Got A Surprise Package

We got a package from Amazon but didn't order anything.  The name on the box didn't even sound like a name.  It was something like joke oooooo but with our address.  Usually an Amazon delivery truck comes down our street every day so we didn't open it and decided to give it to the driver when the next one came by.  It sat our dining room table for at least 3 days before my husband saw an Amazon truck come and went out with it.  The driver told us we might as well just keep it because even if he took it back, they still wouldn't be able to deliver it to the right person since there was no way of knowing the right address. 

We opened and inside was a toy I never heard of.  It's a Got 2 Glow Fairy Pet Finder!  There are some instructions on the back side of it but very small print and difficult to read through the plastic bag that it is in.  Too bad it wasn't something we could have actually used!  I'm going to give it to a little neighbor girl who walks by our house with her dad all the time.  The funny thing is, they haven't been by in a while, probably due to the bad air quality days we had recently and the high temperatures.  We'll keep a look out.

Have you ever heard or had any experience with this toy?  I even looked at a YouTube video showing someone talking about it, but they didn't seem to quite know what to do with it either!  

Special Trees That Made Me Laugh

On our walk the other day, I noticed these three trees that made me laugh in the backyard of a house in our neighborhood.  I thought it was a good idea!  They reminded me of the trees in Wizard of Oz that threw apples.  Did you ever see any trees with faces?  

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My Dog the Exercise Trainer

It used to be my cat who would come around by me when I exercised, but she gave up the job to our dog, Roxy.  Here I am trying to do donkey kicks with my dog under me.  Notice I'm using my one hand to pet her so only leaning on my left hand to do these.

Exercise can be tiring.  This is Roxy's favorite place to stretch out and relax.

Do your pets exercise with you?

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You Never Know What You'll Find at the Library

Created by Malcolm Cochran

It's been quite a while since I've been in the Cleveland Public library downtown and was really surprised to see this big bronze piggy bank.  I had to take a picture.  Then googled it to see why they had it.  Here is what I found:

Big Pig Bank, 1997 Bronze, electric clock 36" x 73" x 34" Malcolm Cochran created a bronze piggy bank located at the Cleveland Public Library, Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium. Originally, the piggy bank was placed in a window facing the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. Cochran stated "he was inspired by the piggy bank as a symbol of fiscal responsibility."

Oscar the Grouch

 I also checked out the puppet exhibit that is there.  It was very impressive with all sorts of puppets and marionettes from Punch & Judy to really tall ones and from other countries.  They even Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street in the trash can talking to people.  That was really funny! 

There was also a video running on puppetry techniques and a puppet theater set up with hand puppets available for people to play with.  When I was there during my lunch hour, I enjoyed watching a father and daughter having some fun putting on a little puppet show.  One guy actually sat down on the benches in front to watch them and two security guards were entertained by them as well. 

Libraries are a great place to go and they are free!  When was the last time you visited a library.  We usually go once a week.

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Fake Neighborhood Delicatessen Meat Market in Parma

One day when out walking, my husband discovered a little neighborhood delicatessen store on West 54th Street in Parma, Ohio.  But wait, then he read the sign in the window.

Aw, a bit disappointing.  He says "only in Parma."  Anyone else have a fake store in your neighborhood?

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Where Are You?

Dad, we're missing mom!

Yesterday on our early dog walk in the dark around 5:40 a.m., my husband and I sort of lost each other!  We just walk around a couple blocks but it was cold, dark and there were patches of ice in spots.  That's why I was walking with my head down, to avoid these snowy, icy patches and I missed our street on the way back!  Abby and my husband go slower, especially when it is cold, so I was ahead of them by more than I realized.

Apparently, my husband didn't see where I went to even though I wore my white fleece jacket with the bears on it.  He got all the way home without me!  I finally turned around to look for him and of course, by then didn't see him anywhere!  We're both calling out "Where are you?"  He thought I might have fallen somewhere and was worried, but then when I looked for him, I saw the corner houses on our street and realized what happened so backtracked and sure enough, there he was way down our street by our house!  I shouted to him, "I'm coming"!

This was the first day of me being 63.  I thought it was funny!  

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Time For a Stove and Time to Retire!

