We Can Make Sandwiches. . .

So I had this great idea for my drive back to San Francisco.  Instead of making the six hour or so drive by myself, my parents and I should caravan up the coast and stop in San Luis Obispo for lunch.  After lunch I would continue north to the Bay Area and they would return home to Moorpark.

I even knew where I wanted to stop for lunch, The Art Cafe and Bakery, home of Oprah's favorite sandwich.

There were just a couple of minor flaws in my plan.

1.  The restaurant moved and was no longer in San Luis Obispo.

2.  Now that the restaurant was in Atascadero it was probably a little more than half way to the Bay Area.

3.  I made my parents drive 3 hours for a sandwich.

In my defense, I have done stupider things for food.  Just read this entry from back in July when Wendy and I flew to the island of Oahu for a hot dog!  Still, not joking about that!

So for those of you who are not aware, The Art Cafe And Bakery is famous for almost going out of business.  The woman who owns the restaurant was going have to close up shop when she got one final order.  Oprah was in town planning an event and needed food.  So The Art Cafe And Bakery set out to make one last batch of sandwiches.  

Oprah took one bite and declared it to be the best sandwich she had ever had!  She then heard that the restaurant was going out of business and she gave the owner money to keep the sandwiches coming!

The sandwich in question is The "O"riginal Curried Chicken sandwich.  It has curried chicken, sliced almonds, shredded carrots, diced tomatoes and spring greens on grilled spiced pepper jack bread.  (The bread is super spicy hot so I get mine on fluffy white bread instead.)  Above is Mom about to bite into her "O"riginal!

In the past I have also gotten the Turkey and Swiss which is made of fresh sliced turkey breast, Swiss cheese, spring greens, diced tomatoes, with the famous orange marmalade sauce on grilled whole wheat bread.

The sandwiches are definitely worth the trip.

The Art Cafe And Bakery is located at:

6005 El Camino Real

Atascadero, CA 93422

Inside the Carlton Hotel

The Song Of The Day - Sandwiches by Detroit Grand Pubahs

Swing With Me. . .

This week my father and I went to the driving range.  Being the avid golfer that I am (I took Golf in college...impressed aren't you?) check out my amazing form above!

My clubs are an old set that belonged to my brother and have taken up permanent residency in the trunk of my car.  That might be because I am too lazy to carry them up to my apartment and I am not sure if I even have room in my closet to store them.  My golf bag, which is a lovely shade of red, belonged to my late Uncle Brad who passed away in the 70's.  So needless to say my equipment is "vintage."

The last time I went to the driving range was about three years ago when I still lived in Ventura.  That was the infamous outing in Carpinteria when I realized I was hitting balls with Oprah Winfrey's boyfriend Stedman Grahman.  We shared a moment.

As I said earlier, I am an amazing golfer.  This is evidenced in the above picture that shows the black marks that my ball made when it would go careening into the wall immediately after connecting with my club.  At least I connected with the ball, right?

Here's Dad taking a swing at it!

The Song Of The Day - Swing With Me by Jessica Simpson 

I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas. . .

Happy Holidays Loyal Readers!

Well it doesn't really snow in Southern California.  However, sometimes if you are lucky, on really damp and cold morning the dew on the lawn will freeze and kind of look like a dusting of snow. 

So that is what happened today.

And the mechanical deer on my parent's lawn fits perfectly into this winter wonderland.

Within 30 minutes all the frost had melted away.

The Song Of The Day -  White Christmas by Bing Crosby

Update: Sugar, Bring Me Sugar. . .

Update!  My "Poor Man's Toffee Bars" won the Cookie Category in the first annual IM (Inventory Management) Bake Off.  

Judged on taste, presentation, and creativity by members of the leadership team; I received 18 out of a possible 20 points!  I was given extra credit for my naming convention that was "Recessionary" minded.

Next up was the cake category and my managers "Cheese Cake Bites" won!  

Team Accessories was on a roll!

Then in the pie category our Pecan Pie lost to the Womens Team's Strawberry Rhubarb Pie.  (It was good!)

Finally it came down to the wild card category and our Hazelnut Cinnamon Rolls were beat out by the Womens Team's Peanut Butter Cups.  I think the Peanut Butter Cups got extra credit for the "Dear Santa" letter that was attached.

So in the end Team Accessories lost to the Women's Team in total points but we were all winners in having a good time.  

The poor Men's Team did not win any categories but did get extra points for presentation.  They had professional looking signs to describe their entries.

