Party Time (again!) !!!

Bob and Ruth are heading this way this morning and should be here in time for Happy Hour. Its Ruth's Birthday soon and we will take her out to dinner this evening...then get ready for the big party on Saturday. 4 excuses for a party became 5 excuses when we learned that Norb had a birthday around the middle of May. It looks like the weather will cooperate so we can have the party inside and out. Now, we must get ready...

All About the Birds and the Bees

now that I have your attention...

Its post Memorial Day and now we turn our attention to our party this weekend. We are getting ready by sprucing up the yard, planting, trimming, etc.
We placed a coloful new hummingbird feeder near our pergola and have had several hungry little hummingbirds already. The nectar also attracts bees, so we have to deal with that. A little Raid sprayed nearby seems to keep the bees away without killing them.
This morning we were treated to the sight of a baby Robin, foraging in the ground near the office area. It was probably one of the chicks who flew just last Wednesday. It was nearly as large as Mama Robin, but still has the speckles on its breast. Wow, how they grow!
We have lots of birds that entertain us each day: Robins, Hummingbirds, Bluebirds, Quail, and of course the ever-present Mourning Doves.
I'm going to quit now because this writing is for the birds.

Happy Memorial Day!!!

Its a beautiful day in Roseville...'hope everyone is enjoying this holiday!

Johnna will join BJ, Don, and Chuck later in the day for a scrumptious holiday treat. Hot Dogs and Apple Pie??? nope...Tacos y cerveza. Viva Los Estados Unidos! Have fun, everyone,

Love,

Johnna

Memorial Day...and WWII

Happy Memorial Day to all! Let's all forget the politics for a day and remember all those who went before us -fighting for OUR freedom!

Mike and I started off this weekend early (on Wed.) by visiting the restored WWII bombers at Lincoln, CA airport. For a nominal donation, we were able to self-tour three beautifully restored airplanes. What an incredible history was told of each plane! For instance, the B-24 had flown 130 missions during the war and never suffered a casualty. Most crews in most squadrons weren't that lucky. Today, I saw the same B-24 and B-17 flying over Roseville -and snapped a picture of the '24.

--John, Navy Veteran, Son of a WWI Navy Veteran, and the great-grandson of (probably) a US Civil War Veteran.

Empty Nest!

The chicks started leaving the nest around 10AM. The last one was a little reluctant but flew a foot away to a limb near the nest, then, finally onward to another Plum tree. I have about 50 photos. Here are 4 of them.

Camerashy...

We're still trying to get a good shot of these chicks at their finest. At this point in their young lives, they are standing and flapping their wings as if ready to leave the nest. But, when I stand on my little stepladder next to the nest, they all hunker down as in this photo. If you click on the photo, it should enlarge so you can see a closeup. I'll keep trying for that "perfect shot."

After Further Review...

...quads! While trying to get a better closeup photo, we discovered the 4th hungry little Robin. So I guess it's now Manny, Mo, Jack, & Surprise. Robin chicks are in the nest about 2 weeks, according to Wikipedia. Their eyes open after about 1 week. So, we figure these birds are about 8 days old and will be out of the nest and attempt to fly in less than a week from now. Stay tuned... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KYLEIGH!!!

Manny, Mo, and Jack...

Here is a closeup of the Triplet Robins...

Triplets!

We have a new family at Loco Lane: 3 baby Robins and their busy, nurturing parents. We have been fascinated, sitting in our treegola -and also viewing from our family room - watching this little story of nature unfold. Each parent takes turns bringing the young ones worms to their nest in the Fruitless Plum next to our patio. Here are some early photos.

The Clark Siblings.

This photo was taken in June 1997 at Piseco Lake. Barbara probably took the picture. She and I were in NY and that was the year we went to NYC and went to the top of WTC-1.

This photo is probably the 1st time we were all together since our childhood --and I don't know of any other picture anywhere of all 5 Clark Siblings together!

Chuck, and other stuff...

Chuck arrived right on schedule and we enjoyed a relaxing afternoon watching TV and sitting in our "treegola." Tonight is Kyleigh's school play.

Tomorrow's a big day...

...about all this busy couple is doing today is preparing for tomorrow's events. We'll pick up Chuck at the airport around noon. In the evening, Johnna will attend Kyleigh's play at her school -leaving Chuck to watch a low-def NBA Playoff game on our hi-def TV. This may sound a little socially unorthodox, but not after you get to know "Chucky Cheese."
The weather forcast for tomorrow is wall-to-wall sunshine and about 85.
cu L8r

Uncle Chuck's comin' to town!

