Marilyn and I were at work by 7:30 this morning -- not bad, huh?

We had a very busy work day, each of us.

Wanda gave her notice last week during our vacation. So I'm 'training' so I can cover until we replace her. Hahaha!

No. I do NOT really know how to man the front desk. But I did begin there, way back when. I used to be the assistant receptionist at one point. I've actually avoided learning any of this work in recent years, I have to admit.

Since this 'new' building -- moving in back in 2010 -- I've never really learned the 'new' phone system. I do the back end setup work, but barely even use my phone (I have no call, honestly). So now I'm learning the switchboard phones that are at the front desk.

These can be used via computer, but I prefer the manual use on the phones themselves. I find it hard to see the small print on the computer screens...

I've always been bad at the Ricoh (our copier), and at the printers, as well -- these are run by the receptionist/office manager.

After Marilyn got out of her early meeting I went to Starbucks with some of the other 'girls' -- Carol, Kate and Maleah. Marilyn didn't go, as she didn't want to go out in the smoke. Because of local wildfires, we've been having terrible air quality issues! Marilyn has had asthma her entire life, plus allergies, so...

After that Wanda and I started training.

Then when Kara came in, I sat in with Marilyn while she interviewed. She was recommended by Kate, and shows a lot of promise. We'll see if she's interested or not.

I made a website change, which I actually could do via my iPad. It amazes me how easy it is to do website work on the device, as opposed to the computer.

Donn is coming in tomorrow.

Marilyn and I had lunch with Marcia today -- Marilyn's monthly lunch with her and Gail (Gail wasn't able to come). We three went to the Spaghetti Factory. A lovely lunch.

Wanda and I did aa little more training after lunch...

Mostly I worked at my desk in the afternoon.

At 5:00 Nominating Interviews began. Wanda left at 5:00.

Interesting note: Wanda is taking off both Thursday and Friday. (She did not ask for them off in advance, Marilyn confirmed later. She just took them off...)

We got home around 7:30, anyway.

I made tuna sandwiches for dinner. Marilyn didn't really enjoy them, I'm afraid.

Johnnie was very glad to see me tonight, sweet cat!

While doing my part for Nominating -- Greeting nominees -- I spent some time texting back and forth with our friend Shari. That was fun, catching up with her.

It's nearly 2:00 now, so we need to get to bed.

I'm tired tonight, as I'm not used to working a full day at the office. But I'll be fine.

My back hurts tonight, partly because I was napping and was late taking my pain meds at midnight (sigh).

Being upright all day is hard on my back, as I normally would spend at least part of the day lying or reclining. Straightback chairs are tough since the shingles.

We picked up my medications at Riteaid after work.

I've been writing up NOTES and trying to figure out how to catch up my blog. It seems hopeless. Hahaha. And I have a lot of IMPORTANT life moments to share and record. But maybe I just need to jump in and try to actually post an entry for a change. So not like me! I've been 'the person who blogs every day' -- and that's actually a part of my identity in many ways. And it's a part of my identity I like. So hopefully I'll start to do that again...

Anyway, for those who follow me at Facebook, you probably know my latest 'big deal.' I hate saying that, because as you all know: LiveJournal is my favorite Social Media activity. Period. Always has been and probably always will be. I love it here and Facebook isn't even a close second. Actually, I prefer Instagram to Facebook, so it's not even second. Hahaha. I guess the main thing about Facebook is it's quick... But it has a million strikes against it, aside from that.

Today was a training day at the festival office. The new person is Alyssa who happens to be brand new to Portland! She's only lived here a week and is coming to work for us. I was impressed by her. She'll sit in the 'front desk' position and is our Seasonal Receptionist who will assist Wanda (who I always think of as Receptionist, even though her official title is 'Administrative Assistant').

The training went well.

The day didn't.

I just didn't FEEL WELL. I'd had low blood sugar in the middle of the night. Woke up and went to test and fell back asleep. Marilyn woke me and gave me dark chocolate as I was in the 80's. I was so damn tired I couldn't stay awake to do something about the low -- that's the first time EVER that this has happened. Or as Marilyn said, "Did you just want to DIE, or what?" (Lows are no joke. You can easily go into a coma and not wake up again. But I have never gone back to sleep! Lows have always awakened me...)

I'll crack that up to my recent iron infusion from last Wednesday. I still plan to try and go back for myself and 'fill in' some of these past days. But anyway, last Tuesday was my follow up with Dr. Phan, my hematologist. I was so low on iron and so anemic that he wanted me to come in the very next day for an infusion. I was enthusiastic, so that's what happened.

Infusions are done in the same room that chemo (etc.) is done. It's a big room full of lounge-type chairs that can recline. There are a couple of small rooms for privacy, but almost everybody is just in the big room together. (They appear to put people who are vomiting and so on in the small rooms for obvious reasons.) My infusion takes several hours, and Marilyn had dropped me off at 9:00-ish as she had a meeting she had to attend. She did come back and sit with me for a spell before heading off to another meeting later.

There are side effects to the treatment. I've been EXHAUSTED -- more tired than I was before the infusion. This is mentioned quite a bit online, so I assume it's a common thing. Some days I feel like just sleeping the day away -- and I have been sleeping a lot. There are also other side effects (various pains and whatever), but whatever. If this ends up helping me, the side effects don't matter. I can put up with those to gain more energy!

I will supposedly see the positive effects of the treatment in 10 days to three weeks. And I go back again in May to test and see how it's all working out. I spoke to my medical manager (Nancy) from my clinic and it turns out her daughter has taken these all her life! She goes every six months or so (depending on how she's feeling). I've even said I'd go once a month if I could see real change.

Today the low blood sugar had me down, however. I was STILL LOW when we got up to get ready for work -- though not as low as in the middle of the night, thankfully! That always has me dragging, though. (sigh)

I could barely walk over to Starbucks with the gang. That's our new person tradition every time.

And aside from feeling puny, I was having some pain on and off, too. It really had me cranky, considering things were just not going well today. There were a ton of IT-related issues: Donn having a couple of issues I had to address, problems with the Court announcement for today, setup issues with the new Profile, a couple of issues on my computer (!!!), I suddenly discover I screwed up the new Profile and have to dump it and re-do it from scratch (a big hassle). I'm trying to do the phone setup (more complicated for the front desk phones). I'm trying to get Lisa to be able to do Jeff's calendar from her own Profile -- that was a huge waste of time! Marilyn finally said she could just sit on his computer to enter the info, which was great by me.

I was trying to follow very complicated instructions on how to go into the regedit and make some modifications. First off, I'm always reluctant to do it, but I have done it successfully in the past. However it does require really exacting details on HOW for me to even try it, which I could not find no matter how hard I looked. I was ready to have Kris assist me when we threw in the towel...

