Do what makes you happy

Today is the day for quotes. I love a good quote and the wisdom it imparts. Sometimes it says things I am thinking and sometimes its a whole new revelation. We can learn a lot from reading quotes.

Do you have a favorite quotation?

 

 

 

 

My favorite saying for the tech world we live in

My favorite saying in this new computer world is “I love computers….when they work”.  But when they don’t it can make you pull your hair out one strand at a time. This is what I have been dealing with for two days.

 

 

 

   I blog on my big computer most of the time. I use a program called Open Live Writer. Yesterday the program decided it was tired of opening and wouldn’t come up so I could blog. So I spent three hours trying to figure out why. I tried uninstalling it and reinstalling it but it wouldn’t reinstall at all. I couldn’t figure out why.

  Then I decided to use a different program called Windows Live Writer. I couldn’t get that to work at all and spent another two or three hours today trying to research and trying all kinds of ways to make it work. Only to find out that Windows no longer supports Live Writer as of December. so that was out.

 

  Then I tried to install Open Live Writer again and it wouldn’t work. I walked away for a while wanting to go bang my head against the wall. I was about to restart my computer when I saw a little message in the corner that said Open Live Writer was installed. And lo and behold! It was. And now it works …again.

  I am no computer guru by any means and I was so grateful that it worked itself out somehow..I have no idea how. So I am back in the blogging business!!!

Mr. Moon

Snuggled in my bed I could see the moon outside my open window. It felt so good to sleep with the breeze coming in while I was cuddled up under the comforter.
  The second picture is my little teapot. I am trying to practice with my DSLR camera since I will be taking a workshop on Thursday night. I need a little instruction on using the settings better.
Meanwhile the program I use to post to this blog decided not to open anymore so this afternoon I will have to deal with that. I have called Atlantic Broadband our local cable company and next week I will be getting a faster internet service and also have it for my phone. I will enjoy not having to buffer videos.
  Well off today for a hair appointment. Yea!

Sunshine...I love you!

78...yes you heard it right. We had 78 degrees today and I loved it! It was a great day all around. This afternoon I played Marbles with the Giggle Girls as we are calling ourselves. There is something about that game that we all love and laugh the whole time. Today it was at Sharon's house and she served us a wonderful fruit tart. I don't know if we spend more time playing or more time talking but it's a good time for all. 
  When I got home I took Sadie for a walk in her buggy on the Pitt Trail. I like that section of the trail which takes about a half an hour and is all flat and paved. She really enjoys getting out. She even barked when we turned into the parking lot because she was so happy. 
  After a drink of water and a little time with a Patterson novel I had enough energy to clean out my herb garden bed. I haul two laundry baskets full of weeds and trimmings from that area. It's early for us but I just had to get my hands a little dirty (well, I was wearing gloves but you know what I mean). 
   It is great to get out in the fresh air. 

Can you believe how tall the daffodils and tulips got in my dish garden? I've never seen any that tall. Soon I will take them outside and plant them.

Maya Angelo

In my mostly white community in western Pennsylvania I don’t get to experience a lot of diversity. All I know about black people is what I see on television  and some vague memories of my grandparents’ attitudes in rural Georgia. I’ve never had a black friend or been exposed to black culture. I am not at all prejudice for how can you be against something you don’t know anything about? For me blackness is just like being more tan. Color doesn’t matter. I lived through the civil rights movement but felt very isolated from all that was happening in cities.

 

 

   I think Oprah was the first black woman who had any effect on my life at all. I sucked up her wisdom like lemonade through a straw. She was down to earth and so caring about the people she had on her show that everyday I made it a point to tune into the Oprah show on television. She had a profound influence on the way I thought about black people. (I am sorry not to be politically correct by calling them African Americans but I don’t think of black as an insult but a source of pride.) It was from her that I first encountered Maya Angelo. She was Oprah’s mentor and seemed like the wisest woman I had ever seen. When I read about her and her accomplishments I knew that we need people like that on this Earth.

