Repair, Restore, and Thanksgiving Too

It must have been Wednesday afternoon that I sat down to write a blog post in the usual fashion. I begin by putting my camera card into the slot on the back of my iMac, wait and see if I've got any good photos, and begin formulating a story to tie them together. Much to my dismay, a message popped up on my screen saying that my photo library could not be found. Great.

Now I can't remember what I'd planned to write about, however, I know this photo was meant to be shared.

And I'd intended to talk a bit about all of the changes happening around our neck of the woods, including this demolition across the street from Publix and the new Lucky Market center going in.

The old house and apartment building were in pretty rough shape, however, you have to wonder where the folks who lived there have found affordable housing. I'd gone to Publix for some seriously needed shopping, something I seem to put off until I'm forced into it by an empty refrigerator! Our upgraded Publix is still a work in progress, but so far the changes are very good. After shopping for groceries in downtown Vancouver for a year, where the aisles are so tiny, I definitely get the Publix slogan, "Where Shopping is a Pleasure." Indeed.

Probably I'd just finished making the dough for the pies I was going to be making Thanksgiving morning. The recipe from the back of the Tenderflake box is for six shells, three of which I used, and the remainder will go into the freezer for a later use.

I'd also spent some time picking out a paint color for the bathroom vanity, eventually settling on a deep gold to pick up the gold flecks in the countertop. Gold is a tricky color to get right, so I brought home a bunch.

Michelle saw my choices and questioned if I was really set on the gold as she does not share my same enthusiasm for color. My reply was, I thought it was worth a shot! Because I was not preparing Thanksgiving dinner for a crowd, after dinner Wednesday night, we went over to Dave and Michelle's place for a visit and to see their beautifully decorated condo, beginning with the outside,

and continuing on every available space inside.

As is my custom, I took loads of pretty photographs, however, in the interest of the length of this post, they will remain in my library for now. Because the next day was their 10th wedding anniversary, we celebrated with some Dom Perignon and reliving that lovely day by watching their wedding video.  (photo taken from television screen)

All in attendance that day will remember how much fun was had, dancing the night away.

Somehow, I remained calm even though my photo library was inaccessible. That's like cutting off an arm for me, however, I felt sure it had to be somewhere. After all, where could 155,000 photos go? I'd been storing them on an external hard drive that I discovered was completely full, so my thinking was that if I bought a new one, I could find them somewhere on the computer and transfer them. Not so fast Gail, as you will soon learn.

Meanwhile Bruce got to work on the vanity, repairing the joints near the bottom as they had some water damage.

Using my dough, I made the pies while he worked on the vanity Thanksgiving morning and afternoon. If you've never made a pie crust using lard you will be surprised at how easy it rolls out and how yummy it is. We sure were. With the pumpkin pie in the oven, I began peeling apples for the second pie that turned out looking like this. Perhaps I should have cooked it a wee bit longer, however, it seemed to be a hit, so that is nit picking on my part.

Vanity with primer...

and here comes the gold, a Benjamin Moore color called Bryant Gold.

Before you go and think I am crazy, yellow and grey are a classic combo, so this is my version of the two. One coat of paint completed, it was time to head over to Bill and Fallon's house for the feast, and I'm using that term literally! They too, have decorated for Christmas and it looks outstanding. That tree is neat because it can go from colored to white to gold lights which seems to me, the best of all worlds.

Every time we are over, I am reminded of the first day that I walked in there with Bill, wondering about his choice. He did too, however, he has great vision, and with a lot of help, it has been transformed. He never fails to tell anyone who will listen how it was my idea to swap the kitchen around and create this opening.

Of course ideas are just that and without someone to execute them, well, they aren't much, are they? Papa Bruce to the rescue, and the same goes for the kitchen cabinets which caused him some sleepless nights! Back to the vision aspect, one of thousands of ideas Bill had was to make the door opening to the kitchen larger which I thought was unnecessary. Wrong! It worked beautifully, making the kitchen seem much larger. Speaking of feeling large, most of the family hung out in the kitchen, and especially when Fallon's Dad was instructing Bill on the finer points of carving a turkey.

Fallon's Mom, Glenda, worked for days on the meal, helping Fallon along the way, and what a meal it was!

The table was so inviting, set with beautiful Spode dishes Glenda had shipped home during a trip to London. The gorgeous cut glass is a gift from her Grandmother.

As most of you know, Fallon is a registered nurse working at Florida East hospital twelve hours daily, and since she'd worked on Wednesday, just before we left she curled up on the couch,

so tired she fell asleep within minutes of our departure. I will admit it was quite the change for me, not preparing Thanksgiving dinner and spending it with my siblings, but the times they are a changing, as you well know from your own life.

Bruce finished up the vanity, adding some handles and now you can decide for yourself whether I am crazy or not.

I will admit that it is different, but I'm happy. Eventually we will be getting a new toilet and flooring, but one step at a time.

