Well….this happened

On Friday I decided to wash an 8 x 6’ rug outside. That went very well and when it was dry I rolled it up and carried it inside. I’ve been having trouble with my left hip with bursitis. I had a Cortizone shot in both hips but it wasn’t time to get another one yet. As I was carrying the rug in somehow I lost my balance and my left leg wasn’t strong enough to hold me up and I tipped forward and I tipped forward. unfortunately my whole body weight tipped me right into the sharp corner of my China closet. As soon as my head hit the corner I knew it was going to be bad and when I reached up and had blood who’s out my fingers I knew.  But when I looked in the mirror and saw the 5 inch cut from my forehead top to between my eyes which was deep and wide I knew it was really bad. I put ice and pressed on it as I called my friend Joan who came and picked me up and took me to the emergency room. Four hours later I came home after having a CAT scan and 10 stitches and 10 stitchesBut when I looked in the mirror and saw the 5 inch cut from my forehead top to between my eyes which was deep and wide I knew it was really bad. I put ice and pressed on it as I called my friend Joan who came and picked me up and took me to the emergency room. Four hours later I came home after having a CAT scan and 10 stitches.I’m going to have a very large scar right in the middle of my forehead. And my eyes are almost swollen shut. I look like a bad raccoon. I guess since I have 79 I need to learn my limitations.

Amazing

How lucky am I? This is Rose, my mother in law who celebrated her 101st birthday on Sunday. She is in amazing health and has a mind that is so sharp. She still plays cards daily with her family and lives at home under the care of her daughter. We are so fortunate to have her. 

Fall,beautiful fall

September is here and with it comes cold, crisp mornings where the air is so refreshing. As I drive by the location where West Branch school used to stand I see the young wannabe Josh Allens practicing their throws and hits. Now that its cooler people are out walking with their children or dogs along the trails. The leaves on the tops of some trees have felt the change and are showing a different color of leaf. 

  September has always been an exciting new adventure for me when I was teaching. I entered the classroom after a long summer break to the smell of newness.  Everything was fresh and clean. As I opened the supplies I ordered in the spring it was like Christmas as I anticipated how I would use these new materials. I prepared lesson in anticipation of a brand new class. It may be one of the few jobs where every year is a new start. I was the kind of teacher who never did things the same way year after year. I loved putting up the bulletin boards welcoming the students into the classroom.

      It’s a little different now. I retired from elementary teaching in 2006 and it is in the far distance of my memory. Put I still walk down the school supply isle in Walmart just to look at the notebooks and pens and markers. 

      Here are some pictures of my 2003 fall decorations.

Sunshine

This is what it’s like to have such a thoughtful sister-in-law. She knows I’m going through a rough patch and she gave me a box of goodies to cheer me up. They were all wrapped in yellow Tissue paper and all follow the yellow theme. She’s a very clever girl and I’m so appreciative. It came on a day when I was really having quite a bad time. Thank you charlotte. 

Like a flower

I feel like these flowers. There is a big beautiful sunflower reaching for the sun. This is the me that wants to shine, the happy me for the world to see.  The crumbled sunflower is the me inside who is full of hurt that I won’t recognize. Withdrawn and sad.  The dying roses represent my lost love who will never hold me in his arms again. Never talk to me and tell me words I want to hear. Grief is real and is expressed in a lot of ways. 

And so it begins

And so it begins. My life without him. We met when I was 16. We were high school sweethearts, then fiancés.  We dated during the four years he was in the Navy while I was going to college. We married right out of college and spent 57 wonderful years with each other. And it ended. When you live that many years with somebody he is part of your soul. He is there in the morning and he is there to say good night to every night. There will be a hole in my heart that could never be filled again. He struggled so to breathe and his life was taken away from him piece by piece. Till he had nothing left. I don’t know what my life will be from now on but I know I will miss him terribly.

