My Blog Honor Roll--Part 1

When I first discovered blogging, I viewed it primarily as a way to swim the creative waters and as a way to detail a journal of my days. I have started a number of journals/diaries in my past, only to abandon them shortly thereafter. When I discovered that I could include pictures to my blog it only added a wonderful new dimension in testing those creative waters. After a while my blog became interactive. I commented on others blogs and they commented on mine. My personality is such that I like to intereact with a broad range of people. Variety is the spice of life and has been my mantra in food, music, entertainment and blogreading. (My husband often jokes that he doesn't understand why I have stayed married to him for so long, if that is the way I feel.) In blogging, as others tweaked my perspective and motivation in a whole new way, my addiction was complete. I also am intrigued by the voyeuristic aspect of visiting people and their lives so virtually.

Egoiste commented on my very first post and now has disappeared into the black pixels of the blogosphere. This probably says a great deal when it comes to blogging and bloggers. We are an ephemeral bunch, and perhaps not at all what we appear to be and maybe, instead, more so what we want to appear to be. When I first started this blog I viewed it as something that might be of interest to any geeky grandchild that I might have. But, to my surprise, although I got less personal as I got more public, along the way I made many pixelated friends.

The two-year anniversary of this blog falls on August 22 and I feel that I really should comment on this approaching milestone in some way. Sticking with something like this for two years should be of some significance---at least for me. (Maybe it shows that I at least have tenacity if no writing talent.) So, I have decided to honor my blogroll, the list of my motivators, which has grown in length as I have grown in courage. I have to list them now, because if the list grows longer, I will not be able to accomplish such a task in the future. This will be a three-part series where each blogger gets their little time and space. ( Ah, I've got you now, don't I? Your dying to see what I say about you. But if I hurt anyone's feelings--get over it--you shouldn't be blogging if you are that sensitive!)

PART I

Tomorrow is Another Day -- middle-angel, who lives in Japan, was my first. (Tee hee, sorry about that). She has the following text in her blog description: “As a libran, I put a high value on balance in everything. Pacifist, optimist. middle-aged, married.” I misread this during my early blog reading days. I mis-read the same way I mis-type. I thought she had written “As a librarian” and was wondering what a Japanese librarian would be like, so I started reading her blog. I find she does more sophisticated work than that and that is why her English is so outstanding. She is my gentle and slow day person. She helps me re-enter the Asian simple, retrospective and peaceful mode. She posts pictures of really delicious looking food. Sometimes she talks about her grown daughter, and her husband is a wonderful potter as well.

My World and Welcome to It --Peruby, who lives in Ohio, is an everywoman. She is a single mom with a beautiful teenage daughter and various pets. Yes, for her, this is the best of times and the worst of times. She has also discovered digital photography and provides a pictorial review of her rural life in Ohio in between making sure the public schools have their PC systems working. She always sympathizes with me when I am down. We don’t really have a lot in common but we are somehow always on the same wave length.

Living the Scientific Life -- Hedwig the Owl aka GrrlScientist is a very special young woman. She is pretty, very smart, outspoken, and has overcome tremendous challenges in her personal life. I think a Blogger comment helped me discover her blog. She is currently looking for a job in the field of science/working with birds and is a WONDERFUL journal-type blog writer. I am totally amazed that someone hasn’t gobbled her up yet—either by marriage or by work. It will happen someday I know, no grass grows under her feet. We share travel and the love of the South Pacific and Asia, but I cannot keep up with her passion for birds. She has a crazy sense of humor as well. I sort of feel 'motherly' when connecting with her. She has built up a hugh fan base in the blog community.

Pure Land Mountain -- Just go to Robert Brady’s well-known blog on Pure Land Mountain and you will know why I visit there often and why he is so famous. He doesn’t need the ‘interesting’ younger photo of himself to attract readers. He is a poet and a philosopher. He paints pictures and feelings and funny events all with just words. He is insightful and inspiring and makes most blog writers jealous. (His brother is a terrific writer also, but is not linked on my blogroll--I have to stop somewhere---don't I?)

Full Fathom Five -- I think I remember how I found Mary Fowler at Full Fathom Five. She is a New Englander and part of all that that entails--spare of words but clear of thought. She has a love of boats and a new, energetic white dog. I stumbled on her husband’s blog where he was talking about sails and I thought I might learn something to share with my sailor husband. Then I discovered the blog of his wife who teaches English to Asian students and in a focused way is working on self-improvment.

White Noise -- I started sharing blog comments with mannababies when she was pregnant with her third and building a house. This is a woman who can never have too much to do. She is a devoted and talented mom and yet still has time to blog, take very artistic photos, and eat the good food she cooks. Her life currently revolves around those lovely children. She has no time to sleep, unfortunately. She reminds me of myself juggling all those balls years ago. We do have coffee and chocolate in common. Her life is always moving, new houses, new jobs!

Roomination – I think I found Ginga through Hoss (who is honored in the blog to come). She knits and I don’t. She does have a youthful sense of humor that brightens the day. She may actually live within driving distance of my new house.

At The Cerebral Outpost Carol has wonderful patience as she doesn’t post often and each post has been carefully edited and written and is a very good read as a result. She has that ‘wry’ sense of humor, and when she leaves considerate comments on your blog, you may actually think you were old friends at some time. She was recently married and shared that special event with her readers. The first blog I read of her’s was so flat-out funny about a large crawfish, a cat and a treadmill…yep, she is worth visiting.

Loose Leaf: Notes from a Writer's Journal Colleen, on the other hand, is a prolific blogger, a published writer, and a featured person on NPR. She is fearless and her philosophy is "Things I would not tell anyone, I tell the public." She lives in a small town of artists and active bloggers in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. While our daily lives are not all that similar, there are threads of philosophy in her blog that I can always relate to. I also frequently find little details in our historic lives that we have in common as well. Her place in her community reflects a strong citizenship.

Well, that is the first batch of virtual friends who have allowed me to visit. More to come.

Blog Coordination

I have been asked by some blog pals to create one last post for "Build This House" and so, I will leave it up for a few weeks longer---hoping for that peaceful time when I can post a final photo that shows we know we belong.

I drank all the wine...so deleted that blog. (Don't worry, I have a small wine cooler in the new kitchen and will slowly add that.) Actually, I think I will start a spreadsheet which will be more useful to me. If I get that going I can share.

Therefore, since I do like this 'working with words thing' and posting digital photos, I have started a new blog about the Great Outdoors which is the other room of my new house.

Welcome to my unfinished yard.

Things

We are a culture that places so much value on ornamental and useless things. I have thrown away, given away, and sold more things than most people in the world own.

As I unpack, I find I still have hundreds of boxes of items that I have not seen since I packed them and stored them over three years ago.

One of the first boxes I came across was labeled for the master bedroom. Inside, among other items, were three silk clutch purses: red, purple and gray. There was also a black clutch purse with a faux turquoise stone on the clasp. Then there was a delicate white and pink beaded purse that I 'think' I wore to a high school prom. The thing about these purses is that I may have never used them more than once each. I am not a person who goes to formal affairs very often...certainly not after college. I don't know anyone who uses clutch purses anywhere.