A trip to Best Buy, late morning on Black Friday proved to be pretty easy and now to transfer the files. If only it were that easy. I sent Matt an email explaining my problem. It is definitely times such as this that I so wish he were at least on our same time zone! He said he'd help on Saturday which began with a sky like no other.

Lasting only maybe five minutes, Bruce took off in his kayak under this sky to fish on Lake Willisara for the first time. I was confidant there were fish to be caught and released because I see them jumping most days. Not only did he catch a nice Bass, but the otters were playing in the water near his kayak. Big win for the morning!

This marks the end of pretty pictures and the repair and restore begins. Too complicated to fully explain, but Matt helped me locate the files, we repaired and restored the library after many hours, over two different days, with reloading the entire operating system thrown in for good measure because my computer is running so slowly. Saturday required extreme patience, with the massive loss by the Seminoles against the Gators adding to my misery.

But, here's the thing, I have so much to be thankful for, that somehow I did keep the faith. A tenth wedding anniversary, a son who willingly gives his Mom tech support, Maureen safely moved to a new place that will help her take better care of herself, a first Thanksgiving for the newlyweds, a husband who can make anything look good, ducks either fighting or playing, don't know which, outside my window as I type, and I saw a new bird on Saturday morning which I will post next time. What's a girl have to complain about?

Your friend,

Gail

Up to Speed!

I knew my computer was running slowly, just didn't realize how slow. Now, my friends, I'm zipping around my computer once again. As well, when I left you on Friday evening I shared with you that I did not curse or shout at the Apple folks. I did. Only it was later when they wouldn't let Nick call me because he was helping others and they respect their customers time. Yeah, right!

It's not something I'm proud of but the store managers cavalier attitude made me do it. I blew up using words that don't jump easily or often from my lips. I hung up after he said he'd connect me to Apple Care. I'd had enough. Well, when I called Roger a bit later to order a few prints for Sunday I told him my woes. He offered to come by after he and Trish went out to eat and I jumped at the chance.

It's been dry around these parts, very, very dry. Friday after finishing my blog post, the heavens opened up taking care of that, dropping over an inch and a half of rain in short order. Looking out the kitchen door I saw that a large branch from Herb and Corrine's massive oak tree fell, landing sideways across their driveway. Not as large as ours, however, way too big for Herb, aged 82, to mess with. Bruce to the rescue! Donning our work gloves, we headed over for Bruce to use the chain saw and me to clean up. By now, the rain was mostly done for the night.

And that's where Roger and Trish found us when they arrived. Fortunately for me, Roger, the computer engineer Roger, not to be confused with the printer Roger (one and the same really), sat down and rebuilt the files in pretty short order. I don't really know how long it took because it was still working when we went to bed, but it's looking good folks. Hurray!

Saturday morning before sunrise, Bruce and I, mostly Bruce, planted some super cool flowers around the new tree. Mostly Bruce because there are ginormous roots making digging very challenging. I'll show you what the red ones look like in another post. Speaking of the tree, here's another shot of that bird we liked so well.

You'll notice the touch of orange under the gray wing which is what allowed us to identify this bird using the Audubon bird book Bruce's mom gave us some years ago. A tufted titmouse is the name. I've not seen it again, however, working at his desk yesterday while I was at the market, Bruce saw several of them. By the way, the dead leaves pictured are just from the transport--so far, so good.

The downpour of Friday night showed us a drainage problem just outside the back door which Bruce set about fixing on Saturday afternoon. Guess what? More rain once he got started. He's taking shelter under his canoe in this picture, however, not for long. He just got out there and worked.

The grass is finally coming along nicely, don't you think? Because of all this digging by dinner time he was pretty worn out. Earlier we'd discussed going out; instead after rustling up some food, we sat down for a Friday Night Lights marathon. Calling Jonathan, I told him I'd cried my way through the first episode. It is SO good. He assured me it wouldn't be the last time! I checked it out online, discovering that they do no rehearsals, use only three moving cameras, and let the actors ad lib when they feel it is appropriate. I knew it had a very organic (I know, overused word but the only one that will do) feel to it. I am hooked! Sadly, bedtime rolled around leaving us wanting for more. Another marathon session soon, very soon.

The rain continued most of the night, with thunder and lightening waking us several times. Waking to a drizzle, not to mention soaked everything, we pondered our about the market. The forecast was for some rain in the middle of the day with blue skies and cooler temperatures to follow. So, we went. Bruce dreamed up another easier set up which I think we may use for the hot months. The weather cooperated nicely, with not a drop of rain and indeed cooler temperatures. People came, some people bought, not quite as many as I wanted but I'm getting used to it now. I did enjoy my day, despite the sales slump, because so many folks came to visit. That's the nice thing about having been at the market for so long, people know me. Some people even like me.

Switching gears, I've got two articles from, you know where, to share: Keeping Up With Fashion , and then there is this: I Wish I Said This 
The fashion one is fun and clever, the food claims article more serious but important I think. Either people are pretty gullible, or, science is the new religion. Whereas once lots of folks believed that God appointed the time for our birth and death, nowadays, they seem to think relying on "science" is the way to go. Who is really in charge?  Ask those folks in Alabama about that. Or Louisiana, or Japan, or wherever "natural" disasters occur. Hmmm.....

