Margret Sloan

Have seen the tenant build out underway for a few months and finally a banner announcing that a new Mexican restaurant would be opening in a little neighborhood shopping center. And finally last week they changed the banner to say “Now Open” and todays was our first opportunity to stop in and try them out.

There were only a few customers in the restaurant, but at 2:30 it was getting late for lunch - I hope they had a larger crowd during the 11:00 - 1:00 prime time lunch hours. We were seated immediately and a server took our drink order as soon as we were settled in. The menu was well done and had many selections, the food turned out great, and we’ll be going back to La Terraza again soon.

I barely remember a cartoon from when I was a kid called, Speed Racer. I believe it was one of those barely animated cartoons, where the face was big on the screen but only the lips moved for the dialogue. I wonder if it ever got fully animated for the kids of future generations? I don’t remember my kids ever watching a cartoon called Speed Racer. They might have, but we weren’t very big on watching cartoons. Mornings during the week were too hectic for TV, and Saturdays were either our own race to get to the baseball fields or we were camping at the beach, the river or the mountains.

There’s been a lot of publicity for the new movie coming out this weekend based on the Speed Racer cartoons, so I think if it is a rainy weekend we might take the grandkids to the movies to see this movie. If it’s not raining, I’d rather find something for them outside and active, but it’s nice to have a rainy day backup plan.

Decided this was a good time to read up on ED (erectile dysfunction) and check out the options for treatment, as this conversation might be coming up soon.

I checked a couple medical sites and then I found a website that is an online pharmacy that sells the top three most popular treatments for ED, called edrugstore.md and read through their pages on the three prescription drugs:

• Cialis
• Viagra
• Levitra

The page on Cialis talked about how this medication works for up to 36 hours, can be taken with or without food, and begins to work as quickly as 30 minutes after taking it.

The website has good information about their policies and how they work - all medications are brand names - no generics or counterfeits. They only dispense FDA-approved prescription medications and guarantee the lowest prices on the internet.

There is also a section on their home page that links to articles, such as “What Exactly is Cialis and Is It Right For You? ” and other helpful articles. I find reading these in the privacy in my own home is a lot easier to absorb rather than sitting in a doctor’s office and listening to him quickly go over the main points before handing us over to a medical assistant or, worse, their billing department.

The website also has a forum for discussions and a pharmacy blog. I like the way this company is really up to date on technology and writes in plain English so I can understand all the information on what can be a difficult subject for a lot of people to talk about.

Every once in a while if I’m out and about I run across someone special and have had to learn how to handle those brief encounters.

I was at the vet with one of the puppies for his routine exam and shots, and ended up sharing the waiting room with Leon Russell. He was there with his dog, and we had the chance to chat for a few minutes before he was ushered to one of the treatment rooms. What a nice man!

Leon was born and raised in Oklahoma but he’s been living here for years and keeping a low profile, not doing a lot of shows any more but doing a lot of behind the scenes things, like producing for other artists and some charity concerts. Until chatting with him at the vet’s, I didn’t realize that he has 16 albums out - I just know that one of his songs has been a classic in the DJ gigs I used to do, years ago. He does have an album out now, called “Angel in Disguise,” and I’m going to hunt for that at the store next time I’m buying music.

Last night we had a board meeting for the non profit that I’ve been working with these past several years. We had to review the nominations for new board members and officers for the coming year. I was glad to learn that we’ve found someone new to serve as Treasurer, a young man who works for a large financial services company, Northern Trust.

I had reviewed their website and was totally impressed with Northern Trust. They offer a variety of financial services for individuals, including

• business owners
• legal professionals
• medical professionals
• corporate executives
• families in transition

I’m hoping that, if elected, the Treasurer can meet some of our consumers and works with them, as well as other board members, to help with long term financial planning. Some of them need help with understanding the processes of estate settlement and some just need a friend they can talk to about arranging for the future care of their disabled children and get the peace of mind that financial security brings.