planing pacem

Tomorrow I have to buy all the food at Sam's for the Pacem dinner at Wesley Memorial Methodist church. I was in charge of organizing parishioners to bring food for tomorrow night. I will go to Sam's and buy the salad and dessert. Supposedly, fifty men show up. Part of my motivation to help is to get organized and have a set time and day to do something. Dave, the minister is in charge of the whole week I am just in charge of one night. I also want to help he homeless since I think about how cold they must be at night.
I took Griffen for a walk this morning. I am trying to loose at least twenty pounds and If I walk every day this should help me. I also am suppose to eat fiber but I am not sure of everything that is fiber.

Theresa called and we had a long talk about our brother Joe who is still bulking about moving out of the house on Briggs street. When they met the realtor he told the person he was not yet ready to move. Emily is the one who called and made the appointment with the realtor. I am not sure of the particulars but I do know there was tension and an outburst at the meeting.

My overall goal is to organize all the dressers in the house but I also want to organize everything especially the pictures. Today I looked at old CD's I found, One was a cruise we took in 2006 on the Regatta. We cruised to the Virgin Islands. There were also pictures of our trip to Chicago and pictures of a trip to California. It must have been when Bradley first moved there or first bought her house. We have pictures of the big storm and pictures of us walking over to Patrick's point State park after the storm. I talked to Bradley yesterday and she bought a new cell phone. I do not know whether this is good or bad since she gets uptight if she has too talk to too many people.

This past weekend we went to Williams burg for the 120th meeting of the Virginia State Bar. Rick went to several meetings. I took my knitting . WE had a productive weekend since we shopped and bought Jonathan Brytus a wedding present and some clothes. I went to the step aerobics class which was lots of fun since I have not done this in a long long time.

Wine from Water

We went to church this morning. We prayed for the Haitians and I put money in the collection for Mike Dickens who is in Haiti. He has done a mission trip there for several years working at a hospital. I have learned there are several groups that volunteer in Haiti. I did not know so many people in Cville are doing this kind of service.
The sermon was about the Marriage Feast of Canna. Paul ask the kids in the Children's homily what there favorite food was . They said all kinds of things like, oranges, cake, barbecue. He got around to saying that adults like to have wine at there parties and Dave's sermon was going to be about Jesus turning water into wine because there was not enough because people had drunk too much and were not good stewards.
I also went to Sunday School and learned about the Homeless ministry and ask Andrew to pick up the chili that Betty Edwards is preparing on Soup Kitchen Day.
I took Griffin around the lake twice. the second time because she stunk and we I had to tose the ball in the creek to get her to bathe. It is always fun to walk with him because he has so much fun just chasing and jumping for the ball.

Rick and I were talking in his study about an article he read in Conde Naste about biking in the Red Woods. which we would both like to do some day. I have been reading about energy efficiency. I want to look at the videos they mention in the article.

West Leigh Tea

I had eighteen women in our house for the West Leigh Club meeting this morning. The topic was "Image." Debbie Crosby an image consultant came and talked about how to dress, what jewelry to wear. and how to make use what to have in your closet so that you make the most of your wardrobe. I never thought we would get any one to come. I thought the ladies would consider it a frivolous topic but lots of women showed up. Even Betsy Looney and Edwinna Blankenbaker came. I served the brie cheese I had bought for Christmas with a Cranberry sauce on the top. I also served banana bread and and rum balls that Rick brought home from the office. Inge brought over some fruit on skewers. It turned out well and everyone had lots of fun. Of cource Sally made it fun with her costume. She came dressed as a snow man. She said she wanted to hide the size of her boobs. I took pictures which I don't usually do but it goes along with my mission of being more conscious of what I am doing. Melodny Nichols is organizing the meetings.
After the meeting we talked some with Debbie She was talking about a women who does this same kind of thing for the University of Virginia and makes quite a bit of money.

I am going to take some checks to the bank and then take Griffin for a walk around the lake.

A Cold Sunday

It is still freezing cold outside. Rick said it was 12 degrees when he went running. He always checks the thermometer.
I have a busy couple of days. I go to my watercolor workshop at 1pm today and then tomorrow I have the West Leigh ladies come for a meeting and social. We have and image consultant coming to talk to us. I am serving some of the leftover food from Christmas but also want to go by and buy some sweets and napkins. I received an invitation in the email to attend a reception for the new president of the University at Newcomb Hall at 4pm. I want to attend that before coming home. I have to get the house looking respectable. I did my homework for art which was to draw four objects on a large piece of paper we are going to use the wet on wet technique today.
Yesterday we went to church and Sunday school too. Rick does not often go to Sunday school but I think he liked the sermon which was current about the article Brent Hume wrote urging Tiger Woods to become a Christian. He was criticised thoroughly by other reporters. Paul explained his interpretation of the whole incident. The sermon was about Justification by Faith. He said the big word is nothing but the later he talked about Mission. I need to look up the song by Bob Dylan then I will write more. We also went to Borders and Lowe's.

Catching Up

I just finished a walk around the lake with Griffen who is staying with us while Tucker and Liz look for a new house in California. Griffin always takes a tennis ball and I throw it as we walk. It is still freezing cold. I stopped by a couple of houses and ask the neighbors to come to the gathering I am going to host on Tuesday for the West Leigh Club.

