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For the last few years I have been in a debate with the insurance company. Yesterday I was given approval for arthroscopic surgery on my knee! Finally the battle is over and I have come out victorious! VICTORIOUS I SAY!!
The rip in the meniscus disk will be fixed and the water surrounding the injury will be drained. Yippeee!
The insurance company argued that even though they did understand that the meniscus disc had a slight rip, I furthered the injury because I kept walking on it.
Really? I kept walking on it? What did they want me to do for the last 3 or so years? Have my hunky man servants carry me around? Buy a Rascal to drive around? Go into seclusion and stay on my couch and not move? Get a jet pack and fly to my destinations? Tee hee...I crack myself up.

Either way they battle has been won! I would jump for joy, but I don't want to take that chance. The insurance company might have me under surveillance. High 5's all around!

I miss the days of the good ole newspaper and responsible journalism or news reporting.
Ed Bradley, David Brinkley, Tom Brokaw, Walter Cronkite and Frances Fitzgerald ......just to name a few.

Gone are the days when a reporter did some fact checking before he/she released a news report on television or in print. Long gone are the moments in which a witness wasn't quoted until they were found credible. Say goodbye to the days when a report from reputable offices were used to print a news item. Why did the journalists of long ago wait for fact checking? Because they were proud of their reputations. Now? Screw reputations, they want ratings!

Now we are left with news outlets who rush to publish, post or show stories from little to zero facts. We are left to the news outlets who video tape less than stellar witnesses just so they can garner ratings.
News crews, journalists and news programs rush to publish crap and misguided stories, as well as the non factual, edited videos from cell phones or made up stories from a heated witness. What happens to the public when unchecked stories are printed? Violence, hatred, conjecture, panic, rioting, uncalled for looting and let's not even overlook the innocent stuck in between the people running amok and the authorities. It's called 'Thee sky is falling' syndrome.

Yes, a man was shot and killed in Ferguson. That in itself is horrible. But what do I find most horrendous? Irresponsible journalism. The media is running amok in Ferguson just to get ratings and they don't care who they hurt. The fact is, irresponsible journalism played a major part in the fiasco that is now a battle field. And I mean a MAJOR part. The news outlet that ran the story "Teenager shot in the back fleeing police" should be put out of business. They inflamed violence because they did not wait for the medical examiners report like a professional journalist would have done. They interviewed heated, uncontrollable and less than reputable witnesses, which in turn added more violence.

How sad and irresponsible.

When Sister M called me earlier, I was slicing some cucumbers, radishes and squash for my salad. She laughed and made fun of me because if I slice 7 pieces of cucumbers, I have to slice 7 pieces of squash and radishes.
Go ahead and giggle, I know that you want to.

That lime green crok wearing woman has some nerve to laugh at me! Sister M. arranges the products in refrigerator by colors, alphabetizes her bathroom products in the vanity and plants the vegetables in her garden according to vitamin listings.

So my question is......
What about you? Hmmmm?

I am a sucker for a beautiful sunset and so is the Lego Man.

His sunset in the clouds.


My sunset in the clouds (taken about 2 years ago)

In order to bring you my very special gift. Think back to the Guitartxn blog and how he asked all of you to guess what he was making. Well this was it! And it was for me...

My pen! That is a real shell casing....lol. It is even prettier in person. I had a hard time taking a picture of it because it is so shiny. So Guit had to send me the picture he had taken. The picture does not give it any justice. I am the envy of all the men at work....*giggles* It is not only gorgeous, but it writes beautifully and smoothly.



I thought this deserved to be blogged before my Lego Saturday entry.

I drove back to Big Sur because I wanted pictures of one of it's rivers. One of these days I will backpack over the mountain. For now a slow 30 minute walk was all I could do. Yesterday I tried snapping a few pictures of the river, but the camera jammed. Big Sur is a hop, skip and a jump from me. Basically it is right in my backyard and Highway 1 runs right through it. Anyhoo, on with the pics.

The river wasn't rushing as fast as it was yesterday, but it was still beautiful. There were Blue Jays all over the place dive bombing the water, but I couldn't get them to stand still long enough for a photo...lol. As you can see from the pic, the water is a golden hue. I sat there on the river bank and noticed that the water shined like gold, copper with a hint of cocoa. At first I couldn't understand why, but will explain that in a bit.

One thing is very evident around the river. Can you see it in the forefront of the picture?


You got it! Raspberries! Oh my they were good! Blackberries around the corner from me in my lil seaside hamlet and Raspberries in Big Sur....Heaven! The river is lined with nothing but berry bushes. I am sure the river water adds to the delectable taste of the sweet sweet berry.


