§ All Aboard! Ferry Crossing

Isn't the English language something? Confusing to those trying to learn to speak English to say the least. So, the other day, playing my Scrabble game on the phone while waiting for the echo on the carotid [neck] arteries, I had some letters N M U R, two I's and a C...well, there was a B on the board. I thought of playing the word NUMB. With the R, though, perhaps NUMBER if only I had an E instead of the I. Got me to thinking. You have NUMB. Is there NUMBER, AND NUMBEST?  The B would be silent, right?  Then, I was called in for the examination. "No looking it up online now, I'm busy". When I got home I checked our collegiate dictionary from the bookshelf [I almost forgot about it]. Sure 'nough, there is a NUMB NUMBER and NUMBEST! So, you have NUMBER as in numerical digits, i.e. 1-3-20-100, with the B pronounced. Then, you have NUMBER, the B is silent, as in without feeling. Now, first off, once you're numb, can you get number? Either you are, or you're not numb. Even tho I've been speaking English all my life once I started talking, I just don't see getting number. Then again, the percentage numBer of me getting NUMbER typing this is getting higher!  I just may be the NUMbEST yet!!  How 'bout you? .

check for yourself

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Our Tax Dollars at Work...The Ferries crossing the ship channel from Port A to Aransas Pass, Tx. [or visa versa] - Digital Signage on both sides of the two towns told me/other drivers there would be a 15 minute wait to get aboard. By the time I left, an hour later, there was a line of traffic for the ferry at LEAST three miles long! Probably more like a 30 minute wait time when I was getting ready to head back to Corpus...without crossing the ferry.

The pylons at the ferry docks were lined with pelicans and seagulls


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Father's Day was a quiet day....Bud heard from both of our kids first thing in the morning. He had his day planned to do 'nothing' he said! Saturday he helped me with cleaning the house, so he deserved his quiet day. He has a project going on with wood and the making of a Native American 'gadget' in the works, he worked a little bit on that while I walked the Robert Point Park in Port Aransas. It's a nice shady park, with water, marina, grasses, benches, AND SHADE!!! I sat and watched our Tax Dollars at Work for a while, enjoying the sea breeze and all the activities. I walked another couple of parks, with no birds, and then drove to the ARK [rehabilitation facility for injured birds] near the Magee Beach before heading home to prepare Bud's choice for dinner...

...lasagna

With Tossed Salad, Tiger Bread [with fresh garlic], red wine, and for dessert frozen yogurt.

We then watched the movie "The Big Year".

§ The New Year Brings Resolutions and More Stuff...

RANDOM

Just some random Bird Photos...Least Grebes
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DOWNSIZING

My New Year's Resolution is something I've promised myself TO KEEP at it 'til it's accomplished! I've been downsizing/getting rid of all our junk. From clothes, shoes [for instance: I have 5 pairs of walking shoes/tennis shoes and only two feet?!!!?], old TVs that have been stored in closets, dishes...junk not used for over a period of years! Even my santa collection, AND witch collection. I've had dozens of large trash can sized trash bags that have been tossed for trash pick up, or stored in the garage for taking them all to Goodwill!!  The other day Bud and I built shelves in a closet for travel bags that have been laying on the floor in a closet along with trade in books, etc. That particular project took us both a whole day.

So far, I've completed

three closets
the hall bathroom cupboards
the dining room hutch and drawers.
The worst is yet to come in the days ahead. The master bedroom walk-in closet [I have plans on building storage shelves in that one], the computer room/library where I store some santa dolls [shelves pending here too] and bedroom furniture/drawers.
I'm in the middle of cleaning out the computer of photos! Once I get them organized by month I'll get them on a flash drive.
Then....the garage! What is it with us who have to 'save' this and that 'cause it may come in handy someday?!! Tons of storage boxes line the garage walls....IT'S GONNA GET DONE!

Bud petting our kitty, Tahoe: "Run and hide poody-kat, Anni is in a throwing away mood! If you get in her way, she just may toss you too."

I think I'll keep her!!

...working on the master bedroom closet now!  We're adding shelves in closets to be more organized once all the litter is gone.

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READING

I also want to read more this year. My pastime of reading has been put on the back burner these past few years....all because I try to walk more and go outdoors on birding day trips. I'm still gonna go birding, but I promise myself to not forget to stop and read.  Lately when I am taking a break, I find myself playing games on my smartphone. My most recent novel is by Michael Blake I found in the clearance aisle for a dollar. His 'fame' as an author came with the book-to-movie Dances With Wolves. Marching to Valhalla is a first person fictionalized account of General George Armstrong Custer. Tho chronologically, it's not accurate, it's pretty darned good. The words just flow easily. It's like ol' Cus' himself is sitting by the fireside telling of his life leading the 7th Cavalry to the day of infamy...June 25th, 1876 where he and is army perish at the hands of the Sioux Nation in Montana. Bud is a Custer buff. I can't begin to tell you how many times we've traveled to Crow Agency to walk the battlefield during our marriage. Our daughter Irene was just a baby when we began our many, many trips there...Anyway, I got sidetracked....I recommend this book highly.

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"NEW" GAME

When Erik stayed with us over the holidays, he brought us a new board game. Well, it isn't a 'new' game, but an improved game! I mentioned getting rid of some of our junk above? The OLD game we had got tossed and this new one replaced it! It's really quite a challenge compared to the original version. It's SUPER SCRABBLE... there are twice as many letter tiles, and the board had not only the double and triple word/letter score boxes, it now had QUADRUPLE word/letter scores. And the board is much larger! [400+ playing boxes instead of 225 - 200 letter tiles instead of 100!] Also, the new version is an award winner.  We played several games...it lasts longer by about an extra 30 minutes to an hour.  And Erik was a whiz....I think he won them all!!

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WORTHY OF A VISIT
It'll pull your Heart Strings!

I was checking out a new monthly meme, Scene and Story, the other day. In order for me to decide if I wanted to join in I felt compelled to click on some of the thumbnails. The very first one I saw was this precious image of a small infant, asleep with his arm wrapped around a rabbit. Cute, right? Indeed. And  while reading I felt happy and melancholy at the same time.  Happy to see such innocence, melancholy...tho melancholy usually comes without any reason...I think 'cause I don't  have small ones around me, it touched my heart in a true sense of days gone by.  My youngest grandson is 21 this year!!  Anyway, such a wonderful, wonderful narration and the image well..........it's priceless! The blog post is entitled "Mr. Bunny". You MUST stop by and read it. The story will melt your heart, and see if you don't agree with Nancy, the blog author, about learning from children.  Tell her Hootin' Anni sent you over to visit....MR BUNNY