Betsy's June 2002 Newsletter

June 2002 Newsletter

A little bit different this time around on the newsletter. Just bulleted highlights for the month (written in the third person because today Betz is feeling saucy), and I encourage you to check out my website. I have been working on it during every spare moment at work, and it now has a bunch of pictures for your viewing enjoyment. Ok, so here we go with the third-person highlights of the month:

5/2 Hall of Fame weekly pool tournament. Betz freaked everyone out with her ability to speak backwards phonetically. At first there was disbelief, then challenge ("here, read this to me backwards!" shoving a magazine across the table), then spectacle ("dude, come over here! you gotta hear this!"), and finally eerie acceptance ("Please just stop. You're creeping me out.") She can't help it. Once you teach yourself how to do something like this, you can't just turn it off. If you don't believe her, just ask her to do it for you next time you see her. It really is kind of cinatas (turn the letters around--you'll figure it out).

5/3-5/10 Betz interviewed student employee candidates ALL WEEK!!! Got sick of asking the same questions after about 25 interviews. Derek locked in a refinance rate at 6.5% with current mortgage company. Will close on June 12, save thousands, and be paid off in 20 years instead of 30.

Movies rented this month:

Spy Game Harold & Maude High Fidelity

(kind of a slow movie month because of the Stanley Cup playoffs)

5/8 Tonight was Betz's old roomie Angela's auction in Gross Pointe (her job is to coordinate this HUGE auction/fundraiser for the school). Betz volunteered at the Auction Preview / Silent Auction, doing data entry behind-the-scenes. It was really fun--inputting silent bids for display on the big screens out in the room where the rich people were. There were bidding wars on some of the most unlikely auction items. Cool boss Alana got back from Ireland so Betz had to give up her VW Beetle privileges.

5/9 Hall of Fame tournament. Betz bought flowers from some obnoxious guys in a big yellow tent in the parking lot. This was probably the last HoF tournament of the year for B+D, now that the roofing, golfing, and gardening seasons are in swing.

5/10 Delivered Mother's Day balloons to all Moms in the Michigan Union in the a.m. (one of Betz's favorite times of year). Then headed to Grand Rapids with co-worker Karla for the wedding of a former student employee, Angie. Fun, fun, fun.

5/11 Met Katie, Reena, and Kathryn for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Betz asked for extra syrup for her scrambled eggs just so she could smuggle the adorable little syrup bottle home. Funny thing is, the waitress didn't find it the least bit odd that Betz wanted syrup for scrambled eggs. The 2.5-hour drive home was surprisingly exhausting, especially considering that Karla did all the driving. Felt a BIG long nap in afternoon was in order.

5/12 Mother's Day dinner at Kristin's house.

5/13 Monday pool League. Derek and Betz really weren't needed, because the team played the worst team in the league, which happens to be comprised of all the wives of the players on their team. So each guy played against his wife, and D+B just sat around (Betz colored some flyers for work to kill the time, and Derek sipped some Heinies to kill his time).

5/15 Cousin Barbie was in town for the night. Betz, Derek and Barbie went to Grizzly Peak downtown for dinner. Wasn't nearly enough time to visit with the cuzz. Kevin broke ground on the deck. Says he should finish in a week to 10 days.

5/17 Derek called home from the golf course and asked Betz to meet him at Don Carlos to celebrate his EAGLE on number 11 at Leslie!!! It was actually just 3 feet--on a straight line from his previous shot--shy of a double eagle, which would have been simply amazing. Betz worked until 2:30 a.m. on WORK budgets at HOME. What is wrong with this picture?

5/18 Scored funky plastic margarita glasses at the dollar store for Derek's birthday party.

5/19 Derek played in a golf scramble with Jay and his Ford co-workers--lots of fun. Decided to ask neighbor, John, to fill out their foursome next year because (a) he is a good golfer and (b) he works for Ford like Jay. Betz had a busy Sunday: Creative Mems at 1, then new Billiards employees over for a staff meeting w/ homemade cookies & ice cream at 7:45. Survivor finale didn't mean much after watching less than half of the season. Deck is 75% framed. Moving along much more quickly than expected.

5/20 Betz's new best friend at work, Fred, already finished painting her office, less than a week after the idea originated! "Misty orange" on one wall and a 1-foot soffit section makes it feel very warm and un-worklike. It is a welcome break from the dull, gray color in EVERY office on EVERY floor of the Union. On the rare occasion that there is no dull gray, there is an equally-dull beige. League team lost in the first round of Spring playoffs. Betz was poised to play in the anchor position--"for all the marbles"--against the other team's best player, Gerald, but she didn't get a chance (the team lost before it got to that point).