I told my husband this morning that I think we should maybe get a stove.  From time to time I feel like it would be nice to actually bake a cake or be able to get one of those big frozen pizzas and just bake it to save some money.  We got rid of our stove a long time ago.  (See related post:  Living With No Stove--A Good Decision)  Only problem is how would we keep our cats off of it?

My husband retired at 62 and I am planning on following in his footsteps.  I've been thinking that I don't want to work for full benefits (age 66) and then find out there is no money left to pay me or get sick and not be able to enjoy my free time off.  It really shook me up to hear of one of my former bosses who just retired the end of last year now has pancreatic cancer, stage 4, and has been told they expect she has only a few months left to live.  I find this extremely sad.  Life is short and I think I could live nicely without the added stress of a full-time job.  I could do volunteer work and enjoy time with my husband and our pets.  So, I plan to retire the end of May, yea!

April fool!  Although it is true sometimes I get the urge to bake something, we are not getting a stove, not yet anyway.  The urges are short and far between!  It is also true I have been thinking about retirement.  I am actually struggling with the decision of what would be best and the thoughts mentioned above have certainly been on my mind lately.  However, for now, I am still planning to continue working full-time because most days I like my job and the pay is good, but it was a good April fool joke I used on my bosses and a few of my co-workers today.

Did you fool anyone today or were you fooled by someone?  Hope you had an April fool laugh today!

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Why I'm So Glad I Read the Harry Potter Series

When the Harry Potter books first came out, my husband wanted to read them and I told him I'd rather he didn't because it was all about witches and wizards and witchcraft and I didn't want it in my house.  I just assumed that what it was but I was wrong.  Yes, I admit it honey, I was wrong.

When I looked at different booktubers on YouTube, over and over the Harry Potter series came up as being favorite books, best fantasy world, best book about a boarding school, book that got kids into reading and probably some others I forgot.  I never found one negative comment from anyone who actually read the series and my curiosity was sparked.  This year I decided to read it so I could find out exactly what it was that everyone who read it loved so much, and I did!

It is definitely my favorite series and I loved every book in the series.  Never would I have thought I would read a book that was over 700 pages, but I did and want to reread them!  This is so much more than witchcraft.  It is about friendship, family, loyalty, kindness, leadership, sacrifice, good vs. evil and love with lots of humor!  It's a coming of age story following Harry Potter from a little kid through to adulthood and Harry Potter is so cool!  I liked how each book told about another year in Harry's life.  He is a lover, not a fighter.  He just wants to be ordinary and not famous.  He didn't like everyone staring at him all the time because of his scar.  He was always humble and showed love for others all through the book, even to the end and managed not to kill anyone even though his life was threatened over and over.

There are many well-developed characters in this series that were introduced gradually enough that I was able to keep them straight.  I found myself really liking Harry and his friends and felt as though they were my friends too!  This series brought out a variety of emotions for me too which I love.  At times I felt sad, jubilant, scared, angry, excited and curious.  I laughed at quite a lot of things and cried during the last book.  I loved the interaction between the professors and the students, and the interaction among the students.

There is a lot of mystery and suspense with action, adventure and unexpected twists and turns.  This book is so well written and I was just amazed at the imagination that went into it.  J. K. Rowling had me eager to read more and more and get back to whatever book I was reading.  Even after the book was done, I kept thinking about it!   

The plot is very elaborate and complex which is why I'm surprised these are classed as juvenile books rather than YA, especially since most of them are about Harry's teenage years.  Also, I think the vocabulary is very advanced for children.  Because of the witchcraft and the dark plot, I would not recommend it for young children but would highly recommend it for teens and adults who missed out on this classic literature series.  I loved this whole series!!!! 

Here's some links to check out for more information and some fun:
See http://pottermore.com
Here's a sorting quiz (one of many) to see which house you would belong to:  http://www.gotoquiz.com/pottermore_sorting_hat_quiz_2  I got Gryffindor on this one but Hufflepuff on another one

Have you read the Harry Potter books?  Which was your favorite?  (Mine was the 3rd, Prisoner from Azkaban).  What did you think of the series? 

