January 31, 2005

I did the walk yesterday despite the eleven plus miles per hour wind. It sure did strain me to make it back home with the wind in my face. My body provides too large a target for the wind. The only blessing I could come up with is the fact it would be worse if I walked sideways. The aerodynamics are a lot better facing the wind head on rather than hitting it with the side of my nose and stomach.

The meal yesterday was a winner as far as I'm concerned. On top of that it was really good. I think the visit before and after was a good thing too. It was enjoyable!

Today there is a $5 bill waiting for each of us at Sam's Town. We only use $3.43 worth of gas to get there and back so I'm thinking we'll make the trip. The gas prices have risen pretty sharply in the past few days. The figure above assumes we can still find it for $1.899 per gallon.

Another stop will be at the library to look for the book "Bury the Lead" by David Rosenfelt. The youngest daughter recommended it. I think too, it's the book of the month or something like that.

Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it. ~Lee Holz

January 30, 2005

Sunday is supposed to be a day of relaxation and lazing around but Glenda has decided that is not to be for this day. She has invited the Krohn's, the Mongomery's and the two cousin's husbands for a mid afternoon meal. She has made a potato salad already and plans are in the works for a slaw this morning with the main course of country styled ribs being browned by me on our 'Krohn' grill, then finished off in the oven. I believe it will work!

I did the 3.5 mile walk yesterday and I'm thinking of a 6 mile walk today. That's no step for a stepper! The wind is up and nasty so that might be a step breaker tho. The temperature is only 45 so it a pretty chilly wind. It's also hard on your ears! With the hearing aids in, it sounds like a big ass truck is following me and about to run me down. If you could see all the trucks running up and down the roads out here you would know how possible that would be. Hundreds of them all pulling tandem dump trailers. Hauling dirt and rock day and night. If you ever wanted to be in the trucking business out here is the place to be.

93/95, the only road to Henderson and Las Vegas has a stop light at the bottom of a hill. It is a four lane highway and at the stop light the big mother truckers all try to line up side by side to see which one can top the hill first. It usually ends up in a tie which means all sixty two cars lined up behind them tear up the hill somewhere between 25 and 35 MPH which could result in saving gallons and gallons of gasoline. Unfortunately everyone is so pissed by the time the trucks get in a single lane again that they all hit passing gear and run her up to around 80 before letting up, burning up all the savings plus. I know this for a fact!

We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. ~Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

January 29, 2005

What a day! Two real good cheap meals then later paying dearly. Breakfast was cheap at home and good it was. If we had only stayed here. No! We had to got to Sam's Town and pay several dollars for four ugly cups and $6 each for a losing game of bingo. Then -000000000000000000000-----------0 (the cat just walked across the keyboard). Looks like the most exciting part of the message so far! Then, to the Sunset for two ugly dish sets consisting of a plate, saucer, bowl and a glass.......all plastic of course. Down the block to the Gold rush to meet the Krohn's for supper. Glenda and I each had a two for one 16 0z. T-bone. Ruby had some ribs and Carl had a chicken breast sandwich. That was a two for one also. It was all good! Left there for our free money at the Fiesta.

At the Fiesta the luck made a quick and perfect 'escape from us' just after the free money was used up. A couple or three more bucks to make sure we couldn't shake the luck out for just awhile, then a couple more to make double sure. A harried aggravated departure from the gyp joint came pretty sudden after that!

Today there are a couple of free caps awaiting us at the Fiesta but we're almost too cowardly to go after them. Cowardly is another word for broke.

I can't get the cat to walk across the keyboard again to liven this thing up so the end is near.............A thank you isn't necessary!

The best portion of a good man's life: his little, nameless unremembered acts of kindness and love. ~William Wordsworth

January 28, 2005

I feel a mite sluggish this morning. I think ate too much last night! The buffet had sliced prime rib and sliced brisket along with many other things but that is what I ate. We played there for a little then I took Carl home and came home myself. Ruby brought Glenda home later.

Today a visit to Sam's Town for some fancy coffee cups of some kind then a stop at the Food For Less. We need to restock our larder.

Rain is said to be on the way and should be here this evening so I think we'll hurry on back kind of early today.

More than this I cannot say...........

Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. ~Langston Hughes

January 27

We/xxxxxxx I did okay yesterday at the games. Not in bingo but the other gaming machines let me come home with $30 more than I left with. I finally hit five of a kind on a Joker Poker machine again. The $40 pot was reduced to $30 by the time we left for home but still............. Oh yes, I've been staking Glenda too. I'm sure she will win enough one of these days to pay me back. Our gambling money, once we get it out of the bank, is to each his/her own.

We did the buffet at Sam's another time. Somehow we picked up a lot of points there and probably will be eating there quite often. We have two 2 for 1 at the Gold Rush that runs out Monday. They have a 16 oz steak for $6.99 which would make it around $3.50 each. I sure would like to use them before they run out. We have a 2 for 1 at the Railroad Pass Western BBQ tomorrow night. I think we still have enough points to get us in there free so that may happen tomorrow evening. Some of these things are REAL DEALS!

This morning we're going to meet Aunt Ruby and Uncle Carl at the Fortune for a free, 'you buy the coffee', breakfast. I think the coffee is $1.50. Still not bad for 2 eggs, sausage and hashbrowns. I leave the hashbrowns off so they brought me sliced tomatoes in their place last time. I'm hungry! Wonder if I could get two breakfasts with buying only one cup of coffee? You do know I tried to get the breakfast without the coffee in the past? That didn't work.

All comes at the proper time to him who knows how to wait. ~Saint Vincent de Paul

The end to these messages may not come at the proper time but if you wait a little it always comes. Here it is now...........

January 26, 2005

Rain here this morning but it's still pretty warm. As I have no parade planned for the next couple of days so I kind of like it. We do have a plan to play bingo at Sam's town at 1:00 but that is it for the day.

My day got confused second thing this morning when the President came on TV. Sure, we had to watch that, then the paper had to be read and the 36 emails had to be looked at. Breakfast was stuck in there somewhere too. We read the Jeff City paper, the Columbia paper and the Grudge report on-line every morning..............It all takes time and uses up brain cells. Mine doesn't seem to replenish as fast as they once did so here I sit waiting for a few.

They are very slow as I've just typed and I don't think I'm going to wait on them any longer. As you know by messages in the past, I've often struggled on without many but not to day!

It's the things in common that make relationships enjoyable, but it's the little differences that make them interesting. ~Todd Ruthman

January 25, 2005

Not a bad day yesterday but not a winner financially. Didn't get the oil changed in the car nor did we visit The Gold Rush. To top it off there wasn't a free five dollars waiting for Glenda at Sam's Town.

There was a pretty long line to get the oil changed and we were told that it would take about two hours. Time we didn't have to spare if we played 1:00 bingo at Sam's Town so we put it off. Glenda had the wrong day for the free money there so instead we left them some for nothing. Not quite true.

After bingo we met a couple of Glenda's nieces husbands for the buffet at Sam's Town. We was ably to pick up the tab using our points so it would depend on how you did the math. They're out here signing up at the union hall, hoping for a little work until things get going again in Missouri.

Our today hasn't been fully laid out for me yet. Glenda didn't ask Ruby about their Tuesday outing when she talked to her last night so at this time that trip is in question. Women, what a deal! Glenda didn't mention it because Ruby didn't bring it up! Glenda was worried that Ruby might not want to go and if she asked Ruby might cave in and go without wanting to. Heaven help us!

I'm sure that whatever, the day will be filled with something and we'll be wishing for a little more time.

"Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm." -- Sir Winston Churchill

I know I'm not very successful at this for two reasons; One, I certainly know the enthusiasm is lagging and has been for some time and two, I can read.

January 24, 2005

Here it's Monday as I suspect it is there. I like Mondays and always have. I felt like it was easier to get a leg up as most hate the day as they try to drag through it. Sure, when I worked a big chunk of my Sundays were spent preparing for Monday but that was life back then. Now most day's seem about the same and I'm delighted every day to wake up but I still take a special delight waking up to a Monday. Bore me through another cup of coffee...............

I believe Glenda indicated to me that this day will be used to have the oil changed in the car at the Sunset Street Wal-Mart. We will shop a little bit in the store while the work is being performed and could possibly wander over to the Gold Rush Casino. It's only about 3 or 4 blocks from Wal-Mart and we need the exercise.

After that, or maybe before we've got to visit Sam's Town for our free $5 play. Our free is incorrect! I'm not on the receiving list this time.

Yesterday I did do the long walk to the airport and back. I found eight golf balls but no money. I laid around, read and watched football for the biggest part of the day.

