The BEST Lunch Bunch

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We are just back from Lunch Bunch and a quick stop at the grocery store.

The ladies weren’t at the restaurant yet when we arrived, so we just drove past and jumped into the grocery store and out again, going back to the restaurant. They were there.

This was truly one of the best Lunch Bunches I remember. My long time friend, Linda, is a widow now. She and her husband had two boys and two girls. Both of her daughters were with her today. They are both truly lovely people. One lives in Greenwood and the other lives in Nashville. The one from Nashville said her husband had retired and that she planned to start coming to see the family here every 6 weeks.

We had good food and fun conversation with lots of laughs. These two ladies are very busy. Both are very young looking grandmothers. One has 6 and the other has 4. They are both very active in their grandchildren’s lives. It was fun to hear what they’re trying to keep up with on a daily basis.

I was a ‘good girl’ asking for chicken tenders and eating 1/4 to 1/3 of them, and bringing the rest home with me for tomorrow and the next day at lunch, whereas before I would eat them all at the restaurant. (Can you see me patting myself on the head?) :0)

It was good that we hit the grocery on the way to lunch because it rained lightly on us the whole way home. It’s a good day to stay warm and dry inside.

Best of all, we shared good hugs when we first got there and before we left – healing for the soul to be sure. Friendship is priceless.

It’s Friday 2-23-2024

Boo – @333too3 on X

I can’t believe the creativity and talent of this. I love it.

(Group Hug is an improv team in North Carolina.)

One of our Lunch Bunch people texted me yesterday, asking if my husband and I wanted to meet today! It will be wonderful to see them, hug their necks, and catch up. We haven’t seen them since we met before Christmas.

Freepik

I was messing around in the house when something drew me to the back door. I opened it to find it was RAINING – fairly hard! I don’t know how long it lasted, and my husband didn’t even realize it happened. Our weather is wonderful today. I’m a little worried talking about it, because this is SOOO unusual. I’ll try to be quiet and just enjoy it. :0)

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My yoga is going well. I will earn my 5th star for the week on my calendar, and I was able to add one more rep to my abdominal exercises yesterday, now totaling 7. Slow and steady.

I keep INTENDING to work outside or to get up to my art room. Somehow, the day gets away from me. I hope that you are finding fun things to do, too.

Lunch Bunch Part 2

Yesterday was our gift exchange. I etched a glass and painted a card for everyone.

You probably remember my gritching and whining about trying to learn to etch. I’m not sure what the equivalent is of hanging your child’s artwork on the fridge to encourage their efforts, and that may be the case here, but I had a good time thinking of the people receiving the glasses. I’ve always made a present for Mikey, our waitress, but this year I also made a glass for David. He seemed truly touched and brought tears to my eyes.

Patty made truly wonderful pumpkin bread. My husband grabbed it, took out his knife, opened the package right there at the table in front of everyone, cut a big slice and ate it. He grinned and thanked her for making HIM a bigger one this year… I have a bright, happy-looking holiday towel I hung on the stove door in our kitchen to brighten the room. She also included a card printed on both sides of her, her husband, and their grandkids. Priceless.

My husband got a humongous bucket of three kinds of popcorn from David and Mikey of The Pizza Barn. They gave me a vanilla candle, some warm, snuggly socks, and a box of Hershey’s fancy chocolates. YUM!

Kay and Bud blew us away by letting us choose a quilt Kay had made.

Harvey’s Quilt

MY quilt!

We both plan to enjoy using these in the living room in our recliners. Since we’re older than dirt and usually end up asleep in our recliners some time in the afternoons, we’ll be able to cover up, snuggle down, and replenish our energy for the rest of the day in style. (We also got me a new heating pad which lives in my recliner now, so I can be sandwiched between two sources of heat. :0) )

Other than the “loot” we all got, the best present of the year was that we were all together, sharing time; big, long hugs; good food, laughs, memories, and love. A very Merry Christmas for all.

Saturday 12-23-2023

cutigers – @cutigs1 on X

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I’m elated about Lunch Bunch yesterday. I’m going to tell you about it in 2 posts today.

