Madelyn’s Neighborhood

So, I've been using my Typepad account instead of VOX, and whenever I come back over this way I have shit loads of spam comments to delete. Surely, VOX, if you delete a spam account, it should automatically delete all of the spam comments they've left as well?

    It is November already!  It is hard to believe.  We have made 2 trips to Disney this month.  On Monday we went to Epcot and spent time eating and drinking around the world at the Food and Wine festival.  I also renewed my annual pass. I got 15 months for the price of 12.  Florida residents can do that! Hehe.  Tuesday we went to the Magic Kingdom.  We met the newest princess.  Princess Tiana and Prince Raveen form the story   The Princess and the Frog.  It has a New Orleans theme to it.  
     We have also started the shuffle season.  On Monday I won both of my games, but today I won one and lost one and unfortunately lost the overall.  Oh well it is all in fun.  Ok, that is all for now so til next time.......Enjoy Life!

  It is Sunday night, October 25, and Bill and I have arrived at Mouse Mountain.  We spent from Wednesday until this morning in Jacksonville, visiting with friends.  We had a very easy arrival and everything went as it should.  thank goodness no problems this year, at least so far.  It took us over an hour to get set up and we have a few things to finish tomorrow.    It is warn here, in the mid 80's, and I don't say that to rub it in because I would prefer the upper 70's.  
  I will really try to update this blog weekly.  Just in case anyone is interested in what we do here in FL.  Take care everyone!  Stay in touch please.  If you are on Facebook, send me a friend request.  Can you believe I am actually on Facebook, who would have thunk it?  Hehe : )   : )   ; )

Today is Tuesday and we have made it as far as Florence, South Carolina.  We are at a  KOA here.  Except for some slowed travels in 2 construction areas in South Carolina, the trip has been fine.  Tomorrow, we will arrive in Jacksonville where we will stay til Sunday to visit with 2 very good friends.  Then Sunday it is down to Mouse Mountain.  It will be so nice to be there are see as everyone of the "snowbirds" arrive.   Stay tuned for more updates!

Tomorrow begins yet another new adventure.  My best friend Donna and I are heading to Philadelphia to cheer Madelyn on in her 3 day 60 mile Susan G. Komen walk.  We are looking forward to an exciting, albeit wet and cold,
weekend.   After that, on Monday I will head to Maryland with Madelyn where I will meet up with Bill at a campground down there and Tuesday morning we start the trek to Florida.  I am looking forward to it, altho there is a part of me would like to clone myself so i can also stay here in PA to be with my mom.  It is really hard, but my mom supports my going to Fl, and we have hired someone very nice and capable to stay with my mom so Missy and Nancy can still work mostly uninterrupted.  Stay tuned for upcoming adventures on my "Escape from Winter"

We interrupt our regular programming ...

*except for the Japan crowd like Expat: また

Energies are needed elsewhere. Vox'll be fine without me for a while.
 

Intermission

Here’s a surefire trick to add 50 years to your age: Shop for shoe inserts.

I don’t mean the orthopedic sorts, I mean the plain ol’ basic run-of-the-mill insoles to replace worn ones.

Or the paper-thin cheapos because the shoes were made in China, as was my case.

Here are my shoes. I bought them some time ago at Ross for 20 or 25 bucks:

sneakers - display only

They’re an adequate shoe whose best features are the pink laces and water-repellant leather, an asset if not necessity in this wet climate.

However, the outer soles are thick and like lead, while the inside cushioning measures .0002 inches in thickness, give or take .0001 inch. I walk a lot and the emergence of knee problems led me to suspect the shoes.

So where better to go than Walgreens, the consummate drugstore abundant with all things helpful to the gerontology circle public. In perusing the insoles, I nearly keeled over.

There were certainly plenty from which to pick! Men’s insoles and women’s insoles. Gel insoles, air-cushion insoles, full insoles and partial insoles. Insoles for boots, insoles for heels. Insoles for those suffering knee pain - depicted by red lightning bolts around the kneecap that looked pretty painful - and insoles for those desiring cooling relief.

Yet not one package was below 8 bucks!

Some were as much as $15! That's nearly what I paid for my shoes! Heck, that's even the price for a new pair!

Clearly the last time I bought insoles was in the last century because I had it in my mind that they were around 3 bucks. So I studied near every damn package wondering how anyone can afford 'em and would the free newspapers at home work as an alternative.

Defeated, I returned home with aching knees and empty hands. Then, resourceful girl that I am, a brilliant idea struck. I dug deep into my Doc Marten boots, extracted the insoles bought like eight years ago when they were 3 bucks, and inserted them into current footwear. Problem kinda sorta solved, according to wallet and knees. Way I see it is that insoles that old with even a wee bit of padding can't be anything but Dr. Scholl on steroids.

Yesterday’s breakfast: chocolate.

Dinner: chocolate.

And for dessert: chocolate.

All in a 30-minute span.

There’s a church in my hood that I attend occasionally -- not for religious purposes, rather the cool blues vespers.

Last evening was all things chocolate. Chocolate and music from 6 to 8 p.m. I arrive late and to my dismay have missed the music.

But not the chocolate - praises be lots of it glistening on tables draped in white linens.

Since I've not eaten all day, I begin of course with breakfast: small drop cookies topped with a dab of dark chocolate.

But what kind of breaking of fast is that?

Pretty insubstantial, I say. So I skip lunch and proceed directly to a more substantive dinner:

chocolate mint brownies
Nanaimo bars
German chocolate cake
chocolate brownies
chocolate-covered raspberry candies
fresh pear dipped in chocolate
chocolate chip cookies

and for dessert:

frosted chocolate Bundt cake

Not a lot of anything, mind you; even little portions add up.

Thank god for the red wine. Not only does it provide nutritional value but sedation because fueled by sugar and caffeine I'm ready to race home and vacuum like the wind. Not only my apartment, which is super clean as it is, but my neighbors' too if not the entire 5-story building.

We're encouraged to take the leftovers so I tuck as many wrapped Lindt truffles and a couple dainty cakes in pleated white paper cups as my small black bag can hold. Hell, if I'd known that all that chocolate would've been for the taking, I'd have left the little bag at home and hauled a box of Tupperware.

Back at the apartment I boil up a giant bowl of spaghetti with sausage links for protein. Followed by a late-night snack of, you guessed it, petit fours.

You may call all that gooey dark goodness sinful or you might call it heaven; I call it a miracle to escape a coma.