To Eat or Not to Eat, That is the Question

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I have never liked to cook. I like to bake, but cooking just bores me, but it’s the one thing I have to do several times a week whether I want to or not or we’d just be eating sandwiches and salads.

Through the fifty years we have been married I have probably spent thousands of hours in the kitchen doing that which I find boring. It’s a necessary evil and someone has to do it and I’m that someone. I’m a pretty good cook, too. That is what is amazing. I did have a good teacher when she could get me into the kitchen. My mother. She was the best cook around. I still miss her fried chicken. My chicken doesn’t hold a candle to hers. My mother wasn’t all that fond of cooking either and yet, she spent most of her life in the kitchen cooking up big meals for our family of eight and huge dinners for company which we had quite often. I always thought people showed up right at dinner or supper time on purpose to eat some of my mother’s cooking. I did it a few times myself after I got married. Mom always had something good to eat and always a dessert.

Now when I cook for company there is a whole new dilemma. What to cook. Today so many people are on diets or special diets or can’t eat certain foods or are diabetic or can’t have salt or are lactose intolerant or eating gluten free or on the keto diet. I find cooking for company isn’t at all fun anymore. I can’t fix several different things to fill all the needs of everyone. When my mother cooked, she didn’t ask what one could or couldn’t eat. She cooked a meal and you ate it. If you couldn’t eat something, you didn’t say anything. Now you have to take notes on who can eat what.

So many people are dieting all the time now. I know it’s healthier to be slim, but there is fanaticism to it one didn’t see years ago. I’ve been on every diet in the book and I just gave up and eat pretty much what I want. Even if the doctor says don’t eat this or that. I’m going to die some day anyway, I might as well die happy. My husband eats everything with lots of salt and is skinny and hardly ever sees the doctor. His grandmother was a thin woman and lived into her nineties, so I think he takes after her. And if he does go on a diet all he has to do to lose weight is leave out a slice of bread and he’ll drop pounds. Life is not fair!

So do you have a special diet? Do you love to cook? How easy is it for you to plan meals? That’s another thing. Planning all the meals just makes me have to think of food all the time. When I ask my husband what he would like to eat he always says, “I don’t know, let me think about it,” so that is what we will have one day. A plate of I don’t know with dessert being I’ll think about it! Hope he likes it.

I don’t even know why I am writing about food and diets and all that anyway. I think it’s because I am about ready to go grocery shopping and the whole vicious cycle will start again. What to eat or not to eat. That is the question. Bye.

Where Were You?

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Today is September 11th. A day we Americans remember with sadness, some anger, and hope that it never happens again. It was a day like no other I have experienced, when for just a little bit of time we Americans were banded together against one enemy. An enemy who thought nothing of flying two airplanes into office buildings and murdering thousands of our citizens. An enemy who used our airplanes to attack the Pentagon and would have done more damage if some brave souls on one plane didn’t fight back.

Now years later, we are still fighting this enemy while allowing many of them into our country. Something I just don’t understand at all. Would we have welcomed Nazis during WW2? I don’t think so. And less you try to tell me all muslims are not terrorists, just know that almost all terrorists are muslims. I watch them torture and murder Christians in several countries. What would happen here in the United States if we were under muslim control? May it never happen.

Where were you when the attack happened? I was cleaning our church at the time. I would go in at two o’clock in the morning and work until nine or ten that morning. On 9/11 I was taking out the trash in my car when I heard that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. My exact thought was, “What nut flew an airplane into that building?” I was thinking a small plane. I didn’t know until I got home and turned on the tv that it was an air liner and I saw the second one fly into the second building and I knew we were under serious attack. I sat glued to the tv all day. I had so many emotions that day. Grief, anger, disbelief, fear. When the pentagon was attacked I thought it was all out war. Maybe it should have been. Maybe we should have annihilated the enemy once for all in the days afterward. My heart broke for all those who lost loved ones that day. Remember all the pictures and messages posted on fences and walls by family members looking for their loved ones, hoping they had survived the attack? Those pictures still haunt me.

But true to form, the Democrats and Republicans could not remain as one voice for very long and soon some were for protecting all muslims at any cost while some wanted to bomb muslim countries into oblivion. Maybe if we had done that then, we would not be having the continuous threats to our country and many other countries around the world with muslim infiltration. I read about rapes going up in European countries because of muslim infiltration. In Sweden, rapes have sky rocketed in that small country. All because of their leaders allowing so many muslim men into their country.

I don’t know what the answer is. I ask God to protect our country from those who would destroy us. Just this week a hundred Banglesdesh people were stopped at our border. People are flooding our borders as never before. I heard today that since 9/11 border patrol and ICE have turned away eleven million people at our border. Millions more have come into our country illegally. Muslim Terrorists were even found living in a compound right on our border, who were training children to attack our schools. Our president is trying to stop this with a wall, but, as usual, the politicians can’t come together and get it done. I hope there will not be another 9/11 to wake some up.

This day brings many thoughts. If you live in a country being invaded, you understand what I am writing about. If you believe muslims are a peace loving people, and many are, that is your right, but the religion was founded on conquest and destruction and taking over people by force, if needed. The culture of Islam is not compatible with free countries. I never really thought much about Islam before 9/11, but I have thought a lot about it since and I have done some studying of it and nothing has proven to me it is peaceful. It’s only peaceful when kept in control.

