Sophie's Story

   Today was a cold,rainy day I had been away from home all day. Once I got home, I answered some emails and did some other computer stuff. It was 4:30 when the telephone rang. It was c calling to see if I was home and to let me know that he would be home in half an hour.    "Do you have your heart set on chicken tortilla soup tonight?" I asked.    "Why do you ask?" replied C.    "Would you be interested in going to Café Latte for supper?" I said    "You'll have to twist my arm," C said.    I could hear the smile in his voice. I knew I wouldn't have to twist too hard. Café Latte is one of C's favourite places.    "I'll pick you up at ten after," he said. Then he hung up.    It's not that I don't like to cook. I do, very much so. I just didn't feel like cooking tonight. I knew that C would like really like a good bowl of soup and Café Latte always has good soup.    The first time I w...

   One of the things that we do every year when we go to Door County is make a trip to Green Bay. We've looked at museums, churches and parks. We've eaten at a few good restaurants. There is one place that we go to without fail no matter what.   Lambeau Field. This is the mecca for every Packer Fan. Football isn't a game in Green Bay. It's a religion and the shrine is Lambeau Field. If you go there and enter through the Miller Brewing gate the first thing you will see is two huge statues. One is of Curly Lambeau who helped to found the team and was it's first coach. He has one arm stretched out to the side to point at the other statue which is of coach Vince Lombardi, one of the most influential coaches in football. His quotes are still used as motivational tools and his name is on the trophy given to the teams that win the Super Bowl. These two figures set the tone for the rest of what is inside.   Inside the Miller gate is an atrium. It's a large open spa...

   This is the tenth time that C and I have packed our bags and headed east into Door County. The first time we came here we had been married for about two months. I wanted to take C to this part of the country. I had travelled here a few times alone and liked it very much. I wanted to share it with C who had never been out here.    We stay at the same place every year. The reason we do this is because it is not on a main road, but is not isolated. The room is large enough for us and all the things we bring which sometimes includes instruments. It has a lovely view of the sunrise in the morning with a forest below. There are four rooms so it is quiet and peaceful. We have met a lot of interesting people over the years. There was a funeral director and his wife, a young couple who were lawyers in Chicago. We met another couple who took their honeymoon here and were enjoying a long weekend while their children stayed with their grandparents. We met people from from ...

    The Fall Fest took place in Sister Bay this weekend. C and I have been lucky that it takes place while we are on vacation. I enjoy looking at the craft booths. I always look for a woman who knits hats and decorates them with gorgeous pins. There are all kinds of jewelry, hair accessories, clothes, soaps, lotions and decorative home items. It's a great place to watch people. There are people of all ages wandering around with beverages and food int their hands. It's also a good place to dog watch. Many of the dogs wear sweaters or Packer attire. Bands play music in front of the bars. There is a mechanical bull.    I found the hat maker and purchased a new black hat. I looked at some interesting hair items. There was a booth selling loose potpourri. I stopped to smell it. I love potpourri, but Scamp and Colby like to play it so I can't keep it around. C was milling in the crowd with his new camera looking for good shots. We were both having a good time....

   It was Wednesday afternoon and I was pretty sure my hair was standing on end. I was midway through my once a week 12 hour shift and it was not going well. People had been coming in all day and my tech and I were struggling to catch up. Prescriptions were pouring in as if someone had turned on a fountain. Added to that were a lot of customers coming in for flu shots.    I finally got to eat my first meal since breakfast at about 6:30 PM. I didn't want to stop, we were way too far behind for me to take a break, but I was really hungry and knew that if I didn't take the time to eat I would be sorry later. I left behind a pile of work and a note for my boss to let him know that I would be in early to clean up the mess.    After Toastmasters, I skipped the after meeting social time and went home as fast as I could. I found some work clothes, made a quick dinner and left for work. It took me about two hours, but I finally got caught up.    ...

   When I log into BlogSpot to write this column a list of others who write pops up. I have it set up this way so I can see the newest posts. One of them is a cartoonist. His cartoons are funny, witty sometimes a bit baffling and probably understood only by those who belong the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   One of the reasons why I like him is because he makes church things funny. His humour is not mean, derogatory or insulting. He simply points out everyday things with humour.   Every time I log on I look for a new cartoon. He used to post a new one at least once or twice a week. It's been over a month since a new one has been posted.   I can understand why he might be taking a break. He might have things going on that are taking up all his time. Drawing the cartoon might be a hobby for him and he may need to focus on those things that build income at the moment. Maybe he's suffering from some major writers block. Maybe he's working on so...

   Once in awhile I can't think of anything to write about. I feel pretty lucky because it doesn't happen often. Today seemed to be one of those days.    Then I remembered something that I would like to write about. This past weekend was General Conference for those who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. C played a talk by Dieter Uchtdorf, who is Second Counselor to the president of the church. It was a good talk. It started out with a story about how he was skiing with his 12 year old grandson. He (President Uchtdorf) hit a patch of ice and fell. He tried to get up, but was unable to. He sat there thinking about the people who would ski by and see him down on the ground. Then his grandson came up, extended his hand and said, get up Opa you can do it. (I'm not sure I have it correct so I didn't want to put in quotation marks.) President Uchtdorf took the proffered hand and stood up. He was amazed because a few minutes before he had no idea...

   Hi! This is Scamp. It looks like I've been shut into the computer room so I thought I would go ahead and write the column for this week.   I was pretty sure that Sophie saw me come in while she was checking her email. I didn't curl up in my favourite spot in the closet. I was sitting right on the ironing board where I could not possibly be missed. She has developed this bad habit of not telling me when she is leaving the room. Then she shuts the door and I am shut in.   It's very annoying. She knows that I can't reach the door knob. The whole lack of an opposable thumb thing is also a challenge. I really need to work on training her a little bit better.   I thought that she was going to come back into the room. She does that sometimes, especially two weeks ago when she hurt her back. It was too hard for her to sit in the chair for long periods of time. She would leave and then come back. Since she closed the door behind her, I don't think she i...