June 30, 2011 Thursday Morning

Tuesday morning Tony went to work and was to return home early in the morning so we could go to the zoo. By the time he got home I had talked to my sister and the nephew and I decided we would rather go to my sister's house and swim in her pool for the afternoon. Tony came home and around noon we left and went swimming all afternoon. Got home around 4 PM and that night we went down the street for dollar tacos. After we got home we watched the movie Super 8 and went to bed around 10 PM.

Wednesday we went to the Milwaukee Zoo. Tony, the nephew and I had a great time at the zoo. Spent about 3 hours there before our feet got tired and it was time to come home. Went out for pizza for dinner and then watched the movie Mary Poppins. About 9 PM we drove down the road and then walked to the park to watch the fireworks at the Milwaukee lakefront that we can see from high up on the hill. Lasted about a half hour and we came home and went right to bed. We all were very tired.

This morning I was up at 6 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work shortly after 7:30 AM. Been spending the morning watching the Casey Anthony trial. Tony's brother is coming over around 1 PM to get the nephew and drive him down to Chicago where he lives. Tony's brother is picking up some car parts down there so he is transporting the kid back home. So the long 5 days is almost over. The nephew has been an angel. Not once did I ever have to yell at him or did he give me any reason to be mad at him. Such a good kid with his uncles. After the kid leaves I plan on taking a long afternoon nap. Here is a picture of us at the zoo yesterday.

Monday June 27, 2011 Monday Dinner Time

Can't type much with the nephew here since he needs so much attention.

Saturday afternoon we took a long drive in the Cadillac along the lakefront. Stopped off at a couple hardware stores looking for replacement blades for the grass trimmer. Finally found some at an Ace Hardware. Spent the night watching the movies Drive Angry and An Englishman In New York. Both were good movies. Had pizza delivered and had a nice quiet night at home. Went to bed around 10:30 PM.

Sunday we went to a car show around noon. Came home and spent the afternoon across the alley with the neighbors. Anthony, our nephew, got dropped off at around 4 PM and the fun began. LOL Spent the night putting together a Lego toy and watching Toy Story 3. Went to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I was up at 6 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. Since it looked like rain today I decided to take the nephew to the dollar stores looking for toys. Bought a few toys and stopped at McDonald's for lunch. Around 1:30 PM we got in the car and went to see the movie Mr Poppers Penguins. It was an enjoyable movie. The kid liked it too. Now we are home waiting for Tony to come home from work. Will most likely take the kid to a car show taking a long drive in the Cadillac. Will pick up some dinner at the car show. Had a great day with the nephew and a great weekend with Tony and the dogs.

June 24, 2011 Friday Dinner Time

Lets hope the third time this will work. Really is frustrating to type a whole post only to have it go nowhere and have to start again. This is my third try now.

Last night we watched Nancy Grace and then the movie A Four Letter Word on Logo TV. It was a good gay movie. Went to bed around 10 PM after having a little lovin.

This morning I slept in until about 7 AM. Fed all the dogs but Vito. Vito would not eat. Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. Got Vito to eat around 9 AM. Spent the morning watching the Casey Anthony trial. Left around 11:30 AM to pick Tony up at work and go have lunch with the guys. Had a great lunch as usual. Dropped Tony back off at work and came home. Spent the afternoon doing a little cleaning while I watched more of the trial. Also cleaned two of the pond pumps since they were clogged and needed cleaning. Worked a little on the waterfall also. Not sure what to make for dinner tonight since I am not hungry. Tony will need something so I will probably make some ham sandwiches with the lunch meat in the frig. No plans this weekend which is fine with me. Hope to cut the grass and clean the north side rain gutter tomorrow morning. Hope to spend the rest of the weekend at home enjoying the house and dogs. Also need to rest up for next week when we have Tony's nephew for the week. Have a good weekend everyone.

June 23, 2011 Thursday Morning

Tuesday night we went to what we thought would be a car show at the Milwaukee Harley Davidson. Last year there was always a Tuesday night car show. Not this year I guess. Ended up going out for dinner and coming home. Spent the night watching TV and went to bed around 10 PM.

