MIA

I will be missing in action for a few days while I go to Fredericksburg, Va. Every September my two sisters and I celebrate out birthday month together. We have some loose plans…maybe a women’s expo and a trip to Richmond along with shopping at all our favorite stores and eating at all the good restaurants. I am also planning a photo walk with a fellow blogger. I’ll tell you all about it when I get home.

Love fall?

hodgepodge

I borrowed today’s topic from Preppy Empty Nester a new blog that I have been following.
When do you think about your future and what do you fear most?  Hope for the most?

I think about the future all the time…especially since I will be turning 73 in a few days. I know people who have had their life changed just by one single event and I know that your life can change on a dime. So I wonder about that. Will I remain lucky and blessed and live a full life to the end or will I have some unfortunate thing happen that will end my way of life as I know it? What I fear the most is laying in a bed without being able to communicate and having people think that I am not aware of anything when I am. What I hope for the most is to die in my sleep.

September is National Chicken Month.  How often is chicken on the menu at your house?  What's  a favorite dish made with chicken?  What's something that you're a chicken about doing?

We eat chicken a few times a week and my favorite dish is my mother’s recipe for Chicken Pot Pie. When I fix it I always remember mom’s dinners and how we sat around the table.
I am chicken about riding roller coasters. I am terrified. Once my kids talked me into it and not only did it go up and down but did two loops…positively horrendous. I cried afterwards for about a half an hour I was so scared.

What are three things that you don't own but wish you did?
1. A waist so tiny I would be proud to put on a belt.

2. A villa in Provence.

3. An art studio.

Would you rather be a jack of all trades or a master of one?  Elaborate.  If you answered one, which one?

I would much rather have a little bit of knowledge about a lot of things than be an expert at one…what fun is that? I’ve always dabbled in learning different things.

Ketchup or mustard?  On what?
Ketchup on a burger or hot dog with mustard too. And ketchup on fries.

Insert your random thought here…
Seeing all the fall decorations in the stores sure makes me want to get out my pumpkins…

How would you answer the questions?

A Perfect day for a walk

What a perfect day this is. It was a cool morning so I decided to take Sadie out for a buggy walk. I love the University trail because it is paved. There are many aspects to the trail and my usual route is parking by the fitness center and walking for twenty minutes on the section of the trail that is flat. But they have been doing a lot of road work at the entrance to Pitt and it is not as easy to get to the parking area for the trail so I park at the far end instead. This isn't as easy a walk. It is mildly hilly and gives me a workout pushing the dog in the stroller. 

I wan't the only one who thought it was a great day for a walk. I passed more people than I've ever seen on the trail..joggers, walkers, dog walkers, skateboarders and bicyclists. 

The leaves are just beginning to turn colors and already are falling.Autumn is coming in a rush this year. 

Hello September

The Calendar says September

And all of a sudden it's fall....September is here. How quickly the month of August passed and this change of weather is sure to signal that fall is here. It's rainy and cold out..in the fifties this morning. I'm sorry that I haven't blogged for a while. I was sick all week with a sore throat and down in bed but finally have recovered. I had to cance all kinds of doctor appointments this week and didn't go out of the house much.

   Chris came up this weekend and helped us with some heavy chores such as putting away the window air conditioners and taking our outdoor table to the shed for storage. It is great to have the extra help. 

    

Easing into Fall

I know it isn’t fall quite yet but since the stores already have their fall decorations out and the bloggers are starting to post pumpkins I decided it was time to change my mantle to something a little more seasonal too. I brought this Van Gogh picture down from the attic and the golden yellows sang of early fall.

Then I looked around the rest of my house to find the proper things to accompany the picture and found a bronze/gold rabbit, a bird plate and orchid.

On the other side I added some flowers and books and a gold pine cone (or artichoke?) All together I think it is perfect for this transitional season.

I'll take all the birthdays....

This Thursday will be Don's stepmother Rose's 95th birthday. We celebrated yesterday with a party at her house. 

All of the brothers and sisters were there and it was a great time. 

Roses are Rose's favorite flower so of course the cake had roses in her favorite color, red. 

HEr gift was very special ....a Pandora bead bracelet with a bead for each month's birthday gem because we have someone born in every month.

Rose is a special person and we were happy to celebrate with her. 

I had a delightful southern aunt who when asked if she minded her age said...I'll take all the birthdays I can get. 

Early morning

It's quiet and early morning. The air is crisp while the birds sing in the distance. I walked outside to take a few early morning pictures. It is late August and I know that soon these summer days will be over. 

Some of my flowers are still showy while others seem spent. 

The brown eyed Susans are really putting on a show. As I'm traveling around in my car they are easy to spot around the houses. 

Francesca stand quietly surveying her domain. 

I started these zinnias from seeds and finally after all summer they are flowering beautifully. 

The begonia has been a faithful bloomer all summer long..so dependable. 