So, when you ponder where you were and what you were thinking on this day, just know we must all come to some conclusion one day about who the enemy really is and what should be done about it. I pray we never have to endure another horrible day like 9/11 ever again.

Say a prayer for those who lost loved ones this day seventeen years ago and pray God will protect our countries from any more harm. Bye.

Once There Was A Summer

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Remember those first few days of Summer when you thought they were spread out before you like a gift just waiting to be opened? So many plans made for picnics, road trips and long, lazy days by the pool. Blue, blue skies? Warm sun on the face?

Days when clouds had curls on the top like a Dairy Queen ice cream cone?

Summer didn’t quite turn out that way for me. I have spent a great deal of Summer painting and gardening. We have talked for years about painting the house so this year we have decided to get it done. But first, we wanted to try some paint colors to see what we would like. We painted the shed and my shop a deep, dark syrupy chocolate and I like it.

Between David and myself we got them both done with two coats on each. We are having the house painted. No tall ladders for us.

It’s rained so much this Summer so we painted between the rain drops. The rain has done wonders for my garden, though.

The pumpkin vines have spread everywhere and I have seen a few pumpkins starting to form.

One vine grew up and tree and then down and there is a pumpkin hanging in there somewhere.

And the vine continues to grow down to earth again. Who knows where it will end up?

These pumpkin vines are waist high on me. The leaves are huge. I hope the pumpkins won’t disappoint.

Being a farmer’s daughter, I am always glad to see that the farmers have good stands of corn and soybeans in their fields. I heard on the radio that harvest may come early this year. Good for the farmers.

And even though it’s Summer, I have still found time for knitting. In the early morning or in the evenings I try to knit a bit. Here are a few of the socks that have come off my needles.

With all this yarn I knit a pair of patchwork socks.

Not sure anyone but me will want to wear these colorful socks, but I do love them.

Another pair of socks from odds and ends of yarn leftovers. I rather like these, too. These were a bear to knit for some reason. I tore out one of them three times, once when I was at the toe. Grrrr.

And I found the colors in this ball of yarn almost matched my patchwork socks.

And here they are. See the mistake? It’s hardly noticeable, but I know it’s there.

And I also did some patching of holes on some older socks I knit. These are some of the first socks I ever knitted. I knit little squares and sewed them over holes.

Then I did a little yarn embellishing. I will be glad to wear these on a cold Winter’s day.

The children are all back in school sitting at their desks hopefully filling their brains with useful information that will get them far in life. Our oldest grandchild started college this year and our youngest is in fourth grade. How fast they have grown. Soon the leaves will begin to change. The air will have a crispness in it that I have longed for all Summer. I am not a hot weather person. We have plans for this Autumn. I will be making trips to Indianapolis with our daughter as she takes part in a physical therapy study for MS patients. Pray for good results. Then we will all go to Walt Disney World together and have some fun. That’s our plans.

Hope your Summer was full of everything your heart desired and that Autumn will be the same. Bye.

Oh, and Belle and Molly give their regards.

Woof!

Nobody and Everybody

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I’ve been hearing and seeing a lot on opinion sites about Nobody and Everybody. Everybody loves this tv show. Everybody is flocking to see that movie. Nobody likes our president. Nobody believes a thing he says. Nobody goes to rallies willingly. They are paid. Everybody wants a woman in the White House. Which woman? Everybody loves this new food, book, tea, laundry detergent, store etc., etc.

Just who are these Nobodies and Everybodies? And why don’t I always agree with them? I went to a movie once that Everybody was raving about and it even won an Oscar. Most boring movie I have ever watched and some people even got up and left when full frontal nudity came on he screen. Who are these Everybodies? Don’t they have any taste?

I went to a restaurant Everybody said I should not miss. It would be the highlight of my life. Worst food and service I have ever received. Everybody was wrong, evidently. Maybe I am a Nobody. Because I don’t always agree with all the Everybodies.

What do you think when you see something advertised and it is said that Everybody loves it? I immediately become suspicious because these Everybodies have steered me wrong more times than not. I hear that Everybody is getting a certain vaccine. Well, I haven’t and I probably won’t. Some vaccines have been proven to be more harmful than helpful in the long run. I got vaccinated for something a while back only because a friend had been affected by this particular disease and told me I really must get vaccinated against it. So I did. A few weeks later I heard that getting the vaccination could CAUSE you to get the disease. What????!!!

Who are these Everybodies and Nobodies? Where do they live. Do they live in a nicer house than me, have a better dog, car, cat, refrigerator etc? How did they get so smart that Everyone wants to follow Everybody? And the Nobodies are just party poopers. Really.

So the next time you hear something advertised and someone says, “Everybody loves it, or wants it, or has used it, etc.,” just remember, if you aren’t part of those Everybodies, it isn’t true.

As for the Nobodies. Nobody listens to them anyway. Bye.

August and Where did Summer Go?

