Coulee Critters

New Misc Pictures

2009-07-19T08:57:00.001-07:00

My Hanging Tomatoes and Jalepenos

Rudy

Welcome Rudy Anthony Punteney 7-7-09

2009-07-07T18:41:00.000-07:00

Rudy Was born today around 7:30 am Randi had quite the time of it being in labor from Sunday night til this morning. Rudy was 20" long and weighed 7.4oz.

I must say I am quite the proud Popi and being married to a granny isn't all bad!

Memorial Weekend Pictures

2009-05-31T06:39:00.000-07:00

Mothers Day

2009-05-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Mothers Day!

Thanks for all you do!

Pat

New Digs

2009-04-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple Pictures of our new truck and 5th wheel. Tom and Mary helped me get her home. I'm all moved in with lots of Allison's help. It's my new home away from home!

Saturday 4-4-2009

2009-04-04T10:46:00.000-07:00

Thanks foir the Shirt!

Vince & Chris being to serious

Allison, Mark Sauter and Carol Hathaway

Lois Klein, Carol Hathaway, Rich Denman, Deirdre Walker, Rick Pennington, Joan Sauter, Mark Sauter, Me & Mike Hathaway. Everybody else had left.

Me and Madden

Geez, it's been a month since I posted (thats because I use Facebook all the time now). Allison has been here since Tuesday night and we have had a great time and today the weather is finally nice. I had Thursday and Friday off. Today we are doing the wash and cleaning house before Randi and Kauleen come for dinner. Tom and Mary extended there stay for 10 days in Yuma so I have a few more days at the beach.

Dad and Linda sent me a new shirt so I am gonna model it above. I had a bunch of the old high school gang over for dinner and Poker a couple of weeks ago so I am adding a picture of them also.

Talk to ya'll later.

Big Day today 3-4-09

2009-03-04T04:52:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Kauleen!! :-)

These are for Mary so she doesn't miss Midnight

2009-03-03T17:10:00.000-08:00

What a Picture

2009-02-24T16:45:00.001-08:00

Damn he's cute! So is Madden!

Bragging Rights

2009-02-13T08:37:00.000-08:00

I weighed in this morning???

Down another 5 pounds!!!!! 2 years ago I weighed 334 I am now at 232.5. I started this plan through the Clinic on August at 303LBs. I am now at 232.5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Did I say 232.5 Yipeee!!!

I started in a size 46 Jean and am now in 36's

Even with the Superbowl Mary :-) It's ok to eat bacon rolled smokies sometimes!

Pat

Canonica's Super Bowl Birthday Party

2009-02-03T05:07:00.000-08:00

Great Host's, Family and good food!

Happy Monday

2009-02-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

So I'm really writing so I can get that horrible picture off the front of this, hope it works. Thanks for all your notes,calls,etc. Things are going good, the staples out last week and very happy- they pull. No I just walk around like a monkey scratching my belly! I had a very good weekend, and ate too much! It was very relaxing, finally took my Christmas tree down, could finally get into the garage! My house is back to normal, tho the paint is still sitting on the shelf, maybe I will start that in the next couple of weeks. I'm heading over the pass on Friday - can't wait to get out of dodge, haven't been over since October so well over due. I will get to see Randi's belly- and if I'm lucky maybe feel the baby kick- ooooooohhhh that would be so cool. Joe and Bruce came over for dinner tonight, had lots of left over chilli, it was good to visit with them both, seems we are always passing going in or out. Well better get the dishes done so I can watch the Batchelor, hope everyone has a great week.
Allison

Home from The Hospital

2009-01-23T16:35:00.000-08:00

Allison is home and doing great!

Weigh In

2009-01-22T09:32:00.000-08:00

I weighed in this morning and am down 5 more pounds to 237 (started Aust 25th) I was 303 then. September 2006 I weighed 334 so I am almost down 100!! Allison lost 3 more ponds also! WHOO HOOO!

Monday January 19th

2009-01-19T19:18:00.000-08:00

Hey there!

What a gorgeous day in the Northwest! I worked from 10am on without a coat on. Things are going along pretty fine around here. Allison is going in on Friday to have her Gaul blatter removed so I will head home Thursday afternoon. I think I may have the same problem but will put it off as long as I can. It seems to be on of the drawbacks of doing a low fat diet. Allison is down 40 pounds and I am down over 60. I started in a 46 jean and am buying 36's this week? Yippee.

OK just thought I'd check in

Take care

Pat

Punteney, Hetrick, Shelton Christmas Wenatchee 2008

2009-01-03T20:17:00.000-08:00

We had a great time today and a wonderful dinner At LaFuentes

You might Be a Redneck if?

2009-01-03T07:44:00.000-08:00

Pictures from My trip home yesterday

2008-12-29T18:48:00.000-08:00

Chris Canonica requested these.

Christmas 2008 Grand Coulee

2008-12-25T12:58:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas All!

From our warm house to yours!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T12:24:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to all of our friends and family!

Have a safe and happy day

We love you all

Pat and Allison

Tuesday December 23rd

2008-12-23T07:46:00.000-08:00

I suprised Allison and came home yesterday. I asked the boss for the week off because there is just too much snow on the back streets. It is snowing lightly here but there is supposed to be a big storm moving in tonight and tomorrow.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year

Pat and Allison

Remember Last Summer?

2008-12-21T16:53:00.000-08:00

Shaun and Kauleen out for a ride. I was just thinking warm thoughts.

Random Pictures 12-20-08

2008-12-21T08:59:00.000-08:00

Shaun and Madden

Preggo

Kauleen and Braxton

Grandpa

Denise

Snow 2008

2008-12-19T05:39:00.000-08:00

Enough already, These pictures don't show just how much snow there is about 15 inches! The wind blew some drifts yesterday and then another inch last night.

I hate shoveling snow!

Good Sunday Evening

2008-12-14T18:13:00.000-08:00

I made the trek home for the weekend with Jenae and baby Madden, they stayed with grandma and grandpa. Allison made a pot of chili Friday so we had a nice hot meal when we got there. The weather was kinda crappy and snowy so we just took our time getting over Stevens pass. Saturday morning Allison and I got up early and headed to Wenatchee to get our Christmas shopping done we left at about 7:30 shopped til about 1:30 then met John and Pam at our favorite restaurant La Fuentes in Wenatchee then headed home. We got up this morning packed up Picked up Jenae and Madden and headed home. The pass wasn't too bad and we were home in Burlington around 3pm. That's 3 weekends in a row I've been home and will go back for 4 days on Christmas eve. We are gonna have a quiet Christmas at home just Allison and I then we hook up with the kids in Wenatchee to celebrate the weekend after Christmas. Gonna be kinda strange cooking a prime rib for two. Maybe I will have to do a small ham this year. It's supposed to get down to 15 below in Coulee this week burrrr!!!!.

Have a great week

Pat

Merry Christmas

2008-12-07T18:19:00.000-08:00

That sounds weird!

I made the trek home for the weekend to see the Hot Lovely Wife! We went to dinner at the Mexican joint Friday night. Saturday morning we put up the Christmas tree then went to Spokane with Allison's folks. I got my new camera Saturday from the post office and was up early reading the manual. Allison was kind enough to let me bring it over to Randi and Karleen's so I can learn how to use it. I am not stupid but the manual makes me feel that way! I will need to read it a few times I think. Allison went to a scrap booking party this afternoon with some friends after I left. I came home over north cross highway and ran into a little snow, not much traffic and a nice drive. I brought Allison's car over this week and will have it probably until Christmas. Jenae and Madden are going over with me next week. Allison and I are heading in to Wenatchee Saturday morning to do our Christmas shopping and will have an early dinner at our favorite Mexican place La Fuentes before heading home.

Talk to ya'll later

Pat

Happy Monday

2008-12-01T19:32:00.000-08:00

Well Mom is back in the hospital, after an appointment with Dr. Chaffee this afternoon, he just wasn't comfortable with how she was progressing, thinks it was probably a kidney infection, she is retaining fluids, so they did an EKG and have a cath in, and he will run some more tests tomorrow and see if we can get a better idea what is going on.
It was good to have Pat home, although I feel bad I wasn't able to spend more time with him. I appreciate Bobbi, Rich and Crissie coming over and helping getting the house put back in order. I will keep you all posted on what is going on, keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Hope everyone has a good week!
Alli

Sunday November 8th

2008-11-30T20:00:00.000-08:00

Hey All!

