My Starbucks has switched to a different "here cup."
Its really cool they offer the option at all.
It used to be a broader wide cup that the cappuccinos were served. It was a generic white cup that if you ordered it at Pete's it would even come with a saucer.. reference to my sis Kelly and my niece who works at a Pete's. But it was okay. The foam I craved would be easily devoured and could be mixed with the espresso in the cup with a gentle swirl.
Now, the new cup is more narrow and taller and has the mermaid in relief on the side. The baristas are not so happy with this development as well as me. They are finding it harder to hit the hole so to speak with the foam without making a mess and it definitely makes them drop their espresso in a two glass shot glasses rather then shot holing it into the foam of the cup like they used to.. which takes up a little more time. My major complaint is that the foam is hard to dig out of the bottom of the new cups without a spoon. Since Starbucks is pitching out a lot of oatmeal these days, spoons are not too hard to come by at the counter.
The quality of my dupio machiatto continues to be good as long as I order it from my particular store. Outside my little world of a coffee along the walk, the order is sketchy. It must not be a very popular drink. Today their was almost a mash up as two vanilla latte drinkers dove to the bar to fetch their particular drinks and one had one name on it and the other had the other and of course they grabbed the wrong one.
Jeff,the redheaded, 6foot 4 manager was full of tales of 6 feet of new powder so dry that it wouldn't make a snowball at Dodge Ridge yesterday. Sounds a whole lot like Crested Butte without the 2500 foot drop.
Its really nice to have a coffee shop nearby to be in the middle of my walk. Today I made the walk without any rain. That has got to be a miracle with all of the rain that came down this week. The weather people claim that we are 160% over normal rainfall this year.. so enough already!
Love
Pat
A written expression of a 65year old plus retired Speech and Language Specialist in the Central Valley of California.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Nigel Wanted Out
Nigel is our 14 pound black Main Coon Cat.
His job as he sees it is to 1)patrol the perimeter to keep stray cats that might wander into our yard on check. 2)Maintain his cleanliness, which is no small task when you have all of this long black fur 3)snuggle up to the people if they lie down for an extended period of time 4)keep that white Manx cat under control by asserting his authority and his physical presence when challenged 5)make sure the people are properly exercised by requesting in little kitty mews in and out the front door 6)Make sure the people know that they must feed their cats on occasion.
Some of this duty gets completely out of control when there is something called a rain storm. Then patrolling doesn't work, the in and out gets down to "You got to be kidding me,"and that crazy white Manx brother doesn't know what to do with the extra contact zones required of an in and outdoor cat suddenly becoming an indoor only cat for the duration of the rain storm.
The feeding prerogatives also escalate. Being around the food bowl makes you want to eat more often. Somehow the people don't understand this.
Ah such is the life of the black Main coon cat.
: ) Pat
His job as he sees it is to 1)patrol the perimeter to keep stray cats that might wander into our yard on check. 2)Maintain his cleanliness, which is no small task when you have all of this long black fur 3)snuggle up to the people if they lie down for an extended period of time 4)keep that white Manx cat under control by asserting his authority and his physical presence when challenged 5)make sure the people are properly exercised by requesting in little kitty mews in and out the front door 6)Make sure the people know that they must feed their cats on occasion.
Some of this duty gets completely out of control when there is something called a rain storm. Then patrolling doesn't work, the in and out gets down to "You got to be kidding me,"and that crazy white Manx brother doesn't know what to do with the extra contact zones required of an in and outdoor cat suddenly becoming an indoor only cat for the duration of the rain storm.
The feeding prerogatives also escalate. Being around the food bowl makes you want to eat more often. Somehow the people don't understand this.
Ah such is the life of the black Main coon cat.
: ) Pat
Saturday, March 19, 2011
The old Italian
It seemed simple enough.
I recognized him as he came through the Starbucks line and so did he.
Five foot 7, bald head with a driving cap on. Piercing blue eyes and a sort of sloppy walk.
Somehow our lives paralleled as we worked through the same district.
He joined the district about 6 years before I did.
We even went to Lamaz training at the same time. We both have daughters the same age.
He was always in management, most of the time at district office.
His wife worked as an independent Studies teacher, he lives within three blocks of us. He is a concept man like me, married to a details wife.
He retired about four years ahead of me. He retired on the golden handshake. He was a little bitter because he was promised it a year a head of when he took it. When he got to the end the district personnel manager pulled it out from under him. The next year he produced the figures and proved that the district would make money with him gone and a golden handshake in place. It went to the board and all five board members voted to provide an incentive for his retirement.
