Cold!!

It has turned bitter cold here at Frog East. This morning temperature was a whopping 2 below! Wind chills were over 10 below. That is just too cold. Even Gertie has shortened her trips outside to the bare minumum (thank goodness). We've settled into a routine here but another week and it will be time to start thinking about the trip back to Frog Central. It's nice visiting and spending time with family, but I miss my little house and my own pillows - they're lumpy in all the right places.

Gertie is having a lot of fun with some new toys that she got. We couldn't get to a camera last night without disturbing her - she was sleeping on the floor, her head resting comfortably on a big stuffed bone toy, laying on her favorite toy I brought with her, and just to complete the picture, she had dragged her other toys and bones around her. Like a kid on Christmas morning who has fallen asleep amongst his toys, Gertie, I'm sure, was pretty happy at that point.....

Enjoying My Time Visiting

Today I think both Gertie and I finally felt better from all the travelling. Over the last couple of days we've spent a lot of time visiting with family and getting caught up on all that has happened over the last year since we were last together. We enjoyed a Christmas delayed celebration and wait to I arrive back in Illinois - we've got a lot of frogs to cover!

The weather here turned bitter cold - a whopping 10 to 15 below tonight! Some snow but more the cold. I'm glad I brought along my hat - I just wish I brought along some gloves and a scarf. A piece of my homemade fruitcake warms you right up!

Thanks go out to NC, who is taking good care of my Webkinz Frog while I'm here. Hope he doesn't give you too much trouble - lol.

Finally made it!

I arrived yesterday afternoon at my parents' house. It was a couple of long days on the road - and Gertie was not too happy with any of it. It was a 16 hour drive over two days and today we're both taking some time to recouperate...

Conspiracies!

Over Christmas I wasn't able to go home because of the achilles tendonitis. Just as that healed up I tore open the bottom of my foot. Things are all finally healed up and I've spent the last two days packing up my car. All I had to do this morning was take the animals to the car and head out. Last night I started hearing rumblings of ice. I'll drive in rain and snow and just about any other condition, but you can't drive on ice. The weather channel this morning relayed the bad news - and the local news confirms - ice. We'll try again tomorrow, but I don't know what force is conspiring against me going east......

My 1,900th Post

I can't believe it. Today has been really hectic. I didn't realize until this morning that it was Martin Luther King Day and that everything would be closed. So today I did all the things I was going to do tomorrow to get ready for my trip east. And tomorrow I'm going to have to do everything I was going to do today. Actually it's worked out pretty good. The car is entirely packed. All I have to put in the car is a small bag of last minute items and the animals. Tomorrow I'll get the car all gassed up and make a stop by the bank. I keep telling Gertie about the trip but I know she doesn't know what's about to happen. Shadow knew the minute she saw the luggage come out. She liked riding in the car - as long as she could curl up right next to me. I hope Gertie handles it the same way.

If I don't get a chance to post again before I leave I'll let you know how the trip turned out on Friday.

Weekend Dog Blogging

Gertie
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

I can't believe the weekend is here already! I feel like I haven't gotten anything done - so today I'm running around and packing like crazy. Monday I'm going to start packing the car with everything I can - finish up Tuesday so that Wednesday morning all we have to do is hop in the car and get started. This will be Gertie's first long car ride and her first stay in a motel room. I hope everything goes o.k.

Gertie has decided that she loves the camera and every time I bring it out she strikes a pose. I put the camera up to my face and she immediately sat there and lifted one paw - and she struck that exact same pose three different times. I could barely keep from laughing!

The weather today is abysmal, we are having something called "frozen fog." I had never heard of it before. Apparently the water in the fog freezes the minute it touches something - so everything was a bit slick first thing this morning - but the temps are going up today so everything should be thawed out by this afternoon.

Warmer temps are on the way

Sprogz - Snow Hopper
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

And not a moment too soon. I've been getting cabin fever knocking around these walls. Tomorrow we're supposed to get sleet and freezing rain, but I don't think the temps will support it. I'm getting all packed and ready to head east. I think I'll be starting out next Wednesday - the temps are supposed to be in the 50's! That should be a nice day to travel.

Of course all the news all day has been of Haiti. It is a shame that it happened to a country that is so poor to start with. If you're donating, be sure it is to a reputable organization. A disaster like this brings out a lot of hucksters.

Still Cold in the Heartland

Sprogz Top of the Hops
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

But getting warmer - we're supposed to hit 20 degrees tonight. Down right balmy! This last weekend was Elvis' birthday and it made me think of this great Sprogz.

Sunday night I ended up doing a little foot surgery on myself. The large gash on the bottom of my foot wasn't healing and I needed to find out why. I was sure that I had a giant sliver of wood from the hardwood floor stuck in there and sure enough - I pulled it out and since then its been feeling much better and healing over nicely.

