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This is one of our pooches, McKay, she's an 11 year old Gordon Setter. She has been a great bird dog and friend. She poses well, too! For many years she hunted with the hubby for grouse, quail and pheasant. Now she's semi retired.
On another note...this past year has been quite productive for us. We have built a hay/horse barn, revamped the pond by planting native plants and flowers for the wildlife to enjoy, and "almost" finished the kitchen. The kitchen, no doubt, has been a real stickler. I have himmed and hawed over the backsplash tile for months and I have finally made a decision. Whoo hoo! I even found, after six months of searching, a company that I can order a stainless steel tambour from for the appliance garage. One of these days I will share the before and after photos of our place which we fondly call the "Love Shack."
BTW---I got my White Christmas !!!
While I thought coming back home to Cocolalla this trip would make a big change in my Bah Humbug Christmas attitude...I was wrong. First off the lights on the big tree outside are missing a section of lights, that really annoys me. If ya can't do it right don't do it at all. I came back to a horribly messy home. My hubby just can't seem to clean it "my way." I know that is my problem. You see, our home has been under construction for five years and it is not quite the Better Homes and Garden version of mountain living as I imagined.
While I am in California working hubby is here taking care of the animals and "remodeling." Well, it just ain't so. I know the three horses, three dogs, five parrots, five tortoises, building a horse barn and keeping the driveway clear, not to mention the rental property intact is a lot of work. By the time he's done with the animals he's too tired to do much remodeling. Our ranch is spread out so every thing associated with animals takes a lot of time and effort, plus hubby is not an organized person. BINGO, organization ! That is my problem, that he is not organized. You would think that it's not a big thing but it is. It affects every aspect of our life here. I hate taking an hour to find a flashlight that should..............
OK, hold everything. Guess what just pulled up in my driveway. My neighbor Bucky Roop, in his pick up truck with 10 neighbor hood children in the back... it's snowing and they are coming to sing The Twelve Days of Christmas. Now that's Christmas.....I have never had Carolers come to my home and sing, what a treat!!
OK, Scrooge signing off to go clean the house, no I didn't even mind the 10 drippy foot prints, and find something to bake.
Come on, I know there's more like me out there.
Round about November I'm all excited and have my list in place, asking who wants what.
I hate the response, " I don't know, get me whatever." There's also the Christmas music being played in all the shops during Thanksgiving-grrr.
By December 1st I've scratched through half my list and feeling smug.
By Dec 12th I'm in a panic because I've procrastinated thinking the last half of the list would be a breeze.
It's now Dec 14th and Christmas Spirit is fading. The only bright side is knowing I will get to see my Granddaughter soon and I've already done her shopping.
Bah Humbug side. I tell myself "I'll just shop online or go shopping when I get up to Idaho..
I have no tree set up in California since I'm only here to work. I decided to pull out my ole Douglas Fir talking tree!
After 5 minutes of it automatically turning on when I walked by I unpluged it- ACK !
I'm currently hoping Christmas will go away - rainey California weather does that to a soul.
I can't wait to get up to Cocolalla and hopefully see BIG SNOW !!!
Merry Humbug Christmas
I've been in Morgan Hill on my week off work... If it weren't for my folks, other family members and work I would not be here at all. My son, Bobby, from New Jersey came out to visit and saved me from total boredom. He kept me entertained with his wit and humor. Sometimes it's hard not to treat him like a kid even though he's nearing 30, is a pilot for the USAF and has a degree in Aerospace Engineering. Yikes! Just dated myself.
As the first born son he has always been the "test" baby. You know, the child you test all the rules on and see what works and doesn't work. Then by the time you get to the second child you're a bit more lax on rules...like I haven't heard the end of that. Bobby doesn't hesitate to let me know where I went wrong in raising him, but I have news for him. Unfortunately, he has to wait till he has a childof his own, then the real fun begins!
Now Bobby has left and I'm home alone...again.
I just received an email from NumbersUSA.com on another immigration bill congress is trying to pass. It's the H-1B bill to increase foreign workers in tech, nursing, physical therapy, engineering and science fields.
I have to RANT a little as I know some of this to be true... I work in California, yes California. But I do bring my moola back to Idaho! I am a nurse and I do work along side of foreign nurses. While some of them are good nurses some are not, that goes for any other nurse for that matter.
