Simply Saturday - Slow recovery

It has been 10 days since I first felt my throat sore and today I am still coughing and my bounce still has not come back.  I guess I should have had the flu shot prior to my BFF's visit but it's too late now.  I have to at least get my health 80% without the cough and the sniffles.  Don't you hate being sick and feeling tired from being sick and tired.  Ooops, I think that sounds like a complain and if you could hear me, that would be whine.  Ahhhhhhhhhh, get me out of this rut.

Someone once told me that if you are going to complain, you must also have some solutions to the complaint.  So here's some of my ideas

• Play tennis to get the blood circulating and the heart pumping
• Go shopping to get rid of some of the craving that has bottled inside
• See a funny movie to experience laughter and happy moments
• Ask Jeff to take me to Hawg's -my favorite seafood restaurant.
• Drink some hot tea with Sambucca 
• Watch re runs of my favorite show - TBBT

Flowery Friday - new arrangements

Remember the flowers my MIL brings me every Sunday?  I usually have them in one big vase and a couple days later I split them into 4 different arrangements.  It's my other passion - being a florist.  There was a time when I first arrived here that I stopped by a couple of flower shop asking if I could volunteer and the response is that they don't use volunteers.  That is why I just do most of my arranging at home using the flowers that I get or the ones I purchase every now and then.

Arrangement on our coffee table.

Arrangement in our living room side table.

Arrangement on our dining room table.

Arrangement on my Gino corner.

With two bouquet of assorted flowers, I was able to make 4 different arrangements.  I love having fresh flowers at home, it makes it so homey and alive.  In a way I am thankful that either Jeff or I have any type of allergies as it would be really sad not to be able to have fresh flowers every now and then.

Do you have a favorite flower?  Do you know the meaning of the colors of each flower? One of my favorite flower is Gerbera daisies.  This type of daisy represents cheerfulness.  It also represents innocence, purity and classic beauty.  I guess I got it right when I picked the arrangement for my wedding.

This was my wedding bouquet.

Truthful Thursday - Still a little under the weather

It has been a whole week since I started sniffling and coughing and currently I am still not feeling great.  The thing is I like to get back to tennis and golf but my energy level is still low.  I need to get lots of sleep so my body can repair.  The good part is that I don't work so I can stay at home as many days as I need. Since I have been home most of the week, I had time to change polish for both fingers and toes.  I kept the colors in the halloween theme but did not do scary designs.

Only both thumbs have this design.

Big toe design

 It's only 4 more sleeps before halloween so here's a photo of the treats that we have so far.

A nice assortment of my favorites, Heath, Take5,Milk Duds and Rolo

Wrap Up Wednesday - Lorna's visit

The alarm went off at 400 am on Sunday morning and so Jeff and I got up and got ready to take my friend Lorna to SFO airport.  She was going home and her visit ended.  I guess you were wondering why I did not have a post for the weekend.  Well, it was because I was busy entertaining and spending time with Lorna.  We were celebrating our 15th year of friendship.

She got in very late on Wednesday and like me she was a bit congested, she was coughing and sniffling.  That's when I knew that it would be OK to feel the same because I don't have to worry about passing it to her.  We got up the next day and had breakfast together and then got ready to shop.  I took her to some of my favorite stores and she was happy to some great deals.  On Thursday night we watch Melissa Manchester perform at the Montalvo Arts theatre.  It was a very good evening with her singing all her greatest hits.  It was very cozy and personal as it was a smaller venue.  The next day, Friday, we did not start our day until almost noon but it was another beautiful day and we found ourselves shopping again.  While at the Oakridge mall we stopped at the snack shop and I introduced her to the ROTI bun which was a delicious soft bread with a crunchy top that was not overly sweet.  For lunch I took her to Sushi Boat and it was another great meal.  In the evening we had dinner at home and then we met Jeff's friend at a club in Los Gatos.  The band that I thought was PST ended up not playing as their drummer quit, so the replacement band was Touch and Go.  They played top 40 dance music.  We had a great time and it was another late night.  On Saturday after breakfast we left to pick up my MIL as she was going with us to Monterrey and Carmel.

