OK I just have to say it....

Donald Trump for president? REALLY? Oh gosh, if this man is ever elected, I am selling everything and moving to another country. I don't like to get political but if this is not the most
pompous person in the whole world, I don't know who is. All he ever does is congratulate himself. He thinks he can get the US straightened out? And how many times has be bankrupted his casino business? The only reason he still owns the casinos is because the banks felt they had a better chance of seeing the millions he owes them if they let him stay in business instead of taking over the casinos themselves. I heard him say that we should be taking over the oil fields in Iraq. He feels they are rightfully ours now that we fought and won. He complains that the US is hated by many because of policies and old faux pas and he thinks that is how we'll fix that. Liberate a country from a cruel tyrant and then raid that country of its natural resources for our own benefit? In today's news, our president released his birth certificate after all this ridiculous speculation that he was not native born. Trump was pushing for this. Obama released it, he is american born, and now all this hoopla
was over nothing. When asked about it,Trump says, "I'm proud of myself because I accomplished something noone
else could do."(made him release the document) OMG, are you kidding? All you did was run your mouth. He thinks he invented the wheel now, or wiped out the deficit. I can't stand it anymore. This man will have us in WW3 before you know it if elected. What has become of this nation? Please tell me there is no chance this boob could wind up sitting at the helm of this country.

Can't think of a title

We are back from the Amish country. It was a nice few days. I never get tired of looking at rolling
farmland, ever. Bought a few things for the homestead. I wanted a new "coffee" table and decided
an antique piece was just the thing. Can't really take to these modern style, decaled, particle board things. So I purchased a very old box with the chocolate company stencil still visible. Now
to build a top. I wanted to have a piece of marble cut for it. Tim insists we need to make a hinged top out of some worn barn boards. I'll have to put a time limit on his idea and then go and do what I want to get the task done. We had the MM support group today. I booked the speaker, an attorney who
specializes in elder law and helping people protect their assets when nursing home care is needed. The meeting went well and then I had to tear out of there, come home and pick up Tim, and run right back there for his doctor appt. My car is at the dealer again. They had it 4 months for a recall replacement of the rear axle and I got it back with a problem that they STILL can't diagnose. It is now cutting out and stalling
without warning and of course, it NEVER happens when they drive it. GRRRRR. Anyhoo, Tim now shows a slight band in his immunofixation test. His doc is not concerned. Said he could go like this for years. He even had this a year or so back and it went back to zero m-spike but this is the second appt. that showed this band. Bottom line is, he is not in a complete response anymore. The doc said he still doesn't have to come in any earlier than 3 months. He said all his other numbers are excellent and his hemoglobin is actually better than the doctor's own is. This is great because Tim's hemoglobin was below normal since his dx and is now within the normal range. This doctor really has a great personality and always talks to us about personal stuff. He remembers things months later that Tim and he spoke about too. He must get bored talking about MM all the time so he talks about anything but to us. He told me not to worry and said that while his MM was 100% undetectable, it is still 99.9% undetectable now. I know we have to
be grateful but, it's still hard not to feel a little like the party's ending. Not that it's been a party really but on May 9th, our daughter will be turning 13 and Tim will be celebrating 3 years off chemo. We know we've been lucky in that respect. So that's the MM scoop. Oh and I can't forget the puppy news. Well, we were so worried about dropping Lacey at the kennel up the road. We'd taken her there twice before to visit whilst making our decision about which kennel to use. We got there on Sunday and she started barking back at the dogs barking in the outdoor runs as soon as we got out of the car. She pulled us INTO the office and as soon as she saw the guy she'd met last time, she jumped all over him. He took her leash in his hand and she literally dragged him all the way to the back by the runs to be with the other dogs and never even looked back to say goodbye to us. We picked her up Wednesday. She was happy to see us but still loving on the guy who'd taken care of her. He said she was hanging around with him and he'd even let her stay with him in the office when they were closed for lunch. The other dogs were probably jealous. She is no worse for wear at all.
Wasn't even in a hurry to leave. We got her home, chucked her in the bath for germ and cleanliness sake, and she is the same old crazy puppy with no lasting ill effects from her time at doggy sleep away camp. We are glad but it is still hard to be away from her. I really don't think I could ever do this for a full week. Another long day tomorrow. Off to bed for me.

