GEARING UP!!!!!

Here's MJ with last year's works!! Harper might make it up north for this year's display. And some new friends from Oregon!!

Tom has painted the fence and the big picnic table. We're not refinishing the deck until after the hordes have re-sanded it! I have been killing all the baby spiders flying by and will now wash the windows!

Winter is over!! Tom cleaned out the fireplace and is cleaning the glass doors so it will look presentable on the Fourth.

The invitation has been emailed and the spare beds reserved. There might be room on the tiled, hard kitchen floor and on the deck if needed! Let me know.

Last week when we kept Mads and Chels, MJ and Chloe visited, too. We had a great, calm day on the bay so the girls borrowed Marilyn's kayak and went for a cruise. They had a great time!!

It's rather difficult to paddle on the Fourth because your vessel would be used as targets for bottle rockets!

Madison gave Angelo a shower outside. So yesterday he came in smelling like a skunk! Where was Madison when I needed her?? Monday Angelo has a haircut and bath at the beauty shop. And I'm still trying to find him room at a kennel for the Fourth since he is so adverse the boomers.

I get to go do my favorite chore now: wash windows. I told MJ I would leave the place clean for her while she dogsits Angelo Thursday thru Sunday. Hopefully some of the cleaning will stay that way until the Fourth! Maybe the windows anyway, depending on the seagulls!!

See you all on the Fourth!! Ciao, bella!

A couple sunny days and the doings

Father's Day and the following Monday were sunny. It was overcast a little and not very warm so I didn't lather Maddy with sunscreen and her poor little shoulders are hurting her! I'm feeling pretty guilty. It wasn't that nice! to burn, I mean. But she did. Sorry, Maddy.

C & D dropped off Maddy and Chelsea on Friday night while they scoot off to Wenatchee for a visit and to their hideaway outside Coulee. Megs is out of school already while Mads and Chels have to go til noon Thursday. Tom and I have been enjoying the girls daily rituals, hauling them out of bed, packing lunches, and driving them to school. Also, nightly laundry and worries about what to wear, so we have been off to Target 2 nights and to JCP 2 nights. Now they have the perfect outfits for the last few days of school. Maddy has Hawaiian Day and Field Day tomorrow and went to the Woodland Park Zoo today. Chels is taking finals in math, science, English, final art project, and I can't remember what else. They both seem to love school and their teachers. Chels is really trying at her grades and seems to be enthusing on the challenge! She loves her art class.

Tom and I went to Sno King Lodge tonight; they have a luau on Sat. evening at St. Alphonses which we will be attending. And tomorrow night is the Italian potluck at Jennings Park for the Mille Cugini Lodge. Next Tuesday is Bel Porto's meeting at Squalicum Yacht Club in B'ham. Keeps us busy. Even those of us who aren't the least bit Italian!!

Mom, Pam and I are going to lunch tomorrow with Carol Min. who will be in town for the day. Might be interesting. We saw her not too long ago at Uncle Lee's funeral and before that at Aunt Margaret's last year.

and in the morning, the SHS class of 61 has their weekly breakfast at Jake's diner on 2nd St. in Snohomish! 0930.

Off to bed. We arise at 6 AM and go until we drop in our tracks -- like now!!

Grandparents

Grandparents
Originally uploaded by mjravensgate

Tom and Mary at Lynn's wedding last February 16th.

Angelo

Angelo
Originally uploaded by mjravensgate

Angelo at sunset. Photo by MJ.

No Picture of Tom at the Dinner

Tom, our Mille Cugini Treasurer, was one of the hardest working members at the dinner. He was the go-to man if you needed anything. He made a trip to FMeyer's for the strainer and another trip to Haggen Foods for more cake. He solved a lot of problems and gave us logical guidance.

Today he has already made deposits for the lodge, at the bank and at the dump! and returned a cooler to Tony.

Here he is with Chelsea last year at Chelsea's graduation from Immacualte.

The Real Cooks

Robert G. is the man in charge of boiling the water and every last noodle! Here he is reviewing the new kitchen at St. Mary's with the contractor after the dinner.






Robert, Ian and Joe D. cook the past outside in HUGE pots on propane burners. They aren't allowed to dump the hot water on Father's lawn!




This is Joe D., another outdoor cook. They started at 8 AM and finished about 8 PM. Good volunteer hours!!


Oh, yeah, see in the background. A whole club of Red Hat Ladies attended our dinner.









A kitchen contractor on the left discusses the goods and bads of the newly-remodeled kitchen with Head Gravy cook Steve D. And you all probably know the cook on the right, Chris C. We owe it all to the cooks!!

Randi and Kauleen were in charge of getting the pasta drained and onto the plates, an important job all by itself. See their picture below.




And this is Ian, the cook's apprentice who has been cooking pasta at the church since he was about 6! He is the son of Margaret and Dale and brother of Sarah. Margaret is full-blooded Italian. See her below working in the kitchen.

That's Peter in the background. He served beverages all day with Tony P., and also acquired the new vinyl Mille Cugini sign which we put out front, and he brings and stores all the sandwich board signs.

Mangia!