Gertie and I were pretty tired this morning and shortly after breakfast headed back to bed for a bit. She's still sound asleep. That's what she gets for not taking a nap at all yesterday. By last night she was bouncing off the walls right onto my last nerve. She finally curled up on my lap and when I got up to go to bed I didn't think she'd wake up. I set her on the floor and it was about 5 minutes later after I was all settled under the covers when I finally felt her jump up onto the end of the bed. She's making up for the lack of sleep today - a good idea....

The Cold Weather Continues

The weather here at Frog Central has frozen the frogs through and through. Even Gertie is getting a bit tired of it all. The temperature never made it to 10 degrees today and the wind chill has hovered around 10 below. I amazed to see that it actually snowed in Orlando, Florida!

As much as I would like to run down to IGA to get a few items, I'm afraid that I'm stuck inside. My ramp is snow and ice covered and I'm not chancing it at all. Besides, the local news keeps announcing that the roads are a mess. The salt doesn't work at this cold of a temperature and areas that may have melted quickly refreeze. Nightly they go through the number of accidents and slides off the roads - pretty impressive that people still get out there when they know it's going to be bad. Here in town I haven't seen a car go by the house in days.

So I've taken out a couple steaks and chicken breasts. I also have some rice side dishes. Today I made some mac and cheese for lunch. This evening I made a fresh loaf of bread in the bread maker - I love eating the crust nice and warm fresh out of the oven - Yummy! My foot is finally starting to feel a bit better. I can actually walk on it now - thank goodness. I'm still walking a bit gingerly - if you hit it just right, major ouch - but at least I can get around.

Friday Dog Blogging

Gertie
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Hey I made it on Friday for a change! In reality between the snow, cold, and ice - along with my foot - I've got nothing to do but sit around and wait for things to thaw out.

Gertie's sitting and waiting patiently in this picture for me to stop using the computer and get busy playing with her! She's been loving this cold weather, running around outside having fun trying to eat all the snow. Yesterday was a lot of fun watching her. The snow had fallen and the wind was blowing about 30 miles per hour, drifting the snow. Gertie was really upset that the snow was moving. She jumped all over the place trying to hold the snow down. I sat there laughing my head off watching her!

Upon coming back in we both get under the blankets and warm back up. With wind chllls well below zero - it's even a bit chilly in the house - both a snuggy and afghan are needed.

Snow and Cold

It has turned bitter cold here at Frog Central. Temps are supposed to dip below zero the next couple of nights. To top it all off we got about 6 inches of snow here that is drifting up to a foot high in all the wind. Even Gertie was a little fed up with the weather, especially since the snow in areas is about as high as she is! She's made good use of the blankets when she comes back inside.

My foot is still bothering me - I can't really put my foot flat on the floor yet which is really a problem. I can only take a few steps rolling my foot to the outside. Hopefully things will be better by Monday or Tuesday.

In the meantime I'm going to head back to the blankets with Gertie.......

Thanks to Curtis Allina

Pez - Kermit
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

You may have heard that the creator of Pez, Curtis Allina, died recently. He is credited with the idea of putting the heads on the dispensers. So here's to Mr. Allina - without him we wouldn't have the giant Kermit Pez dispenser.

A Bare Foot and a Raised Nail Head

Do not go together. Have you stopped cringing yet? I haven't. It happened this morning on the way to the bathroom. I don't know where it came from because I had never seen it before but there, sticking up out of the floor was a nail. That was after I went back with a hammer - after I bandaged my foot up. The rest of the day I hopped around yelling OUCH! Well, maybe something a bit stronger. It's down to a dull throb at the moment. As my mom is no doubt saying right now - if it's not one thing it's two.

The weather here as become dangerous. Warnings are out not to be out unless you absolutely have to this evening as the wind chills will drop to 20 to 30 below zero. No problem there - I'm under two blankets as I type! LOL

Gertie wants me to remind you not forget your pets. They should not be left outside in this weather. If you routinely leave your dogs outside - bring them in. You'll be keeping them safe and warm. They'll love you for it.

A Cold Start to the New Year

Here at Frog Central the temps have plummeted. When Gertie and I got out of bed this morning it was 7 degrees with a wind chill temp of minus 8! That is indeed cold. So cold the storm door was frozen to the frame. Gertie didn't mind the temps though - she played outside for over 20 minutes before I finally pulled her back in. Fifteen minutes later she wanted to go back out but a little play time changed her mind. Now she's curled up at my feet, keeping my toes warm. I have to go put my slippers on.

I wanted to drive to the next town over today but I think I need to wait until things warm up a bit. I'm looking for a travelling cage for the bird that will easily fit into the car. The cage I have now fit into the old car with some wiggling. The new car may be the same model, but it is not as roomy and it won't fit at all.

My leg has almost healed all the way. I'm finally off all the pain killers. It's just a little achy now and then if I overdo it. I'm glad that episode is almost over - and to anyone who gets achilles tendonitis my advice is scream and scream lots - it doesn't really help other than to let your neighbors know just how much pain you are really in. LOL Yeah, I must be getting better - I can laugh about it now.

Happy New Year

Sprogz - Millennium Hopper
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Happy New Year everyone!