She could laugh at herself and my favorite quote from her is:

”Do the best until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”

 

Living at the library

I don’t know when my love of reading began. I think it started back in first grade when I saw Sally, Dick, and Jane having adventures in that hard back book I was holding in my hand and realized that those letters hooked together were telling a story. Learning to read is like opening a door. That is when I knew that I could learn something new if I just found the right book. I’ve always loved a library.

 

 

My idea of heaven is to be locked in a library with a pillow and a box of chocolates. I walk into the library tote bag in hand and long to fill it with books by my favorite authors or new ones that I have never heard of. I love reading non fiction as well as fiction and love the self help section. The library is a wonderful place to shop for books…but they are all free.

 

 

Our local library is not large and getting a best sellers requires being put on a list so I have started using Kindle more even though I’d much rather have a book in my hand than an ipad. I find it hard to find a page turner these days. I don’t want to read just to say I am reading so if I start a book and don’t like it right away I usually let it go back unread. So I am always searching. I know book tastes vary and we all won’t like the same books. For instance I know a lot of people who love historical fiction but it’s not for me. I like contemporary books although I love time traveling books or those with an excellent story despite its setting.

 

So I am asking you my friends, What do you recommend? Have you been lost in a good book lately? I read all the Patterson books because they are easy reading, go fast, and are just intriguing enough to keep my interest. 

I just finished Apart at the Seams by Marie Bostwick.

It was the usual light reading but I loved the way she wrote comparable to Debbie Macomber.

I also just finished The Girl Before by Rena Olsen.

I truly enjoyed this one as it went back and forth to tell the tale of a girl who was abducted at six and never remember any other way of life except that of her captors and their business of human trafficking.

Things to remember to do every day

I love to be busy and it seems there is always something that needs done. But here are some things that I need to remember to do every day.

1. spray my favorite perfume (Calvin Kline’s Eternity Now) on every single ordinary day

2. Cuddle my dog. She has had a rough time and needs some extra attention.

 

3. Light a candle…or two and just stare at the flame.

4. Turn on some music…and sing or dance.

6. Kiss my husband and thank him for all he does.

 

7. Call a friend and tell them I was thinking about them.

 

8. Stop, relax and be thankful.

 

Do you love a rainy day?

 

 

 

The forecast for today is rain and more rain. And I really don’t mind it a bit. It’s a good day to stay in ( that is after coffee and physical therapy). I’ve been up in the attic sorting and trying to get everything into bins (and labeled, well that’s the goal anyway). I’m trying to let more and more go out of the house and that is very satisfying. I’m not a hoarder at all but I do have a tad more decorating objects than really necessary.

 

 

 

 

  Yesterday I went to be evaluated for bursitis in my hips. I have had a long course of treatments this time and they do not want me to have any more steroids so we are working out an exercise regime for me. Yesterday I did a lot of leg lifting types of exercises with weights on my ankles and I must say that this morning I thought my leg muscles would be really sore. Amazingly they weren’t and my hips even felt better. Today I am going back in so the therapist can show me proper technique. Now I have hope that I will finally be out of pain.

 

Don is still working on Sadie’s walker. I am so lucky that he has the talent to build something like that from scratch. It is not easy but it is coming along. It will be interesting to train her to use it for walking. Yesterday I took her for another walk in her stroller which she really loves. But it will be nice if she can go from one place to another on her own.

 

How do you spend a rainy day? I plan on reading. I’ve been reading more these days and really enjoying it.

Bit of a bunny and an egg tree

I love it when the seasons change. We are in that transition period right now when it is trying to become warmer. There are little signs outside where I can see baby buds on the trees.

I have my own tree indoors in this galvanized French bucket filled with branches and moss. I hung a few shiny eggs and some speckled ones too on it along with tags with sayings.

This bird plate is a favorite of mine and I’m in love with this planter I picked up at a tag sale last summer. And each Easter I put out this bunny print.