The weather was beautiful and it was perfect time to be outdoors.  Our lunch was at the Lalla Grill at the Delmonte Shopping Plaza in Monterrey.  I loved this place and I ordered the same dish.

Oyster wrapped with sirloin steak and bacon served with arugula salad

Lorna and I shared this grilled polenta with wild mushroom sauce

Shrimp nacho with salsa and avocado

We were able to sit outdoors as the weather was so sunny and warm.  Check out the decor.

Notice the fireplace behind up.

This was taken at the Del Monte Shopping Plaza

We definitely had a great time together celebrating our friendship even if we were both under the weather and couldn't really do a lot of energetic activities.  It was sure nice for her to visit us in our CPBB.  Now she will have an idea when I talk about my activities here and maybe someday she will come back to visit and take her husband with her.

Timely Tuesday - Flowers, Fruits and what is that?

When I see beautiful flowers either in people's garden or at the store, I usually try and take a photo and after take time to smell the beautiful scent.  As I mentioned before my MIL has been spoiling me with new bouquet of flowers every Sunday when she comes for dinner at home.

These is a combination of two bouquet with several types of flowers.

Last week when I had to pick up my supervisor (Senior Center Nutrition Program) at her home, I was a little early so she invited me to see her garden.  I took the liberty of taking a few photos of her flowers and fruits.  She is a very good with gardening and I guess you can say she has the greenest thumb.

This arrangement was on her dining table.

Her orange tree with lots of fruits

Her persimmon tree with many persimmon waiting to ripen. This is located  in front of her house.

This was taken in Carmel.  We parked our car and I saw this very different flower.

Now the next photo is neither a flower nor a fruit but since it was a very different looking motorcycle, I took the photo so I can share with you.  This was parked at the corner street of downtown Carmel.

BMW

Have you seen anything like this in your area?  There were a lot of tourist taking photo of this unusual toy.

Maybe Monday - Trophy Memories

Do you have a collection of trophies from your childhood? Maybe later in your adult life?  As for me I only have 3 trophies which I received during the past 20 years.  The first one is from a Pool Tournament which was organized by my friend Percy during the days when we still had lots of fun.  The second one I received from a Squash Tournament that was sponsored by the community center that I use to play a lot.  The third one is from a golf tournament that was sponsored by a Filipino organization in Toronto.  Our team won as we were the only female 4some for the whole tournament.  I am a little disappointed because this trophy was damaged during my move and I am not sure if Jeff is able to fix it.  I almost forgot.  There was another golf trophy but we only get to keep it for a year after winning the tournament.  My friend Alex and another guy who's name I can't remember and myself won that year.  It was the Mike Gratton Invitational Golf Tournament held every July in Caledon, Ontario.

Second Place in the women's category 

Second Place in the women's division.

Do you keep any of the trophies you have won? If so, do you display it or is it collecting dust in the basement or attic?

Truthful Thursday - Happy Birthday to my favorite sister

Before I forget, I would like to wish my favorite sister,  A very happy, happy birthday.  May your day be filled with surprises and happy moments.  Your gifts will be a belated one, they will all be waiting for you when you get here.

Last night before picking up my best friend Lorna at the airport, I started sniffling and my throat is hurting a bit.  It's good that my other best friend Rose ad my daughter sent me some packages of Fisherman's Friend in a variety of flavors.  It seems like it's the only thing that keeps my throat from hurting and eventually make my cold go away.  I hope that this is just a little sniffles and not turn into some sort of flu.  I have made a lot of plans to make Lorna's visit fun, exciting and interesting.

