Catching Up
The picture above is from my favorite local church. In 2020, in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, they put up a sign that said “Created in God’s Image, Black Lives Matter, To God and To Us.” That sign was up for almost 4 years, and now has been replaced with the sign above, which has rainbow ribbons over the cross, and says “Nothing can ever separate you from the love of God. <3” Again, I had to pull over and take a picture, it made me so happy. If I were a believer, I would definitely go to this church.
Well, a few things have happened since I was last here. First off, our TV died. I posted about it on Monday, and it died on Tuesday evening. Instead of the prior issue it was having, where it would just lose the picture, it completely turned off suddenly. We could hear it trying to start up again, but it couldn’t. Our TV was a Best Buy generic brand, Insignia, and had lasted for over 12 years, so we bought another Insignia, the same size. Guess what? We hated it. The picture was not clear at all. If we played with the settings, we could get it to look OK from straight on, but if you were at any sort of an angle, it was as though there was a thin white film over the TV. We wondered if we would get used to it or figure it out, so we gave it until the weekend. We did not get used to it or figure it out, so we returned it. The sales guy at Best Buy showed us several models in different price ranges, and explained what made the picture better in one vs. another. We ended up buying an LG, and went bigger, and what a difference…the picture is SO MUCH BETTER. It was more, but still only about the price we paid for our last TV 12 years ago. That’s definitely a happy ending. In other good Best Buy news, I was able to return the remote control I had bought a couple of weeks ago, even though it was past the 15 day return period, and I didn’t have a receipt. I am a ‘member’ for whatever that’s worth, and they had my information in their system.
Our last TV was not a smart TV…I think those were ridiculously expensive back in 2012. Our new TV is smart, and we can either use the widgets from the main LG screen or we can use our Apple TV. So far we’re using our Apple TV. The screen mirroring works much better on this device, so I can watch my Great British Baking Show on the TV now, which I LOVE, though it’s wonky for sure. Goes to commercial, and comes back and spins until I pause and start it again. Oh well, I’m willing to live with that. I’m up to season 3 now, which I think we saw on PBS when they called it season 5.
In non-TV news, one of the stupid eucalyptus trees that borders our town home complex dropped a huge branch (really, almost 1/2 of the tree) onto our garbage area, taking out a couple of fences, some small trees, and grazing a neighbor’s house, though it doesn’t seem to have done much damage there. That’s lucky. The arborist for the neighboring apartment complex (it was their tree) came and supervised the cleanup and removal of the tree. He said it was some kind of fungus inside the tree, which they couldn’t tell from outside, which didn’t make me feel great about the one that is behind our unit. Thankfully, that one was trimmed back a few years ago and no longer has any branches hanging over Maya’s bedroom. It did drop a huge branch down a few years ago, which took out part of our fence. NOTHING like as huge as the one that came down 2 weeks ago, but big enough. So they cleaned up the branch that fell, and took out the rest of the tree, but now are apparently ghosting our property manager who is trying to get the repairs started. It makes me angry to think that we might have to go through our insurance and pay a deductible which we may or may not get back, or have to pay lawyers. They should just take care of it, and communicate that intention clearly. I suppose that is too much to ask. UPDATE: They are now communicating, and are going to take care of the damage without us having to go through our insurance or get a lawyer. WHEW!
In better news, I found another money saving opportunity recently. Friday found me at the hair salon, where I had color, highlights, and a trim. Anyone who has paid to have color, highlight, and trim knows how expensive this can be. While I was walking around with toner in my hair, I saw a sign that said “We accept Pleasant Hill Perks”, with Pleasant Hill being the name of the town where the salon is located. I asked my hairdresser about Pleasant Hill Perks, and she said it’s an initiative put on by the city to bring business to their downtown. You purchase the ‘perks’ and receive 50% more than you pay for. So if you buy $100 worth of perks, they are worth $150 when you spend them, and it doesn’t cost the merchant anything. Apparently this started in 2022, but I haven’t heard of it until now. You access the perks electronically and can use them right away, so while she cut and styled my hair, I bought some perks and ended up saving 30% on my hair services. YAY! There is a limit to how many you can purchase, but you can receive them as gifts, so I expect that as long as this promotion is going on, I will have friends gift them to me, thus saving myself a bunch of money. I can even do everything myself, I think, just using their email address but my own credit card and so on. I’ll try it out next time with Ted or Maya’s email address, and see if it works.
Ted and I had a birthday party to attend on Saturday for a friend’s 90 year old father. Ted wanted to buy some olive oil for a gift, from a place about an hour away from us. So we made a day of it, drove to Lodi to buy olive oil, then went for a light lunch/big snack. We had deep fried asparagus and bruschetta, both of which were excellent. It was hot out, about 95 degrees, but we sat in the shade, and it’s not humid here, so it didn’t bother us. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. I’ll take 95 in California over 80 in humidity any day of the week. The only downside of our drive was that on our entire drive through farm country, past fields of corn, cherries, olives, grapes, and even cows and sheep, I only spied 2 horses. I was hoping for more.