Today I go back to physical therapy for a reevaluation of my hips. I went through one course of therapy but the bursitis isn’t completely gone. When I had it last year it only took two weeks of therapy and some exercises and I was pain free. This year I feel like I need a few more sessions. Then off to the dentist for teeth cleaning. So goes my day.
Don is busy making a walking cart for Sadie out of an umbrella stroller. I can’t wait to see if it will help make her mobile.

Feel Better?

Sometimes the world can get you down. When you watch the news or hear about the latest world tragedy you can get into a real funk. Just when I needed a smile a friend sent me these pictures and made me smile. I hope they do the same for you.

 

 

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The little blue coat

Peter Rabbit is one of my all time favorite children’s stories. I could read it over and over and gaze at those beautiful illustrations all day. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was written in 1902 by Breatrix Potter and has been a childhood favorite for generations. The rabbits in Potter’s stories wear human clothes and live in rabbit hole that has a human kitchen, and human furniture.

His adventures in Mr. McGregor’s garden are legendary and have delighted us for years. There are instructions on the web that show how to make a Peter Rabbit garden. There are Peter Rabbit themed birthday parties and he even has his own website. One of the most delightful things I’ve seen is at the blog Rooted in Thyme where she created a Peter Rabbit Garden of her very own. You can see it by following this link:

http://rootedinthyme.blogspot.com/2017/03/peter-rabbits-garden.html

She even included his lost blue jacket.

I have used the Peter Rabbit theme for Spring luncheons with my friends. And I always read the Peter Rabbit story to my students each year. We are never, ever, ever too old for Peter.

Untitled

 

Aren't I cute in my new stroller? I still love going for a walk.

Can you see how crooked my front feet are due to the lupus and poly Arthritis?

 

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Get out of Dodge Day

Sometimes you just need a change of scenery. Especially at this time of year when the cold air gives you cabin fever. And the cure for that is getting out of the house. Since today was sunny and the temperature looked like it was climbing Don and I took a trip to Buffalo. It’s about an hour and a half from home but worth the trip every time. First we had lunch out at Longhorn Steak House where I enjoy the most delicious sirloin I have had in a long time along with a salad and a sweet potato ( and one piece of their yummy honey wheat bread).
   Next we went to Cabela’s where we did a little shopping. Don had earned points using the Cabela’s credit card and we happily enjoyed our “free” merchandise. I got a few summer t shirts.

   When we got back the thermometer was up to fifty eight and I took Sadie for a walk in the cemetery. These are not the walks we used to have. In the past (before lupus) we would walk every day. Sadie looked forward to these morning walks and enjoyed sniffing her way around the University path and greeting all the dogs and people on the trail. Now I am pushing her in a baby stroller. It’s not the same but I think she really enjoyed getting out of the house for a while. I plan on walking her every day when the weather permits. I so enjoyed being outside for a change and breathing the fresh air.

 

Let the battle begin

My grandson Sean is in Cub Scouts and Sara is in the Girl Scouts but they don’t have a pinewood derby so Sara made her own Pinewood Derby car. They let her race Sean…..and she won! I love this photo!

She did not need much

She did not need much, wanted very little. A kind word, sincerity, fresh air, clean water, a garden, kisses, books to read, sheltering arms, a cozy bed, and to love and be loved in return.

   Starra Neely Blade

 

There are a few quotes that I have in plain view around my computer. The one above and these…

 

One day you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to do the things you’ve always wanted.  Do it now

   Paulo Coelho

 

Take time to do what makes you happy.

 

The daffodils are blooming now in my dish garden. I love how each flower is growing like it is all planned ahead of time and I can take time to enjoy each one for what it is.
  It is a cold, miserable gloomy day…only 37 degrees out. I went to a church sale this morning then stopped at the first garage sale of the season on my street. The church sale had done a beautiful job of arranging all the items by groups. I noticed there was a lot of glassware and dishes and it reminded me that this generation does not want all of those lovely fancy vases and candy dishes that we once treasured. I had a good time looking but nothing had to come home with me. I am very discriminating about what comes into the house now. I am more into making memories than gathering things.