Off to the Amish country

Well, I have threatened it long enough. We are off to Lancaster, PA next week. Everytime I have mentioned going to the Amish country, it has gotten a Boo-Hiss from Liv and Tim. They think it will be boring. I just love it when Olivia thinks at 12 years old that she knows what another area of the country she has NEVER been to, will be like. I keep giving them the option of coming up with places to go and neither of them do. Well....not serious ideas anyway. Yours truly hates to fly and is NOT going to Hawaii and this is a 4 day trip anyway. It had to be somewhere close. So I just booked it and they're going. They will have a great time, just like they always do. Olivia thought we'd be living like the Amish and the thought of no TV had her in hives. I assured her the hotel is just like every other one we stay at and is completely modernized. Indoor plumbing, electricity, internet access, the works. We are kenneling our Lacey girl. I have never kenneled a dog before and I am pretty sad about it. It's a great place and right down the road but I'm so afraid she will be nervous with all those loud dogs there. They offered to let me bring her there for a few hours to get her used to it but I thought that could backfire. She loved the vet's office the first time. YAY people, doggies, kitties!!!!! She had a ball. Then they stuck a needle in her keester and she isn't fond of the place anymore. I thought the same thing could happen here and she will be more afraid when we leave if she decides she didn't like her short stay there. I know she will go nuts watching us walk away but I have to believe that she will adjust and do OK. We just have to get her used to it and this is a short trip so a good time to try. On the MM front, Tim has his blood draw tomorrow. Then he will have an appt. and Zometa treatment after Easter. He is busy as heck with work. Again, not complaining. We're very lucky, given this economy disaster in this country. I have tried to keep the news of Geraldine Ferraro's passing from MM from Olivia. Of course, we ran into my old obstetrician the other day and he brought it up right in front of her. I still don't know if she thinks Tim is free of MM or not. I imagine not as she knows he goes for check-ups still but we just want to salvage as much of her childhood as is possible under the circumstances. We are starting the softball season again. Olivia loves pitching but I have to say that it scares the heck out of me now. We went up a league and some of these older girls can really hit the ball. We've been taking Liv to lessons every week and I have to get out with her and practice as much as possible so these girls have a hard time hitting off her at all. If it would only stop raining!!!!!!! I was pitching to a left hander on my team the other day. Jess is a strong girl, actually throws shot putt. She nailed a ball right back at me and thank goodness I got my mitt in front of it as it was headed right at my chest. Everyone gasped and came running. They thought I got hit. Very scary to think that could have been my kid standing there. SO I am praying for a fun and safe season this year. Well back to the LONG list of things that have to be done before taking off to the land of shoo-fly pie. What the heck is shoo-fly pie anyway? Happy Easter everyone!

All things being relative

Our neighbors across the street are our favorites. They are a wonderful family and we just love 'em. Their house is a 2 family and they own another in Hackensack that they bought from a family member after renting from her when they first married. We walk our puppy over to their house for play dates with their dog who is a little older but the same mix of breeds. They are BFF's and play like mad. Yesterday, their upstairs tenant of 20 years was moving out after buying a house down the street. Their 2 family in Hackensack though has given them a lot of grief in the last 5 years. It has suffered damage from tenants. They had to evict several and are in that process again. They have had to sue for unpaid rents. It is not easy being a landlord and even though I have had some jerky tenants in the past, I have never had the problems they have had and never needed to go to court or got beaten out of months of rent. Steve was beside himself yesterday. Normally a funny guy with a ready joke and smile, he was morose like I'd never seen him before. I think they are seriously thinking about selling that house now. (I've thought for years that they should swap it for a 2 family closer to us in a better area so they'd get better tenants.) I know that if I was going through the same thing, I'd be losing sleep and irritated too. Even if you sue someone, there is no guarantee you will ever see the judgement paid to you. Owning real estate SHOULD be a good way to get ahead but people can really screw you over and there are more laws protecting them than you. I was upset myself when I came back from their house. These are good people who are being taken for a ride by yet another bad tenant. The idjit had a broken toilet and never told them and they just spent 2500 dollars in water bills. Then I thought, "ya know, ya gotta put it into perspective." He and his wife both have good jobs and incomes. So many in our area have lost their jobs and houses due to the economy. They are healthy, as are their 3 kids. They will be investing a little into fixing up the apt. in their house and then re-renting it for ALOT more money. They are solvent and none of their problems are going to break the bank. They own two 2-family houses in one of the most expensive real estate markets in the country. I know everyone's problems are VERY real to them. It's hard sometimes to stand back and look at the big picture, especially when you are right in the middle of a tumultuous time. But all this will pass. They will get everything straightened out and re-rented. It's hard to learn over and over just how untrustworthy people can be, but there are lots of folks today that would trade problems with them. As a matter of fact, I would give up both our houses and everything we own if someone would just tell me that my husband does not have cancer. Even so, the family in the next town that just lost their beautiful 7 year old daughter to brain cancer would probably trade places with us in a heartbeat. It's all a matter of perspective.