Yesterday I went out to dinner at the famous BBQ place on Sports Arena Blvd with the guy I picked up as a duty driver on 32nd street. It was really good ribs and chicken, but I wouldn't want it too often. Very rich food. Went to the library afterwords to drop off the movie from Sunday... then picked up a disc of Jeeves & Wooster at the same time. Watched one episode that night, then another one this evening. Pretty funny; and silly to see Dr. House so young and running around so cheerfully. :)
I did make it to the car wash tonight and put the brand new car cover on.
And I talked with mom and dad for an hour! Mom's nearly done with the dress, and dad needed some info for renewing my car tabs. So good to chat again!
Long weekend coming up!
Jp
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Monday, August 29, 2011
Monday...
So after all this, I lay down and read a bit of "I Will Repay", the first Scarlet Pimpernel book. Lying down made me relax from all that crazy driving. I felt a bit frazzled. I was going to PT today, but all I ended up doing was a few (very few) push-ups. I was worn out.
After that I watched the movie I brought home from the library yesterday, Young Victoria. It was an interesting little film focused on the time just before and just after she became queen. A very pretty period piece.
Then I decided to call Julie, since I haven't talked to her since last Sunday! She's loving her teaching job, being in charge of 4th graders, and high school PE and health. But she really loves living on her own for the first time! I'm so happy for her! We talked for nearly 45 minutes!
Then I spoke with Meg for a good half-hour. She had a question about me taking wedding pictures for a friend of ours... if it works out. And it was good to chat, as always.
But all this talking ran me out of time for dinner at the galley (darn... heh), so I had a burger at Five Guys, and now I'm having iced tea and a scone at Panera. What a shame... lol
Jp
After that I watched the movie I brought home from the library yesterday, Young Victoria. It was an interesting little film focused on the time just before and just after she became queen. A very pretty period piece.
Then I decided to call Julie, since I haven't talked to her since last Sunday! She's loving her teaching job, being in charge of 4th graders, and high school PE and health. But she really loves living on her own for the first time! I'm so happy for her! We talked for nearly 45 minutes!
Then I spoke with Meg for a good half-hour. She had a question about me taking wedding pictures for a friend of ours... if it works out. And it was good to chat, as always.
But all this talking ran me out of time for dinner at the galley (darn... heh), so I had a burger at Five Guys, and now I'm having iced tea and a scone at Panera. What a shame... lol
Jp
Sunday, August 28, 2011
A Sunday To Remember
Well, I woke up very early... 5:15 to be exact. It's because of that 4 hour nap...
I was hungry, so I decided to go have my usual at Denny's. Except I had yogurt instead of sausage, along with the eggs, toast & oatmeal (unfortunately, they were out of brown sugar, so I used regular sugar). I slept a bit more when I got back to my room, woke up before it was time to go to church, so I started sewing the NAVY patch onto my new coveralls.
Church was wonderful: the pastor was back, he gave a good little sermon about the woman at the well, and then there was a massive feast of spaghetti, pizza, salad & garlic bread afterwords. Apparently, they have a big spread once every few months. I got to visit with a few ladies before I headed back to base.
Finished the NAVY patch, then went volunteering for 3 hours at the library, only doing videos and audio books. From there I had some Chinese for an early dinner, and then went to try and get tickets for Breakfast at Tiffany's at the outdoor theater. But they were sold out... Still in the mood for a movie, I decided to check out Hillcrest Cinemas (where my parents and I saw Jane Eyre) for anything interesting. Midnight in Paris sounded good, but it didn't start for another hour. I went exploring, and found 5th Ave Books... a great used book store that I had noticed while getting to the cinema. It was so organized! And what selection! I used my entire hour there... found a book called Swamp Fox about Gen. Francis Marion, and another book about Narnia... "A Field Guide to Narnia", published in England, and very interesting.
Goodness, the movie was fun! The latest from Woody Allen, and the first movie I really liked Owen Wilson in. :) It was all about nostalgia... a modern-day writer who was in love with the 1920's. It had good things to say about people like that, and was fun to watch. Half-way through I guessed all the plot lines, but that didn't bother me very much at all. The movie opened with a few minutes of classic jazz music and scenes of Paris; I thought, "I'm gonna love this movie." And I did.