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When I was a girl, I lived for Summer. School was a necessary evil. I did well in school and made good friends, but I preferred to be outdoors and with my animals. The last day of school was such a celebration for me. I feel sorry for children now who seem to be going to school all year around and don’t have the luxury of long, lazy Summer days to do just what they want to do. It seems children’s lives are so planned now. Even times to play with friends are called “Play Dates.” Sports and other things fill children’s time. When do they have the time to be bored? Being bored is not a bad thing. It’s been made to be a bad thing in today’s fast paced, go, go, go society. One must be entertained every moment of every day.

I was never bored as a child. There was always so much to do on the farm. I did have chores to do, but when they were done, my time was my own. If I wanted to play a game of baseball, I joined my brothers in the barn lot where we would play all afternoon. A game of croquet or badminton sometimes was the order of the day. But mostly I played with the dogs and the cats and the calves and baby pigs and chickens and ducklings on our farm or swung on the swing and read a library book for hours. Because we lived in the country, I didn’t have friends close by to play with so I had to entertain myself. I learned to sew on Mother’s sewing machine, how to cut apart a chicken for Sunday dinner and how to saddle a horse. I was in 4-H where I learned to embroider, bake cakes, tube paint, weave baskets and raise a sheep.

I still love Summers, but they seem so busy now. Every year we plan a project and this year it is painting all the buildings on our property. Most have not been painted for years so they are due. I wanted to paint the outside of my shop, but first I had to remove everything that was on the front porch.

This is not all of it. It looked like we were having a garage sale.

And so I began to paint.

Going from the color Chocolate which has been on our house and our buildings for years and years to Oxford Brown or as I like to call it Dark Chocolate. The paint looked just like chocolate syrup in the can. Between David and myself we have the shop just about done. I love how it looks. We are hiring someone to paint the house because no more going up high ladders for David and my anymore. We have wood fencing all around our property which we have been painting on for years and this year we hope to have most of it completed. I love to paint, but I have been painting on something since January and am about done for a while.

Since it’s been our 50th anniversary month David and I have been doing some traveling and visiting places from our youth

The church where we said our “I dos” 50 years ago. It looks pretty much like it did fifty years ago. Golly, but it seems like only yesterday. I can still see the people at the door of the church throwing rice as David and I got in the car to drive around town. David’s brother was driving. He came up from the Virgin Islands, where he lived, to be David’s best man. They drive on the left side of the road there. When he left the church, he was driving on the left side of the street and we had to holler at him to get to the right! It was one of the best days of my life. It’s been a great 50 years.

David’s Grandmother’s house. She’s been gone many years, but we use to visit her often and she would cook us dinners. She was a very good cook.

We’d sit on this front porch and watch the town go by. It was and still is a little town where everyone use to know everyone else. I don’t know if it’s like that now. I miss it. I miss Grandma Henley. She was so good to me.

We’ve done a good bit of swimming with the grandboys. We got this wild steer for them to ride in the pool.

We are still getting rhubarb. Made this freezer jam.

Rhubarb sauce which David loves. He even puts it on ice cream.

And Rhubarb crunch. Yum.

And we have done some antiquing and other things.

Found this clock for my shop which was perfect.

This cute little tray.

This tablecloth which matched the clock completely.

A birdhouse I found. A four holer. Hope the birds can decide among themselves.

We ate at a German restaurant which had very good food.

Sitting out on the shop porch one evening, we watched a rainbow be born. I have never seen it happen before. First it was very dim and got brighter and brighter and lasted for quite a while. God’s promise.

There have been quite a few rainbows lately.

And so Summer continues on for just a little while. I will hold it to me as long as I can. I have so few Summers left on this great planet of ours. As long as my garden is blooming, it’s Summer to me.

And my garden is blooming profusely right now.

The view from my back door. Everything is so lush.

The best hydrangeas I have ever grown. Right by our front step.

I think these are called Tiger Lilies. Their seeds look like ripe blackberries.

I call this my kitchen garden. Not much food grown here except a few tomatoes.

Hibiscus grow all over the yard from one plant I got from my neighbor years ago.

Lawn children play among the flowers. A long time ago real children played in my garden. Now they are all grown and live away.

Just a couple of the day lilies I grow. They are one of my top five favorite flowers for beauty and ease of care.

Belle roaming in her garden. She loves to sniff the flowers.

And, of course, Molly follows me everywhere I go.

So, Summer slowly leaves us now. I’ll be looking at these pictures in the midst of Winter snow, sleet and ice. I know in some places fires are raging so we must send a prayer for all those in the areas, for the people and for the wildlife. Be safe. Bye.

Noise

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Now I don’t have the best of hearing, but the world seems inundated with noise of all kinds nowadays. First the alarm clock blasts us awake in the morning telling us another busy day has begun. I will have to admit, I very rarely wake to an alarm clock any more since I am retired. David sets his alarm, which I hardly ever hear, and goes to work early. But back in the days of school and a business and working, the alarm clock woke me every day.

Doing the laundry is no longer a silent job. Just opening the washer lid sets off a dinging telling you the lid is up. Then, when the wash load is completed, there is another ding to remind you that you put clothes in the washer. Same goes for the dryer. Open the door and there is a ding. Clothes dry, ding again.

