The Cloister at Ephrata       Photo & enhancement by C Duffy

Pretty stark, huh!  Sometimes I think it would have been neat to live in those more simple times . . . that is until it's time to do the laundry and fix a meal.  Then I'm ever so grateful for all my modern conveniences.  I would NOT have made a good pioneer.

This picture was taken at The Cloister in Ephrata, which Alice and I visited when on our Chesapeake area sister trip two years ago.  All the buildings were old and either made out of stone or clapboards.  It made for some really nice pictures, but I wouldn't want to live there.  I was going to tell you where it was located . . . more than just the Chesapeake area, but I can't find the "log" of that trip. 

Us three (plus Annie) taking a break                                        Photo by Warren

Here we are taking a break today from our sister trip planning session.  It was really pleasant outside today . . . hard to believe it's August.  When Alice and I get together on the computer, we always worry that we're boring mother to tears, but she always says she just enjoys listening to us chatter away.  Mom was working a crossword puzzle while we were looking up possible places for us to visit in October.  She needed a three letter word in her puzzle meaning Emerald's exclamation.  She didn't know what the word was so I shouted BAM!  I think I scared Alice out of her skin, and mom thought it was very funny.  Speaking of funny, you gotta check out my mom's blog tonight.  It's a hoot. 

Bridge in Bibury, England                          Photo and enhancement by Chris Duffy

Well, I've got to do laundry tonight so I can leave tomorrow right after work for OKC to visit mom and my sister and to plan our October sister trip.  Not that I'll need much . . just a pair of jeans and a couple tops.  We don't dress up at all . . . just play on the computer, talk and talk and talk and play Scrabble.  Oh yes, we eat and sleep a little too.  But this week end, the main thing we have to do is nail down the dates for the sister trip and look over our options and pick out things we think we'd LIKE to do while in the Austin area.  I looked up a bunch of stuff on the web today and printed it out, so we'll have plenty of "wading through" to do.  It's been a LONG time since I was in OKC and I can hardly wait to see Alice's new house.  

Daddy and Alice Fishing                                     Picture taken by Warren Woodrome

I found it, I found it.  This is Alice's favorite picture of Daddy.  It was taken shortly after Alice and Warren were married and they went back to Illinois to visit our folks. We spent a lot of time on the Mississippi River when we were growing up, and that's where this picture was taken.  I guess Daddy wanted to show Warren what good stock Alice was from.  And look how young Alice looks, and she was married woman.  It dawns on my that my dad was still a fairly young man at that time . . . at least a whole lot younger than I am now.    Funny how our definition of old changes as we ourselves age.

Barton Springs Veranda     Photo and enhancement by Chris Duffy

I just got back from going to a movie.  I went with the neighbor lady because my husband was not interested in seeing a "chick flick".  To say that he wasn't interested is an understatement.  He flat didn't want to go see a "chick flick".  But he was perfectly willing that I should go and so Lorry and I went.  I loved it.  We saw The Notebook.  I'm really glad Mike didn't go, because he would have hated it, and he'd have grumbled about having to sit through it.  So, it's best I didn't coerce him into going. 

It's a wonderful and very sweet love story. . . but bring lots of tissues if you're the weepy type (like me).

Adarondak Chairs                                          Photo and enhancement by Chris Duffy

Well balderdash!!  I've done without a scanner for over a year now, because it wouldn't work on my old computer.  I finally got around to hooking it up this week end to the new computer and I'm getting exactly the same error message I got on the old computer, so I guess the scanner has problems as well as that old computer.  I just assumed that since the problems with the Scanner happened right at the same time my computer started really acting up that the problem was all the fault of the old computer.  But then we know what people say happens when you ASSUME anything.  So I guess I'm in the market for a new scanner now.  Make that sometime in the future though, and not right now.  Too many sheckels are already flying the coop right now. 

I have a bunch of pictures I took in Hawaii back in 1998 on a company trip (before I had a digital camera) that I haven't scanned in yet, and I'd really like to because some of them are pretty good (in my opinion) and I'd like to be able to put some of them in blogs. 

Split Rail Fence picture in Mississippi                     Photo taken by a helpful stranger
Left to right: Alice, Dave, Chris and Mom

You may recall that on my July 29th blog mom asked me where the "grown up" version of the split rail fence picture was and I told her it was on my hard drive at home . . . it wasn't.  But (a big fanfare here) Alice found it and sent it to me.  You can compare it with the the much earlier version below. 

Split Rail Fence in New Salem State Park in Illinois . . . . Photo by Robert Culbertson
Left to right:  Dave, Chris, Mom and Alice

And . . . (a drum roll here) for the person who asked what my dad looked like since he was hardly ever in any of the pictures because he was the one taking them all, here is one of my sister's favorite pictures of daddy . . . doin what he loved . . . boating on the Mississippi River.

Robert E. Culbertson                       Photo probably taken by mom
I stand corrected . . . Alice tells me her husband Warren took this
picture in 1962 or 63.  Thanks, Alice.

On the Oxford Campus in Oxford, England . . . Photo and enhancement by Chris Duffy

The ceiling is all repaired, and it was relatively quick and painless.  I'm impressed.  I was afraid that since it was their fault and we weren't having to pay for the repair that they'd take their sweet time about fixing it, but that was not the case.  It's amazing how they can fix something like that and not even leave a scar.   I don't think anybody would ever be able to tell that someone stuck their foot through the ceiling. 

I'll be heading to Oklahoma City next week end (not this one, but the next week end) so Alice and I can plan our October "sister trip".   It's kind of funny how two grown women can get so excited about taking vacations together. . . . without our husbands.  It's not that we don't dearly love our husbands, it's just that their idea of a vacation and our idea of a vacation are worlds apart.  We love to take pictures . . . not just a few, but hundreds of them.  And that just baffles our husbands.  My hubby would be happy if I left my camera at home when we are on vacation together. 

Let's see, our sister trip is only about 2 1/2 months away now.  I'm already getting excited, even if we're just going to Austin, TX. 

Hidcoate Gardens in England                          Photo and enhancement by Chris Duffy

EXTREMELY GOOD NEWS!!  Well, at least it's extremely good news to me.  I went to the dentist this morning for my first post op visit since my gum grafts, two and a half weeks ago.  I was dreading this appointment.  I've been worried about it ever since Friday evening, when I noticed some of the gum tissue sloughing off.  I just knew my dentist was going to grill me about what I could possibly have done to ruin all his handywork, but he was very pleased.  He said that he'd gotten 100% coverage on the roots of all four teeth he grafted tissue over.   When I asked him about the gum tissue that I noticed had sloughed off, he explained that they always put a little bit extra tissue on in case some of it doesn't make it.  That way they still have the root covered even if it all doesn't take hold.  I can't begin to tell you how relieved I am.  All that effort, all that discomfort, and all that money . . . NOT wasted.