The popcorn and lemonade were very good too. :)
Jp
I was hungry, so I decided to go have my usual at Denny's. Except I had yogurt instead of sausage, along with the eggs, toast & oatmeal (unfortunately, they were out of brown sugar, so I used regular sugar). I slept a bit more when I got back to my room, woke up before it was time to go to church, so I started sewing the NAVY patch onto my new coveralls.
Church was wonderful: the pastor was back, he gave a good little sermon about the woman at the well, and then there was a massive feast of spaghetti, pizza, salad & garlic bread afterwords. Apparently, they have a big spread once every few months. I got to visit with a few ladies before I headed back to base.
Finished the NAVY patch, then went volunteering for 3 hours at the library, only doing videos and audio books. From there I had some Chinese for an early dinner, and then went to try and get tickets for Breakfast at Tiffany's at the outdoor theater. But they were sold out... Still in the mood for a movie, I decided to check out Hillcrest Cinemas (where my parents and I saw Jane Eyre) for anything interesting. Midnight in Paris sounded good, but it didn't start for another hour. I went exploring, and found 5th Ave Books... a great used book store that I had noticed while getting to the cinema. It was so organized! And what selection! I used my entire hour there... found a book called Swamp Fox about Gen. Francis Marion, and another book about Narnia... "A Field Guide to Narnia", published in England, and very interesting.
Goodness, the movie was fun! The latest from Woody Allen, and the first movie I really liked Owen Wilson in. :) It was all about nostalgia... a modern-day writer who was in love with the 1920's. It had good things to say about people like that, and was fun to watch. Half-way through I guessed all the plot lines, but that didn't bother me very much at all. The movie opened with a few minutes of classic jazz music and scenes of Paris; I thought, "I'm gonna love this movie." And I did.
The popcorn and lemonade were very good too. :)
Jp
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Evenings This Week
Wednesday, 24th: Duty Day... talked to Andrea Hawkins for a half-hour!!! Wow! And then I finished writing the the thank-you cards for the shower, shined my boots, and something else... too long ago.
Thursday, 25th: went out to Rosecrans to visit "Point Loma Books". Got Winne the Pooh, to read during dinner, and a very nice copy of Virgil's works. Tons of books in there; I'll have to go back, since I didn't get much time before it closed. Had dinner at Miguel's Mexican on Scott Street... I had pollo asado, and liked it better than the same dish at Santa Fe, our favorite back home. Decided I'd like some ice cream, so I stopped in at Cold Stone in Liberty Station for a small of half strawberry, half chocolate cake mix (so thick and good!). From there I thought I'd stop off along the waterway... gosh, was it beautiful! I missed not having a camera! Clouds towered up behind the low-lying, long arched bridge (Harbor Dr.), nearly in a pyramid. The inlet was light turquoise on the ripples and lavender on the calmer parts. The top of the pyramid was lit up with the golden, evening sun, and was reflected in the water. sigh.
Friday, 26th: When I finally got let go from the base, I headed out for dinner. Couldn't stand five more minutes in the galley. I had Georgia's Greek Cuisine, except I tried their chicken & rice soup, and a small Greek salad as well as the gyro sandwich. When I got back to base, the sunset had ignited the western sky, so I decided to drive out to Ocean Beach to watch it go down. Got there just at the end of it, but got a front row seat. Sat in my car and saw the sun melt into the ocean... a few silhouettes of surfers, lovers, and visitors made it particularly nice to look at. Stopped at Stump's Market on the way home; picked up wheat bread and baloney for snacks. I was also able to finish all my laundry... so that was nice.
Thursday, 25th: went out to Rosecrans to visit "Point Loma Books". Got Winne the Pooh, to read during dinner, and a very nice copy of Virgil's works. Tons of books in there; I'll have to go back, since I didn't get much time before it closed. Had dinner at Miguel's Mexican on Scott Street... I had pollo asado, and liked it better than the same dish at Santa Fe, our favorite back home. Decided I'd like some ice cream, so I stopped in at Cold Stone in Liberty Station for a small of half strawberry, half chocolate cake mix (so thick and good!). From there I thought I'd stop off along the waterway... gosh, was it beautiful! I missed not having a camera! Clouds towered up behind the low-lying, long arched bridge (Harbor Dr.), nearly in a pyramid. The inlet was light turquoise on the ripples and lavender on the calmer parts. The top of the pyramid was lit up with the golden, evening sun, and was reflected in the water. sigh.