Driving a car use to be pretty easy. You got in the car, turned on the lights if needed and drove. Now the car warns you your door is open, your seatbelt is not on and if you left your lights on before getting out there is a loud ping-ping-ping that won’t let up until you turn off the lights. If you forget and leave your keys in the ignition, there is another warning sound that is so irritating, you can’t get the keys out fast enough. And I’m sure many of you have heard the check engine ding that may or may not be warning you about something. David ignored that ding for years in his truck and has never had any trouble. A tire low, ding again. Gone are the days when you were responsible for checking the pressure in your tires or remembering to turn off the lights or take out the key.

Have you listened to any news on tv lately? What’s with the steady beat behind the reporting? It seems the news cannot be reported any longer unless there is music or drum beats going on in the background. Sometimes it’s so loud, it’s hard to hear the reporters. Same with movies and television shows. The background music is so intrusive, it drowns out the voices you are trying to hear. I read once that the makers of movies thought the loud music would make it more of an experience for the viewer, drawing them in. It makes me want to leave. Sometimes the music is so loud in the movie theater I have to cover my years. Is there an insidious effort to make us all deaf or deafer than we already are? I also have been noticing a subliminal sound of a telephone ring in the background of some things I am watching. David doesn’t hear it, but I have heard it clearly several time. I am not going nuts.

Loud music in passing cars. We sit on our porch quite frequently and a car will go by with the bass playing so loudly, I fear for the occupants inside. When I can feel the beat in my chest from a car passing my house, it must be a tad too loud.

Trains. I love trains. I have lived by train tracks for almost my entire married life and enjoy seeing the trains go by. But lately, it seems the train whistles have become much louder and longer in duration. I wonder about the engineers who really lay on the horn and keep it going from one crossing to the next. Why is it necessary for them to keep the horns going after they have crossed the track? It’s a noise that is causing some problems in my city because there are more trains going through than ever before. The city fathers are trying to find a solution, but I don’t think they will do anything with the crossing by my house as we are too far out of town, even though we are considered in city limits.

Dogs barking. Okay. They are my dogs. Some day I will have to tape Molly when a train goes by. She is louder than the train, if possible. It’s almost like she is enjoying the howling and will continue it long after the train has passed. She doesn’t do it when I am outside with her. I am sure the train whistle hurts her ears, but she should be getting use to them.

Talking heads on tv. They are just noise. Who are these people that others take them seriously and listen to them? Watch one show there is one view. Watch another there is an opposing view and the more controversial the topic, the louder the voices get and they shout over each other. Noise. I find myself turning them off more and more.

Cellphones. David and I rarely use our cellphones except for long distance calls and we do take it with us on trips in case we have car trouble. But I see people with cellphones on continually, whether playing games or scrolling through pictures or checking Facebook or twitter. Kids wear earplugs in their ears continuously listening to the latest music. People turning on and turning out everywhere. It’s not noise, but it’s another distraction from real life. I notice even in church people are sitting there scrolling through their cellphones and I know they are not all reading the Bible! And sometimes a cellphone will ring right in the middle of the sermon. Noise. Distraction. We have become a nation of watchers, not doers. Many people aren’t in the moment anymore. If it’s not on their cellphone, it’s not life for them.

I’m as bad as the next one. I have to have background noise on most of the time whether it’s the tv or radio. Lots of times I’m not even really listening. Noise. I must make a concerted effort to turn off the tv and radio and listen to the silence for a while. I don’t know how anyone is creative anymore with sound blaring constantly all around them. Some of the best inventions have happened when people were bored and were sitting quietly, thinking.

I hope I don’t sound like a curmudgeon. Yesterday probably wasn’t any better than today, but it sure seems like it’s a lot noisier today. Who listens to the birds singing or the patter of rain on the roof or the wind blowing through the trees? If it all isn’t done with background music many probably won’t listen. Noise. How has it affected you today?

Knee Deep in Summer

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Holy moly. July 4th has already come and past and we are knee deep in Summer and it is speeding toward Autumn. I don’t even feel like we celebrated the fourth even though we had a picnic and pool party and we saw fireworks from our back porch for a week. One evening the fireworks were every bit as good as our city puts on every year and we didn’t have to listen to the awful music they play during their fireworks. Someone had a lot of fireworks because they were exploding for days before the fourth and days afterward. Belle and Molly did not like it much. I was pretty much over fireworks by the fourth, too.

I did manage to make some patriotic looking sugar cookies. My grandkids love these.

It was a spur of the moment thing which is pretty much how I roll anymore.

David and I celebrated our fiftieth wedding anniversary on the 7th. Fifty years! How can that be? We have gone through a lot together in those fifty years. Joys, sorrows, tragedies, accidents, blessings and more. I wouldn’t want to live it all over again, but it’s been a very interesting fifty years. We have had a lot of fun too and gotten to travel a lot and since we both love to travel, it’s been great. I think about starting all over again and I think, “Nope, don’t want to go there.” I look to the future and I know what my eternity holds so it’s all good. There will probably be more good times as well as bad times. In fact, my sister- in -law, my oldest brother’s wife, just passed away this morning. She has lived without Jack for several years so I can imagine the reunion in Heaven today. She was one of the last few people who remembered me when I was a kid. She married my brother when I was five or six years old. I use to spend time at their house when I was a kid and play with their next door neighbor’s kids. Carroll was always so nice to me. I will miss her, but I look forward to seeing her again one day.