Well, should I throw them away or turn them in for the office white elephant sale? I threw them into an empty box, and then, almost immediately, scooped them up again and put them in a smaller box. Why? Just in case I have a granddaughter someday. What fun for dress-up!

Gee, this is why I have so much junk!

Moving Days

Doing the walk-thru today, renting a large U-Haul tomorrow, maybe spending a night in the new house on Sunday and taking off Monday from work to unpack many of the boxes. Hopefully the house will feel totally like ours by next week.


I had some help with the moving, but first Xman has to fix the wheels on his golf bag.


That was a lot of work so he had to take a break for a snack.


Finally he was ready to do some heavy lifting. Notice, using only one hand and he knows how to use his back muscles!



Boy that sure tuckered him out fast!

Blogging Anniversary – Part III

Leaves of Grass Sonia is from Brazil and I cannot remember how I found her website. I must have followed a comment on someone else's blog. Comments are usually good hints at an interesting blog. While she doesn't write much in her second (3rd 4th?) language, I love the ability to visit her view of rural Brazil via my computer. She is/was a journalist and now posts photos of her life there in the countryside and photos about her family history. She has the most beautiful children as frequently happens in places like Brazil. It must be the sunshine or the food. Recently she has started to share her family photos from generations back.

Bill's Stuff I discovered Bill when he routinely commented on my house blog. He was/is/wants to go through a similar process. He also writes about other stuff like cooking, washing dishes, his family and we seem to be on the same wave length politically. He works with computers or software or something in the technology field and most recently he has been overecoming a physical challenge. It is always impressive to see people meet this stuff head-on and with strength, which he does every day. He is a good example for his family.

East and West at Every Turn I think Sky was originally from a southern state in the U.S. and she tends to blog and comment with a Southern drawl and gracious charm. She is now married to an East Indian American man who creates the most beautiful gardens for her in the beautiful northwest and she takes pictures to make us all envious. Of course, Seattle is a great place to grow stuff anyway. She posts text that is a reminder for me about poets and authors I have long forgotten. She aways sends uplifting comments to my blog as well.

The Daily Warrior Tammy is the perky 'Katie Courac' on my blog list. She makes me believe that no matter what happens life is good and worth living and to just go for it. Hey, even her pedicure’s are perky! She faces unique personal challenges and makes champagne from the stale grapes she sometimes gets. I am so totally amazed at her inner strength that when I get down I feel I should slap myself. Her sweet new grandson is the light of her life and in her newer entries she has become very creative with some text/photo combo entries called Haigu which I am hoping to try myself -- someday. (They are somewhat like a jigsaw puzzle and cannot be done lightly. Tammy does them so well it is a little intimidating.)

Idiot Out Wandering Around Scott was fiddling around with his blog format recently and finding himself personally, so recently he has not done much posting. I also started reading him through other blogs and comments on my house blog as he was in the process of building his house. I think he was more hands-on in his house project than we were.

Stepping Stones of Truth Val lives in Dorset, England and posts the most envious photos of gardens she visits. She has a special love of Japanese gardens. Her home is like a lovely English cottage---only larger---with beautiful flowers. She knows how to appreciate the good things in life, and dares to pretend she can sail. Sometimes when reading her blog, I think I am visiting Agatha Christie's blog or that pair of gardeners in Rosemary and Thyme on Public Television. What fun.

Glenda in the Land of Oz Glenda is political and liberal and sometimes even funny in spite of that. She has a rich history in her life. You don’t want to get on her dark side. She will post you nude with a duck head at a moments notice ! (Just see some of her photos.) She generously comments on my blog from time to time. She, like me, is a peace-nik and so unhappy with the way things seem to be going in the world today, but she is also pro-active about it.

Daring to Write. Wenda is a writer and a teacher of writing. The title of her blog is what got my attention. She is one of the many bloggers I look to as I study writing and try to improve my own. She teaches writing in Canada. I enjoy reading her well-crafted vignettes of life. She can be hard on herself which helps me to be easier on myself.

Ask-the-painting-contractor-chickie I cannot remember how I found Carina…through the Blogger dashboard (?). Who could pass up a blog with this title? Her blog is new and different and funky. I mean, how many painting-contractor-chickies do YOU know? She sometimes posts about one of her jobs which may require acrobatics or a good sense of ethics. (Also I am hoping for some free advice when I try that glazing technique over the ‘butter yellow’ room...) She also posts about her dogs which obviously are her other non-painting life.

Beyond the Fields We Know Kerrdelune is another blogger with many readers. She touches my soul with her photos of nature which reveal her graphics artist background and Buddhist leanings. Her photos show such peace and beauty. Her text is poetic and philosophical. Reading her blog is a nice reward at the end of a busy day. Her style is what I need to work toward when I snap pictures. Aye, there’s the rub---no snapping!!

Driftwood Inspirations Chancy is 75 years young. Her blog like mine tends to be all over the place, but she is a much better writer and a lovely poet. She is insightful on many levels. She is 'slowblog' so go there when you have time to digest thoughts. No fastblogging there. She also is very generous when she comments on my blog.

And last but not least is my blog-child. I like to take credit for giving birth to this blog, but as parents know we cannot take credit for anything our progeny produce. I commented favorably about the writing of a blogger on Robert Brady’s blog wondering why she didn’t have a blog if her own. Thus I inspired Maya’s Granny to begin her own blog. She lives on the side of a mountain in Alaska, is a grandmother to a beautiful little girl, has an interesting relationship with bears and I am just beginning to learn about the rest of her rich tapestry of life.

There are dozens more blogs that I read on occasion and have yet to add to my blogroll. Too many blogs and too little time. It amazes me after two years of this blogging thing that I look upon my blogroll the same way I would any people in my neighborhood - with homage here to the late Fred Rogers - my favorite neighbor. Some I see everyday and some our paths cross only on occasion. I think the most amazing part is their loyalty. A few come and go, but so many still post comments to their blogfriends even after they have long given up blogging on their own.

Posting for Peace

This is not a political blog, but Glenda has reminded me of the importance of this holiday and I am hoping and hopping on her bandwagon.

Thursday Thoughts #2

(Musings based on Colleen's approach to Thursdays. I do have 13 this time and snub my nose at superstition.)

1) Watching the Cavuto show on Fox which I never watch but did this time because I was too lazy to change the channel. Ann Coulter was channeling demons with the 'Culture of Terrorism' speech that she said the Democrats are spreading. Boy after that I really need a Margherita. (Personally I think she needs more s*x.)

2) Walking home in the sun from work and smelling the freshly washed plants and the chocolate earth renews my soul. I am not meant to spend large amounts of time indoors.

3) At my wedding there were only about 20 people and none of them were blood relatives or any type of family relation to either my husband or myself. The youngest was 11 and the oldest was 80.

4) The lady who is doing my house blessing has gotten her chickens in...a bunch of different types.

5) I have started a draft entry for my two year blog. It is getting complicated.

6) Because I live in an apartment above another apartment I cannot exercise in the early morning when I am metabolically ready...exercising in the late afternoon after work is hard for me. I am skipping a lot of afternoons.

7) The first piece of furniture/equipment that is going into the new house this week is the new elliptical machine. I think(?) we have our priorities straight.

8) My daughter is going through a rough time and I don't know quite how to help her although I am full of advice. But right now I am biting my tongue.