Speaking of horses, have you heard of Hobby Horsing? I had not. I thought about it and decided this is definitely a case of ‘you do you’, and also, this does not look easy. And also kind of ridiculous. But again, you do you.
Lastly, this Wednesday is our 31st wedding anniversary. Sometimes I feel every one of those years, and sometimes it seems like yesterday. Our daughter is now the age we were then. Crazy. We will celebrate by taking the day off and going in to San Francisco, with dinner at a fun restaurant we haven’t visited in awhile, Foreign Cinema. Happy Canada Day to my Canadian friends, Happy Independence Day to my American friends, and Happy July to everyone.
34 Comments
Elisabeth
That hobby horsing is…?? I have no words. My husband and I have been watching a Disney+ series all about people who competitively eat super hot peppers. For the people at the “top” of the game it can become a full-time job. It just goes to show how when you’re really passionate about something, you find a way to make it a big part of your life. But how, exactly, does one find out about hobby horsing I wonder?
Happy Anniversary <3
J
Elisabeth, yes, how does one find out? I found out because someone posted the video above on Facebook. Otherwise??? Fascinating the lives people lead, isn’t it?
ccr in MA
Happy Anniversary!
J
Thank you CCR!
nance
Happy, happy anniversary! May there be many, many more. We were married in July as well (the 18th).
Rick used to build hobby horses (and rocking horses of varying sizes), and we used to sell them at craft shows all over the place. He also used to sell them to daycares.
I was just thinking about the days when our TV would go out, and my dad would call a TV repairman. We’d all hope he wouldn’t have to take it back to his shop, leaving us without a TV for days or even a week or more. That it would just be a tube he’d need to replace and he’d have it in his truck/van.
BOY OH BOY AM I OLD!
Lodi is one of our favourite wine regions in CA. Did you have anything good?
J
Nance, I remember picture tubes going out, and it being quite the terrifying prospect – NO TV! So yes, we are old.
Lodi has come a long way in their wine production. They’ve been growing grapes and making wine for a long time now, but it used to be kind of meh to bad. Now there are some wonderful wineries, as you know.
The place we went (Dancing Fox) is a restaurant, and they have a brewery and a winery, and only serve their products. The options under white wine were: Chardonnay, Chardonnay in Oak Barrels, and Roussanne. I’d never had Roussanne before, but it said it was dry, which I like, so I tried it. It was very good! On our way back to the Bay Area, we stopped at another winery, Van Ruiten, which is owned by family of two of my co-workers. Ted bought a bottle of Cabernet to bring to the party, and it was very good. Overall a good wine day!
Thank you for your anniversary wishes. Happy Anniversary to you and Rick!
Lisa's Yarns
Happy Anniversary! 31 years!! That is amazing!
So my aunt and uncle live in Lodi, CA! They have lived there for probably 30+ years! I have not been out to visit them since I was 11 or 12, I think. My family all went out there several years ago for my cousin’s wedding but I couldn’t swing the trip for some reason and am not very close to this cousin. But my parents and siblings had a great time.
That tree situation sounds rough!
J
Lisa, I think Lodi has changed a bit since you were there, though if you were that young likely you wouldn’t remember much of it anyway. It’s a nice town, much bigger than when I lived in neighboring Stockton…I left in 1987.
The tree situation is annoying, and since Ted is on the HOA board, I’m aware of the nitty gritty. Thankfully it has improved since I wrote this post!
Margaret
Hobby Horsing? Oh, my. *insert horrified face* I love the wedding photo and how Ted is looking at you. Happy Anniversary! My husband and I only made it to nearly 28 years. This year would have been our 40th anniversary. I couldn’t handle either one of those temperature scenarios although humidity is definitely tougher on me. I’ll take our mid-70s and low humidity!
J
Margaret, your weather is my ideal, I love the PNW.
I’m so sorry that your marriage was cut short by the death of your husband. 🙁 I’m glad that you had 28+ years together, though. May those memories bring you some comfort.
Birchie
Well look, I don’t think I’ll ever ride a hobby horse again in my life, but you brought back memories of my horsie from back in the day. Being a kid was so fun!
HAPPY 31st!!!!!!
J
Birchie, when Maya was little my dad bought her a Hobby Giraffe, which we named Mufe’. He was fun, but she never really galloped around on him much. Would it have been different if he were a horse? I wonder…
Melissa
The hobby horsing sport came up recently on The Project (a nightly news show here), and yes, it is hilarious … and why? Happy anniversary to you both.
I hope your fence gets fixed and you don’t have to bother with it. What a nuisance. We have large pine trees along our street and two have split at the base in the last year and fallen on to the road. Luckily no cars were going past at the time and because they went towards the road they didn’t damage any houses. The recent one came down in the night and so we had chainsaws going for a couple of hours at 2 am to clear the road. The other one took out the traffic lights and power lines so was pretty disruptive. we are hoping the ones outside our place are OK.