Many of the members of Mille Cugini (1,000 cousins), Sons of Italy Marysville Lodge #2659, are still working. Besides writing blogs, I need to write a special article with pictures for the Northwest Italian News. I'll try to get you a link for this.

We're also washing aprons, towels, rags, and returning them to the church. Bimbo Bakeries, dba Oroweat donated all the dinner rolls. Several pounds of pasta were donated by Nana Carmela's Ristorante in Monroe and so the pasta we purchased needs to be returned to the lodge, as well as more of the aprons, banners, flags, and much more. Pots, carafes, vases, huge coolers, propane burners and tanks, and many more items are stored at members' homes. It all has to go back!

SHS Class of '61 enjoys some spaghetti!! Ginger, Marilyn and Bonnie. Rita S. and family were also at the dinner: Rita, Gerry, Kim, Matt, Sam, Vince, Beau and Madison.

A record number of dinner tickets were sold, both in presales and at the door. Monies earned go to support our lodge, St. Vincent de Paul, Coolie's Anemia (Italian children are affected by this), Alzheimer's foundation, Marysville Food Bank and to pay for the use of St. Mary's.

Former GLNW Sons of Italy Treasurer Mary S., with GLNW Past President Dorothy S. and current Grand Lodge President Diane Scillo. After the dinner, Dorothy took home the prize!!

Selling tickets for the raffle were Annette and Cheryl with an unidentified customer. Patti (not pictured) and others also sold tickets, and together they raised a nice sum for our lodge, our charities and our scholarships. All of the raffle prizes were donated by members and merchants. Cheryl is still delivering prizes.

Surprise, Pat!!

Dierdre showed up!! She recognized Uncle Tom and Aunt Mary, also cousin Chris, from THE Poker Party last February. And, we introduced her to Randi and Kauleen. She is a "girlfriend" of Chuck's and special friend to Annette and Patti. These 3 ladies have Windermere connections.

Spaghetti Dinner Worker Bees

Tony with Mario Brock (It's over!)

Margaret waiting for another load to come out of the dishwasher!

Mary D. and Rose Mary after the last leaf of lettuce had been served!

Finally, it was over! Still smiling!!

Canonica Chianti Classico from Barolo

This is a picture of the label of the Canonica Chianti Classico wine. Vince found it on the internet.

Thursday Thirteen Fourth of July Planning!!!

Thirteen Things about the Fourth of July 1. We have to start planning for the Fourth of July. We always have a "blowout" affair since we live on an Indian reservation. Yes, some of the neighbors have had their windows blown out with the repercussions! We're a teensy bit calmer here at 226 than down the beach where they lost the windows. 2. We have a very small neighborhood parade complete with floats, lots of red, white and blue crepe paper, costumes and PIRATES! We don't tell people where our parade is because then we'd have to get permits, block off streets and all that. Currently we have a parade of bikes, trikes, wagons, tractors and golf carts with cute kids and gnarly adults dressed for the occasion! 3. "Boom City" is just a couple miles from here, an awesome sight unto itself. Be prepared to duck if you go and enjoy the awesome sites. Boom City has all the tempting, booming delights a pyromaniac would want!! 4. I pulled in a picture of a few blasters Chris brought home from Boom City last year. (The picture is at the top, cuz I'm untalented at placing pictures in my postings). Chris is our head pyromaniac and MJ is his chief apprentice! 6. We have food: Shish-ka-bobs, salmon, hamburgers, hot dogs, oysters, potato salad, fruit salad, watermelon, hot beans in a pot if Tony comes, and more. And the food lasts all day and we eat all day! Everyone keeps bringing more food and more drinks. It is a family affair and no one has ever gotten out-of-hand. 7. We have birthday cake. Chris' birthday is the 3rd and he celebrates by blasting all night on the 4th. 8. People come from miles around, sometimes from Italy, some from Long Beach, Olympia, Grand Coulee, Burlington, even Marysville!! 9. Tom has been putting on this grand festa since 1985! 10. Sometimes we hold pots, pans or cookie sheets over our heads to protect us from falling fireworks debris. 11. Sometimes we have to yell "Incoming!" to the neighbors when our fireworks go astray. 12. We blast the fireworks off a platform over the water out towards the middle of the bay. 13. Either before or after our fireworks are over, the City of Everett puts on a civil, much larger, less noisy, less-dangerous-to-us display. We can also see a bit of the Lake Stevens fireworks display and a great display put on by the citizens of Everett where fireworks are outlawed! (14. Oooops! I forgot a very important fact so I have to list 14!! The 4th of July is Tom and Mary's anniversary, 16 years and a couple of them were great!! Happy Anniversary, Tom!!)

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Did I mention the volunteers?

In addition to immediate members of the Canonica familiy who work most of the day at our spaghetti dinner, other close members de la famiglia also volunteer:

MJ has worked with us since she returned from New Orleans during Katrina and we truly appreciate her help. She even went to the Health Permit class with Papa and is highly qualified in the food handling departent, food storage and cooking temperatures. MJ clears and resets tables along with Megan, Madison and Chelsea, helps serve the dinner, and is a great resource for me to lean on.