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Strange Things: Odd Houses in Our Neighborhood

On our morning dog walk, we pass a couple unusual houses.  I enjoy looking at different houses and thought our readers might like seeing these as well.

The first is missing a front door and reminds me a little of a castle because of the style of the windows:

 It looks to me like a modern addition was built on top of an old looking bottom part.  The door is actually on the side:

You can see steps on the side of the house that lead up to a side door.  I like how the driveway curves around it too.  I think it looks really cool.

This is on a main street set pretty far back from the street, farther back than other homes on this street.

Another odd one we see is one that has the garage in front of the house instead of behind it:

Wonder why they have that railroad crossing sign by their drive right in front.  I think this is a strange arrangement.

Do you have any strange or odd looking houses in your neighborhood?



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Decluttering Means Getting Rid of Things I Like! by Spunky Doodle

Mom is busy these days washing walls and decluttering rooms to get ready for painting but why oh why did she have to get rid of one of my favorite places to lay?

I like laying up here while she showers and dries her hair, but she is throwing this nice tall shelf away!

Mom:  It's all rusty looking and not necessary.  The only reason I would keep it is because Spunky likes to lay on it sometimes, but she hasn't been using it lately so out it goes. 

Spunky Doodle:  MEOW!

Joining up with Awww Mondays.

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Have You Swept Your Grass Lately?

I looked out the window and saw my husband actually sweeping our front lawn!  I never saw anyone do this before so had to get a video of him doing it.  When I asked him why he was sweeping the grass, he said he was spreading out the clumps made from when he cut it.  I may laugh, but it did look better where he had swept.  Do you ever sweep your lawn?  Have you ever seen anyone do this before?

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Wardrobe Malfunction (Writer's Workshop)

Here is a picture of my wardrobe malfunction which happened last summer.  I have my Eyeore "Chocolate Makes Me Smile" nightshirt on with my light blue shorts and my furry slippers.  I do not like going barefoot.  When my husband saw me in this outfit, he busted out laughing and said he had to take a picture.   I wouldn't wear this outside, but for bumming around the house, it was quite comfortable.

So, let me know what you think of my outfit.

Joining in with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop prompt:  "Write about a wardrobe malfunction."

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Friday Fragments

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. It's been quite a week so I have more than usual this week:

Politics

I am not big on politics so really got a kick out of the list about politics and politicians at Comedy Plus this week! Check it out for a laugh--it's so true!

4-Day Work Week

This was Gerard's first 4-day work week and what a productive day he had on Wednesday, his day off! See our Thankful Thursday post for details.

Dog License

The dog license renewals are supposed to go out in December but we never got ours so I finally called about it. Got the application and will get it in the mail tomorrow.

Returns

I got an offer in the mail for a small Heat Surge heater and thought I would be able to use it in our bedroom during the night. When I read the instructions though, it said it gets hot and you should not leave it unattended. If we are sleeping, we are not attentive so I called and made arrangements to return it for a full refund ($139).

NCAA Basketball

Sad, both our favorite teams lost in the first round, Ohio State and Duke! Duke's upset was even more unexpected than Ohio State's. Ohio State only lost by 1 point, so close. My only consolation is that others in our pool probably picked them too, but I had Duke going all the way to the final 4--very bad.

Pet Update

Abby finally got groomed this week and her fur is really soft again. Spunky Doodle's been sleeping next me through the whole night lately. Manny Boy will be going to the vet Monday to get his teeth cleaned. I'm told it is necessary to clean the tarter off and they can also get it from under the gums too which prevents disease. Do you get your cat's teeth cleaned?

Divergent

We are looking forward to seeing the movie "Divergent" on Monday when we are off. It takes both of us to get Manny Boy into the cat carrier!

Re-Decorating

After seeing episodes of "Sell This House" a desire is growing in me to do some painting and re-decorating in our house. The only reason I hesitate is that we have so much furniture to move that it is very difficult. That's why we still have our brown carpeting that is over 16 years old. It's still the carpet that was in the house when we first bought it!  There are a lot of things I'd like to change.