Special thanks to my Aunt Barbara who first introduced me to the cookies that I entered into the contest.

The Song Of The Day - Sugar by Tori Amos

Sugar, Bring Me Sugar. . .

Friday is the "Holiday Bake Off" at work.  

Each division must submit four entries.  A cookie, a cake, a pie, and a wild card. 

We will be judged on taste, presentation, and creativity.

My entry is in the cookie category.  I call it "Poor Man's Toffee Bars."

Go Team Accessories!

The Song Of The Day - Sugar by Tori Amos

UPDATE: I Only See What I'm Looking Through . . .

Update!   Yesterday the blinds were fixed!  The view was back just in time to watch the rain.

"...I was staring out the window the whole time he was talking to me..."

The Song Of The Day - Window by Fiona Apple

Gonna Make You Sweat. . .

This is a Muni seat.  It is constructed of hard slick plastic. 

One problem with the hard plastic seats on the buses is that when you combine it with body heat, moisture or condensation can form on the seat bottom.  It's kind of like the unspoken fact of riding Muni.

It's funny, because when you are riding on crowded buses you can actually see people check for "Seat Moisture" before sitting down in a seat that someone just vacated.  You have to do this very nonchalantly as you do not want to cause attention to why you may have chosen not to sit down.

Recently I was on the Muni bus.  I was seated at the rear of the bus facing forward.  The row in front of me was reversed so the male passenger in that row was facing me.  At one of the stops three loud teenage girls boarded the bus.  One of the girls sat next to me, one sat next to the other gentleman, and one sat across the aisle all while still carrying on their conversation.  

The girl next to me pulled out a bottle of nail polish and told the girl sitting across the aisle to come sit on her lap so that she could finish painting the girl's nails who was sitting next to the gentleman. If you have ever been near an open bottle of nail polish you know how intense the smell can be.

And here is where "Nonchalant" went out the window.

Clearly annoyed by the loud girls, the gentleman rolled his eyes and decided to get up and move to the front of the bus.  

The girls did not take kindly to this.  They immediately rolled their eyes back and said "Ugghh."

With the newly vacated seat available the girl who was sitting next to me told the girl on her lap to move into the gentleman's old seat.

Crisis...there was body moisture on that seat!

So in the loudest possible voice lap girl says, "Ooooooh....ewwwwww....I ain't sitting there!  Look at all that booty sweat!  That's just gross!"  

It took everything in me not to burst out laughing!

The Song Of The Day - Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) by C & C Music Factory 

Ring The Alarm . . .

Life is about choices.  Everything you do in life is a choice.  You can choose to be mad about something.  You can choose to laugh about it.  You can choose to cry about it.  But the end result of your personal happiness is directly correlated to the choice you made.

So the above picture is the annual notice my apartment manager sends to all tenants at the beginning of November.  It reviews the Annual Rent Board Fee which is due as a separate check the first week of December, Disaster Preparedness, Mold And Mildew information, how to use the Steam Heat, and the responsibility of the renters to test and change the batteries in their Smoke Detectors. 

As this is the third year that I have received this letter I immediately filed it away and ignored it.

So last night at 4am when my Smoke Detector started beeping every fifteen seconds due to a dead battery, the only person I had to blame was myself!

The best part is it took me about fifteen minutes to figure out how to get the battery out.  My apologies to the downstairs neighbor who may have been woken up by the battery eventually flying across the room with a grand thud onto the hardwood floor.

The Song Of The Day - Ring The Alarm by Beyonce

I Only See What I'm Looking Through . . .

This is the conference room that my cubical faces.

Please take note of the window shade that someone has broken for the second time in less than two months.

Unfortunately the shade is broken in the down position...again.

This is the view I normally have when the shade isn't broken.

My co-worker Jan and I are not happy about our new view.

The Song Of The Day - Window by Fiona Apple

I Think You're Crazy . . .

Bill O'Reilly recently did a piece on his show smearing the city of San Francisco.  Now if I was from middle America watching this "news" segment I would think San Francisco was a frightening out of control place with rampant drug use, lack of safety, and an out of control homeless problem.  

Here's the thing, there is a bit of truth in the sensationalized version of San Francisco that Bill O'Reilly portrayed.  And as I road the bus last night I reflected on the O'Reilly segment.

One of the things mentioned in the segment is that the homeless are everywhere in San Francisco.  They are not limited to one area of the city.  And as mentioned in the piece, San Franciscans have learned to co-exist in harmony with the homeless.  "Harmony" might be defined by some as adjusting which side of the street you walk on to avoid the homeless, but it is still "harmony."

