Fish for din din?

The dock is officially out and not floating away (that's a good thing).


Now it's time to try fishing. The neighbors sort of said no fish around the dock this time of the year because its mid summer. But, since the water is so high (this is high?), there might be some.


Well, we are having fish for dinner. Not really sure what kind of fish, but fish it is. (perch maybe?)

#2 and his fish.

KC wants fish for dinner too. Normally this fish would have gone back into the water but he was mortally hurt before he even got to the dock. Sorry fishy, the hook got you just wrong.

We also caught a little blue gill of some sort that grabbed my line when I just dropped it in the water by the dock. It was an accidental catch.
Hey, buddy, that was MY worm for the bigger fish. He got to go back to bite on my hook another day. He almost got that worm off the hook. But almost ended up being a hook.

Nature anyone?

Speaking of nature. . . oh, wasn't I talking about nature? No? Oh well, too bad.

Geese-living the way geese are supposed to live. In a lake, in Canada. NOT in a park in St. Louis making a mess.

Veryyyyy nice. Pretty birdies. KC thought so. He considered it. And thought better of it. Good for him. They are bigger than him and meaner.

And speaking of docks . . . oh, I wasn't speaking of docks. The dock that the boys and I put out yesterday decided to try to float away today in very big waves. Hey, dock, you are supposed to stay here. Apparently when French Dad attached the big heavy chains to the dock and the anchor, he didn't leave enough play in the chains. So when the BIG ass waves came (and they were big), the dock would go up and so would the anchor . . just enough to move a bit. Well, a bit ended up being 20 feet before we could get a grip on the situation (with the help of a neighbor and French Dad). I called French Dad and he didn't understand what I was saying. I finally said, The dock . . help, we need help! He came over right away.

MainMan got home just as we were all standing around feeling proud that the dock was back in place. Timing-its all about timing. And MainMan has it down pat this week.

Save me from little old french men

Sigh. The owner of this house lives in Dallas. She just had a baby and her parents went down for most of the month of July to visit. The parents came back Friday. On Saturday (in the middle of the chipmunk issue), the 73 year old father came over to see how we liked the house and if there were any problems. The parents live a couple blocks away so its not hard for him to come over. We had a nice little talk and said that we will need some advice on the two ornamental trees that we have to trim (as it listed in the lease). He said he would come over maybe (MAYBE) on Monday.

Fast forward to Monday. At 9:00 sharp he was ringing our doorbell. Too bad I was out running to the post office, bank, etc. He comes back at 11:00. It's pretty windy but he starts to show us (well, ok, he shows #1) how to trim the hedges and little trees. He takes poor #2 under the house to show him how to turn off the outside water for winter and turn on the under house heaters. While the ground has plastic over the dirt, that is one big cobweb under there. Poor kid. He came out covered with cobwebs. Well, so was the french dad, but hey-he isn't my kid so I only felt for #2. French Dad sees how the trimming is going and goes to leave. He says he will come back at 3:00. At this time I ask if he has our phone number and then give it to him (this is a hint to call before coming over). Yeah, right. So, he comes over at 3:00. He says #1 needs to reaallllyy trim the trees. I mean cut the heck out of it. Okies.

Now, it's Tuesday morning. I am having my morning coffee. It's 9 am and the doorbell rings. Hmmmm. Yep, its French Dad. Hi French Dad. Oh, you called at 8:30? (as in AM!) Well, gee, I guess I was outside. And the kids are asleep. Oh, fine, we will call when the kids are ready to . . . put . . . the . . . dock . . . out (OMG, save me from little french men). #1 is already up and I wake #2. I call around 10 am. Yep, the boys are up. (and just so you know, I didn't expect him to have the boys put out the dock without MainMan).

OMG, save me. While I said I am NOT getting in the water to help-I will just watch-I ended up in chest deep water holding a floating dock to make sure it didn't float away.

Long story but the dock is out. The boys and I are really sunburned.

And the trees are trimmed. Yeah, he helped #1. They trimmed the heck out of those trees.

And last last night we were raking and picking up limbs. Tired, grumpy, sunburned and then . . . I stepped off the step wrong on the back deck. Well, darn (umm, I said something a little harsher), I twisted my ankle. Nice ending to the day.

But this morning, the yard is pretty and clean, the trees and hedge are trimmed and the dock is out. And so far, the little french man hasn't called or come by.

