The Hatgidakis family
5/30/09
Happy Birthday Karen!!!!!!!!
Emily
5/30/09
I did have to change my internship. The one I had with Big Brothers Big Sisters ended up falling through. I am trying to get another one, but haven't heard back yet. My major doesn't require that I have to do an internship. But, it would help me out a lot credit wise... So, we'll see. Hopefully something will work out.
Erika had a good dress rehearsal yesterday, and is getting ready for the big recital this afternoon. She asked us not to, but we plan on videoing and taking lots of pictures. I will plan on sending some into Gary to put up, if he doesn't mind :)
I don't mind, if Erika doesn't mind! --Gary
Karen
5/29/09
Erika and I have been getting up a little later, and it's nice. Erika celebrated her last of school by going to the movies with a friend. Tonight is the (long) rehearsal for her dance recital. Wednesday was pictures and Tues was another rehearsal -- tomorrow afternoon is the recital. Then things should calm down for her. I haven't done a thing on the painting projects yet -- waiting to see if I get called for jury duty.
Grandma
5/28/09
So, School is out for Erika and Karen!
Bet there will be some sleeping in up there for awhile and I suppose Karen has the paint brushes all warmed up. Are Sam and Mark back from Disney World? And has the Spring Rush at Bachman's slowed down? How are you liking your new job, Anna? Amanda, I think your front with the new bushes looks awfully nice, as is. And any Tuesday night at supper time "we'll leave a light on for you." Donna, the video of the little girl reading the Kitten Book was the cutest thing. And, if I may say so, my front yard was pretty for some time altho, they won't be looking as good now, as they are almost all bloomed out. Have lotsa peonies and daisies tho. Thanx for sharing the pic, Gary! Emily, did you have to change your internship? Don't you have to finish one before you graduate? And if that may be next year?? How does everyone stay so busy??
Gary
5/28/09
In keeping with the gardening theme here recently, a few nights ago I took a photo (at Donna's suggestion) of the flowers in Grandma's front yard. If I remember correctly, the white ones are called lorna doones and the blue ones are hydrophobias. Have a look!Donna
5/28/09
I saw her on a talk show, she just looks at pictures and thinks up things to say. One day her dad decided to tape her and put it on YouTube. Over 3 million hits so far.
Karen
5/27/09
Yipee, my last day of school!! Erika is done at 12:30 tomorrow!
Lucky you! Enjoy your summer. --Gary
Amanda
5/27/09
We didn't watch Idol this year. First year ever we didn't watch. We didn't really miss it either... Though I hate not knowing what everyone's talking about.
Donna
5/27/09
Amanda, Salvia would be very pretty there. I love Salvia. And it would come up every year and would take the heat and wind. You could also plant geraniums for the summer color, but of course they are an annual. But they could take the heat and you could get the red color you're wantng. I like Dianthus for a border plant for summer color. For an annual, they still come back for at least two to three years. But the color range is dark pink to white. But I think they would look pretty with Salvia and the other stuff you have planted.
Gary
5/27/09
I have no gardening advice for the Metcalfs, sorry, but thanks for the picture. Nice to see a summer-type project on this cold day in May.
And hey, Idol fans, have you heard the latest? Seems the voting may have been skewed. AT&T apparently gave free text-messaging to Kris Allen's fans, but did not do the same for Adam Lambert's. Meaning Allen probably got many more votes than he ordinarily would have. Story here.
Amanda
5/26/09
Grandma, are you feeling better? This is our last week of dance so we'll be available for more Tuesday night dinners & we're ready! Are you? :-) We'll give you a heads up.
Tristen & Teghan
5/26/09
Happy Birthday Grandma Lori!
Ryan & Amanda
5/26/09
Happy Birthday Lori!
Grandma
5/25/09
Happy Birthday, Lori!!
Donna
5/25/09
For those Susan Boyle fans, here's her latest performance on Britain's Got Talent. This site already has more than 250,000 hits in less than 24 hours.
Amanda
5/25/09
OK, planters... We need some suggestions. We've cut out an area right in front of the house for a flowerbed. We've planted a "tree" though it's young & looks like a bush. We planted a dwarf dappled willow tree which should grow to about 6-8 feet tall.
We also planted 3 bushes, tricolor euonymus. They should only get 6 inches tall & spread to 2 or 3 feet wide. We don't want many tall things in this area because we love the brick & we don't have much of it. We didn't do a retaining wall & plan to just put mulch to the grass line so it will all flow pretty well. We'll have a drip system in there that will turn on with the sprinkler system so watering will happen regularly. It gets full afternoon sun, from about 1 or 2 til sunset. Here's what we need help with. What else should we add? I'd prefer perennials, so that it's low maintenance. But, I want color now since we've got the tree & bushes that are green & white, and I want all summer long color, not spring/early summer color. So, I'm thinking annuals are the way to go. That's easy for us, we can pick that out. But, if you have any suggestions, please let us know!