What I do know, being educated in California myself, is that the nursing schools have waiting lists a mile long. So what happens when foreign nurses come swarming in? Our lines get longer on the college wait list, foreign nurses will work for lower wages (if their employer is not in a union) and then they bring in their relatives and friends on visas who take the other skilled or non-skilled jobs. Someday your kid won't even be able to work at Burger King or Taco Bell after school ?
Nurses are sent here usually by some contract to work in states like Texas where there is no union and are trained. They work under some grueling circumstances from the stories I have been told. Once they have the "experience"under their belt and fulfilled their obligation they come to CA where there are "ratios" for nursing and a union. Ratio Ex: The ICU where I work is a 1:2 ratio, one nurse, two patients-no ifs ands or buts. Med Surgical is 1:5.
Here's the double edged sword part.....
I have seen the foreign nurse I work with bring in six nursing friends who she sponsors on visas, not to mention relatives. I know this as she has asked me to help her write the sponsor letters !!! I have to hand it to her though, she is a pretty smart cookie. And don't think she's the only one that does this. They trade off bringing the Mom or Mother in Law here for six months to babysit the kids and help with the house while they work. And I mean they work! They take the overtime no one wants, do the double shifts and work at two hospitals. They sign up for holidays for double pay. In the CNA (union) they are making avg. base rate $55.00/hr you add differential pay for night work and extra pay for charge nurse duties and then top it off with overtime you're making a big fat paycheck. No wonder she lives in a 1.2 million dollar home and I don't. Her husband is also a nurse so double those figures I just gave you!!!
So basically what I am trying to say is that we need to start steppin up to the plate and take a stand for ourselves as US citizens. If we don't want our jobs taken over by foreign workers then we must let our congress know. What do you think?
On Monday Dear Hubby drove me back to Spokane airport at 4:45 am in a blizzard. I was on my way to Seattle for three days to see my Grand baby. Near Silverwood the road was almost impossible to see, we drove by center line braille and left side berms. The jerk behind us was tailgating and had his lights on high beam, some think more is better.. arrrggghhh!
During our ride we saw a red car off the road down in the ditch on 95 in Chilco. I tried being a good Samaritan and called the Bonner Sheriff Dispatch, what a joke.. They asked if I pulled over and I said nooo, it's snowing too bad and the guy behind us has his lights on bright and riding our bumper-not safe and we didn't see him until we were 10 feet away, that's how bad it was. They told me to call Kootenai dispatch and after telling them I don't know the number they decided to connect me. What? Isn't that their job? So the dispatcher finally transfers me and no one comes on the line. After 5 minutes I call back Bonner dispatch and she said they were suppose to call me back on my cell but they didn't. Go figure. She said Kootenai dispatch was alerted so I felt a little better. Hubby said the car was gone on his trip back.
This reminds me of this last summer when I reported a fire to Bonner Dispatch up the mountain behind Round Lake. They couldn't find it...hello? After sending out a truck and calling me back they still couldn't find it. See the big plume of smoke in the middle of the green forest? I guess others reported it also and finally some local land owners went up the trail and put it out. Hummm wonder how it started in the middle of the day in the first place...
I just love to look out the window at snow...here's why:
Covers all the weeds.
I can anticipate my seed catalogs in a few months.
I fair better in snow than rain...old bones.
Ah, No mud!!!
My hubby is a good snow shoveler and loves his Bobcat.
I feel like I'm on vacation.
Oh and Seattle, it snowed there, too ! Yippee, thankfully I rented a 4WD.
WON'T WATCH THE SHOW, WON'T READ THE BOOK...nuff said
Nothing horribly exciting to post about today. I was called in to work tonight so that basically ruins my afternoon. I must take at least a four hour nap prior to working the night shift when I'm called in less than 24 hours. I love night shift but my body hates it. It's the only way I can work six nights on and have eight days off and go back home to Idaho. I've gained weight and that in it's self is my fault. One of the MD's told us night shifters that we would have a shorter life span and tend to get more cancers-good grief, such wonderful statistics !
Why don't I work days....list too long. Shh...if you're a night nurse you know why.
I need to find a counter I can post in my profile for days left to retire.
OK, off to grab a Starbucks...