Erin has splashed "gravy" and tossed meatballs and sausages onto plates for at least 5 years and we truly appreciate her sticking with us thru all the dinners. All of her family enjoys being Italian at our dinners.

And new to the hash slinging this year are Kauleen and Randi! Randi actually is Italian, being a Canonica offspring! (I don't know if Kauleen is Italian or not.) Welcome to you both!! We have lots of jobs and know you'll quickly pick up on what needs doing. I don't know exactly what spot Denise has planned for you but I'm thinking of a couple posts that need filling. Thanks for volunteering!!

Thanks to all of you for extending the extra effort to work with us!!! Viva Italiana and Italian wannabes! We love the culture, the language, the heritage, the people like Chiara and her family, and strive to enrich our lives with them.

Maybe V will find us another Italian member of our family at this dinner!!

Corrections to the Spaghetti Dinner Article in Today's Paper

About the Herald writeup on the dinner, there are a couple items a bit incorrect:

Only the sauce and the meatballs are handmade; the sausage is store-bought! We do use cans of sauce, paste, tomatoes to make the "gravy". And we have never made $100,000 in our lives!! Each year we give approx $1000 to charities and sell scholarship raffle tickets to fund our scholarships.

Further, the fact that Denise Canonica is our hardworking, stressed-out, HBIC was also left out!

And the two pictured in the article make great monetary donations!!

Giovanni Canonica's Barolo Wine Vineyard

Tom's cousin Charlene C. and her daughter Chandell are currently in Barolo, Piedmonte, Italy, visiting with cousin Giovanni and touring his grape vineyard. How exciting! To learn more, go to www.barolodibarolo.com, click on English, and then vineyards. You'll see Giovanni's name and there's a picture of him. Vince has found the Canonica Barolo wine online so we can order it. Charlene said in her email that it is difficult to purchase the wine in Barola and import it from Italy for herself, so we'll try ordering it online.

The beginning of the story:

Originally there were three Canonica brothers, Tom's grandfather Ferdinand who was a butcher in Italy and moved to Everett, Vittorio who became a shopkeeper in Snohomish (Vic's Market still exists), and the third brother (name unknown, possibly Giovanni) who stayed in Barolo making wine. Ferdinand was married to Patrina and they had lots of children including Charlene's dad Charlie and Tom's dad Angelo. Charlie was born in Barolo and Angelo, the youngest, was born in Ladysmith, BC, Canada. Ferdinand and Patrina came to the US via Canada, not Ellis Island.

The Canonica's also had other children, Virgie, Margaret (Margo), Clemmie and Babe. The boys were Vic, Charlie, Angelo and Tom in that order. Tom remembers as a kid visiting Aunt Virgie and Margaret's house in Garlic Gulch on Flora Avenue in Georgetown in South Seattle. He remembers going to the train station with his dad to bring home the zinfandel grapes that would come in on boxcars from California and they would make their own wine. Tom's best memory is the smell of the kitchen in Aunt Clemmy's house and how wonderful all the Italian food was.

This post will be a work in progress, and I'll add more as I get details from Tom and possibly from Larry and Charlene.

Spaghetti Dinner this Saturday, June 7th at St. Mary's

The big day is almost here! It's time to enjoy a plate of pasta, meatballs and sausage, with a salad and a glass of wine. Just like in the old country!! Tell your mama, tell your pa! Bring them to St. Mary's this Saturday, 4200 88th St. NE, Marysville, Washington. The dinner is open to the public. Tickets are: adults, $10; children 4 to 10, $5. Raffle tickets will also be sold.

Steve D. is making the gravy. Oroweat is donating the dinner rolls. Nana Carmela's donated the pasta. All the Italians and Italian wannabes will be cooking and serving, playing Italian musical favorites, selling raffle tickets and giving away prizes. The hours are 2 to 7 PM.

A portion of the proceeds from this fundraiser support Coolie's Anemia, the Alzheimer's Foundation, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Mary's Catholic Church.

The proceeds from the 50/50 raffle go to our local scholarships. Below are a couple pictures of this years' scholarship recipients. You may see them, their parents or their grandparents working at the dinner, so be sure to give them your congratulations!

Mother Susan G., recipient Michael G., President Coco, and dad Robert G.

Michael receives his scholarship certificate May 21, 2008.

Mother Lori B., Alan B. and Mille Cugini Lodge President Coco G.

Coco presents Alan with his scholarship certificate.

A 50/50 raffle is held at our Mille Cugini #2659 Spaghetti Dinner to raise money to sponsor the scholarships for sons, daugters and grandchildren of the local lodge members. This Sons of Italy Lodge is in Marysville, Washington. (Mille Cugini is Italian and translates to "1,000 cousins".)

This year five scholarships were given out. The two sons of members above were present at the award ceremony and meeting. Other winners were Christina Del G., daughter of Ronald Del G., lodge member from Lake Stevens, Rebecca J. and Gina D., granddaughters of lodge members Mary and Frank D. Congratulations to all!!

We hope to see you all at the spaghetti dinner. Denise is the chairman and has worked and stressed over this for months! Give her a hug! Tickets are available at the door and from this and all local lodge members!

