Time to buy a membership in AAA!!!!!

In all the years I have known David, he and I have never had a car towed in for service. Until this week....both of ours ended up on the hook.
Monday on his way to work, his quit and he had to hitchhike in to work and call a wrecker to pick up his truck. Fuel pump shot. He did get ride in about 2 minutes of waiting. A nice man from Peru picked him up and drove him to the door of work.
Today I was on my way to my grandkids' elementary school for their Cabin Fever event and I hear a noise and my truck almost veared into the other lane with car coming my way. Yikes. Luckily I wrestled it back and coasted to a stop. Got out and saw my left front wheel leaning over. Crap. Broken ball joint and possible axle damage. Called David and he came and we went to our local tow truck operator who went over and brought my poor old truck home for me. David went off to buy parts and will hopefully have me back on the road in a couple of days.
I'm glad it happened today and not the other day when I was taking my Dad to his doc appointment. I was lucky only to be going about 30 mph when it broke. But for the grace of God... Luckily Coco The Garage Dog is on the job!

I didn't make it to the Cabin Fever event, but earlier today I had gone to see BEP play basketball. She was on the bench when I got there but went in the game and made one basket before I had to go. They played a great game but Dannemora won 39-19.
Guess I better head to the AAA website now and invest in a membership....hopefully we won't need it but....sheesh.
BEP and Jenna are going to a dance at school tonight - they have had a busy and fun day. Hopefully, Cris will take some pics for me.

Happy Birthday to my dear friend Ione!!!! (pronounced Iona) My sisters Theresa and Mary joined me and Ione at bingo last night to celebrate Ione's 95th birthday! We did not win but we had fun and enjoyed spending the time with Ione and giving her a ride home at the end of the evening.

I first met her last year at bingo when she celebrated her 94th birthday at the K of C. They had cupcakes for her and everyone sang Happy Birthday. I bought a 50/50 raffle ticket at intermission and told the man selling it to give it to Ione from me. She came over and said, "Thank you, I don't even know you, that is so nice." I introduced myself and we became good friends. This fall I saw her and she told me she was going to miss going to bingo as her friend that usually brings her was heading to Florida for the winter. I told her I would be happy to give her ride when I can. So every couple of weeks, her "boy" (my age) brings her to bingo and I give her a ride home.

Ione is a sweet lady who worked hard all her life. She worked at a local restaurant for 32 years and also did lots of cleaning, ironing, childcare. She says she never liked tending bar, as she doesn't like drinking. She never smoked either.

She had us laughing and a bit horrified when she told us her "boy" took her ladder away so she wouldn't get hurt cleaning the tops of her cupboards and things. But, she climbs on a chair and stands on her counter instead. She warned us against trying to put a chair on the couch and standing on that. She tried it and assured us, "That doesn't work, I tried it. " She likes to shovel her paths to her birdfeeder and walkways still.

She calls me often to check on me and my dad. If the roads are slippery, she always wants me to call her when I get home. She is a sweetheart and may God bless Ione!!! I was so happy to share her 95th birthday with her and my sisters.

BTW, she won $48 on that 50/50 ticket I bought her last year. I was so happy and everyone in the hall applauded her win too. No wins last night but we sure had fun with Ione! She went home with candy, flowers, cards, money and more from her friends at bingo.

I think my little dog Coco is a savant!!!!! She has begun organizing her toys in groups of two. I found these that she had arranged. She is one little amazing dog!!!

Here's my sister Mary with her favorite 2007 Christmas present. She had asked for it for Mother's Day but Jim forgot. And yes, she uses it! She splits cords of firewood to keep the homefire burning. Stalkers beware! You don't want to mess with Mary!

Come to visit us with your splitting maul. I need some of our big chunks of oak split up!

Godspeed to our new president. His eloquence was a joy to watch today. It is nice to see how many are united in cheering on our new president. Our future depends on his success and we, of course, have to share the burden to make that future brighter. I think we can do it.

His tribute to our military and veterans really moved me and his calling on all of us to "find meaning in something greater than ourselves" had me jotting that down. It is how I try to live, as much as I can. I'll continue that path as when you give to others, you get much in return.

From the President's address today:

"As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment -- a moment that will define a generation -- it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all."

Thanks to the Associated Press for the pic above. Hopefully they won't sue me since I gave them credit. They wouldn't get much if they did anyway. I chose this pic probably because I love cars and remember riding with my parents a lot when I was little. What a ride the Obama girls are going to have! But hey, I got to go to Clare and Carl's for cheeseburgers and chocolate milk in my Dad's Cadillac. Life was good!

David and Coco are busy with the latest project. David needs a project always - he can't just sit around. He spent 5 years restoring a 1969 Camaro - when that was done - he was lost. So he wanted to buy an old Chevy truck to restore. He is sick of complicated vehicles and their computer systems and he was also not happy that Chevy is no longer offering trucks with standard transmissions. So he is going back to basic and this fall found a "deal" on a truck he had seen parked in a field for quite some time. He was able to sell an old Triumph motorcycle that needed motor work to his buddy Tom to get the cash to buy the truck and now he spends his evenings happy in the garage. Coco loves going to the garage every night with him and has room to run around chasing her toys. She even caught a mouse the other night in the back of the garage. Where was the garage cat, Miss Kitty???, Coco put her to shame.

Here's a pic from the day he bought his truck and the "progress" being made. I tried to talk him into leaving the color yellow/white - he is thinking red!

I called my sister Mary this morning, as I do every morning. She was not home. Jim said she was climbing Black Bear Mtn. She and her friend Dawn do a fair amount of climbing at all times of year - but I think this is her first of '09. Black Bear Mtn. is between Inlet and Eagle Bay.
This pic she sent me was taken last year but doesn't matter 'cause the view is the same and today was snowier with less visibility. Mary says, "I've climbed it all seasons but winter is the best! Atop Black Bear you have a 360 degree view and Raquette, 7th, 4th lakes and more are visible. It is about a 1 1/2 hour hike up and a bit faster down...if the trail is packed. Last year Dawn and I hiked it and the first mile was packed as it goes along a snowmobile trail but the last 1.2 miles we had to break trail in over 1' of snow!! Took a bit longer...two hours up but down was easier at about 1 hr 25 min. No place on earth like the top of a mountain!!"

Oh, I did catch up with her by phone in the late afternoon. She had made it home and was sitting enjoying a cold beer, complaining of a bit of soreness from her day. Understandable, as after she got home from climbing the mountain, she says she helped Jim shovel roofs. Now, she will be in good shape to use her splitting maul when Jim has his load of firewood delivered.