I picked Patty up and we headed out shopping in search of a swimsuit for her. After checking at 5-6 stores, eye still came back home empty handed.
Thursday, January 23. I had my follow up appointment with the eye doctor today and all is clear on my eye and I don't have to return until my next scheduled appointment.
I've been spending a lot of time this week working on the mat for the homeless project and I finally finished mine this afternoon, about 2 hours before the volunteers were gathering for the last time. Four mate have been completed and one person was unable to finish hers, so the rest of us are volunteering our time to get that one done. Guess who came home with it? And I forgot to take a photo before I handed it off. I'll have to see if I can get one.
Finished Project
Mat Detail
Chris and Norm picked me up on Tuesday afternoon and we headed to Val Vista Village to meet Pat and Roger for happy hour. The entertainment was good and we even got on the dance floor a few times. It was a good time.
I spent a few hours on Wednesday cleaning all of the little trinkets that are in the printer's drawers that I have in the wall. It was a walk down memory lane and I really enjoyed it. I found a small wire sculpture of a man that Pat made, Ben's first tooth that he lost, a miniature Standard Poodle (Belle), a greyhound and dog tags from Lucy, Mike's dog tags and several mementos from the Navy, match books and wooden nickels from several bars, and way too many others to mention. It was a fun project.
Arlene asked if I wanted to go to dinner with her on Wednesday night, so we went to the East
Valley Cafe and had their fish special. She had the fried and I had the grilled and it was really good and the portions were generous.
Saturday, January 24. Friday was a weird day for me. First, I slept in until after 7:30 and I didn't get Frisco out for a walk until 10. I had no gumption all day long. When I got back from my walk, I lounged in the tub with some soothing Lavendar bubbles and Epsom Salts. I gave Frisco a good brushing and myself a pedicure but other than that, I didn't accomplish much.
There was a birthday bash for Sue and Ulla at the clubhouse tonight, complete with BBQ ribs and lots of good side dishes and of course, birthday cake. It was well attended by over 100 people. After dinner, Jeff Stevens provided entertainment with lots of good music and plenty of stories along with it. Unfortunately, my funk continued into the evening and I left the party at 8:00.
This morning, Connie and I headed to downtown Mesa to attend the 14th Annual Historic Home Tour that is sponsored by the museum. We started at the museum and then walked through the West 2nd Street district where we saw 4 homes and Queen of Peace Catholic Church, the Sirrine House, and Irving School. Most of the homes were bungalows that were built between 1910 and 1940. I love that style and am a fan of small homes, so these were right up my alley.
From there, we headed to the Westwood Villas district where we saw several homes that were built in the early 1970s. The common feature was sunken living rooms. They were all huge, sprawling ranch-style homes that were at least 3,500 square feet. Several had basements and belonged to very large families (there are many large Mormon families in Mesa). One home had 2 washers and 2 dryers in the laundry room. They ranged from "original" decorating styles to fancy, frilly to modern contemporary. We had a nice time and stopped at Tia Rosa Taqueria for a bite to eat before heading home.
Sunday, January 26. What a nice, but busy day. It started with a conversation with Pat and unfortunately, they are going through another cold arctic blast with temps below zero and to top it off, they have had the flu. He said he doesn't remember ever being that ill. Fortunately, he is on the mend, but Tracey probably has a couple of days to go before feeling better.
I had to go to Home Depot for softener salt and also bought one of those new, lightweight water hoses that will make it much easier to care for my plants on the patio side of the house. When I got back home, I ran the hose along the foundation on the back side of the house and buried it, so I now have access to the hose from both sides of the house without having to drag it out and reel it back in whenever I water. Yay! I'm proud of my accomplishment.
Our community is having a concert tonight, featuring Maggie May, a country singer from Oxford, WI, who also owns and operates Maggie May's Cafe there. My friends, Don and Sharon (also from Oxford) invited me to a pre-concert meet and greet this afternoon with lots of other Wisconsinites and Maggie - a down-to-earth, happy, and fun-loving gal. I didn't stick around for long as Sharla was coming by to do my taxes for me.
Chris and Norm met me at the clubhouse and the concert was great, although Maggie has been suffering from allergies and wasn't able to yodel, her performance was great. She didn't start her entertaining career until 12 years ago when she had to find a new way to earn money. She's self taught and sings many old time country great songs and some that she has written herself. It was a very enjoyable evening with great entertainment. My picture isn't the greatest but I will share it anyway.