Ciao!

Pictures of Memorial Day Weekend 2008

A few happy moments. In a rush. More soon!

Home from Coulee!

We had a great time and took pictures which I will try to post tomorrow. Allison, Pat, Randi and Kauleen are wonderful, gracious hosts! It was great to see Ryan and DeWayne after several months, and Tammy and Vince, and Dave and Pam, Cori and John, Spencer and Bella, Bruce and Jesse, Barb and Dick, Tory and Girlfriend, Joe and JD, and of course all the Canonicas. I hope I didn't leave anyone out! It was a really good weekend. More tomorrow!

Friday Fill-Ins

Friday, May 16, 2008


1. There is absolutely NO way you can get me to jump in this cold bay, except maybe to try to save a life!

2. Today's weather forecast reminds me that summer is almost here!

3. I cannot live without my New York crossword puzzle and coffee in the mornings.

4. Making another quilt and getting a suntan are two things I'd like to try.

5. When life hands you lemons, squeeze them for all their worth and save the juice for blackberry pies and of course lemonade!

6. Learning to swim in the Pilchuck River is one of my favorite childhood memories.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to having the house, beach and deck full of kids and grandkids, picnics and lemonade, sandy wet towels and suits, and suntan lotion, tomorrow my plans include more of the same and maybe staying cool in 90 degree weather and Sunday, I want to do more of the same!

Thursday Thirteen Things Thought Today

Thursday Thirteen
Things Thought About May 15, 2008

1. Payday! Score!!
2. Planting corn! Tom and I planted 4 rows and it's warm and we should eat well and prosper (this fall)!
3. Paying bills online; I did it for the first time today!
4. Four bald eagles kept swooping over our deck so I hid our cat Midnight in the house.
5. It's the Ides of May and it feels pretty good! Sunshine at last and being outdoors and on the beach! Hooray!!
6. The mountains were out, too, in all their glory and still sparkling white with snow!
7. All the granddaughters will be here tomorrow, we hope, to bask in the sunshine!
8. Colin got to go to the Zydeco Festival near the San Diego airport last weekend, and also to Lego Land.
9. Eight Common Loons were swimming out front yesterday, in the misty showers and fog.
10. Veronica will have her birthday next weekend at Life is Good and I will miss her. Randi will also have a celebration there.
11. Chloe auditions for a part in a Shakespeare play this weekend in Seattle.
12. Tomorrow we will buy lots of flowers and fill all the pots on the deck with hopes of having beautiful color by the Fourth.
13. When the strawberries are ripe in the fields at the end of June and first part of July, the wild mountain blackberries will be ripe in the woods and it will be time for picking.

1. The white chocolate mocha had an extra secret ingredient; it was cinnamon!
2. I can see the new moon through my window.
3. Right now, I need a hug.
4. To see MJ, Chloe, Ronnie and Frank is where I went Thursday night; it was nice to feel the love.
5. "Why does having a tooth pulled hurt so much?" Frank asked.
6. All I can think of is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to working on my quilted Christmas tablecloth, tomorrow my plans include possibly a movie with MJ and Chloe and Sunday, I want to be pampered!

Thursday Thirteen "T" Destinations

Thirteen Destinations starting with T(Places I have experienced or think I would like to experience) 1. Tortola, an island in the British Virgins, West Indies, the Caribbean 2. Tahiti, , Society Islands, South Pacific (or any tropical island) 3. Taj Mahal, white marble structure built in Agra, India 4. Toowoomba, town in SE Queensland, E. Australia 5. Timbuktu, Mali, Africa, or any place far, far away 6. Trento, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy, home to Chiara and family 7. Torino, Piemonte, Italy, home to Chiara-Due and native region of the Canonica's (Barolo) 8. Table Mountain, near Capetown, South Africa 9. Tennessee, a hot southern state that was fun, Opryland and Memphis, USA 10. Tonga, an island kingdom in the SW Pacific 11. Tortilla Flat, Arizona, outdoor jazz sessions at an intersection northeast of Apache Junction 12. Thailand, formerly Siam, exotic kingdom in SE Asia 13. Times Square, downtown New York, New York, USA

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A day to forget

I've been pondering all day trying to think of something substantial to say and it's just not there. Tom is razor clam digging in Copalis, or has been for two days, very successfully. He stayed at Cliff and Linda's in McCleary two nights with my car since C & D had his truck in Coulee. This morning when I talked with him, he was just finishing breakfast with Cliff at the Rusty Tractor in Elma and from there he was heading to Seaview to see his brother Larry. Larry had a tachocardia (??) episode with his heartbeat over 230 a week ago Sunday so he landed in a couple hospitals and had a pacemaker/defibrilator implanted. And he now sounds good and is doing well. On his next trip to Cabo, Larry will have to remember to bypass the xray machines at the airport and have the "personal" patdown! A lovely experience.