Marilyn is downstairs right now doing the treadmill so she can get her 10,000 steps. She went to Starbucks this morning then took a walk later on, so she had more than 8,000 steps. I just checked my Fitbit and I got 7,000 steps today -- not bad at all!!!

I also did some minor website adjustments today...

As I mentioned, Donn was there and we tackled some things. This will be on-going stuff. And Kris came in and he and went to lunch at the Turkey Place (he bought). I had half a sandwich and some soup. Very yummy! (Actually a lot of food for me these days...) Kris is trying to work on our internet connections and WiFi which is a big pain in the ass, frankly. But I guess that's pretty much true for everyone these days!!!

We came home around 6:00 which seems early. I remember sitting down in my chair in the living room and I guess I just went to sleep and didn't wake up until past 8:00. I was worn out.

We're going to head to bed shortly, which is fine by me. I know when the iron kicks in I'll feel like a million bucks. I just need to hang in there until then.

Two Princesses down and 12 more to go (we only have 14 this year, rather than 15). I still need to show somebody how to do the website upload, but for now I'm doing my best to handle it. We had a name issue today. It's an unusual name with difficult spelling. And even when you get the spelling right it looks wrong! Hahaha. Oh well. Plus I started with one photo and moved to a second one.

Weird thing about WordPress: even if you tell it to permanently delete an image, if you upload another image named the same it will revert to the original image! What a PITA!!! I can't overwrite an image with a new one unless I rename...

I think that actually might be true for ANYTHING you upload to the library, including PDFs. Again, that is ridiculous!!! There are so many things like this that I really hate about WordPress...

I'm sipping a ZESTY BLOOD ORANGE Diet Coke. I really haven't decided if I like it. Hahaha. I mean, I guess I like it, but I don't know if I love it. I think the skinny tall cans are weird, anyway. It doesn't fit in my holder that helps keep it cold. Geez.

The new people this year are not only liking, but seem to be loving my 'Beatles theme' for passwords. Haha. I like it, too.

And, yes, I wore a Beatles tee to work today. With my new gray pants. I was stunned to be down to that size when Marilyn and I went to shop for them! I thought I was an 18, but I'm now officially a 16. Shock. I also have new mini-boots that are gray that I adore. Gray has always been one of my fave colors.

Well, that's it for today and it's a start. I'm going to get back to this!!! And I miss all of you painfully! I hope things are good for you.

So many crazy things to share from February! What a busy month. Plus this change after turning 65 medically speaking has been very interesting. Man, it is so weird to be 65! I just can't even buy it most days. I don't feel 60, much less 65!!!

Sweet dreams and happy times, guys!

I had a FRUSTRATING day from the perspective of my medical concerns. I spent ages on the phone this morning! Back and forth about getting my referral to the specialist and then back and forth about my insulin pen. Thankfully the pharmacist mentioned I had a covered prescription for the pen, but they had neglected to send a prescription for the needles (!!!) to go with the pen! Geez, I could have ended up there with no way to actually inject the stuff. WTF????????

Marilyn had suggested I get the medical manager Nancy in the mix -- she phoned me back in November. What a brilliant idea! Anyway, she ended up a big help.

I thought I'd hear from the hematologist today, but didn't. I hope I hear tomorrow...

Went to Starbucks this morning with several people. I had low blood sugar early today (84) and was still pretty low when I finally got up (101). So I got food as well as coffee, just to be safe! I always get a bunch of steps at work, so I need to be careful.

I had lunch at the Turkey Place with Kris -- I ate an all-veggie sandwich (half, actually).

After that Kris and I had a lengthy meeting about Barracuda, which I think (fingers crossed) I understand better now. We shall see!!!

Then in the afternoon I had a website meeting with Rich, Kate and Calisa -- basically a start in the correct direction (I hope!).

I need to chat with Adeena about her role. I've kept her on the Website Team, as she has some skills. But not sure if she has the time for this or not...

Marilyn had severe IBS-d today! Miserable, actually. I felt really bad for her. It's hard enough to do the work without the health issues.

She's inpressed with Lisa (her new seasonal assistant), which I'm glad to hear. I have really positive feelings about both Lisa and Sophia.

I ate a peanut butter bun for dinner. Sometimes peanut butter doesn't sit well with me. We've been eating a lot of it with no issues, so I thought I'd be okay. But I had HELLISH stomach and back pains all evening and night tonight. I'm still not over them now.

The good news is that the bloody spots all over both arms have nearly entirely disappeared -- at least for now. I'll take whatever good news I can, of course!

Marilyn got 11,000 steps today! She just did the treadmill -- and was bleeding after that. I think from all the IBS issues plus the rubbing of running and walking on the treadmill. Poor thing!

I was just shy of 6,000 steps today! If I had looked before midnight I'd have tried to get those steps (less than 200). That burns me! Hahaha.

I never had time to phone sister Sue today, so hopefully I'll do that tomorrow. I usually check in with her daily, but it's hard when we're really busy and then tired.

Time to head to bed (it's nearly 1:30 a.m.).

I LOVE the new Burger King ad is trying to teach customers about net neutrality (using Whoppers to criticize the recent repeal of regulations that proponents said ensured equal access to the Internet). It's really brilliant! I have the link somewhere, but am too tired and lazy to hunt for it. Maybe tomorrow!

Why is there no 'pain' mood? They should have fixed the moods years ago... (sigh)

Sweet dreams!

Marilyn and I went to my doctor appointment today. Basically Leslie decided to do labs. If those come back negative, she's going to send me to a specialist.

She was very nice today -- especially positive about my weight loss, which made me happy.

After that Marilyn and I drove and got Starbucks, then went to Chipotle to get VEGGIE BURRITOS for lunch/dinner. We really do love these, so that was a nice treat!!!

Other than that, we spent a bunch of time SLEEPING. And watching some of the Australian Open Tennis tournament, too -- but mostly we slept during it. (grin)

We both realize we need to cut ourselves some slack about being tired right now. When you're really kicking up your exercise routine, you are tired for the first several weeks. And we're also getting back into our festival season, so...

Actually, it's 11:00 p.m. and we're heading to bed! Shocking, right? Hahaha. I don't know how others do it. We have such a tough time getting in bed before midnight.

Sweet dreams, everybody!!!

Marilyn and I were at work by 9:00, then went to Starbucks with the new hire and several others (our traditional for the first day of all new staff).

After that we had Staff Meeting. Updates and discussion of the Golden Globes. As a special events organization, we discuss we recent events. We were talking about the logistics of the various women wearing black to this event and their focus for talking points...

