Thoughts Randomly Spoken

Snow Week

2011-02-04T17:41:00.000-06:00

Although we don't usually get a lot of snow here in Texas, this week we did, in small doses. First it was the ice coming in on Tuesday and it finally snowed so that we could see it on Thursday night. Schools were closed all over Texas for the whole week! Too bad the weather was not predictable far in advance because this week is Super Bowl Week and both Fort Worth and Dallas had prepared a lot of big shindigs to welcome people from all over the country.

I love this picture of the snowflakes falling in my back yard at 2:30 am in the morning. Steam is floating over the outside light as each flake vaporizes when it hits the warmth of the light.

The metal bug on my deck is the

true measure of the depth of snow that fell last night. All told the accumulation was about 2 inches.

February is usually the worst month for ice and snow here and it's only the beginning of the month so I guess we'd better prepare for more. It's a nice time to take a vacation to Hawaii!

Almost

2011-01-20T17:14:00.000-06:00

Let's talk about those New Year's resolutions. I did START to clean out the bead room/office and I gathered three large boxes of clothes to take to the Women's Shelter. I threw some papers away that were four years old and I figured if I didn't need them in four years I wasn't going to need them at all. Same for some magazines that I couldn't resist keeping. Oh and I went through the computer manuals for how-to about Windows 98, Adobe Photoshop Version 6, Learn how to fix your own computer and Learning HTML the easy way. I am taking them all to the second hand book store, I know I won't be using Windows 98 ever again and I won't be fixing my own computer either.

I didn't start exercising and I didn't lose any pounds except maybe for two seconds just before lunch. I haven't made any jewelry and I haven't even unpacked the kiln, the glass cutters or any of that wonderful dichroic glass.

I haven't gone outside to take a walk except to the mailbox and I haven't lost any pounds.

My excuse? It's been too cold outside and I'm just getting over my after holiday blues. Next month I'll try again to finish at least one of those things I started.

Resolutions

2011-01-04T18:04:00.000-06:00

Once again it's time to share my New Years resolutions. It took a few days to decide what was in the realm of possibility since last year I did absolutely nothing.

1. Get exercise and lose some pounds.
2. Start making jewelry again.
3. Start fusing glass again.
4. Start using my new Kindle instead of buying books and stacking them up just to smell the paper.
5. Get exercise and lose some pounds.
6. Stop spending money on unnecessary things.
7. Clean out all unnecessary things, put them in boxes and give to a shelter for women.
6. Take more photographs and organize the photos I've already taken.
7. Get exercise and lose some pounds.
8. Write more than twice a year on this blog.
9. Get out of the house more often even if I have to give up some reading time.
10.Get exercise and lose some pounds.

This list is not necessarily in order as I'll probably start using the Kindle first thing and continue reading. I've already read one book on it and today is only the 4th of January. The treadmill is waiting and I can read while I walk (just as soon as I clean off the boxes that are being stored on it).

Book Reviews

2010-07-29T03:20:00.004-05:00

Although I have never reviewed a book on this blog I find that I'm compelled to tell you about two books I read this week. Each one is entirely different from the other but both fascinated me in an all consuming way.

The first book that I started at the beginning of the week, Empire of the Summer Moon by S. C. Gwynne is the historically accurate account, data the author has taken from many books, personal diaries and articles, is the story of the Plains Indians, the nomadic warriors of which there were several bands after their migration from the Northern Plains to the buffalo hunting grounds in the Southwest. After a raid which killed many people at Parker Fort, Cynthia Ann Parker was taken as a nine year old. Little is known of her life until twenty five years later when she is recaptured by the whites and taken back to live with her family, the Parkers of Parker County, Texas. She grieved for the rest of her life for her two sons who disappeared in a raid by the Texas Rangers on one of their encampments in the Panhandle of Texas. Her daughter, Prairie Flower died while she was with her family in Texas. Cynthia Ann, who saw her husband Peta Nocona killed at the hands of the white man eventually starves herself in her grief for her Indian family. During the many battles between the Texas Rangers and the various Indian tribes who eventually band together and ride against the encroaching whites, the Civil War begins and ends. Quanah Parker the eldest son of Cynthia Ann and Peta Nocona becomes the most powerful Indian chief at the time they all surrender to live on a reservation which is now Oklahoma. We learn cruelty from both sides, atrocities commited by both the Indians and the whites. Author S. C. Gwynne gives a most thorough review of those years and of the different Texas Rangers who became excellent Indian fighters. Living in Texas I can associate the places where battles were fought, possibly very near where I live. One of the last pictures of Cynthia Ann (and pictured in the book) was taken in Fort Worth, Texas.