Yesterday I was up by 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Took until about 9 AM for Vito to finish his food. Before Tony left for work I had him pull out a tree that had grown in the front yard about 4 feet tall. We let it grow from a sprout and now think it is not such a good idea to have it in the front yard being such a messy tree like the others we have in the yard. Rather than just cut it down, Tony pulled it out, roots and all, and put it in the back yard to pick up later with his truck. Tony came home around 9:30 AM to get the tree, and in the rain, planted it in the field in back of his shop. It is things like this that make me love him so much. Taking the time to keep a tree alive says a lot about someones personality and make up. Most would have just cut the damn tree down and not given it a second thought. Since we let the tree grow as tall in the last 3 years as it did, we felt responsible for keeping it alive. Went grocery shopping about 10 AM and spent over $150 on food. I swear we are stocked with food for a month. LOL. Spent the afternoon working on building a fountain on the one side of the pond. My back is still hurting but I just can not lay around in pain all day. The fountain ended up turning out OK and I took a picture of it today to post on this blog. I still have some finishing work to do around it.


Got up this morning at 6 AM and was throwing up by 6:30 AM. Here goes my back again. Got the dogs fed, Vito his shot, and Tony left for work a little after 7 AM. It is raining again today. Rained off and on all day yesterday and today looks the same. Have a board meeting this afternoon at ARCW. Starting to look like Tony and I will be taking care of one of Tony's nephews next week for a few days. Not sure if I have the strength. Told Tony if we have him as planned from Sunday to Thursday he will have to take a few of those days off work to help and go places with me and the kid. Tony needs some days off anyway from work. Going to get into the shower and get going with the day. Still watching the Casey Anthony trial on TV. Can't wait until the defense puts the family and Casey on the stand.

June 21, 2011 Tuesday Afternoon

Last night we spent the night watching the movie Testosterone that I DVR'd from Logo TV. It was a good movie. Went to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I slept in until about 7 AM. Got up and fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work shortly thereafter. Spent the early morning doing things around the house. Around noon I went to the post office to mail a present to a friend who has a Birthday next month. Bought some stamps and stopped at Mc Donald's for a hamburger and french fries. Spent the afternoon watching the Casey Anthony trial. Got my Foodshare interview finished via the phone this afternoon. I guess I will continue to get a whopping $16 a month from Foodshare. Yesterday I made a hole in side wood fence for the baby rabbit to get to the neighbors yard rather than it having to go around the garage and alley where the cat hides. Noticed the rabbit already found and is using the hole, and was in the neighbors yard. Very smart rabbit. Also yesterday I went to throw some bread to the rabbit and it let me get about 5 feet from him, toss him the bread, and he sat there and ate it while I walked back into the house. I talk to it also and I think it knows my voice. Maybe I am just nuts. Looks like a storm should be rolling in in less than an hour. We really do not need any more rain. Will most likely make some spaghetti and a salad for dinner tonight.

I noticed a comment on a recent post regarding my phrase 'gave Tony a little lovin'. The comment had to do with asking if Tony gives me a little lovin back. I have talked about Tony's lack of reciprocation in that area in past posts. With that said, when I say 'I gave Tony a little lovin' in my blog, I say it that way because I figure it is better than saying 'we had sex last night'. It has nothing to do with him only getting pleasure. It simply is a phrase I thought was more respectful and not uncomfortable to my readers. We both are satisfied when the 'act' is finished. I hope that answers the question.

June 20, 2011 Monday Dinner Time

Had a great weekend in spite of the back pain!

Saturday morning we woke up to rain. It cleared by 10 AM and by a little after noon we went to the North Avenue Block Party for a couple hours. The music was good and the eye candy even better. After a couple hours we came home to spend an hour with the dogs before going to a friends father's 98th Birthday party. This is the friend that came over the night I found out I was HIV+. Had a great time at the party and ate a lot of food. Also two of the guys from Friday lunch were at the party. Stayed at the party until about 6:30 PM. Came home and fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Around 7:30 we went back to the North Avenue Block Party for the evening. Stayed until about 11 PM and came home. Went to bed shortly after coming home because we both were very tired from the long day. It was in the 70s and beautiful after the rain cleared.