Friday, 26th: When I finally got let go from the base, I headed out for dinner. Couldn't stand five more minutes in the galley. I had Georgia's Greek Cuisine, except I tried their chicken & rice soup, and a small Greek salad as well as the gyro sandwich. When I got back to base, the sunset had ignited the western sky, so I decided to drive out to Ocean Beach to watch it go down. Got there just at the end of it, but got a front row seat. Sat in my car and saw the sun melt into the ocean... a few silhouettes of surfers, lovers, and visitors made it particularly nice to look at. Stopped at Stump's Market on the way home; picked up wheat bread and baloney for snacks. I was also able to finish all my laundry... so that was nice.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Cars & Keys
Today I did things that I was too slow to do Monday night... when all I could do was sit and watch a bit of Thor and a Bears/Giants game on TV in Lib Hall, besides start the reading in the book A Hole in Our Gospel for the fall study group at the Presbyterian church, starting the 2nd.
I deposited my money in the bank (now I know how much I have!), stopped for treats for dinner at The Tin Fish and Con Pane in Liberty Station (shrimp taco, then a raisin scone and shortbread cookie). I locked my keys in my car back on base when I was getting out to look at my oil; then, thank the Lord, my roommate was still in the room so I could get the backup key without any issue. Decided after that to take it to Jiffy Lube, and they took care of everything while I watched a bit of Hidalgo in their office. Gassed it up at the NEX on my way back to base, then decided to break down and get the car cover online after that (that will help with all the dust, seagulls and sunshine it gets so much of every day).
Yay!
Jp
I deposited my money in the bank (now I know how much I have!), stopped for treats for dinner at The Tin Fish and Con Pane in Liberty Station (shrimp taco, then a raisin scone and shortbread cookie). I locked my keys in my car back on base when I was getting out to look at my oil; then, thank the Lord, my roommate was still in the room so I could get the backup key without any issue. Decided after that to take it to Jiffy Lube, and they took care of everything while I watched a bit of Hidalgo in their office. Gassed it up at the NEX on my way back to base, then decided to break down and get the car cover online after that (that will help with all the dust, seagulls and sunshine it gets so much of every day).
Yay!
Jp
Touch-down, Washington!
It was so good! 15 full days of leave, along with the evening of Friday, August 5th, and the very early morning of Sunday, August 21st. And it was free leave!
My flight on Friday afternoon was a bit delayed leaving San Diego... by an hour or so... so I got cold and wore my sweatshirt until it got a little too warm on the drive home from the airport. Even though delayed, I still was able to transfer to the next plane in San Francisco with just time to use the bathroom and then board with a couple people behind me.
Coming in to Seattle was such a joy! There was a thick layer of clouds surrounding the entire region, and nothing could make me happier! I told myself, "There goes the sun, Little Darling." as we descended into the grey. Such a relief.
It's impossible (and a little undesired) to remember each day with detail. I spent a bunch of time during the second week packing up the things in my room. Since I'm getting married, it seems rather unlikely that I'll want or need my tiny, cute, cluttered (or busily organized) room anymore. I started with taking the patches off my closet curtain and putting them into binders that can be looked at easily. Dad bought a bunch of small Home Depot boxes and those got pretty much filled. I weeded out a bunch of books (I still have 13 boxes of them), and even more junk that I really didn't want. I got $20 cash for the books, and another $20 for a 1943 mortar quadrant at the surplus store (someone had found it somewhere and given it to me). Meg and I went to Half Price Books twice... I found CS Lewis's Abolition of Man, and the WWII story In Harm's Way; the second time I picked up The Rescuers Down Under... which I think I saw in the theater (back in 1990). It was a favorite of mine, since it was all about an eagle.
There were also lots of games of Phase 10 and Backgammon. I went 3 for 9 against Meg in the former. I think my average was better in the latter. And I heartily enjoyed self-cooked breakfasts. There is nothing that can beat scrambled eggs at home, especially when enjoyed along with oatmeal, non-fat milk and fresh, hot toast with butter.
