Ho, Ho, Ho

The whole Diehl Family wants to wish the rest of the world a Merry Christmas.  If Christmas isn't your holiday, then we wish you a merry holiday of choice!  It's unfortunate that Christmas has become a mostly commercial holiday, beginning before Thanksgiving and now, apparently, continuing well into the new year. After Christmas Sales seem to be the big thing now.  So, save your pennies and take advantage of sales.  Or save those pennies and come see me in the new year to purchase real estate! 

iRobot, iMac, iHeadache...

Charlie bought me a Roomba (iRobot) a couple of weeks ago.  What a neat surprise!  Although I like it a lot better than poor Porsche the dog does.  She heads for the door the minute "Bridget" starts up.  The cats, after watching it closely for awhile, now just ignore it.  Bridget starts her vacuuming duties at 10:00 each morning, picks up the accumulated cat and dog hair, bits of fluff, stray dog food and then heads back to her docking station to wait for the next day.  Each evening I empty the container of enough cat hair to build another cat!  Of course, having 6 cats might be the cause of that.  The funniest thing was when she accidentally shut herself into the bathroom.  I can picture her vacuuming her little robot heart out, trying to return to her docking station, and finally expiring from a dead battery.  Almost makes you cry.

The next "i" in my life is a new iMac computer.  Been a PC girl since my first computer, lo these many years ago.  I was already hooked on my iPhone and iPad (even have an iPod Shuffle) so this seemed like a logical progression when I needed a new computer.  I have to admit that I'm loving some of it but the learning curve is what's causing the "iHeadache".  I have the PC sitting beside me for emergency use only, but am trying to muddle through with the Mac.

I'll keep you posted.

The Rest of the Story

Wow, I really fell down on the blogging job. I thought it would be so easy to sit and write my thoughts every day or so but it seems like we were busy all the time!

We arrived back in Jacksonville on Thursday and started the "meet and greet" with our old friends. People came from Alaska, Tennessee, Oklahoma, California, Minnesota, Texas, Kentucky, and Washington. We spent the next 3 days, eating, sightseeing, drinking, and catching up.

After the official reunion, some of us stayed to do a bit more in Jacksonville and then Charlie and I headed for Charleston. By then, the weather had really taken a turn and the wind and rain chased us north. It was still hot though. Enjoyed a couple days in Charleston, one in Augusta and then made our way back to Atlanta. Turned in the rental car and did our exploring on the MARTA system.

I was able to get together with my cousin in Atlanta for a long lunch and catch up. We hadn't seen each other in about 10 years. He's my only first cousin and there's sure not many left in our family.

After lunch we took in "Bodies" which was a fascinating exhibition. A margarita followed, since it was Friday, after all. Couldn't hold a candle to the ones Charlie makes.

Today it is sunny and cool. Our plane doesn't leave until this evening so we have plenty of time to try and fit everything back into the suitcases. This shouldn't be so difficult since it appears all my clothing has shrunk in the past two weeks!

The saga continues...

Monday was a travel day. Once we finally got in gear and left Monroe, we decided to head to Savannah. For some reason, it sounded like fun. Maybe it would have been if it hadn't been raining and so very windy. There was also the little issue of me not eating when I should have. Charlie and I both know that I get cranky if I don't eat, even if I'm not hungry. I did my best, but I wasn't the little ray of sunshine I usually am!

Headed to Jacksonville hoping we could check in a couple days early. Wrong. So, we headed down the coast towards St. Augustine. Found a nice hotel right on the marina.  Here's a picture of the view from our balcony: 

Oktoberfest!

After another sleepless night, this time in Atlanta, we enjoyed our motel continental breakfast and met the nicest people from Germany. Andy and Susanne were just finishing their 2 wwek vacation through the SmokY Mountains. Really enjoyed chatting with them.

After waiting in an extremely long and slow line at Hertz, we got into our brand new Toyota Camry for the trip to Monroe.

We stopped at Stone Mountain Village for brunch/lunch  the restaurant was very German and the sausage was great!  They were just starting their Oktoberfest celebration and we were able to listen to some music and watch some dancing.

After that, we were off to Monroe to visit Charlie's sister, Renee, and husband David.  Lots of food and good conversation.  Bed didn't come early enough for me, but even so, sleep eluded me. 