Sunday morning we were up by 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Took a while to get Vito to eat again. Around 10:15 AM we left to meet my mom and dad as well as one brother for a Father's Day Brunch. Had a great all you can eat brunch with the folks. Bought dad a hat and paid for the brunch as his Father's Day present. Drove the 45 minutes home and got home around 2 PM. Watched a little TV with the dogs before leaving around 3:30 PM to go to Tony's brother's house for his daughters graduation and Birthday party. Stayed at their house until about 6:30 PM. Ate a lot more food. Got home around 7 PM stuffed from all the eating all day. Spent the night watching a little of the soap opera awards before switching to TNT's Falling Skies. Went to bed a little after 10 PM exhausted.

This morning I was up by 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs and tried to give Vito his shot. He did not eat or get his shot until about 8:30 AM. The vet called around 8:30 AM to give me Vito's blood test results. They are so good the doctor wants to cut his insulin from 6 to 5 units. Of course this means another round of a full day of monitoring in a couple weeks. I swear they think we have money. LOL Around that time it started raining very very hard. I can not wait to hear the news tonight to hear how much rain we got in about 2 hours. The roads around the house 2 blocks in both directions were flooded past the car head lights. The side and back yard were a pond until mid afternoon because of all the rain. We even have streams of water in the basement. When the rain finally stopped around 10:30 AM I went outside and took down a canopy over the kitchen sliding glass doors that the rain destroyed. Had to clean the clogged rain gutter anyway and the canopy had to be removed to reach the rain gutter. What a mess. Thankfully it was only about 10 feet high or I could not clean the rain gutter. I will not go much higher on a ladder because of last summers bad fall. Learned my lesson not to do that high with no one watching to catch my fall. LOL. After the rain gutter was cleaned there was no sense putting up the old cloth canopy and I made a new one with some wood and plexy class I had in the garage. I am pretty handy making these things with all the power machines we have. Got it made and in place by about 1 PM. Took an hour nap before I got up and took down the new canopy to paint it. Put two coats of paint on the wood and re-attached the plexy glass. When it dries and Tony gets home I will have him help me put it back up above the kitchen doors. The rest of the afternoon was cloudy and damp here in Milwaukee after the big rain storm this morning. Tonight we will most likely watch some shows on the DVR before going to bed. Was mad the Casey Anthony trial was canceled today. Wonder what was going on. Guess we will find out tomorrow when court resumes. Have a Foodshare phone update call tomorrow afternoon. Not much else on my schedule until Thursday besides the weekly grocery shopping on Wednesday for double coupon day. Just heard the news. We got 2.5 inches of rain in two hours time. Here are two pictures of the rain storm this morning. This is one block north of my house.

June 17, 2011 Friday Dinner Time

Watched a couple movies last night that I DVR'd from Logo TV. Both were good but not worth remembering the titles. Went to bed around 10 PM and gave Tony a little lovin.

This morning I was up at 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work around 7 AM. Around 8:30 AM I broke down and called my doctor and made an appointment to find out why my middle to lower back hurts so much. Was surprised they could get me in today at 11:45 AM so I took the appointment. Drove to Pick N Save to make a deposit at the bank and picked up a couple fruit items. Came home and left for my doctor appointment around 11:15 AM. The doctor took a look at my back and suggested a few xrays and a urinalysis. The doctor thinks I hurt my back throwing up on Tuesday morning. Went a floor down and had those test and xrays taken. The doctor also gave me two prescriptions, one being for nausea (Prochlorperazine 10MG) and one for muscle spasms (Carisoprodol 350MG). Stopped off at Walgreen's and filled the two prescriptions. Came home and spent the afternoon doing a little cleaning and watching the Casey Anthony trial. Very exciting afternoon on the trial. Thinking Tony and I might go out for a fish fry tonight since we did not have lunch with the guys due to my doctor appointment. Miss my Friday lunch with the guys but thought it best to take the doctor appointment when they could get me in so fast. Never that hungry on a Friday night because of lunch so we have not gone for a fish fry in some time. Will walk down the street to a bar 2 blocks away and have a fish fry tonight. The muscle spasm meds have done very little to help with the pain, I took it over an hour ago. Going to have to take a pain pill soon. Just sitting here typing I am squirming in my chair because of the pain. Have a few family events on Tony's side of the family and mine, as well as a couple block parties to go to this weekend. Hopefully the weather will be nice for all the outdoor events. After the fish fry tonight we will most likely watch a movie before going to bed.

