Weekend of April 30th - May 2nd, 2010 - What are your plans?

I don't expect to be around much until tomorrow evening. I have a bunch of errands to run and then I'll be driving my daughter down to Farmington to compete in a poetry reading event this afternoon & evening. She's very nervous, understandably. It's a big honor for her to have made it this far.

I want to try to get some outside clean-up & weeding done tomorrow, and then I have a charity wine tasting to attend in the afternoon. I'm REALLY looking forward to that! LOL Sunday will be more gardening, I think.

What will you be doing?

Tomorrow is breakfast at Original Pancake House. I will be having Pecan pancakes, link sausage and milk. Then, a Sam's Club trip. Ooooooh. Aaaaaah.

Sunday is the New Membership ceremony at the church I am attending. After much personal thought and discussion with the clergy, they are letting* this Pagan who thinks Jesus was a pretty cool guy join the church. I like it because they are open to all paths and it's a beautiful church with wonderful music and I like their "God talk." I need the spiritual community and the UU church left me empty inside.

*Not really "letting" - they left the decision in my hands and have been nothing but welcoming

I'll also be starting my "Morph's May Reading Challenge" and watching The Princess and the Frog at some point.

We will drive up to the Wicklow Gap in the Dublin Mountains. Spend a while enjoying the scenery and then descend to Glendalough, the site of the first stone church in Ireland and a major monastic settlement; then onward to The Wicklow Heather for a nice meal.

#3 sounds lovely.

It's a long weekend in the UK. As is traditional it's raining, and forecast to continue all weekend.

I'm helping a friend move house - they're providing food and beer. Hopefully we'll get some of the moving done.

I have been down in the dumps since the doctor's report so my hubby is spoiling me this weekend. :)

So:
1) He is getting us a new TV for the living room...FINALLY! Whoo hoo!

2) He is getting me a Wii and Wii fit. Since the doctor said I need to lose more weight (although I am down to 180 from 325) so hubby is getting me something I might actually use in order to lose weight. :)

3) He is sending me to get a pedicure/manicure...I love being pampered!

Last night is started by him opening a bottle of wine for me and telling me to go spend the evening in a bubble bath with a book and wine and just a good cry.

Sometimes I think someone smacked him upside the head and made him the perfect hubby...but I'm sure by the end of the weekend he will be a typical man again...so I am going to take it while I got it and enjoy the weekend. :)

>1 clamairy:: Congrats to your daughter! I am sure she will do wonderfully!

>2 Morphidae:: Morph, glad to hear you found a place you feel at home. That is what matters the most! And I LOVE pancakes...I'm jealous. :)

#4 they're providing food and beer. Hopefully we'll get some of the moving done.

If your friend has any sense the food and beer will be organised in the new house, after the moving.

It's a long weekend here too (we're all socialists when it comes to bank holidays). Good luck with the election next week. As we always used to say when I was growing up in Belfast, "Vote early, and vote often."

This evening I'm going to see Amy Petty sing in Nashua, which is always great. Other than that, nothing much exciting planned for this weekend.

Watching football and biting fingernails. It's getting close to the end of the season now.

#5 He's doing well! I'd recommend the wii fit plus disk as well as the original - it allows you to set up your own programme so that the exercises can run in a chosen selection, rather than having to go back into the menu all the time.

There's a discovery day on at one of the islands castles so we're talking the wee one on Sunday - should be fun.
Plus it's a long weekend for us too, which is a massive relief since work is really starting to crack me up this week.

errands and stuff tomorrow, probably go hike Mt. Moosilauke on Sunday. Will be more about the hiking than the photography, but I won't come away with nothing.

Golly. First time I've had a Saturday and Sunday off in Forever and I have no plans! Which kind of feels good. I really must work on my son's subrogation claims though. That must be done, as well as his victim's rights stuff for restitution. Not exactly fun plans, but I'm glad things are moving forward.

Other than that, it will be reading, cleaning and probably some shopping and cooking.

Morphy and damejennylynn, I'm so glad you have loving people nearby.

#1 Tough weekend, clam, if you have to drink wine in a good cause. But I'm sure you're up to the challenge.

I'm going to the Met HD opera tomorrow. They're doing Armida, with six tenors and Rene Flemming. Then Sunday I'll have to make up for the indulgence by catching up with housework and other chores.

I'm super excited- a local uni (not mine) is hosting a Big Read event tomorrow on a book that most of us English majors just read. So, my club treasurer and I are planning on having some girl/literary geek out time. :)

Other than that, just one more paper and a literature test and I'M DONE WITH SCHOOL FOR THE SUMMER!!! I'll finally be able to make a serious dent in my TBR pile, which makes me very happy. There's a 5 month old National Geographic on archaeology in my bag right now that's been mocking me since Christmas. Soon, my little friends, soon....

