National Cheese Cake Day

Surprise, I didn't know anything about National Chesse Cake Day, until we ate at the Cheesecake Factory last night. We didn't have dessert then, but I'll bet we would've had to celebrate National Cheese Cake Day, if we'd gone there tonite instead! The cheese cakes in the display case near the entrance are so enticing; it takes willpower to NOT have dessert.

Truth be told re Ferris Wheel

I thought I should admit that I looked that information up in the Ferris Wheel book; there's no way I could have remembered Mr. Ferris's full name, or the year, etc. and I wanted the info to be accurate. I "ain't as smart" as Andrea gives me credit for.

Ferris Wheel

Since Steve proposed to Andrea on a Ferris Wheel, I was remindend of the book my friend JoAnn Thomas gave me for Christmas in 1986. It is entitled "The Ferris Wheel" and tells the story of her Great, Great, Great uncle, George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. Mr. Ferris was a 33 year old engineer (a bridge and tunnel builder) at that time. As a boy, he lived on a ranch in Carson Valley, in western Nevada.

The Eiffel Tower was the marvel at the Paris Exposition of 1889, and the Ferris Wheel became the main attraction at the Chicago Worlds Fair of 1893. There is much more to this interesting story, which includes historical pictures. If anyone is interested, you are welcome to read this informative little book.

My friend Oscar

My friend Oscar has been on my mind often lately. He called me last week to tell me that he was ready to be measured for a prosthesis. Good, that means the swelling has gone down, and he can learn to walk again. Oscar has diabetes, and because he needed eye surgery, was taken off Plavix for awhile. He deveolped gangrene due to poor circulation, and recently had part of his leg amputated.

I first met Oscar at a national conference. He was a nicely dressed, dapper, intelligent polition, the County Clerk in Corpus Christi, TX. Later,I met his wife Ola Mae and eventually their kids too, at various National conferences. One year they had a large suite in the conference hotel. They had brought a blender with them and served margaritas and chips, etc. to their guests who attended the conference. A few years ago, when they were vacationing in Las Vegas, I met Oscar, Ola Mae and adult kids for breakfast at the Hilton. As always, we laughed a lot.

Oscar and Ola Mae met in kindergarten, and have been married since they were "kids". Oscar likes to flirt and tease, but Ola Mae is the light of his life! There are several of us retired county recorders and county clerks that he calls to check on regularaly, and a call from Oscar will cheer anyone!

Oscar is a remarkable man, he has many things he could complain about; but he chooses to see the bright side of life, and enjoy it every day!

You know it's HOT, when you can't hold the steering wheel!

My car was in the sun for a few hours while I got a manicure/pedicure. When I was ready to leave, I could barely touch the steering wheel, it was so hot! I burned my fingers! I took a hankie out of my purse (wish it had been a hot pad or at least the thickness of a wash cloth), to protect my hand while holding the steering wheel. Guess I'm a pansy, others must have the same problem. Do you have a solution? It's probably not too safe driving one handed,is it?

Surprises, yes; but life isn't always fair!

I met (ex husband)Bob's cousin Chuck at Delmar Gardens at noon today, to visit his half sister Mary who is there due to diabetes and some demntia. Mary was only 15 when I had my first baby (Oct 1947) and wouldn't have been allowed to visit in hospital until age 16, so she put some makeup on to appear older and came to visit us in the original Rose de Lima hospital. It doesn't seem right that someone as young as she is should have the health problems she does. We were family for many years, and I enjoyed my visit with Chuck and Mary, and she seemed really pleased that I had come to see her - kisses coming and going, and said she hopes I will visit her occasionally. I was pleased that she was only slightly confused a couple times. We reminisced about family and friends, deer hunting trips with our boys and her daughter Sherry, and mentioned listening to the music at Roxy's Saloon at Sam's Town occasionally evenings after I got off work, and her hubby Don wouldn't get home 'til much later (he was a light man for various shows). Our kids are grown and have kids of their own(my kids are even grandparents), our lives have chanaged considerably since those days. Life is full of surprises; perhaps it's a good thing we don't know what is in store for us. We have to play the hand we are dealt, cope the best we can and count our blessings!

Another pleasant surprise!

After stewing about needing an extracton and dental implants to fill in where I'd had a bridge for many years, I bravely made the appointment, my dentist Dr. CAT Nguyen, sent me to a Dr. Ferrari (see the dollar signs? he has a Ferrari car on his note paper) who is a very nice man, did a painless surgery, which I slept through. Ron delivered me to the dentist's office 9 AM 7-7-09, I was groggy/silly from the pill I took an hour before. I barely recall sitting in the chair and slept through the whole surgery. I recall my dentist and an assistant were there to observe, and my dentist told me she is pregnant. Carol came to take me home, and I "drunkenly" giggled and staggered out with her help. I'm so glad she stayed the afternoon with me, & waited on me, so I didn't get up and fall down someplace before the drugs wore off. I don't recall paying the bill, but when I was there for check up today, they said I did. So, I have a receipt, not a bill! I still have more checkups, and about six to nine months healing before the teeth will be attached to the screws, but the treatment so far is beyond my best expectations! I'm lucky to have connected with good dentists, nice people in their offices too! Life is full of surprises!