Uno, dos, tres, . .

Grotesques at Reed College Library, this was the outer wall they built around for the expansion.

I am really concerned about my Mexicans. For the 4 millionth time in 2 weeks they have asked me how many people are sorting their parts. It is 2 per shift for 3 shifts and they cannot get that straight. Really, how hard is this.

Just finished reading "The Mockingbird Next Door" about a Chicago Trib writer that was very close to the Lee sisters and wrote of their lives and friendship. The only thing left to read is the actual tale. Big Daddy bought it at Costco and will start that next week. Need some trashy reading first so I am going for Jonathan Kellerman "The Murderer's Daughter".

BD and I had a quiet weekend, mani-pedi, groceries, dog cookies to buy, and then I discovered a new store. Gymboree. Curly is gonna be the best dressed girl in town. This outfit is the cat's ass and I get coupons and points and it is the best thing in town for grandmama's with disposable income.

We had a light lunch at the Red Crown and I still have not cheated since arriving home. Weight is fluctuating but have still maintained the lost 5 pounds. It would help if I remembered to take my meds as the thyroid is an issue. BD discovered they sell Delta Biscoff at Costco and they are very low in calorie and cholesterol so that may be my weekend cheat.

The boss is on vacation next week so I am hoping for some peace and quiet. And I have Labor Day weekend off.

My Mexicans are in trouble again

An abandoned house on the way back from Eastern Market.

My Mexicans are supposed to issue documents authorizing sorting and payments. They have a really hard time with this concept. And when they don't do it, I am supposed to shut down the job.

Now, no one has answered my question as to what I am supposed to tell the customer. I am sure they will not take something like that well.

When I was gone on vacation no one did shit about authorizations and POs, and this weekend no one did even less than shit. So Monday morning the shit hits the fan, why wasn't this shit done.

If I don't have this shit that I worked all day to try and get, well tomorrow morning I am gonna put it out and ask how the asshats want me to tell the customer and are they ready to air charter and do they have a plan for the yard, which will be on hold.

Should be fun.

Eastern Market adventures

There was a really great pepper vendor.

We have enough fruit and veggies for the year, too bad they do not keep. We hauled our butts down to the market Saturday morning and loaded up. I also got potatoes and onions for the pantry. Big Daddy roasted whole beets last night and I made this onion concoction to keep in the fridge to cook with and roasted potatoes and tomatoes for use next week. I also made the garbage soup.

I was standing around waiting for BD when the smell of peaches was overwhelming. I looked over and the peaches were calling my name, when you can smell them you know they are gonna be wonderful. This lady walked up and asked if they were from Michigan and walked away. No, they were from South Carolina and the best.

I am on a new diet/lifestyle plan as my cholesterol is high and I refuse to take statins. So bye bye eggs, red meat and cheese and hello fruits and veggies. I am also taking Questran which is a godsend for the IBS, so far no more Immodium. What a nice side-effect. So far I have lost 5 pounds so I cannot bitch. And I am allowing a weekly cheat so I don't go crazy. I finally had to admit the Atkins wasn't gonna do it and I was eating too much junk. Junk as in cookies, they are my downfall.

I did cheat on vacation, although I froze my Biscoff for emergency rations. But howdoyou not have fried chicken and waffles and that hanger steak was fabulous.

We have figured out Thanksgiving. We are staying home and going to Jersey Boys at the Fisher. We have not been to the theater in a long time and I am excited. We can cook here, decide on Christmas decor, visit MIL and be quiet. Loved the movie and the CD so I hope I am not disappointed.

I also found the ornamental kale at the market to spruce up the garden and 2 house plants, a jade and a prayer plant.

God, this all sounds boring.

Work was exciting, we had a repeat quality issue that exploded with people screaming on conference calls and Mexicans trying to wiggle out of it. Mexicans are not good at wiggling. I had to back up and punt to keep the line running and my asshole boss was giving me instructions from afar. Shit like you need to document this and that so that we may be able to  . . blah . . blah. That is his new thing . . spaces and periods. And stealing what he thinks are hot phrases. He is now calling all Mexicans "friends" in a very condescending way. What an asshat. And my Mexicans, well they can't make a taco.

Life goes on.

Settling back in at the Old Homestead

A Portland garden.

Well, we are now caught up on sleep and just fine.  I am losing my cat sitter, she is allergic to cats. Rats.

Getting unpacked and organized and thinking I need to freeze all the last minute purchases at the Portland airport. Scottish Shortbread made with real butter. Biscoff from the Delta flight. Big Daddy did not eat the Salmon jerky from Trader Joe's, he can eat that at work next week.