Yesterday I got to play tennis and golf again.  The weather was beautiful, sunny blue skies and just a slight breeze to keep me cool.  After golf, I was able to stop and shop a little.  Then I remembered I also need to get some groceries.  I had some extra minutes before picking up Jeff at his workplace, so I made a couple of calls to my friends in Canada.  It was great to catch up on our stories and I sure miss them.

I found this photo of Gamble and me taken in 2007,

We have missed a couple of our weekends with Gamble.  The last time he was not able to come because he had a fever, then the week after he was with his other grandparents, this week I am spending time with Lorna and then next week he is going with his parent to Halloween party.  I guess we won't see him until Halloween night when he does his round.  I can't hardly wait to see his costume but I think it will be a little scary for me.

Where Wednesday - Places to shop

Where do I get all the great deals when in comes to shopping for clothes, shoes, purses, etc?  Here's the list of stores that I love to check for sales and awesome deals.  The only thing that is different when it comes to regular shopping is that since I am retired, I have all the time to check each rack and each department.  If for some reason I don't find a great deal, I know that I can do it again next day or next week, until I find what I believe is a terrific purchase. 

• Ross Dress for Less
• Kohl's
• Marshalls
• Target
• Papaya
• Tuesday Morning
• TJMaxx
• Gilroy Outlet
• Forever 21
• Broadway Shoes
• Nail supply shops owned by Vietnamese

In a few hours my girlfriend Lorna will be arriving and I can't hardly wait to take her to some of my favorite shops.  On Monday my MIL and I had some errands to do and we stop by the store called Papaya at the Oakridge Mall.  I just wanted to check out the sales and I ended up buying an outfit for Lorna and an item for my daughter and of course for me.  Check it out.

Lorna's top - surprise for when she arrives.

Lorna's skirt to wear with above top.  This is for going out.

A slimming skirt for my daughter. It's her favorite color - dark purple.

I really hope that we really find some great deals.  Do you have a favorite store in your area?  Is any of the stores in my list your favorite?

Timely Tuesday - One more sleep

Do you ever count days prior to an upcoming event or do you count sleep like me?  That's right I always count sleep prior to something exciting that's about to happen.  One more sleep and my best friend from Ottawa, Ontario will be spending a few days with us.  This is her first time in California and I have already made a list of things to do and places to see.  She is also the first solo guest at our CPBB.  Unfortunately her husband Danny will not be accompanying her and I would like to thank him for allowing her to visit me.  He is one sweet guy because I have known Danny for as long as I have been friends with Lorna.  This will be our 15th year of friendship.  I know that we will have a great time even though it's short stay. When we are together we make the most out of every minute of whatever we are doing.  She is my best friend because she has been there for me at my most traumatic time of my life.  I hope this time I could reciprocate.

Me and Lorna taken on my wedding day (May 2008)

Maybe Monday - Maybe a new volunteer

There's only two more Mondays left for my volunteer at the Senior Center.  Since there is a new company taking over the Nutrition Program, we are not sure if we will be asked to continue with our same shift or they won't need volunteers at all.  If you remember from one of my post sometime in July, I finally got a call from the SJPD regarding my application in their volunteer program.  My interview will be this week and it's a pass/fail.  There is no test, just a personal interview.  The process takes at least 14 weeks to do all the background check.  I have chosen three options with regards to the type of work I would be doing.  Fingerprinting, administrative or Tour Guide.  The commitment is for a minimum of 12 hours per month.  I would have to make sure that I only volunteer once a week so I will still be able to golf and play tennis. Although if the Senior Center still needs us, I would have two volunteer days because my MIL and her neighbor would need me to drive them.  It's a day I hang out with my MIL.  Two days of volunteer, two days of tennis and golf, one day of housekeeping, weekends with Jeff.  And who says retired life is boring, wrong!!! 

One of my best friend asked about TGIF and then she realized that that phrase does not apply to me because EVERY DAY IS A FRIDAY for me.  Has anyone read this book?