First, and most important, I talked to everyone about whether they wanted to continue trying to meet for Lunch Bunch. We decided to KEEP COMING as long as it was possible. I’m delighted because I’ve been worried my husband would lose patience when we’re stood up over and over. I did ask again that everyone try to call each other if they are NOT going to be there.

Second, I wanted you to meet the members of Lunch Bunch –

David – owner of The Pizza Barn in Greenwood.

Mikey – Waitress at The Pizza Barn

Bud and Kay

Patty and Linda

Harvey and me

Group 1

Group 2

This group has met every Friday possible for over 25 years to share lives. We have shared a meal while catching up on what has happened the past week, what we HOPE will happen in the future, sad things that have happened, what we are worried MAY happen, birthdays, anniversaries, new arrivals, and more. We have helped each other through the bad stuff and helped celebrate the good. This is family.

Friendship

Brownsburg Animal Clinic

My husband and I are together 24/7 since he had a couple of strokes a couple of years ago. The worst is past, and I don’t worry as much now, but friendships have suffered some because I need to stay with my husband. I get a massage once a month, have my hair cut when needed, and every once in a while, see a friend as a very special occasion.

This morning, I saw two of my long-time, much-loved friends. I took them presents and cards I had made for them for Christmas, but the important thing was sharing great hugs and catching up a bit. Both were fine, thank goodness, but it was great to see that for myself.

The time is never long enough, but at least we got to acknowledge how special friendship and love are, and how lucky we are to have people who mean so much to us.

I hope that you are able to catch up with people who mean a bunch to you at least at this time of the year, and hopefully more in the coming year.

It’s Friday! 12-15-2023

Cheezburger

We’re scheduled to meet our friends for Lunch Bunch today. I’m really hoping we have people show up. If not, we’ll eat somewhere and then do our grocery shopping before the rain is supposed to start this afternoon. We’re in for a couple rainy days if the forecast is correct.

I’m supposed to get the wood burning equipment I ordered today in the mail. I got the tool yesterday, and I’m supposed to get the goggles, mask, and finger protectors today. I’ll at least work on clearing up my drafting table today in preparation for trying to use both the Dremel etcher and the wood burning tool very soon. It looks a bit like a bomb exploded after my work on the glassware lately.

My hair is blowing time is moving so fast! We just started December and it’s half over. I struggle to believe it. I remember counting the days until Christmas as a child and it seemed the day would NEVER come.

I have really happy memories of Christmases past. One particular memory this morning is our family walking to a neighbor’s house singing Christmas carols. (Our neighborhood was two mile-long streets in Tulsa with each house on an acre and a half – 24th Street and 25th Place between Sheridan and Memorial for those of you who might be familiar with Tulsa, Oklahoma.) We would ask the people who came to the door to join us, and would then all walk to the next house, singing. By the time we finished, frozen and smiling, we had quite a group of people. We would gather at our house for hot chocolate for those who wanted it, and alcohol for the adults who wanted, all warming up around our fireplace in the living room. Happy times.

I wish you a happy Friday and great weekend.

Stellar Lunch Bunch

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This photo gives you an idea of what our group looks like when we have Lunch Bunch on Fridays at the Pizza Barn in Greenwood.

I’m afraid our Fridays together are winding down due to some health, transportation, and other issues. Since we’ve been doing this every Friday possible for over 25 years, this will cause withdrawal issues.

My husband and I have swung by The Pizza Barn every Friday, but have been stood up several weeks in a row with no one else showing up. The biggest problem is that our friends aren’t good about using their phones, either, so not only do they not let us know they aren’t coming, they don’t answer their phones, or aren’t set up to leave messages, or say they don’t get the ones I can leave. It’s like throwing bottles in the ocean, using carrier pigeons, smoke signals, and the like.

Yesterday, though, Patty texted me that Linda’s son, Jeff, was here from Florida and he would be bringing Linda to Lunch Bunch. AND, when we got there, Bud and Kay were there, too. AND, after a few minutes, their neighbor showed up to join us. It was a lovely, noisy group with lots of laughs, good food, hugs, and more. Really good for the soul.