J
Thanks Melissa…wow, 2am chainsaws is a nuisance but I guess what else could they do? I hope the pine tree by your house is OK. It was unnerving to hear the arborist say that the rot that caused this huge limb to fall was hidden and he would not have seen it if he had inspected the tree. I know eucalyptus trees are native to Australia…do you have them near houses? I think they are pretty, and gosh they SMELL lovely, but I don’t like having them next to my house.
Melissa
We don’t have any near our current apartment but there are plenty around houses here. Generally they’re OK but in the heat sometimes they drop branches.
J
Melissa, yes, it had been warm, and we’re wondering if the heat combined with the rot in the branch was the cause. It’s been really hot here the last couple of days, so we’re all holding our breath.
Ally Bean
Hobby horsing makes me suddenly want to find a photo of little me in my cowboy hat riding my trusty steed! What a funny funny idea.
Happy Anniversary to you and Ted. Here’s to many more.
J
I want to see that picture of little Ally!
Nicole MacPherson
Happy anniversary!
Hobby horsing, who knew??
That perks program sounds really great! Getting the full treatment in hair salons is so expensive – good for you to find such great savings!
J
Thanks Nicole! Yes, I was very happy to get the savings, though a bit sad that I hadn’t known about it for the last two years. Oh well, I can’t change the past!
Sarah
Happy Anniversary!!! The Perks thing sounds GREAT for small downtowns– I think Verona needs to do this ASAP.
J
Thanks Sarah, yes, it’s such a good idea!
NGS
“Sometimes I feel every one of those years, and sometimes it seems like yesterday.” This. It’s a strange phenomenon, isn’t it? Happy anniversary!
Televisions are so big these days. I’m a little nervous that when our TV goes (it’s more than fifteen years old), it’s going to be very bad news for us in trying to replace our set with one that isn’t giant. I really despite it when TVs are the focal part of a room. I want them to be little and discreet and hide their shame. LOL.
J
Engie, that has always been my philosophy in theory, though just for practicality it has always been the focal point. I’ve always wanted to keep them kind of small so I can pretend we don’t watch as much as we do. But now? At 55 inches? It’s TRULY the focal point. And I love it.
Daria
Hi Julie, hobby horsing actually looks difficult! And, that girl Nara’s body is incredible so it must be good exercise. I am too lazy to even think about doing it. Ultimalely, you are outside, you are having fun, and you are moving your body. God for them!
Happy anniversary!! Ours was on June 23, 12 years. We went to brunch but had to bring the kids since we couldn’t find a sitter. Both T and I decided we have to work as a team to celebrate our anniversary in a better way.
J
Daria, yes, hobby horsing looks REALLY difficult, and like great exercise. Also strange. But many sports are very strange, right?
Happy Anniversary to you as well. Maya has come with us for many of our celebrations over the years. This year she did not.
San
Hobby horsing has popped up all over the internet and I can’t start laughing… this is something that I did as a horse-obsessed 10-year old in my friend’s backyard… but now it’s a national sport? OMG! LOL
I love the sign at that church. If I were a believer, I’d go there, too.
Happy anniversary again. 31 years is amazing and it is odd how you feel “all of the years” and it still feels like yesterday sometimes. Time perception is so, so weird!
J
I love that you did hobby horsing at some level! I used to run around pretending I was riding a horse, and ride my bike pretending I was a jockey in a race. And these people are certainly working HARD and in GREAT shape. If they were doing all of the things without hobby horses it would make more sense I guess. I kind of love it.
Tobia | craftaliciousme
Happy anniversary. You look so happy. 31 years is amazing.
You do you sums up the hrse thing…
Glad you found a new tv you like and can work with.
J
Thanks Tobia!
Ernie
So great that you have found another way to save money.
I remember when we lived in our condo as newlyweds. The management called to tell us that a tree fell on Coach’s car. We celebrated, thinking insurance would buy us a new car. Well the tree was tall and very thin and so light that there was no damage. We were young and so stupid. Coach’s car was worth next to nothing. And we thought . . . new car! Ch-ching. Ha. Coach simply pushed the lightweight evergreen off of his car. Not even a?scratch.
J
LOL on thinking you would get a new car out of it! I used to think the same thing. Several years ago, we had a leak under the slab in our kitchen, and they had to jackhammer down to get it. That left a hole in the flooring, and I thought we would get new flooring out of it. Nope. Because the leak hadn’t caused any damage, only FIXING the leak, they paid for nothing. We still have the hole in our flooring, we just…live with it. we put a kitchen rug over it and pretend it’s not there.
Stephany
Happy anniversary! 31 years is amazing!
The tree situation sounds like such a headache, ugh.
I bought a new TV a year or two ago, and I thought I had bought SUCH a big TV but my brother just laughed at me because it’s normal-size compared to the TVs most people are buying these days. Why do TVs need to be SO BIG?!
J
Thanks Stephany! I know, our TV was on the smaller side at the store. But seems HUGE to me! 55″!