The second book, A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron, is an extraordinary story of one dog who is reincarnated four times, each time taking along things he has learned about himself and the humans he encounters and loves until he fulfills the true meaning of his life. Told from the viewpoint of the dog, the story is funny and also heartbreaking, much as life is. Any dog lover will love this book. I read it in one day because I just couldn't put it down. It is not a history like Empire of the Summer Moon but I was equally entranced and totally moved by it. Can you tell I am a dog lover?

Ho Hum!

2010-04-22T18:06:00.000-05:00

Ho Hum, I am so sleepy. Tinker just cracks me up! I was watching TV the other night and I looked over at Tinker and she looked like she was watching TV also, getting bored and about to doze off.

Looking Through a Lens

2010-04-13T20:55:00.002-05:00

I finally did it. I bought a new camera body that will fit the lenses I have for my other camera. The Nikon D90 will suit me just fine, it has some new gadgets that the D80 doesn't have and I think I absolutely need - like a larger LCD viewing screen. I recently bought a Nikkor f/3.5 - 6.3, 18 - 200mm for a walkabout lens and I want an f/2.8- 300mm lens to take to Africa with me. The 300mm lens weighs 6.4 lbs. and I imagine I'm not going to like carrying that around, it's not a zoom lens but to take pictures of wildlife, it's essential.

TCU has adult education classes and I signed up today for their photography class that starts in May so that I can truly learn all the secrets that the D90 holds. Wish me luck.

Hope that soon I'll have fantastic photos to post.

Af- ri- ca

2010-02-23T21:25:00.005-06:00

A three syllable word that means thrills, excitement, awesome sights, lifelong dream...

I'm mentioning casually that I won a trip to Africa....have to be casual or I'll be jumping up and down for months! It all started with Marie asking me if I wanted to go to the Mardi Gras party that "Meals on Wheels" was putting on to raise money. I said I would go, although I wasn't too enthusiastic about it.

I got there and believe me, I had a wonderful time. I met a lot of new people and bid on some silent auctions, had dinner, a few drinks and I thought I was all through.

Ha! Then came the Live Auctions. They had a few local trips and even a chihuahua puppy that I wasn't interested in and I thought I was safe. Then....along came an all expense paid trip to Namibia for two for a photo safari. Well I've always wanted to go to Africa so I bid on it. And then bid again, and again and again and then once more - and I won!

The safari people are coming to my house on Friday to tell me all about it, I guess to tell me I'll be living in a tent surrounded by leopards, snakes and scorpions with only a camera for defense.

Springtime in Africa is in September, about a month before summer officially starts and the temperature starts to rise higher than 115 degrees. The safari company has a website, if you are interested in looking at all the wonderful things they do. http://www.sumsare.net/ . Take a peek, maybe you will want to plan a real safari - with guns!

In the meantime, I'm going to all the airline sites to find flights that aren't too expensive. I think the flight will be in two legs, one from here to Frankfurt, Germany and another from Frankfurt to Windhoek, Namibia.

Already I am picturing myself packing a suitcase. OOOOhhhh that's the worse part of the whole trip. How many 'things' can I live without for a week?

Vet Blues

2010-02-05T20:32:00.003-06:00

Tinker went to the vet today and got a total of seven shots, including her rabies shot. She also had her teeth cleaned and she is feeling depressed and sore all over. She's mad at me too, doesn't even want to look at me. If I walk up to her she turns her head away.

Dogs are funny that way when they feel they have been betrayed. I guess people are too but since dogs have those long tongues and can't form words, their actions have to speak louder.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-26T21:35:00.012-06:00

Our family Christmas celebration was held on the 20th this year so that the clan could be together.

Andrew was pleased with the Wii he got. Elena loved the Wii game that she got to play on the Wii she got a few years ago.

After we ate a huge meal consisting of all kinds of hor d'oevres, including roasted shrimp, tenderloin slices, baked jalapenos that were stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped in bacon (from Tommy's kitchen), hummus, green salad and so many other things, we all sat down to open gifts.