I mentioned that the river water had the appearance of gold, copper and cocoa hues. The reason why is because the moss isn't green. It's golden. I took a closer look and the moss is not only a gold color, but it looks like long hair blowing in the wind. The water flowing over it makes it look as if it's combing it. I reached in and it felt like velvet. Then I took a sip of the water. I love clean crisp sweet river water.


As I drove back home, I stopped to take a picture of the Big Sur mountain top cows. Those are some well fed cows and they have one of the finest homes around. A mountain home along the coast isn't a bad deal.


I guess all of the clean air makes a cow a bit randy! He photo bombed my pic with a little 'brown chicken brown cow' action....lol...ooo la la! Very fitting for NN.


Tomorrow I have to report to the physical therapist. I will fess up and admit to walking 40 minutes on Saturday. I hope that everyone had a nice weekend. I had a great time! Slow go but great!

I drove to the area in which my walk began. Usually I just walk to the area I want to take a walk in...lol. But I followed orders....kind of.
Thus the walk begins. The mountain cliffs along this area have an occasional old and beautiful wooden fence. These sporadic fences saves our lives and blends into the scenery...*giggles* They can also give you splinters....(don't ask me how I know that)


As I walk higher and higher, the fog becomes more prevalent. The crisp air is tingling my nose and nipping at my ears. It feels good and I like it. But what is over the crest?


Lizards! I love lizards! Anything reptilian is okay in my book. I used to catch lizards with my sons and spent many hours scouring the bushes for them when we went camping. It's cool when you go to catch them and their tail snaps off...lol


What else was over the crest? Stunning rock formations and a mountain top party area for the birds. It wasn't much of a party when the Hawks showed up and rained on everyone's parade. I paused for a bit to take a break and watched some of the fighting.


As I walked into the wooded area of the mountain, lo and behold!...a hawks nest way up in the pines. I had to zoom in to get the size but it was so far up. It was about 5 feet wide and very well built. No wonder the hawks were so close....their home was around the bend.


I ended my walk by a rushing river. But unfortunately, I jammed the camera and had to use my cell phone. I wasn't impressed with the pics and will have to go back with my camera for those pics. I look forward to doing this walk again. The mountains are filled with just as many surprises as the coastal areas. I went for my walk during the time the hawks are out in droves and the wee animals are hiding. I mean, wouldn't you be? Being part of the food chain must suck.

Well, there you have it. My 30 minute walk. Okay okay, I said I almost followed orders. It was more like a 40 minute walk. Trust me, I did think about going and going...lol. I got close to following orders and deserve a cookie for that....

My feelings this morning when I woke up.
I opened my eyes, did a nice long stretch, clutched my pillow and watched the hummingbirds fly around.

What were your first thoughts or words?

YAY! But there are stipulations.
*I am not allowed to walk on the sand because it gives way and isn't firm.
*I am not allowed to climb the cliffs or rocks.
*I am not allowed to walk longer than 30 minutes.
So where do I go? Why Big Sur of course! I could just drive to the Carmel Highlands, but if I am going to make it a splendid 30 minutes, it's got to be Big Sur.
The beauty of my area is that it boasts the ocean, the mountains, forests, cliffs and hills. There are so many places to enjoy.
I consider myself lucky and blessed with the ability to live in the dessert, in the mountains, by the ocean and the smack dab in the middle of a city. There isn't anything to dislike about the places I called home.

Tomorrow I will take a nice slow walk into the forests of Big Sur.


Unfortunately I won't be able to get comfy and nude like I did in the forests above me, but one can hope!


I won't be driving to the desert this weekend. We are still hashing out the details on that offer. But I am excited about being allowed to take a walk. I miss them so very much! If I do move to the desert it will be a good time to buy a new pair of boots. I'll need them to protect me against snakes...lol

My Water Therapy has been going well. It has felt so good to work out again. Yes, it is slow going, but it is a step in the right direction. I have 8 more treatments to go. After that I will get another MRI to see how the discs look.

After my session, I was floating on my back just humming away when a woman in her 70's (by appearance) started to chat with me. For about 15 or so minutes we exchanged niceties and some small chit chat. Then she ruined it by making the grossest statement. So gross that I jumped out of the pool.
Her statement: "Ever feel so lazy that you don't get out of the pool to pee"?

YIKES!!!
Oh I know that it is silly of me to believe that no one ever pees in the pool. But to be told right up front by the person I am swimming next to? Whoooooooooooooooooole different matter!..lol