5/21 Frantically worked on Creative Mems to finish mom's....ahem....Mother's Day present. Yes, Mother's Day was on May 12. But when Betz finally gave it to her on Memorial weekend, Mom seemed to think it was worth the wait.

5/22 Don Carlos for colleague Amy K-berg's birthday. Jay, Derek, Alana, Katie, Angie Wines, Amy, and Betz thoroughly enjoyed the night out and, despite most of those people having JUST met each other, the conversation was easy, comfortable, and at times even raunchy. (Yes, these are OUR kind of people).

5/23 Derek and Betz took a walk in the big subdivision across the street at midnight. Simonie walked along like she used to do in the old neighborhood, following about 50 ft behind. But it started to rain and Derek had to go "rescue" her from under a mini-van.

5/24 Enjoyed lunch with Derek's mom, Carol (ulterior motive: she brought 11 beautiful hostas and shared her gardening expertise on some other projects). Went to the bank with Derek around 5:30. Little did he realize that his wallet didn't make it back into the car. Hours later, as they packed the car to head north for Memorial weekend, he realized he could not find it. After 30 minutes of searching and panicking, they decided to retrace steps back to the bank. Sure enough, 100 feet out of the bank driveway on a highly trafficked street, lay his wallet. And another 50 feet from that, his checkbook (which he hadn't even realized was gone). They were utterly astonished that it was still there, (having flown off the top of Betz's car as they drove away) and intact. It surely must have been run over by hundreds of cars. Hit the road for "up north" at about 11:00 p.m.

5/25 Reached the halfway mark, Gaylord, around 2:00 a.m. Short hotel stay, followed by breakfast at the legendary Sugar Bowl before embarking upon the rest of the trip. Noted "Saint Bernard Puppies" sign at farm on US-2 and vowed to stop in on the way back for cuddling and pictures for Carol. Rain poured as they reached mom's, so no golf for Derek at the old Air Base as planned. Checked out the house Sean & Celina bought from old neighbor lady, who passed away. She shared Swedish heritage and had a lot of artifacts, so Celina gave Betz some old Swedish books and a svenska flag. Went to Aunt Lynn's house in the evening...the whole family was there! A quick estimate puts that at 31 people in an average-sized house...Whew. Only with people you really love, can you share space that closely.

5/26 Derek had early golf at Timberstone, the toughest course in the U.P. (heck, maybe in all of Michigan!), with most of the men in the family. Derek shot his record Timberstone round, Betz hit a bunch of 200 yard drives (believe it or not!) while killing time at the driving range before the men teed off. Long nap after golf, then headed to Colleen's graduation party. Snapped lots of pictures (see website).

5/27 Derek had early golf again at Oak Crest but Betz slept in. Headed to mom's at 3:30 for their last night in the U.P., BBQd on the grill. Watched the Red Wings lose, later watched Waterworld and then home videos....Christmas 1991 at Stewarts, Betz's High School Bowl alumni episode on PBS, then Sean's graduation party. What memories!!!

5/28 Saddened to see the "St. Bernard puppies" sign was not out on US-2 anymore. Stocked up on smoked whitefish, homemade jerky, and Mackinac Island fudge in St. Ignace on the way home. Managed to avoid holiday traffic until Flint. Frustrated to see no progress on the deck during 5-day absence.

5/29 Betz has the rest of the week off! Slept in, cleaned, gardened. Aahhhhhh. Extra long day on a job in Plymouth for Derek; Betz made P'sketti for dinner. Planted hostas and ageratum while Derek golfed. Claims he had an epiphany on his swing and will soon be a single-digit handicap. Has anyone reading this letter who knows Derek not heard this before? Sure, it has different names..."breakthrough"... "figured something out" ... "revelation" ... and now "epiphany," but it remains to be seen whether his game will actually change. (hmmm...saucy and cynical today)

5/30 Snooker visited the vet for shots. Cranky as always, she tried to assault the assistant. They had to cover her with a towel to calm her down. Gardnin' gardnin' gardnin'!!! Derek fixed the wheelbarrow wheel, so Betz was able to move the pile of clay soil that has been in the flowerbed by the front door for so long. People were starting to ask whether a cat was buried there.