A couple of weeks ago, we had a flock of 29 Common Mergansers out front on the water, 5 males and 24 females. Today the Eagles are fighting in the gloaming and trying to find easy food. Our new cat Midnight, who came to us from who-knows-where, has gotten used to our house and thinks she should always be inside poking around. And Angelo, our English Springer Spaniel has decided, in Tom's absence, that the recliner is the place to curl up when soaking wet from a swim in the briny bay! (All the rest of the furniture is covered and somewhat waterproofed for this occurrence but the recliner is ill-prepared.) Last night I wondered why I had a wet backside after sitting in the chair.



Well, anyway, remember, I said Tom had my car. That leaves me with his red F250 Ford pick up. And, I kept Megan and Madison overnight last night so Denise could leave early for PM school in Bellevue this am. We did great, jumped up at 6:30, showered, dressed, ate, jumped in the truck after rounding up Angelo from the neighbors, hummed into the Everett Avenue house to pick up some things for Megan. Plenty of time to make it to school on schedule. Then I remembered I needed to leave the girls' overnight bags in the house and so I slammed the truck in park and hit the emergency brake. Normally, this is no problem, but the brake release is broken and total frustration ensued. I'm not supposed to step on the emergency brake! I knew the brake release was broken. With flashlight and screwdriver in hand, I set about manually releasing the brake, but to no avail. I have watched Tom and Chris do this magic trick, but alas, I was not privy to the secret of releasing the emergency brake via screwdriver. Frustration, frustration, calls to Chris in Seattle, calls to Tom in Elma. What's a woman to do?!! Vent! Called the schools to say the girls would be late; rounded up Angelo who kept escaping the truck onto Everett Avenue. I locked Angelo in the truck and the girls in the house watching morning TV, (all before 8 am mind you) and I walked the two blocks to the Auto Repair shop, asked the mechanic to come help. He walked back to the truck with me, hit the magic spot with the screwdriver and Voila! The emergency brake flipped off. End of story, except I handed the guy 20 bucks, and he walked back to his shop. Then I delivered Megan to her school and Madison to her school and made it home in one piece. I then took my blood pressure medicine and my daily aspirin, curled up back in bed with Angelo on the floor beside me, cooled down and slept. Another day conquered!! or is it, Another day conquered me???!!

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Friday Fill-In #70
1. Two of my favorite ingredients in a drink are Kahlua and cream! (along with a little vodka and a splash of Pepsi over ice, making it a Smith and Wesson.)
2. Veronica and Lynn often amaze me. (My two Awesome daughters, so clever and bright! Where'd they get that?!!)
3. You can keep doing that forever, the dog is at Joe's. (My dog Angelo is always at his friend Joe's, next door.)
4. Lima beans and kernel corn, mix it all together and voila! You have succotash! (Isn't that what Sylvester says in Tweety Bird?)
5. If I had a yard with a garden, I would love to grow wisteria and hydrangeas. (Oh! That is what's in my garden!)
6. Showering is best au naturel. (Imagining Tom in the shower in his gardenwear: Carhartt coat, gloves, boots, and all!)
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Grey's Anatomy, tomorrow my plans include picking Chelsea up at the mall and Sunday, I want to spend $600 on a new wardrobe like my unnamed friend did!

Caribbean Craziness

For his birthday, Frank asked for a 2-week Caribbean vacation. So we had 1 day in the islands.

Frank's and Emma's Caribbean vacations started with the decorating committee of Chelsea and MJ. They made jelly fish, an egret, hibiscus flowers, and other memorabilia. We blew up balloons and hung crepe paper with "Welcome to the Caribbean" signs. Then Ella showed up! (Note the balloons resting on the deerhead.)Emma put on her lei and grass skirt while Erin and Lila tried to do a Caribbean hula for Papa.
One of Frank's presents was a lobster red, lobster-shaped hot mitt for his cooking protection.

The grass-skirt people included Emma, Chloe, and Chelsea enjoying a mango/strawberry Caribbean smoothie. After smoothies and other blended concoctions, we made roast beef, salami, havarti, turkey, provolone panini sandwiches on ciabatta bread. Special regae music was provided by MJ via her ipod playlist. Chloe did a pretty good hula! And Angelo does a natural swing (with his tail and whole body)!

GG turned 87 on April 9th, Emma turned 9 on April 24th, Frank hit a year ending in "0" on the 27th, and Mary hit a year ending in "5" on the 29th.

A marvelous time was had by all!

Update on the Spaghetti Dinner June 7th

Many of you are wondering, as are we, if the kitchen at St. Mary's will ever be done (remodeled) and if we at Sons of Italy in Marysville will ever be able to hold our spaghetti dinner fundraiser. Well, there is hope. Tony P reports that the new wiring looks complete, something is being done with the venting, and a couple of appliances are in. No floor tho, and more of the cabinets have been torn out. More about this piece of suspense as soon as I hear!

Larry C's big day and other doings

Larry C. had a heart attack on Sat. the 26th about noon. He's OK now. He was out mowing the lawn and went back in the house, dizzy, and told Sandy he didn't feel good. Sandy says that he then proceeded to make funny noises and his eyes rolled back and she called 911. Ilwaco Hospital or the aid car, unclear which, found him in fibrilation, about 250-285 beats per minute. Meds didn't stop it, so they applied the paddles and brought him back. They then shipped him to a hospital in Portland, Emmanuel something, where he had an angiogram yesterday. Angiogram was clear. This am, doctors were to decide whether to treat him with drugs or implant a pacemaker/defibrilator. We will talk with Larry at 6 tonight and find out what happened. He was resting comfortably at 6 last night.