Tonight hubby is hosting a screening of MST3K Space Mutiny. (Railing kill!) Tomorrow is Beltane, so there's a ritual and an after-party. Sunday I hope to just hang out and watch baseball.

Tonight is Walpurgis, so we're going to the bonfire tonight.
Tomorrow is Labour Day, and we have nothing special scheduled. Either we have guests for dinner OR we babysit their kids while they go to a concert.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

My mother's taking us all out to dinner tonight. Hoping for a comet to crash into the Earth before this evening.

I've been told by some that I should start writing. So here it goes this weekend.

http://lifeofadamnfool.blogspot.com

Lots of odds and ends for me this weekend - cat to vet for thyroid level check, hair cut, taxes, rummage sale at one of the neighbourhood churches, take #2 son and his bike to get bike tune-up, gardening, the usual chores, laundry, etc. Finish & review February ER book. Nothing earth-shaking but the weather is supposed to be okay and I expect to enjoy myself :)

In a freak twist of intentions, I started off the new year by stopping my exercise routine. Kind of a reverse new year's resolution. This past week I finally got back into my routine, so some jogging and yoga for me this weekend.

I'll also be helping to sort books for the Times Colonist (local paper) book sale that's coming up. Other than that: hang out with the boys, finish Under Heaven, do some gardening.

Some of my friends are having a coffee house tonight, there's a trade show in town this weekend, which i plan to check out tomorrow, and Sunday a group of friends and I are planning to go paddling for the first time this year!! We'll drive a couple of hours up the highway and do the Toad River. It was pretty low a few weeks ago, so hopefully the level is higher and we'll get some good waves.

I am about to go to class to take a bio quiz right now, but when i get back I plan on going to the gym after i take a nice nap. My friends were talking about taking the train up to Santa Barbara tomorow, but I don't know if I'll have it in me this weekend for a Santa Barbara weekend because I'm trying to recover from the sniffles. Another friend from the film school asked me to bring some friends to shoot a party scene in a movie with him Saturday or SUnday, or both. So it looks like an exciting weekend nonetheless!

#13 - It is such a heavy burden. ;o)

Quiet weekend for me, cleaning the house, puttering around the yard, spending time at the shore - weather permitting, reading - I want to finish The Children's Book if I can. I have a feeling it's my last quiet weekend before the chaos of May starts and we start getting ready to move :-(

i'll be dodging raindrops and nursing a sore back

I was hoping to spend the weekend doing things with my sweetie, maybe go out do dinner, see a movie. But he's out of town on business, and I just learned it will take at least another day.

So, in all likliehood, I'm going to spend the weekend reading, and maybe watching a little TV.

As for what I'll be reading.. well, I've had most of the Dresden Files books for a while, and never got around to reading any but the first. So, in the last couple of weeks, I've read two through four, and it looks like I may get through a couple more this weekend.

Party with GeorgiaDawn and HobbitPrincess wooooohoooo!!!! I'm a lucky man!!!

#18 I'll definitely be reading this tonight!!!

#24 - *massive hugs*
:o/
Been thinking about you, katylit. Be strong.

Spending tomorrow night with my mama, and then taking her halfway across the state to see my great-nephew and her grandson (same person) in his violin recital.

Clayton is something of a prodigy. He started the violin recently after becoming bored with playing the piano (beautifully). His teacher said he could choose something from further along the course for the recital if he wanted to, but he decided to write something original instead. :-o

#24 - *hugs*

I didn't get to see the bonfire, it rained and no one, not even me, wanted to go there. So we stayed inside with a dish of asparaguses instead :)

My grandmother's visiting, so I'm visiting my parents so I can see her.

New plans! I'm going to the Somerville Open Studios with some friends on Sunday. Yay!

#27 Enjoy the get together. I wish I was there to enjoy the fun.

Enjoy your weekend calm.Hmm that wine tasting event is right up my alley. Do you need another tester?

My kid and I are headed to the comic book store in a few for Free Comic Book Day. It's supposed to rain on and off all weekend so there's not much else to do but read.

By contrast, fleela, here in Philadelphia, we're getting hit with summertime heat. Record-breaking expectations today as the last time Philadelphia hit 90+ in May was back in the early 1940's). I am just trying to figure out where I want to be while wilting in the heat today.

I should be writing and figuring out the meal plan for the week.

It's not too hot (supposed to hit about 75) but the humidity...ick. Everything feels sticky today and it's not even 9am yet.