So, afternoon sun, area can get windy, not too tall, prefer bold colors, reds, purples (I've thought of salvia, but haven't done much research into it yet) flower for entire summer, and just general good presentation. Since this is the front of the house I don't want anything that dies out soon & looks floppy or junky... :-)
The Hatgidakis Family
5/25/09
Happy Birthday Lori!!!!!
Amanda
5/25/09
Seeing today’s front page picture reminded me we have some great photos of that exact spot. Here they are....
Happy Memorial Day....
Thanks for the photos! --Gary
Emily
5/21/09
I've been reading too! I love the webpage! I've just been pretty busy lately too...
I had my last day of school a few weeks ago, and am back at home for the summer. I am taking 4 classes this summer though, and I have a full schedule for first term when school starts in the fall. But, I am about 95% sure that I should be able to graduate in the spring. I would definitely rather only have to go 3 years, rather than 4.
I have been working lots at Coldstone, and we are starting to get busier with the warmer weather....
I have also been trying to get an internship lined up. But, the one I had doesn't seem to be doing much on it anymore.... So, I'm not so sure now.
And, as for the review page, I have been going to a lot of movies at our little cheapie theatre that I have been meaning to write reviews on.... I will try to start getting a few up :)
And they arrived just now! Thanks. I hope I didn't sound like I was scolding people for not reading this goofy webpage. I was just noticing that the activity level had been dropping. If and when that level gets down to zero, we'll move on to something else. Note that the last review I wrote was over a year ago...! (And I've seen lots of movies in the meantime.) So I've got no room to complain. :-) --Gary
Karen
5/21/09
Gary, we do read the web page every day, sorry it's been so long since I've written. School has been crazy! Down to the final days (only 3 days for me). One of the ladies at school has been gone for a week and I've been helping to fill in for her. Been getting to school at 7 and staying til 4 (almost 6 on Tuesday). It's been a tough week, but thankfully she was back today. Erika has just 4 days of school left. Has her dance recital on next Saturday, so next week will be full of rehearsals. She is also driving on her own. Emily is back home, and keeping busy with work. She will be starting her summer classes next week. Brent had a nice birthday -- did go out to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings, thinking we go the new Star Trek movie this week-end. Also may need to make a trip to Wausa. Brent's mom has been having lots of problems and has been in the hospital for about two weeks. Starting to make some summer plans. First week off I have jury duty!! Then plan to do some painting in the dining room and living room. Well I think that catches me up -- try not to wait so long next time :)
Hey, no pressure to write -- on you or anyone else. I shouldn't have mentioned it. I just noticed I was doing a lot less updating here lately. :-) Enjoy Star Trek -- it's great! And enjoy jury duty. Hope you get an open-and-shut case. --GaryAmanda
5/21/09
Gary, Gary, Gary.... I really think you need to lease a car! You don't put any miles on cars & repairs like that should never cost you! A monthly payment yes, but the peace of mind of not having $1800 repairs! I don't lease so I'm not one to talk, if my transmission goes out, or worse 4WD, I'm in trouble, but just a thought...
Stimulus package would be nice, but I'm sure China is done loaning to us. Besides, we're getting a stimulus payment, in the form of some wacky tax situation in our paychecks which I have yet to really figure out.
And I still read this page, and any others that I'm alerted to. No one else ever writes. I was the last one to actually write on here. Heck I keep up with the younger crowd now on Facebook. Let's make this a "facebook" type set up & maybe everyone will get back into it. :-)
I've had a long, exhausting week. We moved offices on Monday & we're still getting settled in. Who knew moving offices could be so hard. I have a bit longer commute now, and there really is no perks to moving when it comes to me & my situation (I still have an office, nothing changed there...) but what are you gonna do? Stay at the old office? I'm sure they'd frown upon that.
Just a few more days of school left it seems. Dance is winding down & it's getting warmer outside. I'm not quite ready for summer & the girls' schedule, but it's almost here!
Oh, and public transportation in this city sucks! Can't say that I've taken it, but it's common knowledge...
I considered leasing when I got my current car last year. But I just hated the thought of a $300 car payment every month with no end in sight. As for making this a Facebook-type page, sorry! I can't compete with that technology (at least as I understand it). If people are leaving this page in favor of Facebook, then I have to sadly wish them adieu. And hey, thanks for the review! :-) --GaryGary
5/21/09
I should probably put this on the reviews page, but I'm not sure anyone reads that page any more. I'm starting to have my doubts about this page, too... But I digress. Here's the review:
On a scale from 1 to 10, Lincoln's bus service SUCKS!
With my car in the shop overnight, I needed to take the bus home. (Of the three people left in my office today, one walks to work, one works late into the evening hours, and the other has a 20-minute bus ride in the opposite direction just to get to her parking lot.) So I called the bus info line and asked how to get from my office to my house -- a distance of 20-some blocks in a straight north-south line. I was told to catch a #41 two blocks from my office, then transfer to a #45 which would take me within two blocks of my house. Okay. I walked to the stop, waited twenty minutes for the #41, and when it arrived I asked the driver to let me know where to catch the #45. He said no problem -- he knew where the #45 was and the connection should work out fine. So off we went. No seats available, so I stood gripping the bar which I knew was covered with swine flu germs. After a while, we seemed to be moving pretty far out of my north-south comfort zone. I had gotten no sign from the driver, so I asked him where to catch the #45. He looked at me as though he'd never seen me before and said, "Oh, the #45's gone." I gave him a what...??? look, and he said helpfully, "If you get off here and walk back two blocks, there'll be another #45 along in 90 minutes." Bleh! I got off and started walking home. My sore knees took me the final eleven blocks to my house, but just barely. The whole journey -- which I can do in my car in 6 minutes -- took just under an hour. And that, boys and girls, is the story of my very last Lincoln bus ride.