Glenda slipped off with Aunt Ruby to the Fiesta around mid-afternoon and didn't get back till after 7:00. She lost but she was really lucky. She was really lucky, playing out there amongst them for so long and only losing $5.

"Luck is the mindset of success in motion." ~-- Rick Beneteau

January 23, 2005

Circumstantial boredom reprieve.

Yesterday was an okayer but nothing big to brag nor complain about. Really means not much to say when you get right down to it and that's about where I am.

Staying home today. Read and watch the football ballgames with a good long walk stuck in before the games start.

Happy days for you is our wish!

Life is what we make it. Always has been, always will be. ~Grandma Moses

January 22, 2005

We had a big breakfast at Sunset yesterday and then later sorrowfully watched as our friends drove off heading back to Yuma.

Glenda is ultra sad because it is back to Glenda and him. She does know my name but I've heard her use several nicknames for me. He, him, asshole and so many more that I can't pull up at the moment but one more that I can think of that she uses and it just swells me up when she does is big prick.

We got home pretty early yesterday so I took a good long walk. Walking is a whole lot better striding along the streets on a sidewalk than through the aisles of a casino and it is more profitable. I found a quarter laying in the middle of the road and with no machine to stick it in I carried it home.

Today there is a sweatshirt awaiting us at the Fiesta and a vinegar, oil, salt and pepper set awaiting us at the Sunset. We have two small steaks awaiting us in the refrigerator and thanks to Carl a grill with almost a full tank of gas standing by outside. Sounds like a wining day to me.

"Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe that you may understand." --Augustine of Hippo

January 21, 2005

We had a great time yesterday! Went to the Sunset, then to Terribles, then to Sam's Town for bingo. (Not knowing what I'm talking about nor where I'm going, I typed bingo at the Fiesta yesterday) WRONG! No one in our group recapped a penny of their expenditures at the bingo games there. I personally ended up paying $10 per cup for two coffees that I had to get myself. Three of the others paid $10 per drink, for a couple of drinks of some kind but Glenda, bless her heart, had a couple of highballs and only paid $3 for them.

Now I'm not going into the nice barbershop hair clippers we each received for playing but if they're worth the suggested retail price of $39.99 that is printed on the box we all came out ahead. Glenda's play still makes her the recipient of the best deal. If you don't win on the $4 plus $1 validation and the $1 for the "even better" game that she opted to play, you've come out ahead of the game. You loose but you're still $14 ahead of the dreamers. That is what we both usually play but the big money chance of yesterday caused me to make an exception.

It was so crowded yesterday with the 'hot ball' being worth $9277.00 but no one won so the next few days at Sam's Town bingo could be an uncomfortable scene. The lure of big money will not suck us into blowing any more of our penny assed money..........At least for this time. That is unless Glenda decides differently. Even then I still may stiffen my hoofs and balk on this one. Even an ass gets to have his say every so often.

We're off to meet the visitors at the Sunset Casino for breakfast. Glenda and I have some free money there to play on too. Yippee! I wonder how much that will cost.

The Rocky Mount visitors are heading back to Yuma right after breakfast.

Creativity is God's gift to you. What you do with it is your gift to God.~Bob Moawad

January 20, 2005

"GREAT DAY IN THE MORNING!" Then usually things start to deteriorate. As much as I like going to bed at night, getting up at the peak of dawn or before is way way the best. It is just impossible for a day to stay as good as that the whole day through.

Now yesterday was pretty good all day long. We met the Rocky Mount folks at the Sunset and spent the day pretty busy, getting home around 6:00. Winners of monetary rewards we went without but that compared with good friends and a good visit fades into oblivion. I've no doubt the reality will smack us pretty smartly a day or two after the friends have left to return to Yuma. But what the heck? "One day at a time sweet Jesus." Enjoy it when you can.

Today we plan to pick them up for breakfast at Terribles, play bingo at the Fiesta and later in the afternoon eat from the dollar menu at the Fortune. They usually have two pretty good meals to choose from. I plan to pick up and pay for the fare. Geez! It'll cost five bucks to feed all of us. "Say big spender, spend a little time with me."

You know as busy as we are my time is very limited for this note as well as the thoughts therein contained. Unfortunately the time restraints are not too big a player in the lack of thought problems...............I just very seldom have any worthwhile!