So last night I was riding the Muni bus home from a holiday party at around 1:30 am.  Every time I ride the bus late at night it is a new and unique experience.  I have listened in on a older homeless man's conversation about how in his youth he would hold up the bus drivers  and hijack the bus or rob all the passengers.  "Boy I could run back then," he said.  He seemed harmless now.

I have seen the after affects of someone getting sick on the bus late at night.

Once I sat in amazement as two homeless gentleman boarded the bus with their large backpacks and proceeded to sit in the row behind me.  The older one of the two pulled out a needle and proceeded shoot drugs into his arm while the bus barrelled down Van Ness Ave.

And yet here once again was an example of "harmony;"  "I won't bother you if you don't bother me."  

So on the bus last night we seemed to be stuck at the bus stop for what seemed to be about ten minutes.  The delay was caused by a homeless man who was struggling to get his life possessions onto the bus.  The driver had to use the wheelchair lift to help the homeless man get his granny cart and milk crates up.  The homeless man's cart barely fit in the aisle.  

There was another man on the bus whom I had already been watching while we waited at the stop for the bus to arrive.  He seemed antsy.  Not agitated, just antsy.  He then started telling those sitting nearest to him that he had just been released from jail after what he claimed was an unfair accusation of assault because he threw a paper cup with Coke in it at someone.  (The cup may have been thrown at a police officer, but I had my earphones in so I couldn't hear every word. )

Bottom line, this guy wanted to get home, and he wanted to get home NOW.  So needless to say he was less than pleased with the homeless man causing the ten minute delay.

Next came the "Only in San Francisco" moment.  

After all the time spent loading his possessions onto the bus, the homeless man only rode about three stops before pulling the bell cord to indicate that he wanted to get off.

Well, jail release man was not about to wait another ten minutes for the driver to use the wheelchair lift to lower the homeless man's possessions back off the bus.  So jail release man took it upon himself to pick up the homeless man's stuff and expedite the process of "disembarking" the bus.

This was all fine by me because I wanted to get home too.

So it looked like everything was all off the bus but we still hadn't pulled away from the stop.  I then saw that the homeless man was now standing at the front of the bus.  He began to proclaim the following all while clapping:

"Let's all give this man (jail man) a warm welcome home.  He just got out of jail after being accused of assault for throwing a paper cup with Coke at someone.  Welcome home!"  

No one else on the bus joined in on the clapping.  And like Bill O'Reilly's piece, only in San Francisco, harmony.

The Song Of The Day - Crazy by Gnarls Barkley

Get This Party Started . . .

Uncle Just Jon along with the Loyal Readers would like to wish nephew Sean a very happy birthday!

Sean, I hope you have a great day!  Enjoy a piece of cake for me!

The Song Of The Day - Get The Party Started by Pink

P.S.  Marco!

Kyrie . . .

Today I had several errands to run in the City and I decided to incorporate Sunday Mass into the list of things to do in that part of town.  I went to Latin Mass at St. Patrick's Catholic Church on Mission and 4th Street.

If you have never been to Latin Mass I highly recommend doing it at least once.  Most of the Mass is chanted in Latin.

St. Patrick's is San Francisco's Historic Landmark # 4 and was founded in 1851.

The pastor, whom channels the image and personality of Star Trek's George Takai clearly relishes this Mass!  This is my second time attending and both times he has started the Mass by asking how many people are visiting St. Patrick's.  It quickly becomes clear that St. Patrick's is a tourist destination because very few people appear to be actual parishioners.

And now the Pastor's show begins!  

Until now, I always thought incense was only used on Holy Days and for very special funerals. But during Latin mass the incense is brought out every few minutes.

The Pastor also kept asking if the people in attendance over the age of 50 could remember the Latin prayers from pre-1965 when the Mass was only said in that language.

The Latin Mass is a little bit longer than the English Mass but very much worth it.

The Song Of The Day - Kyrie by Mr. Mister

Da Me Mas Gasolina. . .

Just Jon would like to thank Loyal Reader Wendy for alerting us to this helpful hint.

Have you ever pulled into the gas station and then could not remember what side of the car your gas tank is on?

If yes, then Wendy's tip is for you!

Next time you are in your car, look on your dashboard for the gas pump symbol.  On one side of the pump is the nozzle and on the other is an arrow head.   The arrow head points in the direction of the side of the car your tank is on.