9) I always wonder what it is about families that face tragedy and heal together versus families that fall apart.

10) My sweet niece that lost her mother (my middle sister) when she was 13 just graduated from high school. I wish I was more a part of her life.

11) A pair of woodpeckers live in the woods outside our new house. Guess we won't cut down all those dead trees right away. They get really noisy when they are together. I can't tell if they are squabbling or just getting life straightened out.

12) Why are carpenters so hot? I mean there is something really sexy about a well-shaped guy sawing a board. The smell of freshly sawed wood is also an aphrodisiac.

13) Final county permit approved today. Now tomorrow is supposed to be the occupancy permit. I did the Lilliput dance around my office and got people to shake my hand!

Being Stubborn Is Not a Virtue

I have been spending every weekend running errands for the housebuilding, or socializing with my grandson and his family, or trying to get laundry done (the washer is available -- now it's not -- now it is -- dance). Therefore, trying to get a haircut has not been crossed off the list of things I have to do. Each day I have looked witchier than usual when I get ready for work. I have gone through various routines of hair combs, pins, hair ties, etc. to alleviate the situation. I am not into much appearance maintenance stuff as it really is a losing battle, but sometimes one has to make the commitment to develop a put-together look to avoid being confused with someone homeless.

Finally, this morning at work, in frustration while untangling the hair on my neck which was caught in my necklace, I called a hair salon that is about a 20 minute drive from me and asked if I could get a haircut that evening. They didn't know the name of the person I requested but said they could get me in at 4:00 with someone else.

I had a meeting at work until 4:00 but told people at the meeting I would be leaving at 3:30. It was a survey meeting and they were working through the various tedious questions with my colleague and I. With only three questions left and my eye on the clock, I excused myself and hurried back to my office to get my stuff.

What on earth was I thinking? I repeat, WHAT WAS I THINKING! We have been on the weather channel all day. Just getting across the street through the flood caused by the rain should have caused me to pause. The ambulance racing up the hill should have caused pause. The beginning of rush hour should have caused a pause.

I was completely soaked by the time I reached the car in front of the apartment building. I tossed in the umbrella and other items and squeezed myself (like wringing a wet washcloth) behind the steering wheel. While I started the car I glanced at the clock radio---4:15!! What? I suddenly realized that the clock on the wall in our meeting room was over 30 minutes behind. I called the shop and said I would be late and was on my way, and could they still take me? (Of course, what other idiot plans for a hair cut in a monsoon?)

Well, with brilliance slightly short-circuited by rain, I decided to take a shorter route off the main highway. It was definitely an over the river and through the woods trip. Only, I couldn't get over the river as the bridge was flooded and a cop car was turning everyone away. Driving carefully back through another suburb and squinting through the wall of gray rain I saw all of the swales at the sides of the road were becoming rivers. Cars that passed were spraying waves of water on each side.

A normal person would have turned back as it was already 4:45 and I was no where near the mall with the hair shop. As a matter of fact, I wasn't sure where I was.

Damn it, I am getting this haircut. I am not going back.

Through luck and tenacity I made it to the mall by 5:00, but to my surprise (I did say the brain was short-circuiting, didn't I?) all sheltered parking was taken I waded through more water and with the posture and possible smell of a damp dog finally entered the shop. They could still take me, but the stylist had gone for coffee. No duh, I was almost an hour and a half late. I sat damp, limp, and cold thumbing through glossy magazines of those rich New York models who would look good even with a bucket of cold water thrown in their faces.

Finally, the stylist arrived and to shorten this tedious blahog...I got a nice cut and was able to join bumper to bumper traffic getting back home by 7:00. I am still a stubborn old bitch, but now a much better looking one.

Wanting Answers Already

Friday Flexing

This work week has been unnaturally long and demanding. I am not a bureaucrat and trying to fake it is killing me. I came from the world of education where there was a goal, a product, a reward. Bureaucrats work for visibility, power and god knows what else! Oh, yes, sometimes a little money. They also lie to your face. I hate working with people like that. Do they think I won't figure it out? I have a graduate degree! I am NOT an idiot. Maybe a little old and a little more passive, but not dumb.

So, I am going to string together my rants and flex my gray matter as therapy from the doldrums I am in so that I have a clean slate for the weekend.

1) Children push your buttons and don't even know they have that power. My son who lives 15 minutes from me and works 10 minutes from me, can manage to see me only once every ten weeks or so and never responds to my emails or phone calls---which actually have become pretty sparce on my part. I don't ask the wrong questions and he doesn't hate us; it is just a personality thing with him. I hate it and maybe I will kill him someday, if I stop loving him.

2) Energy and crazy ideas. I don't have them anymore. I dream but the body and mind ain't as willing as it used to be and that is why I am so thankful I have children. They rope me into lots of stuff. Grandchildren are even better.

3) My husband still has energy and crazy ideas. So, I accept that this is not an aging thing...maybe a menopause thing? Sorry guys. But I do have to rally the energy to put the brakes on him sometimes.

4) Global warming has me scared. I work with people who really understand its power. I used to work with another group of people 20 years ago who predicted this mess. I hate that people are so complacent about this.

5) I have to believe that what goes around comes around. This administration must reap the rewards of its efforts someday along with the rest of us.

6) I am once again living in a room of partially packed boxes. I have been here before. I think when I add it all up, the moves for myself, my children, and my mother-in law, the sum is at the very least 20 household moves. I can pat myself on the back for my resilience if nothing else.

7) Hubby is down at the house today washing the oyster racks and unpacking a few things. Last night was a killer lightning storm which kept us awake for hours, so he wanted to see how the drainage on the property was going.

8) And this just in...for more years than I care to count I have bitten my fingernails. I stopped (no effort on my part) several months ago right after the Hilton Head trip. What gives?

9) Gee, its Friday already. There is a light behind that gray cloud.

Post Script: Saw "Prarie Home Companion" last night. It provides the warm fuzzies you would expect, has outstanding low-keyed acting on the part of everyone, and HOSS would love the bad jokes sequence---all about P*****s, T and A's and bathroom humor. The other jokes were better, but this movie does have something for everyone. Sort of like an Our Town without the puritanical bent. (It helps if you are a Garrison Keillor fan, which I have been for years.)

Patience - the Slow Tango

Ask you can see from the photo above, my patience paid off. It took me almost another hour, but once I was down to a few tangles the resolution was fast and easy. I had to be really slow and patient, though, because the necklace wanted to dance itself back into a tango of knots at every time I sighed with frustration and accidentally shuddered. I think it was dancing because of the results of our late meeting with the doctor (proctologist urologist---both sound pretty dismal) last night.

I wore the necklace to work today. It was in celebration of the 94% cure (NOT remission) rate that the doctor promised my husband. These are odds that everyone would wish for. We are going ahead with the 'seed' therapy which has the least side effects and the one day down time. The only drawback (well not the only but the big drawback) and unusual restriction is that he cannot hold his grandson for any length of time for 60-90 days.

I will not write about the process in detail (unless someone needs information for their own journey down this path and lets me know). I am sure there will be some set backs, but we are optimistic because we have a ton of stuff to do in our long lives ahead.