Good Morning birdie

We woke up to rain yesterday. I had some errands to do and also the landlord's father was coming over to show us how to trim the trees and talk about the dock.

But the moment, it was just a quiet morning.


I looked outside and saw this fellow walking along the edge of the yard near the water.

Cool

One of those days

Saturday started out as an ordinary day. Nothing much happening. Coffee was hot. And good.

Then, it started. You know what I mean. One little (or not so little) thing at a time.

Hubby called out about the chipmunk. Yeah, it was alive. We didn't realize this. If we had, trust me when I say, I wouldn't have taken the time to take pictures. He jumped up, ran around the room a couple times with KC right behind him. KC was toying with him. THEN he ran under the heating element thing behind my desk. And there he stayed. Oh, great, I was afraid he would get bored and run around some more (and so did KC, who was laying right beside him waiting). But, I didn't want him running up my leg. So, I didn't sit at my desk. After an hour, I had enough and my oldest decided to get him out (notice how that sentence worked . . . I decided and then . . . my oldest decided. snicker)

He worked at it for a while. He finally gave up. Then MainMan came into the picture. He was under there with two hangers trying to encourage the rat to come out. By now, KC was outside. MainMan asked me to get the cat so he could deal with the chipmunk when it came out. I walked out back and started to call. I looked toward the front of the house and there was our landlord's father walking up. sigh. (at this point I am thinking, I am not so sure I want him to know that our cat brought a chipmunk in the house). At that very moment, #1 comes out and says I have a phone call. What?? OK, fine, I say to the father I will be right back and go and get the phone. It was Julie. Julie from Georgia. The last time we spoke she called in the middle of an argument between me and one of my kids (yeah, go ahead, and guess which kid). I had felt bad that I hung up on her that time. So, I said, oh hi Julie, can I call you back? (gee, guess I didn't feel that bad).

MainMan comes out and we all have a nice little talk. Yeah, we like the house. etc. He is coming back on Monday to cut a few limbs and show the boys how to trim the trees. Maybe put out the dock with the boys. Or maybe talk to the neighbor about helping (there was a bit of language issue at that point). He left.

Great. I will call Julie back. I called. At THAT moment, MainMan gets the chipmunk out and it runs out in the middle of the room. I start screaming about "get it, get it" and then tell Julie I will have to call her back. By the way, the cat chased the chipmunk back under the heating element and MainMan wasn't happy. I finally call Julie back and go hide in my bedroom. MainMan calls up a bit later and says the chipmunk is out (he caught it and took it outside since KC was useless at that point).

I had a nice talk with Julie. I think she thinks my life is hectic. It's not. It was just one of those days.

After I hung up, I noticed that #2 was mowing the back yard. I think he did a really rotten job. Why is that? If you do a bad job, you think we won't ask you to do it again? #1 decided that he should cut it again. And he did. He wanted the back yard to look nice for MainMan (who was out shopping for wasp spray, etc).

Oh yeah, we have a wasp nest. Right beside the front door. Behind the siding. And I am allergic to wasps.

The day has ended. The wasps may or may not have been eliminated. The back yard is mowed. The lawnmower is parked by the front door (hey, it's really hard to walk it the 10 feet to the shed). The chipmunk is probably kicking the bucket. But at least he is in nature. And the cats are content to sit and look pretty.

And Julie. I think she thinks I am a nut. Oh never mind, she has known me most of my life. She KNOWS I am a nut.

Hey hon, the cat has a squirrel

Hubby calls out in the morning. Hey hon, the cat has a squirrel. Now, if you aren't a cat owner, lets just say, most cats can't catch squirrels. The nut hunting tree dwellers love to harass kitties to no end. So, the comment got my attention. I walked from the kitchen toward the back door-thinking that that KC was outside with a big gray squirrel in his mouth or paws.

The key word here is outside.



Oh, he is inside and its not a squirrel. Its a chipmunk.



May I suggest NOT letting him in the house if his mouth is full.

My life.

He wanted the furniture moved.

Sigh.

sorry about the darkness-it was dusk but I wanted to take some pictures

I had in my mind how I would place the furniture when we moved in. However, the oldest of the children wanted it a different way. After trying to convince him, I gave up. Why fight it? However, for the last week, MainMan has be mulling over something in his brain. He wanted his chair in a different spot. Hmmmm. Well, if you move one, you have to move both. And if you move both, then you have to move the sofa. And if you are moving everything, you might as well move it all away from the walls where the heating vents are located. Radiant heat. Our furniture was too close to it, but its not winter yet.

