenna's mom, Kelly, used to share a duplex with Luke and me. We've exchanged many cups of sugar over the years.

I had forgotten how wonderful little ones are when they open presents. If anyone lacks Christmas spirit, there should be a program where they can rent a kid, preferably a toddler, for a day or so. Joy just oozes from MacKenna and she was genuinely excited and pleased with everything we gave her. Even the mittens!



The face of a little girl who just got a new friend: a ladybug pillow/stuffed animal.

After gifts and supper, MacKenna wanted to "see the puppy" and asked Curtis to bring Buddy upstairs to play.

I'm not sure what Curtis is telling MacKenna, but she is all ears, isn't she? Even Buddy seems to be listening intently!

Janaury 15, 2011

I've been making noodles and it seems there has been a blizzard in my kitchen! I am nothing if not a full contact cook and the aftermath of a noodle making session confirms it. In fact, I am too embarrassed to post a picture of my kitchen (maybe in a couple of months, when I am running out of things to take pictures of), so here is a photo of the finished product.


The recipe is my Grandma Flo's (my mom's mother) who was a fabulous cook. When we would take the train to Topeka to see our grandparents, Grandma Flo always, always had chicken and noodles waiting for us. It's my favorite comfort food.
I mix the noodles by hand. Seriously, by hand. No spoon involved, just my hands mixing the eggs, flour and water. It's a mess, but well worth it.
Then, I roll the noodles out as thinly as I can. Once that is done, the flat, thin noodle sheet is rolled into a log, sliced, unrolled and laid out to dry. That's what the picture is of - the "watching grass grow" process of noodle drying!
Tomorrow, I'll boil them, add some chicken and serve them over mashed potatoes.
Thanks, Grandma Flo!

January 14, 2011 ROAD TRIP!!

Luke and I headed to Dodge City for the day. It was time for our semi-annual trek west. While Dodge is my home town, Luke also lived there for a couple of years as a little guy and, of course, spent lots of time there with his grandparents. Now that Mom is in Wamego, there is no reason to return to Dodge. Except to visit the cemetery and eat at El Charro!

We planned our arrival for noon so we would have to grab lunch at the best Mexican place on the planet. Which we did.

Then we decided to order some for take out!
Next stop, Maple Grove Cemetery. Dad died on January 19, 2002. He's been gone almost 9 years. Because we were in western Kansas, there was snow on the ground in some places, grass was showing in other places and it was 50 degrees! Luke and I strolled around the cemetery and enjoyed the wonderful weather. Uncle Charlie and Nellie Barnes are buried nearby, so we stopped there for a "visit" as well.

A trip to Dodge wouldn't be complete without a tour of all the houses that Luke remembers.

This is the house I grew up in. Imagine a basketball goal, a big tree where the mail box is now, a privet hedge along the left side of the driveway and no trees in the front yard and you have the house as it was when I was a kid. It was a great house.


There are a couple of wind farms between Wamego and Dodge City. (I often have to remind Curtis about the difference between "windfarm" and "windbag". He has commented that he lives with a "windfarm"! He's so silly.)

About 10 hours after we left, we returned home to the Flint Hills. The sunset gave the landscape a beautiful pink glow.

It was a great day. I'm so fortunate that I have a son to go places with and that I have a son who wants to go places with me!

Janaury 13, 2011

Luke and I went to a local Mexican food place for lunch. Whenever I go there, I feel like I am in San Antonio soaking up the local flavor and color! (Stay tuned...an actual trip to San Antonio is in mid-February. Photos, galore!) I wish I had the courage to grab bright paints and attack my kitchen.

My friend/sister-in-law, Karin, has the most beautiful kitchen I've ever seen. It's a brilliant red with those wonder pottery sun faces hanging everywhere. When I'm in that kitchen, I either want to eat tamales or drink tequila. Or both. (Karin, make a note for February!)


Funny story about these pictures: they weren't what I wanted to have as my Picture(s) of the Day. Here's what I wanted...I was driving on North Manhattan Street to meet Luke. Nothing important about the street; it's a regular 2 lane road except that it goes up a pretty steep hill. As is the case with steep hills, at various points you can't see what's coming down the hill towards you in the other lane.

So, I'm driving along, minding my own business, not talking on my cell phone because it's against the law in Manhattan and I am nothing if not a rule follower (Yeah. Right.).  I'm in a line of cars following a beat up, older than dirt pick up with a Christmas tree in the back. A big, fat, live Christmas tree.

As the pick up starts up the steep hill, the laws of gravity begin to work and the Christmas tree falls out of the pick up. Naturally, all the cars behind the pick up stop because there's a fricking Christmas tree in the middle of the road. By now I am searching for my camera since this is exactly the kind of thing I want to have a picture of.

The pickup does not pull over. The pick up stops, in the lane of traffic about 150 feet from the POD (point of discharge). Cars are now pulling around the pick up and, hoping that no one is coming from the other direction, zoom around. It became my turn to go around before I found my camera, damn it, so I have no picture. But the last thing I saw in my rear view mirror was the pick up backing up, that's right, backing up, on a steep hill, going backwards, the wrong way in his lane to get that darn Christmas tree.