Hari Bapa Bahagia

Indonesian Red Cross Society | UNICEF Indonesia | Mercy Corps | Caritas | Save The Children | Direct Relief International | Oxfam | Help Jogja

This is a little late but none-the-less important. If you still have your father on Sunday think about those who didn't get to see their father grow old, and if you can spare a little, send it to one of the links above. It is good karma.

Whitie in the Suburbs

Most handy homeowners have a favorite little one-stop store that they visit on the weekends in the spring. In small towns it is a local hardware store. In larger cities in my area it is usually the one-stop Lowes or the Home Depot. In spring these places are crowded with experts and innocents shoulder to shoulder all in search of something to fix or remodel or enhance on their house or in their yard.

We live rather close to one of the most successful Home Depots in a very affluent home area. Just trying to get a parking place can cause a small altercation. That is why I should not have been surprised at what happened outside my local Home Depot last Saturday.

As usual, I was into elaborate talking mode accompanied by elaborate hand waving mode to explain the type of item we should be looking for as my husband and I descended the stairs from the parking lot to the main entrance. Suddenly, mid-way down the stairs, he placed his hand on the front of my shoulder to stop me from taking the next step. He was looking at the small crowd of people at the bottom of the stairs in front of the primary entrance to the store.

As I focused on the crowd I began to see that this was not a normal milling of people. There was one large man who looked about 40, at least 6'’4"”, his head towering above all the others and standing in an aggressive stance while two smaller men behind him were pulling on his faded red t-shirt and attempting to hold him back. The man was somewhat attractive and maybe Arabic or Asian Indian descent. He reminded me a little of Vincent D'Onofrio, the detective on Law and Order, Criminal Intent.

He was that good looking, but like D'’Onofrio there was something a little creepy about him. Anyway, on the other side of the small circle of the dozen on so people were two much smaller men their faces twisted and arguing back. They also looked middle-eastern or Asian, but were clearly older with gray hair...maybe in their late 50'’s and short in stature. In between this pushing and shoving and shouting were two Home Depot employees with the traditional red aprons trying to keep the peace. One was a heavy-set black man working very hard to calm down the Vincent-look-alike. The black man would no sooner get the '“V-O'” look alike back to the edge of the circle and seemingly calm and then the guy would rise up like a big bear and head for the two men again. This went on for at least five minutes. The big guy was relentless and I thought he might be drunk or on something, even though he seemed pretty coordinated.

Finally, when 'V-O' got on his high horse one final time, the black man lost his patience and gave up the polite and calming approach and started talking loud and using his chest to bump the man back. I got the feeling that he had dealt with this in another life, maybe the military. He seemed very controlled and confident and began ordering the guy to get off the property. This level of confrontation seemed to freeze the crowd momentarily.

I also had lost my patience and ignoring the mess, hurried down the stairs and just around the circle into the doorway hoping that hubby was behind me. As I looked through the automatic glass door, I was surprised to see a line of shocked people inside the door with their purchases and full shopping carts waiting to leave. What a mess!

Well, my husband and I hurried on into the store and headed back to the aisle to get going. We had a long day of errands ahead of us, and this idiot was not going to slow us down anymore. He was gone by the time we made it through the checkout a short time later. All the white suburbanites were pretty much in shock that such a thing could happen in their precious little neighborhood. I ws just very irritated and thankful that no blood had been spilled.

String Theory?

Sometimes I find that my life is running in a theme. Or perhaps not. Perhaps I just see things with a different skew depending on events.

I spent about an hour trying to untangle this silver necklace above. It is one of those long single strand necklaces---reminded me of the beads we wore back in the 'hippy' days. I bought it at a kiosk about a month ago and placed it carefully in a jewlery bag. When I took it out to wear it for the first time this past week I discovered that it had been impatient to get out and had tied itself in knots. This first hour of trying to untie knots has taken much patience and I have made about 15% progress. So, if I devote a good part of my life to this task, I may actually wear this someday. It is a test of patience.

I went down to the house we are building yesterday and there were lots of loose ends that I wish I could tie up. We had taken the 1,000 pieces of hardware for our masterbedroom closet and were eager to at least begin this task of installation. Unfortunately, we soon realized that there was still too much builders' junk in there to even begin to start an installation. There are lots of other little things still as well. My towel bars are too wide for the small bathrooms with little wall space and I don't know if the builder can return them...are they going to be an ebay entanglement? There are about 4 new holes in the walls as if they were looking for something---maybe something tangled behind the sheetrock? Another test of patience.

And last and certainly not least, my husband's medical report that I had blogged about a while back did not come back benign. It is not an aggressive thing and he is a good candidate for the least invasive procedure (sort of like gardening where they plant seeds (!)) but it is still an entanglement from which we wish to extricate ourselves as soon as possible as well as another test of patience that we have to get through. I am not the type of blogger who feels better blogging about this stuff, so you will not read all the details from here. You all have enough entanglements and tests of patience in your own lives.

Well, I shall disentangle myself from this chair and get another cup of coffee before I start my well-deserved weekend that I have so patiently been waiting for.

Like Sands Through the Hourglass?

Some days it's more like shovels of dirt through the manhole and I am in it. When did this kid get his driver's license?

Are YOU Prepared?

I received a ‘guide’ in the mail yesterday. It was titled “Home Guide to Emergency Preparedness.” Photo above is of the first page. Nothing says preparedness like a cartoon of politically correct people with smiles on their faces. They had everyone represented including the ‘media-geek’, but they forgot the disabled (unless the elder-person represents both.) My first reaction to this mailing was remembering, (chagrin, chagrin,) how the teachers of my youth taught us to cover our heads under our desks if there was a nuclear attack. I am glad to see that preparedness has come so far.

Anyway, since everything in the recent news has been about the feds cutting local terrorist prevention funding and that most local agencies are pretty much saying it is going to be up to the individual to save themselves in an emergency…i.e. “Don’t call us because we will be very busy writing our press releases.” I was pretty interested in how I should proceed to save my butt if the need arose.

So I continued to peruse this missive. The second page consisted of ‘Bioterrorism frequently asked questions.’ After defining bioterrorism the answer to the burning question “What can we do?’ was “Stay alert and stay calm because this helps government agencies control the situation and protect you.” What? Then they went on to describe methods of dispersal and resulting symptoms of a number of biological agents. That was really fun reading, but not much help.

There was a list of useful phone numbers, most of which I am guessing would not be answered during an emergency, but nice to post on the side of the refrigerator for false reassurance purposes. There was a whole page on smallpox (which I was vaccinated against in my twenties when I headed overseas…wonder if that still is effective?).

Then the page on “Preparing Your Home for an Emergency” was finally getting to specifics. They suggested that we store a 3-5 day supply of food, water, vitamins, medicine, etc., planning on one gallon of water per person per day.

And, at last, the best part. Shelter in Place-SIP. If you are a federal employee you hear and test for this several times a year in your office building. This SIP was written for someone who owns and lives in a single-family house. The safest place in my apartment is the bathroom--see this shoebox room below. There is no way to turn off the huge vent fan in this room as that is the only return vent and run by the building itself. I can barely find room to brush my teeth each morning. Storing 3-5 days of supplies in this room would mean we would have to use some one else’s bathroom in this building for the duration. (Yes, I was standing on the toilet when I took this picture.)



And then the very best part was this diagram above of an evacuation plan for my building…I live in such a sophisticated high tech society. Anyway if you come for a visit, I will post this evacuation plan by the door so that you can get out safely.

