Fashion

[KonaKat]

Good morning, everyone and Happy Memorial Day. Today isn’t just any holiday—it’s Memorial Day. So before you head out to the barbecue or the stores for holiday sales, take a few minutes to remember the people who are important to you, and say a quiet thanks to the people who work every day to keep you safe.

I'm watching them present garden spinners from Plow and Hearth. With shipping and handling added, they are much higher than what I saw in Lowes, K-Mart, etc. Those may not have been Plow and Hearth, but the lawn and even people looking at them can't tell the difference.

I spent a total of 3 hours in 3 different stores yesterday while out and about, and came home without buying anything. Good for me!!

I'm one of those who likes to book things in advance at times. Last night, I decided to book my car rental for the Big Island of Hawaii for September 3. I got a Chevy Cruze or similar with unlimited mileage and free added driver for 7 days for $233, which includes all fees and taxes. No prepayment is required and can be cancelled at any time. I booked early because one time it was tight getting a car rental there over a holiday time when I booked late.

Have a great day. If you shop, shop wisely!

[twinny70]

Yes Jean, we certainly do need to remember what the real meaning of Memorial Day is. This is only 2nd year that we have been able to enjoy the festivities in our small town as we have been on the East coast for probably 15 years visiting our DS & DDIL. It is threatening thunderstorms at any minute, so we will listen to a number of things on our local radio station. There will be a service, & they end of reading the names of all of the deceased vets in our area for many many years. I do look forward to hearing my dad's name & also my FIL's name announced today. I looked at the TSV too, but it would be too tempting for somebody to steal them. You did well with 3 stores, 3 hours & not spending any $$$. You are the best vacation planner in that you get things done early, with no last minute worries. My niece has a Chevy Cruze & loves it. She is coming up this weekend from S. IL w/her two dear children as we are all going to a graduation party on Sunday. Her DH is unable to come, but is glad to let her come & enjoy her family. So nice of him.

My DH is walking now so I hope he gets back before the nasty stuff comes. We do need the rain, so I hope we do get some. Nothing planned today except trim the 4 bushes in front of the house. 3 of them look sad but they do have green stuff showing. The winter was hard on them.

The combined birthday/retirement party yesterday was so much fun. It is always fun when you know almost everybody there. The weather was perfect too, upper 70's, breezy & sunny.

Hugs to all of you.

[KonaKat]

Twinny--Enjoy your day in your small town. It sounds as if you have some great options for the day. I think it is great that you can hear the names of your departed loved ones announced on the radio. I'm not saying our town is small--it is...but we have one stop light and it is really only a caution light at the intersection of two highways. I agree about the TSV and stealing. It is amazing what can "disappear" when you are not around. I had a beautiful deer...and a very heavy concrete one....underneath a shrub at the corner of my lot where it intersects two streets. It took two people to put it in place. Now, that area is very well lit, but sometime during the night a couple of years ago, that deer "disappeared."

I love planning trips, snooping out ways to save money, etc., so I can maximize my time and money. With the Hawaii trip because of the number off hours of travel involved from our home airport and a 7 hour layover in San Fran, we will use the next day to shop for groceries and to relax at the condo. For other trips, we usually hit it running with pre-planned activities. We could have gone later in the month but it would have cost us much more money. Here are some pics of the condo which has two bedrooms with king beds and 3 bathrooms:

http://www.vrbo.com/411966

[Rock_chick]

Hello friends!! Today is a lazy day. It rained half the night and started raining again today and we are loving it. The light is so soft outside, and everything looks so green! DH is watching war movies and I am getting some couch time! Dogs seem happy, both lazing on the floor.

I hope to get some plum jelly made today, and get my clothes laid out. That is about it for my plans.

Twinny I'm glad you had such a good time at the party. I know you will enjoy time with your loved ones and another party!!

Jean, I like to get the best deals possible too. It just gives me a good feeling inside to have not spent that extra little bit of money, and it all adds up. I'm not a planner like you and prefer to have more down time but it sounds like you fit a LOT into a vacation and enjoy doing that.

[LindaLatte]

Good Morning/Afternoon! Happy Memorial Day everyone. That is certainly neat about being able to hear the names of your late relatives on the radio Twinny. Our local newspaper has all sorts of interesting stories about residents. And, since most of the people are retired/older some ot the stories are about their service in WWII Korea, Vietnam, etc. Sorry that the weather isn't the best, but glad it was nice yesterday for the party. Also glad you had such a good time.