Family pictures

It has been a while since I have posted pictures of the family. When Ryan and Jenny visited they got dressed up to go to a wedding and we took a few photos.

I’m back….

If you are reading this you will be very surprised to see that I am back blogging. After a hiatus of quite a long time I think it’s about the time for me to put down some of the things that I have been doing. And I’d like to get some pictures on the blog. So look what happened in the meantime. The above picture is Wendy, her mother Linda, and me with our fingernails painted blue in honor of van Gogh starry night. I went down to Wendy’s and we went near Philadelphia for a van gogh immersion Experience. First we walked through many rooms which contained replicas of his paintings and posters with information about his life. Then at the end we walked into a huge cavernous room which was completely empty except for beanbag chairs, benches, and beach chairs. We were encouraged to make ourselves comfortableAnd sit and enjoy all of the images which were projected onto the walls and ceilings and floors. All while listening to beautiful classical music.

This is a picture of Wendy and the beach chair. All over the walls were the most beautiful colors and shapes and impressions of his work. We sat mesmerized for over half an hour.

Here I am sitting in a chair by a replica of van Goghs bed. He painted three pictures of the rooming house bedroom that he stayed in in France. It was marvelous to actually step into the picture.

Chris took us out to dinner at the Olive Garden in the evening.

It was a beautiful day which started off with lunch at Sissy’s house. She fixed the most delicious quiche, a salad, fruit, and zucchini. The day was wonderful.

Cottage house winery

Tonight Don and I tried a new restaurant in Smethport which is about a half hour from our house called the Cottage House Winery. It was recommended to me by a friend in my art class.

We were quite surprised by the interior. When we first walked in we saw a replica General Store which featured a large coffee grinder. The store also had an old fashioned post office. The products sold were a variety of food, soup mixes, jellies, and candles. 

Next was a full sized stagecoach, a beautiful model T, and some rocks and a waterfall.

There were so many interesting things to look at. In one corner there was a fireplace with a comfy chair, pelts on the wall, and a collection of traps 

The menu was limited but the steaks we had were flavorful. Don took a piece of peanut butter pie home to enjoy later. It was an enjoyable evening out. 

Something new

Chris and Wendy. I sited this weekend. I loved having the company because it’s been so quiet here. We have to be careful Don doesn’t get Covid so we stay home a lot. Chris electrified and put up a chandelier above my dining room table. A light there has been needed for so long. He also put it on a dimmer which will make it so nice for parties. While he was home he also did a few other chores for me. It is so nice to have some help.  

Merry Christmas 2021

Merry Christmas my friends. I apologize for not posting a lot this past year. Covid has affected a lot of our lives and my blog has been one of the casualties.  My life has slowed down and I haven’t felt much like blogging. Even our Christmas was very quiet with just Chris and Wendy coming up for the weekend. Chris even commented that I didn’t even take a picture of the lovely spread that I put out for Christmas Eve.  Wish  you could have seen it. 

   

A neat tissue holder that looks like books. 

Wendy loves cats and puzzles. 

Don with his favorite...malted milk balls. 

I had a nice surprise from Don. Chris brought us an electric player piano a few months ago but out old piano bench was not high enough for me to play comfortably. So Don gave me an adjustable bench seat. Now I will really enjoy playing.  I hope to do more of that this new year. In fact I want to make more time for painting too. And reading. I think I might enjoy this quiet winter. 

I hope you will have a safe and healthy new year and we will defeat this Covid once and for all. 

Poetry

 

Wherever you go…

 Starting here, what do you want to remember?

How sunlight creeps along a shining floor?

What scent of old wood hovers, what softened

sound from outside fills the air?

 Will you ever bring a better gift for the world

than the breathing respect that you carry

wherever you go right now? Are you waiting

for time to show you some better thoughts?

 When you turn around, starting here, lift this

new glimpse that you found; carry into evening

all that you want from this day. This interval you spent

reading or hearing this, keep it for life -

 What can anyone give you greater than now,

starting here, right in this room, when you turn around?