I want to write more about Christmas before I forget. We have only heard from Bradley once since she returned to Trinidad. When she called She said that she was using Brad O's cell phone when she called. Her birthday was January 3rd and we tried to call then. Rick and I both wondered about this relationship.
Her phone is not working. I probably called twenty times now. I keep hoping that she will get it fixed.

They left early Saturday morning the 26th, the day
after Christmas. We were probably up at four thirty because Rick wanted them to leave by six. They both wrote us nice thank you notes. Bradley left her note for me in the Dishwasher. Brad O left his on the bed. Rick fixed them both a turkey sandwich and an egg sandwich so they had plenty to eat. He gave them good directions so they would not get lost. It can be confusing close to Washington because there is so much traffic and you can miss a turn very easily. He was worried about getting on to 28. I let Rick drive and he is very alert and attentive. I am reading and article in the Post right now about traffic lights and how efficient they are.
Bradley put David Quinn in the car at the last minute and he was sound asleep when they left. I think their trip back had fewer glitches then getting here.

I stayed home almost every day this week and it was such a treat not to have to worry about getting things done or any kind of schedule except the one I want.
I am going to look at my calendar every day that is one of my New Year's resolutions. If I do that and write things down often I know I will be more organized and efficient. I put most of the pictures on the Kodak Gallery site but I still have the ones from my camera. Looking at the pictures helps me remember what we did over the holidays.
One of my Christmas gifts to Bradle and Walker was an album with them as the feature person and things that they did growing up. It took a long time to search through old pictures then organize them into some kind of sequence. I used two different scrapbook idea books to help me. Both books gave me ideas and support when I read them.

the big Snow Storm of 2009

I have lots to write about since I have not written since before Christmas. Bradley, David Quinn. and Bradley O'Leary arrived on Friday December 18th right when flurries were starting to fall on our drive way. They had had a two day ordeal getting here because the plane they boarded in Arcata could not land in Sacramento so they had to come by way of Crescent City, where they spent a day, and then from San Francisco flew a redeye, an overnight to Philadelphia before they transferred and landed in Washington D.C.
I was so happy to have them arrive before the big storm which was forecast the whole week before. It snowed all night, all the next day and even some on Sunday. We were house bound and everything in the whole area was cancelled including all the church services. We ended up with 24 inches of snow. Rick used a measuring stick when it finalled ended to measure it on sunday evening.
David Quinn loved the snow which he had never experienced before. I wonder what he thought. Outside our house was a complete white blanket and the flurries just kept coming down. His favorite thing to do was pick it up in his hand and eat it. He kept opening the kitchen door and putting more in his hand which he ate. I loved watching his every move and listening to him talk. He could say lots of words but when he couldn't say a word he just made sounds and acted like I understood exactly what he was saying.
Bradley O'Leary, our Bradley and Rick spent most of Saturday shovelling the white stuff off the drive and then off the side porch. I got tired just watching them. it was probably too much to be doing right after their flight and led to a later calamity. It was interesting to see Bradley O'Leary shovel since he had a pattern to his method. He is a soccer star and coach and I thought in some ways he enjoyed it just for the physical experience.
I spent a lot of the next few days playing with David Quinn. I bought an orange ball that we threw to each other. I also had bought some coloring paints and some books which were for Christmas but I thought I should just give them to him since I knew he would get lots on Christmas Day. He made up his own games just running from room to room laughing or pulling the table cloth from me and putting it over his head and hiding from me. After the snow plow had come around the lake once Rick and the two Bradley's went down to the work room and got Rick's old sled and took him on the hill across from us. I went out and took some pictures. In fact I took a lot of pictures and might try to add some to this site.
One of the big events of the week was to take David Quin down to the barber shop for a hair cut. It caused some confusion since Bradley O'Leary at first did not want to take us but I think we felt more comfortable with him driving. Monday morning he was making soup and Bradley and I were making Christmas cookies. Out side the snow was everywhere and the roads were a mess and the news people were saying not to go out driving unless it was an emergency. Rick was the only person in his office but was anxious for us to come. Low and behold Bradley O'leary decides to take us.
Ed was cutting hair when we arrived. He is an eighty year old man who has been cutting hair in Cville at his shop for years and years. He cut Grandpa's hair and that was the reason it was a big deal to our daughter and to Rick. Bradley remembers getting her hair cut at the Barber shop. I remember her crying when Ed or Wilbur cut it too short. David Quinn was very well behaved and loved looking in the mirror. We all got in the dodge and drove to the parking lot. We met Walker at Timberlakes for lunch. I ordered a toasted cheese Sandwich. It is a bit of a tradition to have lunch at Timberlakes, a drug store right on the mall. I think Rick and Walker both have lunch there a lot when they are working. It is a very traditional , old fashioned kind of place with a bar and revolving seats and always home made pies for sale by the cash register. This might have been the beginning of too much family for Bradley O'Leary. On the way down the mall to the ice Rink is when we had a family calamity. Bradley wanted to buy a new had for David Quinn who did not have his winter coat and had fallenin in the snow and was all wet. Bradley wanted him to be warm when we skated. Rick only thought about the money. I thought what is the big deal sine the hats were beautifully hand made by the people in Tibet. They always have a table full of these hats when we go down to the mall. There were words screamed by both Rick and Bradley. I think Bradley O"leary was very embarrassed. I know I was. I purchased the hat and we continued to the ice rink. Ice skating was lots of fun. I could got straight and stay steady. The two Bradley's both were able to sake fast and backward with lots of skill. there were lots of people skating, kids and old people and everyone was having a good time.