Gary
5/21/09
Ouch. Just got the call from my car repair guys... To backtrack a bit, my car's automatic transmission had been acting a bit funny recently, off and on. Sometimes as it was about to go into the higher gear, it would actually downshift into the lower gear. Transmission guys who I consulted said it was likely just a faulty sensor -- not a major repair. But they did the diagnostic this morning, and informed me the transmission is going out. Bottom line: around $1800, and won't be ready til tomorrow. I need a stimulus package! :-)
Gary
5/19/09
A few weeks ago, some of us voted online for the new Nebraska plates design, and today the winner was announced. It's not the one I voted for, but I guess it will do...
Donna
5/18/09
Happy birthday Brent!
Grandma
5/18/09
Happy Birthday, Brent!!
The Hatgidakis Family
5/18/09
Happy Birthday Brent!!!!!
Amanda
5/16/09
Thanks for all the birthday wishes! I had a great birthday. Got flowers & a singing balloon at work from Ryan & the girls, and Teghan even filled out the card (meaning Ryan didn't just call in the order, they went there) and Ryan & I went out to dinner while the girls were at dance, then we went to Carlos for the girls to eat while Lindsey bartended & we had a margarita. The day before I went out to lunch with my mom & Shelby & tonight we're going out with dads. 3 days of birthday stuff, not bad! I got an orchid delivered to my work Thursday from my friend Amber. (Which actually they messed up the order a little bit so they're sending a new one, but it's going to go to your house grandma as it'll be delivered Fed Ex or UPS, it's Proflowers & that's how they do it, so grandma, look for it Tuesday.) Today Shelby graduates & Teghan has dance pictures, so we have a little bit of a hectic weekend, but at least it's not hot!
Gary
5/15/09
Special offer to anyone reading this: If you'd like a free month of Netflix, I have four coupons left. They were offered as a kind of "friends and family" deal to current Netflix subscribers. Offer expires June 15, so let me know by then if you're interested. Who can say no to free movies?? :-)
Donna
5/15/09
Happy birthday, Amanda!
The Hatgidakis Family
5/14/09
Happy Birthday Amanda!!!!!
Grandma
5/14/09
Happy Birthday, Amanda!!
Nelsons
5/14/09
Happy Birthday Amanda
Gary
5/11/09
Apologies for the big video block here, but I wanted to post this in case anybody missed it -- especially as it's all over the news this morning. This is from Saturday night's White House Correspondents Dinner. Obama is really very funny. Not that the bar was very high; this is the same dinner at which Bush presented his oh-so-funny video of himself looking for WMDs in his office.....
The news, though, came from Wanda Sykes' jabs at Rush Limbaugh. Predictably, the morning shows today were full of people shaking their heads and tsk-tsk-ing, "Didn't she go too far?" Bleh. I'll pay attention to them when they ask if the drug-addicted racist Rush Limbaugh goes too far. I understand Limbaugh has already demanded an apology from Sykes. Good luck with that, Rush! If you've ever seen Sykes before, you know that she was pretty tame here.
(Oops, just noticed I forgot to change the front page! Now fixed.)
Obama, part 1:
Obama, part 2:
Wanda Sykes, part 1:
Wanda Sykes, part 2:
Amanda
5/9/09
Grandma & Donna, tulips are complied with, even though you didn't think of it this way, thanks for motivating us to do them! If any come up, we'll have to wait 11 months to see them, but that's ok, it's done! We got the front area all dug up & Ryan went to get some sprinkler stuff to put a drip type set up in that area & the roses area that'll be hooked in with the underground sprinklers. We'll plant in there eventually!
Gary
5/9/09
Here's a little weekend treat if you need some funny. A series of great Obama jokes, followed by a Star Trek Top Ten list:
Amanda
5/6/09
OK, really you need 10 minutes. You don't know whether to watch him or his words. So, you gotta watch twice to get what you miss. Pretty cool though...
Donna
5/6/09
Great cool site. I had to watch it twice.
Gary
5/5/09
I know y'all are busy, but if you have five minutes to spare may I suggest you take a look at yesterday's cool site (in case you missed it). It's really amazing, very well done, and right here:
Amanda
5/5/09
Already voted for my plate choice!
Donna
5/5/09
New plates coming for Nebraska. Vote for your choice here.Gary
5/1/09
Hey, I want to draw your attention to today's cool site, in case you're not in the habit of checking. It's really worth 5 minutes and 27 seconds of your time. Thanks again, John!
P.S. Go all the way to the end -- there are links to three others that are equally amazing.