The bank from a different angle. I wish you were here to breathe the cool air with me. 

I love it first thing in the morning when all is quiet and the day is just beginning. It's a new slate to write upon. 

A book

My love of reading definitely started in first grade when Jane, Dick and Sally came into my life as letters arranged on a page and Spot and Puff chased each other into a story.  As I read through my years Nancy Drew solved one mystery after another as library books became my friends. The one book I particularly remember as influential was Lad, a dog by Albert Payton Ternhue. It was the story of a collie told through his eyes. I still remember him laying under the grand piano. I loved animals and this story brought joy. Books came in and out of my life rapidly as I devoured the stories and expanded my world.  In junior high my most embarrassing moment came when my math teacher caught me reading at my desk instead of paying attention to the chalkboard. 

   Throughout my life a trip to a library has been a reward to me as I load up on all sorts of books. I have never been much of a book buyer. Going through books at a rapid pace I never felt the need to collect them. I own some of course but I'm not a person with a large library.  It wouldn't be my house without books stacked all over and book bags sagging with the weight of books just waiting to be read. Did you have a favorite?

    What books influenced you?

     

Isn’t this moment nice?

“I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, ‘If this isn’t nice, I don’t know what is.’” — Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Did you notice that moment? Did you stop and savor each one and revel in it? There are moments in life that just make you smile with contentment and knowing that all is well in your world. The world presents itself before you and all you have to do is take hold.
  Today I will savor….
my new copy of Bella Grace

Reading Gretchen Rubin’s Better Than Before

going through my summer things and getting a pile of unworn or old clothes to give away

staying on my resolve to eat less

watching YouTube videos on fall dressing

changing the sheets and having a fresh bed to fall into tonight

going for a walk around Marilla lake

breathing the cool air

Writing prompts

Sometimes it is fun to do writing prompts on the blog. These came from BlogHer.

1. Everyone is an expert in something. Tell us three things you’re an expert in.

I had to think hard for this one. I don’t consider myself an “expert”. But three things I’m good at….blogging, playing the piano, painting.

2. Do you prefer to take advice from strangers or from people close to you? 

  Absolutely I want advice from those who know me best and that I trust.

3. Are you a fan of self help/advice books? What is one of your favorites?

  I’ve always loved self help books and feel that I could learn from them. I used to read Jack Canfield books when I first began finding self help books.

4. What was something you once believed was true but now you know is false?

  I once thought that through my advice people would change but now I know that people do what they want regardless of how you think they should behave.

5. What is the hardest part about learning a new skill?  Do you enjoy a challenge or do you like things to come easily?

Of course it would be great if learning was always easy. I’ve been lucky that things have come easily to me most of the time (but I have to put in the work). I am the type to keep on trying and not give up until I master something. There only has been one thing that I had to let go because no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t figure it out. That is Lightroom a program for photo editing.

6. Tell us one thing you remember learning in school as a kid.

I was lucky that my principal and seventh grade teacher lived in my neighborhood. He was a fantastic teacher and loved education and I credit him for encouraging me to become a teacher. He taught us geography in a clever way using games and recitation. I remember his class and learning the products of South American countries. I wonder if kids these days even study other countries like that.

7. What was your best subject back in school? Did you choose a profession that uses that subject?

I think art has to have been my best subject because it came so easily and I enjoyed it so much. I started out to be an art teacher but it didn’t work out because I had to quit school to take care of my family who were in a bad car accident. When I went back to college I majored in education with a minor in art.

8. Tell us about a teacher who changed your life.

My principal and neighbor changed my life by encouraging me to go back to school and become a teacher. My high school math teacher also encouraged me to go to college while waiting for my boyfriend to complete his Navy tour.

I would love to hear your answers to some of these questions in the comments.

I am an addict

Definition of addict

1. :  to devote or surrender (oneself) to something habitually or obsessively

Are you addicted to something? Usually when we think of addiction our minds automatically go to drug or alcohol addiction. But there are many kinds of addictions..not all of them bad. For instance…the new fall tv season is coming up and there are programs that I am addicted to and don’t want to miss.  Luckily with DirecTV I can record them and watch them at my own time. In fact, that is what I do most of the time. I am addicted to the Thursday night line up…Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, How to get Away with Murder. And I am a Bravo addict and like most of the reality shows there. And Masterpiece theater has shows that I get hooked on.
    I am also addicted to ice cream.