Going to a double shower today - my husband's cousin's wedding shower and his brother's (and wife's) baby shower. Which means a day with the in-laws. Super. But Sunday should be a nice quiet day at home.

Sorry I haven't been around much lately; I've been going through a very rough patch. I lost my brother very suddenly and unexpectedly on the first day of spring and it's been so much harder than I ever imagined it would. On top of that, I've been going through a bit of a career crisis and have some big life decisions to make.

Ouch! Super-hugs!!!

*hugs* scaifea, I'm so sorry.

Thanks clam and Busifer.

{{{scaifea}}}

scaifea: I am sorry to hear of your loss and the struggles with your career. You will be in my thoughts and prayers. Sending good vibes and hugs your way!

Oh, scaifea... I am so very sorry. :o(
*massive supportive hugs*

scaifea, I'm so sorry. My brother died this past December 7. It's very hard. My thoughts are with you.

Today I'm going to my grandson's baseball game. They lost the last one 13 - 1 and everyone was in a terrible mood. Fortunately they have a great coach who stresses sportsmanship and fun above statistics. He plans to have a big talk with them before the game today, so I hope their heads will be in it whatever the score.
Nothing good at the major theaters this weekend, so maybe I can talk my daughter into seeing City Island at one of the more independent ones.

*hugs scaifea* I'm so sorry about everything that's been going on in your life. Sending good thoughts your way!

(((((scaifea))))) You're much in my thoughts, and will certainly be in those of my colleagues you've helped, once the news travels a bit.

Hugs indeed Scaifea... if you need us, you know where we are right?

As for myself, I have decided to spend this weekend de-stressing from a particularly gruelling week - nothing uncontrollable, just a lot to absorb and deal with in a very short space of time. However, one of the best ways (for me, at least) to de-stress is to get back to nature a little bit, and as running naked through the forest was out of the question (it IS a bank holiday weekend after all, the weather has been mostly wet, grey, and horrible) I elected instead to watch the sun go down. I very nearly didn't (and would've had to settle for seeing a tiny sliver of it out of the window), but in the end the desire to be "out there" was too strong (plus my camera was begging me to come along for the ride)... So, this evening I found myself standing in the middle of a field (not naked, sorry ;-) watching a beautiful sunset. It really helped put a few things into perspective, and just generally aided stress relief.... aaaaand relax.

This week's picture is one of tonight's shots... it's just a little under two hours old and is very much hot off the presses:



I know false colours aren't to everyone's tastes, but in the world of Tane grass and hedges can be pinky-orange and no one bats an eyelid ;-) However the sky is genuine, it really was that pink.

*long sigh* just lovely Tane, so lovely it hurts!

I didn't even notice the colour alteration until I read your caption. May I live in the world of Tane forever? *sighs* By the way, love that lonesome tree! Very Wuthering Heights to my mind.

Great shot as usual, Tane!

My day mostly consisted of power washing. Mostly the house, but other stuff as well. Mostly intentional, but occasionally the d*mn thing would get away from me. :)

Lovely, Tane, I don't think that could help but bring peace to your soul.

thank you all very much - you're all more than welcome to live in Tane world for as long as you like ;-)

Just found out the road leading to the trailhead of Mt. Moosilauke is closed so I think we're hiking to some B18 bomber wreckage on another mountain.

Thanks, everyone. I don't even know how many times I've sat down to write a post about this since it happened, got part-way through, and deleted it. Only now am I starting to be able to talk about it; I've wanted to share my loss here, knowing that all of your comfort would be, well, a comfort, but I just couldn't bring myself to type it. My brother was an amazing person in so many ways and I miss him so much.

I started out this weekend with lots of odds and ends happening and I was off-line for a day and a half due to some workmen's errors nearby my house, affecting my cable.

First, scaifea, please accept my sincere condolences for your loss. I know your brother will live in your heart but I also know it is so hard to want to see and hug someone who is gone.

secondly, Katylit, you are in my thoughts frequently and I know you will live through this next period of stress and will be very happy in your new home. I am once again on the "must find a new home" path and think I found a great house yesterday. Sadly, the sellers are one of the families who found themselves owing the bank more money than the house is now worth, and for some reason they were unable to keep up their payments, and so the house is "in foreclosure". It is a little uncomfortable to be taking advantage of their troubles but nonetheless it is a great little house and a great price and very near my niece's home. I have all the financial considerations to work through and it is by no means a done deal but I am excited and really wanting to get on with moving.

Starting today! I will be moving stuff out of my current house so that I can "stage" it for sale. Ta da!

Busy weekend. It will almost be good to get back to work tomorrow.