Anyway, David and I celebrated our fiftieth by going to West Baden Springs in southern Indiana. In the early part of last century some businessman got the idea to build a big hotel surrounding the mineral springs that were there. People would come from all over to drink the water and bathe. The hotel was many things during the century. It was a hospital, a Jesuit school, soldiers were housed there during one of the wars. The Jesuits blocked up all the Springs. The hotel fell into disrepair. Then several years ago, someone decided to resurrect the building once more and bring it back to the grandeur of its heyday. My son-in-law’s place of business provided all the new carpet throughout the hotel and repaired much of the tile that was damaged or missing. Here are a few pictures of the hotel now.

Wish I had brought my swimsuit.

Wish I looked like this in a swimsuit!

The carpets were beautiful.

I never could get a full picture of the hotel. It is huge and very beautiful. This picture does not do it justice at all.

This was in the atrium, a huge room with sofas and chairs where you could sit and look at all the beauty.

This was a balcony looking over the atrium.

Statues all around the atrium.

There was a billiard room where you could play billiards.

At one time they had shoeshine men and men would sit on this marble stand and get their shoes shined.

The halls to the rooms were luxurious.

There were flower gardens everywhere. It was so beautiful outside.

At one time there was a barbershop in the hotel.

These are some of the dishes they used in the restaurant and for room service back in the day.

Some of the commemorative plates they sold.

Big, wide porches you could sit on and watch the world go by. I didn’t get to do this. Must go back.

Fountains on the vast lawn.

These lights lined the drive.

Now David and I are more Best Western and Comfort Inn kind of travelers. We don’t stay in luxury hotels, well, not ever. But this was our fiftieth anniversary and we splurged for a wonderful night at a wonderful place and we are so glad we did.

When we got in our room there were flowers on the table and I thought, “How nice of the hotel to have flowers in the room.” Then I saw another vase of flowers and thought, “Wow, they really go overboard here.” I lay down on the bed and David said, “Aren’t you going to look at the flowers?” And I said, “I looked at them, aren’t they pretty?” And then David said, “Aren’t you going to read the card?” and I said, “There’s a card?” Then I read the card and realized David had had flowers sent to the room. Oh, my. Then I read a card next to the other flowers that read “Happy Anniversary” and we both thought they were from the hotel. Then I found a card behind those flowers and discovered the second vase of flowers were from our children so I called our oldest son to thank him and he asked us if we liked the chocolate covered cherries and I said we hadn’t gotten any. He said there were supposed to be twenty-five flowers in the vase and twenty-five chocolate covered cherries for David in the room. Hmmmm.

We left to do some exploring around the hotel and when we got back to our room there was a plate with twenty-five chocolate covered cherries waiting. I think our son did some calling.

That same day we went to an elephant ranch. Yes, elephants right smack dab in the middle of the country in southern Indiana. These are rescue elephants who spend their Summers in Indiana and their Winters in Florida. I was so excited about getting up close and personal with them. While we waited our turn to see the elephants we looked at the other animals in the petting zoo they had there.

Goats.

Mama kangaroo.

Baby kangaroo.

A tortoise who really wanted out of his cage.

There were giraffes. This one was slobbering so badly and throwing his slobber several feet from his pen. I stood waaay back from this guy. Or girl. I don’t know.

Giraffes sure do have a pretty coat.

And my all time favorite was there at the petting zoo.

A chicken who didn’t seem all that thrilled about being caged with the goats.

Finally our time came to get on the bus to ride to where the elephants were and this is the funny part. The elephants were probably a block away from where we were. We could have walked there just as easily. We laughed about that.

We all sat on bleachers while a man told us all about elephants. He takes care of these elephants both in Indiana and Florida and use to take care of elephants in India. He knew all about elephants. They are such majestic creatures.

What kind of people kill these animals just for their ivory tusks? It’s terrible. Don’t buy anything made with ivory.

These creatures are extremely intelligent and once they have met you, they will never forget you. I tried to be sure one of the elephants got to know me. I hope my image is imprinted on her mind forever. It was so amazing to be in the same room with three of these wonderful animals. I got to pet them and they have very thick, stiff hairs on their bodies. I told the lady she was blessed to get to work with elephants every day and she said it gave her great joy.

When evening came we sat in the atrium at the hotel and listened to sixties and seventies music played by these guys.

They were really good. They sang the Everly Brothers’ song, “Dream” and David and I sang along with them. Made me feel like I was a teen-ager again. Ha.

At the end of the day we were really tired and went to our room where this very comfortable bed awaited us.

And should I have needed to call someone from the bathroom, there was a phone nearby!

We had a suite and I had to walk through two rooms to get to the bathroom. I was hoping I wouldn’t get lost during the night.

I don’t usually sleep well the first night in a new bed, but David and I both fell fast asleep and slept all night. In fact, when I went to take a shower and came back to the room, David had fallen asleep already. So much for romance! Haha.

And when we checked out the following morning, someone had paid for our room. Wow. What a wonderful anniversary we had.

Here’s to anniversaries and grand hotels. Bye.

Oliver The Miracle Dog Part 2

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continuing…….

