"Charlie G Bugly"

Earth Day

Tip of the Day:

Pour yourself a cup of coffee that you brew at home put on your new mint lip gloss and voila
alternative to high priced high calorie mint latte. We're saving paper cups and cutting calories at the same time. Who Knew?!

Happy Birthday Farkey

Well today's the big day for my brother Mark...nick name ....Farkey. The big 4-0. Oh my.



Happy Birthday Big Brother. I just feel the need to share some of my little sister love... oh yeah and maybe some stories. Like the Alien one wasn't enough. I'll just stick with the good ones and what it is like growing up with a brother like Mark Sargent... did I just say that. I'm just putting the word out there in hopes you will be found!


I actually had to be a little tougher than most girls for Mark has a love for things that blow up. What does this mean?? Well for entertainment we would have bottle rocket wars at the beach. That meant everyone to a boat and carry as many explosives you can in your pockets. You would then row off shore maybe 100 yards enough to pretty much make sure you didn't hit the houses and then it's free game. There were many times one would have to jump overboard to save yourself from the flying rockets. One summer I got stuck with the paddle boat and no protection. Bummer!! Or there were the nights we would go out in the boat and hunt for Dog Fish. Once you get one up to the boat someone holds the mouth open and Mark would drop an M-80 down the throat and let it go. After he swam away and you saw the phosphorus flash from the M-80 exploding it was a feeding frenzy for the rest of the dog fish.


Or then there is the time where Mark thought it would be fun to throw a aerosol can into the fireplace in my bedroom. Unaware when I lit the fire ...within 30 seconds there was a good explosion and the glass doors of the fireplace blew off. He came screaming into the room after he heard the ruckus... just sorry not to have witnessed it first hand.


I could go on but after all I'm being on my best behavior and will save the other stories for another time!


Mark I'm glad you made it to 40 without being abducted or blown up! Congratulations

Aliens & Family

This seems to be the month for Birthdays. My brothers 40th is tomorrow.



Does it seem that birthdays come so much faster than they use to?? Time just passes by and there is not enough hours in the day to get it all done. Remember this is the year to accomplish what you've always wanted to do. If it's only to color coordinate you socks and underwear drawer... well at least you have a mission in life! Personally I tend not to look at peoples feet so would never notice if your socks matched your outfit or if you were even wearing any for that matter.

But back to birthdays and brothers. My brother (Mark) and I are actually the same age for 13 days. I know what you're thinking... was your mother out of her mind??!! However it didn't turn out that bad. We were pretty close growing up even though I was a "bad" sister and I'm sure every day Mark wanted to pummel me, however the "little sister" card saved me more than once. That doesn't work so well when you're in 30's. So to be on my best behavior I would like to wish "Mark" a Happy Birthday but I can't mention his full name here in cyber land for he's staying low from the Government and Aliens for that matter. Yes I'm serious about that last comment. He's serious too! Again to be on my best behavior I won't mention the time he camped out in our field all night with a set of strategically located flashing lights to call in the little green men. Sounds a little weird I know and when your lying in bed watching flashing lights out the window knowing it's not lightning but rather a form of communication to the extraterrestrial life. The thought that at any moment a Unidentified Flying Object would land in our back yard in search of the extra intelligent human (my brother) and I would have to tearfully say goodbye to him then try to figure out how to tell my mother before she watches it on Extra or reads in the Sun. But what's really weird is that he's turning 40 already and is still here with us humans on earth. So let's wish him a Happy Birthday today and hope he has many more with us.

Oh and by the way... the field of lights evening happened only 12 years ago... making him...what 28?! Hmmm.

Earth to Aliens

What's even funnier (I know not a real word) is the response from my brother, again he's serious about the high powered lasers!!

Here's the email I received this morning after today's posting!

You know it's funny. I was thinking of the field with lights just
this morning, laughing to myself. I still think it would have
worked. What I needed was some high powered lasers as well, maybe
green ones. Yeah, green.

It was very sweet of her to write what she did. I enjoyed every
part. And she is right. I am amazed that after 40 years I'm still
here on Earth with all the humans. Maybe they lost me? I should
have sent a forwarding address.

Anyway, the blog made me smile, which is strange to say because
blog is such a crude sounding word, like booger, barf or burp.
Hmm. Note to self: Stay away from any short words starting with
B.

