Happy Halloween Everyone!

My uncle and godfather, Miguel Cintron passed away yesterday. He was lucid until last weekend, his body starting failing and he stopped eating. He was put into hospice on Tuesday evening and passed away there yesterday, my aunt was with him at the time. I am so grateful that I was able to visit him back in March when he was alive. I will not be able to attend his services but have sent on some final words for my cousin to speak on my behalf.

Que dios te bendiga.........

Had to come into work at 10am yesterday for a special "Company Call" to let us know of the financial look at OSF. It was on the news and also there was a special "Town Hall" open to the community on Monday night. Currently they are not laying off but 1 million had to be trimmed from the 2009 Budget. No salary increases but we knew that from the last meeting in September. The matching savings program is put on hold, so no matching. That alone is almost 350,000. The executives took a small cut in salary and there are various other areas where there will be cuts but not on the quality of the shows, that will never be compromised.

Since I was in early I took a little walk in the park to take some photos and here they are. Unfortunately, not many because my battery died and I left the spare in the car, even if it was in the office I wouldn't have made the trek back. So I will be heading back to take more photos hopefully this weekend. The colors are just right and the leaves are falling fast and it probably won't be that long before the leaves are all gone.

Okay, so I finally got back to sleep early this morning and there was a buzzing that woke me up........at first I thought it was cows (the cows were back this weekend) so I tried to get back to sleep and then another short buzzzzzz..............hhhhmmmm, what the heck is that, I'm trying to sleep! Well, it hit me!!!! It's probably a text from LAURA!!!! and lo and behold it was! It was a picture of her standing in front of a giant 5-0.

Hope you're having a great time GF!

Okay, I will be a gimp for a very long time, never mind the fact that I can't put in 8 hours of sleep anymore, sometimes not even 6! I am really, really tired and was hoping that THIS YEAR I would get some relief. I have an appointment with Dr. Boyd in Salem on January 8th - NEXT YEAR! I have discovered that there are 2 docs in Medford that do hip resurfacing so I am now researching that but it will probably take as long to get in.

Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Anita, happy birthday to youuuuuuuuuuuuu, and many more!

Happy Birthday to GF Anita!

No surgery date!

Had my visit with the Orthropedic surgeon this morning and he recommends "Hip Resurfacing" because I'm young (yes, to some) and active. Of course there is no-one in the Valley that does it sooooo...... off my file goes to a Dr. Boyd in Salem that has done thousands of them and I wait about a week to hear from them about an appointment. Oh, also the surgery will be in SALEM! I am so frustrated that I have another hurdle to jump before I can find relief! So I really don't have an update. I just read about resurfacing on the internet (isn't that amazing) and got the scoop on that. If you can believe this---there was a site that had a virtual surgery (I didn't want to go there). Longevity of this procedure is 20 years and I can be more active than with a traditional hip replacement. Traditional hip replacements 15-20 years.

Today is not a good day for me..........

Parade
Assembly
Assembly Assembly
Assembly
Parade
Did I mention that Rocky was on the Homecoming Court? Well, here are some pictures from the Assembly and the parade.

The skinny girls decided to have tee-shirts; SBHFT (Skinny bitches have feelings too)
The door that opens into the Sun Room
The front porch (2 gals were missing)
Laura's lunch..........she was trying to fool us!
Nicole, bless her heart drives all the way down from Coos Bay!

Oh, my gosh, my voice is hoarse from this weekend...........every retreat gets a little crazier, I don't know how the next one will be topped!
Great food, great entertainment (thank you Robin/Laurie) and great gifts was had by all! Now I just need to recoup for the next couple of days...........oy vay!

Photos from past retreats.

We searched and searched and finally found a place we love! We've reached our maximum as far as people. It's a little work getting it set up, I wish the place would have all the tables we need and then we wouldn't have to schlep tables too. Maybe if we book a few retreats for next year they'll consider buying some tables. People don't realize how many tables we need. The first one we had at this place had set up 2 small card tables and of course their dining table! Scrapbookers take up a lot of space!
The sunroom is so gorgeous, now if they could push it out another 3 feet we'd be in business!

A prayer for my Uncle Miguel or as I call him "Pinino", he is also my godfather. When I was small I couldn't say "padrino" so it was Pinino and it's been that ever since.

My poor Uncle is in his late 80's, has diabetes, emphysema, and a bad heart. I noticed when I saw him in March that his breathing had deteriorated, using the nebulizer a few times a day and not sleeping well, even waking up to use the machine.

He is still sharp as a tack, so much that we were discussing all sorts of stuff when we were there, i.e. politics, etc. His poor body is giving out.

He is the only diabetic close to me that never lost a limb; my father had lost both his legs and my poor friend Ronnie lost a foot and toes from his other foot.

He was always very good with his diet and exercise. In his late 70's he belonged to an old timer's baseball team. I happened to be visiting with Rocky and I got to go to one of his games. You can hit the ball but if you're older than 75 they send in a runner for you. He was very big into walking and riding his bike around. I would say his health has been deteriorating since around 80 when he found that he needed heart surgery but wouldn't do it because of his age. Now he has pneumonia and he's been put on dialysis.

My uncle has always been a father figure to me; my father was never a dad, more biological than anything else. If I hadn't called him in a while then I would get a phone call from him wondering what I was up to and how Pete and Rocky were doing.

My cousins are keeping me informed and I've already told Rocky that it doesn't look too good so that he is prepared.

I am still playing with my camera. My last class was Sunday and I would like to take a couple of more classes but I need to schedule surgery first and work around that.

This is our 25th anniversary picture. Wish it was better but I learned more stuff on Sunday after this picture was taken. We went to dinner at my favorite place in Ashland, Cucina Biazzi. It is still so good and we're never disappointed. I had a butternut risotto that I can't even describe. Pete just kept giving me a look because with every bite I was moaning! It was so heavenly and decadent.