This is the wall that used to have the two chairs. Problem is-all the walls have large heater vents. And they were blocked. Not anymore.

But I knew winter was coming.

behind the sofa. A sofa table that will have a lamp on it (one day) and space for the heat to float into the room

We moved everything. And now we don't have room for a chair. So I put it in front of the fireplace. Think of it as a very large silk plant. We aren't going to use the fireplace. But, somehow a chair directly in front doesn't seem all that right. And we have a lot of open space in the room. However, MainMan is happy. MainMan likes open space. The furniture is somewhat in the position I had originally wanted. And the vents are free and clear.

unloved chair

My swing is up and swinging. It sort of looks like it is too close the the lounge chairs by the water, but they are pretty far away from each other-just an optical thing. The swing is in a perfect location. It gets the shade from the little tree in the late afternoon, but I can swing and see the water and the sunset. It's nice. I am happy.

Rain and loving it.

It's raining today. Well, sort of a drizzle. Which is nice because yesterday is was actually hot here. Hard to believe, but it can get warm up here in the frozen north.

MainMan put together my chairs. He has requested that I not buy such chairs again. Hey, it was a good deal. There were only three left at Costco and I bought two. Now, I got them way before we moved and showed him the boxes. The rather small boxes. You would think he got the message that it would take a bit of work to make a chair out of all those pieces. Well, I guess he got the message. And I did too. But . . . they are comfy. I sanded them a bit and will stain them or water proof them or something-if they ever dry out.

The fireplace is where I put things that I am not sure where I want them. Fake plant? Put it on the fireplace. Fake candles? Yep, fireplace. Ah, it is a work in process. Obviously, this is not how it will finally look, but a little peek for you guys.

In the living room, there is a plate rail all around the room. About 5 feet up. It will be a challenge to place items in pleasing arrangements. That's for the future. Now, I am just putting a few things here and there.

Why Deny Reality

Still unpacking. It's sad, but just when I think I have a room unpacked, I get another box and make it messy again. Oh well, one day.

Kay said she wanted to see pictures of the inside of the house. Now, normally, I would wait until the room is a bit picked up, or at least clean, maybe even unpacked. But, hey-why deny reality.

The peach chairs are going into the garage. At this point, there might be more furniture out there than in the house. Poor Cesar. That's HIS chair. He likes to sleep under it. So, we put it by the back door on the porch, and he quickly ran under it to fall asleep. Maybe we will leave one on the porch for him.

Mr. Tomato Plant

Remember Mr. Tomato plant? Yeah, we harvested a tomato. And now there is a second one ready.

tomato # 2

I figured, if we get two tomatoes off this plant, they will be $10 each-cause I have spent $20 on this plant, dirt, pot.

And, yes, I know, MY brother and sister in law have a couple tomato plants with millions of tomatoes. Millions and millions. But they live in Florida. It doesn't count.

Windy?

Windy? Just a bit.
The kitties are enjoying the great outdoors-even Cesar. C is very supervised when he ventures outside.

Don't think they are always so sweet to each other. But every time Cesar goes outside, KC comes running up and gives him a little check up. It seems to reassure Cesar a little.

The cable has been found.

Hey, guess what is on my computer now? Yeah, my cable for pictures (and my headphones too).

So, here ya go-pictures at sunset.

Keys, blinds and food

What do these have in common? I have to go shopping in the French only stores. And post office. Sigh.

First up-change my address at my bank. This is a plus, our bank is very close. The closest bank around. How nice. No more driving the distance to get to the bank. Less than 2 minutes. Yep. And they speak English. Sort of. Our account is joint but when Main Man went in, they would only change his address. I had to go in with ID. So, I did. Funny, she didn't even ask for ID. But it was nice to know that I am not the only one who can't spell the town I live in now. She had to look several times. She can pronounce it tho. vaDroysssulalllacc. Yep, slur it all together and you have the town.

