June recap

June has been a rather "nothing much happened" month.
I have watched a lot of movies and read a lot of books. We have a new king in Spain. I've been watching the World Cup, planted sunflowers, went to a birthday party for my ex principal Monica, it was a bust.  Lizzie came over the weekend of June 29, Sandy turned 48 June 5. Norbert came back from the Philippines and that's about all he can talk about, he was here for Father's Day for dinner, and today helping out doing some things around the backyard. Marvin has been feeling pretty well, and I've been feeling OK but sort of bleh, not much energy.

Books I've read:

Valerie Frankel - Four of a Kind (2)

Barbara O'Neal - The All You Can Dream Buffet
Michelle Gable - A Paris Apartment
Juliette Fay - Deep Down True
Jenny Colgan - The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris
Vanessa Diffenbaugh - The Language of Flowers

Movies I've Watched:

Lucky Them (2014) 

The Gran Budapest Hotel (2014)

Gas Food Lodging (1992)

Scavenger Hunt (1979)

No Reservations (2007)

What a Way to Go (1964)

(Bad) Neighbors (2014)

Happy Christmas (2014)

 

Singles (1992)

 

I hope you all have a great JULY!

 

 

Sunflowers

Around the time that Mia was here, I planted some sunflower seeds. The one in front is over 6 feet tall and gorgeous

After the plant has stopped bloming, I will cut the flower and let the birds eat the sunflower seeds within, maybe I will save some to plant next year.

I really like sunflowers, they look so cheery and bright! I checked the meaning of sunflower (I'm reading the book "The Language of Flowers") and it says it means "false riches" .  Hmmmm I cannot see how this relates to the sunflowers. In Spanish the name is "girasol" which means turns towards the sun, which it does.
We also bought sunflowers and planted them by the driveway, they are smaller but just as cheery and bright!

 

I'll leave you with this quote from Walt Whitman

 

Keep your face always

towards the

SUNSHINE,

and the shadows

will fall behind you.

 

 

Pomp and Circumstance

Last night I stayed up until 4:30 AM, to watch the official coronation of King Felipe VI. It started at 10:00AM (Spanish time) and was still going on when I decided to call it a day.

I was expecting a coronation, like the one King Wilhem and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands had last year:

                     She is originally from Argentina, they have 3 daughters.

Because of the crisis situation in Spain, and the unrest in Catalunya and the Basque country, they had a relatively more modest crowning. That is, there was no actual crowning, although the Crown and Scepter were in plain sight.

Here's a picture of the royal Spanish family after the investiture:

Queen Letizia, King Felipe VI their 2 daughters Sofia 7, and Leonor 8 (they were so well behaved and poised, I was impressed), King Juan Carlos, Queen Sofia , King Felipe oldest sister Elena and Froilan, Elena's son. The younger sister of Felipe, Cristina, was "asked" not to show up. Her husband is currently being tried for fraud etc.

All in all it was entertaining. They played the National Hymn over and over and over. It brought back memories of  Franco's dictatorship.

An anecdote. During the celebration, most of the selfies taken were with Pau Gasol. He was invited since he is a very close friend of Felipe.

Happy royals

Mid Month

We had a nice Father's Day Sunday. We had grilled steaks with garlic mayo, potaotes, fresh tomato salad, and apple pie.

Norbert came over and entertained us with tales of his trip to the Philippines and his "engagement". He was acting a little more sedate, I'm happy to say. He showed me his mini ipad, and it has face time, he took one to his gf and now they can talk to each other and see each other and it doesn't cost anything.  All he had to pay for was the mini ipads, and a wifi connection $20.00 one time fee in the Philippines, and his Verizon put wifi in his house and it was free. I was surprised. Now they can talk and see each other eery day if they want to.

As I wrote yesterday, I will not write every day because I am running of things to say, but will write as often as I can. I enjoy it.

And the winner of yesterday's guess the picture is Lizzie. It was indeed "an eggplant".

I hope you all had a nice weekend.

Why blog?

Why blog? Well for me is a way to keep in touch with family, if it wasn't for the blog I wouldn't know some of the things that are happening in Utah, or San Diego, or Sweden.. I don't think any of my friends know about my blog, but I know some other people read it at times.