He was always a talker. That kind of hurt him throughout his career. He was able to do good things however because he took the initiative and held on to his principles. At one time the district was hot to have him fired. This resulted in a recension as his supporters crawled out of the woodwork and supported him. As he talked I was able to fill in the names he was missing. We all lose the names of the pincipal players in our work life when we are not longer working. Sometimes even when we are working. Its a fact of getting older in life.
I remember him most as he helped me write my initial mentor proposal way back in the 1980s. Some teachers that did not reach out for help were too far out to get a serious look when their proposals were forwarded. That proposal launched 6 successful mentor projects back in that era.
It was nice to see him again. He was in Starbucks because the house cleaner was on her way and he could not be in the house with her cleaning. As he sat there he got a text message that she was not coming.
Happy Weekend!
Pat
I recognized him as he came through the Starbucks line and so did he.
Five foot 7, bald head with a driving cap on. Piercing blue eyes and a sort of sloppy walk.
Somehow our lives paralleled as we worked through the same district.
He joined the district about 6 years before I did.
We even went to Lamaz training at the same time. We both have daughters the same age.
He was always in management, most of the time at district office.
His wife worked as an independent Studies teacher, he lives within three blocks of us. He is a concept man like me, married to a details wife.
He retired about four years ahead of me. He retired on the golden handshake. He was a little bitter because he was promised it a year a head of when he took it. When he got to the end the district personnel manager pulled it out from under him. The next year he produced the figures and proved that the district would make money with him gone and a golden handshake in place. It went to the board and all five board members voted to provide an incentive for his retirement.
He was always a talker. That kind of hurt him throughout his career. He was able to do good things however because he took the initiative and held on to his principles. At one time the district was hot to have him fired. This resulted in a recension as his supporters crawled out of the woodwork and supported him. As he talked I was able to fill in the names he was missing. We all lose the names of the pincipal players in our work life when we are not longer working. Sometimes even when we are working. Its a fact of getting older in life.
I remember him most as he helped me write my initial mentor proposal way back in the 1980s. Some teachers that did not reach out for help were too far out to get a serious look when their proposals were forwarded. That proposal launched 6 successful mentor projects back in that era.
It was nice to see him again. He was in Starbucks because the house cleaner was on her way and he could not be in the house with her cleaning. As he sat there he got a text message that she was not coming.
Happy Weekend!
Pat
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
We Knew it was Coming
The dark skies of yesterday left us feeling like we were in Colorado on warm summer evening as the clouds run across the sky and foretell the imminent arrival of a summer shower.
Nope folks its northern California and its not even opening day for the baseball crowd to start cheering.
The foray into the thrift shops of Modesto had us shaking and wondering about the weather. The weather does not disappoint. We are no longer in spring even through we have set back the clocks.
The rain and the wind has made its appearance once more this season.
My pansies needed to be watered. Not anymore.
We have had enough days for the worker bees to get the fruit trees pollinated. The next step is for these trees to loose their pretty pink petals and get down to the business of producing peaches apricots and nectarines between now and July 10th.
As for me the routine continues. I get my walk in every morning. I paint for an hour. Man I have gotten passionate about that. Eat some breakfast, watch a netflick, do some housework and read a chapter or two in my book.
Life is pretty good.
: ) Pat
Nope folks its northern California and its not even opening day for the baseball crowd to start cheering.
The foray into the thrift shops of Modesto had us shaking and wondering about the weather. The weather does not disappoint. We are no longer in spring even through we have set back the clocks.
The rain and the wind has made its appearance once more this season.
My pansies needed to be watered. Not anymore.
We have had enough days for the worker bees to get the fruit trees pollinated. The next step is for these trees to loose their pretty pink petals and get down to the business of producing peaches apricots and nectarines between now and July 10th.
As for me the routine continues. I get my walk in every morning. I paint for an hour. Man I have gotten passionate about that. Eat some breakfast, watch a netflick, do some housework and read a chapter or two in my book.
Life is pretty good.
: ) Pat
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Remembering Old Movies that I liked
Netflicks has a great number of older movies available through their DVD program.
This week I am running back to the old "Taming of the Shrew" film that stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The movie should have one an oscar for art direction. It completely characterizes the mellow raw sienna color scheme that reflects the mood and aura of the Shakespearean play. Richard and Elizabeth certainly have sparks that fly beyond the script in this one.