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions, they become habits. Watch your habits, they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny. ~Frank Outlaw

January 19, 2005

Glenda went shopping with Ruby yesterday and neither won anywhere except at Penny's and even there it was I who won. Glenda bought me a pair of $55 pants for $5.99 and some $38 shirts for the $5.99 each. What a deal!

I read a book and fixed fried chicken on our plates for supper. I bought the already cooked fried chicken at Albertson's, eight pieces for $3.99. Not too bad of a deal.

Today, friends from Rocky Mount are supposed to hit here. We're looking for them around noon. They've booked some rooms at the Sunset Station for themselves. I believe their plans have them staying until Friday. They're enjoyable folks so we'll all have a good time.

The Condoleezza Rice hearing has taken up too much of my morning..................Gotta go.

Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. ~Warren Buffet

January 18, 2005

Well yesterday's 3.5 mile walk wasn't very fruitful. I found a dime about 200 paces from the house and not a nary other thing. Oh, I did find a hundred dollar bill but I don't guess it counts. I wanted to find something big so bad that I yanked my billfold out and found the bill nestled in it's special 'emergency only' hidey hole. I promptly stuck it back and I don't plan on mentioning it to Glenda or she'll want half. It did make me feel better anyway.

The walk was a killer! For the first 1.75 miles, a ten plus mile per hour wind tried to impede my forward progress which made necessary a heck of a lot of extra effort just to keep going in that direction. I was looking forward to the half way turn around point because the wind would be to my back on the homeward trek. Yep, it was at my back but it still created complications which again required the need for extra effort. I take walks not runs! The damn wind at my back kept trying to force me into a speedy little trot. The extra effort needed to get there and then the extra effort to hold it to a walk on the way back liked to kill me. I'm sure I'll feel better in later weeks because of it but I'm just a tad sore around my ankles this morning.

We hit Sam's town for a free buffet and $5 worth of play. Had the buffet with the Krohn's after playing 1:00 bingo. Glenda and I didn't win a thing but Ruby won a coverall for $250 then won the second chance coverall on a different card. That pot she had to share with a couple other people but $84 isn't something to scoff at. After the meal I sat beside Glenda playing a nickel deuces wild video machine but tired of it so I left. Ruby came along and started playing it........................She hit the four deuces for $50!

My little bit of luck came before bingo. While waiting for Glenda to exit the bathroom I sat down near the door at a nickel triple bonus video machine and hit four kings that paid $12.50. Made me feel pretty good! Anyway I thought I would play in back down to $10. Doing that I hit four 2's with a 4 that paid $100. Made me feel really good!

In the end, Sam's Town paid us and the Krohn's to eat their buffet and pick up their free $5. Now that's more like it.

Fools rush in where fools have been before but once in awhile...............Unfortunately those once in awhiles are what fuels fool!

January 17, 2005

Took a measured 3.5 mile walk down Veterans Memorial Drive yesterday. It cuts through a golf course. I picked up and carried home 26 golf balls. While I had the balls I tried to think of something that I had always been afraid to attempt and give it a shot but I was unable to come up with anything. Well, I did think of a couple of things but 28 balls seemed to be a little short to make the move, so I just emptied my pockets and watched the football games.

The healthy walk made me thirsty and hungry so I got me a beer and a bowl of Spanish peanuts to tide me over till supper. Glenda commented that the stuff probably negated any health benefits derived from the walk but I pointed out to her that is was a "Light" beer. Sooo!! I still lost two pounds yesterday.

The loss may not have had anything to do with the walk. It is so hard to come up with anything humorous to type that it has got to be a real weight losing exercise. My struggles take several minutes and I usually give up and just type some crap. "On a day like today, I passed the time away, typing junk to the screen." I've wasted enough of our times............Bye

"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it." -- William Arthur Ward

January 16.2005

'No news is good news', so things must be good around here! Sending this to say we're thinking of you anyway!

Anyone can be a winner—unless, of course, there's a second entry.

January 15, 2005

Yep, we're still here. Other than that we have nothing to brag about and no one likes complaints. That being, this case is closed.

Make yourself a day that you can be proud of.

January 14, 2005

When we woke this morning we discovered ourselves to be four hours and twenty seven minutes into a new day that had slipped in on us as we slept. It was too dark to see what kind of day we had going but the guy on TV assured us that we would be happy with it weather wise. Otherwise we're pretty happy about it too. There were a heck of a lot of folks that didn't make it to the new day and we're very thankful not to be among them.