The kids had waited patiently for hours and anticipation was high when we finally got the signal that gifts were about to come out of hiding. Jeff and Margaret are waiting just as patiently.

My favorite picture is one of Jeff and Margaret's son and my great grandson Dakota very carefully opening a package.

On Christmas Eve it snowed all day here in
Texas and my front courtyard had started to fill up with snow. In my blog post last spring I posted a picture of the courtyard without snow and ready for the summer months.

Face Games

2009-10-13T22:35:00.002-05:00

Facebook has become an enormously favored social networking website. Oh yes, of course I have a Facebook page and I've been sucked into playing the games. Farmtown first and then I joined Farmville, then Lil Farm. Yoville became a big interest when I found out I could decorate an apartment with coins I earned visiting friends and baking cakes!

The only useful game I've joined is African Safari where some of the advertising dollars and cash used to buy the monetary 'shells' is going to help buy mosquito nets to prevent malaria in Africa.

After playing these games for awhile, one morning I woke up and couldn't bend my right arm! I don't know if I have tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome which has effected my elbow or it's just plain arthritis. The outside bone in my elbow is larger and I have trouble picking things up, even a coffee cup.

So this is the computer revolution! I've heard that AT & T is going to stop printing phone books and some newspapers now can only be read online.

My arm had better get better fast, I can't wait weeks to read the news or contribute dollars for mosquito nets, I need to get going now!

Healthcare

2009-09-10T01:52:00.004-05:00

I couldn't let President Obama's speech go uncontested. He said many positive things, one being that illegal aliens would not get health insurance and would be exempt from any free healthcare. What he didn't talk about is the Amnesty Project, which will in effect give citizenship to all these illegal aliens and therefore, they will be getting health insurance. If they can't afford it, it will be free. Is that a dichotomy or what?

Can anyone give me a good reason why legalized Americans will be paying for everything and why these illegals will be getting free healthcare still?

And another thing I read in the paper today that Canada is very unhappy with their government run healthcare system and want to change it to be more like the United States. Why are we trying to be more like Canada when we know it hasn't worked for them?

May?

2009-05-09T21:15:00.002-05:00

It can't be May already. I thought I'd updated this blog a few weeks ago but it was March! Not that I like to talk about time passing me by, but it is. After a certain age, time whizzes by so fast you think "I just took the trash out yesterday" and here it is Thursday again and time to take out the trash.

Saturday nights are just the same as week nights. Used to be Saturday nights were date nights or eat out nights or movie nights. Now I just say to myself on Friday night, "Oh tomorrow is Saturday, I can sleep late".

So May is on it's way to becoming June. I hope I remember to look at the calendar in time so I know June is here.

OMG, this blog update is pathetic!

Earth Hour

2009-03-12T10:55:00.002-05:00

I hope you will join and help the world support EARTH HOUR.

http://www.earthhouramericas.org/official_ads/English/Digital/300x250.swf

Houses

2009-03-06T15:23:00.021-06:00

Houses fascinate me. I like nothing better on a pleasant Sunday afternoon than to ride around in different neighborhoods looking at houses. If there is an "open house", all the better.

It's amazing how many different styles there are from Italian, French and English knockoffs to original architecture by degreed architects and by owners out of necessity.

The house above was built in 1774 in a small town in Connecticut and looked quite different than it does in this picture. It did not have the sun room but had an open porch when it was originally built.

The latest picture was taken in 2007 and shows that the side porch was converted into a sunroom and many other changes were made.

Another house in the same area was originally built in 1791 by the son of the family who built the first house. On the property the owner had a tinware shop where he and his father made pots and pans.

The house as it is today with a sunroom added. Both houses have been continually occupied since they were built.

My house was built in 2001, actually started in 1999 and finished at the end of 2001.

These three pictures are shots of my house. The first is a shot of the house from across the street. The second is a picture of the back of the house taken from the side lower yard and the third was taken from my library looking out the window, across the courtyard and into the dining room. It was designed by the architect, Norman Ward and is a very modern style with Japanese aspects to the landscaping. Of course I live in the South where the weather never gets too cold for too long and we are outdoors a lot of the time.

