Think

It happens.  Just get old and find out for yourselves.   Then there are times  you can remember so far back it scares you.  The fact that you can remember is what  is important, how much is not really that important .

I know a few who would agree with this one.   Smile!! 

A wise lady who sees things as they are.    

We have seen that  in action.  Time to make a difference;  get out and vote;  talk your friends into getting out to vote as each and every vote is important.   You may not think we can win, but if you do not vote you can be assured we will not win and take our country back.  It only takes one vote to make a difference and a winner.

The last  day of September.   I am thankful for the light showers as it helped the garden plants survive.  The nasturtiums have taken on a new life and are spreading at the base of the fence.  It has been a sort of give and take with Mother Nature as to whether they would even survive.  Usually they grow wild like weeds but these have been very slow to take over as I envisioned a 'fence full'.  Maybe next  year.  Meanwhile I  have hopes that Rocky will come by soon and button up the garden for the winter months.  The wild berry bushes are on the march and have high hope of taking back their territory.  Sometimes I think they are succeeding as I now have some growing on the side fence by the big empty lot next to the property line.    This area used to be all wild berry bushes so the seeds and roots are there.  They just wait patiently and start growing all over.  The berries themselves are delicious; it's the thorns that make them lethal. 

 

When you check my blog this morning you will find two blogs of pictures of my family friends who left Carson City, Nevada for Colorado and a small family reunion.   The newest member, Joseph, now eight months old, met his great grandmother for the first time.   Love at first sight.   I hope  you enjoyed meeting them and sharing their vacation trip.  I did.

 

Make your seconds  worthwhile today;  a good deed or two;   clean out your pantry shelves and take some extras to the Food Bank, the need is great with so many folks out of work.    Think upcoming holidays and need . . . sharing is caring.   You can do it . . . make someone happy . . . YOU are very good at that!! Hugs to all. 

More Vacation Pictures from Colorado

Joseph met his great grandmother Helen and seems very content sitting there with her.  She was bragging on the telephone telling me what a good baby he is, always smiling, never cries.   

Hey look at me, I'm Joseph, and this is my GREAT Aunt Kathy.    

How do you like my new hat?    Keeps the sun out of my eyes. 

I'm getting hungry. 

Chewing on my fingers.

Hey guys, no more pictures, it is time out for lunch.    

Joseph is a love.  He captured the hearts of his family and every one enjoyed watching him.  He is now eight months old and a real cutie.    Next time the family get together he will be walking and talking.   He said his goodbyes today as Helen and Kathy are wending their way back to Carson City , Nevada.    I'd say a good time was had by all.

Vacation Pictures from Colorado

The Fall colors in Colorado 

Judy with grandson Joseph

Helen and Kathy made it all the way from Carson City.  They enjoyed the trip and are happy visiting Judy.  It is their first introduction to Joseph, Helen's great grandson, and that makes Kathy great aunt..

A bit of family reunion.  

Time out to visit on of the old mines.

Old mining equipment.   

I'd say a good time was had by all.  Time went by fast as I got a telephone surprise call this morning telling me all about the trip.  Helen was telling me all about the colors, the mine visit and about meeting Joseph and all the while Judy was posting the pictures and sending them on.    How wonderful to be able to share their vacation;  next best to being there.    

History

"This photograph was taken 6/28/12 of the Angkor Wat temple Complex in Siam Reap province.   It is the worlds biggest religious complex.  Built in 1150 but long lost to history.  High tech lasers were used to map 140 square miles in the area.  The greatest medieval city on earth" population was one million before its rulers left it behind in the 15th century.   City of Mahendrapvata, lost temples, roads and incredible hydraulic systems allowed the citizens to use monsoon water to their benefit .  Floods, however eventually drove people away."

Here is a picture of Christopher Columbus.  Always wondered what he looked like.   The eyes say Italian, bet they were big and brown.  The hands are beautiful, long fingers of a musician.  

William Overstreet, Jr. was the American pilot who chased a German plane in a World War II dog fight in Paris, France back in 1944.  The German pilot thought to evade the American pilot but he was close on his tail and downed the German plane.   He died at the age of ninety-two in Virginia.  

There was an article on tea which I found interesting as I have been a tea drinker for a very long time.  Coffee tops my list but tea is a close second.   The article was all about how much 'bad' stuff is in our tea bags and how awful the tea bag itself is.   It seems we have been getting a lot more in our tea than we thought.   If all the rumors keep up we wont be able to drink or eat much of anything.   I did find out the tea plant is called Camella Sinensis (the tea plant).  AND . . .if you are to believe everything you read there are a few teas we can still enjoy, like, Bigelow, Tazo Zen Green Tea and Twinings Chai Tea.  According to the article the hot water brings out the bad stuff but never mentions ice tea . . . maybe ice is the answer.  I don't know about you but so far tea hasn't done any damage to me personally so I think I'll continue to enjoy my cup of tea.