Day 8

Oliver looked like half the dog he use to be. He had lost a lot of weight. He slept restlessly because he knew the coyotes were nearby. What did they want? Pull on the chain until exhaustion set in. Once again that night the owl hooted in the tree above him. It sounded like a death knell in the quiet woods.

Day 9

It was a day of reckoning. The coyotes had found Oliver. There were two of them, a male and a female. Both were thin from lack of food. They had been hunting for days for something to eat. They saw in Oliver a chance for a good meal. They had dealt with dogs before and knew they could be dangerous, but this one looked weak and tired with not much fight in him. Should they try for a kill? They lay in the forest, waiting patiently for their chance. Oliver knew they were there, but he could not see them. His heart raced. He could not go to sleep, but waited for the attack.

Day 10

Oliver knew the coyotes meant him harm. For the first time in his life he felt real fear. The coyotes drew nearer and nearer, crawling stealthily toward him. Closer and closer they came. Oliver stood up on his three good legs and pulled on the chain. He didn’t know it, but the chain was rusty and had been weakened as he pulled against it. He lunged and lunged. The coyotes stepped back With all the strength he could muster he growled a warning growl. As fierce a growl as he had ever growled. Oliver had never growled in his life. He showed his sharp teeth. His eyes glittered. He was not going down without a fight. The coyotes were patient. They could wait. Night fell. A strange stillness fell over the forest.

Day 11

It was them or him. Oliver knew by instinct that he was in for the fight of his life. Oliver was not a fighter. He was a sweet, patient and loving dog. But today called for a new Oliver. A warrior dog. His very life depended on it. The coyotes came in for the kill, circling him, snapping their sharp, little teeth. Growling growls Oliver had never heard before.

Two against one. Oliver lunged at them snarling and snapping his teeth. He grabbed one of the coyotes by the nape of its neck, shook it hard and threw it from him. It got shakily back on its feet and slunk off into the forest. The other coyote, the female, followed its mate. They knew they had met a dangerous dog. They would have to find a less aggressive prey for their next meal. Oliver didn’t know it, but he had saved his life that night.

Oliver lay down with his head on his paws watching the coyotes leave. Would they be back? He didn’t know, but he did know he hadn’t much fight left in him. He was so tired, scared and hungry. And the thirst. It could not get worse. Or could it? The night came and the owl hooted. This time Oliver welcomed the company.

Day 12

Oliver was so tired and hungry. He just lay all day. He could do nothing else. It was a beautiful Winter’s day. Was he going to die all alone in the forest? Would his buddies get a new dog to replace him?

High above in the clear, blue sky turkey vultures were circling.

One stretched its wings wide, sailing on the wind, catching the updrafts as it searched below for carrion. It’s beady eyes looked back and forth over the landscape for a dead animal to eat. Suddenly, it spied something next to a tree below. Lower and lower it floated toward the ground until it reached a treetop. It landed on a tree limb directly above Oliver. It sat there staring for a long time at the seemingly dead animal below it. Believing it had a meal ahead, it flew to the ground and moved closer.

Suddenly, the animal came to life. Oliver awoke and saw the big bird next to him and he rose tremulously on his three legs. The leg in the trap just hung limply and useless. The vulture looked at him with interest. Oliver found his voice and let out a series of barks that startled the bird and sent it flying back up into the branches to safety. This obviously was not a dead animal and not his next meal. Flapping his wings, he flew away up into the air with the other vultures still searching and searching for another dead animal.

Oliver sighed and lay back down wondering if this horror would ever end.

Day 13

Oliver awoke strangely rested and with a new sense of courage he had never felt before. He had thwarted the coyotes’ attack. He had chased a big bird away. He felt like he could do anything. Now he must get free. He knew his buddies were waiting for him. He just knew it. He wanted to see them so badly.

He rose on his three good legs, the fourth dangling uselessly, held fast by the wicked trap. He began to pull and pull. He pulled all morning, stopping only for little rests. He panted, but there was no moisture left in his mouth. If he did not get water soon, he would surely die. One more time, he gave a mighty pull and suddenly, freedom! The chain around the tree had finally broken. But Oliver could not walk. He would have to crawl. So, he did.

Day 14

Oliver had crawled all night. It was slow moving through the forest. Crawl, try to walk a bit, then crawl again. He didn’t know whether he was headed home, but he kept moving. He crawled all day. He came upon a creek where he got the first drink of water he had had in days. Oliver drank the cool, fresh water and felt invigorated. It tasted so good. Best water he had ever drunk. He lay there enjoying the Winter sun upon his back, but he knew he must keep moving and find safety because the forest is a dangerous place for a wounded animal. He crawled some more until he saw a road. He knew humans traveled these roads. His buddies traveled them all the time. He crawled as close as he could to it and collapsed. He lay there quietly waiting.

A woman was driving on this particular road that day, singing along with some music on her car radio. Enjoying the perfect Winter day. Then she saw what appeared to be a large animal laying beside the road. Was it a deer. Deer were hit by cars quite often in this part of the country and were seen alongside the roads regularly. She slowed her car and looked down at the animal. It was a dog! An emaciated, dirty, dog with a badly matted coat and there was a trap on one of its legs. She got out of her car. Was it breathing? She walked slowly toward Oliver and he lifted his head weakly. Yes! It was alive and she began to cry at the condition of the poor dog. She called 911 and they contacted animal control who came and they tried getting the trap off Oliver’s leg, but it was so strong they were unable to get it off him. They had to find his owners. Oliver had ID on him and they quickly found his buddies on the big hill.