After that little rant, how about if I leave you with something so beautiful it gives me pause?

15 Minutes Turns Into 7 Hours!

When I walked up to the Genius bar, carrying my iMac and a bag with three external hard drives and the cords that go with them, I'm sure Nick NEVER thought we'd get to know one another as well as we did.

I found out that he's an only child, rarely talks to his mother in Michigan, hasn't seen his father since he was a toddler, and spent a year "male dancing" if you know what I mean. He eats candy bars and soda for meals and is thin as can be. Plus, he's Jonathan's age.

I may very well have missed my calling. For as long as I can remember, people have always told me a lot. While working my patients told me the "darndest" things which constantly amazed my co-workers. Well, the Apple store was no different. Of course, when you sit there for hours on end, conversation ensues.

Fortunately, I didn't have to worry about this little guy

while I was gone so long because Bruce was working from home as I may have mentioned. By the way, Baxter, unbeknownst to me, turned 8 years old on May 3rd. We neglected to throw a party.

What did Nick do all those hours? One thing he did was discover my usb ports were just fine. Erase my hard drive, yes. Install completely new software, yes again. Back up all my data, check. This last part nearly killed me, and once he started it back up again, my fears, at least for the moment were realized. Mostly for the last, say two years or so, I've been using Picasa for my photo storage and editing. Gone!

But wait, he found it. Or did he?

This was the note he left on my computer while it reigned supreme on the Genius bar counter, or make that bar I guess. Actually, what happened is that around 5:00 I said I'd pretty much had enough, how about if I return at 7:30 before you get off at 8? I drove the six miles home just to get out of that mall! Working at his desk, Bruce called out for me to look at the bird feeder, which by now you know is providing us with lots of entertainment.

Neither of us know what kind of bird this, but I'll tell you this much, the male cardinal was none too happy that his territory was being invaded.

After making dinner for Bruce (I'd finally eaten lunch at Nordstrom around 3:30), I headed back to the mall. Nick was waiting on someone but eventually he got to me and showed me he'd found the Picasa pictures. Hurray! This time I did not lug everything back to the car, instead driving to the alley way behind the store. The iMac is heavier than you'd think.

So far, so good. Naturally I plugged it in the moment I got home, hoping for the best. During the reload, as if it were a new computer, he upgraded me to iPhoto 2011, which I was anxious to see. All this fiddling around has left me with stuff on three different hard drives, some data split between two or three. Basically, it feels like a mess, however, for sure the Time Machine is now working properly. Before leaving I asked Nick what should I tell folks was wrong. Software was his answer.

I was prepared to tell you all about it earlier today, however, the server for this blog was down--apparently for many hours. In fact, at this very moment, my last post has been wiped out. Plus, the bird picture above looks way better than what you are seeing. No clue what is happening.

Finally, after errands, cleaning and laundry, I sat down to type. Guess what? No Picasa=Unhappy Gail.
I phoned the store asking for Nick. Dan said he wasn't in but he'd be happy to connect me to regional service. I didn't shout, I didn't curse. Calmly I told him that after spending 2 1/2 hours on the phone Wednesday afternoon, and the aforementioned time yesterday, I was NOT going to talk to just anyone. I am still waiting for the return call 1 1/2 hours later.

You know something else? On Wednesday, after swimming and reading, I showered, washed my hair and put on a nice dress for my honey's return later. Normally I let my hair air dry for about an hour, then style it with the blow dryer. It needs that you know. WELL, staying on the phone forever, my hair dried into a crazy mess. And that's what it looked like all of yesterday during my mall imprisonment.

Thus, I am leaving you to go blow dry my hair before I look like a slob for the next two days. I'm hoping that once I turn it on, Nick will call and try to solve my problems.

Computer Crazy

At the moment I'm about to go crazy as my computer is giving me fits. A trip to the Apple store this morning convinced me to return for a check up. Bruce suggested I go buy a new one a few days ago, and that was my intention, however, before I give up on it, I'll give them a chance to tell me what's gone wrong.

Making the collage for the Polasek gave me the idea for a new avenue to travel. As such, I've made a few urban ones, which I think turned out kinda neat. Several days ago, out of the clear blue, my computer no longer recognized my external hard drive which contains my iPhoto library. Three years worth of practice! Trying not to panic, I reset the computer several times and all appeared to be forgiven.

Not so fast Miss Gail. While trying to make a collage of green leaves this morning, once again, it all disappeared without warning. Instead of blocks of colors you should be seeing fronds, leaves, and so forth, but alas you are not! You are seeing blocks of color. Amazing right? The pictures went AWOL.

The thing is, I don't know how to move my Picasa photos over to the new computer. This has me worried. This has me nervous. This has me panicky. What's a girl to do?

What this girl is going to do is, unplug my iMac, along with two external hard drives with their cables, and head back over to Apple at 3:15. Hopefully some magic will ensue.