 

So, maybe the Irish knew more than we gave them credit for as they make sure they boil the water and put it in the tea pot long before they actually make the tea, but then they use real tea and no tea bags, and they let it steep for a good three minutes before they drink it.   Some of the old timers used to pour the tea into their saucer and slurp it up from there.   Maybe the difference is in using real tea and not tea bags.   Maybe we need to go back to the old fashioned ways of making our drinks and our food fit to eat these days.   Everything went along fine in the food chain until folks decided to fool around and 'improve' it ;  um . . . no wonder there are so many new and different ailments around.   Maybe you could start a neighborhood garden.  Find the someone who knows how to garden and get out there and help them turn the soil;  add to the mulch and bend over to weed when the time comes and share. . . sharing is caring and you then know what you are eating.   Good health . . . we can all  use a bit of that.   

 

One good deed;   a twinkle in your eye;   a big bear hug to share;   what a way to start your new week.  Hugs to all.

Change

Mike Amacher sent this picture showing the first bit of snow up in the Sierras.  Fall is really here and the Aspen trees must all be bright yellow shining like gold in the valley.  

Lake Tahoe showing off a bright and beautiful rainbow.   Looks like a huge feather above it.

Another picture of the first snow in the Sierras.   The folks are hoping for a lot of snow up there this year as the water table is low.   

A picture of the Aral sea which is the fourth largest in the world. in Russia.  The water has been diverted from two large rivers. In 1950 and again in 1960 dams and canals changed to farmland,  without the rivers the Aral began to disappear.   Mother Nature knows best and we know so little.  

A crabmeat salad sandwich.  I would like to try one of those.  How about you?

Here is an unusual picture of a lightening strike on grass.   It certainly left its mark.

  Enjoy your day of rest.   Don't forget  to do one good deed today and it doesn't have to be huge, just  a simple kind thought, a hug, a phone call, a sharing of some thing you make today be it a pie or a cake or just sharing a dish  you concocted.   If  you have an over abundance of garden produce, share it, as it will be put to good use.   Try making a delicious lentil soup adding onion, carrot, chard, tomato, yellow squash and a little hamburger.  It makes a hardy dish and helps to get rid of that flu like bug that is going around.  Sharing is caring, don't you know that. . . sure you do.   You are the best sharers around.  Make your seconds count today and smile while you do it.  Hugs to all.

Saturday again. . .smile

A cute little fish bug, a see through, and oddity and lovely to look at .  A bit of whimsy like a tiny  bubble

How true as the Fall colors come about putting on a show.   I'd like to be in New England this time of year and see the array of colors.  Mary Beth is hiking up in New Hampshire and has promised to take some pictures up close and personal.   

A truism to take to heart.   One never knows what is going on within the heart and soul of another.  Some one may only need you to listen today;  or someone may need a hug today.  Yours is not to reason why, just be there as you would want them to be there for you.   That is what families are suppose to be, both the 'real' ones and the 'adopted 'ones.   The old adage of not being able to tell a book by its cover takes on a meaning all its own.  Stop, look, listen and your good deed may be done and over for today.

How true.   We all have negative folks in our lives.   The curmudgeons in our lives.   They don't think of themselves as negative, but that we just don't see life the same as they do.   They want you to believe they are happy in their little cloud covered world, so the challenge is yours when you take the time to change their minds.   Some become very good friends even though they don't change their ways.  They just enjoy wallowing.

and you thought cabbage was ugly.   Just look at nature's design . . . almost to beautiful to chop up and eat.

Well today is really Saturday.  I have had a couple of weeks now when I have decided that my week is not moving fast enough as I have been a day ahead of myself. I must be wishing my life away . . . but, I have family catching me and they don't allow me to miss a day or try to gain one that isn't ready to put up with me. I was told to look in the corner of the computer screen where it tells the time and date.  It really does but not the day.  So now I have to check the calendar and make sure I am not sending you conflicting days and make you wonder if I've lost all my marbles . . . only a few, I'm working on the rest.

A new day to celebrate our seconds.  Saturday followed by Sunday , a weekend, what could be better than that.   I hope good things come your way, a bit of peace for the mind, a bit of good health for the body.  As for me, I am off to make my coffee and enjoy my breakfast.  Wish you were here!   Hugs to all.

Saturday

A walk in the woods looking for a chanterelle mushroom would be fun. 

 Looks like a path to follow.

The weather is changing to reading weather; have you noticed?   I have to start a new novel today, have just finished "Boca Mournings"  by Steven M. Forman.  A bit different than my normal reads. 