The Small Story

I have probably explained this habit of mine before, but I will tell about my relationship (addiction) with Amaryllis plants.

Over the years I would receive one as a gift and being the frugal person and lover of plants that I am, I would see if I could keep the bulb alive for the next year. I knew that the bulb would only bloom once and then spend its months restoring itself with just the lovely large leaves. I would cut the dead blossom (sometimes removing the pollen while it bloomed so that the blossom would last longer) and then keep the plant watered and in sun inside my house until the weather permitted me to move the pot outside. I would continue to nurture the plant outside until September when I would stop watering and move it into a dry area where it would not get the rain. Once the leaves started to yellow and wilt -- usually before the really cold nights -- I would cut the leaves, make sure the soil was dry and then pack the plant away into a dark place in my basement until the next season.

I got into the habit of forcing the amaryllis to bloom in February when nothing else was going to provide me such beauty except leggy pontsettias after the winter holidays and before the spring blooms began. Over time I had collected and forced each year about 25 of these bulbs. They lined the space along the windows in my family room. And I probably looked a little silly hauling all the pots outside each year and back inside in the fall. I gave most of them away when we sold the house and had to move into the rental house.

With each additional move I got rid of a few more.

Three weeks ago when I was cleaning this tiny apartment I moved a small bench to vacuum near the kitchen wall. There was a black garbage bag with something heavy inside. I assumed it was some boat or fishing gear that my hubby had tucked away. Well, I am sure you are way ahead of me and realize it was one of the amaryllis plants. It happened to be my largest that has multiple bulbs in one pot that I have not had time to separate.

I brought it out and saw that it had not even begun to send up any shoots even though it was months behind schedule. I was sure that it was dead and not just dormant, but I watered it anyway and placed it next to our kitchen window. Well, as you can see, in three short weeks, it has rewarded me tremendously!

There is some lesson in this about patience or unrequited love or something and if I was more energetic some haiku or poem that I should create...but I am just happy to be so lucky!

Weekend Walk in the Woods

I am sure that I will end up naming a number of posts like this with the same name, since this is what I do in the spring---walk in the woods. We drove to the mountains in West Virginia to see how long we could make spring last. Weather here in the city is already in the 80's and climbing.


My husband found a trail called Devil's Stairsteps and the forestry map had described it as 'strenuous' which immediately made me NOT want to take it. But just like a dog on a leash I went along, and, of course, we ended up hiking about 5 miles total before we got back to the car. It was mid-day before we reached the trail and so we unfortunately started our hike just as the weather was getting warm and spent a good part walking in the warmest part of day. The drifting clouds that covered the sun intermittently were most welcome. It was just an afternoon hike due to the late start---otherwise hubby would have dragged me several more miles. His motto is: "Never leave a side trail unexplored."

OK, get your coffee or tea or cold lemonade, and put your feet up, because I will take you along with no sweat on your part. You can click on the images to better see what I saw.



All the trees were golden or emerald green except for a lovely rose colored ash in one of the valleys below. Birds were unusually loud and territorial for mid-day. We saw several cuckoos, a few grosbeaks and a lovely rust-colored thrasher all flitting and singing. Well, the thrasher was sort of clucking in the ground at our feet trying to avoid the hikers walking from both directions on the trail--- it was a little like rush hour at times. Mountain laurel were just starting to open and a good part of the trail was bordered with them which I tried to show in the photos above.


We took a small side trail hoping for a rock out-cropping so that we could look out across the ravine. There appeared to be a break in the canopy of heavy trees and that is where we came upon two lady-slipper plants---related to the orchid. They were large and had white moths at the base of the flowers--maybe pollinating them. I was glad they were well away from the trail so that people wouldn't step on them or pick them. These are a rare find for me.


The blue-eyed grass was in bloom and reminded me that I want to get some plants of this to place near the house in one of the landscape beds. I had these at my last house. I caught a visiting bee when I snapped this photo!


Two lovely mating butterflies danced back and forth across the path and here is one of them caught in mid-air over the trail.


And, of course, much wild geranium was sprinkling its pink petals along the paths.

And finally, a screen saver for your PC. I didn't resize this, so if you can get it open, it is all yours as a spring gift from me. It was not 'photoshopped' but just a natural dark background from the forest.

Wild pink azalea

Now wasn't that a pleasant sojourn?

On the Street Where I Lived

This is a photo of my son taken years ago in Indonesia. The woman on the right was my cook. The location is Jogjakarta just off of Kaliruang road and in front of the house that I wrote about in Life Story #4 although you cannot see the house from this angle. I wonder what it looks like today. 2,500 and still counting. I am sad.

Omens

Omen is a short but powerful word, filled with shadow and potent possibility. When I ‘Googled’ the word to see the scope of definitions, it at first appeared to portend only disasters or disturbances. Then, as I read more definitions, omen could also represent a coming miracle or profitable event. In some explanations it was a visible sign, usually in nature, but the ancient Romans believed that a word spoken by chance and perhaps overheard by the gods was an also omen.

Omen only means something if one is observational and superstitious. I am not generally superstitious because that means giving away power to something else, which I am not willing to do. Yet, I do try to be more observant of life’s energies around me. I try to take some time to focus on being in the moment as I rush from task to task during my work days and days off. I try to consciously tune into my instinctual ear and eye to prevent the smothering by artificial noise and visual demands of life. My husband is a much better observer of his surroundings than I am. I actually think that being in the woods and hunting and fishing have honed this skill in him. He is quicker to react to an emergency or pre-emergency sign and thinks more clearly than I. Like a chess player he will see the three moves ahead while I am still trying to assimilate the here and now. Therefore, while it may or may not be an omen, he is the first to see, evaluate and take action if needed.

Two events that I have seen recently have been bouncing around in my head, and that is what brought me to thinking about omens. When we started building on our property on the river for our retirement home, within a year, a large and lovely oak tree that sheltered our dock near the water’s edge, died. It was lovely and healthy and except for a very large burl at its base, there was no sign of stress. It died in September even before it could put on the lovely colored cloak of semi-death that appears in the fall. When I studied the tree after its death, I saw signs of termites all around the base of the trunk. So the process had been ongoing. I have been told that an oak burl, if harvested, is very valuable for furniture and woodworking. Thus, there is beauty somewhere in this death. This oak was much older than I, yet too young to die. It had seen many mornings, days, and nights on this land. It had fed and sheltered the wildlife and provided a place for children to climb and view the water. Did it die because of grief when we bulldozed its brothers and sisters? Was it our noise and chatter which we added to a formerly quieter place? Is it an omen? What does it mean? Maybe it was just its time, but why can’t I get it out of my head?

A second series of events has also been tickling my brain. When we traveled to Hawaii this past winter, the first to greet us on our hotel deck was a lovely red cardinal. He studied us carefully each day. I assumed that tourists had fed the birds and he was just checking out a possible pantry raid. When we arrived at Hilton Head last month, the very first thing I saw as I looked out across the balcony patio was a scarlet cardinal in the top of the tree looking back at me. There is nothing really unusual here, because cardinals are pretty common birds. Finally, last week when we were talking in our empty garage at the new house, a cardinal landed on the ground and peeked under the half open garage door. He saw us, but didn’t fly away. He did a little dance back and forth and then would look up at us and cock his head. It really seemed as though he was welcoming us to the woods. My husband and I knew he was trying to communicate in some way. His behavior wasn’t really that of a wild bird. But, then again, maybe he was checking out a possible new pantry and he wasn’t all that wild.

