Saturday -- Dear Diary

My morning started out at 8:15 with someone knocking loudly on my front door. It woke me from a sound asleep and I don't go to the door anyway. But the person was insistent and called me. I let the answering machine get it not wanting to get up yet, couldn't hear the message. I couldn't go back to sleep and figured they were gone, so I got up to get my coffee and saw that there was a mobile home trying to get out. They needed the parking spaces in front of my house where my car is parked to make the curve with the trailer and thus needed me to move my car. I hollered at one of the guys to come get the keys to move it. Then my neighbor came up, apologized for waking me. "Is that you that's moving out?" I asked. It was. He's been here a long time. He told me he was getting evicted because he had a girlfriend living with him and didn't tell the office. Damn! I know that's in the lease, but so is a lot of things that aren't abided by in this park. He said he was taking it to small claims court, but I don't see how he'll be able to recover the tremendous expense of moving a mobile home. I felt bad for him.

I didn't try to intall the graphic dirver yet. Maybe tomorrow I'll feel like tackling it. But I am moving my huge address book to Windows Live. I've used Incredimail for years, and they really don't let you export your contacts where they come out looking right. I hate the Windows Contacts way of doing an address book. So, it's just going to have to be one at a time. Besides, I have contacts for various genealogy family lines, contacts from my photography group, contacts from our attempts to save the high school from destruction -- lots of them I'm not even sure who they are now. So, I need to put them in related folders. There's bound to be a better way to keep up with contacts, physical addresses, and phone numbers. Ths is going to be a big project. I made it to the letter D today. lol

new toy for my computer

The past two weeks I've been involved in setting up, learning, and transferring files for my job from an antiquated verison that operated on Win 95/98 -- yeah -- really! -- to a version that will operate on my Vista. I've had the old computer set up side by side with my Vista PC, using it only for work, and using the "good" computer for everything else. Finally, the move is done, and I am about ready to put the old tower into retirement (in the corner of the room where I have three other defunct towers).

Anyway, I did have a nice 17" flat screen monitor I have been using, as well as the 22" flat screen I use with the Vista - both are Samsung SyncMasters, Analog/Digital capable. So, I got the hairbrained idea that instead of putting the 17" away, it's time to expand my desktop -- have two monitors! I have a feeling once this is set up, I'll wonder how I ever did with out it.

I'm not THAT computer saavy, so I had several questions, did a little Googling, and decided to go for it. Not exactly sure what to get, I went to Best Buy and trusted the saleman's advice and bought a VisionTek PCI, Radeon HD2400 PRO, 256 MB, which he assured me it ample. He asked if I had the Digital Interface Cable that came with the monitor. Um, well, I had a hunch I would need it from what I had read on the web and looked everywhere I could think of before I went to Best Buy, but I don't guess one came with the monitor -- or else I put it in a "safe" place. So, I bought one.
Guess I will tackle installing it as soon as I get brave enough. I'll let you know how it goes.

OMG it Snowed in SE Texas!

Well, it's been quite some time since I've added a blog. Almost a year. My man won the election, will be taking office very, very soon! But that's not what today is about.

Actually, it snowed yesterday (Thurs, Dec 11th), which was my granddaughter's birthday -- she turned the magical age of 13.

I had gone outside about midnight to take out the garbage and it was sleeting/raining. Not wanting to drag it out to the street in the rain, I decided there wasn't that much; it could wait till next garbage day. I went back in, watched some TV, went to bed -- snuggled up and finally dozed off. Didn't even think about snow! My mom called at 8:00, apologizing for waking me up, but "Look outside!" Wow! How beautiful!!! I found out it the snowfall had been around 1:30. Damn I hate myself sometimes. I should have looked up and out! I'm so UN-observant! And it never fails that I live to regret it!! But nevertheless, it was such a treat to see white! Last time it snowed I think was 4 (?) years ago on Christmas Eve and before that was something like 1987??? It don't snow much around here! So, it should be declared a holiday. It was pretty much melted away by mid afternoon, but what it was very, very nice.

I got the camera out, of course. Been so long that I tried to take pictures with anything put the Program mode, I forgot how to change settings! But I got quite a few around the yard. Nothing very photogenic where I live, but, hey, it's home.

Here's a couple. Click here for a few more.