Current price of gas and rhodies at work

I am disappointed that the courts have reduced the punitive portion of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Like Exxon hasn't made a profit since 1989? I would rather see the courts be a little more creative, such as demand oil freighters be double hulled and one of those motor ignition switches that won't turn on if the alcohol level is above 0.80. Just a little sumpin' sumpin' to think about.



This is the rhodie growing just outside my office window, it is 40 years old and lets in a teeny eeny bit of light, looking out from my desk it is a little like living inside Chip and Dale's house.

Update on health and gas prices

I just liked the picture, so I posted it.

Health -- still some congestion, ribs not hurting from so much coughing, coughing is leveling off. Can breath through nose at least 70% of the time.

Gas price recap from vacation: When I left Coquille last Thursday the price of gas in Coquille was $4.25 per gallon. I gassed up in Eugene for $4.33 per gallon. At Prineville I just handed the guy my card and asked him to fill it up. It was 9:30 pm by the time I got to John Day and there were no gas stations open from then on. Driving from John Day to Vale at that time of night is exactly like driving inside a cow. I met maybe 6 cars or trucks the entire trip. Got to Ontario and gas prices had dropped significantly to $4.07 per gallon. Got to Emmett and Albertson's was selling discounted gas at $3.96 per gallon. Coming back, gas at Albertson's was $4.02 and the highest gas price I saw was in Vida,Oregon on the McKenzie River drive into the Eugene. Their unleaded was $4.65 per gallon I think maybe they were just discouraging people from coming because they don't like to pump the gas for the customers, eh?

Spirited Away

While moving to a new home in Japan, Chihiro and her parents take a wrong turn down a mysterious wooded path. They come across an ominous-looking tunnel of which only Chihiro is scared. Going through the tunnel, they are lead to a mysterious town filled with restaurants that have all kinds of delicious food on display. Chihiro's parents quickly sit down and start gorging themselves, assuming they will pay the restaurant upon their return. Chihiro's doubt of this strange town leads her to wander off, and she comes across a building of titanic size, where a young boy warns her to leave before nightfall. However, as the sun sets, the town begins to fill up with the gods of Japan's mythology, and Chihiro returns to find her parents mysteriously turned into pigs. The young boy, Haku, works in the building, which is a bathhouse for 8 Million gods. He helps Chihiro find work in this new world, find a way to save her parents from a dinner platter, and find her way home. Review written by Jason Krischke.

I watched this Japanese cartoon on Ovation Television last night. The story was intriguing and I very much enjoyed the different culture of Japan's 8 million gods and many spirits, some good, some evil. There is a poignant scene where almost everyone is saved and sent safely home. However, Chihiro turns to Haku to ask if she will ever see him again and Haku says yes. That sounds daftly simple but I was so invested in the story that I was completely charmed and wept a small tear at this avowal of pure love between a ten year old human and the river spirit/dragon who was Haku. I highly recommend this film. It was wonderful.

coastal weather

Woke from a not so sound sleep to a single huge crack of thunder followed by a gentle shower that lasted all of ten minutes. I then began my morning regimen of grapefruit juice, coughing, Excedrin, coughing, Robitussin and more coughing.

Doesn't that look pretty?

Day two of my upper respiratory infection (ICD9-CM 465.9) My symptoms are thus: Sore throat has settled down, not crushing to swallow. Kleenex used liberally. I was up every hour to sneeze and sniffle and of course run to bathroom to piddle from all the fluids I am forcing. Yerk. I fully expect a cough to develop and I have some Robitussin downstairs for that experience. Tylenol for aches and pains and fever. Oh boy I hope my immune system is sufficiently challenged to ward off bullets. I plan to lie in bed today and listen to NPR and feel vewy sowwy for myself.

I hab a head code

I would love to have some orange juice. But my throat is so sore that it feels like a minor explosion each time I swallow. Utilizing Kleenex at a pretty fair clip. I have the shivers occasionally. Gah! Hope the onset was here, not Idaho. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy...oh wait, maybe I would.