There is nothing better in my mind than to visit the new Foster Brook Creamery and indulge in one scoop in a dish of Peanut Butter, caramel and cookie dough. Yum!
  I am also addicted to my ipad and computer and spend probably too much time there. It still amazes me that there is so much knowledge there. Besides the usual email there is blogging daily.
  And I am addicted to traveling. I don’t like riding long distances as much as I once did but I love it when I get there and do so many fun things.
Oh, and did I mention my addiction to books? and magazines? Yes, reading is certainly one of my most pleasurable addictions.
  How about you? What are you addicted to?

birch trees

It was just one of those days

Yesterday was just one of those ordinary days. My normal weekday always begins with meeting my friends for coffee. We alternate the places where we meet and yesterday we met at Perkins. There were five of us. One time another girl we know came over to our table to talk to us and we told her we had been meeting every morning for fifteen years. She asked, "Don't you run out of things to talk about?" We just laughed. Never, ever do we lack conversation. 

   After coffee we all adjourned to the Presbyterian Church where we all helped Joan who was committee chairwoman for our Bradford meeting of PASR, our school retirement county group. We set the tables, folded napkins, and arranged centerpieces for our local luncheon today. I had a brief interruption for a dentist appointment but came back as soon as I could.

In the afternoon we had a rainstorm so I sat and read the new Kath Reichs book Two NIghts. 

   When I got home my subscription box from Nikki had arrived. If you remember I had signed up for this box every other month from AT Home with Nikki. I loved the first one and was excited to open this one. My sister LInda had subscribed too and we opened ours at the same time while we were talking on the phone. I will let this video from Nikki show you what I received. 

GOODBYE ORPHAN BLACK

Recently it was the final episode of Orphan Black a series on BBC that I have been following. I would explain what it is about but it had such a complex plot that it would be impossible. This is from Wikipedia……..Orphan Black is a Canadian science fiction thriller television series created by screenwriter Graeme Manson and director John Fawcett, starring Tatiana Maslany as several identical people who are clones. The series focuses on Sarah Manning, a woman who assumes the identity of one of her fellow clones, Elizabeth Childs, after witnessing Childs' suicide. The series raises issues about the moral and ethical implications of human cloning, and its effect on issues of personal identity.^{[1
Tatiana is amazing in the way she portrays different characters. Not only does her physical appearance change with costumes and hairdos she actually changes her whole personality, mannerisms, and speech. It was easy to forget that it was the same actual person in the scenes. If you like science fiction try this out for size.}

When you look in the mirror what do you see?

I think everyone at some time or another suffers from low self esteem. It’s easy to feel inadequate to others in looks, in brains, in attitudes, in experiences.

“We are all wonderful, beautiful wrecks. That's what connects us--that we're all broken, all beautifully imperfect.”
― Emilio Estevez

The nice thing about getting older is self acceptance. The Bella Grace magazine is all about accepting and loving yourself just the way you are.

“Life isn’t meant to be lived perfectly…but merely to be LIVED. Boldly, wildly, beautifully, uncertainly, imperfectly, magically LIVED.”
― Mandy Hale, The Single Woman: Life, Love, and a Dash of Sass

“I hog the covers, and my second toe is longer than my big one. My hair has its own zip code...You don't love someone because they're perfect...You love them in spite of the fact that they're not.”
― Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper

“Learning to love who you are replaces negative thoughts with a beautiful confidence. You’re embracing every part of you. It’s a powerful confidence that acts as a shield against the possibility of people’s words affecting your self-esteem.”
“The more I accept my own imperfections, the more I make space for others to do the same. Just like judgment feeds judgment, acceptance feeds acceptance.” — Joy Jordan

Here are some excerpts and quotes from Issue 8:

"Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'" — Mary Anne Radmacher (p. 1)

" ... I laugh at how long I held onto the old list with tight fingers and a narrow mind.To allow old dreams to fall quiet does not make me a failure. To let go of expectations that no longer serve me has revealed contentment with who I am, right where I am.” — Rita Herrmann | From “Allowing Old Dreams To Fall Quiet” (p. 128)

“And as she fell apart her shattered pieces began to bloom — blossoming until she became herself exactly as she was meant to be.” — Becca Lee (p. 160)

“Everybody has a home team: It’s the people you call when you get a flat tire or when something terrible happens. It’s the people who, near or far, know everything that’s wrong with you and love you anyways. These are the ones who tell you their secrets, who get themselves a glass of water without asking when they’re at your house. These are the people who cry when you cry. These are your people, your middle-of-the-night, no-matter-what people.” — Shauna Niequist (p. 19)

“Do more of what brings you joy (and don’t apologize for it).” — Mary Anne Radmacher | From “How To Be The Center Of Your Own Flame” (p. 140)

“I’m going to make everything around me beautiful — thatwill be my life.” — Elsie de Wolf (p. 113)

“Meet me where the sky touches the sea. Wait for me where the world begins.” — Jennifer Donnelly (p. 50-51)

“My wish for you? Find a method to savor the sacred golden hour and witness the magic as the sun slips to the west. Tune in to nature’s symphony of sounds. Seek a slice of quiet and circle in.” — Debbie Schaefer | From “Paddle, Rise, Repeat: Sunset Sessions on the Water” (p. 27)