When I first heard this hint I was a bit skeptical.  I was pleasantly surprised to find it to be true.

So thank you Wendy for sharing this tip with us!

The Song Of The Day -  Gasolina by Daddy Yankee

The Writing's On The Wall . . .

Giving new meaning to the phrase "The Writing's On The Wall," I share with you these pictures from a public restroom I had the pleasure of visiting on Sunday.

My friend Shagun and I had planned to go to brunch on Sunday.  We had neglected to discuss where we wanted to go to eat.  After my last brunch choice of Greens, which started off poorly I really didn't think Shagun was going to let me have a say in where we ate.

To my surprise she asked for suggestions.  

I had a major craving for Belgium Waffles with strawberries and whip cream.  So I suggested a local chain in the Bay Area called Squat And Gobble Cafe And Crepery.  I have eaten at Squat And Gobble several times and have always enjoyed my meal.  I have even taken my parents there.

Usually I go to the location in the Marina, but since I know Shagun has a disdain for making the 30 minute bus ride to the Marina I suggested we meet in the middle and go to the Squat And Gobble located in The Haight.

If you are not familiar with The Haight I will describe it as the Three H's:

Hippies

Homeless 

and Hashish

So I had totally forgotten that the restroom in The Haight's Squat And Gobble was "decorated" by the locals.  The rest of the restaurant is clean and neat and resembles all the other locations with the exception of this one room.  

The food was great as always.  

And the best part of going to the Squat And Gobble in The Haight?   Shoe shopping afterwards. The Haight has tons of great shoe stores!

The Song Of The Day - Bug A Boo by Destiny's Child (from the album The Writing's On The Wall)

Willkommen . . .

Several months ago "Blogger" made an update to its functionality that allowed readers to "Follow" blogs that they enjoy.

At that time I added a box on Just Jon for the Loyal Readers to sign in as followers of this blog.

And do you know what happened?

Not one person signed up!  LOL

I knew people were reading the blog because they would come up and talk to me about it, or send me an e-mail, or comment on a particular entry.  I even had people call me on the phone.

So it didn't bother me that no one had officially signed up as a "Follower" because I knew the Loyal Readers were out there...somewhere.

Then this week I logged and was elated to find one of the Loyal Readers had publicly committed to being a Follower of Just Jon!

So this ones for you Rene!

Thanks for being the first official follower of Just Jon!

The Song Of The Day - Willkommen by Jonathan Pryce

Also, starting today there will be a new feature on Just Jon.  The Loyal Readers will have the option of casting their vote on how they feel about each entry.  Of course please feel free to add written comments as well because I love those too (Mom, Dad Brian and Megan =) The Loyal Readers who consistently leave the most comments. )

Croc 'n Rockin . . .

Alright loyal readers, I have heard the message loud and clear! 

 "Why aren't there any new blogs?" 

 "It's been 15 days since your last post!"  

"Is everything OK?"

"Every time I open up your blog its still Madonna!"

Ummm...of course it's still Madonna.  Come on now, those pictures were pretty amazing.  They deserved to be up there for 15 days, right?

All kidding aside, I was pretty tired and needed a break.  A lot has happened in the last 15 days. 

We elected a new president.  

Wildfires are back.   

And...drum roll please...

My "Our Lady Of The Valley" group on Facebook is up to 18 members!  

But I digress.  

What's wrong with the above picture?

Yes, not only do I own Crocs, but I wear them in public.  And if you live in the Marina District of San Francisco that is fashion faux pas numero uno!

The second issue with this picture is that it is mid November and it has been in the high 70s for several days straight and will continue to be that high for the rest of the week.  

So yes that's right, I am wearing shorts and a t-shirt without a jacket!  I swear the weather isn't this nice in the summertime here.  

On Sunday I threw on my Crocs and headed down to the laundry mat which was where I quickly remembered that Crocs are a no no in the Marina.  Every person that walked into that laundry mat did a double take when they saw my Crocs.  I will admit that I have been intimidated by the "Marina Croc Haters" in the past.  So much so that I rarely wear them.  But last night I stood proud as I "Gap" folded my laundry while wearing my Crocs!  They may be ugly but they sure are comfortable.

The Song Of The Day - Crocodile Rock by Elton John

I'm Gonna Wake Up . . .

I could not go to bed tonight without sharing these amazing photos I took during night two of Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA.

"Ladies with them attitude, fellas that were in the mood..."