We have already agreed to come for a gift exchange on the 22nd, but I’m not sure if anyone will be there this coming Friday or after the gift exchange. We’ll keep swinging by…

Stood Up

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We’re home again after leaving to meet our friends for Lunch Bunch. Sadly, when we got to the restaurant, no one else was in the parking lot. We’re usually the last ones there, so….

We ended up going to another of our favorite restaurants, The Dari, instead. We had a nice lunch and I brought home a doggie bag of French fries, since I splurged, not having eaten any for over two years now. I’ll eat some more mid afternoon since the time for Lunch Bunch is at least an hour before our usual lunch time and I get hungry.

If things dry out a bit more, I’ll see what I can do with the push weed whacker behind the shop – beside the garden. My husband is saying he’ll start the mower and do the area in front of the garden. We’ll see if Mother Nature will cooperate.

Tenor

I’m beginning to think our days of “Lunch Bunch” are coming to an end after 20+ years. Linda is dependent on her daughter, Patty, to bring her from the retirement place, and many times her health is such that she doesn’t feel good enough to come. Kay and Bud get distracted, or forget to call us to let us know they’re not coming. We’ll keep going for now, but it looks like we need to make some decisions sometime in the future.

I hope you’re having a terrific day.

Lunch Bunch

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We just got home from Lunch Bunch and errands.

My long-time friend, Linda, was there, with her wonderful daughter, Patty. I got some good hugs and we enjoyed catching up.

My friend Kay and her husband, Bud, weren’t there for the 2nd week in a row. The people at the restaurant were worried, too. Patty checked on the way home. She found out that Kay had lost her wallet and was busy replacing driver’s license, etc. She SAID that she had called David, the restaurant owner, to let him know they wouldn’t be there. Patty left it at that because it was obvious that Kay had INTENDED to call him.

Anyway, everyone is doing well, and that’s the important thing.

We had a really nice lunch, didn’t get rained on, got our errands accomplished, and are home. :0)

Columbus Day 10-9-2023

Medina County Veterans Service

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Women’s Health

Shout-out to Cathy, who is having a scan today that hopefully will point the way to feeling good again.

Women’s Health

Shout-out to Carla, who is trying, with her son, to get a car ready for a race this month!

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Today is the first day of the 3-day special sale at Etsy, where you get $10 off your purchase of $40 or more anywhere on Etsy. You can use the code provided as many times as you want today through Wednesday. Great opportunity to buy things for the holidays.

Notecard package – 5 different hand painted designs on note cards and envelopes – “Thumbelina” – $19.95 with FREE SHIPPING to the contiguous U.S. HandmadeHavenByLinda on Etsy

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Erika Kocsi Watercolors – @kocsi_erika on X

Hurting

Pexels

I’ve always felt useless when people I care about are hurting. I care deeply, but don’t know what to say. I want to FIX it, wave my magic wand, make the bad stuff go away, but I can’t.

I found two things lately that really resonated. I saved both of them because they seemed an ANSWER. When someone is hurting, you don’t need to try to FIX it or say the ‘right thing,’ you just need to BE THERE – if not physically, then in spirit.

I found this from Winnie the Pooh –

A.A. Milne – Winnie the Pooh – Illustrations by E. H. Shepard

And then I heard this song, “Standing With You” by Guy Sebastian –

A Friend

Framed 7×5 Friend Sign – “The Song in Your Heart” – $14.99 with FREE SHIPPING to the contiguous U.S.

Trip to Town

Unsplash-Monika Batich-Getty Images-iStockphoto

We had a good time at Lunch Bunch. Kay and Bud were there. Bud seemed touched that we remembered his birthday with a card. He said one of his thermometers read 116 yesterday. Our shop thermometer read 110, and the one under the deck roof showed 108. UGH. It’s ‘only’ 97 right now, but we’re under both a ‘Heat Advisory’ AND an “Excessive Heat Warning.” Not sure why we rate both, but it does get your attention.