Thank you thank you for the kind words.


Love,

Mark

Black & White

Tess is taking to Puppy very nicely... except when he bites her ears. Then it's free game kid. She bowled him over in the lawn pretty good the other day. He could be heard yelping all the way to the ferry dock. What Tess doesn't know is that puppy hood only lasts for a very short while. Soon he will be bigger than her and then it's payback time.

Date Night

Save the Date: Saturday April 26th

Dust of your boots for we're going to cut a rug at Mukilteo Coffee Co.

Concert starts at 7:00pm and will go to 9-9:30

Tickets should be purchased soon for this event will sell out. Get on the horn today and call 360-221-5270. Cost $20 per person. Beer and Wine available for purchase as well as Chili or Soup. So come hungry and thirsty and ready to boogie with Roy Rogers and the Delta Rhythm Kings!

"Roy Rogers is an exceptionally articulate slide guitarist, either he's scorching Robert Johnsons "Ramiblin Blues" or taking a lovely , lyrical journey .... or rockin' it out. One of the rare guitar hero's who values feeling over flash" ~ Rolling Stones

Meet us there ~ Come early for food, drinks and a good seat!

It was a tough choice ... however after 6 hours we finally picked a winner. But look at his competition. As you can see this was a very difficult task.
Now to find a name for the little monkey. And don't think "Monkey" hasn't crossed my mind.








And the winner is:




Man he's cute!! He looks a lot like my Grandpa George. Yes.. George was a name I even considered however was outvoted by most everyone.
A few names in the running:
Ruggles
Osmo
Gus
Charlie
If you have a suggestion throw it out there. Maybe we should have a competition. The winner gets a pound of Perky Puppy coffee blend from Useless Bay Coffee Co.

Puppies

Who to take home. There are just too many cute faces to choose from

To Do List

364 days to go.

Top of the list of things to do today, renew our Passports. You never know when you may find that last minute cheap ticket to a foreign country and it's most important to have your documents ready. After all the thought of a weekend ...shopping in Paris or purchasing beautiful leather sandals in Italy. This was one of the subjects brought up at last nights dinner. And one of the ever so conservative husbands mentioned that the airfare might be cheap but the hotels will be expensive. Our comeback... if we go for just the weekend... who's sleepin??! Makes sense no??!
We suggest that if you don't have a passport there is no better time than the present. And the government makes it now so easy. Visit the web site below

http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html

With the appropriate paper work you will need to send along two recent color photographs of yourself. They are very specific about these so your best option is to go to the local passport photo service and have them done. On the Island that would be our local Drug Store (Langley or Freeland). Of course you're not allowed to wear dark glasses, wigs or disguises. No hats or head coverings either so make sure you wash your hair and take a really nice picture. You just might get a handsome passport checker at the airport and a girl should always look her best.
Our goal before they expire in 10 years... fill it up!! If that means Canada and back.. well... at least you're traveling.

We'll be watching the friendly skies for air deals and keep you posted.

Gosh.. Cake.. for me?!

It's someones Birthday today... We're just publicly announcing this so no one forgets. You know how she loves a good party and any reason for one... not that this birthday is a milestone. No it's not! The countdown for that starts tomorrow with 364 days and let me tell you every day will be counted.
For those of you who have gone beyond that birthday, well, I'm sorry!!
Of course I could be wrong in saying that. After all Oprah is more thrilled with life now that she's 50. I'm thinking she's full of Bologna (and I only know how to spell that because I silently just sang the Oscar Mayer song).

No ... I'm pretty much thinkin next years birthday will just have to be skipped altogether or spent in Italy or Paris or some other place that food will be more of the focus than turning the big 4-0.
This year though there will be celebrating!! All weekend if I can pull it off. But there will be no birthday wishes. Right now I'm into making deals with God. We've done pretty well in the past although he didn't take the gray hair request too seriously. I'm afraid vanity is not on his agenda. So that's why we're paying the big bucks to our favorite hair stylists. Who by the way I visited this week and he is sporting a lovely green Mohawk. Not only is he a great stylist but the conversations we have in my hour time slot are very interesting. We talked about Pet physics for a good part of the time which I found amusing to the point I actually snorted when laughing. My apologies to those who are into that... but you must understand I find many serious things amusing. Which brings me to Heather. Man she is funny! And that's why this weeks blogging has been about the garden because "Funny Heather" has been away on spring break with her family and without her it's just not funny. But today she is back and we are going to celebrate my birthday tonight(along with our husbands) at her favorite restaurant "Cactus" and we always do what "Heather Says".

