We had fun in New Orleans. If you ever go, get the beignets from Cafe Beignet, not Cafe Dumonde, or both places. We walked the French Quarter, went to the French Market, ate the foods we wanted (Etouffee, red beans and rice, grits, Muffeleta Sandwich, and a shrimp porboy). We walked to Caesar's Casino after Cafe Beignet and went to Bobby's Burgers by Bobby Flay. We aren't night life kind of people so we were back at our hotel after dinner, reading and watching TV every night. I'm sure there was a lot happening on Bourbon Street but it can be pretty seedy and would be more so at night. The architecture is interesting in New Orleans but the Quarter is lots of souvenir and t-shirt shops, beads, bars and restaurants. The sidewalks and roads are not in good shape and there are a lot of cobblestones. I had to pay attention to where I stepped. I wore my Hokas the whole time. Sandals would not be good on those sidewalks and streets. Almost everyone had on good walking shoes.

We spent this past weekend in Laurel, MS, where the show Hometown is filmed. We stayed at a charming B & B and enjoyed the southern hospitality from the hosts. Very nice suite with attached bathroom. The bed was so comfortable. We had warm weather on Saturday but Friday and Sunday were cool. We didn't see Erin and Ben but saw their house from the outside and walked around the park in the historic residential neighborhood. Saw many of the homes on our walk that they have renovated and shopped in the cute downtown shops. We went to the Scotsman General Store (Russ bought stuff) and then the Laurel Mercantile (where I bought stuff). We also checked out the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art that they talk about in the show. We shopped and ate downtown (walkable from our B & . We were able to relax a lot after New Orleans but wouldn't recommend spending a whole weekend there. The breakfasts were so good and we both need to reduce our calorie intake when we get home.

We arrived in Nashville today and just got back to the hotel after eating dinner. Tomorrow we will Uber downtown and go to the TN Museum. Tomorrow night is the show at the Grand Ole Opry. Snow is expected tomorrow and Wednesday. We hope the city doesn't shut down and that it all clears by Thursday when we leave for home.

I'm glad C came home and you were able to talk. You must be feeling hopeful that he is thinking about school again. Maybe he needs to make the decisions about where and when, so he owns his choice and journey through school? Interesting business he and his friend want to start. Are there other businesses that do that?

Well I need a shower and my hair needs washing. Off to the shower, read and watch TV and get ready for tomorrow's adventure. There is over 2 feet of snow in our yard at home. Our plowing bill is going to be a small fortune. They have plowed many times since we've been gone. I hope we can get in the driveway on Friday.

I keep losing what I write. I will try again later.

oh my - that's a lot of snow at home!! I hope you don't encounter all that snow in KY either - I don't think they are able to be prepared for it - not having it often.

I'm so glad you enjoyed your Grand Old Opry time. Zach and the CHS choir competed/performed there during his senior year as part of the National Barbershop Society competition. A pretty amazing experience for those kids. Caleb got to go to Nashville too to perform after his senior year, but was at Vanderbilt - it also looked like a very nice venue.

Ugh - this cold snap is rough. Hoping it breaks after tomorrow, but it has been too many days for those who are exposed. Rough.

I am so terrified of that RFK. (obviously not just him, but today he is at the top) He claims that people need to be put in camps to get them off their 'poison SSRI's and other over prescribed meds' because they just need to try harder. How the 'f' do people not see what is almost happening. It's terrifying.

I caught up with my sisters through phone calls. I am doing my laundry, 3 loads! I fed my starter and Russ and I are catching up with our Food Network Competition shows.

That is it for today... Happy Weekend!

Congrats again to Rory and Hannah!

I still can’t get over how much snow you have up there. Your water tables should be plenty moist this spring. We are definitely not.

It’s nice you have been able to visit Sarah already. I hear you about the worries about funding cuts. There are so many things to worry about. It’s gross.

The Honda I have been driving for several years developed some issues and Bernie finally decided to take it in when I said it didn’t feel safe. Wheel bearings and multiple other issues. I’ll try to go into the story the next time I update when I am on a keyboard instead of my phone. Basically I am furious shocking I know.

Oh and my next work story is great too (getting told I am going to be the subject matter expert in the new scanning software but not getting to dump anything off my plate).

Sigh. Everything is nuts. The new leadership is driving the business into the ground. I need to get over my fear and start putting my resume out. I am unhappy, but the fear is overwhelming. Things are so nuts at work I barely have time to drink my protein shake. I like being busy, but... sigh.. still locked up in fear.