If the weather is nice this coming weekend, I think I'll take Tinker and we will drive around the area looking at houses and the spring flowers in the yards and on the trees.

Yard Art?

2009-02-17T10:54:00.009-06:00

Another favorite piece of art is a sculpture by artist Otto Rigan. It is made from green granite and glass. The cut-outs from the original large granite piece contain thick slabs of glass stacked together and look like windows.

The edges of the glass mirror the color of the granite. As the sun sets, the left side facing West glows brightly against the darker sides backed by the granite.

As you look at the back you can see the front window in my house and notice that this sculpture, quite by accident, resembles the angles and mullions of the window.

What I love most about this second image is the figure in the background looking out of the window!

Black

2009-02-01T17:03:00.012-06:00

This piece in my collection is by artist Joe Guy. It is cleverly constructed of wood and rice paper (think shoji screen). Hanging separately from the large piece is a mirror that has been blackened out. After the piece was constructed the artist covered all of it with graphite powder and then slowly and thoroughly burnished it with a river rock. You cannot see the sheen from this picture the piece glows as if from within.

Joe Guy's inspiration was the controversial artist Balthus (b. 1908) and his Japonaise au miroir noir or "Japanese girl with black mirror". As a matter of interest Balthus was married to a Japanese woman and she posed for many of his paintings. Balthus was greatly admired in his day by the Surrealists for his fascinating images of young girls. He was reclusive and as a result his life has been the subject of much intrigue and conjecture.

In this photo you might be able to see a slight sheen to the burnished graphite. The mirror that hangs above the main piece is actually a mirror under the graphite.

Joe Guy is a contemporary Texas artist. He is represented by William Campbell Contemporary Art in Fort Worth. If you would like to read about this artist look for "Balthus" by Stanislas Klossowski de Rola, his son. Unfortunately there is no website for Joe Guy. I hope he gets one soon so we can see more of his work.

Getting to Know You

2009-01-23T23:04:00.010-06:00

At the end of 2008 and beginning of 2009 I decided to get my art works appraised. Taking pictures and really looking at things sparked my interest in them again. Tracy Hicks is the artist who devised this installation of specimen jars with frog molds in them. These jars fascinated me when I first saw them at an art gallery and knew that I needed to have it in one window in my house which faces East and gets the morning sun. As the sun rises the glow from the colors in the jars fill the wall with rainbows.

The larger jars are laboratory specimen jars and some are filled with oil, some are filled with colored resin and some have both along with whatever Tracy put in the jars. A few have pieces of glass, colored resin and oil.
Some have spiders and dragonflies, molds of extinct frogs, jars and other found things. The small jars inside the large jars are from the Smithsonian Institute and originally had other specimens in them years ago. The jars were given to Tracy and he envisioned them in this way.

I had a ceramic ewer made by artist Peter Beasecker that had gotten broken when a picture fell on it. Tracy wanted a few shards and we managed to get the top in one piece. He made a jar with the top of the ewer in it for me in exchange for the shards which he then put into other jars I imagine. Peter is a friend of Tracy's and he wanted a momento.
This window has been brought to life with all the colors of the rainbow reflecting on the wall and as the sun moves around the colors intensify. This is one of my favorite pieces in my collection.

Generations

2009-01-07T20:49:00.005-06:00

My grandson Matthew got engaged New Year's Eve! We are all so thrilled that he is going to marry Ashley, a truly wonderful girl and a perfect match for Matt.

We went to the house they moved into on New Year's Day to celebrate and met Ashley's Mom and Dad and her sister Noel.
Here's Matt, Ashley, Mary Ann and Paul with Ashley and Matt's little dog Roxie.

Blink

2009-01-07T20:25:00.006-06:00

In the blink of an eye the weather changes in Texas. Two days ago I awoke to find the icy trees outside looking like diamonds in the light.

The evergreen shrubs in the backyard look so 'southern' somehow against the frozen branches of the trees. Compare these pictures to the sight of my orchids glowing with color, warm and cozy just on the other side of a clear pane of glass.