I hope everyone had a Great Thanksgiving!

I headed home Wednesday after work, I was in Kirkland so I headed over I-90 and got home in record time. Thursday, Thanksgiving morning Allison got a call from Dick (her dad) saying he was taking Barb (her mom) to the emergency room so Allison went with him and spent a couple hours at the hospital Allison came home while they gave her an IV for fluids. She had a bad urinary infection possibly Kidney infection. Allison came home thinking they were admitting her but she wanted to come home. I put the turkey in around 11:30 for a 3:00 dinner. Dick called around three and said they wouldn’t be there for dinner so Allison made them a couple plates and took them over. We had a nice quiet Dinner then the phone rang, it was Dick, he had fallen asleep downstairs when he went upstairs he heard Barb saying help me!! She had either passed out or fallen in the bathroom and couldn’t get up. Allison got a call from Dick so we ran out the door and over to their house. Allison called 911 and the aid crew came and too Barb to the hospital where she stayed until yesterday. Allison called her sister and brother who both came over on Friday and left today also. I cooked dinner for everyone on Friday evening. Allison spent a few hours helping putting the house back together (but that’s a whole other story). I watched a couple movies on Saturday.
I went to the doctors on Friday and weighed in, I was down another 8 pounds down a total of 58 pounds so far. Friday afternoon we drove up to Omak so I could get some new cloths, I am in a size 28 jean now (I started in a 46) not bad for a fat boy.
I also ordered a new camera Friday (for my Christmas present) Mrs. Claus said I have to wait until Christmas to open it after it comes. It is a Nikon D-60 I can hardly wait. I enjoy taking pictures of the wildlife when I am home so I will need to ramp it up a little.
I think I will go home in a couple of weeks and try and have a nice quite weekend with Allison, she thought we might meet in Wenatchee?? We shall see what the weather has in store.
Randi and Kauleen turned on their lights tonight and are seeking donations of diapers for Basics for Babies at one of the local churches. So if you come to see the lights Bring me a drink and bring diapers for the donation box.
Tis the season
Pat

Can't wait for Wednesday Night

2008-11-24T19:50:00.000-08:00

Pat will be home for 4 whole days! We don't have any plans and maybe just stay around the house, or if we want maybe we will go shopping, whatever we want to do. Really looking foward to spending some time with him.
I took Ryan to Moses Lake on Friday and we met up with DeWayne, she was so excited to see her husband, and he was just as excited. My mom went with me so we did a little shopping, got home about 10:30. I got up on Saturday and started Cricuting, I was expecting my new cartridge (Christmas stuff) so went to the Post Office and it wasn't there, so I just puttered around. Had a very relaxing weekend. Did I tell you Pat is coming home for 4 days! I got my new Cricut cartridge today, so have been going thru all the stuff and cutting them out, so I can see how they all look. Now I can really get going on Christmas cards, it is so much fun. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and enjoy your family and friends, enjoy each moment.
Alli

Thursday Nov 20th

2008-11-20T18:19:00.000-08:00

Thank goodness only one more day at work, this week has gone on forever. Ryan has been with me all week, my mom and dad have been visiting and staying with Ryan while I'm working. We got her staples out today- Thanks to Dr. Chaffee, he was very patient and caring. The plan is to take Ryan to Moses Lake tomorrow night or Saturday morning, she is missing her husband, (I understand that), so DeWayne will meet us there. It has been nice to have someone to talk with when I get home, but will also be nice to have a weekend to myself. Looking forward to working on my Christmas cards, and hoping my new Cricut cartridge comes!! Can't wait!!!
Pat will be coming home on Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, really looking forward to having 4 days together, to do what ever we want to do. He has lost so much weight (48#'s) so far, he is in need of some new clothes, so we will probably take a day and do a little shopping, but that's all our plans, maybe watch some movies if I can remember how to work the DVD player.
Thats about all from here, no snow yet, maybe next week sometime. Will write more later, or maybe Pat will make a post.
Alli

Ryan is Home

2008-11-13T05:22:00.000-08:00

Ryan Came home yesterday! She got released from the hospital around 1pm and she made the trek all the way to Coulee with Allison. She will stay with mom for a while to recuperate (she just has to watch out that the cats don't jump on here belly)!! I am sure she will get bored without DeWayne for a while, but she will soon be teaching Allison to use her Cricut I got her for her birthday!

Get well soon

Love ya

DAD

Happy Birthday Lovely Hot Wife!!!

2008-11-13T05:17:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday my Love!!

Weight Loss

2008-11-13T05:06:00.000-08:00

Some of you are asking how the food plan is going! I would have to say great! I have added a couple of things about diabetes for you all to learn about.

http://diabetesa1c.org/whatis_a1c.html

How to interpret your blood test results
Review your lab test results

http://www.amarillomed.com/howto.htm

My A1c is now at 6%!!!

BLOOD CHEMISTRY>
ME
SODIUM 143 137-145>
POTASSIUM 4.9 3.5-5.1>
CHLORIDE 103 98-107 mEq/L>
CO2 28 22-30>
ANION GAP 17 10-20>
CREATININE 0.8 0.6-1.0>
BUN 13 7-20>
BUN/CR RATIO 17.5 7.0-25.0>
GLUCOSE 93 65-99>
CALCIUM 9.1 8.4-10.2>
CHOLESTEROL 131 <200>

TRIGLYCERIDES 143 < 150 mg/dl

Good Morning

2008-11-12T05:19:00.000-08:00

A Tisket a Tasket a kitty in a basket!

Ryan's Surgery

2008-11-10T18:23:00.000-08:00

Ryan is out of surgery and is recovering tonight in the hospital. She'll be in the hospital probably until Wednesday.

The doctor had to take her right ovary because the cyst was so entangled. The doctor said that her tubes looked good, her uterus looked good. They will send the cyst in for a biopsy, but the doctor does not believe it is cancer.

Allison is planning on staying with Ryan and then taking her back to Grand Coulee for recovery.

She is at Kennewick General Hospital in Room 2233.

Sunday October 12,2008

2008-11-09T04:56:00.000-08:00

Morning All,

It was nice being home for a while! I gave Allison her birthday present early (a Cricut) I didn't know what it was either? Randi told me she would like one, it is for cutting stock and other stuff for making cards and signs. I made big points with this one!!

I went to the doc's yesterday to get blood drawn, have an EKG, blood pressure taken and weigh in, I was down another 15 pounds to 254, I started at 303 on August 25th and am now down almost 50 pounds.

I cooked a Turkey yesterday and had Bill from Spokane and Joe for dinner. Bill taught me to inject the turkey last time he was here and it great. all you do is cook the giblets with onions & celery add some garlic, butter, salt and pepper). You inject the turkey before you cook it, when it is done let it sit 20 minutes and inject it again. It is awesome. I am taking leftovers to Randi and Kauleens to make some turkey soup. Allison is taking some to Ryan and Dewaynes for dinner.