We have our Communications Team meeting after that, but I skipped it to be able to start training. Normally I won't stay for the full Staff Meeting on a training day. It was past 11:00 before Sophia and I got started, anyway.

We trained until nearly 1:00, then I gave her a lunch break.

Marilyn was headed for her daily walk (the ONLY break she takes), so I joined her. We walked and talked for around half an hour on the waterfront.

Then Jessica and I walked to the Turkey Place (and back) to get some lunch.

After that I ate part of a sandwich and went back to training Sophia. This went very well -- she's a smart woman. I was impressed.

We finally finished in the afternoon and I went upstairs to my desk to work until time to leave for Court Orientation. We were departing between 4:30 and 5:00 -- it's a bear getting around during rush hour traffic.

We got to the hospital where it's held and helped with setup, then walked out for more Starbucks. It was an UPHILL climb and we were joking and laughing.

Then was the orientation for the girls. It's lengthy.

When it finally ended we headed home. It was around 8:00. We were home by around 8:30.

We ate peanut butter when we got home...

Sue phoned, and Marilyn reminded her about the doctor appointment in the morning.

We did a few things, then went down for a nap. Marilyn woke me to get ready for bed later.

And that was our day!

Except that BOTH of us got well over 10,000 steps during the day walking!!! Without needing to do the treadmill. (woo hoo)

It's the middle of the night and I can't sleep, so I'm adding this blog entry. I have swollen feet (no idea why) and they're painful. Oh!!! Forgot to mention setting up a doctor appointment for me. It's for next Monday, at 10:30. Staff has Monday off, thankfully.

I have red splotches all over both forearms and yesterday these were bleeding on one arm. They look awful. I've been nauseous and having dizzy spells. So we want it checked out.

That's my day! More tomorrow.

(Just discovered this DID NOT POST last night. Damn. Posting it now...)

Work today.

First thing I contacted PGE to get the details of our missing bill. For some reason it seems like the PGE (power) bill frequently goes missing. But it was very simple to phone and get an automated line that told me the current amount (Marilyn pays online, but needed to know how much).

My personal goal today was wrapped up in our new Barracuda SPAM blocker and getting the final kinks out for our office. There were several questions, so I ended up talking to the Barracuda support line.

First I had to get authorized by Kris (who was the only one on our account). I made the point to the support people that Kris works for me and not the other way around... hahaha...

After that they phoned again to now officially assist me. But I didn't have an online account, so Kris was going to need to do that, too. I did get a lot of information about the account, however. They're impressively helpful in my opinion!!! And I don't say that sort of thing easily, believe me.

After I have an account and am an admin, then I can set up accounts for every person in our office. After that I'll teach them how to log in via web browser and they can white list and black list as necessary.

Actually, we're all pretty impressed by Barracuda so far. It seems to work really well and to be a real time-saver.

It was POURING DOWN RAIN this morning and into the afternoon. Filthy weather! But Marilyn and I went out to Chinese anyway.

The office was having Chipotle, which Jeff had gone out to get and bring back. Marilyn and I joined the staff for some chips and brought our veggie burritos home for later. Then we walked to the restaurant in the rain! It was like trying to cross rivers at some points. Ugh. But I loved my meal and ate it ALL (which I rarely do). I'd barely eaten yesterday, so I was really hungry today.

I had LOW BLOOD SUGAR at around 5:30 in the morning. It was 69 and probably due to not eating enough yesterday...

We stopped and got Starbucks on the way back to the office. We're in love with the Holiday Flat White right now.

We went back to our work, planning to leave by 4:00, as we needed to stop home for food and be at Sue's house by 5:30 -- and the traffic to her house is horrible. Always, but especially during the holidays!

We had a bunch of stuff we'd gotten at Costco that we took over for Sue to serve. Candy was there when we arrived and we helped her set it up. There were lots of snack foods and cookies, all nice.

I had phoned June before leaving. She was waiting for Jim to get home from going to the doctor! He'd left for a 2:00 appointment and wasn't home yet, so she was worried. I told her I'd check with her later and then we departed. It was obvious they couldn't go with him not home... (I'd wanted to encourage them to arrive early if they were going, as it's hard for her to walk and there wasn't much parking right near the house.)

We got to meet a bunch of Sue's cribbage friends that we've never met before, like Martha and Katy. Sue hadn't decorated a jot for Christmas, nor did she have on any Christmas music. So we just talked and waited for the ships to come.

We couldn't see much when they did get there, as they were on the opposite side of the river. The map had shown them on both sides, but that didn't end up being the case.

Finally past 8:00 Marilyn and I departed and came home...

She's doing her hair now, and then I think we'll head to bed. It's past midnight now.

Chubby wanted a lot of attention while we were there. The poor thing seems to be having a lot of trouble breathing now. He's getting older and is obese. But he's still such a good boy. (When he's not clawing and biting, anyway. Hahaha.) I was trying to find out in my blog when they actually moved Chubby inside, but I couldn't, darn it. I'm the one who talked them into it, anyway...

Time to wrap up for today. Such a busy week!!!

Sweet dreams!

Briefly, today is the anniversary of George Harrison's death. While it can seem sad, he was actually very ready to move on to his 'next adventure,' and seemed to have a strong belief in a life after death. He passed in November of 2001 -- it's hard to believe it was that long ago. He was only 58. It seems very young to me as I approach 65 next week!

Today was a really wonderful day for the festival! We appeared before City Council at City Hall for two different matters. But we really had our ducks in a row! Wonderful speakers and everyone who did speak did a great job! Many great things were said about our organization after this by the members of the council. It couldn't have gone better.

The weather even cooperated with us. It was a dry day, so no fighting the rain as we walked to and from City Hall (woo hoo). We were in uniform, but I did wear my new coat to work today! It's quite warm -- I haven't had a nice warm coat in years.

I did walk out for lunch while Marilyn was in a two-hour meeting! I got my green beans and white rice again, which I love. Altogether I got more than 8,000 steps today! Unfortunately I was having leg cramps tonight, but they finally passed. I probably didn't have enough water today...

Marilyn and I went out in the afternoon down to Washington street to the jeweler there so she could get the batteries in her two watches replaced. Such nice people!

I got some website work done. And contacted TechSoup about the info that Carol needs (hopefully I'll hear back soon!). Tomorrow Kris will do the work on the Server for email SPAM. And I talked to Donn about coming in to do a project for me -- he's planning on Saturday. Lots of IT, in other words.

There was an evening meeting about the Auction than also ran quite long. (No, I wasn't in it, but Marilyn was.)

We left the office past 7:00, so it was a long day.