June 16, 2011 Thursday Dinner Time

About 4 PM I was looking out the back and saw my big rabbit go running across the alley. A cat was 10 feet behind him. I tore out the door and chased the cat away. It appeared the rabbit got away this time. This damn cat has got to go. He will kill all the rabbits in no time if we don't find a way to get rid of him. Made leftover spaghetti again for Tony for dinner. I had nothing since my back hurt and was simply not hungry. Saw the play Fiddler On The Roof last night. It was long and Tony fell asleep at one point during the show. Got home around 10:30 PM and went to bed shortly after getting home. Prior to leaving for the show I looked out the side window and saw a female duck in my pond. The male was in the front yard. We never have ducks. They must of been lost because of the fog. They spent some time in the front yard eating the bird seed on the ground.

This morning I was up at 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs, Vito would not eat. Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. About 8 AM Vito finally ate his food and got his shot. Took Vito to his vet appointment where he got blood drawn and two booster shots. Also got his nails trimmed for a total of $287. After the appointment I drove down the road with Vito to where the guy who gave him to us works so he could see Vito. Vito ran around the restaurant with his tail wagging nonstop. Vito was happy to see his previous daddy 7 years ago. Funny how Vito still remembers him after 7 years of us having him. Got home around 11:30 AM and spent the rest of the day cleaning and watching the Casey Anthony trial. I did take an hour nap around 2:30 PM. My back is really hurting today. I was hoping it would be getting better and since it is not I am starting to get a little concerned that it is more than just a back ache. Obviously if this is not better by Monday I will have to call the doctor. Feels like my back is hard around the middle from side to side across the middle back. Feels like someone filled my back with cement. Very uncomfortable to sit or stand. Making a pork roast and potatoes for dinner with a salad tonight. Will watch shows on the DVR tonight since there is not much on TV that isn't a rerun. Spoke to my mom today and firmed up plans for a Sunday Father's Day brunch. Tomorrow is Friday and lunch with the guys.

June 15, 2011 Wednesday Afternoon

Had a dental appointment at ARCW yesterday morning at 10 AM. After my dental cleaning I picked up my monthly food at the food pantry and came home. Spent the afternoon napping since I just do not feel 'right'. I did throw up again this morning about 20 minutes after getting out of bed. I feel tired, no energy, and just want to sleep. Not really feeling depressed, just tired. Maybe that is part of depression? Made left over spaghetti for dinner for Tony. I only had a salad since I was not hungry. Watched America's Got Talent and then a Pawn Wars marathon on Tru TV. Went to bed around 10 PM and gave Tony a little lovin.

Got up this morning at 6 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Took a while to get Vito to have any interest in food today. Tony left for work shortly after 7 AM. After doing a little clean up and reading the newspaper I went to lie down on the bed for an hour. Went grocery shopping around 11 AM. Spent close to $150 on food items. Made myself a ham sandwich for lunch and went back to bed. My middle lower back is painful today. Not sure if I did something to it or there is more going on. It actually feels like a burning across my back. Not the usual feeling I get with a pinched nerve. Has not gotten better all day. I hope it is not something serious. Tonight we have tickets to go see the play Fiddler On The Roof at the Milwaukee PAC. It is raining right now and has most of today. Only in the 50s again today here in Milwaukee. I honestly could go right back to bed but have to get some cleaning done around here before Tony gets home from work and we go to the show tonight. Tomorrow Vito goes in again for more blood tests. Going to be an expensive one at the vet tomorrow.

June 13, 2011 Monday Afternoon

Friday night it was cold, in the high 40s, raining and foggy in Milwaukee so we did not go to Pridefest that night. Spent the night watching the movies Equality U and WTC View on Logo TV. They were both good movies. Went to bed around 10 PM.