Thats all for now

Pat

ALMOST FRIDAY

2008-11-06T19:38:00.000-08:00

What a week, glad it is almost over. Pat will be heading home for the weekend, looking forward to seeing him, hopefully he won't run into snow!
Ryan will be having surgery on Monday, her CT scan showed a mass the encapsulates her right ovary, so they will forgo the biopsy and just remove it, and biopsy it afterwards. The plan was for my mom and I to go stay Sunday night and be with her for her surgery on Monday and then head home, but best laid plans never seem to work. After Ryan called about the extended surgery I decided that I would take a couple of more days and then bring her back to Coulee with me to re-coup for a few days, and then return her to DeWayne's care. We are very thankful that the US of the mass on her breast was nothing and that when she met with the Dr this time he didn't mention anything about cancer, so we are encouraged. I am looking forward to meeting him and asking all sorts of questions, I'm sure he will want to run after I'm done-- oh well that's why they get paid the big bucks! Keep her and DeWayne in your thoughts and prayers.
I'm sure you have all seen or heard that Randi is finally pregnant- we are all very happy for her and Kauleen. This is a real exciting times in their lives and I know they will be great parents!
Bill Simpson came over on Wednesday to do some hunting and visiting with Joe and I, he surprised us with dinner tonight, what a treat!
Work has been very challenging this week, hopefully things will even out soon, just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. The days go by fast but those phones are driving me nuts, seems like I don't get to finish anything. Oh well life goes on. I have to work this Saturday for three hours, but then looking forward to some quality time with Mr. P.
Hope all is well with one and all, will keep you posted on Ryan's surgery, keep those prayers and positive thoughts coming.
Here's to a good weekend for all, and please let the Seahawks win this weekend, I keep picking them and they keep loosing :-(.
Alli

We're Gonna Be Grand Parents

2008-11-01T04:49:00.000-07:00

I am now offically sleeping with a Grandma! (at least once in a while) Randi and Kauleen found out yesterday they were pregnant.

Yooo Hoooo!

Popi

Good Monday Morning!

2008-10-27T04:49:00.000-07:00

Another week in the books! Allison has been here for a week hanging out with Randi. She bought me a couple of new pair of jeans, my old ones weren't even a month old. I am down to a 40 from a 46 and down 39 pounds. Allison and I got on the Wii Fit the other night and looked like dorks but it was fun. I plan on starting tonight to try and get on it for at least 10 minutes a night. Randi and Kauleen have a treadmill, I need to be on also so I will let you know how that goes next time.

Jeanea, Justine, Allison, Randi, and Kauleen, made Christmas cards Friday night so I got to practice being a good Popi and hold Madden while he went to sleep. I am gonna like being a Gpa!

What a beautiful weekend! Allison left for Ryan and Dewayne's on Saturday morning. I hung out for a while with the girls and watched a move then went and saw my old friends the Hickmans. Meagan was there with Chelsea, what a cutie! Sunday morning we got up and went to Tom and Mary's for pumpkin carving. All the grand kids where there along with all the parents, there were some awesome carvings. We headed home took a nap and that was about it for the day.

I am gonna go Grouse hunting with Uncle Tom next weekend. Ok, we are gonna go for a drive and hope to see a grouse or two. I will head home the weekend of the 8th to celebrate Allisons birthday (lots of candles)! My friend Bill and his boy Kevin will be there for the late deer hunt. Devon was talking about coming over too!! I have to make sure everything is winterized then get an EKG and some blood tests for the food plan! They want to make sure I am in fine shape!! That's about all from here. Have a Happy Halloween!

PS Don't care who you vote for just vote so we can get rid of the stupid ads on TV! Did they ever consider bailing out the banks with campaign money?

Wednesday Oct 22nd

2008-10-22T09:20:00.001-07:00

Pat said it was my turn to blog so here I go. Today our thoughts and prayers are with our daughters.

Ryan is going in for a trans vaginal ultrasound and biopsy of her uterus. She has been having trouble with her periods for some time now and the OB-GYN is concerned. She has had high testosterone levels and only 2 periods in the last 2 years, there is some concern for uterine cancer, but we are all praying for negative results. She will go in at 2 today so keep the good thoughts and love going her way. I will be heading to Kennewick on Saturday to spend three days with her, just some mom and daughter time, I'm really looking forward to it!!

Secondly, Randi is being inseminated today, I will take her to B'ham and will bring her home today, then it is 3-4 days of laying around and not doing very much. Her chances of becoming pregnant are 80% so we are hoping and praying that those little eggs find a nice comfortable nesting place for the next 9 months. They will place 2 fertilized eggs, so Pat has named them PJ and Scooter, we are really hoping they like their new home.

As far as Pat goes, he is still liking his job working as contractor for Verizon, he has been staying with Randi and Kauleen in Burlington. So far so good, we shall see how the weather affects are visiting one another.

I have been on vacation since last Thursday and came over to see Pat, Randi and Kauleen. I have been doing some Christmas card making, shopping, and relaxing. It has been just what the Dr ordered. I will drive to Kennewick on Saturday and finish out my vacation with Ryan, and then Pat will head over to Coulee for the late hunt in November.

Thanks to all for your love and support it is truly appreciated.
Allison

Sunday October 12,2008

2008-10-12T18:31:00.000-07:00

We'll we had a good day of hunting on Saturday over in Coulee even though the whole area we hunt was burned this summer. Bill Simpson got a nice spike on Saturday morning about 9:30 in the morning ( he had a special tag ). Denise and I hung out all morning just watching the viewpont area, we watched some guys shoot and miss a deer then some other guys shot at the deer and missed it! After I went and weighed in at 9am (down 11 pounds in the last 2 weeks) I am now down 35 pounds since August 25th!!! Denise and I went back out to the lower river road around 10 am. Chris called on the radio and said he got a deer on the old ranch road just above Bills old camp site! Just above was about a half a mile mostly up hill. We finally found him and Denise and I drug the deer out te rest of the way. I am getting the deer cut and wrapped because Chris gave me the deer. I only had the weekend off so I didn't get a tag. So I will have nice lean meat to eat for a while. Rob, Joe, Kevin and Bob still have time to get deer. Tom, Denise, Chris and I went for a drive this morning and we saw 2 of the biggest bucks I have ever seen. Last night I had five bucks on the hill behind us. There seems to be lots of deer around and the burned area already has fresh sage growing back. I think we will have a great year next year. We had a big Spaghetti dinner last night and it was great. Bill and Kevin went home today and will be back in November to use Kevin's Doe tag. I hope Rob gets one this week.

Allison is heading over on Thursday and we will go stay and visit with Tom and Mary on Saturday. The girls can do the shopping thing and Tom and I can hang out. It was good to have Tom over and he is doing much better.

I will fill you in on other stuff later.

Pat

Happy Wednesday!

2008-10-08T19:32:00.001-07:00

Well its hump day! All the hunters are getting restless! Dave spent the night last night and headed to Idaho for a little elk and deer hunting. Bill Simpson showed up today and hopes that Kevin his son can make it over on Sunday or Monday work permitting. Chris and Denise will show tomorrow and will be around for the week, Rob will be over Friday night, Tom and Mary are making the trek on Friday!! I am so happy that Tom is feeling good enough to come over if even for a few days, it just wouldn't be the same without him there. Randi, Kauleen and I will be over late Friday and head home on Sunday. Bob Lloyd will come over around the first of the week and stay for a few days. We are short on space this year so it's probably good that I have to work next week.

I have been on the job for almost 2 weeks now and am enjoying it. I have got to see a lot of old friends and stopped in Marysville for a couple drinks with my buddies. My job is handling customer complaints on installs that contractor do and inspecting there work. I start in the morning at Smokey point and end up as far south as Bellevue so I am putting some miles on my truck.

Allison was down another pound this week and I will weigh in on Saturday and have my blood drawn. I am hoping to be down close to 30 pounds.

I got tired of losing money in my retirement account so I pulled it all out and put it in cash today against all the rules. When I called my financial guy this morning he agreed with me and said he was pulling his out of the market today also. I don't trust what is happening with the financial markets and didn't want to loose everything I worked for. I just hope we get back on track soon.

See Randis blog for pictures of our camping trip last weekend! We had a blast (although it was a bit blustery).

Happy Saturday Morning

2008-09-27T05:37:00.000-07:00

Good Morning!

Allison and I went fishing last night down at the river, what a beautiful night! We got down there around 6pm and stayed until almost 9pm. Fishing was slow and I only caught one small fish but it was very relaxing. We are heading to Spokane this morning so Allison and Loni can go shopping, they are going to drop me off at the casino to play in a poker tournament. I will head to Randi and Kauleen's tomorrow and start working for Verizon on Monday. This job is supposed to last for 6 month (we'll see).

Next week Allison will head over on Friday and we have the camp out at Bayview state park. The following week is hunting and I will head home for the weekend of the 11th.

Have a great week!