We did meet the Brammeier's for the breakfast buffet at Terribles and they and insisted paying the fare. Fortunately we had a couple of two for one coupons so it wasn't too bad. After the meal they left for the strip but Glenda and I stalked around the casino and did a terrible job at winning but was able to do a pretty good job of losing. It didn't take us long to head out for the strip too.

The strip isn't a place we want to go back to very often if ever. Too many machine choices and too many people. We gave a little time each, to four different casinos and then left that area feeling we may have stopped at four too many. For old times sake we went to the Circus Circus, Slots-of-Fun, Westward Ho and on a whim crossed the street to the Riviera. The only bright spot was the Riviera there they gave us $10 free play to join their club. I was able to turn mine into $16.50. In the end I got home with three bucks more than I left with. Glenda's luck was unavailable yesterday and couldn't be reached for some reason.

The list today includes, think happy thoughts, smile more, free play at the Fiesta and Sam's Town and with a free gift at the Sunset Station to pick up. We're thinking that the Sam's Town stop should be the last one because our accumulated points will provide us a free meal in the buffet there.

The bloodsucking Green Valley Station has a blood drive with a reward of one, only one, free buffet. What a tight ass place. We're not going there because of that and with the biggest reason being it's too soon since our last sale at Boulder Station to give again yet.

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

January 13, 2005

The Brammeier's made it here around 10:10 yesterday. After a visit here we moved on to the Fortune where Mary won some at Blackjack. For some reason the place decided to switch dealers so Mary quit. Maybe it was break time but the dealer just moved to the next table over.

From the Fortune we made a stop at the Joker's Wild then slipped back to the Fiesta for the lunch buffet. After eating we did a little play there and Don slapped the crap game, taking more than a hundred bucks off it. From there to the Eldorado and then home more a little more visiting over a small glass of wine.

We're going to meet them today at Terribles for the breakfast buffet and probably a little play. After that I think everyone is going to slip up to the strip. Don and Mary plan to do a lot of walking while Glenda and I will only visit the Circus Circus, Slots of Fun and the Westward Ho if they are still there.

So be it true to what you do and the results could astound you.

Till we meet again.

January 12, 2005

I spared everyone yesterday by sending no message. I liked it as well. But.............here I am again.

Don and Mary Brammeier from Rocky Mount called, they'll be here sometime this morning. I think they got into Vegas Monday sometime. They're staying at the Gold Coast and I believe they plan to head back to Missouri sometime Friday. Las Vegas was a stop on their way home from California where they visited with their daughter and her family. We're looking forward to seeing them.

Glenda with Ruby, on their out shopping day played a nickel deuces wild video poker game at Sam's town and hit the four deuces for $50. She then decided to up step up and went to a quarter bonus poker machine where she promptly hit four of a kind. The problem was, she was playing only one coin at a time. In the end she hit four of a kind three times on that machine, all with only one coin in. Instead of walking off with around $100 bucks she only walked off with $25 which is still a heck of a lot better than walking off with nothing. I hope her winning ways continue!

When I began this I didn't have much to say so that is one of the biggest reasons this message doesn't say much!

People like criticism—just keep it positive and flattering.

January 10, 2005

Did you know that today is Common Sense Day? It makes good common sense to find a common sense way to celebrate it, doesn't it? To celebrate I'm avoiding the casinos again today and giving all of us a break from this boredom!

Good day!

January 9, 2005

"There ain't no glamour in this tinseled land of lost and wasted lives, and painful scars are all that's left of me."

You may be able to tell by the short chunk of song that things didn't go well yesterday for me at the rotten crooked games........I'm not going to talk about it!

Today will be one of my stay at home days as will be Monday and Tuesday. Glenda hasn't divulged her plans yet but she has been winning so I wouldn't bet on her staying home that long. I'm just hoping that things keep going her way! Unfortunately I slid quite a ways beyond hope for myself.

The weather out here is still a mite on the uncomfortable side with all the clouds, rain and the dam wind that only changes velocity and never stops. However, we like it well enough to hang around and our plans doesn't include selling out.........yet.

We did each pick up a free jacket at the Fiesta yesterday and it turned out to be one of those things that they paid us to take. It was at the Sunset, getting our free $5 worth of play, that rolled me into the basement! The longer we stay here the more we learn and I learned a terrible lesson yesterday. Oh! I wasn't going to talk about it.