I should add that it looked like a pretty good Christmas tree as it flung itself out of the bed of the truck.

Close your eyes, picture that truck, that tree, the traffic and you'll have the picture I wanted to take.

Stay tuned for tomorrow. Luke and I are going on a road trip. It's gonna be a hoot. A. Hoot.

January 12, 2011

Buddy loves the snow! Imagine him racing from one side of the yard to the other, leaping and jumping, pausing occasionally to snort around in a drift, coming up with a white nose. He keeps close watch on all the bird feeders and let's us know if anyone (or any dog) is in the park behind our house.

Sometimes he chases snowflakes which is fun to watch. Don't know what he'd do if he ever caught one!

January 11, 2011

This is beautiful blue spruce lives right next door. It was so pretty covered in snow this morning. The sun was just coming up and the light hit the tree and it just glittered.

I love this winter scene. The sun hadn't hit our house yet, making our yard seem a bit gloomy, don't you think?

January 10, 2011

The weatherman said the snow was coming. The satellite maps showed the snow was coming. Everyone around was talking about the snow that was coming.

Lo and behold,  there was snow in the early morning light on our back deck. It was dry snow and fell with no wind, so it was really pretty and easy to shovel/sweep.

It is freaking cold. Colder than crap. Brrrrrr.

One thing about it though, at least we are prepared for it here - road crews sanding and salting the roadways, snow plows clearing the roads, drivers knowing what they are doing.

I read in the paper this morning that 48 states have snow today. Makes me wish I was in Hawaii!

January 9, 2011

Luke took my camera to the Chiefs playoff game so he was responsible for taking the daily photo. Of all the pictures he took at the Chiefs game, this was my favorite.

While the Chiefs didn't win, Luke had a great time at the game.

Temperature was in the 20s but no snow...yet.

January 8, 2011

Nothing is safe from being posted as my Picture of the Day! CB and I were getting ready for a walk and it was freaking cold outside. The stocking cap I had on is about 48 years old and too small so it kept riding up on my head and leaving my ears uncovered. It was like I was a Conehead. CB looked like he was wearing a compression bandage after a face lift!

Luke quick snapped the picture before CB could bolt out the door, which is what he really wanted to do!

Sacrificing style for warmth was a lesson I learned as a little girl walking to and from Central School. One mile each way. Uphill. Barefoot. Snow up to my waist.

January 7, 2011

CB and Buddy leave on one of their twice daily walks. I'm not sure which one enjoys them most! Buddy knows it's time to go when CB starts to put on his boots, then his coveralls, then his coat. But when he grabs the leash, Buddy goes crazy! If you look at the picture closely, you can see Buddy pulling on his leash. He is ready to GO!

For the record, I walked too, but I drove to the ball fields, met the boys and walked a couple of miles.

January 6, 2011

The Kansas City Chiefs are headed to the playoffs. Luke was able to get a ticket to the game on Sunday and is really excited. Chiefs Fever is contagious and it has affected everyone in our house. I passed this truck on the highway and decided that I wanted it to be my Picture of the Day. I turned around, chased the truck through downtown Manhattan. Finally, it stopped at a stoplight. I was right behind it so I snapped the picture.

I don't know what the two guys on the side of the road were looking at, but clearly they were NOT Chiefs fans!

January 5, 2011

On a hill south of Manhattan are these giant letters. A student organization in the 1940s is responsible for putting them there; they ran out of money before they got the "U" in place.

You can see these letters from the Mall. When I was new to the Manhattan area, I would use these letters to help me get out of the parking lot and in the right direction towards Wamego! As I look back on those days now, I can't believe that I got so turned around.

January 4, 2011

Yum, yum, yum....Luke and I went to the Hillside Cafe for lunch and had the best Mexican food this side of San Antonio (with the exception of El Charro!) Luke was clearly more interested in a sports story on the television than he was in whatever I was blathering on about! Can't say that I blame him!

January 3, 2011

I returned to work (Student Legal Services at Kansas State University) today. When I drive home, I always take a county road. It has a rural feeling and I can drive and unwind at the same time. No road rage for me! Anyway, I saw this sunset and thought the colors were so pretty that I rolled down the window (BRRRRRR), held the camera out the window and started pressing buttons!

The flat landscape is deceiving; there are hills everywhere and it's really anything but flat. This picture sort of reminds me of western Kansas.

January 2, 2011

Although it was cold, CB and I took Buddy for a walk at the Wamego ball fields. There is a mile long walking trail around the ball diamonds and it makes for a nice stroll. CB is in charge of Buddy and I am in charge of putting one foot in front of the other!

As you can see, the sun was shining. It was late afternoon and I thought our shadows looked warmer than we did!

January 1, 2011

This is how I looked as the new year dawned in Wamego, Kansas! Tired, worn out flannel pj top. Couldn't find the matching bottoms, so I grabbed the lower half of my summer jammies. Added golf socks and Merrill clogs and the outfit was complete!

Had company as well - a friend of Luke's. This was dressed up for company!

I trust 2011 will be as relaxed as I was all day long.

Cheers!