Wednesday September 24th

2008-09-24T08:14:00.000-07:00

Almost the end of September already? Well we are getting booked for October already. Next weekend is the Riehl camp out in Bayview then we have hunting season then ??? I came over to Tom and Mary's yesterday, Dave, Chris and I are going up the Rich Riehls to get a couple of cord of wood we ordered for Tom. I will head home tomorrow or Friday. I am waiting to hear from Verizon on a contract job today over at Smokey Point. If that doesn't pan out there is a firm that is interviewing me to do a contract at Microsoft, it that doesn't pan out its back to California.

Allison and I are doing good on the food plan she was down 2 pounds and I was down a pound and a half.

Thats all for now

Pat

New Couch

2008-09-15T06:13:00.000-07:00

Good Monday Morning

2008-09-15T05:54:00.000-07:00

Hi All!

Allison and I had a nice weekend at home, working around the house and moving furniture around. Allison bought a new couch and loveseat for the living room. We got rid of our 2 recliners that took up so much room. The couch and love seat each have 2 recliners and are low clearance so they fit right up against the wall. Now we just have to keep the cats from clawing them!

We are doing great on the food plan and will weigh in tomorrow. I don't have to get blood drawn this week, I now go in every 2 weeks. We do have to go and weigh tomorrow. Yesterday we walked down to Dick and Barbs in the morning and picked up a piece of salmon. We BBQ'd some lean pork last night and had Joe, Dick and Barb for dinner.

I have an interview with Verizon today over the phone for a job out of Smokey Point. Wednesday I have to go to Moses Lake to talk to the unemployment folks, I am being audited for the last week of August. I have to apply for three jobs a week which I have been doing. I love the way the state does this, I have to spend 50 bucks on gas to go down and talk to them.
If the Verizon job doesn't pan out its back to California for a while.

I worked on getting my truck winterized last week, washed and waxed with rain-x on the windows, I will start on Allison's car today. We may go fishing when Allison gets off work tonight, we haven't been for months.

That's all for now

Pat and Allison

Tuesday September 8th

2008-09-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

Whats up all!

Allison and I spent Friday through Sunday at Tom and Mary's and the Hospital. I just talked to Mary and Tom is itching to come home but it may be another day I think.

We came home and there was no Grey to be found! Joe said he came over to check on the cats Saturday and the back door was open. I woke up at 2:30am and after about 15 minutes I heard her at the back door. I thought she was a goner.

Allison and I are doing great on the food plan! Allison and I had to both get blood drawn this morning and she is down about 10 pounds and I am down 20!!! My blood sugar is down to perfect the doctor said and cut my diabetes medicine in half last Thursday.

Talk to y'all later

Pat

Whats UP?

2008-09-04T10:03:00.000-07:00

Hey Y'all!

Today is Thursday September 4Th. and all is well here. Allison and I have been on our food plan for over a week now and are doing great. We are eating healthy and have lost some weight and inches. My blood sugars have dropped to normal and I hope to get off some medications soon. I go into the doc today for a checkup. Not only do I have to check my blood 4 times a day I have to go in and get a blood draw weekly.

Allison and I are gonna go to Tom and Mary's for the weekend and be with them for Tom's surgery tomorrow. I will have my laptop with me so if you want to send an email and see how he's doing either Allison or I will respond.

I have my Turkey hats now so if you want one send me $12 bucks plus $4.80 for shipping or come get it.

Take care

Happy Labor Day!!

2008-09-01T07:03:00.001-07:00

Hi all!

Allison and I are at Tom and Mary's this weekend visiting and hanging out. We went to the Casino on Saturday and donated.. Yesterday Allison and I ran to Walmart and Home Depot to get a couple of things one item is a light to hang on the new power post. Now when Anyone goes up to Randi and Kauleens at night the hill should be somewhat lit up. We met Deb and Jerry at the Farmers Market in Everett yesterday afternoon. I bought some apple peppers to stuff with chicken (they are supposed to be sweet). I bought some other large peppers that should be sweet. I also bought some Mahi Mahi 4 oz pieces. We went out to dinner last night with Frank Veronica and the kids including Chelsea, Sam and Mary's Mom. We went to Romeos on Colby, very nice place and good food. Allison and I each had a salad and split a Chicken Parmesan. Frank and Veronica are leaving Tuesday for North Carolina for a Non-schooler convention and Ronnie is one of the speakers. They will then head for Italy for a vacation.

Allison and I will head home this morning and get ready for the return visit to Marysville. We will come over Thursday when she gets off work to be in Everett with Mary when Tom has surgery on Friday at 5:30am. I know everything will work out just fine but please keep Tom & Mary in your thoughts and prayers.

Allison and I are doing great on the food plan. My blood sugars are almost perfect after being on the plan for just 1 week. We are still eating less than 1000 calories a day and are not hungry. I go in tomorrow for my weekly blood test and see the doc on Thursday (I know he'll be happy).

Thats all for now folks!!!

I can't believe it's Labor Day

2008-08-29T06:16:00.000-07:00

Is it Labor day already? Allison and I are heading over to Tom and Mary's for the weekend for a little R&R. We will leave when Allison gets off work at 5:30 so we will get over later. I am gonna spend today cleaning the car and getting the post in for the power. I put up a piece of angle iron yesterday to hold the post. Next year when you come to visit you will have a plug in for your trailer.

My Turkey hats shipped on Monday so they should be here any day!!

Allison and I have been on the eating plan for a week and it has been good so far. I have been to the clinic every day to pee in a cup to check my keytones and they have been good.

We finally have tomatoes! I have eaten fresh tomatoes all week (its about time).

Hope everybody has a safe and wonderful Holiday!

Pat

Happy Monday

2008-08-25T19:37:00.000-07:00

Well we started our food plan today. I had to go get an EKG and will get blood tests weekly, I also have to go in the next 3 days and pee in a cup. This plan is monitored pretty good. I had a protein drink for Breakfast and one for lunch then we had 3 oz of chicken, 1/2 cup salad and a 1/2 cup of green beans plus 64 Oz's of water a day. That's what it will be like for 12 weeks. So far so good.

I have decided to go to work for Verizon over on the coast. I am tired of traveling to California and things have been winding down a bit. I have gotten a couple calls in the last few weeks asking me to do some inspecting so I told them today I would take the job. It is supposed to last 6 months but we shall see. I will stay with Kauleen and Randi and Allison and I will take turns making the trip over the pass on the weekends. I should start sometime in September.

Allison wants me to paint the living room ands kitchen so I guess I will buy paint tomorrow. We are still not sure whats going on this weekend, I'll keep you posted.

Pat

Happy Thursday!

2008-08-14T05:12:00.000-07:00

Well its good to be home for a while! I think I have a month off, we shall see. I actually came home Tuesday, on Monday I was finishing my class when I received a call saying my Tue, Wed, thur class had been cancelled! I booked a flight home and was her by 2:30 on Tuesday. I have been doing some small chores around here, spraying weeds, ordered ten yards of gravel for the driveway. Had Ken come over from Kens auto glass come over and get the number off my windshield (I am getting a new one) I have been putting it off but my windshield now has a 2 foot crack.

I am not sure who was more surprised yesterday I walked out side and Chris, Denise, Megan and Madison pulled in. They were going to say hi to Joe and looked over and say me, we booth kind of said what are you doing here?? Chris pulled some muscles in his back and is off so the came over here. We had a nice pot luck BBQ last night and are going swimming at 1:00 today (I wish Allison didn't have to work).

Allison and I are going to Kennewick tomorrow when she gets off work to help with Ryan and Dewayne's garage sale on Saturday, Randi and Kauleen will meet us there also. Should be fun and I will see if I can sell some tee shirts.

Allison and I are starting a new weight loss program (kind of a trial thru the clinic) It is quite a big deal from what I have read I will have to see the doctor on a weekly basis or maybe the Nurse will do. from what I have read they want someone my size to loose 3 lbs a week for 25 weeks?? We will have to see how this plays out. I am looking forward to it (I like structure).