Donna's brother ("Uncle Chuck,"

aka "Chucky Cheese") will arrive on Thursday, 17 May. Chuck will stay with us for a week and then move on to Citrus Heights where he will stay with brother Don and BJ for a week before returning to Las Vegas. He is one of the nicest, easiest going, laid back men you will ever meet. Donna and Chuck love each other, and like most brother-sister pairs, bicker at each other constantly. Its fun just to sit back and watch. Chuck is a big sports fan and will be engrossed in the NBA playoffs while here. Here is a photo of Donna & Chuck taken when we visited him in Las Vegas last September.

A Broadway Salute at the Sacramento Community Theatre

What a wonderful, upbeat musical night out! The production was magnificent. It was the kind of music (almost) everyone recognizes and can sing along to. Downtown Sac was buzzing with people attending this musical and other exciting events. Dinner and cocktails at the Esquire Grille was outstanding.

Happy Mothers' Day!!!

BIG weekend coming up...

Friday, 11 May:
The Clark Twins are 15 and we'll drop in for their big "make-over" birthday.
Sweet Jeanne -God love her- would be 61 (can you believe it?!!?).
Saturday, 12 May:
Johnna will be at the Sacramento Community Theatre in the evening for a wonderful musical... 55 musicians, 150 singers filling the evening with the best music in the world -Rogers & Hammerstein. Are we excited!??!
Sunday, 13 May:
Happy Mothers's day to all of the wonderful Moms we know and love!
Have a GREAT weekend, all!

NFL Poll

The NFL Poll was removed from this blog after it had run its course. An overwhelming 57% picked the Chargers, while the next largest pick was "Other." So much for small-sample polls.
Also, you may have noticed that this poll was flawed in that you could vote as many times as you wish. Kinda like in Chicago where the election day motto is "Vote Early and Vote Often!

dangerous emails...

[the following is the text of an email I recently sent to people who regularly send me jokes and stuff via email --usually requiring logging on to some unknown website]

email attachments that direct you to another site are dangerous and can introduce damaging worms, virus, and worse to your computer.

I recently experienced a corrupted registry (an internal computer thing) that could not be repaired without completely reinstalling Windows and subsequently losing all files which were not backed up. I was able to back up all vital data to an external hard drive. I then had the choice of "scrubbing" my computer or buying a new one. I chose the latter. In any case it is a huge hassle and a big expense -not to mention the trauma of being cut off from the cyber world (and all its delights) for a week.
Now for all of you who know me well, you know I love good jokes and stories and wondrous photos. However, due to to the high risk of doing so, I will no longer open any attachment which requires connecting to a website. As much as I cherish hearing from you, I will immediately delete emails with suspect attachments.
I do have a suggestion which will circumvent most problems, and it is this: when you come across a joke or a story that you know I must see, open it, copy, and paste it to the body of your email. As long as the text contains no links to any website it is safe.
I hope you understand. I love being connected to family and friends (and businesses!) through email and the Internet --and I don't ever want to go through another crash as I did in the past week.
--Johnna

Home again -Part 1

We made the leap to Windows Vista today. 'have a new HP Pavilion from Fry's. Like most, I HATE change, but maybe I'll get used to it.
At least I can communicate now. There are a lot of things I still have to get up and running, but that is just a matter of time. I can send and receive email again, but I still don't have an email program like Outlook Express which I love. Well, tomorrow is another day...
--Johnna

Hello from the Roseville, CA Library!

This is my home away from home until I get my PC/Internet up and running. Our library is incredible and beautiful! And another is almost ready between Barb's and our homes! The new library is near the corner of Woodcreek Oaks Blvd and Pleasant Grove Blvd -just about half way between the Dings and the Clarks.
Something corrupted my PC's registry and it won't let me connect to the Internet -probably a worm or a virus. I have backed up all my files to external hard drive and today I will start my search for a clean-up and re-install of Windows -or- a new hard drive with software installed -or- a new computer. I plan to start at Frye's and also check Best Buy. NOTE to KEVIN: I will NOT be visiting any fruit stands.
Stay tuned...
--Johnna

She's in the money!

It's Springtime and things are greening up!

Faye's favorite color is GREEN... and she received a lot of it for her birthday. At a separate little affair with Johnna on Monday, 30 April 2007, Faye opened her many gifts that were left at her BD80 . In addition to opening her gifts at her home, she was treated to a "slide show" of the party on her TV . Fun evening!