This morning we're off to Germantown (I sense a theme).

Atlanta, here we come.

Got to experience the fancy screener at the airport. Ordered an 8 x 10 glossy for our album!  It wasn't really that big of a deal except for the time it takes. And they don't give you much time to get dressed before the bins start jackknifing on the belt.   In spite of the time it took, we still had a long wait before our flight which gave us the opportunity to continue our research into the best airport Bloody Mary. So far, San Jose CA is at the top of the list. 
Charlie wore his "Chaumont AFB" cap which sometimes creates conversations with people who are familiar with the 1960's era base in France. This morning, we met a veteran who flew F4s out of Bitburg, Germany while Charlie was at Chaumont. 

I was tempted to try the "Gogo" wi-fi on our Alaska Air flight but $12.95 was a little steep for a 4+ hour flight. I thought it might get cheaper the closer wd got to Atlanta, but no luck!
You'd think after all the flying I've done, I would figure out that the reason I eat the snacks and cookies is more boredom than hunger. Maybe paying to use the internet would have been a good trade-off for the calories.  

I apologize for the strange layout of this post.  Tried to cut and paste from another program and apparently didn't get it quite right.  I'll try to do better in the future!

Vacation - Day 1

After a mostly sleepless night (Sleepless in Seattle?) we're now sitting at the airport enjoying a Bloody Mary. Hey, we're on vacation, right? Flight to Atlanta in another hour or so. Anybody have some suggestions for good places to eat in Atlanta, the Jacksonville area?

What's up

Had such great hopes and plans for this blog and then let myself down. It's good to be busy though! Real estate has picked up considerably in the past month or so. Lots going on.

Getting ready to head out for Charlie's Air Force reunion. This year it's in Jacksonville, FL. Last year we were in France and that's a tough act to follow, but we will have a blast, I'm sure!

Any suggestions for great places to eat? Our first stop is Atlanta to visit a cousin, then Monroe GA to visit Charlie's sister. After that, off to Florida, more relatives and then the reunion. As always, food is at the top of our vacation list!

Washington State International Kite Festival

Long Beach is the home of this fantastic festival, lasting a whole week!  While I was only able to be there one day (and spent most of that in the chili dog booth for the South Pacific County Humane Society) others were able to enjoy and take photos.  Check this out! 

If you were here and have photos, I'd love to see them.

What a week....

It's only Thursday but this has been one heck of a week. Woke up Monday morning with about a dozen bites of some sort on my right leg, 2 or 3 on the left. Itched like mad. By that night they were blisters and really red. Spent a lousy night and went to urgent care Tuesday morning. Got antibiotics and something for the itching.

Tuesday evening I was walking the dog, minding my own business, and suddenly WHAM, I'm doing a face-plant on the pavement! Don't even remember tripping. Blood, pain, cracked glasses. Good samaritans stopped and helped me up, walked the dog home, drove me home. A friend took me to the ER where I received the first stitches of my life. Man, do I have a black eye!

Blues and Seafood Festival

What a great time I had in Ilwaco WA Friday and Saturday nights.  The annual Blues and Seafood Festival, provided a huge crowd with great blues and fantastic food from local restaurants.  The Ilwaco Merchants Association did a great job putting this all together.  The weather was perfect! Start planning now so you don't miss it next year! 

Why this blog?

My friend, Nansen Malin of Seaview WA suggested that I start a blog of the things I do and see in this absolutely beautiful area.  I have done a bit of blogging on my real estate site, Discovery Coast Real Estate, but most of that is about real estate.  Contrary to popular belief, I actually have a life outside of real estate. I'm going to try and chronicle some of the fun activities and social events I am involved in. 

I live in Ilwaco, my office is in Long Beach and my life spans the entire peninsula!  I am a Rotarian, weaver, spinner, knitter, golfer.  I absolutely love the South Pacific County Humane Society and try to help out where and when I can.  I love to cook, enjoy my garden (although the credit for the garden goes to Tangly Cottage Gardening), have six adorable cats that will pop up in these posts and a beautiful Boxer named Porsche.

I hope you will enjoy life at the beach with me!