Happy birthday wishes to Frank, Emma and my mom. We celebrated yesterday with a Caribbean party complete with rum punch, pina coladas, pineapple and coconut, and jellyfish!
Chels and MJ did the decorating and wore grass skirts and leis, as did Frank and Emma!! We made good use of the new blender, a C present from Erin and Erik, and the panini press, last year's b present from F and V. Pictures next post, I'm positive.

Razor clam tides this weekend, 4th and 5th, at Copalis. Tom is thinking of going down and digging with Cliff.

White in Coulee

I woke up about 8 AM and the ground and sky and hills were all white! Beautiful....

More soon!

Thursday Thirteen Code

Thirteen Things about Places I've Been 1. On a local ferry named "La Bamba" between St. Thomas and Tortola in the British Virgins. 2. On a sailboat in the Caribbean, island hopping, with Cap'n Frank, 1st Mate Veronica and deck crew Tom. Barbecueing on the back rail, chasing the Laughing Gulls away, and drinking funny punch. 3. On a ferry between Edmonds and Kingston watching the dolphins chase us, having my first Coke (it came up my nose), and on my way to stay in Poulsbo with Grandma Hayes and Grandpa Alec. 4. On a sailboat I named the Enjoye in San Francisco Harbor, once tied to the pilings of the Bay Bridge for the night, and several nights being towed back to Alameda since we had no money for an engine. 5. On a 13' boat out of Sekiu with 10 foot waves and 18 salmon on board! Just trying to stay in the boat and clean 18 fish was a real trick! 6. On a Sea of Cortez tour boat in the harbor at Cabo San Lucas, watching Argentinians dance and waiters pouring Tequila Sunrises. 7. On a sailing pirate ship in the harbor of Cancun with lots of swashbuckling pirates sailing the ship, and then being by pirates from another ship. Very entertaining! 8. On a 13' Valco motoring out to the dolphin at Mission Bar at midnight with no lights and just for fun! Very quiet and full of awsomeness. 9. On a float plane on Great Slave Lake out of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, to see the tundra terrain from the air. The natives took floatplanes wherever they needed to go, like to a doctor or a hospital, and tourists/fishermen used them to get to floating fishing camps. 10. On a rowboat on a lake (St. Mary's?) in Glacier Park, Montana. 11. On a ferry from Anacortes to the San Juan Islands (Guaymes, Shaw, San Juan, Orcas). Totally beautiful and wonderful on a sunny day. 12. On one of the tall sailing ships, a barque in Port Gardner Bay, when it sailed in to give tours. 13. On a 16 ft. runabout with 10 ft. rollers in the Straits of Juan de Fuca when Joe O. and Tom were seasick, Karen and Jason not much better, and I piloted the boat back to the dock!

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Critter land in Coulee

The Punteney's have a new blog called "couleecritters" if you want to check it out. Randi set it up for them.

Speaking of the Punteney's, Tom and I and Angelo will be heading over there to Coulee this morning. We'll be celebrating Pat's birthday and just visiting with everyone. We'll be home next Monday so I'll talk with you all then.

Tuesday Tidbits April 15th

Tax Day! Sinking of the Titanic Day! Sandy's Birthday!!

Today was a nice day. I slept soundly until 8:30, probably because Tom had such a wonderful fire going and the whole house was snugly! And, he let Angelo out before he had a chance to wake me. GG had her Korean neighbor for company and bagels this morning so I didn't pick her up until 12:30 to run to Prov for the pro-time blood test. GG is on cumudin (sp?) blood thinner since before her open heart surgery last August, and she needs a blood test every couple weeks to make sure the cumudin level is "just right", not too thin and not too thick!

We went to the old C Van's meat market on 15th and Rucker in Everett. It has been converted into The Red Umbrella Restaurant with soups, sands and salads, along with a latte bar and a wine bar, and lots of cozy little tables. We had the roast beef and cheddar on wheat with a bowl of fruit and raspberry Italian sodas. Very nice. We're going back. After lunch we drove thru north Everett admiring all the blooming trees: magnolia (tulip, light and dark pink), cherries (Whitecomite or something like that); and plants: Irish bells, forsythia, rhodies, Star magnolias, and many more. Beautiful. I especially like the pink star magnolias since I only remember them being white in years past.

We drove out Mukilteo Boulevard to find more beauty but it didn't get much better than around 15th and Rucker! North Everett is really beautiful. Also all the cherry trees are in bloom on 16th St and almost as gorgeous as the UW Quad , MJ. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera. GG and I enjoyed the trip, even cruised thru Forest Park but there wasn't much blooming there yet.

And tonight, Chelsea called Papa and wanted to escape so he picked her up and brought her to the beach. She spent most of her time here on the laptop. Then we went to Froso's for huge shrimp Caesar salads for both Tom and Chelsea. I love their dinner salad which is covered in shredded mozzarella and my favorite ranch. Num!