The counterpoint to Taming of the Shrew is the 1953 Cole Porter classic musical "Kiss me Kate." Its amazing the songs that came out of this musical. It features an on stage treadmill that is used in dance sequences and to move stage sets to signify moving. It introduces a choreographer, then an actor in Bob Fosse. When you look at this movie it is interesting to see the beginnings of the Fosse break style choregraphy that would represent his style in the future. Its a smaltzy musical with the concept of putting on the Taming of the shrew inside the musical format with actors and actresses that off stage are performing that same kind of exchanges that occur in the Shakesperian comedy.
Earlier this week I watched Papillon. Its quite a story and a couple of really solid acting performances.
Don't forget to check out "Flipped."Its a great movie by Bob Reiner. It gets the AARP award for best intergenerational movie. Its a great look at growing up in the 60's.
: ) Pat
This week I am running back to the old "Taming of the Shrew" film that stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The movie should have one an oscar for art direction. It completely characterizes the mellow raw sienna color scheme that reflects the mood and aura of the Shakespearean play. Richard and Elizabeth certainly have sparks that fly beyond the script in this one.
The counterpoint to Taming of the Shrew is the 1953 Cole Porter classic musical "Kiss me Kate." Its amazing the songs that came out of this musical. It features an on stage treadmill that is used in dance sequences and to move stage sets to signify moving. It introduces a choreographer, then an actor in Bob Fosse. When you look at this movie it is interesting to see the beginnings of the Fosse break style choregraphy that would represent his style in the future. Its a smaltzy musical with the concept of putting on the Taming of the shrew inside the musical format with actors and actresses that off stage are performing that same kind of exchanges that occur in the Shakesperian comedy.
Earlier this week I watched Papillon. Its quite a story and a couple of really solid acting performances.
Don't forget to check out "Flipped."Its a great movie by Bob Reiner. It gets the AARP award for best intergenerational movie. Its a great look at growing up in the 60's.
: ) Pat
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Spring in the Valley
Northern California is in bloom.
On a recent drive in the country around Merced County it is clear that the almond blossom season is just about over.
There were some raindrops during the blossom season. Some almond groves are still covered with white and the ground around them looks like snow. The hives are still set in place and hopefully the bees can do their jobs.
One of my friends who owns bees says they have a great union. They only work when the weather is sunny and the skies are blue.
That was pretty much the story in my yards this year. The pluots were the first to bloom. There was a lot of stormy weather that could effect the pollenization this year. The peaches are still in the middle of their bloom now. They will have a great chance to have a super crop. I witnessed and photographed some bees working my trees. You can look these up in my flicker account. Its just a link to the left of this blog. The pee zee the little tree that is right on the sidewalk had the best bloom this year. The Sugar Lady with the non acid white peaches are a close second. The weather in the valley has continued to be mild. I walked to Starbucks today without a coat and didn't miss one.
Dad has reminded me that with the increase in temps, watering schedules need to start being maintained. Their is a single Iceland poppy that made it through the winter and is contributing a single bright yellow blossom to the front patio.
Get out and enjoy the sunshine, if you can! : ) Pat
On a recent drive in the country around Merced County it is clear that the almond blossom season is just about over.
There were some raindrops during the blossom season. Some almond groves are still covered with white and the ground around them looks like snow. The hives are still set in place and hopefully the bees can do their jobs.
One of my friends who owns bees says they have a great union. They only work when the weather is sunny and the skies are blue.
That was pretty much the story in my yards this year. The pluots were the first to bloom. There was a lot of stormy weather that could effect the pollenization this year. The peaches are still in the middle of their bloom now. They will have a great chance to have a super crop. I witnessed and photographed some bees working my trees. You can look these up in my flicker account. Its just a link to the left of this blog. The pee zee the little tree that is right on the sidewalk had the best bloom this year. The Sugar Lady with the non acid white peaches are a close second. The weather in the valley has continued to be mild. I walked to Starbucks today without a coat and didn't miss one.
Dad has reminded me that with the increase in temps, watering schedules need to start being maintained. Their is a single Iceland poppy that made it through the winter and is contributing a single bright yellow blossom to the front patio.
Get out and enjoy the sunshine, if you can! : ) Pat
Monday, March 7, 2011
How many Movies In A Redbox
An online search revealed that there are 500 movies in a redbox vending machine.
The news from the film industry reflects some concern over the number of redbox kiosks that seem to be popping up everywhere.
Case in point.