5/31 Busy, busy Friday. Very hot weather. Betz brought lunch to Derek on the job site (everyone benefits from vacation days!). Cheered the Wings on to victory at home, then headed to Don Carlos to pay Derek's guys. There they bumped into Derek's buddy, Pete Rodriguez, and two very cool women who were there having a beer. Betz proceeded to freak more people out with her ability to speak backwards. But alas: she is not the only one with an O.C.D. (obsessive-compulsive disorder)! One of the girls shares a quirk with Betz: splitting spoken words into even-numbered syllables. They bonded while others at the table pointed and giggled at the circus freak-shows.

6/1 Picked up 3 tons of top soil first thing in the morning. All-day visit from Angela. Lots of gardening; lots of progress on the deck as well. Subtly told Kevin that completion is anxiously awaited (started off fast but has been really dragging this project out). Betz tried the new Thai place on Washtenaw with Angela and enjoyed it. Derek's allergies kept him inside all day long, despite the motivation and desire to be out working in the yard.

6/4 Red Wings lost first game of the Stanley Cup final series. Un-frickin' believable. Betz received "A Glimpse of Wells Township," a compilation about the history of her hometown, courtesy of her 3-4-5th grade teacher, Mrs. Lenore Usher. Read a little bit each night and thoroughly enjoyed it. (Thanks Mrs. U! Great job!!!)

6/5 Rained again, Derek home form work for the 5th consecutive day and driving Betz crazy. How does she get through the winters when he's like this?

6/6 A huge snapping turtle wandered into the yard (see picture on website). The cats reacted with guarded amazement. Simonis got closest, within 3 inches of the turtle's face. Fortunately, it did not snap. Derek bought steaks ($18.47) at Meijer for grilling. Note: do not let Derek go grocery shopping alone again. Can't wait for the frickin' deck to be finished.

6/7 Betz had to work at 6:00 a.m. for balloons. Through sleepy eyes she wondered: how do normal people get up this early every day? The good side of this is that she left work at 3:30, and was able to nap despite deck pounding just outside the window (she is normally the world's lightest sleeper). First round of the CITY CUP...the place was packed! Teams from all over Detroit vying for the City Cup title and a trip to Las Vegas. Neither Betz nor Derek, the two team anchors, got to play because the team only needed three players to win. Betz talked to former Women's team buddies Judy & Hermie for a while. Teams trickled out but Betz & Derek stayed. Betz held the pool table against all comers for 2 hours while Derek partook of many libations and tried his darnedest to obnoxiously lure the league players into kicking his ass. Unfortunately no one would play for money, or Betz would have covered the cost of Derek's drinking binge and perhaps even bail (ok people, that's a JOKE).

6/8 After a trick shot exhibition for conference guests at Betz's office building, Derek headed straight to Dude's for Round 2 of the City Cup, and Betz likewise headed to Angela's in the ungodly heat for the long-awaited Indigo Girls concert. Angela provided beverages and fruit snacks in a cooler, and Betz brought a pillow and comforter for lawn seats. Abandoned the beverages in the trunk, since the concert Nazis will not allow beverages--even water--to be brought in. After the sun went down, it was a cool, gorgeous evening. Indigo Girls, as always, ROCKED. Lots of "free love" all around, reminiscent of the 60s (good thing we can multi-task: listen to the music and people-watch).

Betz stopped at Dude's on the way home, and saw that her team had lost. Derek later explained that the loss was controversial and perhaps unnecessary. After the first two players lost their matches, three consecutive wins would be needed to win the round. The team's only chance of winning the round was to put Derek in the box, and the captain chose not to do so on the advice of his sour-grapes friend who does not respect, appreciate, or even begin to understand Derek's knowledge of the game. Derek and Betz mutually agreed not to play in the roofing crew league anymore. The Red Wings emerged victorious in triple overtime, when veteran Iggy Larionov scored a spectacular goal. Betz is moderately ashamed to say this brought her to tears of joy for the ol' boy. What hockey fan worth her salt gets choked up over something like this?

6/9 Derek sold two big jobs of his own. Very excited about that. Jobs are much more profitable when not being completed for a bigger contractor, which has been the norm this year until now.

6/10 With the help of a talented Graphic Arts student employee, Betz discovered why her pictures won't load on her website and how to fix the problem. Proceeded to go WEB CRAZY, staying after work every day to update the website. So go check it out...