Here's To Your Health!!

One of the characteristics of aging is that you tend to read more health news because you want to live forever. I have been doing so and my synthesis (without links to the original sources---you will just have to trust me) follows below:

A new study hints that eating milk chocolate may boost brain function. (Heck, I knew that! I’ll bet they got hundreds of thousands of dollars of my tax money to run this silly study.)

If you needed another excuse to savor a glass of good red wine, scientists say it may supply antioxidants that protect the delicate hairs of the inner ear that are essential for hearing. (What?... I need all the excuses I can get.)

Heavy pot smoking does not increase lung cancer risk. (I don’t smoke pot, but now I can with a clear conscience.)

Not enough sleep increases obesity. (This is a relief and I am going to quit setting the alarm clock.)

And to add to the sleep/health dynamic:
Women who drink between one and three cups of coffee a day substantially lowered their risk of dying from inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases. Researchers said that coffee is an anti-oxidant. ( More coffee, so I can wake-up, please.)

Is over exercise is bad for you? That question was raised last week by a 61-year-old reader who worried about the safety of her running regimen - an hour a day, five days a week. A trainer told her such a cardio schedule was likely degrading, not improving, her health and fitness. (This is for all those skinny-can’t-pinch-an inch types…slow down and smell the roses!!)

A California county is expected to receive a $6 million windfall from Proposition 63, a measure passed in 2004 that taxes Californians who earn more than $1 million a year in order to pay for mental-health services. (As we know, based on examples like Tom Cruise, this state needs better mental-health services, even if TC won’t take advantage!)

And good news for my husband who used his retirement money to by a shiny red kayak:
"To move the kayak at about 5 mph is going to require about 0.1 hp of effort," said Finlay. That is equal to about 400 calories per hour. "Four hours of paddling is going to burn up about 1600 calories! A weight watcher's dream!"

Two-faced?

It appears even water birds can be two-sided depending on how you approach them...just like people.

Life Story # 4: One Fateful Night in 1983

It seemed that we had actually become settled in our new place on the side of the mountain just off of Kaliurang Road in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. After several hectic weeks of looking for hired help to do laundry by hand since we had no washing machine, and hiring a cook since food had to be purchased at the market on a daily basis, water had to be purified, vegetables had to be sanitized, etc., I finally was able to start tutoring my daughter in her second grade lessons. There was a small mission school but it only had classes up to the first grade. I hired a jaga malam (night watchman) who actually babysat my youngest son during the mornings when I was tutoring.

We had gotten used to the crowded dirt roads, the unusual smells, and astonished reactions to our white skin. We were even beginning to sleep through the blare of the Imam’s call to prayer through an electronic loudspeaker just outside our upstairs louvered bedroom window at sunrise each morning. During the daytime, Kaliurang Road was busy with dusty traffic heading up and down the mountain, but at sunset the area suddenly became quieter and all you could hear was the infrequent bicycle bell and the rhythmic call of the street vendors with their wheeled carts.

Our two-story house, while built of concrete, was oddly shaped with stairs of inconsistent height, the occasional rejections of small pieces of cement from the high ceilings above and a small patio in the back with an orchid covered wall which was also another house’s patio wall. It probably would not pass code in the United States, but for Indonesia it was considered a small palace with its extensive terrazzo front porch, terrazzo floors throughout and electrical pump for our well water.

I remember one peaceful morning while my daughter was working on a school project, I headed upstairs above the servants’ side of the house to talk to our babu cuci (laundress) about something. She was in a small sheltered alcove on the roof hanging clothes. I had never been up to this area which also housed our drinking water in a large cement catchment. The view looking over the chest- high wall above the red-tiled rooftops was so freeing in its vastness. In the distance I could see the perfect cone shape of Mt. Merapi with its little cloud of volcanic smoke blowing away in a feathery wisp. (I think I have a photo of this somewhere that maybe I can add here.)

A few nights after this I was shaken roughly awake from a deep sleep by my husband. “Get C. (our son)”, he cried. “I will get Y (our daughter). Hurry! Hurry!”  He threw back the covers and jumped out of bed.

My brain was foggy and I moved slower than I should have while trying to absorb the anxious tone of my husband’s voice.

“Wha…What is it?” I sat up in bed.

“Just hurry! We have to get outside. There is an earthquake.”

I got up from the low platform bed and ran to my son’s room and scooped him into my arms. I didn’t feel anything unusual as I moved across the floor, but as we descended the stairs I saw out of the corner of my eye the aquarium water slopping in dramatic waves out of the sides of the aquarium onto the floor.

We rushed to the street. Only a few others were outside standing in the dirt road. We waited in quiet shock anticipating the worst. There was a small tremor that swayed the bamboo fence in the front of the yard and then nothing for a very long time. There was no noise in the neighborhood to indicate anyone else had noticed that the earth had shaken her shoulders.

Our crazy concrete palace was still standing and nothing had fallen from the ceiling as we carefully made our way back inside. We eventually fell asleep and awoke the next day with the memories seeming like a dream.

If you are following the news recently you will understand that we could have been going through much worse with Mt. Merapi eruptions.

Mother’s Day Thoughts

Exhausted from spending the Saturday before Mother’s Day cooking several meals for incoming relatives so that your daughter, who is a new mother herself, doesn’t have to when they come to stay at her house this week.

Thinking about your daughter’s plans for a week-long Italy trip for both you and her mother-in-law in the fall.

Not knowing if your only son will remember it is Mother’s Day and give you a call.

Realizing, again this year, that you no longer have a mother to buy a Mother’s Day card for or to call.

Seeing all the hard-working moms on Saturday in the stores and wondering what their Mother’s Day will be like.

Oddly enough, having no plans other than morning exercise followed by a wonderful bubble bath.

Sand Review

So the trip down to Hilton Head WAS a little long. Mom got a little creative in trying to distract the hunger pains.

Once we had unpacked the groceries and stuff, we immediately changed into beach clothes and grabbed the beach gear and introduced Xman to the beach and he immediately fell asleep.



Once back in the condo and before we started dinner, Xman decided we needed to inventory each and every cupboard...with great noise and zest.

The second day at the beach was a little better. Xman at least stayed awake and discovered how easy it was to navigate the hard sand and to chase the gray and white things that were much smaller than he.


The afternoon bike ride required refreshment and a nap on his part.

Maybe more on the trip later.

Ok, I'll go for it!

I have filled in the "Where I am From Template" and while not completely happy, I am sending it forward like a newborn baby with the cheesy coating not completely peeled away.

I AM FROM

I am from worn books and small farms, from Sears and Roebuck and home-canned sweet cherries.

I am from the big picture windows facing the breath-taking snowy peaks.

I am from a homemade house, a barn of swift swallows and meadows of cow grass; I am from the irrigation pond and the foothills riddled with chipmunks and cactus.

I am from picnics on the sides of swiftly flowing rivers and three people talking at once, from immigrant 14-year-olds and Mary Jane and Daniel and Kitten and Richard and Doenie and Debi.