And you're saying to yourself right about now... "hopefully we can leave after the singing"

OK here goes


Thank you!! What do I want for my birthday??? So sweet of you to ask
"A Puppy" and I'm picking him up on Sunday!


Puppy Posts to follow.

We're a lot like you

Mark says we're going to pour concrete today

And what Mark says goes.

We don't need to check the weather report... we brought our own blue skies with us.

Blue Tarp Concrete finisher #38 we're a lot like you.... a little different!



Have you seen the Pemco Commercials. Our local Whidbey Island Chainsaw Woodcarver Steve Backus is Profile #16. You can view it on YouTube
www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5MdSw3Dfu4

Anyway this is the slab for the garden outhouse. OK.. not really an outhouse since it has indoor plumbing but rustic none-the-less. At the local Island Recycle (A.K.A - DUMP) for $5 dollars we purchased a beautiful old sink, a sexy tomato cage that will be crafted into a lovely ceiling chandelier and a rusty thingy-ma-jig that will be used as a coat hanger. How can a tomato cage be sexy you ask?? Just wait and see! Craft Class begins in another week. We also have two more antique windows a door from an old beach cabin and a small wood stove. Fancy!
In case you didn't notice... check out the view from where one would sit using the outhouse. For when you live on an island you must see the water at all times.

Big Booty Tom

Guaranteed not to be the end of the story.....

Wednesdays Whidbey Island Record reports yet more details on the death of the Renegade Turkey.
Once again what you read below is word for word. You just can't make this stuff up. It's BIG news on an Island


New turkey named in fatal accident

In a new development that would have made Mark Twain smile, the initial report of the death of "Big Fanny" may have been exaggerated.
Last week, the Bayview community was abuzz with the news of an auto accident involving "Big Fanny," one of three wild turkeys that have wandered along a busy stretch of Bayview Road in recent months. Workers at Good Cheer reported seeing a white Volvo hit and killed one of the turkeys they nicknamed "Big Fanny."
Judith Gorman, a resident who often walks in the neighborhood, said this week she has seen the surviving two turkeys.
Gorman said it was clear that Big Fanny was not hit, but rather, a turkey that some had nicknamed "Big Booty Tom"
I was very happy to see that the Big Fanny we lost was not the one female turkey. The Big Fanny we lost was tom," she said.
Gorman saw the surviving male turkey take off with his mate, flying into the trees.
But whichever big fanny Tom we lost, the good news is: perhaps we will have a family again soon. That is, if we all slow down and pay attention to what is right in front of us," she added.

Big Booty Tom... may you "Rest in Peace" (OK we added that part)

Foundations

I've got to make this quick for the concrete is being delivered in another 40 minutes which is for the foundation of the New Chicken Coop and the Outhouse. This garden project is really wonderful but I'm absolutly exhausted when the day is done.

Here are a couple photos from yesterdays progress.

We pulled rocks out of the field. Ones that the lawnmower has had battles with in the past. Seems like the lawnmower has won today.





It sure helps having heavy equipment to lift these babies.


Now to find the perfect spot in the planting area.


Then our 7 month old Tess forgets the ball idea there is duck food on the ground.


And what a mess!!


Little "Miss Piggy"


I think someone doesn't like being called a pig!

The Art of Blogging

Blogging for us started a year ago when we were getting ready to take a trip to France. It seemed like a great way to keep in touch with our Island Hommies. Instead of emailing everyone individually while we were on the road we just posted on our blog important events of the day which generally consisted of the pastries we ate and the fabulous places we had been. Our friends could then comment back and we could see how much everyone missed us... or not. We continued to "blog" after the vacation was over now about our life at home. Somewheres along the line our name changed from friends in france to "Life on an Island". We are Island girls and blog junkies.

There are a bazillion blogs out there. Some good, some not so good and some fabulous ones. We would like to share some of our favorites. Stick us and the ones below in your "Favorites" and you'll never watch TV again. There is great cooking ideas with recipes, crafts, garden hints, and just silly stuff to read. You will laugh, cry and take cold showers. You will also forget where you started and lose track of time.