Dreamstime.com

We’re still having to drive miles out of our way to get to and from town since the bridge between us and Greenwood was taken out completely and is being replaced. We drove past our driveway on the way home so we could go check out the progress.

This stock photo gives you an idea of what is going on, but our road is completely closed off. There is a HUGE hole where the old bridge was taken out and they are working on a 3rd of 3 humongous concrete supports that go all the way across the road from one side to the other. There is a big tractor/digger/crane beside the hole which is dug far down below where the old bridge was. I’m not sure what happens after they get that 3rd support poured. I don’t have a clue how they will go across from one support to the next – in line with the road… I’ll try to take some pics next time we go.

We’re home for the day now and I’ll start my projects for the day as soon as I finish this. Stay cool and hydrated.

Good Intentions

Sent by my good friend, Carol.

Women’s Health

Shout-Out to my good friend, Cathy, who starts a treatment of chemo and radiation today that runs through September 13th.

I would appreciate it very much if you would join me in trying to send her –

• Prayers
• strength
• good wishes
• HUGS
• hope for a smooth treatment series and
• a return to feeling good again very soon

You’ll be in our thoughts, Sweet Cathy. You can do this.

Saturday 7-15-2023

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We’ve been meeting on Friday for Lunch Bunch for a long time. I was trying to figure out HOW long we’ve been doing this, and it started when Linda retired from being City Clerk/Treasurer for Greenwood, and that was around 1992. (She could then meet Kay and me for lunch.) That would make it around 31 years.

In all this time, we’ve left it that we’ll call or leave a message if we are NOT going to be there on Friday, rather than having to do a flurry of calls every week. This has worked well until our getting a ‘bit’ older has affected our habits.

Kay and Linda can call me and leave a voice mail or text if I don’t answer. I check for messages several times each day and evening. The problem is that the other two wonderful ladies don’t do that. Linda doesn’t wear her hearing aids all the time and can’t hear her phone. When I call her, it says she isn’t set up to receive messages. She doesn’t receive texts.

Kay’s phone has been giving her trouble since she got it. I can leave a message, but she says she doesn’t receive it.

Patty, Linda’s daughter, picks Linda up and brings her to Lunch Bunch if she is in town. She is gone a lot, though, and is a very busy lady. She has gotten out of the habit of letting me know she will be out of town.

We went to Lunch Bunch yesterday, but got stood up. We found out from one of the waitresses that Kay and Bud were having a toilet installed and so wouldn’t be there. No Patty or Linda. So we just ate and then went to do errands.

SO –

I’ve decided to simply go with the flow and not worry about it. We’ll go each Friday as usual and hope that one of our friends will be there. If not, we will eat or not eat and then go about our business. We all love each other and that doesn’t change based on whether we eat together each week. I’ll be happy if they are okay and healthy.

It’s Friday – So, Lunch Bunch

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It’s Friday, so that means Lunch Bunch.

A priceless time for me. We’ve been doing this for over 20 years now, meeting every Friday possible to share lunch, good news, bad news, laughs and hugs.

It started when I decided to go to City Council meetings in Greenwood to find out what was going on in the town, taking an interest and seeing if I could participate. Linda was the City Clerk/Treasurer. Kay was in the audience, too, each month, and we started sitting together and getting to know each other. This went on for several years before we went to lunch together a few rare times.

When Linda retired, we decided we wanted to continue and build on our friendship. The Pizza Barn was central to all of us, so we met there and went through the buffet. The pandemic and new rules forced the owner to stop the buffet, but we continued to meet there, ordering from the nice menu. The friendship grew. Others joined us, but none permanently. The core is Kay, Linda and me.

The years passed. My husband finally joined us and has become an accepted member of Lunch Bunch. Kay’s husband is in his 80’s, but still works heavy equipment from time to time. He is also now a valued member of the group. Linda’s daughter, Patty, comes when she can, and is a delight. Other people are always welcome, but the core is the thing.