"Come on Vogue..."

(Check out a little video I took at the above link.)

"You must love me. . ."

Madonna and Justin Timberlake dancing together.

Look, I can shoot stars out of my fingers if Madonna is singing in the background.

The Song Of The Day - Die Another Day by Madonna

On And On On The Beat Goes . . .

After months of waiting it finally arrived!   Night one of Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA.

Madge did not disappoint.  At fifty years old she looks better than a lot of people in their twenties.  Her show is very aerobic to say the least.  For one number she jumped rope through the whole song.  And this wasn't normal jump rope, she did Double Dutch!  

I broke out my vintage Re-Invention Tour "Madonna Is My Homegirl" T-shirt to show my support!  But this year Madge was looking for a different kind of support.  She was selling Barack Obama T-Shirts that said "Express Yourself."  She is never one to shy away from politics and religion.

In comparison to The Confessions Tour, this one seemed a little less controversial.  There was no crown of thorns or hanging on the cross.  

One of the highlights was when she did an acoustic version of "You Must Love Me" from the Evita soundtrack.  

I also always love the interludes when she is not even on stage.  Two highlights from this year were the Remix of "Give It 2 Me" which was really a 3 minute advertisement for changing the world and voting for Obama and a Medley of "Rain" and The Eurythmics "Here Comes The Rain Again".  Stunning!

Madge closed the show with "Give It 2 Me" which included a pretty cool laser light show homage to the video games of the 80's.

I am looking forward to tonight when I go back for night two...only this time on the floor!

The Song Of The Day - Beat Goes On (featuring Kanye West) by Madonna

American Woman . . .

Major players in this years election made a campaign stop at Shamoli's Halloween Party on Friday night.  In a show of bi-partisan unity Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sarah Palin, and Joe the Plumber were all together in one place.

After the politicians spoke, MC Hammer came out and performed "2 Legit To Quit."

Everyone enjoyed the evening.  Then Joe the Plumber demonstrated his unique talent for sticking a plunger on his head.  This lead to an impromptu game of ring toss!  

I will spare myself the embarrassment of posting the picture of the big welt the plunger left on my head.

The Song Of The Day - American Woman by Lenny Kravitz

Let's Push Things Forward . . .

This is "Burberry Coat Girl."

I do not know her name.  I have never spoken to her.  However, I have often talked to co-workers about her after a treacherous ride on the 30x to work.

I named her "Burberry Coat Girl" because she always wears this black Burberry Coat.

As I have shared in the past, my bus stop is the last stop in the Marina before heading into the Financial District.  That means that the buses are usually full by the time they reach my stop and often the buses won't even stop.  If the bus does stop to let some poor soul off, all of us who have been waiting on the corner will push our way through the back door and try to squeeze in.  The only thing I can compare this to is when people try to see how many individuals they can fit in a phone booth.

So I have been watching "Burberry Coat Girl" with amazement for almost two years now.  

I, along with everyone else, may stand on the corner for up to 30 minutes trying to get on the bus.  

Not "Burberry Coat Girl!"

Every day she walks up to the corner carrying two large bags, one on each shoulder.  Her hair is still wet from the morning shower.  With her iPod Shuffle ear buds in place she has no reason to acknowledge anyone else.  And as the bus pulls up she steps in front of everyone who has been waiting in the cold for 30 minutes and pushes her way on the bus.  Every day!  

There was only one day when I HAD to get on the next bus in order to not be late for a meeting at work that I actually blocked her from cutting in front of me.  

So kudos "Burberry Coat Girl!"  You don't wait out in the cold like the rest of us.  You always get on the bus.  And someday, I hope to be as skilled and aggressive as you!

The Song Of The Day - Let's Push Things Forward by The Streets

Spice Up Your Life . . .

This past summer while vacationing in Hawaii I went to a Mexican restaurant.   

I know what you are thinking, "You went to a Mexican restaurant in Hawaii?" 

Of course there will be great Mexican food in Hawaii!  I hope.

The restaurant is called Pancho and Lefty's and was recommended by my friends Sean and Erin (two of the loyal readers.)

I ordered a scrambled egg dish which I have since tried to replicate back on the mainland.  See my version below.

Start off by making traditional scrambled eggs.  As the eggs begin to firm up in the pan crumble in tortilla chips.  The chips will become soft but no mushy.  They add a new texture and flavor to the eggs.  Garnish with cheese, salsa, sour cream, ketchup, or whatever your fancy.