I am not going back until Tuesday. I figured out I spent 2 weekends a month working on shit to take  care of Monday because no one working weekends will do so. So, I am never going back from a vacation on a Monday. Works for me. And there were some shitty emails I can't wait to hear about, on Tuesday.

Miss Curly, but she is too tiny to miss Grandmama yet. Gotta work on the photo's for the Great Grands. They want old fashion prints for brag books and refrigerators.

Figured out we cannot reasonably go to Vermont for Thanksgiving so trying to figure out where we can go or should we stay home. Ticket prices are high and it is such a short time frame. Gotta be an in and an out, no layovers eating at that precious time.

Portland is too damn odd.

Saw this and thought what a great way to exchange books. There were only children's books and toys. So I left Joan River's book. Oh, get over it.

This place is nutso.

And I am exhausted, red eye back and then a nail appointment.

Big Daddy and I are whooped. And the Country Cat at Portland Airport is not worth buying food from unless you are actually starving to death.

The flight itself was great, got a glass of red wine before take off and was asleep as we went up. Woke up 5 minutes from landing when the "Pilot" said to prepare for landing. They did not serve coffee so that was my first stop in the airport. Lone server at that time of the morning was not nice. Come on, your day is just starting and you are in a customer service position and can't be nice to one of your first customers?

We mostly slept on and off for the rest of the day and night. Hurray to Punkin Head for going to the Airbnb and fetching my garments left in the dryer.

Cat was waiting at the back door and is happy to see us, Sammy Dog is fine and all is well here at the Old Homestead.

Yep, still by the pool

We are having some odd jet lag, trying to work around the kids schedule to see them and Curly and the heat is a bit annoying. We are spoiled and very used to the air conditioner.

Went for a walk this afternoon and did not even think to take a picture. I will rectify that tomorrow.

We are still trying to figure out how to use the new camera.

Big Daddy went to TJMaxx to buy me a bathing suit as I do not own one that fits. He actually found someone to wait on him, which is unheard of, and she showed him the suits. The first one she gave him looked funny so he asked her where the crotch part was. Yes, you read that correctly, the crotch part. The sales person directed him to the crotch rack.

Tonight we are getting dinner from the Country Cat. Last night's dinner was so unremarkable I will not even mention the place.

No air in the Airbnb

But there is the private pool.

So we are living like the natives. It is not so bad.

Curly is wonderful, but I had to buy her a couple outfits today, at the resale shop. Everyone following the rules bought 6 months and our baby is really kinda small. So I got her a few things to stretch the wardrobe.

We went to breakfast at a great place Bread and Ink, Quirky yes, good food, yes.

Then the Woodstock Farmer's Market, we got a few things but the mushrooms I wanted would not keep to take home. We did get some dried shrooms and some powdered. And some fruit for the apartment.

We are in the jet lag mode so this will be a transition phase, but we have all the movie channels on demand. Hurray.

Axel Foley in my yard, or my version of Beverly Hills Cop

So I am sitting in the family room working on my computer, it is about 5 PM and I hear a police siren. No surprise, here in the Pointes they pull you over at 4 over. They seriously need the money for all the holiday and seasonal decorations.

Then I hear another siren, and another and now there are a whole bunch of sirens. I decide to go and see if something exciting is going on. As I get to the front door Sammy Dog decides he needs to go pee pee. I get him hooked up and untangled and turn around . . . to more cop cars than I can count.

And there is a huge refrigerator of a guy walking very briskly down the sidewalk towards my house.

About this time the choppers start circling the house, whooooop whoooop, whoop . . .

So I quickly backed inside, locked everything and started hollering for Big Daddy to make sure everything is locked down. He of course is not listening to me and when he finally gets tired of hearing me screech he wanders out and says I should check the back door.

By the way, Sammy is still outside because if it is me or him, who is gonna hurt an 8 pound poodle with a brown chest from coughing up crap.

It is way too late for BD's advise, I have checked everything and the criminals are all about the neighborhood.

We go back to the front window to check and Holy Shit, there is a guy all dressed in green with a rifle of some sort standing in my driveway. He could be in a movie he looks so sincere, swiping the rifle to and fro;then he walks into my backyard. Now I don't know of anything back there requiring a rifle to sort it out. WTF.

Finally Sammy Dog wanders up to the porch and we snatch him inside, just in the nick of time. Here come the Canine Units, You know the guys with the specially trained dogs to sniff shit and guess what color those dogs are? Yep Black. Big Black dogs. Sammy's favorite hate color.

Suddenly every one turned around and jumped in their cars and left.

And that is the end of the story, no closure. Until 10 PM when Big Daddy gets a text that says 3 armed robbers where caught very near our street.

Shiver me timbers.