Thanks for getting us started Jean. You certainly did well with not shopping yesterday. That is a great price for the car rental in Hawaii. My car in Maryland will cost a bit more, and there won't be another driver. But, I did the best that I could. Last December, I "blew" the money for the car rental since it was through Hot Wire or Priceline, and I couldn't change the date. It was snowing, so we delayed our trip by one day. Fortunately, I had a good deal, so it wasn't major money, but.... This time I won't pay until I am there.

I won't be purchasing the TSV either. Not really worried about the stealing part (although that might happen), but I don't really have a place for it. Also, I have plenty of other house expenses which are a higher priority than a decorative piece. Hope those who order the TSV like it very much.

No big plans for me today. DH and I took our walk (it was pretty warm/hot, but okay), and I'll go to Curves later. House cleaning is in order as well.

Waves to Kathleen, Arlene, LindaR, Susan, Marijane, Karen, Nancy, Gayle, Rosa, Val, Kathy, and all of our posters and readers.

Have a good day everyone!

Hugs,

Linda

[KonaKat]

Linda--I paid in advance for a rental once through Priceline and then had to make a change. It doesn't pay. I went through a highly-rated discounter of rental cars for Hawaii. It basically operates like Priceline or Hotwire in that you specify your needs without knowing the provider of the rental. The difference is that there is no pre-payment or cancellation penalty, but you don't get to know the provider until the reservation is made. Our rental is being provided by Avis. I did afterwards go to the Avis site to price what we had received and found that we did get a deal. The lower rate Avis has is a pre-payment and was higher than the rate we go. My hunch is that each rental company only has so many cars that they let this discounter have at that rate.

Kathleen--We just like to see things and do things when we travel. We have had the experience of waiting to get somewhere to make plans and then discover some activities were only offered on certain times, etc. There is one that we are looking at recommends making reservations a month in advance as they limit the number of people involved in this very popular activity. One of the activities we are going to do this time could not be done the last time we were there because it was booked full before we arrived. They do waiting lists as they do have 48 cancellations at no cost but we weren't fortunate to be able to take care of someone else's very last minute cancellation. Personally, if I book something that costs $150 to $200 to do and it is less than 48 hours away, I would make very effort to make it but I guess illness can affect some people's plans. We always build in time to relax and to do last minute activities but the important things are always booked in advance. I'm glad that you are finally getting some rain.

We have a B&B rented near the volcano. I know that area well so we are saving major dollars by doing two days of the volcano and area, including a night viewing of the lava. These are the other things we are planning as definites:

http://www.hawaii-forest.com/index.php/tours/kohala_waterfalls

http://www.hawaii-forest.com/index.php/tours/hawaii_observatory_tour_mauna_kea_stars_adventure

http://www.bodyglovehawaii.com/historical-sunset-cruise

[PAlady]

Good afternoon ladies, hope all is well. Also, Happy Memorial Day everyone.

Jean - Thank you for starting us today, I saw the condo you rented and it looks fabulous. You do have a busy schedule planed also. I also like to plan at least one big activity each day I am on vacation, I don't like to wing it for the whole trip. When we went to Alaska we planned some things to do and then found out the placed were closed. Of course it said in the booklet they were open but they decided to close after Labor Day. In Alaska they don't get too worked up about things so it ends up being your tough luck. It is a beautiful place to visit, but you must be very flexible.

Twinny2 - Glad you get to enjoy your town's activities this year. We are having a beautiful day here today, but the next few days we are supposed to get some rain. I would like a little so I don't have to keep going out and watering the plants we just planted. I know, that is lazy of me. Glad you had fun at the party yesterday.

Kathleen - Glad you are getting couch time with DH, and glad you are getting much needed rain. Please send some jelly up this way, okay? When I worked, I would have a week worth of clothes ironed and ready to go. I hate to get up and have to search for something to wear, this always made my morning start out much nicer.

LindaL - Have fun house cleaning, I got my ironing done today so I am happy. I also need to do some cleaning, especially sweeping.

Not much on the schedule for today, like I said the ironing is done and I do have to sweep my downstairs. I also have a stack of magazines to go thru, so I think I will spend the rest of the afternoon reading on the deck.

Hope everyone has a great afternoon.

[FunkyHulaGirl]

Hi girls!

Jean, it's sad that most young people these days have no idea of what Memorial Day is all about; it's become all about shopping and partying. I make it a point to thank veterans whenever I see them (you can tell by their baseball caps); it always gets a big smile from them. It's a shame to see how badly they're treated by this government - they deserve the best.