Next . . . get an extra key made for the mail box. I had gone to the local post office (in the back of the French only book store) and she told me I had to go the main post office. Off I go. And believe it or not, I actually found it. Which is pretty good since street signs seem to be something folks in Quebec sometimes post, sometimes don't. Ok, ok, I get it, I should know where I am going by the landmarks, forget street names. I get to the post office, and guess what? I don't have to get the key from the main post office. About a year ago, they changed the law. But I have to go to a locksmith and not a place like Canadian Tire. Hmmm. I don't know where a locksmith is. The Post Man told me-its on blalalddla at the corner of snblsalla. ??? It's called Lalalalala. ??? I am sorry, all I know is Saint Charles (isn't it cool that the main street here is the same name as the main street at our previous house?). Ahhh, well, on your way home on sanssharles, its on your left. Do you know where Subway is? It's a block or so before Subway. Oh, cool. I know Subway. I can even say subway. Off I go.

Oh, hmmm, I forgot. I don't know the french word for locksmith. I will look for a key sign. No, no key signs. And no Subway. But, I passed a little store with a big blue van that had words on it. Why I thought it looked like a locksmith van is beyond me. I turned around. Hey, I was right, it was the locksmith. But no key pictures. And no problems with getting the keys. He knew what he was doing and did it fast. And he spoke to me in English.

I have the extra mailbox key, I know where the local post office is and the main post office. I am set. I can mail a letter now. Even packages.

MainMan left this morning for Tennessee. He had a taxi pick him up. The taxi couldn't find our house, but I happened to look out the front door as it passed. I waved him down. Perfect timing.

Well, today, I take the two rug rats to the old house to take out the rest of the garbage. It's mostly leaves. Then I promised them Taco Bell. Yeah, its hard to find Taco Bell here. And it's expensive. But we will be relatively close. Yum, heartburn, here I come.

Update on the pictureless lost lady

Still no pictures. I will find that cable one day. Or, I will give up and go buy a new one. Either way, you will get to see the lake at sunset or sunrise-however, I can't promise the lake won't be frozen over by then.

Still unpacking. Slowly. I forced the family to move my desk again. I think I have hit the term limit on desk moves. But, it's in a relatively good area in the living room. It may get cold in the winter because it is near the back door, but I will deal with that when its 20 below outside. I also forced the family to move the wall unit down a couple feet. Again, I have hit the limit of moves allowed before mutiny sets in. Not sure what I am going to do with the china cabinet. With the wall unit and the china cabinet, the room is just a tad not wide enough. I could move the china cabinet to a different wall, but it has the heating element there. Not sure how these heating things work. All electric. Does it blow or just heat up? The china cabinet may end up in the garage, with all the other furniture. Yeah, the house is small. But, I have to admit, I like it. At least until the next time I get grumpy about the space issue.

We have cable and I can actually watch TV while I work. But, I am now used to not watching it. Besides, MainMan decided he wanted different channels and changed what we get. No more CNN or other news shows. I may call and get those again. I miss regular old cable from the states.

Our phone is working. Well, it only works in one room because the previous renter went with cable telephone and the cable company took the Bell stuff out of the house. So, Bell said the owner has to reinstall all the wires. We will have to deal with that but one thing at a time. At least we have a phone.

I found WalMart. It is bigger and nicer than the one we used to visit. Not as nice as WallyWorld in Chesterfield, but still nice. I noticed that a lot of shoppers speak English.

I found Home Depot. Not as nice as in the states. Very French and proud of it. Basically the same as the Home Depot near the other house (French attitude and all).

Everything here is in French. And while most people can speak English, it's not a given. The local post office is in the back of a book store. A book store with no English books. No biggie, if I want to buy a book, either drive 15 minutes or order online. Grocery stores are all French. But, I can find what I need. The packages have English on the other side, so I can just turn it around if I need to figure out what I am buying. Only problem is finding the correct aisle. MacDonald's speaks French EXCEPT when asking for the money. And it is opened 24 hours. That is always surprising when I find something open more than the basic hours. I still miss shopping on Saturday evening. This closing at 5pm on Saturday and Sunday is limiting. I must adjust to this.

The cats are settling in. KC hasn't fallen out of any second story windows lately. He does go outside but doesn't stay out for long. Cesar goes out for maybe 5 seconds and comes back in. He is still waking me at dawn. Today, no meows, but just looking at me. He has conditioned me to wake up . . . the little rat. Yeah, I get up and see the sunrise. And while it is nice and beautiful, etc., I would prefer to be snuggled down in bed.

MainMan is going on a business trip tomorrow. Tennessee.

And if anyone wants to come up and open boxes and finish unpacking, please feel free. A little bonus for ya if you find my camera cable. :)

What? NO pictures?