Saturday morning it rained a bit before clearing. Spent the morning doing things around the house. Around 1 PM we headed down to the lake front for the Pridefest festivities. Stayed at Pridefest until about 4 PM and came home. Spent some time with the dogs and after feeding them headed back down to Pridefest around 7 PM. Had a great time walking around seeing friends and such. Right after the 10 PM fireworks it started raining. Didn't want to stand in the rain and watch Salt N Pepper so we went home. Watched a little of SNL before going to bed around 11:30 PM.

Sunday we got up around 7 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Spent the morning reading the newspaper and made a little breakfast. Was to be a beautiful day in Milwaukee, in the 70s and sunny. Around 11 AM we walked up the block for the beginning of Locust Street Festival's beer run. Always fun to watch the runners as they run to the beer check points for another glass of beer. Stayed at Locust Street until about 1 PM. Headed home to spend a half hour with the dogs before going downtown to watch the Pridefest Parade go down second street in the third ward. Was a long parade since they stretch it out so much. Of course there were the protesters. At least we are getting creative to fight them. At one point a business turned on their water hose and started spraying them to get them to leave the area they were in. At another point there was designated people with horns to blow when the preachers started yelling their hatred over their loud speakers. Sometimes the drama around the parade is just as exciting as the parade itself. Got home a little before 4 PM and after a little time with the dogs we walked the two blocks back to the Locust Street Block Party. Stayed there until about 6 PM until our feet started hurting from all the walking all weekend. Came home and fed the dogs. Spent the night watching two Dark Shadows movies from the 1970's before going to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I was up at 6:30 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. Spent the morning going from the bed to the couch since I feel exhausted from the weekend. My back hurts and I have no energy. Might just take a long nap this afternoon. Going to make baked spaghetti tonight for dinner. I am sure Tony will be exhausted when he comes home from working today and the long weekend. Three years ago today I put my Springer Spaniel Border Collie named Buddy to sleep. Still breaks my heart. I only had 7 fast years with him. Buddy you are still not forgotten.

June 10, 2011 Friday Afternoon

Yesterday I went to Walgreen's around noon to buy a few items on sale. Stopped at McDonald's for a hamburger and french fries. Spent the afternoon watching the Casey Anthony trial until it ended early due to her feeling ill. Poor thing. It was in the 50s yesterday and rained most of the day. From 90 to 50 in one day for a high. Made a beef roast, corn and salad for dinner. Spent the night watching shows on Logo TV that I DVR'd. Watched Hollow Reed and Bear Nation. Hollow Reed was very good and I recommend it. You can watch it on the Logo web sight also. Bear Nation was interesting. Went to bed around 10 PM with the heat on. The air conditioning was on less then 24 hours ago.

This morning I was up at 6 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. Drove to Walgreen's a little after 8 AM to return an item I bought the day prior and then went again to Mc Donald's to get two sausage burritos. Spent the morning watching the Casey Anthony trial. Tony picked me a little before noon and we went to lunch with the guys. Had a great lunch. After Tony dropped me off at home I spent the afternoon on the couch watching more of the trial. It is damp, cold and drizzling here in Milwaukee. I do not foresee us going to Pridefest at the Lakefront due to the drizzle and being so damp outside. Will most likely spend the night watching more movies I DVR'd from Logo TV. Tomorrow we will spend the afternoon and later the evening at Pridefest enjoying the shows. The headliner tomorrow night is Salt N Pepper. Sunday we will most likely switch between the block party down the street and the Pridefest parade in the afternoon. Happy Pride everyone.

