Government Shutdown??

Well, spring is here and the days are warming. The buttercups are gone, red buds are in full bloom, and leaves are popping out of the trees. Now, the sun just needs to stay out and the rain clouds need to stay away!! The University of Alabama men's basketball team did not make it into March Madness, but did qualify for the NIT. They made it to the finals and then seemed to fall apart during the championship game. Oh, well, I guess the fans are ready for the A Day spring football game coming up soon. We are doing well with the new decking material. It looks fabulous and is fairly easy to install. We thought the easy part would be making a run down each board and screwing in the clamps very fast. Unfortunately, that has turned into the most time consuming part because occasionally the screws strip. Once stripped, Tide Guy has to pull it out without removing the board. If we attempt to remove the good screws on a board, we run the risk of stripping those, too. We should have most of the top part done by the end of this weekend. Then, we have to remove the hot tub on the lower level, replace those boards, and do all the steps. In national news.... Gas prices are so high it is scary. Right now, our local Race Way is $3.59/gallon. There are predictions the prices may go to $5.00/gallon by summer or by summer's end. Prices of everything are soaring. I buy a 2 liter generic ginger ale for 79 cents. Today, the price had gone up to 89 cents. Now, a dime isn't much, but it has gone up over 10%...at once. If everything goes up 10%, everyone will have to cut back on everything. Japan is still having major problems with the nuclear reactors. It isn't know how much radiation, if any, is in the water system or food supply. Thousands have died from the earthquake and tsunami. A crew spent many days in a nuclear plant trying to cool the reactors. They still have lots of potential problems. It is scary. And, to make it worse.....our government hasn't funded anything in months so it seems Washington DC may shut down Friday. The military may not get paid....even those stationed and fighting overseas. The government hasn't released funds, extended contracts, and owes some companies for work already completed. If this resolution isn't addressed and a compromise happens soon, no one knows what to expect. It could get very interesting!! Tide Gal

Earthquake and Tsunami

We woke up yesterday morning to news that just north of Tokyo, Japan, there had been an earthquake with 8.7 magnitude. Such devastation. Then, to top it off, a tsunami hit the coast. Even worse, the earthquake caused massive problems and an explosion at a radiation plant.

It has been reported that the damage from the combination of the earthquake and tsunami caused Japan's coast to shift 8 feet and tilt the earth's axis. I contacted a friend who lives in Okinawa and she reported they had no damage or problems. I find that totally amazing. When we lived there, we had one tsunami warning. I think the wave was about 3 inches when it finally arrived. We felt a few minor earthquakes which felt very strange and almost unreal. I can't imagine what a "real" earthquake would feel like, much less an 8.7. We did have two typhoons which had winds in excess of 140 mph. THAT was scary!

Afterwards, Hawaii, Alaska, and the US eastern coast had tsunami warnings. Luckily, there was minimal damage. Of course, there were warnings for our eastern states asking people to go to high ground. Many did, but many people either sat on the beach watching or used the large waves to surf.

Winning!!! Really??

In the last post I forgot to mention that Char*lie She*en was fired from his hit show yesterday. The bigger news about this is that he has lost it. "It" being is mind, his career, and all sense of sanity. He rants about himself and how he is "winning" and his previous employers are "losers". He says he is clean, but one has to wonder about him. He definitely has some screws lose somewhere.

His sons have been removed from his home.

His dad and brother can't help him. CS said there isn't nothing to fix and until his dad and brother accept that, they need to stay away.

He is so bad his craziness is being compared to M*uammar Q*addafi....and CS is losing. It seems that people think M*uammar Q*addafi at least knows he is lying, but CS believes everything he says.

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Oh, and the increasing gas prices continue to make national news. Just saw on a national morning show the highest gas prices in the nation. $5.39!!!! It is at an Orlando station with a close location to the airport.

Gas Prices are Soaring!!

Well, since the last post, gas prices have soared and will continue to go up. With all the upheaval in the Middle East and Moammar Gadhafi's craziness, the prices are out of control and no end is in sight. We paid just $3.38 on Saturday and the news stated the prices went up drastically last night.

We went to the University of Alabama's basketball game Saturday in Tuscaloosa. They played a great game against Georgia and won the game. The men won the SEC West division and will play Friday in the SEC tournament. Before the game, we had lunch with the people we sit beside during football season. It was so nice to see them again.

We have renamed the "industrial side" of our basement to "The Shop". The ceiling is done, the lighting is complete, and the floor is painted and textured. We have a shelving unit up, along with one work bench and a tool box. The sink and and cabinet is also done. Now, Tide Guy is installing baseboards and trim. It really looks great.

Spring is evident here. Trees and flowers are really blooming everywhere and things are starting to look green.

That's all for now.
Tide Gal

Spring??

We have had more snow this winter than anyone can remember. It is amazing. We have built snowmen, schools have added 5-6 days to the school year, and it has been cold. However, all of a sudden, plants are popping out of the ground and we have buttercups and other bulb plants beginning to bloom. It is a sign that warmer weather is on the way. I love seeing my favorite flower (buttercups) coming out of the ground. And when my favorite trees (red buds) start blooming I know the warmth is on the way.

In national news, there are huge problems in the middle east and gas prices are soaring, jumping 25 cents in a day or two. Citizens are protesting so that their dictator leaders will resign. All this uneasiness is causing the gas prices to go up very fast.

It looks like Alabama basketball could do well this season. We are going to a game next weekend to see UA play Georgia. Should be a fun game.

It also looks like Tide Guy's job is a bit more secure right this minute. This could change, but we feel safe for about a year. Boeing just got a $32 billion dollar contract with the Air Force. Tide Guy has been moved to a different program, but in a few months is expected to move back to his original program. He is very excited about the move back. I'm still holding out for a pool this season. However, we are going to Kauai this summer. I can't wait.

In the adoption world, China surprised everyone with an early referral. This action has raised some spirits, but we are all still cautious. We never know what causes fast referrals or causes the slow downs. I read on someones blog that the CCAA has said the referrals will not exceed 5 years. Well, we are at 3 years and 3 months and we have a very long ways to go. I don't see how the CCAA can go through the referrals to keep us in a 5 year window. The coming months will be interesting, but it still will be no indication of what is to come.

Well, we are headed to Nashville today to see Brad Paisley and Darius Rucker. We love going to Nashville.

Ready for Spring!!
Tide Gal

More Snow?

Yep. It snowed again last night. Just a little, but it snowed. I think we have close to a inch in some places. School openings were delayed an hour or two. The funny thing is the last snow just melted about a 6 days ago and schools were out a whole week. And, even funnier, is that we are supposed to get more snow in two days.

Gas prices are way up to about $2.99/gallon.

In the adoption world, the news is basically the same. Nothing new.

We Still Have Snow

Yep. We still have snow on the ground and it has been there for over a week. A lot of it melted yesterday and with a possibility of rain today, it should be gone today.