Bye.

"Money talks...but all mine ever says is good-bye."~ -Anon

January 8, 2005

Wow! We came home yesterday after playing a couple of hours, five dollars ahead thanks to Glenda's magic moves. She has a special way that she pushes the deal button. I watch her and when she wins I think it's magic, when she looses, to me it looks kind of dumb. Yesterday it was magic!

Today, if the wind isn't so powerful as to prevent the car from moving, we plan on picking up a free jacket at the Fiesta for each of us. Believe me, in this terrible wind and 43 degree temperature it will be worn! The wind is said to be 15 to 25 mph with gusts way above that. (I missed the gusts speeds for sure but I thought they said up to 50 mph.)

The last time we had really big winds we struggled to get over the hill then the winds ended up behind his helping our forward progress. I set the cruise control at 65 mph and reset the mpg gauge and watched it climb. We got it up to 77.2 mpg before it started creeping back. Well yeah, it is a tiny bit downhill too but still, isn't that amazing? Knocking around, the old car usually runs around 21 to 23 mpg.

Me, I usually drink four or five cups of coffee first thing in the morning and it regularly runs me for sixteen hours. Mostly it runs me to the bathroom but everyone needs to take a moment or two to reflect during their day. I take quite a few more than a couple and the calm stop is pretty invigorating. Then piled on top of that, while in a casino, it saves us money. That's kinda like being paid to go.

I'm sure you're thinking it's past time for me to go now so I will. Bye

It is said that most can't take it with them because it goes before they do. Sorry kids!

January 7, 2005

A few things are a bit different each day in all of our lives. I think I'll mention a couple or three things that are different around here. The first is we awoke as a winner today. To wake make one a winner but what makes this mornings wakening different is we had extra cash in our pockets from winning some yesterday. Another difference is the colder than usual weather with lots of rain bearing down on us. The third thing I'll mention is the fact that I've nothing interesting to say, that isn't the difference, the difference is today I'm not going to push it or type a bunch of nothing. Bye!

If you want to see the sun shine, you have to weather the storm. ~Frank Lane

January 6. 2005

Direct to you from Boulder City, Nevada.

The free buffets out here have so many delicious looking dishes that stomp and mangle my will power so badly that I'm about to refuse going. You know when I turn down something that is free it has got to be really bad. Only plus that I can see is the chubbiness around the face is helping diminish the size of the wattle hanging under my chin.

The best things in the world are free --- and worth every penny of it. I refuse to ever again go into how much all of this free stuff ends up costing. It's still a good deal!

Today our freebee takes us to the Sunset Station in Henderson for lunch. We'll get there to partake of the buffet around 2:00 or 2:30 this afternoon, hoping that load of fuel will be enough to run us clear into tomorrow without a desire to top the old tank off before bedtime. For some reason I haven't been too successful at that but I've never vowed before and I am this time.

May your energy expenditures of this day produce nothing but happy results!

January 5, 2005

A mite chilly here this morning. Cold enough to frost vehicles not under a roof, like the truck of our car because I didn't pull far enough forward and also our neighbor's pickup.

Our furnace is working fine so we're comfortable but the need to wear a jacket during the day seems a bit unusual. It cuts into my walking too. This morning I had to shorten the trip because the huffing and puffing was forming a fog or what ever that is when you can see your breath. Anyway it cut down on my vision enough that I was forced to stumble back home.

We made a trip to the Wal-mart store in Henderson yesterday for a few needed items. The Fortune Casino isn't but a good block out of our way so on the way back we popped in there for a little gaming. It didn't take long for me to game out but Glenda won eleven dollars before she lost it. She played a long time. I spent most of my time strolling around the place watching other's frenzied button pushing as they hoped for a big pot. I didn't see any at all. I know that gambling is a very piss poor past time or hobby, whatever you want to call it so why do you suppose we and so many people succumb to the act over and over again? It can't be for the thrill because losing isn't too much of one. I'll settle for hope as the reason and I sure hope today's visit to where ever turns out better than yesterdays. We do have a 2 for 1 buffet at the Fiesta so that will most likely be our main destination this day.