A lot happens in 20 years. When you share that – even basically only seeing each other on Fridays – the bond becomes a pillar of your life. Friendship and sharing, loving and caring. I am lucky.

It’s Friday 6-23-2023

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If all goes well today, we’ll celebrate our friend Linda’s birthday at Lunch Bunch today.

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We’ll bring presents, and Kay is baking her a birthday cake to share. Pizza Barn, 2 S Adair St, Greenwood, AR 72936 – (479) 996-4343 – the restaurant we’ve been having Lunch Bunch in for over 20 years now, not only allows us to celebrate birthdays, but provides plates and a cake knife for us to use to share the cake. They have become like family, and we share birthdays and Christmas with the waitresses and owner, too. Good people.

I’m hoping we can create a special day for Linda, and that she can take the remaining cake back to the retirement center to share with others.

Fingers crossed!

Home in One Piece

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We are home from Lunch Bunch now. We didn’t go anywhere else due to the weather people being right about gusty winds and heavy rain, but thankfully not about the ‘baseball-sized hail.’

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Only Linda and Patty were at Lunch Bunch. Kay and Bud stayed home due to the threat of the hail, but we had a great time.

Patty told us about her anniversary/vacation celebration in Greece and showed us a couple of stunning pictures. We enjoyed good conversation and lots of laughs, and I hugged both of them.

I reminded them that we are set to celebrate Linda’s birthday NEXT Friday, the 23rd, even though her actual birthday is the 29th. (If we waited until the following Friday, we would MISS her birthday – not acceptable.)

I’m glad we got to Lunch Bunch, but I’m happy that we’re home now, just in case the weather guys will be right about the hail…

Yesterday’s Lunch Bunch

Tenor

The gang was almost all back together yesterday at Lunch Bunch. My husband stayed at the house to wait for the tankless water heater tech call/visit, but Kay and Bud were there, plus Linda, and me. It was a nice reunion after several weeks of disappointment.

We were all back in one piece and well. I enjoyed hearing what they had been up to and it was great to soak up all the smiles and laughter.

Friday Lunch Bunch 5-12-2023

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Lunch Bunch was a delight today. Instead of being stood up, as I thought we might be, Kay and Bud were there, along with their daughter, LaDonna, from Albuquerque. Also, Alice – a sometimes LunchBuncher – and her husband, and us. Right after we ordered, my good, long-time friend Nora came in the door! It had been a long time since I had seen her and I was thrilled. Linda wasn’t there because her daughter, Patty, and her husband are in Greece, celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary.

Kay fell last week, face-surfing on some gravel. She didn’t break anything, thank goodness, but she really looked dramatic with the whole right side of her face bruised. She also broke her dentures – that will take a month to replace – so she is on liquids. She had some kind of a shake for lunch, was taking home a special dessert the owner made for her, and was going to pick up some protein drinks. She was feeling pretty well, otherwise. Our whole table was full and a great time was had by all.

We’ve just gotten finished putting away the groceries we got, also gas cans we filled for the mower. I’m going to plant some periwinkles in the pot right beside the shop door in a minute. My husband picked them out when we were in Walmart.

So a happy Friday for us. I hope that YOU are having a fun one, too.

The Gang was All There!

The core bunch for Lunch Bunch was there today for the first time in awhile. I commemorated the occasion by taking a couple of pics quickly. This is Patty, Linda, Kay and Bud.

And the gentleman at the far end of the table is my husband, Harvey.

It was good to catch up on things. Patty and her husband will celebrate their 40th anniversary with a trip to Greece soon! I told her that they ‘had a good start now.’ :0) I think that Kay and Bud have been married about as long as we have (54 years in June), and Linda lost her husband, Dick, several years ago now.

We went to the library book sale right after Lunch Bunch and saw another long time good friend, Martha. She was helping her daughter run the sale. I hugged her neck. We agreed that trying to age gracefully was sometimes more of a challenge than either of us could handle, but that the effort was probably character-building.

