Make-Up Monday

Yeah, we've all heard about Throw Back Thursdays. Well, I decided I'd have a couple of "make-up Mondays" to share pictures I took without ever writing the blog post.
Today's Make-Up Monday reports on Easter weekend, April 18-20.
Good Friday began with visits from workmen. One was repairing the hallway and ceiling damaged by

the ice dam in February. Another was here to deal with the big, black ants we'd been finding on the dining room window sill every day for a week or two. The hallway workman didn't get the job finished yet. The exterminator spread lethal chemicals inside and outside all around the house, handed us a bill (a fairly big bill) and left offering us long-term protection for $100 per quarter if we were interested. I don't think we are.
That evening we ate dinner at Raja India with our new neighbors John and Nina Creech, a delightful couple. When we took a coffee cake down to welcome them to the neighborhood, we discovered they had lived in Clifton and they love Indian. So we suggested we enjoy it together. I hope we get to spend time with them again.
Saturday was typically full of errands and grocery shopping. That evening we watched a video from Redbox, Philomena, and we were really glad we did. A gripping story, great acting, lots to talk about.

 Sunday, Easter Sunday, we went to the 12:00 service. It was the fourth service of the morning, and the church asked regulars to attend late to make room for the crowds at the earlier services. We met Terry and Shirley and Brandon Wuske there, and they came to our place for Easter dinner afterwards.

It was a beautiful, sunny day, and we took a walk to the park after dinner before dessert, and then ate our Easter angel food cake on the deck. Shirley brought the dessert, specially decorated for the day! 

Weekend Update

This daily diary is turning into a weekly (or less) update! Let me record our activities at least for last weekend.
Friday Evelyn and I went to Relish Modern Tapas for a wonderful supper. We tried a couple of their larger portions, main dishes (she the fish tacos, I the salmon) along with hummus and pita bread and later some lettuce wraps filled with quinoa salad. Very yummy, and different from the usual and mainstream. Then we hopped across the street to the Regal Cinemas to see Lee Daniels' the Butler. Our verdict: the acting was superb, especially by Oprah and Forrest Whitaker, despite the much-publicized departures from actual history. We enjoyed it.
Saturday I was at the BMV at 8:05 to get new plates for my car. I stood in four lines throughout the morning and was finally out of there by sometime after 10:00. Line one: to pay the sales tax and transfer the title. But that can't be done until the folks next door do a VIN check. Line two: Grab my number out of the machine--I was 31, and they were serving number 2--sit and read the newspaper till I'm called to do my VIN check. Line 3: take the VIN check form back to the title transfer lady, pay the sales taxes (the second largest check I've written this year), and get my Ohio Title. Line 4: go to the Returning Customers counter where I am called ahead of all the people in the room with numbers and escorted to the counter where I can buy new plates.
I stopped to buy two new tires for the car (the rear tires were waffled and wobbly-sounding) and had just enough time to stop at Auto Zone to buy bolts to attach the plates to the front (I bought the car in Kentucky, where they don't require front plates) and browse the garden section at Wal-Mart.
Then off to lunch with Dave Faust to brainstorm with him some ideas for replacing Shawn McMullen who plans to leave the editorship of The Lookout to become senior minister at Lifespring Christian Church.
I paid bills and cleaned out a drawer in the afternoon after I finally got home. (Dave and I enjoyed a LONG lunch at Seasons 52, a place I definitely want to return to!) Then we had a pleasant and fun evening with Terry and Shirley Wuske at their place. They fixed a steak on the grill and we ate on their patio adjacent to their spacious, park-like backyard. Brandon was in for the day, and we enjoyed visiting with him too.
Terry drilled holes in my front bumper, and we installed my shiny, new Ohio license plates.

Sunday was worship at the 9:00 service, breakfast at Cracker Barrel, Skyping with Wendy, a trip to the grocery store followed by my daily watering, some desk work inside (wrote a draft of my column that goes live Tuesday--tomorrow--morning at ChristianStandard.com), chicken tacos and some TV in the evening. A pleasant day!