June 8, 2011 Wednesday Dinner Time

This morning I was up at 6:15 AM. Fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot. Tony left for work around 7 AM. About 7:30 AM Vito throw up his breakfast all over the sheet covering the leather couch. Cleaned up the mess and called the vet to see if I should give him more food in a while or leave his stomach empty with the Insulin he received at breakfast. The vet told me to try to get him to eat in about an hour. Hung up the phone and made myself a bowl of cereal. Walked into the living room to see Vito had thrown up again, this time, all over the couch and down the seams and such. Took about a half hour just to clean it all up since it went everywhere in the seams of the couch. What a mess. A little while later Tony showed up with some flower bulbs he said he got from a customer and wanted them planted in the back yard. I got the shovel and quickly buried them in the back yard since it was getting hotter outside by the minute. Fed Vito again a little food at 9 AM which stayed in him so far all day. About 9:30 AM I noticed a dump truck dumping dirt and debris in the vacant lot behind the out of business Day Care Center across the street from our house. We have had problems in the past with people dumping back there and my front window looks across the street right into all the dumping mess. When the dump truck showed up to dump a second load a half hour later I ran outside and took some pictures of the truck and told them they could not dump here. They told me to fuck off and whipped me the finger. I told them they would be cleaning this up just like the people who did it in the past. Called Neighborhood Services to make a complaint only to be told I had to call the non emergency Milwaukee Police Department. Called them and gave them all the information. About 11:00 AM the Milwaukee Police called me and said a squad was on the way to talk to me and get the pictures I took. Of course it is now after 4 PM and Milwaukee's finest have yet to show up here at all. The dump truck has dumped 7 more loads during the day. I honestly hate the Milwaukee Police Department. They are worthless. Why tell me a squad is on the way and almost 5 hours later no one has shown up. Bullshit! Spent the whole afternoon waiting for the police to come. What a waste of an entire afternoon. It is in the mid 90s today outside. Too damn hot to do anything outside. I did clean the pond pump again this afternoon, but did very little else all day but watch the Casey Anthony trial. Thinking about going out for $1 hamburgers and $1 French Fries tonight rather than cooking. Big storms are suppose to come through later tonight with a cold front. Should only be in the 60s tomorrow in Milwaukee. Quite a temperature change. So, what do you thing the odds are that Milwaukee's Finest will ever show up today? Kinda makes you wonder what the hell they get paid for. Guess all the Milwaukee Police Department cares about is the things that happen in the Ghetto. So much for my tax dollars.

June 7, 2011 Tuesday Dinner Time

Last night about 7 PM I saw the stray cat from across the street heading for our yard. I ran outside and chased him away. It ran through the neighbors yard into the alley. I ran through the house and to the alley to chase him farther. I looked into the neighbors yard and the cat must have ran right past the two Mourning Doves sitting on the ground. I hoped the cat would not return. About that same time the wind shifted and it felt like someone turned on an oven outside. It was 92 degrees and I then turned on the air conditioning. Went to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I was up by 6 AM. Fed the dogs, gave Vito his shot, and Tony left for work around 7 AM. I told him to take it easy at work since it was to be in the 90s again today and an old man like him should not be working in this heat. It was already getting hot outside. Around 9 AM the back doorbell rang. It was the neighbor telling me she got her Cocktail bird back last night. Someone in Whitefish Bay, which is a lot north of Milwaukee, found him and grabbed him on Monday. The neighbor was so happy to tell me she got her bird back. We both were in tears at the good news. Spent the day doing things around the house indoors. I can not take this heat. Did some dusting, vacuuming and installed the air conditioning unit in the upstairs apartment for the tenants. We give the tenants air conditioning units for their apartment as part of the rent. We have central air downstairs in our unit. Had a ham sandwich for lunch and took a two hour nap. Got up at 3 PM and stuck my head outside to take out the garbage. Damn, it's hot outside. Noticed the two baby Mourning Doves sitting in the garden. Making a salad and frozen pizza for dinner. Will make it in the pizza oven rather than turning on the big oven in this heat. America's Got Talent is on at 7 PM tonight and we will watch more on the DVR afterwards. Watched a movie last night called Newcastle. It was OK. Other than that it is just a matter of time, until late tomorrow, when the cold front comes through for the weekend. This weekend is Pridefest here in Milwaukee. Looks like it will be in the 60s. That is fine with me. If it was hot outside I would have to wear less clothes. With all the weight I have gained and not lost, I look forward to covering up and trying to look skinny as I suck in my stomach while we are there. LOL

June 6, 2011 Monday Dinner Time

Saturday Tony and I went to a car show in Burlington. It was a nice hour drive to the car show and back. The weather was almost perfect. I bit warm, but not too hot outside. Met the couple we have Friday lunch with at the car show. Stopped off at Culver's with them to have lunch before we drove home. Spent the afternoon around the house enjoying the dogs, yard and nice weather. After we fed the dogs dinner we walked, yes walked, up a few blocks to a little Italian restaurant and had a great spaghetti dinner. Walked home and spent the rest of the night outside in the neighbor across the alley's yard enjoying the night air. Had a couple drinks and then the mosquitoes came in force. Spent the next hour at home itching and putting itch cream on. Wow, they came out of no where and attacked.