First let me say, the lake is screaming for me to take some pictures at sunset.

But, I would have to get the camera out. Take the picture and then look at the computer which doesn't have the cable for the camera. I wonder where did that cable ended up?

So, no pictures yet. Cause I am too lazy to get my camera, take the picture, or find the cable.

Today is the last day for cleaning the old house. And finish packing the kitchen. No one is awake in the house yet. I am trying to decide if I should go by myself and let them wake up and follow -or just wait for them to wake up. Hmmm, I think I will go and they can follow.

And tomorrow, I will unpack and unpack and unpack. I really do have too much junk. DeJunk. (dejunk, dejunque, dejunk-ba ba boom-its a new song with a cool beat . . . Ok, I am tired and slap happy). I want to move the furniture around a bit and am meeting some resistance. Haven't they learned yet=resistance is futile. The furniture will be moved one day or another. They might as well do it or deal with me asking and whining and asking.

I took my first bath in the old style tub last night. The hot and cold facets are switched. I thought I was running a nice hot bath. Instead I ran a cold as hell bath. I drained it a bit and made it a middle of the road lukewarm bath.

And a little KC update. He is still limping from the fall. But I let him go out yesterday evening. He is adjusting well. Cesar is trying to adjust. At least he didn't wake me up at 4:30 this morning.

We moved

We are in the new house. Umm-that should be: new, very old house. And I use "we" loosely because MainMain stayed in our previous house last night because he wanted to there early to greet the garbage men. Oh, yeah, it is garbage day and we had a unique and large assortment. The boys and I stayed in the French Quarter Chateau (i.e. our new, old house).

And it was so nice to sit in the solarium last night and see the evening lights dance off the water as the frogs croaked. It was almost like a vacation, until I turned my head and saw all the stuff I have to unpack.

I had trouble falling asleep. New mattress, new bedroom, new sounds and cats.

But at 4:30 this morning, I had no trouble waking up. For some reason, Caesar decided to wander the house yelling his little head off. Finally I got up to deal with the cat because I knew he was waking the dead (that would be my sons).

Around 6:30, I decided to drive to see if I could help MainMan. Hey, guess what? He was asleep! So, I did a little cleaning, took some more junk to the curb for the garbage pick up. Finally, he woke up an hour later. Gee, you would think that little twin sized air mattress was comfortable-trust me, its NOT. He was a bit bleary eyed and I think a wide awake, crazed wife who wanted to clean was almost too much for him.

I lasted a few more hours. And back home I went. The boys were up and waiting for the Cable guy. "Mom, when is he coming???" "Who knows, its the cable guy, remember? They are the same here as they are in St. Louis . . . just be glad they are coming!"

Cable guy got here this afternoon, which is pretty close to the morning. The children were nice to the guy as he held their little internet lives in his hands. What's a few hours off your appointment time when you finally get internet?

Our next deadline is cleaning the old house. The upstairs is basically done. The main floor is almost there and the basement is getting there. The floors are not done as this is the last thing we will do (to make it pretty and shiny and nice. We have until tomorrow.

And then, we get to unpack.

Oh, and KC fell out of a second story window yesterday and was lost for a while. He is back. Details to follow.

One more day and the movers come.

Tired.
Overwhelmed.
MainMan is going to the office all day today (Tuesday).
However, the end is in sight.
Question is . . . what end?

Taking #1's desk down and driving it to the house today. Finishing up my office. Ignoring the kitchen-it will be done once the movers take the furniture. Then we clean. Then I rest.

I hate moving.

I hope I like the house.

Please, I hope I like this house.

Moving . . . geeesshh. My feet hurt, my legs hurt and I stink. Ok, I don't really stink, cause I just soaked in the tub for an hour. We have been moving things each day. We make about two trips a day. (That's an average, the rain day was only once and yesterday was 4 times). We still have a lot of junk to move. The movers will be here on Wednesday to move the furniture. They don't pack, they move. They don't move mirrors or glass unless it is packed well. So, we moved the mirrors, pictures, and glass shelves.

Both boy's rooms have been moved basically. The beds are at the new house. They are sleeping here on blow up mattresses tonight. We plan to sleep there on Wednesday night -cause, well, we won't be able to sleep here that night.

The movers will move the dressers and desks. The living room is packed and mostly moved. Man, I never realized how much junk is here and there. The wall unit alone . . . several boxes.