It's a beautiful day out, but I'm aching pretty badly; in fact, I feel lousy enough that I emailed a prof and said I needed extra time to finish an assignment that was due last night. I rarely get flare-ups, but when I do they really take a toll on me. I'm going to try and take the girls out for at least a short walk; they get so excited when we start even getting near one of the parks we go to that I can't let them down - and they're so cute to watch as they climb over each other (and me), trying to be the first out of the car.

Yesterday we stopped at Wendy's for their Frosties, and I see they have a new Strawberry Fields Salad - have you tried it, Jean? I know you get their salads often. I filled out the survey so I can get $2 off either a salad or a sandwich. What's surprising is how expensive fast food places have gotten - the regular price of the salad is almost $8; for only a couple of dollars more I could get an entree at Ruby Tuesday with an unlimited salad bar, plus be waited on!

I have a few garden statues on my front porch, but don't put out things where they can be stolen - and I'm not out to impress my neighbors. My front yard is nicely landscaped and I just try to keep the grass down and the weeds cut back - gardening isn't my thing.

Rosa, hope you're doing well - you're in my prayers.

Jean, I wish I were going "home" for a visit! I expect with the economy the way it is though, the crime has gotten even worse than when I lived there so it's probably best that I don't live there anymore; it wasn't safe for a woman alone even back then. I sure do miss my church family, though. (Tourists are OK - it's the "haoles" who live there that are resented.)

Guess I'll read for a bit. There's a "chance" of thunderstorms, same as yesterday. I heard a few rumbles but the rain never materialized.

Have a blessed day, everyone!

[twinny70]

Jean, that condo looks fabulous. The radio program this morning was interesting. When I say small town living, we have 10,000 people & 7 stoplights. 1/2 the stoplights are down by Mcdonald's, Burger King etc though. I did get to take a QVC Studio tour probably 6 years ago. I am sure it has changed much since then. Last Sept. when we were at the Q Store, they had a little bit of WEN & a little bit of Philosophy. The year before that when we were there they had lots of WEN & Philosphy. It does seem that the store part gets smaller each year we visit there though. Last Sept. the only thing I bought were two bottles of TIPS nail polish remover. As black as it was this morning, we didn't get a drop of rain. It is muggy & 80 with chances of thunderstorms tonight & tomorrow.

RC, I am glad that you did get some much needed rain. DH & I love to travel, but we don't plan a lot of activities until we arrive at our destination in case I am not up to the "task." When we went to KY & TN last month, I went on the internet to find out what things there were to do there, so we did plan a few things but we didn't need to buy tickets until the day of the events. That is how we found out about the world's largest fish fry & also the rodeo.

LL, that is interesting about the local papers printing news articles on the residents the different wars. We do have a Pearl Harbor survivor in our town & he has a special license plate with Pearl Harbor survivor on it.

Susan, Yes watering can be a chore if it stays dry for an extended period of time. Right now all we have to water are 6 tomato plants., I hope to buy a few flowers this week for my DH to plant. We need rain so I am hopeful for some tonight & tomorrow. That was too bad about your AK vacation places being closed. I know the tourist travel time is very limited though. Since I hate the hot weather I always beg my DH to fly me to an iceberg in the summertime when it is hot & humid here. We went to AK 3 years ago with dear friends & had a wonderful time.

FHG, I hope your aches & pains go away soon. I like to do Wendy's sometimes when we are on vacation & need a quick pick me up. I think there salads are pricey too so I usually order chili & a baked potato.

[KonaKat]

Arlene--I'll think of you when going back "home." I think it has been 3 years since I've been back and I'm sure that more changes are taking place. This likely will be my last trip back so I want to make the most of it. I really think this island is more true to the Hawaii spirit and if one takes time to talk with the locals, it adds much to the experience.

Susan--Reading on the deck sounds like a great way to relax from the ironing, going through magazines, watering plants, etc. I had a cousin who lived in Alaska for several years and said that it was very beautiful; he lived in one of those remote spots relatively free of any modern intrusions. He has since moved to Tennessee after remarrying. He is one of those who was fortunate to earn a small fortune while in Alaska, has his own plane, etc.

Twinny--In many areas, it is very possible to wait until almost time of the event to buy tickets. I completely understand why it is important for you to do buy on site on the day of the event if at all possible. You are fortunate to have fast food restaurants; we have zero. For that reason, even eating at a fast food restaurant when in the city is a treat.

I've been watching a Criminal Minds marathon, so I have no idea what is transpiring on the other channels. We had no special activities here. It is all centered upon going to cemeteries and decorating.