Happy Birthday, Wuske Men!

Our dinner table was pretty in pink this evening for a birthday celebration for Terry and Brandon Wuske, whose big day was actually Tuesday this week. "Terry doesn't want a party," Shirley had told us, even this year's birthday was a BIG one for him. So we decided we'd at least have a nice dinner, which we did.
Evelyn made barbecued beef brisket, cole slaw, and green beans. I had found a new recipe for macaroni and cheese, which Evelyn helped me cook this afternoon. (We wanted some hearty choices, since Brandon is eating vegetarian now.)
A chocolate birthday cake from Kroger's ("Happy Birthday Wuske Men") completed the meal. We had a nice time laughing and talking together.
Evelyn and I started the day quietly, drinking coffee and reading newspapers. I went to the store (it was quiet, too, on a Friday morning!), we took our walk, and I piddled around outside a little. I even had time to doze a little in the armchair this afternoon before a few last-minute duties to finish getting ready for dinner.
We had a beautiful sunny day, with temperatures topping out above 50 degrees, and tomorrow's supposed to be the same. Evelyn's decided we're cutting grass!

Three Days Before Christmas

Christmas (and work!) has definitely gotten in the way of blog/diary writing. But I want to keep track of what I've been doing, so I'll quickly review highlights of the last three days.
Thursday evening Evelyn and I both served at the Healing Center. She's tutoring folks in English for their GED tests, and I help sign up folks for government aid (food stamps, etc) through a computer program called the Benefit Bank. Evelyn works 6:30-8:30 every Thursday; I work 7:00-9:00 one Thursday a month. This week I was there till past 9:20, because an 8:00 appointment was tied up with some other services at the Healing Center, and she didn't get over to me till I almost left because I thought no one was coming at 8:00.
It was a long day, because I had met with my  Thursday morning men's group at 6:00 a.m. at Cracker Barrel for our end-of-the-year breakfast.
The Healing Center (a ministry of Vineyard Cincinnati) was decorated for Christmas, including this beautiful tree.

Friday was my last day in the office till January 2, and I got a lot done. I needed to get a lot done, because we give our February issue to the printer that Friday, January 4. I finished reading the proof (had started Thursday), did some rearranging of pages and cutting of articles that were too long, and wrote some copy to fill a couple of blank spots. I still have more of that to do when I get back to the office, but not more than I'll be able to finish in the time I have. 

The office was VERY QUIET. More people had already started their Christmas break than were at work that day. That seemed to be true for the other offices in the building too. The parking lot was almost empty when I got there after 8:00. 

Shirley Wuske had invited us for dinner that night, and we had a lovely time eating her wonderful food and enjoying the company not only of her and Terry, but also Brandon and Jonathan (in for Christmas from his current landing place in Phoenix, AZ). Chicken marsala, and homemade crescent rolls for the meal and pumpkin cobbler (!) for dessert. All wonderful. All recipes I hope Evelyn will get! Jonathan snapped our picture on his phone as we sat down to eat. 

Today was a productive Saturday: bill paying, late Christmas-card sending, errands to the dry cleaner, post office, and oil change place. We Skyped with Wendy after she had gotten back home from a candlelight and carols service at a Lutheran mission/church in Arusha. She's leaving tomorrow with a missionary couple that are her good friends for a Christmas getaway at a resort on the ocean. She was smiling and in good spirits, and it was good to talk with her. 

This evening Evelyn and I grabbed supper at McAlister's and did a little shopping at Meijer's for some odds and ends Evelyn needed to finish the weekend. We're having friends for dinner tomorrow night and more friends sometime Christmas afternoon or evening. Just enough to feel like we're celebrating. (Just enough for me; Evelyn's been working hard to get ready for these two meals, plus our holiday visit from the Pennsylvania Johnsons starting Wednesday night.)