Marilyn and I are making a trip to New York City next week! It's Marilyn surprise for my 65th birthday -- isn't that nice? We're staying in a very nice hotel near Central Park -- and our flights both ways are non-stop, if you can believe that! We can't wait to see the tree!!!

We still need to get new luggage and know what we want. They now make stuff so light weight that you can lift it with a finger! Amazing. That means more weight spent on actual clothes, rather than the luggage.

We're only there a few days, but I bet we cram a lot in! We're good at that. Hahaha.

I also did more work on my Medicare/Medicaid stuff today. Not as easy as I had hoped. I guess we'll see how that goes!

Well, time for bed -- I'm tired tonight. I didn't sleep that well last night, for whatever reason.

Sweet dreams, all!

Marilyn and I had a WONDERFUL vacation day!

I'm going to avoid details -- and a photo share -- for now, as I'm really TIRED at the moment and heading directly to bed. I have a hair appointment in the morning...

But we did get over to Sue and Candy's (and Marilyn gave Candy a check for Thanksgiving dinner so they'll be able to celebrate with no problem). And we did Sue's pills (well, Marilyn did!!!) for the next two weeks.

We also had Starbucks, went to the Charthouse for lunch (I'd never been there before!) and shopped at several stores. Oh, and dropped by the office, too. And Marilyn went to her massage therapy tonight while I cooked a vegetarian casserole, took out the garbage, watered the plants, set a clock I'd never gotten to (way up high), washed the bed linens and changed the beds, clean the cat boxes and fixed a couple behind-times calendars. I think that's it...

I have some great photos to share -- including some of June and Jim's NEW CAT (!!!) Simba that I got to meet last night.

Yes, we stayed meatless today (Sir Paul)!!! The Charthouse is known for fish and seafood, so we both had salads with neither! But a decadent dessert. (grin)

And that's Monday.

Oh. And Sunday we really did nothing. Stayed in our jammies all day long (except for when I dashed over to see June and Jim, meet the cat and find her 'missing' health documents).

We're enjoying our vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sweet dreams, dear friends.

Marilyn and I actually got up early and headed out to a bazaar that had been recommended to us over in Washington state. We didn't buy much, but enjoyed looking. We ran into our friend Jodi while there.

We stopped at McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse for lunch. We both ate vegetarian choices, which were quite good! It was a fabulous lunch and good start to our vacation.

Then we dropped by the office briefly, where we saw and chatted with Jeff.

After that we headed to inner SE Portland to Don's genealogy class. Finding parking was a bear. But we both enjoyed hearing him.

Finally we stopped for popcorn on the way home. And we got here in time for our usual METV shows on Saturday night.

Here are some photos...

PHOTO SHARE!!!
[click on photo to see full size]


Roasted brussels sprouts appetizer - yummy!


Moroccan coffee!


I had hemp sliders with a walnut compote - delicious!


My dessert was bread pudding (which I love) in whiskey sauce!


Firepit outside.


Beautiful surroundings.


Autumn!


Me!


Marilyn


At Don's class.


Another class participant.


Don with Marilyn.


We had a fire tonight at home. The cats and me.


Blazing fire!


And the dying fire.

A lovely and busy day.

Sweet dreams, friends!

Today was our annual Toy Drive at the office. It's an opportunity to gather toys for children in need, and to get publicity for the festival. Aside from our staff, many volunteers turn out for the event. During the morning News show, we're featured numerous times on cut-ins. It starts very early (5:00) and runs through morning drive-time (9:00).

Marilyn had a VERY BUSY DAY totally aside from this event, with numerous meetings. She doesn't get much chance to be involved directly with the Toy Drive. But I always sing with the choir (Don always seems to put me in the front/center), which I enjoy very much. And I interact with most people there.

Court members appeared with Leslie (our past president who manages the court), the Prime Minister of the Royal Rosarians (Adam) and his wife (Lauren) were there, along with several other Rosarians. Angel (our Clown Prince mascot and Mrs. Santa were there -- Santa couldn't appear as Gary is still laid up from his recent surgery -- but he and Carla were both there. And Carla spoke and told how we need warehouse space to build floats. And many, many toys are dropped off.

Steven made pancakes, and we had cookies and fruit and juice and coffee for participants.

I took a few photos to share...

PHOTO SHARE!
[click photo to see larger version]


TV crew setting up to shoot


Adam (in the cape) with Royal Rosarians and news anchor


Lauren and me


Me with my buddy Rich


Lots of goodies


Lots of toys!


Decorations!


Fake snow on our rose bushes


Outdoor decos


More toys!


And even more toys!


Adam, Angel and Mrs. Santa

I got to sing several times, and friends contacted me that they'd seen me on TV. Fun.

Many messages were sent out to the public. Leslie, Jeff, Carol, Angel and Carla all spoke. Adam was a very good sport being there and in shots.

We had toy drop-offs all day long.

It was WONDERFUL having Rich back today, running the media event.

Marilyn did her many meetings. I attended the meeting on Sanctioned Events (as did Rich and several others). Marilyn did a great job running that meeting (as always). Jessica had a lot to offer. Even Jeff came. Carol was out of the office for another meeting and couldn't be there. It was quite an intense and involved meeting.

After that Marilyn went to her hairdresser. I met with several people dropping off toys. Then I finally went to get lunch for Marilyn and me. I actually had low blood sugar, even though I'd had two pancakes for breakfast (and coffee from Starbucks).

Many people left later in the day, and Marilyn closed the office early. But as we were getting ready to go on vacation, we were there until seven.

After our lunch and eating other foods, we ended up not having dinner. I had string beans and white rice for lunch, and Marilyn had their fried rice with beef, chicken and shrimp.

Marilyn is now sleeping soundly on the sofa. I'm blogging on my iPad. I had a good nap this evening after being up sick almost all night last night. (That made for a long day, as I was tired in the late afternoon/evening.)

Busy, long day, anyway. Very successful! And now we're on vacation. With tons to do this coming week.

We already have two events tomorrow!!!

I'm very ready for bed tonight! But feeling SO MUCH BETTER than the last several days tonight, thank God. All that pain is over. Maybe I'm finally over the bug!

Sleep well, friends.

It's been cold and wet on and off all week and today was more of the same.

Marilyn and I slept in. We were both very tired last night -- so tired we didn't even eat dinner before lying down for our usual evening 'nap' -- which turned in to going to sleep for the night!

We got dressed today and headed to the St. Theresa Christmas bazaar, which has always been a favorite. There seemed to be less stuff this year. We were going to eat there, but they didn't have enough chairs around the tables. Then when we tried to buy coffee, they didn't have any. Clearly a sign it was time to go! Marilyn did get a cute retro lamp for her desk at work, though...