I'm going downstairs to hunt for some Excedrin and maybe some thin gruel...erk.

shoe tree and other stuff

I left Thursday evening to drive over to Emmett by way of Eugene, Sisters, Redmond, Prineville, etc. Just west of Dayville was this interesting tree. If you will look closely there are several dozen pairs of tennis shoes flung upon the branches. I actually saw a bird fly into one of the shoes. Amazing. Ones conjecture runs amok.





On Fathers' day my sisters kidnapped me and we ran away to Boise and to visit the Veteran's Cemetery and say "Hi!" to Dad. We are standing in front of his niche, Carla took the picture with her long arm technique.




This is Dad's plaque as it reads at present, it was the consensus that "Shorty" be added to his name when we have it engraved to add Mom's ashes. She already has a smallish piece of Depression glass picked out.

The most poignant moment for me this past week was when Gale was talking about some Rocky moment and commented that she had really been looking forward to growing old with Rocky.





This is a picture of the Cow Camp. Time has not been kind to the actual building but I and most of my siblings have fun memories of the Cow Camp. In the summer my uncle and family moved to the Cow Camp so he could manage a large cattle ranch. It was a treat to go for ride with him in the jeep when he set out salt blocks.

There was no electricity. Light was from kerosene lanterns, warmth and food was from a wood burning stove. There was a hand pump and a sink. My aunt ironed clothes using sad irons. These were solid metal irons that heated on the wood stove,very heavy things. I would have settled for wrinkles. One of my favorite dishes was cinnamon pull apart that my aunt made. There were beds upstairs that all the kids slept in there were a bunch of us and there were thunder mugs under each bed.

Us kids loved to go hunt for dynamite wire. Bits and pieces of the blue, yellow and red stuff could be found at a nearby blast site. We would scramble around and gather the stuff up and weave rings and bracelets.

One of my favorite memories from Cow Camp involved a porcupine liver. One summer that we visited somehow a deer came to a slightly out of season's end on the property. Dad and my Uncle put the carcase in the barn. To keep us cousin's big ears and big mouths occupied, my uncle showed us a piece of lodge pole pine studded with porcupine quills. Very impressive. Even better was the large bowl containing the heart and liver. This is the Gods' honest truth, for years after that, my best story at school was "Do you know how big a porcupine's liver is? It's almost as big as the porcupine!". I was almost of legal age when Mom and Dad told me the other side of the story.

I need a prettier gas station for these prices

I purchased gas for the five gallon can I am bringing with me. What!? you say? Yep, I do not want to run the chance of pulling into a gas station in the middle of no damn where only to be told, "Sorry,we are out". There are instances where gas stations close for a couple of days because they don't have the 40 or 50,000 dollars a tanker of gas costs to fill their station. So five gallons will get me at least another hundred miles closer.

I also popped in for a quick hair cut at the salon just across the street from the gas station.

Also watched Hell's Kitchen tonight, General Bobby got cheffed. I loved the spoiled housewives learning how to make lobster spaghetti..yum!! This will be my last post until I get back from vacation.

Tomorrow I wash and partially pack, and depending upon how frisky I feel after work Thursday, I may hop in the care and drive to Emmett a little early, I see Snoqualmie Pass got a foot of snow so I better check Santiam pass.

In view of the stock market crash

Gas was ONLY 4.19 in Coquille today. It was 4.25 in Coos Bay. So we went shopping!



After a hearty breakfast at Cozy Kitchen. Husband ordered the Chicken Fried steak, crispy hash browns, three eggs well done and rye toast which unfortunately was a bit soggy. I ordered separate items from the menu; one pancake, two strips of bacon crispy and crispy hash browns. We both like country fries or O'Brien potatoes and I asked if they have those. Yes! Also have something called "Love Hash browns". These are hash browns with chopped onions and chopped banana peppers topped with sour cream. Oooh! Oregon Blintzes!

We also went to Freddy's because we had 12 bucks worth of store coupons! Also went looking for storm doors at Lumberman's and they had the complete kit for 140 bucks or a simple wooden frame with screening without hardward for 35 bucks. I settled for a paint scraper. Scrapes paint off very nicely. Hoping to get some sunshine tomorrow for more paint scraping activities.