Why blog? To keep a record of important and not so important things that happens in my life. Believe me, it has come in very handy at times.

Why blog?  To share some things that have happened in my life, before we were a family. Things that I want to remember...

I don't think I will be blogging daily. My days are pretty much the same and it makes for not very interesting  reading. But I think I'd like to write at least once a week, maybe more if something extra happens.

Tomorrow is Father's Day, Lizzie is hosting a Poetry Reading at Java Joe's so we decided it would be better is she comes next weekend instead.
Tomorrow we'll grill some steaks and I asked Norbert over. He cannot wait to tell us all about his trip to the Philippines and show us pictures of his fiancee. I have talked to him on the phone a few times and also have seen pictures of his trip in FB , and frankly speaking, I am a little bit tired of the whole thing. He goes on and on and on and on...there's absolutely nothing else he can talk about!

Congratulations to Marvin for guessing the picture. Gator+aide = GATORADE

And here's the last picture of the series. I hope some of you have enjoyed the guessing game.

El Cholo

El Cholo has great Margaritas! When Marvin asks me where I want to go for lunch, I usually say El Cholo, because of the afore mentioned Margaritas. Sometimes we just have salsa and chips and sometimes, like today, we have a regular lunch.

I've been lazy today, slept late, went to lunch, and took a nap. But id did take Lulu for a long walk, when we got back I don't know who was more tired.

Yesterday I went to talk to my neighbor Amy, she has the cutest kids, Sophioa the baby is a carbon copy of Matthew, but with a little bow in her hair, she's adorable. Amy wants to have a block party, she says she'll organize everything, I said I'd help. Maybe it will happen. She also wants to have a girls night out and go to dinner (she mentioned the Mexican Restaurant 1800) just her, me and Sophia lol.

In the sports news, Netherlands beat Spain 5-1 in the World Cup! nice way to start lol. In the good news, Los Angeles Kings won  Hockey's Stanley Cup for the second time in 3 years. Way to go Kings!!!!

Today's picture:



A Paris Apartment

I am reading a book called "A Paris Apartment, by Michelle Gable (her first book). I chose the book mainly because I liked the title and the book cover.

As I was reading it, I had a feeling of deja vu, like I had heard of something like this before. Sure enough, I searched Google and found this article from a year ago:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2323297/Inside-Paris-apartment-untouched-70-years-Treasure-trove-finally-revealed-owner-locked-fled-outbreak-WWII.html



The book takes place now and also during the Belle Epoque, it's about a woman from Sothebys that goes to Paris to check the apartment furniture, paintings, etc. and about the woman that lived there in the 1800's.

It also reminds me of the movie Midnight in Paris, the part where Adriana chooses to stay in the Paris of the 1890's

It's interesting to read about the apartment and what was in it and then read the article and see the real apartment, furniture etc. Even the portrait of Marthe de Florian, which is a big part of the book.

A review from the San Diego Uniion Tribune says...""...a richly concocted plunge into the worlds of Marthe de Florian and an imaginary Sotheby's auctioneer named April...Gable's Paris of today and yesteryear are worlds that are easy and pleasurable to get lost in."--The San Diego Union-Tribune