OK that's about it for now

Pat

Sunny Morning

2008-08-12T07:50:00.000-07:00

Good morning from Grand Coulee, it is a beautiful morning, not to hot, no smoke this morning, suppose to be a great day. Pat surprised me and is coming home three days early, his class got cancelled so will be home today. My aunt and cousin are here from Seattle and Olympia, so had dinner last night with mom and dad and relatives. It was great to see them, and good to talk with cousin about aging parents. I had a very relaxing weekend, Lani and I went into Moses Lake on Saturday to do some shopping, were home by 5. Sunday I got up cleaned the house, went to the laundromat and washed my big rugs ( Mary you were right) they wouldn't fit in my washer.
Some of you know that we have been having trouble with our tomatoes, first Pat had purchased some seeds from TV that were suppose to grow 60#'s of tomatoes on one plant. Well the seeds arrived, I planted in the special soil and put them outside to start growing. Well we had a torrential downpour and when I got home all the seeds and soil were swimming. I did my best to drain off the excess water and decided I better bring them inside and put them on the kitchen table. I was so excited when I started seeing green starts. I watered carefully and watched them grow to about 1", I was waiting for the weekend to plant them. Came home from work and the plants had been eaten, but my cats! So then covered them and only a few survived and once again the cats ate them. Sooooooo, I finally asked Randi and Kauleen to pick up a couple of tomato plants for me and I would pick up on the 4th of July. They were beautiful plants, I got home from the 4th planted 4 plants in large pots they were beautiful. Well the wind came up very strong and they were getting battered so I moved them out on the back deck, hopefully keeping them a little out of the wind. When I woke up the next morning I had tomato leaves in nice piles on the deck, it was so weird, they were laid out so nice and neat. I didn't do anything with the stuff on the deck, and woke up the next morning with all the leaves gone. I then moved the plants out to the picnic table and thought that would work fine. Well it worked for a while and then Pat thought we should tie them up to the fence along the deck, so we moved them again and lo and behold nice piles of leaves on the ground. Pat was surprised so he thought well I'll fix this and got some chicken wire and wrapped it around the plants. We have tomatoes but nothing red yet. I got up this morning and more leaves on the ground, they open the fence and snuck in. If we ever get ripe tomatoes it will be a miracle!!!
We are heading to Pasco this weekend and helping Ryan and DeWayne with a garage sale, Randi and Kauleen should be over too, it will be fun, and make some extra money too.
Well enough rambling, gotta get ready for work. Hope everyone has a good day.
Alli

Nespelem Fire Now 35 Square Miles

2008-08-11T05:02:00.000-07:00

Now that fire took our Hunting area it might as well take the fishing area also! OK, It Did!

UPDATE: Sunday, 12:30 p.m.
A wildfire that began at 3 a.m. Thursday has grown to almost 35 square miles and continues to threaten about 20 homes and 40 outbuildings on the Colville Indian Reservation.
The blaze grew Saturday by more than 6 square miles. But fire information officer Karen Ripley reported Sunday that nearly 500 firefighters made significant progress Saturday securing containment lines around the Columbia River Road Fire. She estimates the blaze was 15 percent contained.
Ripley says the firefighters have been aided by cooler temperatures and scattered showers Saturday. The weather was in the
70s Sunday.
The firefighters were supported by water drops from three helicopters and air tankers dropping water and fire retardant.
Ripley says bulldozers have cut fire lines around the threatened homes and outbuildings, and their roofs have been watered down.
Fire lines surrounding the Whitmore Lookout have been reinforced and the lookout is now being protected by fire engines. The lookout
was threatened by the fire Friday and Saturday.
The fire has been burning through steep, rocky terrain since Thursday, burning through grass, sage and ponderosa pine forests
nine miles northwest of Nespelem (nez-PEE'-luhm). Ripley says the cause of the blaze is under investigation.

Not Again!

2008-08-07T21:16:00.000-07:00

Breaking News
WILDFIRE BURNS 5000 ACRES - A wildfire near Nespelem, WA in Okanogan County has grown to 5000 acres. Firefighters from the Colville Tribe and Dept. of Natural Resources are battling the fire. Stay with KREM 2 NEWS and KREM.com for updates.

Coulee Fire

2008-08-03T13:08:00.000-07:00

Allison and I took a drive and were amazed how big the fire was, it is estimated at 13,000 acres. It goes from about where Chris got his deer last year all the way down to about Nespelum. All of robs favorite spot is burned. The fire crews are still out putting out hotspots. I hope we get some rain before hunting? Here are a few pictures.

Coulee Fire

2008-08-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

Breaking News
WILDFIRE NEAR GRAND COULEE NOW 1000 ACRES - A wildfire west of Grand Coulee, WA has grown to 1000 acres and forced 24 people to evacuate. State assistance is being called in. More details shortly...

Guy's

This is where we hunt!!!

Pictures later

It's Friday

2008-08-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

Yup it is!

I had a good week here in Alhambra, The supervisor of the techs I had in class today called and had me send all of the techs back to their yard because the loads where heavy, they left at 8:00 this morning so I did some lab maintenance till about 1:00 got some lunch, came to the Motel and took a nap. I am staying in Arcadia a beautiful town (kinda yuppie) of course I fit right in :-) I had quite a few Verizon techs here in the Hotel this week training for FIOS, Verizon has a training center in Monrovia not to far from here.

While spending time in Motels I have time to think, so this week I thought about what my Grand Kids will call me? Too many papa's out there, so I will be "POPI", Any questions? Now all we need is the Grand kids!

Allison is riding into Spokane with Joan (Chris and Denise's neighbor) tomorrow and will meet me at the airport. We are going to hang out maybe do some shopping. Maybe a quick stop at the casino then home for 4 1/2 days. I go to Sacramento on Wednesday. Currently I am off the schedule after that.

My "Save a Bee Eat Your Honey" shirts ship on Monday I am taking orders now $12.00 All sizes for friends and Family. Great gift for anybody you know that is into Bee's. Or just likes Wacky Shirts! The Turkey hats will be here towards the end of August.

Thats all for now!

Have a great Weekend

Yup I survived

2008-07-29T18:44:00.000-07:00

Just in case you were concerned?? My kids did call!! I got jolted in the earthquake to day (5.4). It hit around 11:20, the first jolt felt like someone hit our building with a big truck, then we got the rollers and they hit pretty hard. I felt 2 aftershocks. But safe and sound!

Pat

Great Weekend

2008-07-28T06:40:00.000-07:00

Hi All!

We had a great weekend with family and friends. I have added some pictures for your viewing pleasure. Shaun, Jeanea, Mia, Mason and Baby Madden were here along with Bobbi, Rand Kauleen, Chris, Denise, Chelsey, Megan, and Madison.

I am off to California this morning and will be back next Saturday.

Pat

Thursday, July 24th.

2008-07-24T04:42:00.000-07:00

Yea its Thursday!

I am headed home for 3 days, I will awake at 3:30 am and head to the airport for a 6am flight. I need to return my rental car and all that. I will be in Spokane by 9am. Joe is picking me up because Allison is working. I get home by 11:30 do a load of wash say and hopefully relax for a couple of hours. Chris and Denise have been at there place all week and are coming over for a BBQ at 6. Shaun and Jeanea got there yesterday around 6pm and I think are heading home on Sunday. Shaun has been off on maternity leave since the baby (Madden) was born on May 28th., he goes back to work n Monday. I was hoping Ryan and Dewayne could come up but or Butt that is out now, Ryan has a Colan thing on Monday. Gonna have a big steak, Watermelon and Mac salad! I haven't had a steak in a couple of months. I am hoping for Spaghetti on Saturday. I head to Alhambra in Southern Cal on Monday for 4 days then come home until Wednesday the 6th. I go to Sacramento for a 2 classes and then come home the 14th at midnight. I am not on the schedule after that so I am hoping for some down time and fishing!! I was offered a 6 month stint at Verizon a couple of days ago and am waiting to hear more on that, we'll see. It is on the west side and I would have to pay my expenses to live over there.

OK gotta go set up a couple computers! Talk to you all later!

P.S. I haven't had anyone jumping out of their chairs about my shirts!