We went to a late brunch (lunch?) at Elmer's. It was noon-ish, so you could call it lunch, I guess. But we ate breakfast food. We were VERY HUNGRY as we hadn't had anything to eat since our lunch yesterday! (We ended up sleeping without having dinner, as I said before.) Anyway, I had a waffle and Marilyn had an omelet. We weren't perfectly satisfied with our food, but the service was excellent, as always.

Then we headed back home, listening to Sirius radio the entire time we were in the car. The Beatles channel has been an important daily part of our lives.

Marilyn suggested we watch a YouTube video of a favorite movie at home, and we both did that until she dozed off. I watched the entire thing, though.

We were trying to watch our usual METV stuff, but were pretty bored by it tonight. So we finally got ready and went shopping at Walmart. We've been needing supplements for some time, so that's what we were after. It cost a fortune as we were out of EVERYTHING! (Well, that's ME, actually...)

We broke down and bought a new blu-ray player. Our old one which was never very good died like a dog recently. I had to pry the thing apart and actually BREAK IT OPEN to get a movie out that was inside it!!! And as it was one of our Beatle movies (which are hard to find!!!), this was a big deal. These are now really cheap to buy, by the way. And TINY in comparison to what they used to be like.

Exciting thing??? I've been looking for a FOOT WARMER for years and found one tonight! My feet get so very cold sometimes. I can't even say how often I've searched for this. So I'm excited we found it at long last.

And that was our Saturday, for the most part.

Just a QUICK entry.

Marilyn and I drove up the Columbia River Gorge for the first time since all the terrible wildfires and fire damage. Many places are CLOSED (!!!) still, including Multnomah Falls -- which has never been closed in our lifetime that either of us recall. We stopped at Starvation Creek which was open -- it has one of our favorite trails to hike. But the trail was CLOSED!!! So sad.

We went to Cascade Locks and had lunch at a new place. It's the Columbia Gorge Sternwheeler. Marilyn's goal was to #kickash -- which lots of people were doing. Spending MONEY in the Gorge in support of businesses and residents. Being closed down is going to mean a hard winter for all of them!

We went up to Hood River and stopped at Starbucks, too.

The drive home was HARD. Terrible TRAFFIC (!!!) and bad weather conditions. It's not very safe driving when there's rain and wind, and that's what we hit on the return drive.

We came home, stopping briefly at Walgreens to grab a few things.

I was worn out and had a long nap. Marilyn did not. She's probably exhausted!!! She had wanted to go to work today, but it never seems like we find enough time to do everything. (Yes, I'm still in pain. It can take up to a week for things to calm down. Right now I'm in more pain than before, but it will pass...)

Then we were still up when Jeff contacted us around midnight about the shooting in Las Vegas!!! We both love Vegas and have been many times. As a friend mentioned, people go to Vegas for many reasons, such as relaxation and vacationing and to attend conventions and concerts (we've been there for all those reasons). It's a great town for meetings. And there are lots of people living and working there, too. It's awful to see it attacked this way!

The last 'count' we had heard was 20 dead (!!!) and 100 injured. That's a lot of deaths!!! The violence needs to STOP!

How in HELL did the shooter get the weapons up there? We've stayed a Mandalay Bay which is such a lovely place. This just makes me sick.

On that note, STAY SAFE friends! And in spite of everything, have good dreams.

Well, the day started with sister Sue, actually. And Marilyn and I taking her to Emanuel hospital to get a blood draw. We actually parked up above in Marilyn's 'favorite' spot (as even Sue called it) and we all three walked all the way over to the lab area. Good for Sue! She walked really well. (She needs more steps!)

Speaking of steps, I got 6,207 steps today. Not bad for someone who is 'inactive' according to Leslie, my nurse practitioner. (Thanks, Leslie. Every person I tell that to is astounded, by the way. The LAST thing they would call me is 'inactive,' I'm happy to report... And I've heard that now at least a dozen times.) I still love my Fitbit! (I had to change the battery while at Emanuel as it was low, yet again.)

The blood draw went quickly. The drive there, parking and getting Sue back home again? Driving -- especially during rush hour -- in the city of Portland and surrounding suburbs is always difficult now. So...

We had to stop at Safeway by Sue's to get her prescriptions -- and Marilyn got Sue Starbucks. We need to figure out the deal with her prescriptions and insurance, by the way. We're not at all convinced that insurance is currently covering things -- and Sue has GOOD INSURANCE! And boy, does she NEED coverage!

Then off to work for the two of us. Donn had texted me and was there before we could get there...

I went for Starbucks right after getting there. My regular baristas were all happy to see me -- and I them!

I had festival website updates to do -- from Jessica M. I love working with her!

And I gave Wanda the gifts I've had for her: a rock that reads 'courage' (in light of some recent things), plus a cross embedded in plastic to carry in her pocket. She's a delight to work with!

Donn and I met several times about his work and he kept plugging away.

Carol reminded me about the one printer that needed fixing. I phoned Kris and asked him to come by. He told me he'd be there by 1:00 and would could go to lunch.

I got the Band Program changes made after several attempts.

Aside: it's helpful if I touch the website more frequently than not! It just keeps me on my toes to see the coded part and do it so that I don't forget it. And I have certain ways I like the pages done. Just sayin'... Not that I'm anal or PICKY or anything. Right.

Kris comes in (a bit late) and he and I immediately go to the Mandarin Cove for lunch. That's always nice! But lunch always becomes a meeting, too, for the record! Discussing projects and so on.

We bring Marilyn back food. And Kris tackles the printer. Then we have another meeting in Marilyn's office about projects that need doing -- the second Server, the contract for Comcast and the other imaging thing that must be put off until the new fiscal year...

Kris decides to take the second Server home with him to work on (cheaper for us that way). I help his get it to the car (super-heavy!!!).

Then after he leaves I'm back to doing website work. This time it's court-related pages that are usually updated around October 1. We're doing them early for an event this coming Sunday where we want to pimp those pages out.

I need to put up the court application. The PDF is way too big -- the website rejects it! Jessica, Carol and I discuss it. Marilyn is also in the mix. I find a way to compress it. Later on it turns out it's dumped all the fillable stuff -- plus the red indicating that certain things are mandatory. Terrific. We leave that for now (sigh) and move on...

I do part of the work, check with Jessica. It's wrong. I tweak and check with her. More changes. And on and on all afternoon!

Marilyn and Carol have a meeting that runs well past 5:00. Good by ME, as my website work is also running long...

At around 6:30 Marilyn hits the wall and tells me to pack it up. I'm not done -- I'll have to finish things up tomorrow...

