Winter 1/26 - 27/11

Tried to put these in order with the night pictures being first and the daytime pictures being last. I did not succeed as you can tell. This rivals the blizzard of 2010 but it is only one storm rather than two. By the end of 1/27/11 Terry had us dug out and the three vehicles that we use cleaned off. There is still snow on the Suburban which is the bigger vehicle in the 11:40 p.m. picture, which I took to show off how the snow was sticking to my wind chimes.

The patio and drive way were cleared off, but not for long. We are supposed to get more weather tonight, but this is going to be a icy mess. We do not need that - melting snow is creating plenty of icicles for us (my bad for getting gutter guards to keep the leaves out of the gutters). I do not think that I will be sticking my nose out the door tomorrow even though I have an appointment at 1:00 p.m. I will wait until mid morning to make my final decision, but I have the feel rescheduling is going to be prudent.

When drive was being cleared out the other day, I managed to find the only patch of ice on the driveway. It had been hiding underneath my car. Before I knew it I was on my knees in a mound of melting snow. It was a regular comedy act getting me to my feet again. Not something that I would want to repeat. I was lucky, no bruises, just sore joints a couple of days later. I guess I jolted the joints worse than what I thought. Ibuprophen became a close friend for a couple of days. I am back to normal and back to the walking routine that I had started before my "incident".

As you can tell, there is never a dull moment around the Hudak home. Always something happening to make life interesting or something to giggle about.

Wintery Mixture

It is a mess outside at the moment. We had an unexpected couple of inches of snow on the ground this a.m. when we got up. Not supposed to get here until tonight. Needless to say I was outside shoveling snow earlier today. I cleaned off most of the sidewalk, made a path down to the spot where Terry would be parking his truck and cleared the driveway to the point where he would have a clean shot into his parking space. My cardio for the day.

Well it is later in the day and since then there has been rain, sleet and finally more snow. Can't seem to get away from snow this year. At least once a week we are looking at new snow on the ground. I am getting tired of cleaning it off my car only to have it back there in a couple of days. You would think that I would learn and just leave it alone. Well, I have my wish - it will be a few days before this snow is cleaned off my car. Good thing that I went out yesterday and got the makings for sour beef and dumplings this weekend. Terry has requested it for his birthday dinner.

"Talked" with my brother in California via Face Book today. They are in the midst of a spring like weather pattern. I can't even let myself think about spring - have too much winter to go and it would just depress me. Did enjoy "talking" though. I am getting excited to make my trip to California this summer. It is going to be nice to see the family again.

I have just come to the conclusion that it is good that it is dark out already because I don't think that I would like to see what is outside my window. God only knows just how much of the white stuff will be on the ground in the morning. Do know that it is going to mean another day off from school for the kids. Never a dull moment around here.

Bureaucracy

Being a federal retiree you would think that I would know better, but I guess I have gotten lax. I did not go into my retirement website for a long time and now I am paying for it. I did not realize that there was a time limit on my PIN and now I am trying to get a new one. Sorry to say I am not having much luck.

I thought that paperwork was bad when I was employed, but this is "God awful". I sent an e-mail to the place I was supposed to. I got a reply telling me to go to another website - a secure e-mail site. There was an e-mail waiting for me there telling me that temporary PIN was forthcoming. That was days ago.

I sent another request - got the reply "it will be 15 to 20 days before the e-mail is answered". Heck, I can use snail mail and get a faster response. You can bet your bottom dollar I am not going to let that sucker expire again.

This is typical of the federal government though. Employed or retired it makes no difference.

I must add an addendum on this date (1/26/2011). I did finally get my new PIN. It was sent to me via "snail mail". In this day and age they still rely on it. Who would have guessed. Anyway, all is back to normal and I am once again able to get on to my retirement website. Hip hip hooray!!!!

Motivation

Motivation, or lack thereof, was the theme for this day. After spending time on the computer this morning, breaking to watch my soaps and back on the computer this evening, I am still looking for something that I can say motivated me today.

It was cold outside, so I stayed in. It was cloudy outside so there was really no reason to look out my window in hopes of seeing something. This has been a hum drum day with nothing exciting happening.

Have been eagerly awaiting the news that my tenth grand, a boy, has made his appearance. My nephew and his wife are expecting and the little guy is taking his sweet time - as first ones so often do. From what I have been reading he is giving his mother a fit and his dad is "losing" patience with him already. He will come when he is ready and on his own terms. This one is going to be a strong willed individual that will carve out his own path in this world. I wish them well and look forward to meeting him later on this year when I am in California for a visit.

My next exciting thing that I did today was make sure that Publishing Clearing House is well aware of the fact that I am ready to become a millionaire. Wishful thinking I know, but would it ever be nice. After taking my entourage (lawyer, accountant etc.) with me to claim my prize I would sit down and try to decide what I would do with that kind of money.

Help my son is high on my list as is helping others that are less fortunate. Then I would put all my prized possessions in storage and after paying off my current mortgage, I would bull doze the current abode. I would build a bigger and better one on the very same ground I have now. It would still be a rancher, but bigger rooms laid out better and the addition of a 2 or 3 car garage. My dream home.

This is how my day went - exciting isn't it? Some tell me this is what retirement is for - being lazy, wearing pajamas all day long if so inclined and vegging out and doing nonsensical things that do not require much thought or effort.

Year 2011

The year 2011 has begun. It is brand new and just waiting for me to fill it up with all sorts of things. I have a trip planned for the summer time - a family reunion in California. I am also looking forward to it being warm and being able to watch my animal friends take on their daily duties.

I got a preview of the spring today when I woke up. I looked out my window and saw a woodpecker doing his thing. He was rat-tat-tatting away with serious abandon - I hope that his efforts were fruitful and he had a good meal. I would have one serious headache if I had to hit a solid object as often as he did - I admire his tenacity and am amazed by God's handiwork.

The last big winter weather incident that dumped snow along the Eastern Seaboard missed my house altogether. There were flurries in the air all day, but nothing stuck. Ocean City had snow on the boardwalk, but we were out and about with nary a flake on the ground. I was glad that it passed me by - I was not in the mood for being "landlocked" by white stuff. I know that winter is not over so there is a chance of us getting cold and white looming in the future - will hibernate then.

I hope to continue my lunch/dinner outings with my friends and hope to meet with my sister-in-law once in awhile. All of these meetings provide many hours of sheer enjoyment and give me something to look forward to.

I will continue to read, write, watch t.v. and do the daily mundane chores that need to be done. I will also continue to keep in touch with all of my FB friends and family. All of these things kept me busy last year and hopefully will keep me even more busy this year.

There is but one regret that I have regarding 2011 - it is one year closer to the end for me. I am now officially one of the millions of baby boomers that will be draining Social Security of its resources. Of course, it will not be official until August, but it is coming ever closer.

I can remember reading George Orwell's book 1984 back in the early 60s and being a little bit leery of the coming of 1984, never dreaming that one day I would be entering the year 2011. It (1984) came and went and bore no resemblance to the book - now I am just living one year at a time and hoping for the best. I am on the downhill side and my life and have no idea whatsoever what the future holds for me in the long run. I am living each day as it comes and hoping for the best.