I am enjoying reading this book.


~~~Good guesses Marvin, but Sandy  was right. It was King of Pop!~~~

I'll post another picture tomorrow :)






 

 

Just another day

I didn't go to Huntington Beach today, I had to do some paper work at the Credit Union, had lunch at The Habit, and that's about it!


Marvin grilled ribs for dinner and they were yummy. And Lulu is eating tomatoes, is she part of the problem? ;)

Since I have nothing much to write about, I will go back on my word and post another picture. This one is just too easy!

No sleep

Last night I had a very hard time falling sleep. I didn't go to bed until 2:15 after watching a couple of TV shows from Spain and I just couldn't sleep, my legs cramped, then I got up and read some, back to bed, more cramping, drank some water and took a Motrin, back to bed then i had like the feeling that ants were crawling all over my body , and so it went. Last time I checked the clock it was 4:35.

So this morning I was tired, went with Marin to dialysis and came back home and slept until 1PM with Lulu keeping me company :)

When I said Norbert was back I didn't mean he came with his "fiancee". He has to do a lot of paperwork to get a fiancee visa. He told me her name and age, and that was about it. I went to Facebook, and sure enough she was there. So I got to see how she looks. I am enclosing a couple of pictures.

Tomorrow I am going to Huntington and help him set up his computer and skype etc. I have the feeling all the talk will be only one way and on one subject :)

 

 

 

The answer to yesterday's pictures was "Tap Dancers"

I guess I was the only one that enjoyed the guessing game lol so I won't be posting any others :)

 

 

He's back!

So he got back an engaged man...to a 30 year old Filipino girl. She's of course beautiful, smart, lovely, a registered nurse, a virgin?! and so on and so forth.
And she thought he was, well the perfect man that showed up at the perfect time, etc.

Good luck to both of them.



The answer to yesterday's picture was...iPod     eye-pod


This is today's picture:

 

What is it?

Sunday

Today was a nice quiet day. Marv went grocery shopping, I slept until 10 AM. It was a very nice sunny day.

We picked tomatoes and oranges, I had a nice lunch of pa amd tomaquet with prosciuttini (my favorite), and a Coronita.

I don't really have a lot more to say, so today and in days to come, I will post a picture and ask you, my readers, what is it? I'll start with an easy one.

What is it?

Facebook

I have met many friends, old and new thru Facebook.

I am of course 'friends' with my family, in California, Utah, Spain and Sweden and Germany.

I am 'friends' with many of my old Kindergarten students, some are already married and with children of their own, it is fun to see how they've grown.

I am 'friends' with teachers, principals, secretaries, and aides from Idaho and California.

And I am 'friends' with friends. Some have found me and many I have found after losing touch with them for years.

Today I had a long phone conversation with a friend from Idaho, that I had lost track of for many years. She's from Spain but her family moved to Argentina when she was little, she came to the US as a teenager, a newly converted Mormon. We met in Burley, we both were teachers in the Cassia Couynty School District, and we also attended ISU. After I moved to California, we remained in touch, when she moved to California to teach, she lived with us in La Mirada for almost a year, later she rented a room in Norbert's townhouse in Huntington Beach. After a few years in California she moved  to Las Vegas, then went back to Idaho and we lost track of each other.

The surpise to me is she got married about 10 years ago with a widower from Rupert, 13 years her senior. He had 4 daughters and 2 sons, 26 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. Yes it's a Mormon family.

It was fun getting reacquainted. I am sure a lot more phone calls will follow :)

Finances!

Today our Financial Advisor came to our home to finish up some business. He's a nice person and has helped a lot. In 2011 we made a trust, but we had not really followed up on it, therefore a few things were not really valid till all papers were signed, notarized etc.

He also keeps track of my TSA and IRA etc. I am at the age where I need to start withdrawing some money, he will take care of it too. So all I need to do is sit down and wait for a check :)

He told us a while back that we are doing a good job getting all this stuff done (the living trust, arrangements, power of attorney etc. etc) . So to celebrate we wre keeping things in order, Marvin and I went to El Cholo to have a Margarita and chips and dip and guacamole. Afterwards we stopped at an Italian deli and got a large sandwich to share, and a canoli, to take home.

Tonight I will be watching a movie, it's called "Austenland". I have not read the book but maybe I will afterwards. I hope I like it.

Jennifer came by today to pick up her things, she's going back to her apartment. I honestly don't really understand why she came to spend a few night here :)

I am pleased to say that nothing is biting/eating/chewing our tomatoes anymore. So I guess the mouse is out of the picture. YAY!



Happy Birthday Sandy!

 

 

Love you mucho :)

 



The Grand Budapest Hotel

Last night I watched this movie. Is the latest Wes Anderson movie, I like his movies, especially "The Moonrise Kingdom". This one is quite different, but much in his style, I really enjoyed it. Did any of you have seen it?
The adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2278388/

I have been watching a lot of movies lately, old ones and new ones. I watch them at night, with a tall glass of water and a little snack, Marvin  and Lulu sleeping and I turn the lights off and enjoyed the show.

The latest movies I've seen have been "Lucky Them" with Tony Collette and Thomas Haden Church, and a surprise at the end. About a rock journalist is assigned to track down her ex-boyfriend.It was just released May 30.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1885299/

An other one I liked  is "Friended to Death", which is about Facebook and what extremes some people take  to have many friends in FB. Kind of strange. A dark comedy about a social media junkie who fakes his own death via social media just to see which of his "friends" will show up to the funeral.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2298186/

The last one I will comment on is "Daddy's Dying..Who's Got the Will? this is a 1990 movie, but I liked it. It stars your new friend Beau Bridges and a very fine Judge Reinhold, among others. Bickering siblings are reunited at their Texas home as their father lies on his deathbed in this black comedy.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099342/

The funny thing to me isd that none of those movies are really my type of movies, however I enjoyed them all, for different reasons.

King Felipe VI

Surprising a lot of Spaniards, King Juan Carlos of Spain abdicated 2 days ago in favor of his son Felipe. He will be crowned June 18th and will be known as King Felipe VI, and his wife Letizia will be the Queen.



It's funny because a lot of newspaper comments are more about Letizia (meet your new favorite royal) and her daughters, they certainly are a photogenic family.

Sofia and Leonor



The monarchy in Spain is not very well liked. Spain is in crisis and he people of Spain want a referendum to choose either the monarchy or a republic. Many wonder what will happen with the Catalans and their referendum for Independence.

Kings and Queens are merely figure heads, some European countries love their King and Queens (England, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Netherlands to name a few). Some European countries don't have monarchs anymore (France, Italy, Greece for instance).

In the last couple of years, some Kings have abdicated in favor of their sons, Netherlands and Belgium come to mind, and some like England will take a long time maybe even the death of the Queen before Prince Charles and Camille become King and Queen.

I will be following the saga of the Borbons and what's happening in Spain very carefully.

Back to Jersey

A friend of mine at Jersey School is retiring this year, she's from Bolivia and I was wondering if she'll go there on a vacation or what. So I decided to go to Jersey and visit for a while.

Marvin had a busy day taking the vehicles to be washed and cleaned (aftert all the ashes from the fire they needed it) I didn't leave until 1PM and by the time I got there, she had left. The secretary told me I got there on a good day and told me to go to the Kindergarten area.

Everybody in the school was tyhere,, all the kids, and teachers and some parents, and in the middle was the Principal, covered in green slime.

 

 

 

All the kids had a chance to pour the slime, then it was the teacher's turn. First were the Kindergarten teachers, so of course I was one of them ;) The principal is a very nice person (he's LSD) and everybody seems to like him, very mellow but knows how to get things done.

 

After school, Jennifer and I went out for a late lunch, or early dinner, to The Bird's Nest, a Thai Restaurant in SFS. There was a note in the door saying it closed for good June 7th. It was sad because we really enjoy eating there. They had to close to make room for the building of an extra lane in the freeway :(

 

While we were eating she was telling me the latest about her idiot ex, and asked me if she could spend a couple of nights at my home because she didn't want to be alone in her apartment.

 

 Good night!

 





The tomato saga

We love tomatoes picked fresh from the vine. They taste like no other tomatoes.
This year we planted early and we are now seeing a lovely crop of beefsteak tomatoes, big, juicy, sweet, tasty!

BUT, too many times when I go to pick one, I find half of it missing, or with bites, and  it totally annoys me and frustrates me.

I checked the internet and look for things that might eat my tomatoes. After looking at pictures, I decided it probably was birds and/or some kind of rodent.

I had not seen squirrels around lately, but there's opposums traveling at night over the wires some times. I narrowed my search to mockingbirds.

I hung faked apples, and CD's to scare the birds away, but still the tomatoes had bites on them and had to be thrown to the trash :(  Then I bought bird netting, and Marvin made a frame around the tomato vines, and we spread the netting over it.

 

 

While we were doing it, Marvin saw a mouse coming from behind the AC and getting in the tomatoes. THE CULPRIT!!!! 

 

So yesterday I went to Home Depot and bought some stuff to get rid of it. We had not seen signs of mice before (no droppings etc), but ever since the tomatoes started to ripen, I had noticed Lulu running to the tomato area and sniffing around. 

 

I hope we have taken care of the problem and we will be able to enjoy our wonderful ripe tomatoes.  Will let you know :)