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IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!

We finally had a change in the weather over the weekend where I was actually able to get outside and do a few much needed things. It was still quite cold but if I bundled up, it was fun to be out in the fresh air. I couldn't stand looking out through my dirty windows and having my view blocked any longer, so that was the first thing on my "to-do" list. So I put on a pair of rubber gloves to keep my hands warm and headed out the door. It is amazing how cheery clean windows can make it when you are inside looking out. Next on my agenda was washing the dirty Jeep. I only drive it around locally but it sure can get filthy fast. The highway department uses a de-icer on the roads in the winter time and it leaves a heavy, sticky coating on the car. It took a couple of scrubbings, but it is once again shiny (until the next rain anyway). That was enough for one day and I was ready to take a break with my Kindle. I have been doing a lot of reading and have found a wonderful author, Ken Follett, whom I am enjoying. He writes about spies during World War II mostly and uses a lot of factual material intertwined in his stories. He has written quite a few books so I have been busy reading a lot of them.

On Sunday, since the weather was still nice, I decided to wash our other car. The Chevy Suburban is driven by Dave - mostly to Portland and back - and was really dirty. It took me a little longer to do this one because of the layers of dirt and the size is larger. While I was outside I heard this bird noise and I followed it up to the tippy top of this evergreen tree. I had to run into the house and grab the binoculars to spot it because I couldn't get a good enough sight with my naked eye to identify this young bald eagle. It hadn't gotten his full set of white feathers yet but his profile gave him away.

Dave has been busy driving back and forth to Portland most of the week doing Blazer broadcasts. He has had a game about every other day, so he's really been putting on the miles. He has been keeping his eye on the unpredictable weather as it changed from sunny to rainy by Wednesday. Even the weatherman has been confused at times and was predicting freezing rain but that didn't happen. Still, the temperatures have been cold enough to create freezing fog and black ice, and he's had a few moments where even the big Suburban was slipping and sliding - especially when he comes home in the middle of the night. As he says: he's been thinking of Arizona a lot lately!

Speaking of which; our two daughters, Lara and Leslie had a great time in Arizona over the 3-day weekend. They were flying on stand-by and leaving Portland was a problem over the holiday weekend. They finally got on the third flight out of town because all of the other flights had been full. It was a long day for them getting out at the airport at 7:30 a.m. and finally making it on at 3:00 p.m. flight. My sister in Arizona was delighted to have them and showed them a real good time. They also got reacquainted with their cousins whom they hadn't seen for a few years. Dave and I are planning a road trip in a couple of weeks to Arizona to see my sister and brother-in-law too. We can't wait to get some of that sunshine!

I hope spring is just around the corner because I am already tired of the rain. The other day I looked out in the yard and saw that my daffodils are coming up. I also spotted a flock of Robins congregating around the birdbath. I had to go out and break the ice on it so they could have a drink. I hope the arrival of the Robins is a good sign.

Next week is another busy one. I am going in to Portland with Dave on Saturday as he has a Blazer broadcast that night and we will stay the weekend at Lara's. She has to have her port for her cancer treatments replaced and that requires minor surgery. The doctor had to remove the original port when they did her reconstruction surgery last month. Since she still has to have a Herceptin treatment every three weeks until August, the port is a lot more convenient for administering the drug. We will take her to the hospital early on Monday morning and then take her back home before we head back to the coast. I have to be back on Tuesday for a Master Gardener's class and Dave has to turn around and work another Blazer broadcast back in Portland that night.