We stop at Safeway on the way home and get Chinese there for dinner (nobody feels like fixing anything!). And I grab rye bread and a couple other things, including kitty litter -- which Marilyn manages to remind me I need! Tonight, after all, is garbage and recycling (the real deal!!!).

We're both TIRED tonight.

And the SMOKE is still a hazard. Everybody is coughing at the office. My eyes are killing me. My seasonal allergies would always be bad now, but they are horrible right now. If you go outside you suffer. If you stay INSIDE you still suffer! There's no escape from the effects of all the wildfire smoke!

And, yeah, now I'm getting as pissed off as everybody else that our wildfires and all this misery barely even gets national coverage on the news. WHY IS THAT??? Our state is still burning like crazy. People can't go home. Major interstates are closed. The smoke is everywhere and nobody can breath. But we don't even get a mention on national news... Yet requests for assistance for hurricane relief are everywhere (Oregonians are really doing their part, believe me). I just don't get it. I'm now as big a whiner about it as everybody else. Hahaha.

I take a 'nap' because I can't keep my eyes open. And I blog, but I need to go finish the garbage and recycling NOW -- and get back to bed! We have another busy day facing us tomorrow.

Marilyn and I saw Sean at Safeway. He's a young man who is part Irish and part Scottish with a heavy accent. And a body covered in tattoos. And he's ripped with muscles! A very physical guy. And what a personality! We love it when we run into Sean -- he's maybe our favorite grocery clerk right now. He always makes our shopping trip, that's for sure! Hahaha.

Kris had a new buzzed haircut today that looked GREAT! He made Marine jokes, but it's seriously a good look for him.

And I need to get moving, as it's now 2:30 a.m. and I have lots more to do!

Sleep well and STAY HEALTHY, guys!!!

Today was day one of my Jury Duty Service days for Multnomah County. (You get called for two days.)

Woke up early with no problem. I didn't sleep all that soundly for several reasons (wound up, not feeling well and too warm -- I've been running a temperature). Anyway, I got right out of bed and made sure all was well for the cats, then got ready to go.

I left my external hard drive home. Partly because I didn't want to run it through the security, and partly because it's so heavy to pack around.

I was supposed to be in the Jury Room before 8:00. That's not as easy as it sounds! Partly because of the huge line at the door for going through security. I asked about removing my belt. The woman said it probable wouldn't go, but said I could get it a try. When it didn't set things off, she said I should buy a lottery ticket. Hahaha. But I got STOPPED by security and they asked to go through my purse, believe it or not. I was carrying an ornate silver ink pen that had roses all over it. They needed to be sure it wasn't a knife. Really? (smile)

Once in and I got right into the room, seeing as my paperwork was ready in advance, unlike many others. But I was still rather late and was in the front row. I sat down by a young woman and we started right in chatting and becoming friendly.

The women running the room were SO FRIENDLY and pleasant! And so helpful! I can't speak highly enough of all of them. Then a judge came in and gave us a speech. He was well-meaning, but not a good public speaker. After that we had a film that started out REALLY BAD -- and repeated the same things the judge had just said. But after it got past the beginning, it was QUITE GOOD! A lot of past jurors sharing their experiences.

We were told early on that nobody would be called for Grand Jury (which I was happy to hear).

Almost immediately we had the call for our first jury of the day. And guess what? I was the fifth person called! Hahaha.

I don't know WHAT it is that I've been called in for jury duty so many times, starting back when I was in college. I've actually lost track of how many times I've served over the years, but it's several. And I've been called to numerous trials and served as foreperson (foreman) many times, too. (I can't recall what they call it now! Hahaha.) Funny thing??? Lucy -- the girl next to me -- was also called!

We all went to the seventh floor and a room there. We stood around some time, then they finally brought us in. I was in the first row at the end. There was a board with several questions on it that give the basic background of each person. Then both attorneys asked numerous questions

The presiding judge was Judge Adrienne Nelson -- she was very impressive! I don't recall the names of the attorneys, but I thought the defense lawyer was quite impressive, as well.

Interestingly enough, I was probably asked more questions than anyone else. I had indicated that I was exciting to be serving. I actually would have liked to make it on this jury. But both Lucy and I got excused. So back to the jury room we went! (Along with others.) They then ask your last name and put you back into the pool again...

It was now around 11:00 and I invited Lucy to go to lunch as my guest. We knew we were going to be released for an hour for lunch at noon. But when it was time for the announcement, we were released for the day. So Lucy and I went to lunch anyway (we had Chinese at the Mandarin Cove). Afterwards I took her by to see the Rose Building as we were so close by.

I did invite another juror to join us (Amy -- the banana girl), but she had other plans. She was the 'banana girl' because she was wearing a shirt with tiny bananas all over it -- and one of the women running the jury room and remarked on it.

I NOW know that it's okay to bring in FOOD (lunch and/or snacks). And coffee!!! So I'll do exactly that tomorrow.

So I was eventually at the office. And Marilyn offered to take me home, knowing I was still under the weather. So that's what she did.

When I got home I got a call from sister Sue and we talked. She remarked that she'd served four times on juries -- but she'd never known anyone who had served as many times as I have! Hahaha. I not only get called, but I always seem to end up on a jury. I suspect that will happen again tomorrow, too.

We have to be back by 8:30 tomorrow morning. Marilyn has a 7:30 meeting, so I'll ride in with her and have plenty of time to go and get Starbucks on the way there.

Almost forgot to mention that I was texting with Adeena for a bit today, which was nice! I miss her.

Sue has her appointment for her brain scan on Friday. And I think Marilyn gets her labs done that day, too. And my doctor appointment is Friday evening (assuming I'm not on a trial).

I did work on the phone system issue today with a guy (Jinn Nguyen) from Inflow for half an hour late this afternoon. I have to think it through, though. I'm not 100% it's still what we're going for.

But I've wrapped my head around how it's done, so I don't think I need to phone them back again... I'm actually pretty good with the back end (server side) of the Shoretel phone system.

Well, I'm running a fever and feel too warm (as I did last night). But I'll probably head to bed soon. I've already had a nap tonight.

Lunch was yummy and I ate leftovers for dinner. Nice.

It doesn't matter so much if I get on a jury tomorrow or not, as I've been on so many in my life. But I hope Lucy gets that chance, as she'd really love to do it.

Jeff commented on me doing my 'civic duty' again today -- come to find out he's NEVER SERVED before. Hahaha. Really, Jeff? I guess I know a thing or two about this civic duty that you certainly do not!

Well, that's it for tonight, anyway.

Have you been called for jury duty? Have you actually served on a jury? I'm just curious!

Good night, friends!