I tried on the wedding dress on Saturday the 6th... Mom only needed to make a few minor adjustments for it to fit perfectly. And Sunday was the Wedding Shower. Julie and Jackie were there first, and Chaya and Andrea also came... making it the first time I had my three best friends from childhood together since I was about 10 or 11 years old. It was a lovely time; Meg and Mom planned the food and games very well. It was snack foods from chips & dip to shrimp & cocktail sauce... and on the question game (Meg asked Mike some questions about himself, and I was supposed to answer correctly during the party - or eat something every time I got one wrong) and I did pretty well, considering the difficulty of the questions. My Aunt Penny and Gramma Payne also came, and I tried on Penny's wedding dress from around 1990... it was fun, but the one Mom made looks so much better on me. I showed off that one too, and I think even Penny agreed.
The biggest surprise, however, was Monday afternoon, the 8th. Mom wasn't feeling good... stomach cramps that could be appendicitis. Meg and Jason picked me up from the recruiter's, and we called the doctor when we found mom worse and lying in bed awake. They suggested coming in, so we drove her to the clinic in Bellevue, just off the freeway. After a few hours (and pain meds, thankfully) they found it was her gallbladder... and that it needed to come out that night. By the time they took her to get ready for surgery, it was time to go pick up Zac from the airport. He had ten days of leave, and that's why I picked these days for mine. Meg, Jason and I got him and continued to downtown Bellevue for the ritualistic "first dinner at Chipotle". Andie, Nathan, the kids and a few of his friends met us there, and it was very good.
Mom's surgery took a little longer than they thought because the gallbladder was so bad. She was still in when we arrived with Zac, Andie & family in tow... but soon in recovery. We eventually did see her for a moment and got her back home the next afternoon.
Since she needed to rest and recover, I and the others got to be more domestic than we'd otherwise be. Dishes and dinners every day! One lunch (Tuesday, when Meg's car broke down when coming to get me from recruiting) I picked up her favorite, almond fried chicken, from Chan's Place (near the shop we dropped her car off at). That was great! Not only that, but that was the day Julie came over again (for about 8 hours!) to talk and play games.
By Friday the 12th, Mom felt good enough to go with me to Fred's to pick out a wedding ring. We went very slow, and it was a good thing they had chairs to sit down on at the counter of the jeweler's. It was Mom's idea (I have no idea about this sort of thing)... a larger ring to exactly match my smaller engagement ring! :)
I went and got take-out from Santa Fe Mexican Grill once, and we ate there again the night before I left. Also had an Outback Steakhouse night with Mom, Dad & Zac the night before he left.
It was simply wonderful to be back at ease and at home. Even though there was lots of craziness, we all enjoyed our time very much. I packed up much of my room and saw my wonderful family for a good, long time.
My flight on Friday afternoon was a bit delayed leaving San Diego... by an hour or so... so I got cold and wore my sweatshirt until it got a little too warm on the drive home from the airport. Even though delayed, I still was able to transfer to the next plane in San Francisco with just time to use the bathroom and then board with a couple people behind me.
Coming in to Seattle was such a joy! There was a thick layer of clouds surrounding the entire region, and nothing could make me happier! I told myself, "There goes the sun, Little Darling." as we descended into the grey. Such a relief.
It's impossible (and a little undesired) to remember each day with detail. I spent a bunch of time during the second week packing up the things in my room. Since I'm getting married, it seems rather unlikely that I'll want or need my tiny, cute, cluttered (or busily organized) room anymore. I started with taking the patches off my closet curtain and putting them into binders that can be looked at easily. Dad bought a bunch of small Home Depot boxes and those got pretty much filled. I weeded out a bunch of books (I still have 13 boxes of them), and even more junk that I really didn't want. I got $20 cash for the books, and another $20 for a 1943 mortar quadrant at the surplus store (someone had found it somewhere and given it to me). Meg and I went to Half Price Books twice... I found CS Lewis's Abolition of Man, and the WWII story In Harm's Way; the second time I picked up The Rescuers Down Under... which I think I saw in the theater (back in 1990). It was a favorite of mine, since it was all about an eagle.
There were also lots of games of Phase 10 and Backgammon. I went 3 for 9 against Meg in the former. I think my average was better in the latter. And I heartily enjoyed self-cooked breakfasts. There is nothing that can beat scrambled eggs at home, especially when enjoyed along with oatmeal, non-fat milk and fresh, hot toast with butter.