This new flavor combination will leave you craving more!

On a recent trip to my parents house my Mom tested the egg dish on the family and every one seemed to enjoy it.

The Song Of The Day - Spice Up Your Life by the Spice Girls

Cornershop . . .

I am actually surprised I never noticed this before.  

If you want to know how to get one up on the competition.  How to corner the market share.   Well look no further than the corner of 19th Ave and Judah.

You may need to click on the picture to enlarge it so that you can see what the signs are more clearly, but Unocal 76 actually has gas stations on both sides of the street!   That is brilliant in my opinion.  You can get them going and coming!

The Song Of The Day - Brimful Of Asha by Cornershop

Playing Games . . .

This past week my Grandfather passed away.  He was 90 years old.  I thought I would take a moment to share 1o things I will remember about Grandpa.

First of all I have to say, my brother and I, along with our younger cousins were lucky because we actually were allowed to call him "Grandpa."  My older cousins called him "Ray" because he didn't want to be thought of as old.

The above picture was taken in Jan 1997.  We were at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas.  It was my graduation from college trip and we had gone to see a celebrity impersonator show that night. Check out my full head of hair!

You can also see a great picture montage of my Grandfather's life set to music at Making Everlasting Memories (MEM).  Search for "Ray" "Collins".

So without further adieu I will share my "10 Things To Remember About Grandpa."

1.  When my Grandfather was still in good health,  without fail every time I saw him he would ask me, "How do you hold your pants up?"  At the time I very rarely wore a belt and he did not understand how my pants did not fall down.

2.  After the belt discussion, it was quickly followed by "Did you see Third Rock or Seinfeld?"  This was kind of a trick question because my grandfather would watch the syndicated versions of these shows at 6 or 7 at night and not the new episodes that were airing in prime time.  So I always would try to clarify what the episode was about so that we could have a laugh about whatever Kramer or Dick had done.

3.  My first electric razor was an old one I had seen in my Grandfather's dresser.  When I wanted to start shaving my "beard" we asked if I could have one of his old razors.  He cleaned it up for me and I was so excited.

4.  My Grandfather was skilled at splicing electrical cords together and fixing broken switches.  I think he fixed more than one of our hair dryers (back when I had hair) and a fan.

5.  My Grandfather took us out on the ocean and on the lake in his boat.  He always made us wear life jackets and I seem to remember we would sometimes have to switch where we were sitting on the boat to shift the balance.  I feel like the few times we went on the boat there was always a problem with launching the boat into the water, getting the boat back on the trailer, or the engine working properly.  But being under 10 years old at the time I didn't care because I was just so excited to be on the boat.

6.  My Grandpa always won at pool.  He had special rules and children were not allowed to play on the pool table.  It was only for adults.  I was lucky because when I was 8 years old my Aunt Ronda snuck me upstairs and let me play a game of pool.  We had to keep that a secret from Grandpa.  Later I did get to play Grandpa at pool and learn all about his game of choice "The One and the Fifteen."

7.  My Grandpa also liked to play Dominoes.  I know he had an intricate scoring system but I don't think I ever really understood that part.  I just liked matching the dots.

8.  My Grandpa had a sweet tooth.  He had a whole drawer of junk food in the kitchen that I think each of us grand kids discovered at some point and would eventually ask Grandma "Can I have a ____ from the drawer?"  His favorites included Orange Slices and Ding Dongs.    On the adult side he also liked warm beer.  Which to this day I have yet to try and still don't see the appeal of.

9.  My Grandpa taught my Mom, who then shared with us that you can try and get a stain out of your clothes by using the eraser on your pencil.  I am gonna be honest and tell you that it doesn't really work that good.

10.  After my Grandfather retired a couple of times we painted together.  He was much better than I was, but really neither of us were that good.  One of our really bad paintings we didn't even draw we just filled in the color on someone else's drawing.  Then he found this ratty old frame and he and I framed our work of art.  My Mom would hang our masterpiece above the fireplace when he was coming over to our house.  It was amazing!

I took this picture in 1988.  I think it was a lunch in Westlake Village for my Grandmother's birthday.

The Song Of The Day -  Straight Up by Paula Abdul (Because Grandpa thought she was a good dancer.)

Your Sunshine . . .

This is my niece Megan.  Today is her birthday!   Happy Birthday Megan!

The Loyal Readers and I wish you the best on your special day!

The Song Of The Day - Paint Me In Your Sunshine by Marie Digby