Sunday I made a big breakfast. A little after noon we went for a drive along the lakefront and stopped at Tony's sister's house. She and her dog got in the back seat of the Cadillac and we drove to Dairy Queen and got ice cream. The dog even got his own ice cream cone. Got home around 4 PM and spent time sitting on the deck enjoying the weather. The sun was out, a nice breeze, and about 80 degrees. Made hamburgers and baked beans for dinner. Spent the night watching movies on the DVR from the TV channel Logo that I taped during the week. Both movies were OK but not worth passing on the titles, honestly I can't even remember what the name of the movies were. Went to bed around 10 PM. Perfect sleeping weather with the windows open.

This morning I was up at 6 AM and did the usual feeding of the dogs and getting Tony off to work. A storm was approaching so I went back to bed until it passed, around 10 AM. Showered and went to Walgreen's to get a pain pill prescription filled. Got home to find out they only gave me 30 rather than 60 pills. Went back to Walgreen's to get the other 30 they should have given me with the refill. Stopped off at Pick N Save and did a little grocery shopping. Even a little grocery shopping these days is expensive it seems. Took a short nap this afternoon. Tony came home for a bit and got me out of bed. I hate when he does this. I like to look busy when he comes home or arrives home. LOL. Don't want to have him thinking I nap every day. Actually he knows I nap from 1 - 3 PM each day. Most of my friends even know not to call between that time. Will spend the night watching more on the DVR since there is nothing on TV. I am running low on DVR shows as the reruns keep coming on TV.

The Mourning Doves are still in the back yard in the rock garden area. I check on them a couple times a day. Last night around 5 PM the parents took them on a flying lesson to the cars and back and then had them return to the area they have been nesting in for the past 3 days. The neighbor cut his grass today and I had to tell him to try to stay away from where they are. The mother bird was not happy when he cut the grass and stood guard in the back yard as he cut it. I honestly wish the babies would fly or grow up fast because it is just a matter of time until a stray cat wonders into the yard and finds them. They do know not to move. You can get to about 5 feet from them and they still stay still. Still have the 3 rabbits running around the yard too, so the cats must not have been around for a while now.

June 3, 2011 Friday Night

Spent the night after I posted helping a neighbor try to get her pet Cocktail down from the telephone lines. We gave up when it got dark. The bird got out of the house by accident. The owner is very upset as you can imagine. Went to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I was up at 6 AM. Fed the dogs, gave Vito his shot and was outside with the neighbor before Tony even left for work at 7:30 AM. The bird flew away about 8:30 AM, the owner in tears. I told her I would watch for it during the day. I never did see it again all day. Spent the morning working on securing the Mourning Dove nest and putting some bricks around the Batmobile to block some of the wind and such. The parents did come back to the nest early this morning but have not been back since I fixed and altered the nest. Hopefully they will return. Picked Tony up a little before noon to have lunch with the guys. Came home after dropping him off and going to the bank. Spent the afternoon doing a little painting touch up work around the side yard as I listened to the Casey Anthony trial on TV. Making a salad and ham sandwiches for dinner tonight. Only have plans to go to a car show tomorrow. Will let you know if anymore bird development come my way. Have a great weekend.

June 2, 2011 Another Mourning Dove Update

At this posting both Mourning Dove's have left the nest. Around 7:30 PM Tony got out of the shower so I gave him a little lovin. Better a clean man than a dirty man. Anyway, when I got back into the living room at 8 PM I saw the nest is now empty. I looked around a bit in the yard and could not believe my eyes. The two babies birds are on the ground snuggled under the park bench next to the netted-over pond. There is a short fence that separates that part of the yard from the rest so that the dogs don't go for a swim in the pond. So the birds are on the pond side of the fence. So cute to see them snuggling together away from the nest. Makes you wonder if they keep in touch with each other as the days and months go by. They will be safe for the night. Now my next hurdle will be making sure in the morning the dogs don't get them if they moved to the other side of the short fence AND them finally getting over the 6 foot high fence and not drown in the pond before they get out of the yard. Will update early tomorrow on the birds status.