Our Raley's which is my point of sale for the redbox has two rebox kiosks. During any weekend hour it seems that there is always a line in front of both. This means that there are really a lot of people using the redbox or there a a few slowpokes that have to skim through the synopsizes of each movie they are interested in holding up the line. Sometimes this is the case.
I see now that the 24 hour Walgreens in our town also has a redbox kiosk. Each of our sav mart grocery stores have two redboxes too. Walmart has one as well.
Living a in city with two colleges with many people highly literate in computer use this by and large confounds and frustrates the younger generation. They have reserved their choice on line and come in to pick up and pay. There are also people that come in to must return the title.
Once a month the free feed line opens. This amounts to a text message, you do text messages don't you, to a free promo code. This is often sent ready for the first Monday in the month. It s one time code, and you really cannot reserve your movie in advance for this event. I stood in line this morning when life was a lot easier at the redbox and still had some difficulty fingering in the promo code. The touch screen was a little slow and somewhat inaccurate. There is also the bit of gracefulness required in keeping your phone fired up with the code while you touch screen in an obscure formula to get the free rental.
Still this is a better system then the big VHS soft pack cases that we used to wonder through to find the perfect movie at Blockbuster.
So Blockbuster is all but dead and redbox and netflicks are the winners of the consumer movie game. You don't have to have a human interaction with either of these paradigms.
The news from the film industry reflects some concern over the number of redbox kiosks that seem to be popping up everywhere.
Case in point.
Our Raley's which is my point of sale for the redbox has two rebox kiosks. During any weekend hour it seems that there is always a line in front of both. This means that there are really a lot of people using the redbox or there a a few slowpokes that have to skim through the synopsizes of each movie they are interested in holding up the line. Sometimes this is the case.
I see now that the 24 hour Walgreens in our town also has a redbox kiosk. Each of our sav mart grocery stores have two redboxes too. Walmart has one as well.
Living a in city with two colleges with many people highly literate in computer use this by and large confounds and frustrates the younger generation. They have reserved their choice on line and come in to pick up and pay. There are also people that come in to must return the title.
Once a month the free feed line opens. This amounts to a text message, you do text messages don't you, to a free promo code. This is often sent ready for the first Monday in the month. It s one time code, and you really cannot reserve your movie in advance for this event. I stood in line this morning when life was a lot easier at the redbox and still had some difficulty fingering in the promo code. The touch screen was a little slow and somewhat inaccurate. There is also the bit of gracefulness required in keeping your phone fired up with the code while you touch screen in an obscure formula to get the free rental.
Still this is a better system then the big VHS soft pack cases that we used to wonder through to find the perfect movie at Blockbuster.
So Blockbuster is all but dead and redbox and netflicks are the winners of the consumer movie game. You don't have to have a human interaction with either of these paradigms.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Grocery Tech Meets Older Generation
A lady with silvery white hair was in font of me in front of my at Raley's this morning had a nice collection of grocery items that she brought up to the clerk ready to check out.
The clerk ran her things across the laser light beam and gave back her coupon for the lunch meat, asked her if she wanted some cash back.
Yes the lady said yes 40 extra and picked up her lanyard that held her debit card miniature and still in had faced it to the cashier. The cashier grabbed it up and dragged the unsuspecting customer close to the face of the face lightbeam until the cashier figured that she had this elderly lady by the neck and was on her way to a choke hold. The lady finally took off the lanyard and the transaction was completed over many apologies.
I won't grab it next time the clerk said.
The lady said I will surely take it off next time.
I couldn't help but chuckle.
As I approached the cashier, I mentioned to the cashier that it looks like there was another Sav Mart customer. (Raley's rival grocery store in Merced)
She laughed and said that I would be laughing about that all day.. Now you can too!
: ) Pat
The clerk ran her things across the laser light beam and gave back her coupon for the lunch meat, asked her if she wanted some cash back.
Yes the lady said yes 40 extra and picked up her lanyard that held her debit card miniature and still in had faced it to the cashier. The cashier grabbed it up and dragged the unsuspecting customer close to the face of the face lightbeam until the cashier figured that she had this elderly lady by the neck and was on her way to a choke hold. The lady finally took off the lanyard and the transaction was completed over many apologies.
I won't grab it next time the clerk said.
The lady said I will surely take it off next time.
I couldn't help but chuckle.
As I approached the cashier, I mentioned to the cashier that it looks like there was another Sav Mart customer. (Raley's rival grocery store in Merced)
She laughed and said that I would be laughing about that all day.. Now you can too!
: ) Pat