Pat

Good Sunday Afternoon

2008-07-20T19:22:00.000-07:00

Hi All!!!

I have a rough start to my web site.

www.gobblehappens.com

Check it out.

Pat

It's Friday

2008-07-18T22:50:00.000-07:00

Wow a whole week is gone! This was a long week! On Monday Loni and I taught a new class called CONNECTECH and thought everything was great until Wednesday and we had some computer problems. We made it through the day and I started a new class on Thursday. These are 3 day classes so I will finish this class on Monday and start a new one on Tuesday. I will come home Friday but have been scheduled for two 2-day VOIP classes in Alhambra (where ever the hell that is) on Tuesday the 29th. I will come home Saturday the 2nd and return to Sacramento on the 6th. for about a week. Nothing after that so far. I have set up a BBQ on Friday when I get home at 6pm. Chris and Denise will be heading over tomorrow and will be at their place from Sunday until Saturday the 26th. Shaun and Jeane are coming over Possibly Wednesday or Thursday of this week for the weekend and Randi and Kauleen will be here Friday night. We are running out of room and I am not even home yet! Allison is gonna make her famous Macaroni Salad and we are gonna get some watermelon. Bring your own steak and I will have the BBQ going. I am ready!!!

Allison's new kitchen cabinet has been in the garage for a month so I will try to get it set in my short stint home. Maybe with Shauns help?

I am in the process of ordering 100 tee shirts for my new sideline business Aunt Debi did the art work for me. I will attach her skecth for you all to see. I hope to get a web site started when I get some time off. Send me your tee shirt Ideas If I use your idea I will send you a couple shirts. This shirt will say "Save a bee eat your honey" I will sell them to family and friends for $12 otherwise they will be $15. I will be contacting bee keepers of course!

OK thats about all for now, have a good weekend and I will talk to you all later!

Peace love and a tank of gas!

A day of shopping

2008-07-12T22:38:00.000-07:00

Lani, Melissa and I went into Wenatchee today to pick up a few things, funny how the trunk was full!! They have quite a fire all the way from Orondo to almost town, and it was still burning. Bless Melissa's heart for driving so I could watch the helicopters getting water from Lake Entiat.
It was a very enjoyable day and I have found another person who thinks LaFuente is the best!
Tomorrow it is to the beach with a bunch of people from work and a day of sunshine-yeeehhaa!
Will write more later.
Alli

Saturday Night

2008-07-12T22:34:00.001-07:00

Hi All!

I just got done testing my web cam with Allison and Randi. I have had this computer for a year and have never used it before. So, if you have windows messenger you can see me when we talk. Or you can download it. Mary I think you have a web cam in yours?
Allison should get her new laptop next week, I hope it has a web cam?

So, I drove to Sacramento today from San Jose in my Mustang, it took about an hour and a half. I got here about 1:00 had some Chinese food across the street and did nothing but took a 3 hour nap. Woke up at 6:00 and then played with the web cam.

Allison said the fire in Wenatchee was pretty bad from east Wenatchee all the way up to and past Orondo on the east side of the highway.

OK I gotta get to bed doing wash in the morning, going in to set up Mondays class with Loni the at&t career instructor at nine and hope to be home for another good nap.

I expect to hear from some of you that you have your windows messenger up and working soon.

Pat

Allison Learns to Blog

2008-07-11T19:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, for those of you who care, I finally know how to do this. Pat has been the main blogger in the family but with us living apart so much, thought I could add my own notes.
It is finally Friday and it was a long week! Monday I went to a friends house to watch the final Bachlorette, we were all bummed that she didn't chose Jason (he was from Kirkland, WA) and very cute and sincere. Got home about 10ish then up to work on Tuesday and had to clean house, couldn't stand it a minute longer, vaccuum dust, laundry. I haven't been home for a while so haven't had time. Wednesday we celebrated my Dad's 76th birthday with dinner at Elmer's, their next door neighbors house, very pleasant. Thursday it was pretty laid back, but didn't want to get out of bed this morning, even slept in by an hour, then was tired all day! The plan for this weekend is: Wenatchee tomorrow afternoon with a couple of girls from work, and then Sunday a day at the beach soaking up the sun and hopefully doing some swimming. It will be my first time to the beach so far this year, and my tan from Cabo is long gone.
Denise wanted the broccoli salad reciepe so here it is:
4 cups Chopped Broccoli
1/2 # bacon crip
1/2 cup Raisins
1/2 Sunflower seeds
1 small Red Onion chopped
Dressing:
1 cup mayo
2 Tablespoons vinegar
2 Tablespoons sugar
I add and taste and add and taste the dressing until it is what I like---Enjoy

Okay that was my week, so now I can go to bed, hope you all have a good weekend, hopefully it goes by really slow.

Alli

New Schedule

2008-07-11T05:46:00.000-07:00

I can't keep up with all the changes! I looked at my schedule yesterday morning, I will be staying for a couple more weeks and hope to be home on the 25th??? I made a flight reservation for then at least?? I will drive to Sacramento on Saturday from San Jose (in my Mustang). One of the perks of renting cars is driving cars I think I would like. Anyway, I will be teaching this new class for 3 weeks in Sacramento then hope to come home?? We have been cut short on instructors because Verizon has taken some for training and at&t instructors are taking vacations?? Whats with that? I have been called at least 3 times this year to work for Verizon but like this gig for now. My friend Ted, Who took my job when I left is now the Northwest FIOS Manager and sent me a note last week saying he may have a contract job in the fall, more to come!

Pat

Whats New?

2008-07-10T06:36:00.000-07:00

Well not much! Work, Work, Work, Allison has been busy every weekend starting a few weeks ago getting ready for the garage sale. Working full time and keeping things in order at home while I am gone. I flew home for for the 4th and had a great time at Tom and Mary's as usual! Allison picked me up in Spokane on Wednesday the 2nd at 10pm so we didn't get home until midnight, she went to work all day while I did my wash and washed her car. I picked her up at 4 and we headed over North Cross Highway. Great drive, it has been a while since we have been that way (of course we stopped for a cone in Winthrop). Stayed at Randi and Kauleens then got up early to go get oysters, both Taylors and Blau's were closed??? I had called and asked if Taylors was open, don't know what happened. Danny and Terry my friends that work there called Allison last night and said they were coming over fishing today and were bringing oysters, this is the second time they have come over and I wasn't home to enjoy fresh oysters. We had dinner on the 6th with Shaun and Jeanea and the kids at Randi and Kauleens, good to see them and the new little one (Madden). Shaun called Judd because he knows someone that raises asparagus, he ordered 5 cases so I will have to come home for a weekend to do some canning with Shaun.

I am in San Jose learning a new class this week. It looks like I will be the back up for the at&t instructor in Sacramento. I will co-teach with her next week then she is on vacation the following week and I will teach the class. It is pretty techy for me, teaching techs how to configure file and print sharing and building home networks along with hooking up devices. I finally have the pinging down pretty good!! The nice thing is it is a 3 day class so I will fly home next Thursday and leave Sunday, work Monday thru Wednesday and come home again. Not a bad schedule.

We'll I better get ready for work. I am going to teach Allison how to post on the blog so it gets updated more regularly. She is walking to work this am with Tamera so I don't know if she will want to learn tonight?? I am not sure how she is getting home.

Check out Cori's Story's I fixed my link!

PP

Reno Here we Come!

2008-06-24T17:14:00.000-07:00

Wow it's Tuesday already!

I had a little change of plans yesterday. I was asked to work next week. I think training may be winding down for a while so I said yes. I will leave Reno Sunday night now instead of flying home with Allison. I will work in Sacramento doing lab prep for a new class with another instructor. I will fly into Seattle Thursday the 3rd around 6pm, Randi and Kauleen will pick me up we should get to Burlington a little before Allison gets there. Friday morning I am going to try and get some oysters from Taylor United and be to Tom and Marys around noon. I am keeping my fingers crossed I have the week after the 4th off. See ya all Friday!!!

Happy Friday Morning!

2008-06-20T05:09:00.001-07:00

Yea it's Friday!

