On my Way Up NORTH

Time to get on the airplane and head to Indianapolis
to see my friend, the coach, son Davey and the Iowa
Hawkeye women play in the Big Ten Tournament. We have
a first round game vs. Indiana whom we beat during the
season, on their home court. Iowa won in a big way on
Sunday, getting ready for this game. If we can have
Megan ready, our 6'6" center, the Hawkeyes will prevail.
Second round vs. #4 Ohio State and all american Jessica
Davenport. I am anxious to see the team again. They won
every game when I was still up north, so maybe I will
bring them luck again. Two games should get us into the
NIT, win four and it will be back to the NCAA's.

I took this picture of Lisa and Davey in October at
Carver Hawkeye on media day. Lisa is a great person,
a person that I admire. I took part of this picture and
entered it in the Ankeny photo contest. If you are in
Ankeny in March, go to the Art Center and see if you
can find Davey's hands on display.

i also entered a still life photo of a perfect grapefruit
and an awesome photo on the beach....Maybe this year I
will win something......besides the tee shirt.......

I will try to post something next week while freezing
in INDY, carry on my friends and stay warm. 85 on Weds
and 90 on Thursday......did I really buy that airplane
ticket?

I Love SPI

When it turns to 102 degrees,
you have to hit the beach. The
wind is always blowing to keep
me cool. the Beach Patrol was
practicing on Monday, eagerly(sic)
awaiting the spring breakers.
It was great for fishing, I think
they caught enough for dinner.
blue skies smiling at me..........

Greg being a Texan

I ran him ragged, golf, Mexico, nap time, golf at Palm View in his
birthday outfit, new golf shirt and shorts. It is quiet since he left,
no snoring! will find some more pix to share about my new life in
the Rio Grande Valley.........Fore.......

Life is Good

Tatoos to help the Hawks, Hawkettes and Hawkeyes.......
girls just want to have fun.

My New Sport?

The sport is race walking and
I am definately a rookie. This
was my third event in 2007 and
I had a goal, missed it by almost
five minutes. We have two high
school boy twins that are nationally
ranked. They recently competed in
NY and finished 3 and 4th places
against college age walkers. They
did one mile in just over 6 miutes.
Next event is April 7, the day I was
going to head towards Iowa. NOT NOW!
I will participate again before
driving away from Alamo. It's just a
walkabout.........

Lost is Found

Through several phone calls and numerous e mails....cousin Mark and I
found our lost Aunt Dutch. Alive and well, though hard of hearing, he
had to yell on the phone since her hearing aide was in the repair shop.
she knew who Mark was on the phone and asked about his family, so
we at least know she is still alert. However, she is living with this crook,
the scam man.....living quite comfortably........

NOW, onto more fun things, like taking the bicycle to the repair shop
for it's one month free check up! A one hour workout while they work
on the bike.....a dreaded trip to the grocery store. As I mentioned to
someone earlier, the local people are really rude at the HEB grocery store.
You can't get down the aisle, they use the middle as their half of the
aisle, stare at the shelves and ignore you if you want through......
Ain't it grand? Life is full of small miracles and annoyances........

Carry on my friends...........64 and cloudy in the RGV at 11 am.........

Looking Out My Back Door

The other night there was an awesome sunset. I kept
shooting about every 20 seconds. These are some of the
best full sun shots that I have ever taken, so enjoy.

Alone Again

Greg has come and gone back home to Iowa. We played golf five
times while he was here. These photos are from Palm View, McAllen,
Texas. the whopping cranes come from Canada to the valley every
winter. Last week when I played Palm View in the Olympics, there
were about 50 birds, only about a dozen today. Pretty good follow
thru for Greg. He has a fast back swing and lifts his head too
soon, which leads to topping the ball and a long hole.

Greg only had two great days in the Valley this year. Day two and
the day we went to the beach. It was very cloudy, we could only
see half of the bridge in the distance, driving over to the island.
Spooky so I didn't ride my bike. We sat out on the beach and about
2 PM the sun came out. Greg likes to go find some cheap tee shirts,
so we left the beach at 3 PM so we can start the drive home by
4 PM, to beat the rush hour in Harlingen. You have to stop and
wash the salt off of the car also. The rest of the week, we went
to Mexico and golfed in mid 40 to 50 degree weather, not much
wind and the courses were full. He can't wait to come down when
he retires.