If you haven't been to Cucina Biazzi they have a different menu. It is a 4 course dinner. You have an appetizer platter, a choice of a pasta (or risotto), a main entree, and a salad. The portions are not huge because you're getting 4 courses. After 1/2 the risotto I pretty much was full but kept piling it in. It was a delicious meal and a great way to celebrate 25 years of marriage.

Audrey, always with the perfect smile.
Anita gets a massage too!
Monica and her beautiful project.

Audrey and Lisa.
The group. Thanks for holding the tables Jen.
Anita and her minnions
Okay........Laura stopped by and got a 10 min. massage.
Vivienne gets her quickie!

9:00am - 5:00pm all day at the Beta Upsilon Crop in Eagle Point, Oregon. It was our first time going to this thing. It was fun, very big, lots of prizes, food and drinks. There was even a masseuse; $10.00 for 10 minutes.

Laura and Marna stopped by and Anita put them to work. Monica was new to our group and put up with our nonsense, what a trooper.

I don't feel like I got much done but I started on a few Christmas gifts that I can finish at the retreat this weekend. It was so cold when we got there that there was ice in the streets!

Hey, did anyone notice that Laura was the only one that laid down for a massage?

I'm not sure if I like this picture better or the one with the lettuce stuck in my teeth :).
I am currently drugged and at the Siskiyou Imaging Center hopefully knocked out having my MRI's done. Pete is with me and I'll be going home since the doc said I shouldn't be driving or go to work. Finally get to use one of those sick days! Of course I will be using them all up in the near future :( Thank goddess I have been a healthy person in the past and have accumulated many sick hours.

So Rocky has nonchalantly told us that he was picked to be on the Homecoming Court!!!!! Mr. I Don't Like Anyone In School. I don't know what it all entails but it is all happening on Oct. 17th, yes I know, retreat day! The parade will be early afternoon so I will be able to run out and get pictures. I need to find out what else is going on?????

We're on our way to The Beta Upsilon Crop in Eagle Point today for a day of games, prizes, make-n-takes, and hopefully some scrapbooking in there too. Should be fun!

Walked through the park yesterday on my way to Grilla Bites to get a salad for lunch. Took a couple of pics. Still need to wait at least another week or so some of the trees haven't turned. Here's what I shot. Enjoy!

Oooh, what's that?
Need to get down..........
What is it? (before)
Using the "P" function on my camera - priceless!

As you can see Pete hasn't totally backfilled the backyard walls yet but that's besides the point. The point is that I am learning something about my camera!!!!!!! I learned how to use the "P" function! OMG, I can't believe what I've been missing, it's a whole new world. In case you didn't know I'm taking a photography class here in Ashland at The Grove, 3 Sundays, 9:30am-12:30pm, instructor David Vanderslip. This Sunday will be my last class. I have to tell you that I will take the next class after this and the Photoshop class because this guy knows what he's talking about and makes it simple enough so I can understand! Gotta love that.

The first 3 photos are just taken on "P" but I didn't program in that it was cloudy, after programming it - viola! photo #4, see the difference? I've got to tell you I'm loving my new camera and am going to love it even more!

Medical update: MRI's scheduled for Monday a.m.

25 years today we walked down the aisle in the "Little Chapel of The West" and were married. The Chapel at the time was the most quaint in Vegas with beautiful grounds, not one of those phony Las Vegas chapels with Elvi's. Linda Foster was my maid of honor and Steve Hampton was the best man. The minister that officiated happen to be Linda's minister. My mom, brother and 2 cousins from LA came out. My cousin Josie did my hair (she's a hairdresser). Pete's mom also came in from Phoenix (AZ). Our dear friends from New Jersey, Jim and Sharon Harrigan (the instigator of the whole relationship) also flew in. It was a lovely afternoon ceremony and after we stopped at a photography studio and had professional shots taken (I didn't want to rely on just snapshots). We kept it simple; just a small reception in the back yard. I had New York Deli (not around anymore) cater. It was primarily cold cuts, salads and I really wanted a turkey all cut up and put back together again. I ordered a beautiful cake and petit fours from a great French bakery, (don't think it's around) named Andre's. It was a great celebration spent with friends and loved ones.

Linda was the first one to call this morning to wish us a Happy Anniversary, she never forgets our special day. We love you Linda, thanks so much for always remembering us.

Here's the progress report..............Pete has progressed down to the path! Now we're rethinking the back!

Yikes! I'm a mess! Dr. Hagie got the x-ray reports and now I am on to 2 MRI's, one on my spine and one on my hip. I just love MRI's.....after the last one I found out that I was claustrophobic so I need to be medicated to go in the dreaded tube! I will have to take off work and Pete will go with me since I need to be medicated. I have an appt. with Hagie on the 16th to go over the MRI's and then onto Dr. Morrison (orthopedic surgeon) for him to review my MRI and schedule surgery (my appt. is 10/24). I'll have to find out when I have to go to the back doc and get that scheduled but from what Dr. Hagie said I need my hip done now. Well, it looks like Pete called it, he said I probably needed a new hip and damn it, he was right!


I have always had lumbar problems but have lived with it; Pilates has been my savior. There are spurs on my disc that can cause potential problems so it looks like I need to have that corrected.



I feel so much better knowing that this is not all in my head and knowing I have a plan in action. I was thinking I might have a new hip for Christmas but I think it'll be for Thanksgiving!

It's coming along but we need Tim back! Hopefully when Tim and Laurie come back for Thanksgiving it will all be done. So far I think it's looking really good. Can't wait for the paths to be done so we can move on to planting!