It's been really hot down here in San Ramon (I just wish the air conditioning worked in my class), it's bee in the 90's all week. On Monday I started at 7:30 with a class of prem techs then was asked to teach managers upstairs. What a nice change of pace, the managers all want to leave at 3:30 and bonus! today they want to leave by 1:30!!! I can't let techs go early but I can let managers go. I will take some bagels and cream cheese in for them this morning. Allison spent Wednesday down at the hospital with Ryan then took her home yesterday. She has an infection in her mouth?? Ask Allison I don't always get medical stuff.

Can't wait to be in Reno next Friday!!!! Think big bucks!!!

I thought I would share some stats with you today.

Year to date flights Spokane to Seattle counts.

37

Miles 24,869

Nights in Hotel (not counting Cabo) 84

Weeks away from home 15 out of 25 (22 counting Cabo)

That's all for Friday!

Pat

Happy Sunday!

2008-06-15T07:02:00.000-07:00

YUP its Fathers day and John Tenny's Birthday!! Allison and I went to the Coeur D' Alene Casino yesterday and I won a nice jackpot they took a third out for taxes (my way of saving money). Anyway we had a good time! OK, OK, I was playing a machine that would take 3.00 and I was only playing a dollar and by the way I was down to literally my last 5 cents! It came up with 5 of the kings. I thought it was 250 dollars until I started adding zeros it was $2500.00 after taxes 1800 I had the hold 30%. We are gonna do wash have a good breakfast and back on the plane at 11:30, airport at 10am.

HAVE A GREAT FATHERS DAY!!!

Pat and Allison

Hooray for Hump Day!

2008-06-11T05:32:00.000-07:00

I am so glad this week is half over. The weather has been great in Sacramento, 87 on Saturday when I got here and in the high 90s this week with a nice breeze most days. I deceided to fly to Spokane on Saturday and Meet Allison for the weekend. We will probably head to the Couer D' Alene Casino then back to Spokane to do laundry and fly back out on Sunday around noon. The older I get the more I hate business travel. Two more weeks and I get to see everybody again.

Allisons garage sale was a huge success! Almost everything sold (except the kitchen cabinets) if you need some for your garage call me!

I am attaching my sample hat that is being made.

Have a great day!

Pat

Good Sunday Morning

2008-06-08T06:39:00.001-07:00

Well it was a good week in San Leandro, I had a great bunch of students (except one). I worked the 6am to 2:30 shift all week. I drove to Sacramento yesterday and have a class here for a week then will spend 2 weeks in San Ramon by the Bay area. Allison spent the last 2 days holding a big garage sale. Sounds like just about everything went (except the old kitchen cabinets I paid $450 for, so if anybody would like them call me I will let them go for $200. We will finally have some room in our tiny garage. Allison has been fighting a cold and ear infection so will spend today to rest up. Mike, Bobbi, Crissy, and the kids were in Coulee for the weekend helping. Can't wait for the trip to Reno at the end of the month!!! It looks like it will be a 2 1/2 hour drive on mapquest but I have been told on a Friday night it may take up to 5 hours yuk! OK another boring day in a Hotel! Talk to you all later.

Pat

Back On the Road

2008-06-01T05:34:00.000-07:00

What a busy week! Memorial day was GREAT! Allison and I enjoy all the kids around. Allison like others in this big extended family plans ahead for the kids, colored chalk for the foundation, The Squirt Guns were a big hit. I am not sure what Spencer and Maddy had in theirs sometimes? We had a nice crowd, good food and a little poker. Thanks to all that came and all that contributed! Tom and I mixed up some pretty good Margaritas and will keep working on our recipe!

Allison and I worked in the garage all week getting ready for her big garage sale next Friday and Saturday. Yesterday we cleaned out the whole garage and filled half the dumpster. Everything is priced and ready to go. I have a brand new set of Wilson Pro Staffs with graphite shafts I am letting go for $150 if anybody wants a good set of clubs (its a steal)! I am also selling my Ibenez Purple electric guitar and case for $200??? Don't worry I still have two guitars left, we of course need all the room we can get.

We went up to the big town of Mansfield yesterday to a graduation party for Pete Simas daughter. Pete was one of my Local Managers in Wenatchee. Pete's daughter was one of the 5 in the graduating class (that's right only 5). Pete is on the school board and got to hand his daughter her diploma. Krisyln scooped up all of the scholarships to the tune of $10,400 enough to pay her first year at Wenatcee Valley College. We got to see lots of friends like John and Pam and Greg and Karen Wegner, I am glad we made it.

We are heading out this morning for Spokane to stop by the casino for a couple hours before I head to California once again. I will be in Oakland (San Leandro) next week 6am to 2:30 class. Then Sacramento for a week then off to San Ramon for 2 weeks. On Friday the 27th. I am driving to Reno to meet Allison and Tom and Mary for the weekend. Looks like Marys Daughter Lynn may join us with her little boy. Should be a great weekend! Flights are tough to get to Reno these days. Allison could either get in at 11:20PM or leave at 6AM fly to LA wait 3 hours and get to Reno by 1PM. She opted for the 6am flight. She can take a nap and wait for me!! It should take about 3 1/2 hours for me to get there (who knows on a Friday night) I have been told I-80 is packed on Friday nights. Allison and I will fly home together on Monday, (I have the week of the 4th off). So We will be seeing you all at Tom and Mary's on the 4th.

Dad and Linda are making a trip out on around the 14th of July. Sounds like the Storms and Tornado's are driving them crazy. The big one a week ago was only 30-40 miles away and was pretty devastating.

Talk to you all soon!

Pat and Allison

Happy Friday

2008-05-16T17:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday Everyone!

I am sitting in San Jose this week it as been over 100 degrees the last few days and we have had no air conditioning in our classroom YUK! I will be in San Leandro next week by Oakland then Home for memorial week. I changed my flight to come home on Saturday and should stroll in around noon. I am hoping as always that the weather holds up for us. Allison is heading in to Costco in Wenatchee tomorrow to get all the Spaghetti fixins for Sunday. Can't wait to see everyone and maybe play a little poker tournament (maybe)??

See ya soon!

Pat

Monday May 5th

2008-05-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

Hey All!

Whats new? Not sure? I came home Saturday from San Ramon (by Oakland) Got home around 12:30 and we were off and running. By the way I flew first class for the first time ever!! It was nice and only cost 10,000 miles. I have 140k so I won't miss them. We went to Chris and Denise's for a BBQ and had a great dinner. Allison works with their neighbor who has horses, while we were there her daughter fell off her horse so Allison ended up running her to the hospital. I left after desert of course. After we left the hospital ( she had a dislocated elbow) we made an appearance at another BBQ. Sunday we went fishing and had fun. Today I worked on taking part of the fence down to repair it. I applied for my Trademark, I will attach my sample. I tested a chicken rub I made today. Now it is relax time. Talk to you soon.