And, sigh, the stupid car situation. I have been needing a different vehicle for a while. I actually tried to go test drive something on Saturday. I think I am interested in a Toyota 4runner. There was a 2019 on the website at the dealer in Columbus. It was white - which I don't want - but I still need to drive one just to see. We drive out and talk to some guy Bernie has worked with before. There is all this, "trying to find the keys, maybe the keys are in the other building, maybe it's out back,.." Blah, blah, wait, wait. I don't really care, but the way this guy was at the point when I said, if it's not here just say so, but I don't understand why it's been on your website for weeks but it's not actually on your lot. "Oh, you don't understand. The webmaster is in Omaha and has sooo many cars to deal with. You don't understand, sometimes it takes a while to get them detailed. You don't understand..." See ya. Stop mansplaining how hard it is to keep track of a car. If it wasn't available just say so. It might be annoying, but less so that being talked down to. I hate car dealers! And Bernie is just a lump. Since it wasn't for him, he didn't care. And that's a big part of why I'm still driving that 20 year old Honda.

Zach is getting a lot of exciting projects at work. He is making a home. I am so happy for him.

I made a Sourdough Cinnamon Roll Foccacia. It is pretty yummy!

I felt so energized after yoga yesterday. I went to two water aerobics/exercise classes and two yoga classes last week. It really helps my flexibility even though it is a lot of driving to the Y and back and time. I would be sitting this time of year if I didn't go so it is better to just do it.

I ordered a new backpack that opens like a suitcase and is suppose to hold quite a bit of clothes for short trips. I'm going to use it for my AZ Trip and try to pack capsule and minimally.

Did you see the video of Trump and Vance verbally attacking Zelinsky? Horrible and all for the cameras and Putin. Quite the spectacle and doesn't represent our country well. We will have no ally's left when we are attacked by China, North Korea and Iran when we are at our weakest.

How is your weekend?

I hope you find a car. Go with what is a comfortable ride, good condition, and makes you happy. You have to drive it for a long time. I am putting my car purchase on hold a long with any other big purchases I would like to make to work on rooms in our house (kitchen, bedroom...). We need to get the new roof and paint the exterior of the house. Those are priorities. This administration is bonkers!!! We don't know what will happen with our social security checks. If it stops or we have gaps in payments, we can't afford any monthly payments with just our pensions. My insurance, mortgage, etc. will be our bottom line. There aren't enough bad words for me to express my opinion of Trump in his cronies. I'm battling anxiety and feeling depressed when I read the news each day. I find myself wanting to rant at people I know voted for him and tell them what idiots they are. I need to guard my mental health and not read daily craziness.

I went to water aerobics this morning. It was the more intense class so I worked myself hard. I just put Crack Chicken Noodle Soup in the crockpot for our dinner. We will have biscuits and soup.

Good luck making the car decision...

The roof is crazy expensive but we are also re-roofing the huge pole barn too. It has leaks and is the original roof too. Just nuts!!! I need to find a reputable painting company and get estimates. The company I called in January has not done a walk around that I am aware of. I need a couple of estimates but don't know who to call in addition to them. I may need to put an all call on FB for our area and see what appears.

I wish a couple of our sons could come and help us paint it ourselves Watbut they have to work and don't get long vacations. If we had someone to spray the high peaks we could do what is reachable, possibly. I don't want to but it does need to get done.

High winds this morning with some rain last night. I skipped driving to the Y. By the time I left for my afternoon haircut, it was warmer and roads were just wet. We are hoping for an early spring…

Water yoga tomorrow if roads are decent. I need to make banana bread in the morning due to my pile of bananas that are ready to be mashed. If not, I will throw them in the freezer.

Russ took the gross shower doors off our shower, cleaned the tile where the tracks were and re-calked. It looks so much better. We put up a rod, liner and curtain. Maybe some day we will actually re-model the bathroom but if not, the nasty doors are gone.

if at all possible I recommend getting your place painted by pro's. My folks always made us do their house and it was such a nightmare and always ended up causing lots of bad feelings that would linger and linger. Heck I still have bad feelings even years later!

Such weird goings on at work. I got put on the implementation team for the new time clocks/hr/payroll etc. Among the many emails and meetings I started this week was the overview with the time commitment and it showed the timekeeping (more my area) would be 8 to 10 hours a week. I shared that with my bosses and said when it got to be adding that many hours (and it would happen pretty quick with an aggressive time line) that other things would need to be taken off my plate. I pointed out a few things. And then today I got told they are pulling me from the team. I advised that someone from manufacturing really needed to be involved since even in just a few meetings I can see that they are trying to add a system that is not nearly as flexible as what they do now and will probably cause inefficiencies in production that will have to addressed. Whatever, they will end up adding me back and then I will be behind the learning curve. I didn't mind being involved, but I didn't think it was unreasonable to not have to do it all. This place.

I have been trying to get a cover letter going. I finally found my last couple and not only are they over 15 years old, they are terrible. I am basically starting from scratch and trying to find the right 'voice'. I did several for Bernie and Zach and always thought I had started them down a good path, but for me I just am coming up with junk. I think it was easier for those two since they have what I consider hard skills.

More snow started falling this morning. We went all winter with no snow and we are officially in spring and have had snow multiple times.

Yuck, daily savings time. BOOOOOO