When his buddies saw Oliver they were so glad to see him, but were shocked at his condition. Mama buddy called Papa buddy who took Oliver to the veterinarian where Oliver’s leg had to be amputated. The vet was very unhappy about this because she had seen other animals in her office who had been caught in traps. Just a few days before Oliver, she had had to remove the toes of a Great Horned Owl who had been caught in a trap.

In a few days, Oliver was back home with his family. Laying on his warm bed with food in his stomach, he could almost forget the ordeal he had gone through, but not quite because some things startled him now that never startled him before. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is possible even with a dog. He still had to learn to walk.

And he did.

The End

Trapping is one of the cruelest ways of hunting animals. Even at that, the trapper is supposed to check his traps every few days. This particular trapper had not checked his traps for at least fourteen days and probably longer, leaving a poor, defenseless dog to suffer for days and lose a leg. Stop all trapping.

Oliver the Miracle Dog Part I

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This story is based on what happened to our daughter’s dog, Oliver. I have taken literary license with some of it, but a lot of it really happened. This is illustrated by my grandson, Tristan, who is an aspiring artist. He is also one of the “little buddies” mentioned in the story.

Oliver, a beautiful Golden Retriever, lived at the top of a tall hill with his buddies, the Larsons, his goofy son, Farley and Lily, the mother of Farley. They were a wonderful Golden Retriever family.

It was a wonder life. Eating, sleeping, running after thrown balls, exploring the forest all around. There were head rubs and playing with his little buddies as they rode their bicycles in the driveway or played in their hideout in the woods.

One cold Winter’s day Oliver awoke and went to the door to be let outside. Now Oliver was a roaming dog. At one time he disappeared on one of the coldest nights of the year and didn’t return home until the following morning, no worse for wear. It had worried his buddies greatly. Big buddy had called for him for a long time. He heard him, but the smells of the forest were too enticing.

This particular day he lifted his nose into the air and grew giddy with the wonderful odors that wafted on the breezes. “I must see where all these smells are coming from,” he thought to himself. So off he bounded.

Oliver ran quickly on his four sturdy legs, his tail like a plume, stuck in the air. There was a squirrel smell. The squirrel had not been there for a long while. Move on. There a possum smell. Not much to Oliver’s taste, but playing with a possum as it played dead was great fun.

Then Oliver smelled coyote. These were ones with whom he did not want to cross paths.

Deeper into the forest Oliver ran, nose to the ground. Suddenly, he saw movement. A rabbit! Off Oliver went chasing the rabbit among the trees until the rabbit reached his home in the ground and popped inside. Oliver sniffed around the hole and would have dug around it if the ground had not been frozen solid. “Hmm,” Oliver thought to himself. “I’m hungry, must go home.” But which way was home?

The day was coming to an end. Oliver had been in the forest all day. His buddies would be home fixing supper and doing homework around the kitchen table while the dogs would be eating their final meal of the day and settling down for the night. The sun was lowering in the sky Oliver ran and ran, so full of life and happiness just being alive when suddenly, SNAP! He felt a great pain in his back leg as a coyote trap snapped its ugly jaws around it. He yipped in pain, trying to jerk away from the trap. But the trap was attached to a chain that was wound around a tree. Whoever had set this trap meant to keep his prey right there.

Again and again Oliver pulled and could not get free. Blood gushed from the gruesome wound. The sun went down. It was cold. Oliver was all alone. He whined and moaned. The pain was great, but nobody could hear him or knew where he was. The pain was almost too much to bear.

Day 2

Oliver had managed to sleep a bit through the night, but the pain and his hunger would not let him sleep very long. He also was beginning to feel a terrible thirst.

All that day he pulled and pulled to try to get away from the trap, but it just held on tighter. The pain was so great. Where were his buddies? All that long day Oliver felt sad and lonely and scared. it was cold and night came again and the forest was quiet all around except for the rustling of the night creatures and the birds who were settling in for the night.

Day 3

Another long night for Oliver. He had heard an owl hooting in the tree above him. A sad, lonely sound to Oliver. He missed his buddies. He missed his soft bed and the warm house. Most of all he missed his food and a cold drink of water. He spent part of the day trying to pull free, to no avail. He lay panting and feeling very sad.

Day 4

Snow fell gently on Oliver as he lay with his nose on his forelegs. A tear fell from the corner of his eye. He had been forgotten. He didn’t realize his buddies were looking for him and calling his name into the forest, but Oliver had traveled so far from his home, he could not hear them. He only felt the pain of the trap on his leg. He pulled and pulled on it. His beautiful golden coat had become dirty and stuck through with dead leaves and twigs. Night came. Nobody came to save him.

Day 5

Oliver felt dizzy and sick. Where was he? Why wasn’t he in his nice, warm bed? Where were his two little buddies who lay on top of him and scratched his ears? He slept and dreamed of playing with Lily and Farley in the yard with his buddies all around. Would he never see them again? Pull on the trap chain again and again, but it remained securely wrapped around the tree. Night time and danger was lurking.