Even though I have a medicine cabinet in my bathroom, I have a drawer in my dresser in my bedroom that's also for medications (sort of overflows, I guess). That drawer was such a mess that I pulled it out and down on my bed so I could entirely clean it out, which I did. I got rid of around 1/3 of the contents, anyway (including a bunch of old pills). I'm pleased with how that turned out!

My blood results all day long were HIGH for me -- around 150-170 range! I'm not sure why. I've been suffering from vertigo, so that's probably it. I was nauseous today (even after eating cottage cheese!). And my neck is still very stiff and sore. Pain alone can elevate blood sugar, so I guess it could be that... I'm so used to this pain lately that it didn't occur to me earlier today.

I talked to June early on (around 10:00-ish). I'd thought maybe we could get Sue and the three of us could go to lunch (on me). But June wasn't feeling up to it, I'm afraid. She even told me she was 'failing' recently, which is upsetting.

So then I talked to Sue who was disappointed we three couldn't get together. She's frustrated by not having her car and being able to drive and get around. But it's probably for the best.

I asked her to have Candy call, as I had her resume that Marilyn created for her. But later when I talked to her Sue told me Candy came home so tired she went right to bed.

Marilyn had a very, very long day today. She didn't get home until 9:00 p.m. (!!!), poor thing. She's so swamped at work now. She has a HUGE workload right now. It hardly seems fair in August.

I felt pleased to get my bedroom cleaned up, anyway. It was VERY HOT TODAY (!!!), and I was sweating so hard I was soaking wet at one point. I finally showered in the afternoon late and could barely face the hairdryer for the heat in the house.

I also did some laundry (two loads), but have a bunch more to get done.

I still need to pick up my insulin (it's at Riteaid). Marilyn was too late to be able to do that.

They just updated the Kindle App for devices and it's CRASHING like mad! Around two out of every three times you open it, in fact. And sometimes it opens then crashes while you're reading. I did a review to 'report' it -- hopefully they'll fix it soon!

Today was Jeff's birthday. He turned 45 today.

Can't think what else...

Sweet dreams, all.

Our friend Leslie (from the festival) recently told us about Amazon Restaurants -- which is part of Prime Now. Anyway, basically you log in to your Amazon Prime Account (which Marilyn has), and then you can see various restaurants in town that will deliver food to your door!

We got Red Robin burgers and some onion rings and frickles. So yummy! (That was both lunch and dinner, by the way...)

Anyway, it's a special treat for when we don't feel like leaving the house, but would like to have restaurant food!

Watched the tennis today. Both Caroline Wozniacki and Roger Federer lost -- guess who we were pulling for? (sigh) The Canadian Open...

Talked to sister Sue who is back home again! (woo hoo) She wanted to go out to dinner, but we were stuffed from our food by the time she called...

Heard from Adeena by text! That was a nice surprise. We haven't been in touch with her barely at all this summer...

I slept a lot again today. Just napping whenever I felt like it. Hahaha.

Watched a bunch of TV today. Today was Barbara Stanwyck day on TCM! They played: "My Reputation," "All I Desire," "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers," "Crime of Passion," and "Baby Face." Wonderful films! She's really a find actor.

I screwed up my fasting blood for the morning, accidentally. Marilyn gave me a cookie and I ate it. But she was calling to me NOT to eat it. Not fast enough! She'd suddenly remembered my blood work in the morning, which I'd forgotten. (sigh) So I'll have to rearrange it, I guess... Anyway, the doctor appointment isn't even until the end of the following week, so there's plenty of time. Our clinic does lab work there, so it's a quick turn-around.

Time for bed! Sweet dreams, everyone!!!

Today was about work at the festival office -- and a lunch meeting with Kris.

Marilyn and I made it to work on time -- traffic didn't seem that bad this morning.

Aside: it always makes us both cheerful to listen to The Beatles channel on Sirius Radio while driving to the office!

Coffee with Steven at Starbucks. I love the people there who always know me and are so friendly.

Wanda was lovely today, as always. She's such a wonderful addition to our office!

Kris called to confirm lunch! He had already texted me, as well. He had me nervous that he might have bad news, like he was moving out of state or something...

Lunch (Kris kindly bought) was lovely! Marilyn, Kris and I had Chinese. (I ate the string beans.) We spent only part of the time discussing work.

Then we had a meeting back at the office. Some good ideas for improving our IT policies going forward!!!

Kris had also cooked and made lasagna -- and had asked me on the phone if we'd like to have some. I agree we would and he brought us in a container! How nice of him.

Marilyn and I actually left the office a few minutes BEFORE 5:00 p.m. tonight! Unheard of!!! I'm not kidding! And surprisingly enough, the traffic home really wasn't bad.

I'd gotten an order of crab puffs for lunch that were untouched, so Marilyn and I ate those when we got home. Delicious!

It was so nice to get home before 6:00. I hardly know how to properly express it...

Later we ate the lasagna with rye bread and fresh brewed coffee. It was wonderful! So Kris provided us both lunch AND dinner.

We had a slice of cake we had bought at Safeway (they have nice cake there) that we split for dessert. It was like 'a party' as we always say. (smile)

We got to watch more tennis AND Star Trek (which is always on Fridays). Really a perfect day!!!

I also called and made appointments. My fasting blood test will be 8:45 on Monday morning.

And I see Leslie on Friday, August 25, at 6:30 p.m.

Marilyn was going to set her blood work appointment for Monday, too, but didn't get time before 5:00. Too bad. But another time. As she said, she can do it any morning next week...

Kris may come to our Eclipse Experience event on August 21. I guess we're doing an exclusive pre-event in the office for special invitees. Pancakes and more...

Well, off to bed (it's the middle of the night now and I just woke to blog and take my pills!). I was sleeping soundly before that. Sweet dreams, friends!

I was searching for TWO things today that I know I must still have somewhere. But this recent 'cleaning' has just made it impossible for me to find things I could have WALKED TO prior to the changes! Annoying. I realize the massive cleaning sessions are good. But I'm such a creature of habit. Some things are in spots where they've been since we lived here. Or at least since we GOT the item(s).

Again, I've been an organized person since childhood. Not always perfectly picked up or cleaned, but I know where things go and I keep things there.

Except I've been changing those places. And my memory just isn't what it used to be! So I 'remember' the places I used to know -- and not the new ones. (sigh)

How I wanted to find that one item. It's small. It was the descriptive tag for a gift I got years and years ago. But so pretty. And it told all about this item, which was unusual. And today I wanted to be sure that the item had included both frankincense and myrrh (I'm pretty convinced that's true!). Long story, I'll explain another time. Anyway, I couldn't find that tag for anything. I can't BELIEVE I moved it! Or maybe even (shudder!) tossed it out. (sigh)

And it always seems like right after I toss something like this I suddenly NEED it for one reason or another...