I am going back to the beach on Weds.........Thursday.........Friday
80's all week long...........

Bottoms UP

Lots of great photo opportunities on the beach.
Frost advisory tonight, so I covered the
tomatoes. We golfed today, started late, waited
for the sun to shine and the temp to rise. It was
48 and sunny when we teed off. Greg and his trick
shots, first one UNDER the fence onto the highway.
A few holes later he hit the steel post it came
back towards us, hit another post and flew forward.
I told him he could have overs........I miss the
Briarwood greens, so smooth........

Burning the Cane

While working in the yard on an 80 degree day last week,
they were also burning the sugar cane. These black things
on the cement next to my flowers are the ashes that flew
to my yard and mess up the deck, the cement patio, etc.
About two hours later, the wind almost cleaned it all up.
The petunias are blooming, the tomatoes are growing, almost
double their starting height. New project is to build a
rock path from the cement slab to the shed.....building...

Golf Course Obstacles

I think these are the pelicans that were at Saylorville
Lake back in the fall. Snowbirds they are! Greg and I are
playing the same course on Monday, I will take the
big camera for some close-ups. Fly away....fore........

I Have Company

Greg needs a workout for his NOT beer belly. I think I
will have him working out all week long at the Summitt
Club and on the deck on the ab machine. We went to the
street market in McAllen and DonWes Flea Market for a
couple hours. Out for dinner at El Dorado for shrimp
wrapped in bacon, Greg loved it. I had chicken
Monterrey, chicken and onions and peppers smothered in
mozarella cheese. He also received a pumpkin pie instead
of birthday cake. Golf Monday morning. Fore........

Bicycle riding hazards on the Island

This is the picture that didn't come through on an earlier
posting. Look out for gators on the island? NO........I was
LOST..........new shows start this week.........

Broken Glasses???????

This is a destroyed glasses case. I went to the HEB
grocery store, put on my sunglasses on the way out.
I must have dropped the case out of my purse. I went to
Wally World to get something, no glasses. After driving
back to HEB, talking to a clerk, looking through empty
grocery carts.....I went to the spot where I parked......
Someone, maybe ME, drove over the case and flattened it.

I found the case, my heart sank! I
opened up the case....OH MY!
I took out the glasses, one lens popped out and they were
pretty bent up. However, the great lady at Wally World
did her thing and bent the glasses back into shape. She
saved my a bunch of money!

Another SENIOR moment..........moving right along.......

Texas Crafts instead of Sunbathing

For Groovy Granny in Minnesota. These are the two frames
I decorated. Plain wood frames painted with paper or
sponge to get an uneven look, so the brown shows thru
to give the look of sand. The left one has mixed colors
of shells, the one on the right has only white shells
and will get a picture of Greg on the beach. He comes
down next week for his birthday. The photo on the left
is from a store that I shop at by the lighthouse. The
shells are tied together with thick brown string to
give it a weather beaten look. Or use fishing line to
hang the shells from one stick for the wind chimes.
Let your imagination go.........Sticking together.......

The Olympians

The participants: Marion Christianson, 82, Michelle
McFarlane 60ish, and Cyndy ? she wrote down the
wrong age! Need some road work before next
year's event!

Olympics and Lighthouses

My first Olympics, as a participant!
Wow, what a shocker. Those Winter
Texan walkers are serious! I did my
one mile in 16:16, four minutes
faster than on the treadmill, but I
still have my mail carrier walk.
Even paces, be SAFE, but the officials
told us, don't look down, move those
arms, it is good for the heart!
Marion was probably the oldest.She
walks three miles a day at 4 MPH on
her treadmill! A pro!
I went to the top of the lighthouse.
Windy is the norm for Texan, but
75 steps UP, it was much breezier.
Is that a word? Hold onto your wig!