So, we stopped by Staples cuz Chelsea needed pencils and we bought cool erasers for the rest of the girls. Discussed spaghetti dinner options with Chris and Denise, watched the beginning of Biggest Loser, and raced home about 8:30 to watch the big finish. Of course Allison won and we were pretty much rooting for Kelli. They both gave their all!

So now it's after 11 and I'm having breakfast early tomorrow am at Jake's in Snohomish with Rita, Ginger, Don, et al. Then there's Lodge at 6:30. We're taking pesto.

Ciao Bella!
Labels: Doings, GG

Friday Fill-In #67 (but my first!)

Friday Fill-Ins

Friday, April 11, 2008

1. I love springtime in the winter!
2. Eggs Benedict, sausage and eggs, and cheesy omelets are foods I love to eat for breakfast.
3. It seems I'm always searching for my reading glasses!
4. Reading til I fall asleep is a great way to end the day.
5. I think I will make the Grand Marnier/cream cheese dip with fresh fruit for Rita's birthday! YUM!
6. Trail mix with lots of peanuts and M & M's is what I've been craving lately.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to going to seeing the Blair's new house in Arlington and having a crab louie for dinner, tomorrow my plans include a birthday lunch for Rita and Sunday, I want to work at the rest area, update my blog and do a late Friday Fill-In!

Tampico's and Angelo

Angelo, our "Italian English Springer Spaniel" taken tonight.
( He wouldn't stand up so you can't really see his new haircut.)

And, more pictures of my flowers!

Last night we had a really nice time at Tampico's with Veronica, Frank, MJ and Chloe. We had margaritas, chile verde in all forms, tamales and enchiladas. MJ and Chloe had their favorite virgin strawberry margaritas and Chloe had flan. We hadn't had a chance to just visit in forever, it seems, so this was good. We caught up on news and friends from the old neighborhood in Marysville (John, Linda, Jim, Danelle, Tara, Ashleigh, Billie, Kelly's and many more). It was also my first chance to see Chloe's tiny new tiny nose jewel. It's pretty. MJ has controlled herself for the moment but will, I'm sure, head back for more piercings as soon as she is allowed or turns 16!! She already has two nose rings and lots of ear piercings. We'll see what happens next, right , MJ?

The Maier family will be in one of the Carolina's in September for the Unschooling Conference where Veronica will be one of the noted speakers. From there they fly to New York, and on to Ireland and Italy. They hope to spend some good time with Chiara and her family as well as realizing the lifelong dream of visiting Ireland. I think I must have mentioned this trip before in my blog because now I remember saying "I'm so jealous!" MJ will have her camera and will, I'm sure, keep me posted visually!

And, as for tomorrow, it's housecleaning time and laundry day. How exciting!

The Doings, as Veronica calls it

Sunday April 6th was Angelo's 5th birthday. Angelo is our "Italian" English Springer Spaniel, he is beautiful but not very well-mannered when the girls come in the house. He is positive they have come only to see him and he gets a little over-ecstatic. But Happy Birthday, Angelo. We have suffered thru many epileptic seizures with Angelo, so his having made it this far is a miracle attributable to pet meds! Angelo got his spring haircut on Thursday, "pictures at 11".

On Monday both the male and the female loons appeared. They are so big and so gorgeous in their spring plumage. They are still here enjoying the good diving (loons can dive to 300 feet we read!). We also have a pair of Mallards, they alternate between the estuary out front, the drainage ditch out back, and the pond in the Cox's field! They have stayed around for a couple weeks. Last week we had a pair of white swans on the jetty; very gorgeous, but I didn't get to see them fly away. We have innumerable Eagles, one young mottled Eagle that perches on the roof 2 doors down, and many Osprey, terns, seagulls, and Golden-eye. Wednesday we had a Greater Yellow Legs calling to us and searching the lapping water for special treats. The Grebes were singing last evening, it was still 70 degrees at 6PM. We don't have very many Grebes yet, but I love it when they sing. We will have a Grebe songfest about the first of June, or the first warm evening.

Wednesday I went to Jake's in Snohomish for breakfast with the SHS Class of 61 crew. Ginger brought her neighbor Nadine who quilts and Sarah's daughter Monica joined us. Monica is working in Redmond, volunteering, and hoping for a part-time position soon. And Saturday, Sandie had a few of us over to celebrate Rita's birthday. It was a big one, ending in 5! Ginger, Sally, Dede, Rita and I had a wonderful little party. Betty was at a wedding and Sue couldn't come. We think Diane is in Arizona at her sister's. Happy Birthday, Rita!

Next week is Sandy C's birthday on the 15th. Scott will be celbrating his on the 16th in either Louisiana or Arkansas. And, we leave to visit Pat and Allison in Coulee on the 17th, after the Mille Cugini meeting on the night of the 16th. We will again be celebrating Pat's birthday (on the 20th), his 51st this time!!! April is quite the birthday month!! Buon compleanno to all!

Ciao for now!