Books

We both read and liked The Deepest Secret by Carla Buckley. Share this:

One Distracting Lady Bug

image source:  FreePik

In church yesterday, about just the time the Pastor started his message on Jesus being our Counselor, I became distracted by a cute little lady bug crawling across the back of the pew right in front of me.  I picked it up and put it on my notes and tried to keep it on the paper.  Lady bugs are fast!  I had to watch it very closely and when it got close to the edge of the paper, I gently used the pen to turn it around and get it going back in another direction.  I'm sure the Pastor was wondering what I was doing.  It went pretty good until I had to use the pen to write something in my notes.  It got on my thumb a few times and fell on my lap once but I got it back.

I had no intention of squishing this little bug, but rather was planning how I would get it back outside.  At the end I used two papers (the bulletin and my interactive note guide) to keep the little ladybug on a paper.  When it got to the edge, I just put the other paper next to it and let it crawl on that one.  It was pretty warm yesterday so I didn't have any problem opening a door and letting it out into the courtyard.

I was still able to listen to the message during my lady bug encounter in case you are wondering as some of my Facebook friends were.  Playing with the ladybug reminded me of how wonderful it is when God redirects our lives to accomplish the good plans He has for us. 

So, what would you have done in this situation? 

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Sunday Sharing: Gold and Apes

I was reading about Solomon in I Kings 10 this past week and was surprised at how much he liked gold.  Not only did he cover practically everything in the temple he built with it, but he also had shields of gold (v. 16), a throne of gold and ivory with lions on it and on the steps going up to it (v. 18), and gold cups and dishes (v. 21)!  I can't even imagine what it would be like to live in such a fancy place!

But, this verse made me laugh:

 . . . Every three years the ships returned [trading ships and Hiram's].  They brought back gold, silver, ivory, apes and baboons. -I Kings 10:22

Gorilla at Cleveland Zoo (Are apes and gorillas the same thing?)

He must have liked the apes and baboons too to have them brought in every three years.  I like finding new and funny things as I read God's Word, don't you?  Please share a scripture highlight you came across this week or feel free to comment on this post. 

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7 Friday Fragments (funny, educational, life, products)

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post to give Mrs. 4444 a break for the summer. Here we go:

Screeching Stopped

After about a month of screeching, we took our KIA into the repair shop. Whenever we started it up it would screech but then stop once we got going. It would screech when we turned the steering wheel sometimes too. In half an hour, it was fixed--just something going on with a belt. The best part was meeting a huge German Shepherd named Tank.

Nice Watch

We got a free watch with our Blair order. It's really nice with easy-to-read actual numbers. Too bad is doesn't work but what do you expect for free, right? It was disappointing though because that was really the only reason we placed an order. Although the velour shirts are very nice.

Stop the Stink

This is the funniest commercial I've seen in a long time. It was at the beginning of a Just For Laughs video but when I went to embed it, there was a different commercial so I looked it up on YouTube and here it is for your laugh of the day.

Happiest Story of The Week

Lady and her cat got reunited after 5 years thanks to a microchip in the cat. We have one in Abby but not in our cats since they stay indoors.

Joint Juice

I just found a Glucosamine-Chondroitin supplement drink with vitamin D3 that I like. Find out more at jointjuice.com. Unfortunately, Giant Eagle is discontinuing it.

Picasa

Anyone know how to delete pics from a picasa album. It seems every picture I ever uploaded to my blogs is automatically in there. I just recently discovered that I can reuse pics from there so I have many duplicates.

Community Dinner

I'm looking forward to helping with our church's community dinner this coming Thursday. I'm taking the whole day off since it's the same day as my bone density test. This way I can help set up in the morning and help wait on tables or distribute the groceries. We are planning to give a nice bag of groceries to every family who comes that they can take home. The stockpile of donated groceries is coming along nicely.

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What Our Pets Think of "Cats Stealing Dog Beds"

Once again, a video proving that cats rule: Check out this cute funny compilation of cats stealing dog beds at Paw Bonito or the original post at HuffingtonPost.com (I tried to embed it, but it didn't work, sorry.  It's really worth watching for a laugh).  My favorites were the dogs pulling the beds in an effort to get the cats off.  I think only one succeeded.

Here's what our pets thought of this video:

Spunky Doodle and Manny:  We think those cats are very brave not running from the barking dogs.  We have to work at developing that quality.  Abby barks so loud though, it hurts our ears!  We think these cats in the video were extremely mischievous!