After a quick trip to Walmart, we’re home for the day. The trip was a bit too long for my husband. He’s resting now and will probably take a nap after he finishes looking at the new magazines he got in the mail.

Beef stew tonight for dinner, a check of the garden stuff, a yoga session, and that’s our day.

I hope you’re having a good one.

Good Lunch Bunch

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Lunch Bunch was good, even though it was only Kay, Bud, and I. They were talking about their new way of gardening, in buckets, and wanted me to see what they were doing. So we went back to their house after we ate. They showed me a whole series of buckets for growing veggies, plus new roses bushes they had planted along their chain link fence. I was very impressed, and happy for them that they had figured out a way to do what they wanted and make it easier on themselves.

At lunch, Bud told me about a hail storm in 1965 or 66 where a really bad hail storm had killed a bunch of cattle and horses. One man brought a piece of hail to a weigh station. It had melted some during the trip, of course, but it still weighed 11 pounds!!!!! I really can’t imagine that. He also told me about working one day in a shop at a construction site. Suddenly, the garage door was blown in to the point it bowed out into the shop, then it went completely the other way and was gone. He got down on his hands and knees behind some barrels. The top blew off the shop and most of it was destroyed around him. Thankfully, he was JUST scared and wasn’t injured. I’ve lived in “Tornado Alley” most of my life, but (knock on wood) I’ve never actually seen one. I hope that continues.

I brought lunch home to my husband, and caught him up on the news and our friends’ flowers and garden.

FUN Lunch Bunch!

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I had to leave my husband home, since his back is still hurting a lot. He says it’s better, and he looks a bit more perky, but he still needs recovery time.

Today Lunch Bunch was especially fun. When I got to Lunch Bunch, Kay and Bud had brought a neighbor couple, Willie and Cheryl. We mainly talked gardening, and then were surprised when Patty and Linda came late! So almost the whole gang was there. The conversation was lively and fun, with a lot of laughing.

I brought home good wishes from everyone plus a bacon cheeseburger for my husband.

On the way down the driveway, I saw a package was sitting on the ground behind the trash can. (UPS has started leaving stuff down there, rather than trying to drive up our driveway.) It was the bag of Worm Castings I ordered from which I’ll make “tea” for the garden. It’s supposed to be an organic fertilizer and disease prevention for all garden plants and flowers, etc. I’ll start the process of ‘steeping’ it this weekend.

I’m going to rest a bit and then water my tomatoes and check on the main garden. We’re due for possible large hail tomorrow afternoon and evening, so I’m thinking of a method to try to protect my plants as much as possible.

I hope you’re enjoying your day.

Lunch Bunch?

Forbes

It looks pretty ominous outside right now. We’re supposed to have thunderstorms this morning.

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We’re supposed to go to Lunch Bunch in about an hour and a half. I haven’t heard from anyone, so that USED to mean we were all planning to come. Since Kay and Linda aren’t good about carrying their phones, it’s like throwing a bottle in the ocean to reach them. I can leave a voice mail on Kay’s phone, but she says she doesn’t get it. The voice mail isn’t set up on Linda’s. I can’t text either of them. So we’re down to smoke signals. :0)

Happily, my husband’s attitude is that we can go anyway, even if we’re ‘stood up’ by the others, eat our lunch, and then run errands or come back home, so that’s what we’ll do.

We aren’t under imminent warnings at the moment, so I’ll just keep an eye on things and we’ll make our decision later.

Stay safe and dry if you can today.

Fabulous Friends

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Yesterday we enjoyed our Friday Lunch Bunch. Amazingly, we were all there for the first time in awhile.

I hugged Linda, Kay, and Patty, patted Bud and my husband on their shoulders, feeling very grateful to see everyone. It’s a bit sad that having everyone there is happening less and less due to health issues and other commitments.