How the Port looks on a winter day.  It will be coming to this soon.    The ocean gives off such energy.  

A weekend to enjoy.    A good day to streamline a closet, do I dare?   I have some clothing to get rid of that I haven't worn in years.  I keep thinking I will but , although they still fit and are wearable and not out of style, I just don't wear them and don't let go of them either.   I have no idea why I hang on to them when I find my regular uniform dress comfortable and broken in like an old shoe.  I would probably get an invitation out to a fancy restaurant for dinner and find myself without anything 'dressy' to wear.  So I look at them, remember the last time I wore them and the compliments I did receive at the time and hang on for one more wear.   How dumb is that?   On the other hand, as soon as you discard an item it is the one you want and need, a corundum I'd say.   Speaking of getting dressed I am about to get that chore done right now as I find I am out of coffee...out of coffee...how did I let that happen?    It is still to dark to walk up to Fred Meyers to buy some but it must be done.  Tea just wont  do it.   It reminds me of a conversation I had with Jock yesterday when we went out to Matte's Pancake House for brunch in honor of his upcoming birthday.   I got to ride in his big truck which reminded me of climbing in and out of Mike's van.  All that practice made it easy.   We ordered coffee and Jock told me he never liked coffee until he added sugar and cream and it finally made a palatable drink.    I drink it  black and think it is delicious, delightful and I want  my coffee now...smile.    Jock orders the Farmer omelet and it is huge, filled with all kinds of good things.   He manages to eat it all with a huge smile on his face.   He came bearing gifts and I have the largest piece of salmon to cook up, although he does such a good job I might keep it until he comes down for a cookout.   I have lovely tomatoes, yellow squash and rhubarb.  What a treat.   I learned a bit about birding and hunting dogs and laughed out loud when Jock told of one of the men who came to the hunting grounds with two dogs that were not hunting dogs.  He spent his time screaming at them to hunt the birds and flush them out but they were having much too much fun chasing and playing with each other.   Jock's Gunner did a good job although he is only a year or so old.   He loves to go out hunting but then on his terms, he is not quite ready to stay the whole day as he thinks one or two flushes is good enough and then he wants to rest and go home.  Smart dog.  

 

We missed Patricia but find no reason we cannot celebrate her return with another visit to Matte's Pancake House.  The biscuits and gravy are really good and I'm sure Jock will enjoy another Farmer's omelet. If you are close by we would love your company too.    

So check your 'to-do' list today and see what you really want to check off, then get it done and spend the rest of the day doing what you really want to do . . . mushroom picking, a walk in the woods, a bit of bird watching, what ever you choose to do, the choice is yours . . . enjoy and smile while you do it.  Hugs to all.

Nature

Some terrific pictures come from the Old Moss Lady and this is a great one of an ancient tree.  The stories it could tell.  The things you can see and the tales you could make up all by yourself.  Mother Nature herself, yawning, waking up and telling a hairy story in honor of the up coming Halloween.  She could be singing a Good Morning to you.  Check her out and see what you can see.

Ginny took this picture of the sunset  in the Northwest and it is really beautiful.  Serenity at it s best. 

Here it is four a.m. so that will tell you all about my sleep patterns.    It does make for quiet time to blog, to ponder , to say a prayer or two, or crawl back under the covers and enjoy a few more hours of sleep.  I'm thinking . . . but the coffee smells good and I'm hungry so I guess I'll nap in my chair later. 

A thought to ponder when you go about wasting your seconds worrying about things you can do nothing about.   

I have a VFW Ladies Auxiliary calendar which points out the important dates in military history.  We don't seem to be keeping up with the celebrations like we used to, at least we would stop and pay homage to our veterans from all wars.  There was VJ Day, on the second, when Japan signed the formal surrender in 1945.  The U.S. Naval Sea Cadet  Corps Incorporated in 1962, now this one was a surprise as I had never heard of it and that was celebrated on the 10th.  The eleventh was Patriot Day and National Day of service and Remembrance and we were to fly our flag until sunset.  We could have celebrated on the 14th when the "Star Spangled Banner" was written by Francis Scott Key in 1814. On the 17th U.S. Constitution approved in 1787, and the Ladies Auxiliary VFW organized in 1914.  The 18th, U.S. Air Force established  1947. The 19th, POW/MIA Recognition Day.  Coming up on the 28th is the Gold Star Mother's Day and on the 29th VFW Day established in 1899.    Our history lesson for today.   We don't have to throw a party for every event, but a thought, a prayer, a little homage to those who played a very important part in making America the greatest nation on earth would be in order.   In keeping our history in mind, we may find the path way to bringing America back to what it really  truly stands for.  We have a lot of work to do.  Today is a good day to start, bend the knees, say a prayer or two, stand up and keep your little corner of the world as safe as you can make it.   Do your good deed for the day, smile at a stranger, hug a friend and hum a lot as it chases the blues away.  Hugs to all. 