The Folded Napkin

2008-05-01T18:22:00.000-07:00

A Truckers Story
If this doesn't light your fire ... your wood is wet!
I try not to be biased, but I had my doubts about hiring Stevie. His placement counselor assured me that he would be a good, reliable busboy.
But I had never had a handicapped employee and wasn't sure I wanted one. I wasn't sure how my customers would react to Stevie.
He was short, a little dumpy with the smooth facial features and thick-tongued speech of Downs Syndrome. I wa sn't worried about most of my trucker customers because truckers don't generally care who buses tables as long as the meatloaf platter is good and the pies are homemade.
The four-wheeler drivers were the ones who concerned me; the mouthy college kids traveling to school; the yuppie snobs who secretly polish their silverware with their napkins for fear of catching some dreaded 'truck stop germ' the pairs of white-shirted business men on expense accounts who think every t ruck stop waitress wants to be flirted with. I knew those people would be uncomfortable around Stevie so I closely watched him for the first few weeks.
I shouldn't have worried. After the first week, Stevie had my staff wrapped around his stubby little finger, and within a month my truck regulars had adopted him as their official truck stop mascot.
After that, I really didn't care what the rest of the customers thought of him. He was like a 21-year-old kid in blue jeans and N ikes, eager to laugh and eager to please, but fierce in his attention to his duties. Every salt and pepper shaker was exactly in its place, not a bread crumb or coffee spill was visible when Stevie got done with the table. Our only problem was persuading him to wait to clean a table until after the customers were finished. He would hover in the background, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, scanning the dining room until a table was empty. Then he would scurry to the empty table and carefully bus dishes and glasses onto his cart and meticulously wipe the table up with a practiced flourish of his rag. If he thought a customer was watching, his brow would pucker with added concentration. He took pride in doing his job exactly right, and you had to love how hard he tried to please each and every person he met.
Over time, we learned that he lived with his mother, a widow who was disabled after repeated surgeries for cancer. They lived on their Social Security benefits in public housing two miles from the truck stop. Their social worker, who stopped to check on him every so often, admitted they had fallen between the cracks. Money was tight, and what I paid him was probably the difference between them being able to live together and Stevie being sent to a group home. That's why the restaurant was a gloomy place that morning last August, the first morning in three years that Stevie missed work.
He was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester getting a new valve or something put in his heart. His social worker said that people with Downs Syndrome often have heart problems at an early age so this wasn't unexpected, and there was a good chance he would come through the surgery in good shape and be back at work in a few months.
A ripple of excitement ran through the staff later that morning when word came that he was out of surgery, in recovery, and doing fine.
Frannie, the head waitress, let out a war hoop and did a little dance in the aisle when she heard the good news.
Marvin Ringers, one of our regular trucker customers, stared at the sight of this 50-year-old grandmother of four doing a victory shimmy beside his table
Franni e blushed, smoothed her apron and shot Marvin a withering look.
He grinned. 'OK, Frannie, what was that all about?' he asked.
'We just got word that Stevie is out of surgery and going to be okay.'
'I was wondering where he was. I had a new joke to tell him. What was the surgery about?'
he is Frannie quickly told Marvin and the other two drivers sitting at his booth about Stevie's surgery, then sighed: ' Yeah, I'm glad going to be OK,' s he said. 'But I don't know how he and his Mom are going to handle all the bills. From what I hear, they're barely getting by as it is.' Marvin nodded thoughtfully, and Frannie hurried off to wait on the rest of her tables. Since I hadn't had time to round up a busboy to replace Stevie and really didn't want to replace him, the girls were busing their own tables that day until we decided what to do.
After the morning rush, Frannie walked into my office. She had a couple of paper napkins in her hand and a funny look on her face.
'What's up?' I asked.
'I didn't get that table where Marvin and his friends were sitting cleared off after they left, and P ete and Tony were sitting there when I got back to clean it off,' she said. 'This was folded and tucked under a coffee cup'
She handed the napkin to me, and three $20 bills fell onto my desk when I opened it. On the outside, in big, bold letters, was printed 'Something For Stevie.'
'Pete asked me what that was all about,' she said, 'so I told him about Stevie and his Mom and everything, and Pete looked at Tony and Tony looked at Pete, and they ended up giving me this.' She handed me another paper napkin that had 'Something For Stevie' scrawled on its outside. Two $50 bills were tucked within its folds. Frannie looked at me with wet, shiny eyes, shook her head and said simply: 'truckers.'
That was three months a go. Today is Thanksgiving, the first day Stevie is supposed to be back to work.
His placement worker said he's been counting the days until the doctor said he could work, and it didn't matter at all that it was a holiday. He called 10 times in the past week, making sure we knew he was coming, fearful that we had forgotten him or that his job was in jeopardy. I arranged to have his mother bring him to work. I then met them in the parking lot and invited them both to celebrate his day back.
Stevie was thinner and paler, but couldn't stop grinning as he pushed through the doors and headed for the back room where his apron and busing cart wer e waiting.
'Hold up there, Stevie, not so fast,' I said. I took him and his mother by their arms. 'Work can wait for a minute. To celebrate your coming back, breakfast for you and your mother is on me!' I led them toward a large corner booth at the rear of the room.
I could feel and hear the rest of the staff following behind as we marched through the dining room. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw booth after booth of grinning truckers empty and join the procession. We stopped in front of the big table. Its surface w as covered with coffee cups, saucers and dinner plates, all sitting slightly crooked on dozens of folded paper napkins. 'First thing you have to do, Stevie, is clean up this mess,' I said. I tried to sound stern.
Stevie looked at me, and then at his mother, then pulled out one of the napkins. It had 'Something for Stevie' printed on the outside. As he picked it up, two $10 bills fell onto the table.
Stevie stared at the money, then at all the napkins peeking from beneath the tableware, each with his name printed or scrawled on it. I turned to his mother. 'There's more than $10,000 in cash and checks on that table, all from truckers and trucking companies that heard about your problems. 'Happy Thanksgiving.'
Well, it got real noisy about that time, with everybody hollering and shouting, and there were a few tears, as well.
But you know what's funny? While everybody else was busy shaking hands and hugging each other, Stevie, with a big smile on his face, was busy clearing all the cups and dishes from the table. Best worker I ever hired.

Plant a seed and watch it grow.
At this point, you can bury this inspirational message or forward it fulfilling the need!
If you shed a tear, as I did, hug yourself, because you are a compassionate person.
Well.. Don't just sit there! Send this story on! Keep it going, this is a good one. We just never know!! God is good!!

Pictures With My New Camera

2008-04-23T18:56:00.000-07:00

Nice rainbow, I just took these.

Copyright??

2008-04-23T05:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I filed a copyright for my turkey picture and the text "Gobble Happens" I am going to start selling Tee Shirts on the side. I need to stay busy when I'm at home. I plan on having a whole line of Tee's eventually. I will be copyrighting my next tee very soon. It will be a cat of course. Send me your suggestion and pictures I will send you a tee shirt if I use your suggestion. Help me pick a picture for my first tee shirts. I will put 4 on. Pat

TV and Cabinet

2008-04-22T06:16:00.000-07:00

As Promised, Here is the TV and Cabinet for sale.

Tuesday April 22

2008-04-22T05:13:00.000-07:00

Good Morning,

The weather has been quite strange around here this past week. Lots of snow, Spokane had a record low high on Sunday of 39, that beat the old record high of 42 in 1893. The weather is looking up and should be back in the 60's on Sunday!

Tom and Mary spent 4 days with us and as always we had a great time!

Allison was going to have a garage sale this weekend but has postponed it til the weather gets better. I am just hanging around and being a bum until I get a new class scheduled. I did hang a new 46 in Sony Flat panel on the wall. I have a 36 inch Panasonic flat screen with an Ikea corner cabinet for sale (350.00) for the lot. Give me a call if you'd like it? Picture will be posted.

That's all for now have a great week.

More Pictures of Saturdays Party

2008-04-17T06:21:00.001-07:00

This is Mia Shaun and Jenea's Little one. She will have a new little brother or sister by the end of May. It was great to have them over last weekend for a few days. Mason has really grown up in the last year. This is Tiffany (Allisons boss) and her little one Aleesha.
Jeanea and Mia
Jeanea, Mia and Mason
Michael, Tiffany,Aleesha and Grandma

Saturdays Party

2008-04-16T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey Everybody,

Randi got me all set up again? They all had a party for my 51st birthday last Saturday. Randi, Kauleen, Ryan and Dewayne all showed up plus all Allison's friends from work. I cooked a big pot of spaghetti for the occasion. Randi and Kauleen are here for the week and doing some work up at thier place. They will go horse back riding tomorrow up at Northrup Canyon. I am off work for a month and love collecting unemployment for the first time in my life. I will head to San Diego may 5th for a week then home for a week then to San Diego for a week and then home for a week then back to San Diego. Sounds kind of strange but we teach Safety and Defensive driving the first week then the techs go out and ride with other techs for a week then come back in to class for a week and learn how to wire a house, the third week is learning how to hook up TV's and customer service. We have Memorial week in that time so I get an extra week off.

Speaking of Memorial weekend It is time to book your room at the local Motels. I will add more about that soon.

Thats all for now. The pictures are of Joe and his new dog JD and Randi and Allison.