We had SUCH a good time. Good food, as always, at the Pizza Barn in Greenwood at ‘our’ table. I was the only one in our group wearing green. I had on a green tee I hand-painted flowers on years ago and my multi-shamrock earrings. Mikey, our wonderful waitress, easily outdid me with some really glittery dangling green earrings and a TATTOO of a shamrock we didn’t know she had on her ankle. :0)

We enjoyed catching up. Kay’s husband, Bud, told us about a friend he has who is a welder and apparently has a machine where he can insert a card and the torch cuts out intricate pictures from sheet metal. We compared notes, since with our CNC set up, my husband has to convert the picture we find on the net to G-Code that the computer can understand, and then take the thumb drive out to the shop and put it into the computer out there. Then the torch cuts out the design according to the code. My husband then welds angle iron that will attach our design to our mailbox with bolts. I then paint the design on both sides. Bud’s friend obviously has the next step up from our set-up. He said he would bring us a sample of one of the cards sometime. I’m interested to see it.

Since it’s hard for us to get our designs off the hooks in the shop, we are changing our designs less now. What we actually have up right now is this –

I’m so lucky to have friends like Linda, Kay, and now Linda’s daughter, Patty. The three of us have been meeting for Lunch Bunch now for over 25 years, sharing life, laughs, and tears. I love being able to see their faces and hug their necks.

Friends

Clarity Clinic

A shout-out this morning to my good friend Marsha.

She lives across the country from me, but in my heart all the time.

We are helping each other be the healthiest we can be by each motivating the other to exercise every day.

She is walking to the post office daily and also using a new pedaler in her home so she doesn’t have to depend on the weather being good.

I am doing yoga practice daily and then ‘something else,’ including, but not limited to, at least one of the following –

• elliptical trainer in the garage
• online walking and/or weights videos
• yard work
• walking around the yard

We KNOW that exercise is good for us, but each of us is a master at making excuses for NOT doing it. We care about each other, though, and are now comparing notes daily.

If we have done what we promised each other (and ourselves) we would do, we put a star on our calendar. If not, we tell them we love them and encourage them to do better the next day.

Yesterday we both got a star! We’ll try to do it again today. :0)

March Mailbox Decoration

If it will stop raining, we’ll put up “Sylvester and Tweetie Pie” on our mailbox as we leave to go to Lunch Bunch soon.

I found out two of our friends will be at Lunch Bunch. I’m hoping for the whole group, but I guess I shouldn’t be greedy…

A Day with Friends

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I really enjoyed yesterday. I reached out to two long-time friends, asking if I could come over for a bit. Nora got right back to me, saying, “YES!” so I jumped into the truck.

Our schedules just don’t mesh, so we hadn’t seen each other in a LONG time. It doesn’t diminish the love in any way – life is just more complicated these days. (She works full time and I’m with my husband full time.)

I was surprised to learn that she is now working from home full time. I don’t know the logistics of it, but I’m delighted that she doesn’t have to spend all that money for gas, or worry about getting to and from Ft. Smith if the roads are bad. She is also having a roof for her patio constructed so that she can enjoy having outside in the mornings. This is a real quality of life issue for her. She’s tried various other more temporary roofs, but with our gusty Arkansas winds, they have blown down or completely blown away. Now she’ll have something that will last. :0) She apparently liked the tote bag I painted for her and complimented the card I painted. Since she is a pastel artist, I’m really happy that she is pleased with my efforts.

We ate lunch and then I heard from another friend, Carla. She said she was out and about, and wanted to come to our place around 4pm. I went scurrying around, making sure she had a comfortable place to sit, a clear place to put down a drink, the bathroom was clean, etc. (That’s what I get for being a slob.)

She brought what is called a “Kaleidoscope Rose.” Isn’t it stunning? I’ve never seen one before. I THINK that this is done very carefully with dyes on each petal to create this. However it happens. I think it’s gorgeous. She also brought chocolates that I am trying my best to stay away from. :0)

She liked her personalized tote, too, laughing at one of the quotes about car racing. (She and her son have a stock car.)

So it was a beautiful day, catching up with two ladies who mean the world to me, getting hugs, bringing up my spirits. What a lucky lady I am!