 William Edgar Stafford

1914-1993

she said it better

 I always wished that I was a writer. Words seem to flow from others and they have a way of expressing all the emotions held inside. But that was not a talent given to me. I write in simple sentences usually just describing my day. Then sometimes I come across someone who speaks for me on their page. They exactly express my feelings and I end up saying I wish I could write like that. I found a new blog today called Collage of Life which took my breath away. Tahilla Farm is the most stunning New Hampshire property, where Jeanne Henriques offers retreats on different themes, that she calls Tahilla Gatherings.Her blog is full of stories and wisdom. Today I am stealing her words about books because they exactly say how I feel. It's as if she opened my head and looked directly into my mind. 

Magic Carpet Ride

There are times when I just want a book to whisk me away to some place exciting. I don’t want to think too hard but I want to be entertained, I want the words to take me on a magic carpet ride and return me to a safe harbor, one that I know well. No need to rock my world and turn it upside down, just get me back to where I started.

The Weight of Words

Then there are the books to feed my reading soul. I want those words to wrap around me, pull me into a comfy chair and let me stay awhile. When that happens, it’s me and the book and no one else. I am open to possibilities, I am ready to travel, I want to connect and feel the weight of the words…wherever they happen to take me. As I turn the last page of that book, I want it to leave me wishing it wasn’t so, as I shout “Nooooo, please don’t go”. I will think and ponder and perhaps shed a literary tear and when that happens I wrap the words within me and start anew.

Outside the Book

The other reading space for me is one where I can distance myself from other worlds and just stick to the one I am in. I want to learn, to expand, to think outside the book and feel energized. These books feed my self-help curiosity and when the mood strikes, it is the only place I can exist. Once the author taps into my questioning soul and provides answers, I will be ready for the next book, for either a magic carpet ride or holding the weight of words.

And that my friends is how I look at reading.

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A fall walk

I am lucky to have walking trails very near my home. The other day I was enjoying these last lingering warmer days of fall before we lose al the leaves completely and cold weather sets in by walking the University trail. 

I used to feel funny about posting pictures of myself but one time I took a photography course on self portraits and realized that I should celebrate myself. 

Miss Makeup

Sara Has loved playing make up since she was very very young. She’s 11 now and just loves to put make up on people.  She has loved playing make up since she was very very young. When we were visiting in Tennessee she gave me a facial. And painted my nails green. Woo woo!

Tennessee troubles

Yes this is Sean who fell and broke his arm at scout camp. It was a very bad break both bones in the lower arm. One came out through the skin. He’s had a lot of trouble he had one surgery. Then he had to have a second surgery because of infection. Then he had to have a third surgery to put in a pick line in order to go home. He’s been treated with antibiotics through the pick line twice a day. He said quite a time of it. He went to the doctor Monday. He got on a removable cast so that they can keep an eye on the infection. If he’s better on Thursday he may be able to switch to oral antibiotics. Of course he hasn’t been in school for two weeks and can’t go back until this is taken care of. He’s been a trooper through it all.

Quite a surprise

This was quite a surprise. Don has wanted a player piano for a long time. We had one when we were first married and spent many nights pumping the pedals and singing along to the piano rolls.  We even moved it with us to this house almost fifty years ago. Eventually it wouldn’t work correctly and we got rid of it. Later Don got me a regular piano for Mother’s Day one year which I have enjoyed playing for years. He recently told Chris that he only wanted two things..a player piano and a dog. Not just a dog but another Jack Russell. It’s been over two years since we had to put our beloved .

Sadie down. I don’t want another dog which would be a lot of work for me since Don wouldn’t be able to help me with it because of his COPD. 

  So when .Chris pulled up the driveway towing a trailer I didn’t know what to expect. He had found an electric player for his father. We saved many piano rolls and tomorrow we will try playing some of those.