My weekend plans

It's Thursday night!  The beginning of my three-day weekend.  Katie and I have a lot to do this weekend, and hopefully we'll get it all done.  As you know, I DO have a tendency to be lazy sometimes. : )

Tomorrow we have grocery shopping, some packages we need to have wrapped and shipped at the Kinkos/UPS store, and then we have an appointment to have the oil changed in the car.

I have a 2001 Ford Escape, I've loved this car since the day I got it, and I hope it keeps running until I need to sell it to go full -timing.  I REALLY don't want to have to buy a new car.  So far, so good.  It still feels like a new car to me.  I've never liked a car so much or driven one so long.  It has 132,330 miles on it, but I've never even thought about trading it in.  So, I try to keep the maintenance up, keep the tires good, etc.  I bought it when I moved to Pollock Pines, right on the snow line, because I wanted a 4-wheel drive and snow tires so I never had to worry about getting stuck somewhere.  You know, Just In Case.

This photo looks exactly like my car.  You'd never believe it's ten years old:

2001 Ford Escape

I noticed tonight I have ants all over the kitchen.  Not swarming, but a thin stream coming out of a high cupboard, down to the stove, across to a drawer and continuing to an upper cupboard.  Also going in the opposite direction on the other side of the stove, across the counter, down by the fridge.  I have had a few now and then out on the patio, but nothing in the house that I can remember this year, and I want to nip it in the bud, so to speak.

I had ant poison in the cupboard, and some spray.  I sprayed the areas lightly (hate doing that in the kitchen) and put the poison stuff out.  Now tomorrow I'm going to have to really clean that area thoroughly.

That's Friday.

There is an RV show at the Del Mar Fairgrounds this weekend, about 20 minutes from my house, and I plan to go either Saturday or Sunday.  It opened today and runs for four days. They are showing new and used rigs, so it's right up my alley.

I just went to the website to check the dates and times, and it is FREE, with FREE parking, and look at this:

It's part of a form you print out and bring with you.  I just printed it out.  Put your name and address on the form, and you get a FREE gift!  I love FREE gifts!  Guess who's coming home with a FREE gift???

I don't know how big the RV show is, but I'll let you know. I'm looking forward to it.

My grandson Gavin has a T-Ball baseball game on Sunday, and I'm planning to meet my son at the ball field to see the game.  He's five, and this year he's totally gotten into sports.  Watches ESPN, collects baseball cards, knows all the players, their teams, all that stuff that guys know.  He's a big Padres fan.  My son has season tickets, and he and Gavin have gone to a lot of the games.  If I can get some good pictures, I'll post them on Sunday.

Then the usual cleaning, laundry, dog walking, tiny bit of gardening, and I want to replace a house plant that died, too.  That should be enough to keep me out of trouble this weekend.

I've been watching hulu.com tonight, catching up on some shows I haven't had a chance to see yet.  I saw the first three episodes of The Whole Truth tonight.  It's pretty good.  I don't know how I've missed the first three weeks. It must be opposite something I usually watch. That's why hulu.com and ch131.com are so great. You don't have to wait for re-runs.

So, I'm now going back to hulu.com to see what else I've missed.

From me and Katie, have a great night, everyone!  : )

Trees, bushes, plants and bud vases

I wanted to show you photos of some of my favorite plants and trees in the area I live, which was built in the early 1960's as a retirement area.  There are still lots of retired people here, but more and more we are having younger people moving in.  I've lived here almost six years now.

This is the lake, with the fountain they've put in to aerate the water:

You can rent little boats, and the condos and homes on the lake can have private docks and keep their own boats.  One couple has pedal boats, and sometimes when Katie and I are walking along the accessible part of the lake, I'll see them pedaling from their condo across the lake, over to the side I'm on, where the pools, restaurant, meeting rooms, etc. are.  I see people fishing, too, but I think it's catch and release.

The gardeners in this area do a fantastic job.  Each homeowners association has their own gardener(s) on staff, and ours is great.  When I first drove around here, I kept noticing these Pyracantha bushes growing up walls, and I thought they were trying to shape them into words.  I couldn't figure out what they said.  Well...they aren't letters, they are just trimming them the way they are growing.  But I think it's very cool.

Katie and I usually go to the lake on our walks.  We pass these bushes growing on the walls on our way to and from the lake:

A couple of the homes up the street from us have these plants, Yucca?, that are flowering now:

This spider spun a web in the Oleanders down the street at the corner.  I also have a huge spider like this right outside my front door.  Every year at this time, these spiders are in the area, and they are huge. 

Every day to and from work, I drive by these trees a block from my condo.  We have a lot of trees in the area that are trimmed into a half circle like this:

or flat and round like this:

I just love walking around the area and looking at all the beautiful trees, bushes and flowering plants.

These Bougainvilleas are in my little grass/patio area in the back of my condo:

I have a rose garden in front of my condo, but it isn't at it's best now.  Also lots of bulbs and a lavender plant, among others.  I cut them all and bring them into the house when they are blooming.

I have some hanging vases that I bought with the intention of bringing them with me RVing.  They are small, lightweight, and some of them hang, so I can always have a flower or rooting stem, even on the road.

This photo is from Pottery Barn, where I got mine.  If you look closely, you can see a wire around the top that extends so you can hang them.  There are a lot of different hanging bud vases here. I will probably get different kinds and colors for my RV, since they are cute, colorful, and easy to keep filled.