I am from going six directions at once and stretching the dollar until it snaps; From skinny legs and talking too much.

I am from now and then religion that came as needed and disappeared just as fast. Church was summer camp crafts and evening vespers.

I'm from the Italian Alps and the rugged gravel paths above timberline, homemade pasta sauce and Sunday fried chicken.

From directing children’s backyard theater rehearsals, the long hikes under the shushing pine trees, and the childlessness and parentlessness of others.

I am from a five-dollar camel-back trunk, a million digital photos and collected sea shells whispering priceless memories.

Now why did I come downstairs?

I have on the desk in front of my monitor a folded white paper napkin. On this napkin I have written in pencil the following words in the following format:

"Tucumseh
ALEX THE GREAT
Best Sea captain in British Navy in 1800's
World's leaders saw interesting time + place"

I know that this had something to do with a blog I was thinking of writing a few weeks ago, but I cannot grasp even a glimmer of a clue when searching the old gray matter inside my skull. According to a recent scientific experiment that I particpated in, too much sand and sun does fry the brain.

The Winding Down Time

I woke up at my regular time this morning (5:30 AM). We had driven back yesterday (9.5 hours) and stopped by the new house on the way to see the past two weeks of work. There was just enough daylight as we arrived about 5:30. By the time we reached the apartment it was 9:30. I unpacked the necessary stuff, had a dish of ice cream for dinner and fell into bed with the necessary exhaustion for a good night's sleep.

The drive was particularly long because we were without children and grandchildren (they has left earlier in the week). Even so, the car was still busting with stuff. We had added leftover groceries and my husband had moved some of the stuff that had been tied under the overhead canoe into the back storage area of the car.

We got into the city around 8:00 PM and offloaded the bicycles and rack at the old rental house where we continue to store stuff with the good graces of our former landlady. We didn't unpack the rest and will do that today. I sit here in the apartment surrounded by suitcases and carry bags and dread picking up the two weeks of mail waiting for me at the Post Office.

Today we head down to my daughter's house and unload all of the baby stuff. They (being jetsetters that they are) are flying down to Miami for a long weekend to visit some friends they haven't seen in two years. They are bringing Xman and Grandma and Grandpa think they are crazy and being spendthrifts, but such is life.

Like the car, my head is also stuffed with bittersweet memories of the trip. Life goes by so fast and everyone has so much to do. There are so many obligations and responsibilities. I am always preparing for life's change in my mind it seems that it tends to interfer with the enjoyment of the present.

I have a number of themes and ideas that I would like to write as a blog, but will probably forget everything in rush of today's errands. It is a good thing that blogs do not have editors!

First Friday

It is 'late by my standards' for a Friday morning, and yet all of the rest of my family is still in bed. So I get to blog in peace, and wonder how people can stay in bed so long when the weather is gorgous!

I tried to call my son twice yesterday to see if he was driving down. I had my phone off in the evening when he returned the call. He has an old Honda, so I am concerned about his making the trip. I got a garbled message from him when I checked my voice mail before bedtime. He said something about being on his way and probably spending the night in a motel. This is so like him, getting a late start and then wasting what little money he has in a motel! So, now it looks like we will see him sometime this morning, but I don't know when. Waiting for another call so I can give the gate guard his license number to let him into the HT (Hoity-Toity) compound.

My son-in-law is flying out of here today to go to a business meeting in Denver, so the condo will not be anymore crowded. My daughter and Xman are flying out on Monday and we are staying through until next Friday. I don't know how long my son is staying during this week.

We spent Tuesday morning on a bike ride to Pinkney Island which is a bird preserve. It is a large island and really only accessible by bike, although the very first time we were here my husband and I spent an entire day trying to walk it and were able to cover only part. There are a number of man-made lakes and other bird habitat, so you are able to get closer to all of those exotic water birds. I took a ton of pictures that last time I was here, but with an older camera. I still need a telephoto to get the best shots.

It was Xman's first real bike trip and other than falling asleep on the way in and the way out and getting shaken like a milkshake on the rocky roads, he seemed to enjoy himself. On the way back to the car he was getting tired of riding and started to cry. Because of the bouncing his voice was wavering and he couldn't decide whether he wanted to cry or just making his voice do funny sounds.

He is genetically predisposed to hate the out-of-doors. The expression on his face when we first introduced him to grass at Easter for an egg hunt was priceless. He actually shuddered! Then when we introduced him to sand and finally ocean waves on this trip, he again had strong misgivings. But, as of yesterday, all of this is now behind him and he actually walks into the gentle waves, even though the water is a little cold still.

If I forgot to mention he is walking and almost running. He is into everyting and as a result my husband has had to scale down his great outdoors adventures. I think he is looking forward to Xman's departure just a little so that he can do the canoeing and fishing he wants with his son or I. I am looking forward to less 'catch me if you can' and 'oopsie, don't cry' times.

Well, hubby is up and others should finally be dragging themselves out of bed. Off to my second cup of coffee and to reading all of your blogs.

Nursery Rhymes and Sand

Well, I have Internet access as long as my daughter's laptop is here---until Monday. The condo has wireless. What luxury! My laptop is totally USB and there is no such thing here. (They actually have two PCs in a room at the workout area for those folks who absolutely must check out the stock market in between workouts and massages, or in between a sauna and a pedicure.) I don't really fit here, because I am a little too Puritanical with my money and a little too close to a fixed income.

We are at Hilton Head which is hoitey toitey, yes, but also relaxing and fun. Almost everyone vacationing here is a set of grandparents with children and pre-schoolers of the children. The scenes are disgustingly like the postcards and condo ads.

We have been spending much of our time at the beach and at the pool teaching Xman about sand-walking, seagull chasing, and blowing bubbles in the kiddie pool. I have been taking lots of family pictures just like every boring grandparent that you meet.

We drove to Savannah for my daughter's birthday dinner last night and spent a LOT of money, but I was trying to reward her for being such a good mother. It took almost an hour to get there and she seemed to have had a wonderful time. We did a little walking around the waterfront and the town squares with the big trees and historic statues. It is very Southern and slow and gentile. Think "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" with fewer exotic characters.

Hubby and daughter and son-in-law have headed for the driving range this morning before an afternoon storm and I am baby-sitting watching my Xman learn about sliding doors, reading a book to himself and playing a music machine. He is very good at entertaining himself when his tummy is full.

We are going shopping this afternoon, which is definitely not a hubby thing, but definitely a daughter/husband thing. Thus far it has been a good and not too stressful vacation...not like those where everyone is trying to please everyone else and in general having a miserable time!

It is hard for me to believe that sometime in the future I will have free time like this for as far out as the eye can see. I have lots of things that I want to do, but it still a little intimidating. It is almost as if I MUST enjoy myself in retirement and that is a big order. I think subconsciously I may thing I will fail---if one can fail at retirement?

Packing in the Rain

I don't know why it is, but when we go somewhere by car, I go crazy with the packing. I will even have a washer dryer at the place, but still packed too many clothes. The trouble is partially due to the fact that I need beach wear, general resort wear, canoe clothes, and evening a city dress or two--and all the shoes for each activity including shoes for muddy canoing.