June 2, 2011 Mourning Dove Update

After I posted last I took a short nap. When I got up there was only one baby in the Mourning Dove nest. One of the birds took it's first flight. So I guess I was right about the parents flying around the yard, testing to see if it was the right time. I can not find the baby in the yard but I do see the parents both sitting on the back upstairs porch rail. I assume they are watching it. The last baby will most likely leave tomorrow. The next nest I am going to keep a day by day journal.

June 2, 2011 Thursday Afternoon

Last night Tony got home around 5:30 PM from work. I fed the dogs and gave Vito his shot while he was in the shower. We then got in the Cadillac and drove to a car show on the south side of town. Was a big show and lots of cars. They have this show every Wednesday. I think they are all the same cars. Tony has to walk around and study every single one of them. I look at the men. Ate dinner at A&W. What is it about their Root Beer? I am not a fan of Root Beer but A&W makes a great Root Beer. Drove home on the side streets since the expressway to the car show was all under construction and I did not enjoy the ride. Had a nice drive back home along the lakefront. Watched a little TV before going to bed around 10 PM.

This morning I was up at 6 AM. Fed the dogs, gave Vito his shot, and Tony left for work around 7:30 AM. I ate a bowl of Life cereal with raspberries on it. Then went outside and cut the little grass we have in the front yard. Got the gas trimmer out but could not get it to keep cutting so Tony will have to take it to work and fix it. Spent the rest of the morning drilling a hole in the dining room wall to the outside so I can move the Nature Cams into the house rather than on the sun porch where it will soon get too hot for the monitor and DVR. Had to restring all the wires and got all the cameras connected. Yesterday it was 75 degrees, today it is a high of 55 degrees and tomorrow is suppose to be 85 degrees here in Milwaukee. What a temperature change hey? The Mourning Doves have yet to leave the nest. I watched one of them venture outside the nest and look around into the world today. It flapped it's wings and sat in the sun for a while. Was able to get a good picture of it as it looked around for the first time out of the nest. The parents still come and feed them but I think they are waiting for the dogs to not be in the yard when they push them out of the nest. Once in a while both birds come and fly around the yard and land on the ground testing the dogs. I have the dogs locked in the house now so hopefully soon they will fly from the nest. Making pork chops and rice with a salad for dinner tonight. Will watch Rookie Blue and the DVR tonight. Below are two pictures. One is of the camera system where you can see the two babies in the lower part of the picture, in their nest. The other is a picture of one of the babies out in the sun today.

June 1, 2011 Wednesday Afternoon

Can you believe it is June already?

Spent last night watching America's Got Talent. The show was entertaining. Went to bed around 10 PM. Was a nice cool night to have the windows open.

Got up this morning at 6 AM. Fed the dogs, gave Vito his shot and got Tony off to work. Read the morning newspaper and took a shower. Left the house around 9:30 AM and went to McDonald's for a Bacon Egg Cheese Bagel and then Pick N Save to do some grocery shopping. Ended up spending almost $150 at the grocery store. Yesterday one of my tenants brought home a Wren house that a friend gave him. I needed a bird house for the fourth camera so I cut a hole in the top of the roof, inserted the camera, and put it on a tripod stand that was in the back yard. You can see 2 of the 12 nesting holes with the camera. Spent the rest of the day watching the Casey Anthony trial. This girl is so guilty of killing her child. Made some beef flavored rice for Vito food and now I wait for Tony to come home from work. Not cooking tonight since I think we are going to a car show and will pick up something to eat at the show. Nothing on TV tonight so no hurry getting home from the car show. It is on the south side of town so it will be a couple hour event. It is in the 70s today and quite windy. So nice with the windows open. My white Lilac tree is filled with flowers. Had to scope another baby Wren out of the side yard before the dogs eat it. The two baby Mourning Doves have still not left the nest. I honestly haven't seen the parents visit them in some time so I think it is just a matter of time until they have to leave and search for food on there own. For some reason none of my music links are working. Will have to do a little investigating.