From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a nice evening, everyone! : )

Cords for electronic items

WELCOME to Rick and Paulette, new Followers of Me and My Dog.  The funny thing is, I've been reading "Rick and Paulette's RV Travels" for so long, they have always felt like members of my little blog family.  Thanks for making it official you guys! Welcome aboard.

WELCOME also to Joe64, who has a blog (Joe64-Weg-nach-Canada) which is written in German.  Joe, I noticed you have the Google translate gadget, which works very well.  And beautiful photos!  Thanks for following along on our journey to become full-time RVers!

Well, I've made an appointment with my local Social Security office in two weeks, so I'll be signed up in plenty of time to get that first check in January.  : ))))  Thanks for the comments received, I appreciate them.  The article Diana references in her comments is a very interesting read.  If you want a clear, detailed look at various options, check out the comments from yesterday and use the link Diana left.

So, to end this post, I'm showing you a photo of why I need a label maker.  At least one of the reasons.  Can you say OCD?  But really, how else can I keep track of all these?

I've finally gotten a system - attach a label as soon as I unpack any electronic item and put in the same drawer with the rest of the cords, so when I need it, I can find it. 

These are from my old cell phone, 3 for my new DroidX, phone earpiece, 2 for my Olympus camera, Kodak camera, 2 Kindle cords, Logitech mouse, Garmin GPS, MP3, and 2 universals.  15 cords.  And that doesn't include the cords in my car so I can re-charge while driving or away from home.  Unbelievable!

From Me and Katie, have a nice evening, everybody!  : )

Social Security

Hey, msucheermom, WELCOME to Me and My Dog!  Thanks for signing up to follow along on our journey.  Feel free to comment.  I didn't see that you have a blog, but if you do, let me know so I can check it out. : )  We're not on the road yet, but that's THE PLAN.

I have no good photos to go along with my post tonight, so here's a photo of Katie in her spiffy new walking vest.  It has safety trim that glows when light hits it at night.  You can kind of see it in this photo.  It also keeps her from pulling out of her collar when she gets excited.  And I worry about those coyotes,  if I need to yank her up fast, I don't want to choke her.  Isn't she a cutie?

 Since it's October, and I'm eligible for Social Security in January, this is the month I sign up (three months prior).  This evening I'm working on signing up on-line.  I've gotten almost to the end of the form but I'm afraid to complete it.  From what I've heard in years past, once you decide when and how you're signing up for your benefit, and the application is done, there's no going back.

The Social Security Administration employee that I went to see last year when I signed up for Medicare told me I can collect one-half of my former husband's monthly benefit since we were married more than ten years, and I am now unmarried.  If I decide to do that, my Social Security benefit will continue to grow until I decide to collect under my own SS number.  She said it was some kind of loop hole that benefits divorced women (or divorced men if they earned less than their former wives).

I assume some of you retired RVers are collecting Social Security.  Anyone start collecting their Social Security by taking one-half of their former spouse's benefit in a reduced monthly payment, then later on down the road switch it to your own, for a larger benefit?

One-half of his benefit is less than my whole benefit amount, but not by a lot, and since I'm still working full time I can afford to take less now, so that I'll receive more later.  When I'm full-timing, every little bit will help.  But...  once I push the final button, that's it.

I think I'll hold off on completing it tonight, and make an appointment to file in person, so I can be sure I have my facts right. I'd hate to reduce my benefit for the rest of my life because I misunderstood.

I am soooo looking forward to that extra check each month.  $$$$$

 Two weeks to go, can't wait.

From me and Katie, have a good night, everyone!  : )

DroidX geocaching app

I found an app for the DroidX at geocaching.com.  They had an advertisement for Groundspeak's Geocaching for Android Application, which showed there is an app.  I clicked on the ad, and that brought me to the Groundspeak website.  I read the reviews, which said the app is very good, it costs $9.99, and you have to be sure your Droid's GPS is "on." The default is "off."  These are some screen shots from the Groundspeak website:

I went to the "market" app on my phone, searched for geocache and the first one in the list is the Groundspeak one, and I bought it.  I figured it was worth trying for so little cost, when the hand held GPS units are $300 to $400.  And it did have very good reviews. 

When I try it out, I'll let you know how I like it, but just going into it a little bit, it showed me the nearyby Geocaches, just like on the geocaching.com website, and other things.

I also saw this book, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Geocaching on line - it looks like the best price is at Amazon.com.

Whenever I start something new, I always look for books to read about the subject.  I'll probably get this one when I get into geocaching more. 

 BTW, I was toooooo lazy today to leave the house.  The weather is erratic and Katie and I snuggled, and I ate Cheerios, strawberries, grapes and jelly beans, and played "computer" all day.  So I didn't check out my new geocache app. But I will, I will.  (I can be so lazy...)

I've been reading comments from bloggers on other blogs, and everyone seems really happy with their DroidX.  So I 'm glad that's the one I chose.  It's been three years since I've gotten a new phone--you can imagine the learning curve I've got.   I'm trying out some of the apps that are mentioned.   The grocery one I'm going to look up - they said no more grocery lists. That sounds good to me! 

So, from me and Katie on a lazy, erratic Sunday, have a nice day, everyone! : )