They are listed in no particular order although Confessions of a Pioneer woman is #1 in our book and will take up hours of your blessed day.

Have fun and don't forget to keep checking back with us.

1. Confessions of a Pioneer Woman

2. Unruly Things

3. Beebee Mod

4. Anna Maria Horner

5. Frolic

The below web sites are really not blogs but something you need to look at.

. Etsy - Your place to buy & sell all things handmade

. Your Heart Out

. Tastespotting - Feed your addiction



Click on the links from the toolbar on your left, you'll be glad you did and forget how you got there.

Who are you looking at?

Now I don't know... but if I were a duck that would be a bit personal for me and one wouldn't want to stand so close to killer dog!






What?? I wasn't thinking nothin!

Big Fanny

There is no making this up folks. The local Whidbey Record again is on top of very important news!! Below is the story in todays paper... word for word. Big fanny was the turkey hit on Bayview road we reported to you what.. a week and a half ago?? The kicker..... donations in memory of Mr. Turkey can be made to WAIF. If you need the address where to send your money, let us know and we'll get that information out to you. Enjoy the laugh.


Bayview turkey family loses member
By Michaela Marx Wheatley
Apr 02 2008
BAYVIEW — Maybe “Big Fanny” should have gotten some advice from the chicken who crossed the road.
Just after 8 a.m. Friday, a white Volvo traveling on Bayview Road hit and killed “Big Fanny,” a member of the turkey family that has roamed the area freely since last fall.
“We’re all mourning Big Fanny,” said Don Roan, a Good Cheer volunteer and Bayview turkey fan.
“We called her Big Fanny because she had a big fanny,” he said.
The turkeys have been spotted up and down Bayview Road since last fall, going for walks and gobbling at people passing by. Though they often wandered into the roadway, South End drivers took the trio of jaywalking turkeys in stride.
Roan was clearly upset and pointed to speed as a factor in the fatal accident.
“People around here look out for the turkeys,” he said.
Reva Albright came upon the accident scene on her way to work at Good Cheer Food Bank.
“The feathers were still flying,” Albright said.
“The other two turkeys looked distraught. The people that hit her looked distraught. They probably were trying to figure out what they hit,” she said.
Albright said she didn’t stay to find out what happened to the dead bird or the two survivors.
The birds had won quite a following in the area.
“They looked like domesticated turkeys that got away,” Albright said. “They were not going to be anybody’s Thanksgiving dinner. They were kind of community pets,” she said, adding that passers-by sometimes fed the birds.
The Good Cheer team had just bought a big bag of feed for the turkeys, who sometimes came by the food bank for a visit.
Since the incident, the two surviving turkeys haven’t been seen on Bayview Road as often.
“They are probably trying to recover,” he said.
Roan added he would like the accident driver and the community to donate money to WAIF or another animal welfare organization in Big Fanny’s name.
“We all should take care of these creatures. They are part of our environment,” he said.

Beautiful Day on Whidbey

It's going to be a beautiful day in the Northwest. If you're lucky enough to have the day off get your daily vitamin D and spend it outside. Go for a hike, wash your windows, wash your car, pull some weeds, trim back the roses. Now you know what we're going to do.

If you're not lucky enough to have the day off, take your lunch break somewhere with a view or on a patch of green grass.

We are lucky to live on an island

Mashmallows and Ants

The snow & rain has been falling which is a great excuse to stay in the house and get a little spring cleaning done. Why not start with the kitchen and the pantry?. Refresh the spices and herbs throw out the half opened (that have been sitting on the shelf for well you can't remember how long) bags of chips, boxes of crackers and a container of hard round white things which resembles marshmallows. As I throw the crackers and such out on the lawn for the ducks to eat Mark asks what am I going to do with the marshmallows?! Funny question I thought but I can see the boyish twinkle in his eye. I'm almost afraid to ask. Here goes.... "what did you have in mind"? Turns out little boys like to play with ant hills and we have two ginormous red ant hills in our field. His suggestion was to give the marshmallows to the ants. Now this sounds like fun. Way more fun than the first time I discovered the ant hills while on the riding lawn mower. It wasn't on purpose but to watch those little guys fly through the air... wow. What entertains us here on an Island!

Anyway... here are a couple of photos and if you fear ants I would recommend you go look at the puppy update instead.