Abby:  I think those dogs should leave the cats alone and lay on the floor our a couch like I do.  It's perfectly comfortable.  I got a big soft dog bed for Christmas one year and never used it.  

Does your dog use a dog bed?  What did you think of the video?

Joining Monday Mischief, Aww Mondays.

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Friday Fragments

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post to give Mrs. 4444 a break for the summer. Here we go:

Anniversary

Today we are celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary! We bought the wind chime I've been wanting for several years to replace the one that broke that was given to us as a wedding present. For a while we didn't have a porch awning so had no place to hang one. It's funny though, I ended up hanging it on the gutter which we could have done even before we got the awning! We are on vacation today and all next week!

Funniest Video This Week

I laughed all through this Funniest Dog Video over at Comedy Plus this week and had to share it! It was a great start to my week. Just go watch it--I guarantee it will make you laugh!

Sad News-Cat Dies

I got teary eyed when I read A Tribute to Homer, the Blind Wonder Cat over at The Conscious Cat. This was a very unusual cat, who was a great entertainer in spite of its blindness. Both Gerard and I read the book about him and liked it: Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper.

Yellow Means Caution

Getting pet at the school during lunch time.

Did you know that if a dog is wearing a yellow ribbon on it's tail, it is a warning to people that they should leave the dog alone because it isn't friendly? We saw this at our vets Apparently there is a campaign afoot to get owners to get a yellow ribbon for their unfriendly or shy dogs. Abby will not be wearing one of these--she loves greeting strangers and being pet!

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A Brain Exercise Idea--Cat Approved!

In flipping through Keep Your Brain Alive by Lawrence C. Katz, Ph.D and Manning Rubin, it mentioned that one office they knew of had a chessboard near the water cooler.  Any employee could come to the board, assess the situation, and make a move.  It was an ongoing game, with no known players, and no winners or losers.  The idea is to use visual-spatial thinking.  It provides a break from verbal, left-brain activities.  (pg. 83)

I decided to try this at home.  I just had to find a good place for the chessboard and chose to put it upstairs in the cat room.  I'll spin the board around after each move so we know whose turn it is.  Hopefully my husband will join me in this too.  Spunky Doodle of course was eager to walk on the board, but I stopped that.  Then she wanted to play right away, moving the black pawn.  I wonder if any pieces will be left standing when I return.

Linking up with the Cats on Tuesday blog hop.

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Monday Mischief: It Was a Good Run--Woof! Woof!

I charged out the door!

Boy, have I a story to tell you this week!  The setting:  Saturday, a beautiful day and had a nice walk at the park.  Karen at the computer.  Gerard reading and me in the living room.

Ding, Ding.  (doorbell rang, a kid selling stuff)

Naturally I barked loud to let my dad know someone was at the door.  He went to answer the door and I saw my chance when the inside vestibule door popped back open.

I ran like a shot out the door!  It was fun, I felt so free!  I ran across the street and down the sidewalk very fast!

I heard Gerard yelling for me to come, but I couldn't stop,  He ran after me but I was too fast for him,  Ha, ha.  I was having too much fun!

As soon as Karen heard Gerard yell, she jumped up, grabbed my leash, told the kid we didn't want to buy anything and got in the car to join in the chase! 

See what excitement I created!

This is the house where Gerard caught up to me at because the lady held me.

Lots of the neighbors came out to watch us.  One called for me to come to her so I did.  She pet me up and we waited for Gerard to arrive.  Then Karen got there in the car with the leash while Gerard was still trying to call her on his cell phone.   

I thought it was very fun, but Karen and Gerard did not.  They both said it was very bad and I should never, ever go outside without my leash again.  Oh well.  It was fun while it lasted, even if it was only about one minute of run time.  Woof!  Woof!

Karen was in such a rush that she forgot to bring the camera along to get pictures for this post--a video of me in action running would have been nice.  These pics were all taken the next day.  If you enlarge the last one, you might be able to see the red circle around my house (it's not really in the tree like the label says).

Share some mischief you got into at the Monday Mischief blog hop and Aww Mondays.

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