Pre-Valentines weekend

Valentines just so happens to fall the very day after my treatment. This was not so good last time. Ifen you need to know the yucky details check out pugsanity. I should post it in a few days if not tonight.

So when BH asked what I wanted for V-day I said lets do something the weekend before. I'll feel good and we need to get away. So he picked Idllywild. Idllywild is a little mountain community not too far from where we live. We stayed in this quaint little inn called the Tahquitz inn . It was so wonderful.

We went up Saturday morning. A little problem arised. It was expected to rain. This meant snow at that level. We needed chains. The correct size could not be found but a probable fit was found. No we did not check them out ahead of time. If it did snow it was possible we'd be there till Easter. Maybe not Easter but who knows.

So we get there and it is beautiful! Really beautiful! The weather was warm and sunny with no sign of rain anywere. I had on a long sleaved T and a light jacket and scarf with two hats. I was ready for cold. Scarf and jacket ended up in the car as we cruised the town.

We cruised all the used bookstores and the one thriftstore. A helicopter was heard overhead all day. A shopkeeper told us that they are clearing the mountain of dead trees. Been going on for weeks and driving the locals crazy.

Our first stop was Mountain Mikes. BH had a pair of slippers or mocassins that he bought at Mountain Mikes years ago. It is from a pattern that MM found many years ago that he believes the cave men wore. When you see them in BH size you believe it. BH has wanted me to get a pair. They aren't 'pretty' but they are cool in that the design is so old.

Now MM has been on the mountain for about 30 years. He looks like a mountain man. Very very nice guy and mucho talented. On his site I do not see the slippers. He has about 3 styles of this slipper, short (slipper), ankle and calf. They all look the same except for length of boot. These will make awesome slippers and will last forever. BH has had them for many years and just has them fixed when they wear. They need fixin now and we just forgot to bring them.

The reason you wont find them on the site is that he custom fits them for your foot. He draws around your foot for exact measure, measures your bridge and all of that. It takes a few minutes and at this time of year I should get them in a couple of weeks. I wont tell you how much they cost because, gosh! It's a bit spendy. I love them and can't wait to get them. I picked a color different from BH's. It's called Whisky! So cool. I'll show you pics when I get them.

Mountain Mike is a true artist and I will be proud to wear his awesome work.



This is some of the room. Most of my pics did not turn out.

The living room had a wonderful wood burning stove. We bought wood for the fire and never ended up using it. Why? I don't know.









This is the kitchen. I thought we might use it but all we did was make coffee Sunday, that we didn't drink and kept sodas in the fridge, which we did drink.











I got a little bored before we went sightseeing. BH was not amused.














At all!













Give it up baby!

It's not that easy to take your own picture.

I know this is frightening. I have taken to drawing my eyebrows in. I have some eyebrow hair, not enough though. Also I can count my eyelashes. Everyday more and more drop out. Into my eyes! I can not dig them out without a magnifying mirror because I have old eyeballs.

I had 3 pairs of eyelashes and I've tried for weeks to glue them on. They are now in the trash and I have a lovely waterproof brown eyeliner that I use. But not this day. No makeup. I don't know why.


This is a lovely shopping center with some pretty nice stores.

The grass is absolutly beautiful. BH says it fake. What! Fake! Really?

Oh yes, really. Astroturf. I know why but I still find it strange.






It turns out the Idyllwild is a doggie town. Many inns allow dogs. Ours is one of them. More on that later. There are signs like this all over letting people know where they can and cannot take their dogs.


Why?

Because the grass isn't real and they don't want to wash doggie doo from the plastic grass. Also I imagine that the stuff burns or melts or whatever.








BH found a treasure!

At one of the little shops he found this book. It's about the Superstition mountains in Arizona not far from where he lived. He asked to buy it but they said it was not for sale. The lady made a phone call and guess what! They gave it to him! Very very happy BH.





I found a nice little cribbage set at a store. I love cribbage but I don't really know how to play it. My brother and I will play it when he comes out but then I forget all the rules and there are many and I find them confusing. Still I like the little board with the pegs so I continue to try to figure it out. This set has rules. Which are written in microscopic English. We both struggle trying to figure it out and it doesn't help that I'm having a couple of beers before we go to dinner. Also there is a lot of counting to 15 which require me to take off my shoes. BH doesn't really like my little game fascination but he loves me and humors me.

I found a pug! So so cute. And tiny. I forget her name but I had to pet her and talk to her owner. She is about 15 pounds. I've never met such a tiny adult pug. I forgot to take a pic of her so you'll have to take my word for it.

And it turns out that the people next to us has dogs. Dogs! Two Shi Tzu's. Beautiful dogs. We go to dinner and when we return the owners had gone out for dinner and the dogs were sad and lonely. They barked and scratched at the door for longer than BH's patience. The manager was contaced and the owners were called. Their dinner was postponed until the pooches were quieted.

Sunday morning it rains. Softly at first and then a little harder. I thought it might snow and the locals expected some snow as well. We were warned that we could be required to put our chains on. Thankfully we didn't have to.

That's my Valentines from BH! A wonderful day and night in Idyllwild and Mountain Mike Slippers.

His present?

Oh well lets see. BH is kind of hard to buy for. I've thought and thought. We also had some family crises that is still going on. I'm feeling better but still shopping is tiring and so I came up with this.

I have always cooked special dinners for special occasions. They usually include seafood. It's expensive and so it only comes out at special times. So. . . .

I'm making a low fat garlic shrimp dinner. It will be in the oriental catagory. New recipe for me so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I plan to light candles, give a meaningful card (I rarely give cards) and plan to wear something tiny and lacy.