Age

The ladies have been busy.  Christine put in  grape arbor last year and this year the results were amazing.  She has Patricia and Erin as helpers and put them to work.  The results look great and I can hardly wait for a jar to taste it.   

At this age it is always a great thing;  a new day to add a little love and laughter into your life. 

Gina, our lady barber would love to have this on her wall.    

I really do, just think of the calories burned in the wee hours. 

A truism.    Think before you speak is always a good idea. 

I like this one.    

A lesson we learn the hard way.  

Here it is Hump Day and we have rain.   We had a sprinkle or two yesterday and  more is due in today.  How much we need it.   Marcia and I had our day out yesterday and the ride over to Crescent City was not bad at all, in fact the rain drops were light and few over there.   I did my usual aisle walking in Walmart and they had the new sweats in so I picked up a neat pair in blue, so, I'm all set  for winter sleeping.  We found a few new Junker shops to look into and I found two Clarke treasures;  one three men in a tub and the other an Nome  with a heart, both in good condition and probably worth something.  We had lunch at the casino and played a few of the new machines.  The special was a cheese omelet  and you chose the cheese you wanted.  I said provolone and spent my time lost in the art of eating string cheese that dangled and defied eating.   Live and learn.  Next time I'll order cheeder. So Marcia, thank you for sharing you with me, it was a fun day.

   Today is a work day, have to change out the shower curtain to the winter colors and do a bit of scrubbing.   Tomorrow I have a 'date' with Jock for breakfast out ; biscuits and gravy, here I come, ready or not.   All I can tell you is sharing time with Pat's special friends is a boon that I think is a special treasure.  How lucky I am.   So today, look around and see who you can share some time with.  Brighten their day and you will find your own glowing.  All it takes is sharing YOU with those you do care about so they are not home all alone singing "all by myself I get lonely;  all by myself I get blue . . . I sit alone in my lonely rocking chair wishing you were here'  . . . all it takes is that hug, that smile and sharing some loving seconds together and the tune changes to "It's a lovely day today for whatever you want to do. . ."and sharing and caring can top your list .    Go enjoy today.  Hugs to all. 

Think

Unusual, mysterious is the Diphylleia Gray or the Skeleton Flower.  The petals turn transparent in the rain.   The picture was taken by photographer Shougo  Yokota. One of nature's mysteries.  I'd love to see one, wouldn't  you?

 

Another truism.     We really are responsible for the choices we make.   Others may try to tell us how to live our lives but it really is up to us to make our own decisions, unless, of course, you are a teen ager and already know everything there is to know.  Strange, isn't it, when you can look back at some of the choices you made in life and wonder if you lost your brains along the way.   You will have reason to laugh and to cry over some of the decisions you made for yourself but isn't it great that you survived in spite of yourself.   Today is a new day filled with seconds that demand your attention and  your choices.  The old adage of think before you speak comes to mind.  So spend your seconds being good, kind, benevolent and stretch your hands out, not inward, and make someone a better person just because they know YOU.  Go, find something or someone who will benefit from a choice you make today. Just remember  you do not know it all, no one does, so choose wisely with a smile and a hug at the ready and your day will be one of the best  you have ever had.   A good choice.  Hugs to all.

Gardening

A truism

Speaking of gardens , produce at its best at a special event for Fall displays.  I bet they get  a lot of votes. 

I hope you can read this little tale;  a laugh out loud story.   

Yes my love, I love you too!!  Mother's are like that.

I called Sunday Saturday but caught up with myself before Sunday was over.   I had a nice quiet  Sunday and the puzzle got a lot of attention as well as reruns of NCIS and now the new week starts.  I have a couple of dates set up and am looking forward to some time out this week.   The travelers are having a heat wave up in Port Orchard but a promise of rain today.   Emma has been introduced to the two cats and isn't sure what they are, only that they are pests and hiss and claw a lot.   Being a bit timid and shy, she isn't sure what to do with them but I am hoping she barks loudly and threatens them so they will stop trying to scare her .  If I know Emma, she will only take so much and then she will let them know who is boss.  She gets a reprieve today and gets to visit the local park.

 

I hope your new week brings a lot of love and laughter to your door.   Remember that there are family and friends who need a little of your attention.   It is a two way street as you get what you give and you might like a little attention yourself.   One good deed begets another as the folks are finding out who participate in 'going forward'  and find themselves a recipient of a good deed, then take time to pass it on.  I like that.  Hopefully I'll find a way to play too.  Keep  your eyes open and join in.  Hugs to all.