I plan on moving the kitchen stuff tomorrow. I wish at this time to let you know that I really should have Tupperware plates and glasses. These breakable things are a pain. And I will pack the china cabinet tomorrow too. We will also move the box springs and set up our bed in the new house. Sounds like a full day. But then . . . then . . . my office. It really won't take that long to do but -too much paper. Paper is heavy. I think more than a two trip day.

Cute kid with sweet cat!

He is cute. But that cat has to be the most patient cat in the world.

Hey, MOST kids have plain old stuffed animals. But NOT Mr. R! Look at that hold he has on the leg. Oh, my, that is one sweet cat.

Medical Card

We moved some more boxes today. Funny, it looks like a lot in the van, but it really isn't. I suppose its your point of view. Our goal is to only have furniture to move on Wednesday.

Our first trip to the house was very nice. A bit of rain was coming in and there was a nice wind off the lake. It wasn't raining yet. A couple neighbor kids checked us out. # 2 commented that they were staring at us. Well, hon, when you were that age and someone was moving in, YOU stared too.

Our second trip to the house was put off until tomorrow. It was actually raining, and raining hard. Not worth the trip. First thing in the morning, off we go again. Maybe the ManChildren will be better. #2 lightly sprained his ankle stepping off a step. He didn't think it was all that bad, but as the day went on, he figured out that maybe Mom was right when she said take care and don't walk on it. Going up the stairs is a snap. Going down the stairs . . . well, not so easy. #1 did a groin pull. Nothing bad but enough to make him feel it. And MainMan is doing 3 times the work of the kids. (I am supervising-yeah, that's what I am doing).

To back track to Thursday, MainMan and I decided to drive into Montreal and get my medical card. The local office said they would need to mail MY paper to downtown and then have it mailed back, or we could go ourselves. Now, I waited 8 months for that paper, I don't want it to leave my hands. I voted for the drive. MainMan agreed. I suggested we go this week as the traffic would be less (and it was).

Off we go. It's 9 am and while there is traffic, it's NOTHING compared to what it is normally. We are prepared. I have every piece of paper and ID I have to my name. I have maps and directions. I sort of know where we are going. I have been close to the building in the past. It is close to St. Catherine street and McGill. Yep, we are ready.

No matter how prepared you are to drive into downtown, until construction is finished on the main highway, you aren't prepared. I think construction will be finished in 10 years. We get off on the correct ramp. And go in the basic right direction. However, there were LOTS of closed streets. Construction. And. . . oh my, whole areas closed for Canada Day (which was the day before) and a Jazz Festival and just for fun.

We finally find a parking area and make it to the Government Building. It was only on the 3rd floor (which is easy compared to where it could have been in such a tall building). We get off the elevator and walk to the office. There is a line up outside the Office. Okies. We wait. This line eventually gets us inside the office to several receptionists, who take our information and gives us a number and sends us to the waiting room. It was pretty full -maybe 100 people. But, folks were being called pretty quickly. Finally, we were called. As we walked to our Government employee, I see just how many workers. LOTS of little booths to talk to your special little agent. Considering the size of the operation, they must do tons of people each day.

My lady spoke flawless English. I would almost think she didn't speak French. She looked at my papers, and said . . . hmmmm, its old, do you have your SIN card yet, D/L, where do you live (LOL, at this time we showed her the lease for the new house and she noticed that MainMan didn't sign it-gee, I guess that means I am the only leasee). She really wanted to help us. She called several people (and spoke French). Finally, she was able to process my medical card. Yeah! I will be covered for medical in three months. Hey, its only a bit over a year or so. The card is coming in the mail. Great. Wonderful.

Next step-get my permanent resident card (Green Card but for Canada)

Next, next step-get my Driver's licence. We have to make an appointment for that. It takes a month or two for the appointment. My goal is to get it before the snow falls. I think that is a good goal. Hey, at least I won't have to change my address on my D/L.

After we left the office, we decided to have lunch downtown. I wanted a sit down and serve ya type place. We found a very nice restaurant (near our parking lot-so not to lose it as we walked around) and have a very nice lunch. The food was great, the ambiance was wonderful and the cost was pricey. MainMan had escargot. I sneaked a few. I have been eating escargot for years-since my late teens. THIS was by far the best BEST BEST I have ever had. So tender. OMG, it was good.

We drove home full. And we drove home knowing I got my medical card. It was a good day.