I tried on the wedding dress on Saturday the 6th... Mom only needed to make a few minor adjustments for it to fit perfectly. And Sunday was the Wedding Shower. Julie and Jackie were there first, and Chaya and Andrea also came... making it the first time I had my three best friends from childhood together since I was about 10 or 11 years old. It was a lovely time; Meg and Mom planned the food and games very well. It was snack foods from chips & dip to shrimp & cocktail sauce... and on the question game (Meg asked Mike some questions about himself, and I was supposed to answer correctly during the party - or eat something every time I got one wrong) and I did pretty well, considering the difficulty of the questions. My Aunt Penny and Gramma Payne also came, and I tried on Penny's wedding dress from around 1990... it was fun, but the one Mom made looks so much better on me. I showed off that one too, and I think even Penny agreed.
The biggest surprise, however, was Monday afternoon, the 8th. Mom wasn't feeling good... stomach cramps that could be appendicitis. Meg and Jason picked me up from the recruiter's, and we called the doctor when we found mom worse and lying in bed awake. They suggested coming in, so we drove her to the clinic in Bellevue, just off the freeway. After a few hours (and pain meds, thankfully) they found it was her gallbladder... and that it needed to come out that night. By the time they took her to get ready for surgery, it was time to go pick up Zac from the airport. He had ten days of leave, and that's why I picked these days for mine. Meg, Jason and I got him and continued to downtown Bellevue for the ritualistic "first dinner at Chipotle". Andie, Nathan, the kids and a few of his friends met us there, and it was very good.
Mom's surgery took a little longer than they thought because the gallbladder was so bad. She was still in when we arrived with Zac, Andie & family in tow... but soon in recovery. We eventually did see her for a moment and got her back home the next afternoon.
Since she needed to rest and recover, I and the others got to be more domestic than we'd otherwise be. Dishes and dinners every day! One lunch (Tuesday, when Meg's car broke down when coming to get me from recruiting) I picked up her favorite, almond fried chicken, from Chan's Place (near the shop we dropped her car off at). That was great! Not only that, but that was the day Julie came over again (for about 8 hours!) to talk and play games.
By Friday the 12th, Mom felt good enough to go with me to Fred's to pick out a wedding ring. We went very slow, and it was a good thing they had chairs to sit down on at the counter of the jeweler's. It was Mom's idea (I have no idea about this sort of thing)... a larger ring to exactly match my smaller engagement ring! :)
I went and got take-out from Santa Fe Mexican Grill once, and we ate there again the night before I left. Also had an Outback Steakhouse night with Mom, Dad & Zac the night before he left.
It was simply wonderful to be back at ease and at home. Even though there was lots of craziness, we all enjoyed our time very much. I packed up much of my room and saw my wonderful family for a good, long time.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
A Dinner To Remember
On the way home from snorkeling this weekend I saw a sign for "All-you-can-eat Crab" for $29. The idea struck me as a wonderful one... so yesterday I looked it up online, found they had bad reviews. But I found another place with the same price, just across the inlet of the bay from the base!
So I made reservations. I got there right on time, and they gave me the best seat in the house... a horseshoe booth on the far wall, up a bit to look over the people dining at the windows, facing the bay, looking right at downtown San Diego. I had a unique Caesar salad to start... it came out in wedge style, with a slice of Parmesan cheese, a slice of bread (for croutons) and two filleted sardines.
It was Snow crab that took up most of my time. They gave me a huge hunk of very hot sourdough bread, and a cup of sliced potatoes, but I got that to go at the end of the evening. I had three orders of Snow and one of Dungeness. I took about an hour to eat everything... crab cracking taking so long. :) Because this was so good and so crazy, I had peach cobbler to finish it off. LOL! What a night. I won't do this again for a long while!
Jp
So I made reservations. I got there right on time, and they gave me the best seat in the house... a horseshoe booth on the far wall, up a bit to look over the people dining at the windows, facing the bay, looking right at downtown San Diego. I had a unique Caesar salad to start... it came out in wedge style, with a slice of Parmesan cheese, a slice of bread (for croutons) and two filleted sardines.
It was Snow crab that took up most of my time. They gave me a huge hunk of very hot sourdough bread, and a cup of sliced potatoes, but I got that to go at the end of the evening. I had three orders of Snow and one of Dungeness. I took about an hour to eat everything... crab cracking taking so long. :) Because this was so good and so crazy, I had peach cobbler to finish it off. LOL! What a night. I won't do this again for a long while!
Jp
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