#55 - Holding my thumbs for you!

#29 - wow Mary, you must be proud indeed! (and now I've inexplicably got that song stuck in my head! Rolling! Rolling! Rolling on the river!!)

#38 - oh scaifea I am so very very sorry to hear of your tragic loss!!!
BIG HUGS!!! #44 - Joyce again so very sorry to hear of your loss as well!!!

#48 - thanks Tane for helping us ALL de-stress!

#38 Scaifea, just take it one day at a time. Eventually, the pain will begin to recede. I'm sorry you've had such a hard time.

Tane, it is indeed a lovely photo. (#48)

We just got back from seeing my son's screenplay produced (adapted for the stage) at his college drama department's senior thesis night when the graduating seniors do a number of scenes, musical numbers, and sketches;it was *very* well done, very funny and I'm so very proud of him.

#58 - Ooooh congrats Jill, sounds like fun!

Oh, my grandson lost his little league baseball game again. He has struck out the last 6 times he's been at bat. I told him it's just a slump, everyone goes through it, it will pass, etc, but he's pretty devastated. I read him Casey at the Bat to show the phenomenon is so widespread that a famous poem has been written about it, to no effect. I know in Bull Durham they recommended wearing ladies panties, but at the age of 10, I'm thinking that wouldn't go over well, nor would an affair with Susan Sarandon, though she is going for the younger set these days. Any hints? He has another game on Tuesday, and he just has no faith in his abilities any more.

By the way, we saw City Island, a great, funny, touching movie. I'd recommend it to anyone. In my city of 20 theaters it was being shown in only one. That theater was full even though it was the second week of its showing. I think it would have done well with more promotion and a wider release. Much better than most of the movies I've been seeing lately.

well on Saturday i did nothing but sleep. On sunday I played wow, read, talked with katie and played with Vincent, then later that night had my D&D fourth ed game.

Today I am sat at my pc reinstalling wow for the 6th time.

i can't tell you how fustrating this is.

we found the wreckage (B18 bomber crashed into the mountain in 1942) and some wildflowers -

Great pics everyone.

I'm a bit bummed out - long weekend but had a really painful horrible stomach bug for most of Sat/Sun and still icky today. Plus looked after a friends 2 year old (my daughter's best friend outside of nursery) which was fine, but exhausting.

Still Dad gave me a dozen scallops so yum for dinner :) Though that was the first time I've shelled them so I made a bit of a hash of it. Fingers crossed they'll be okay - and that the tummy will hold up to them.

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Looks wonderful!

Great pictures, Tane. That poor turkey looked like its face was melting.

Advice to those thinking of moving house. If you're going to get your friends to come and help you shift stuff:

a) Sort out your stuff -throw out/give away things you don't need. Friends are friends, but even they have limits, and moving 'junk' that you don't want to keep is one of them. This include the loft.

b) tidy up. Clean stuff, wash-up etc. put things away. Use up food. Nobody needs 20 cans of beans in their new house. You can always buy them again.

c) PACK. really. in boxes and stuff. Because friends don't want to pack for you either.

d) don't moan when your stuff has been put in boxes and transported to your new house, that you can't find anything. see c) above.

But the food and beer was good. The weather alternated between sunshine, hail, rain and thunder. Once we'd had some beer nobody was too stressed. I had to leave before it was all moved (see a) above) but over 3 days we got most of it done.

67 - The same goes for when you're sending stuff overseas. It's a little awkward to catalogue your friends' clothing for the customs statement.

I personally packed my books and kitchenware for my last move. Didn't want strangers touching my books or kitchen tools.

reading_fox - You sound like a very good friend! I think I might have said something like, "Oh, my mistake, I thought we were moving you this weekend, but I see that you must have meant next weekend. Call me when you're actually ready." I suppose it would depend on the friend. Now, did you get food and beer each day, or did you have to wait until the third?

#62
Great shots Bookmarque, looks like you found a very interesting place there.

One of the unsung pleasures of achieving middle age is not having to help friends move any more.

Nope. You get to help your children move. Which I'll be doing in 2 weeks.

#70 - LOL. no we did get food and beer each day! It wasn't too bad, and we were only moving stuff a few doors down the street.

#73 But you can help by setting up the kitchen, thus enabling the newly moved couple to have a post-move fight over why you would put (some necessary item) where you did. We do what we can. ;)

75 - Last time (and the only time) I moved, my Dad and I did the heavy lifting bits. My mother unpacked the kitchen stuff, made sandwiches and did the cleaning back where I had left. I was thoroughly grateful for that. Food and cleaning. Wow.

They sound like good eggs, Will, but you deserve no less!