Wonderful Afternoon

I’ve had a good afternoon. I –

• Went to the post office to mail our Christmas cards, Christmas packages, etc.
• Stopped at the UPS box on the square to return a package for my husband
• Then went to my friend, Linda’s, new place at the retirement center

I was pleasantly surprised at the retirement place. It was nicely decorated and had a huge, welcoming foyer. Two ladies met me, along with two dogs. One was named Lucy and had lived at the place all her life. She was kind of the ‘communal dog, greeter, and all around friendly, SWEET doggie.’ The second dog was some kind of ‘doodle’ and was the dog of the owner. The dog’s name was Jacob and he was friendly, too. I remembered the owner, I had met her years before. She’s a good friend of Linda’s, and owns both the place where Linda now has an apartment, plus the local nursing home. The other lady was her daughter, who is the active manager of the place.

There is a kitchen, dining area, and living room type place plus the manager’s office as you walk in. Linda’s apartment was straight down to the end of the main center hall. I passed a pool table, a kind of game room, and a nice sitting area with doors on both sides where one could visit and see outside.

Linda’s dog, Bentley, met me at her door. We all had a good visit. Bentley likes the other dogs and so has made friends for the first time in his life. I found out that she does not have her car there, so I’ve now offered to take her where she would like to go. We’ll just have to plan carefully, so I don’t have to leave my husband alone for a long time. We just need to adapt a bit. Linda knows several people there already and is meeting others. One of the ladies goes to her church and took her with her to church yesterday, the first time in a LONG time that Linda has gone. She was greeted like a much-missed celebrity by the Sunday school group and then by people after the church service – a wonderful reunion.

Even though it will take her awhile to adapt, I think she’s in a good place now. Her world can open up again, rather than continuing to implode. She was really isolated in her former place although her daughter did her very best to see she had everything she needed and was taken where she needed to go. She can now be social if she wants or be private when she needs to.

She seemed to be delighted with the jigsaw puzzle I brought as a housewarming gift. She can either do it by herself in her place or take it to one of the tables in one of the common areas and invite others to help. She might even learn to be a pool shark! :0)

Friday Fun 12-2-2022

Final Fantasy XIV

I’m looking forward to Lunch Bunch today even more than usual. Due to Thanksgiving last week, our restaurant wasn’t open for our lunch last Friday, so it’s been two weeks since we met. I want to find out if Linda has moved to the retirement place and what else is going on with everyone.

It’s actually warmer this morning than it has been. It’s 51 degrees F. already and is supposed to get to 60 this afternoon! Woo HOOO! I’m hoping to be able to continue my yard work, though I haven’t decided what I’ll tackle yet, if the weather is cooperative. We’re supposed to have light rain off and on during the day and a strong cold front coming through overnight, so it’s still a roller coaster here.

It’s funny. I’m reading After Sundown by Linda Howard and Linda Jones. It’s about a CME (cornonal mass ejection) bringing their world to a standstill with no electricity until further notice and all the things that derive from that. This morning I checked the news and read about solar storms possibly affecting our power grid in a minor way. Eerie.

And with that, I’ll wish you a happy, stress-free day.

Puzzling Over a Gift

Yesterday I looked for puzzles for my friend, Linda, who is moving to a retirement place any time now. I wanted to find a ‘retirement-place-apartment-warming-gift’ for when she calls me and tells me she is settled.

She really likes to work jigsaw puzzles, but during the past year has become overwhelmed by the huge ones she used to do. I decided to see if I could find one that had fewer pieces.

She loves dogs, and actually HAS her dog who will make the move to the retirement place with her, so the picture on this puzzle should be a happy one for her. It has 300 pieces, and they are 33% larger than the standard jigsaw piece size. This should be much easier for her to work with.

We had already talked about her taking a card table to her new place, so this should work. I’m hoping she still has the roll-up puzzle-in-progress holder I got for her in the past. She could put that down on the card table, work as she wants to on the puzzle, and then roll it up to get it out of the way easily if she wants to.

I’m hoping this will hit the right note with her. She is such a dear lady and I love her to pieces. (pun?)