Then it is my daughters birthday while we are down there, so I am packing some stuff to celebrate that. We also plan on biking and are trying to take 4 bikes, and my husband and son-in-law need to pack tennis and golf gear and my husband has his canoe and fishing gear!!

We must also have food and drinks in the car as we will be driving almost the whole day.

Later this morning the others get to add the baby gear which is an apartment of stuff in itself.

We packed board games and rain gear and...oh well crammin' the stuff in.

All I can say it we better darn well have fun! (And all I really wanted to do was sleep and read.)

Saturday in the Jungle

Virgninia Bluebells Egg

Saturday morning early in the city
Is a jungle concert of bird song,
Demanding and rhythmic
High and energetic and persistent.

The sun takes its place
at the edge of the world.
Birdsongs begin to dwindle
Replaced by the regular roar
of the lion buses
and the hissing of the hyena cars
in the street below.

Finally the footsteps of man with dog,
The muddy voices below,
A tea kettle whistle from an open window.
I'm up, alright, already!

Thursday Thoughts

1. Colleen has a little thing going called "13 Thursday." I am such an independent cuss that I cannot be confined to such a strict format. Besides, I don't think my brain holds 13 things at one time, nor would I be willing to do this every Thursday! But today I have a bunch of random thoughts and thought that they would make a good Thursday post.
2. I changed to a spring purse today and realize everytime I do this, I am carrying more stuff than I need...maybe. It is 'old lady' stuff and would never fit into a model's pencil slim purse. I need a compact magnifying tool for reading menus under candle light, a small container of Aleve (which I have yet to use) just in case I get pain during the movie or whatever after sitting for so long, a compact umbrella, four sets of keys (my car(s), my apartment, my daughters apartment, my office,) plus a key ring with all those stupid barcode cards that you scan when you shop at a particular store. Then all the other stuff like wallet, checkbook, just enough make-up, brush, tissue, a container for all credit cards, business cards, train cards, breath mints. OK ENOUGH about the contents of a lady's purse.
3. I got these in the mail yesterday and didn't have time to look at them until tonight. Hedwig has her bird books and I have my house books. I will start on them when I am finished with this blog and I am so excited I may not pour a glass of wine first. (Who do I think I am kidding?)
   
   
   
4. Ronnie received a lot of birthday wishes and one contained a funny video (staged or real--hard to tell) about a little old lady with a cane trying to cross at an intersection while a sportscar driver at the stopsign keeps honking to get her to move faster. Finally in anger and frustation, she hits the front fender of the car with her large bag and she continues to slowly cross; the drivers air bag goes off sending white powder into the air with a surprised driver watching her continue to cross the street at her pace. (Some of you have probably seen this humorous video.) BUT have you heard this news which I saw on our network news last night?! This is no longer funny for those of us who know that aging bodies DO belie what we think we can do! To say nothing of the importance of SLOWING DOWN WORLD.
   
5. Why does the builder's brother always call my husband before he calls me? A little intimidated by an intelligent woman with a mind of her own, perhaps? Or is my husband more easygoing and willing to cave when difficult decisions have to be made?
   
6. My son seems to have gotten back together with his old and primary girlfriend. This is a big deal to his parents if not much significance to bloggers everywhere. She came to Xman's birthday and I tried to be as casual as I could when talking to her.
   
7. Looking forward to our vacation at the beach the end of April and first week of May. This is a vacation with our kids who will overlap somewhat but not be there at the same time. This is the first time we have done something like this...hope it works.
   
8. I wonder how many folks were "taken aback" by the reptile photos in the previous post? Peruby let me know she had misgivings. While I do not love snakes I am fascinated by them, as I am by all living things.

SEE I made it to eight...more than half way there. Does this mean I have half the brain of the 13 Thursday bloggers?

Showing Off or Sharing With

My sister's visit was all too brief. She stayed with friends in Virginia (near 'Scooter' L's house) so you know it was in a nicer neighborhood than our apartment could provide. But, she did spend two whole days with us and we had fun catching up and gossiping. We drove down to the house and saw the finished retaining walls. I think they look a little scary and I am totally amazed that the county does not require a fence on that last wall. I am planning on planting a lot of ornamental grass for soft landings everywhere. I also think a gate might be needed.

Of course, we had to look at the baby oysters and determine how they were doing. This is our second crop and should be harvestable this winter. Wind was blowing like crazy and pretty cold.


We then took her on a two mile hike into a nearby beach. Wind wasn't blowing behind the dunes and the weather was a perfect spring day for this long walk. We interrupted reptiles trying to thaw in the sun and actually they totally ignored us.


I should save the photo of the swamp below for another blog post as it certainly lends itself to some type of comment on life, but I wanted to share it now. It kind of makes me dizzy just looking at it.

Blowin' and wearin' and eatin'

First we blow out the candles and then we wear the cake! This is fun!

Someone(s) Else's Birthday

There were lots of birthdays last week it seems including Peruby's daughter. My grandson ALSO turned one on the fifth of April! I am going to a party for him this afternoon. There will be three other little ones there along with parents and grandparents. I can't remember if I commented on this. (I HATE this forgetfulness that took the place of wherever I lost those hormones.) Anyway, my daughter is decorating, bought four little baseball costumes, is making baseball cupcakes...the whole nine yards. I am certain she spent well over $200 for this event. But I also went a little crazy with the gifts when I got into the baby store, so I cannot point the finger. I keep telling myself I am going to be a responsible grandmother, and then I see this cute outfit or that mind-expanding toy and end up with an armful of stuff.

Hubby is flying in from Korea at 1:00 and should be in unusual form for the event. I just have to keep him awake until I get him back here at the apartment after the cake and frosting distribution. My baby sister (my last remaining sister) flew in yesterday to see some friends and we are getting together tomorrow for a trip to the new house site and some bonding time and then we are going to an art museum on Monday. I am really enjoying this type of weekend!! Weather is supposed to be amenable to the whole thing.

I apologize because I was going to write some thoughtful stuff about any number of subjects and not just my diary of events for the next few days, but I need more coffee now and maybe the next blog more insightful stuff, or may not, maybe just more drivel...

Wine and Digital Photography--Who Knew?

I apologize as I realize at least some part of the million blogging folks cannot contain their digital addiction leading to total digital abandon and posting of lots of spring pictures. The Blogdom will be flooded this spring. But these images are for those of you who for one reason or another cannot get out into the parks and forests at this time of year. Click on the photos for a larger view---they are hi-resolution...so beware!

More Art photography:

Mulling the Milestone

Highlights of the retirement party:
60 people and dozens of others on travel or elsewhere that came by earlier in the day to say they were sorry they couldn't attend.
Reasonably good food considering it was a government party and catered by a friend of the staff.
Lots of speeches including about 12 spontaneous ones--1 1/2 hours worth.
Demographics of the people giving the spontaneous accolades -- Secretaries, Contract personnel, Executive Service types, Industry, Latinos, Blacks, Asians and Whites.
A poem from a former boss.
A letter from a U.S. Senator.
All resulting in a standing ovation, one proud son and a Husband who for the first time in his entire life was speechless. He could only say about 30 words!
I didn't realize I was married to such a great guy. I mean I knew he was lovable and all....
Now he is retired and this evening on a plane to Korea for a week to do some work with the government there. So much for retirement.