A Thousand Cousins (Mille Cugini)

Tom and I belong to the Sons of Italy, Marysville Lodge #2659, and the lodge's name is "Mille Cugini" which translates from the Italian to "a thousand cousins" in English. Everyone of Italian descent and everyone who is a "wannabe" Italian is welcome to join a local lodge. We trace our heritage back to Italian home towns, discover our heritage, and try to retain Italian customs, dances, songs and "Tradition". The Sons of Italy sponsors the Italian Festa at Seattle Center the last weekend of September. Our Canonica family has a full-fledged celebration of Columbus Day.

Since we joined the Italian Lodge about 12 years ago, we have become pretty involved and we have a lot of fun. Tom's son and daughter-in-law have also joined and are totally involved in our annual Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser in Marysville. This year the dinner is schedule for May 3rd at St. Mary's in Marysville. Unfortunately, the church chose this spring to renovate the kitchen, and it was supposed to be completed in March. Of course, it isn't complete, just barely started, so we will have to change the date or change the venue. We will keep you posted.

Well, what I started to say was that we, as a group, also do some community service which gives us some good feelings. Tom and I are both past presidents of Mille Cugini and are currently serving as State Deputies, Tom to Sno-King Lodge in Shoreline, and me to Bel Porto Lodge in Bellingham. This weekend, Sno-King Lodge provided the free coffee concession at the Northbound Smokey Point rest area on I-5, so Tom and I worked the noon to 6 shift, raked in a couple hundred dollars in donations, and had a wonderful time talking with all the travelers heading to Bellingham, the Tulip Festival in Mt. Vernon, Ferndale, and Canada. I had a memorable conversation with Kaiser, an 18 month old boy, who had a wonderful time grinning at me, and I grinned and baby-talked right back. What fun! I also met a couple from Viet Nam, a Grandma and Grandpa who had just landed at SeaTac and were on their first outing in the USA. They headed for the men's restroom together and I tried to explain. Not much luck. The daughter then translated. I learned that "Mama" in Vietnamese is "Ma", not sure of the spelling so when I tried to explain "Mama" and pointed to the women's room, and I further explained "Papa" and pointed to the men's room, I at least was headed in the right direction!

So, about Bel Porto Lodge in Bellingham. If any of you is planning to attend the Sea to Ski celebration that has been a Bellingham tradition of many years on Memorial WeekEnd, be sure to stop by the Sons of Italy meatball sandwich booth on Cornwall. It's on the parade route and their sausage sandwiches are REALLY good with great marinara, fried green peppers and onions. They may even be serving Italian sodas. And tell them Mary sent you!

Spring Flowers April 2008

My present to myself a couple days ago was this pot of spring flowers. They're so pretty, I bought two! One for Rita's 65th!! birthday, can you believe it!, and one for myself. I LOVE them!

...And more players!!

Devon Tom Mannus Vince, the big winner!

....More Poker April 5th, 2008

Joe and Chris, neither one came out on top, in fact they went home when I did about 11 PM.

Pat's 50th+Birthday and Poker Party

Pat finally got to celebrate his 50th birthday! He did it in fine style by playing poker with a bunch of high school friends and family. Allison brought Lonnie over from her work, Tom and I were there of course, Vince, Chris, Joe and Devon and many others. I'll try to load additonal pictures in my next blog.

Pat is sporting a shiner, an infected eye which he acquired in California the day before, and which he had treated in Mt.Vernon Saturday am.

Vince was one of the big winners! The rest of us just had fun playing Texas Hold 'Em with a lot of great people from Marysville High Class of 75. Thanks for the great party, Pat and Allison. Oh, and have a Happy 51st Birthday on April 22nd!!

HEEEEEERE's MADISON!!! It's spring break this week for the Everett School District and Madison has been out to stay a couple times. Yesterday we went shopping along with MJ and spent The Divine Miss M's gift cards from Old Navy. She got a new volleyball, very cool, new sweats, skort, top, flipflops and EYESHADOW!! We all had a great time! This morning Madison had to model the new duds, including the new flipflops. Cool 9-yr old!!

MJ got new shorts and eyeshadow. We all got lunch at Panda at Alderwood.

This afternoon, as we were leaving MJ's, Mads blew kisses to Trey who screamed and ran away! We dropped MJ, Chelsea, and Chloe off at the big house on Ev Avenue. Megan and Mads, too! They were going to do the laundry and help Chelsea work up the courage to get a piercing this evening. We'll see what happens!

Pat and Allison are on their way to Bellingham; Pat is finally celebrating his 50th birthday at the Tulalip Best Western. It's pretty close to his 51st birthday but health problems kept the celebrations to a minimum last year. This is a Texas Hold Em extravaganza, followed by trips to The Q by those of us who fold early!

Tonight, Tom and I and the Pets are going to Angels of the Wind for the 99-cent entrees for dinner. And the Pets have never been there. I'm sure we'll win at least $600 like Joe J. did last time we went! The Knight in Shining Armour won at Ringquest!!

Scott should be at Chris and Don's in Tularosa by now but he hasn't put anything on his blog; he probably has no connection until he goes to the Tularosa Library where Chris volunteers. First, they were going sledding in the White Sands outside Alamagorda! Wish we were there. It should be pretty warm.

Arrividerci!