I cleaned off the plant stand in the living room today. What a mess! I just need to do it every so often. Those plants just keep growing. (smile) I had to pull off a hunk of one plant and turn it into two, it was so big. We'll see how that goes. And one had died, so out it went.

I was actually doing some research today on Medicare. Right now I have the Oregon Health Plan, which is frankly AMAZING. It's one of the best reasons to live in the state of Oregon. And I'm pretty convinced that Medicare can't possibly compare. But I need to reason it all out. Because the OHP takes care of my doctor appointments and my medication (except for the many, many supplements I have to take). So it's going to cost money that we're not spending right now... (sigh)

Getting older is a pain in more than one way, obviously.

I really got wrapped up in the fragrance thing, too, today. Aromatherapy is legitimate and it sounds like there's much to be said for using it.

Frankincense has been used since before Biblical times, and has many positive aspects. Smelling it alone can help with stress and anxiety!

The fragrance Marilyn uses all the time has amber and myrrh as two of the ingredients. I love the way it smells when she wears it!

Kris sent me an email about current IT issues. Marilyn and I decided to have lunch with him on Friday (a lunch meeting, in other words). Not sure if I should be including Donn or not...

It's still hot here. But we might have rain on Sunday. In the forecast department, they are now saying we'll have a sunny day for the eclipse, which would be wonderful! The festival is having an event for the occasion -- and even though it falls on a Marilyn Monday, we'll need to be there. Well, we'll WANT to be there, of course!!!

Marilyn got a lot done today, happily! And Jessica was there working with her (a good thing).

Can't think what I'm forgetting to share, so it must not be important! Good night and sleep well.

This is annoying! I just discovered that my ENTRY for yesterday (Monday) DID NOT POST!!! I don't know how I missed that yesterday (???), but when I came into LiveJournal tonight, it asked if I wanted to 'restore' my draft! The 'draft' I thought had posted! Oh well. At least the full entry was still available to post and I didn't lose it...

As for today, it was another busy day at the festival office.

Three birthdays to celebrate: Steven, Angel and Lilia. Marilyn and I took along Cinnabon pound cake and some cookies and Wanda and I made up a tray for the Staff meeting.

Donn was in today -- he moved Tanya's computer to her new spot. And was there in case she needed help setting up the check reader (she didn't -- they did it Remotely from the bank). He also set up the new station upstairs. Well, the new and improved version! Exciting. There's finally really room to work on computers in this building!!! (About time.) I was promised that way back before we ever moved in...

Talked to Kris on the phone about the new (used) printer he bought and installed to replace the old 'Marketing' printer that had a broken drawer. It was so old they don't make parts for it anymore. But all our printers were quite expensive when we originally bought them -- and are work horses!!! They really made them well back then! Somehow Kris found a similar model that was an improvement on the one we used to have! Three instead of four drawers! It's immaculate! It looks brand new -- not a mark on it. I can't believe how clean it is! We tested it out and it works great. And best of all? He got it for $150!!! The original models were thousands of dollars!

I actually prayed with Wanda at one point today. We held hands and prayed out loud for Christine (we want her to get this job she's applying for). We won't make a habit of that, but she really wanted to do it...

She was excited when she found out I pray all the time. She has a cross tattooed on her arm. Marilyn doesn't like me to talk religion at work (it's not appropriate, of course), but Wanda and I will be careful in the future.

Christine was there for a bit today. She was going for a meeting about the possible job...

Hot day today! The air conditioner is running right now as a matter of fact...

Marilyn's leg is better, but so red, swollen and clearly infected tonight. She walked on it far too much today.

Marilyn and I went to Starbucks for coffee with Steven and Angel.

Jeff was back from vacation today.

Went to lunch at the Turkey Place with Angel (Marilyn and I). Marilyn bought for all of us. (It was recently Angel's bday, as I mentioned above.)

McDonald's for dinner -- we ate the meat and tossed the buns (as we usually do). And had the meat with cottage cheese. Yummy. (And much easier than cooking.)

Watched several "Diagnosis Murder" episodes -- Marilyn is now hung up on the series, too. (smile) We really enjoy Dick and Barry Van Dyke.

I got 7,000 steps today! Wow.

Never called sister Sue today. I should have checked on the 'tasks' Marilyn assigned her. (grin) She was supposed to get a doctor appointment and call for a hair appointment...

Tired, so heading for bed soon!

Sweet dreams!!!

A busy day at the office -- both Marilyn and I felt it was productive.

Starbucks this morning.

I got more than 6,000 steps today (I also did on Tuesday when at the office). Poor Marilyn can barely limp around. It's very frustrating to her! She asked me if we could leave the office around 4:00, as she was in such pain she just wanted to go home and put her leg up. I think the bone is really bruised, aside from the wound, which appears to be infected. Poor thing! Just getting in and out of the car nearly kills her.

Adeena came in and was a big help with Marilyn's nominating project. Christine visited so she could work on her resume (I had her sit in Rich's space near Marilyn).

There was a huge drama about the check reader which wasn't working. Steven was trying to help Tanya fix it. They had moved it from Sheila's computer to Tanya's computer. I asked to be in the mix, considering I'm the only one currently on staff that knows the processes we went through to originally set it up...

Donn got involved when he came in, then we put it off for next week. I was also going to have him move Tanya's computer, but we put that off for next week, too.

I did have Donn set up the 'front desk' Profile on what used to be Christine's machine. It's now on both the Receptionist machine and the second computer in that area -- which should be perfect going forward.

The 'Marketing' printer is having issues. So Kris came in to deal with that. He got it to work again (apparently the machine wasn't reading the network card) -- but it has a bad drawer. So he found us another machine for $150 to replace it. So that's where we're going soon...

I helped Kate with her project, then I went and gave her access to change out the Director Distribution Lists. (It's not complicated, but just requires me to access my notes on my own computer.)

I also need to set Carol up with access to the locked drives. I didn't get to that today, but will tomorrow...

Kris is working on getting us on Comcast -- but apparently so is Jeff! That should prove interesting! Anyway, Marilyn is very unhappy with our internet connection in the office. Plus then we could get Xfinity cable TV instead of DirectTV (which she hates).

Kris and I went to lunch (he kindly bought) and brought some Chinese back to Marilyn.

I was working on a bunch of IT-related projects during the day, anyway. But have more to do tomorrow...

Wanda has been jumping right in and finding mistakes at the website -- she's sent me a bunch to check. Good for her!

I took several bags over to June when we got home. Clothes and stuff. Hopefully she can use some of it, anyway...

Can't think what else. Did the recycling, and now am headed to bed.

Good night!