Confusing the words wish, faith and pray with each other usually just results in a minor grammatical faux pas, but when any of these words, especially hope, is confused with action, the results are much more devastating. ~-Bo Bennett

January 4, 2005

Today has started out a lot like yesterday but it won't be the same by a long shot! The furnace was repaired yesterday so it was nice and warm in here when we got up. The rain is still happening and of course the wind is still pushing things around but the biggest difference of all will be the no loss at a gambling casino like yesterday! How do we plan to accomplish this you ask? We're not going to any casino today period!

After the furnace was fixed yesterday we decided to take advantage of a free buffet at Sunset Station. It was not even anywhere close to being free and I'm not talking about only the two dollar tip either. It was a bad stop! Every penny we played stayed! We didn't win anything on any machine that we played. Usually you can find one that will give you a little back and that helps pay for your play but not yesterday. We did our best gagging them with money but they wouldn't puke anything up. Today we're not going to take any chances.

To put it bluntly, we failed to uphold a couple of our Missourian values!

"And one of the values of Missourians is frugality and good stewardship of our money." ~Matt Blunt

January 3, 2005

Our furnace broke and the temperature got down to 57 in here last night. I didn't realize that Glenda and I had drifted so far apart but evidently it's going to need to be a lot colder than that before a cuddle can happen. I froze out and went to the bed and it's covers pretty early to be warm and watch TV. I may have done a little thinking as I lay there but somewhere along the line I dozed off. I awoke this morning with the realization that my fantasies had been shattered. There had been no cuddling during the night. I suppose I'll need to rethink my thoughts and get on with today's living, settling for a little hug here and a little hug there with a kiss thrown in once in awhile.

It's raining here this morning and a guy is supposed to be here sometime today to make the repair on the furnace. These two things will keep us around here pretty close today. In one way probably saving some money by not venturing any with the usually false hopes of increasing it and then losing anyway with the payment to the repairman.

Do you know that I went to four different stores looking for Collard Greens? I would not settle for any other kind of greens, they had to be Collard Greens. There is a lot of days left in this year but so far the effort seems to have been another expense similar to throwing money into a video poker machine slot, NO POSITIVE RESULTS!

Our problem seems to be that we lack a couple of the ABC's of success and have been coming up short on the other one! "Success is that old ABC -- ability, breaks, and courage." ~ Charles Lackney

January 2, 2005

No big plans are on Glenda's list today and from what I was able to see there are no small plans either. There isn't too large a need for daily planning when one doesn't have a job. Sure we're surrounded with 'to do's' and some of them we may, but there isn't any big need to plan for them. That would take away some of the carefree out of our everyday. At our age we need to hang on to as much carefree of our choosing as we can, rather than wait for the possibility of nature and old age to slip in and dump a load of it upon us.

The second day of 2005 looks a lot like the first and as far as that goes the likeness to 2004 is still prominent in our view. Nothing wrong with 2004 but everyone appreciates a change now and then. We haven't been anywhere to try for the Collard Greens (for money) results yet but the Black-eyed Peas (for luck) has already worked. We each had another day bestowed upon us!

May your blessed new day be filled with what ever your heart desires.......With-in reason of course.

"There are no mistakes, no coincidences. All events are blessings given to us to learn from."~Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

January 1, 2005

Yesterday was a pretty good day at the Casinos. I hit four aces on a nickel machine ($50) and the sevens a couple of times on a Blazing Seven machine ($25) which was enough to return home with more than I took even after loaning Glenda some cash.

The Krohn's came to visit and stayed until around 10:00. We had a few snacks and played dominos. After they left I made it till midnight Las Vegas time. Sitting in the easy chair watching the happenings on TV and reading. I was awakened there at the midnight hour by the booming of the fireworks going off in Las Vegas. I watched it on TV for a few minutes then turned the TV off and went to bed. Another wild and wooly new years bash for us!

When we got up this morning to 2005 everything looked strangely, very similar to 2004. Only a couple of things weren't the same. One was created by all the salty peanuts and snacks that I stuck into my body last night, making it a couple of pounds heavier. Hopefully the extra pounds won't hang around very long. The other thing was the calendar page wasn't the same one we'd been using to track the days through the last 31 days of 2004.

Glenda is now trying to get a little breakfast out of the way so she can start working on the dinner. Her plan is for us, the Krohn's and the Montgomery's to eat around 3:00 this afternoon. Sounds good to me!

Best wishes for 2005! May your health, wealth and happiness be all it can be or more.