That Night Oliver heard strange noises in the forest. He smelled smells that worried him. He must get free. Pull harder. Lunging and jumping with every bit of strength he had. The chain moved a bit, but still was attached to the tree. He did not want to give up. His buddies were waiting

Day 6

Oliver was so tired from the last night’s exertions. He felt so helpless. Suddenly a squirrel came close to him and sniffed Oliver. Seeming to know it had nothing to fear from the sad looking dog, the squirrel proceeded to gnaw on a nut it had just dug up from a hole where it had hidden it in the Autumn. Oliver just lay there and watched it listlessly. “I’d bite you in two if I could get to you,” he thought about the cheeky squirrel. It made him angry. “If only,” he thought. Oliver was in that poor, thin, starving dog somewhere. He was so cold, hungry and thirsty. Why was he here? Did no one love him anymore?

Day 7

A day of rest from pulling on the chain. By this time Oliver had grown use to the pain. His leg was growing numb. If it wasn’t attended to soon, gangrene would set in. Luckily, Oliver knew nothing about gangrene. All he knew was that he wanted the trap off his leg. He wanted out of the forest and into the arms of his buddies. What was that? He heard rustling in the brush. He smelled what he didn’t want to smell. Coyotes were close. But the worst had not yet happened.

To be continued………

It’s Not Even Summer Yet

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I can’t believe all the things we have already done in the past few weeks and it’s not even Summer yet. ( I wrote this a few days ago when it wasn’t Summer yet.) We have several family things and trips planned for this season

For the first time in years I have been swimming in the pool before July. Usually June has cool nights and the pool was never warm enough for me, but because of very hot temperatures, it’s been really nice for swimming. We have already had a couple of pool parties.

I love having a pool full of kids and toys. I hope I see this scene many times this Summer.

I love seeing boys enjoying a Summer day, sitting on the swing on my shop porch. My grandchildren are growing up much too fast.

I love eating cold watermelon and freezing the rinds and feeding the to my chickens. How they love it.

After eating, a quick ruffle of the feathers and on to other things.

I finally finished my shop. Except for some curtains and a few paint touch ups it’s done and I have been able to work on a quilt. Right now everything in so neat and clean. Hope I can keep it that way.

In my shop I am surrounded with things I love.

I bought this pretty poster in Laurel, Mississippi on our last trip. The town where Hometown is filmed. One of David’s and my favorite fixer upper shows.

I Mod Podged two and a half inch fabric squares all over this dress form. I like how it turned out so I’m thinking of Mod Podging maps all over another one.

A friend and a very talented lady who was also Nana to my Grandchildren, painted this straw hat for me years ago. She has since passed away, but I think of her every time I look at this hat.

This hanging lamp has been in our kitchen, our dining room, my shop, taken down and stored in our basement and brought back into my shop once more where I hope it will stay. I’ve had it for about thirty years.

I have a little reading corner where I can read a book or look through quilt magazines and books for ideas for more quilts. And yes, I have read all those books on the shelves. People ask me that when they see my book shelves. Now most of my books are on my Kindle, but I still read every single day. My mother taught me the love of reading when I was a girl and for that I will always be grateful to her. She was a voracious reader. She’d read James Michener books like eating candy. Michener was not known for his thin books.

I did this ceiling a few years back, painting quilt blocks on boards and David nailing them to the ceiling The fun part was deciding what quilt patterns to use.

My exercise bicycle which I don’t use as often as I should. I have had it for a long time and we cannot find one just like it. Before the mileage meter broke I had ridden over 25,000 miles on it. I keep it to remind me to exercise.

I use these Edison type bulbs around the shop to give it a soft glow. It’s taken months to get my shop painted and cleaned, but I am so happy with the results and I have so much more room. And I love my big cutting table that David built for me. One of a kind. It can be moved easily and I can lay a big quilt on the top.

This past weekend we took a trip to Squire Boone caverns in southern Indiana with our grandboys.

They had never been in a cave before so this was quite the adventure for them. People ask if they are twins. No, they are brothers born one year apart.

They thought the cave was awesome.

I think it’s pretty awesome too. To think that water helped form all these formations. A constant drip, drip, drip and in several years you get a stalagtite or a stalagmite.

Sometimes you even get fried eggs!

Squire Boone, Daniel Boone’s younger brother, owned the land this cave was found on and he loved exploring it and they buried his bones here.

It was a fun day, but very hot. Almost 100 degrees. The boys mined for gemstones and got some things at the gift shop and we decided to leave and get dinner. We stopped at Frisches and they both ate a big meal.

So on the way home this is what happened.

Completely wiped out with all they had done. They slept almost all the way home. The only thing was, they got a nap and were well rested and ready to go again while Grandma and Grandpa were tired and ready for a nap. We swam all evening, watched a movie.

Ready for church Sunday morning. They were up with the chickens.

It was a fun weekend ending with another pool party and an impromptu birthday celebration for a new teen who turned thirteen who was visiting us. His cake was made of Twinkies and we ate vanilla and chocolate mint chip ice cream.

I will end this post with a story of life and death. What happened right before my eyes on our front porch.