Thanksgiving Day

2008-12-02T17:01:00.017-06:00

Thanksgiving Day after everyone has eaten, my family plays board games and does puzzles or sits around and talks. At this table playing "Boggle" are grandsons Mason and Cameron, son David and daughter Chris looking on.
From left to right with his back to the camera is son Tommy, Jackie, Mari's daughter, granddaughter Ryann, daughter Kathy and Mari's other daughter Mariah and son Dave.
Daughter Kathy and granddaughter Ryann, Chris' daughter. My daughter Chris
My son Tommy. His son Andrew had to leave early and isn't in these pictures.
My son Michael and Mari's daughter Jackie
Michael's girlfriend Mari
My son Dave and daughter in law Marie along with son Tommy who is still concentrating on making words in "Boggle".
My granddaughter Elena, Kathy and Clyde's daughter.

My son in law Clyde, who always seems to be taking pictures instead of being in them.
And Tinker watching the action.

Random Thoughts

2008-11-19T14:45:00.010-06:00

I've got a jumbled mind today. Not that it's an uncommon thing but today I've got Thanksgiving dinner to think about. Half the family want the traditional turkey and stuffing (a Yankee tradition) with extra stuffing cooked on the side, mashed potatoes, creamed spinach, green bean casserole (yuck), creamed onions and all the trimmings of a very bland dinner. This year I want something different and since I'm doing the main meal, I think I'm going to make the decision. How about turkey with Adobo sauce, a Mexican spin on that plain old turkey? It sounds wonderful and the picture in 'Gourmet' magazine is amazing. The adobo is made with two different kinds of chiles, cumin, allspice, garlic and some other spices and mixed with turkey broth. OR, I can buy it in a jar! I'll marinate the turkey in the sauce for about 24 hours and then roast it (unstuffed) and make the gravy from the adobo. The dressing they chose to go with it is cornbread and chorizo with onions and garlic. Of course I'm going to make our tradition Yankee stuffing and regular turkey gravy for those who don't have an adventurous palate. Of the 23 or 24 people that will be here for dinner only a few won't even try it. Oh and I'm hoping I'm not ripping off pictures from Gourmet magazine but consider this as advertising!

While I'm salivating for Thanksgiving dinner, I'm also reading a book that I just can't put down. I stayed awake until 4:00 am this morning reading and slept late today to make up for it. Couldn't help it, I'm finding this book engrossing and it's thick which makes it all the better.

It's about a boy who was born mute into a family that bred dogs. I'm not giving anything away here, but if it's about dogs I'm going to read it. I'm thinking about it right now and wondering what Edgar is going to do about his suspicions of Claude. I'll have to wait until my housecleaning is done to treat myself to more chapters. I'm on page 300 right now and I'll think about it while I'm vacuuming and dusting. The book? A bestseller called "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski. It's even on Oprah's Book Club list.

An Ancient

2008-11-19T14:32:00.003-06:00

When this was first described to me I thought it was an ammonite. After this phone pic was sent to me I'm not so sure. It is a complete specimen but doesn't join like an ammonite and looks a little like it has a head and tail. My son said he can see little scales when he looks closely. Some kind of fish without fins? A sea slug? I'm going to have to do some investigating on the Internet and see if I can find out what it might be or might have been. Texas has so much limestone and lots of these sea creatures everywhere you look. I have a few ammonites found when digging the foundation of my house and the kids have found trilobyte looking things and a piece that looks very much like a razor clam near here. This piece is a mystery to me. It is approximately 16" in diameter and about 4 to 5 inches thick. I haven't seen the bottom, I wonder if it had legs? Well, anyway it will be at my house sometime this week and I'll get a good look.

2008-09-16T02:08:00.006-05:00

Two new friends visited my yard this week. One gives me an idea of what very large prehistoric creatures must have looked like and the other a colorful, almost unreal looking lizard that I have never seen before.

China Exposed

2008-08-23T00:54:00.018-05:00

Now that the Olympics are being played in Beijing, I fondly recall my trip to China. It was in 2000 and the Chinese were already beginning the long process of making the city presentable
for large crowds of foreigners. Men in white shirts, ties, dark trousers and dress shoes were digging in the heat to open ditches for footings for new bridges and highways. Everyone worked for the government and only a handful of people were allowed to own their own businesses.

The Forbidden City is right across the street from Tiananmen Square where some of the reporters have been broadcassting to the U. S. You can't see it in this picture but to the right and down about 3/4 of the way is a Starbucks.

This is is one of our group marching in the opposite
direction from the patroling soldiers in Tianamen
Square. We were not allowed to look at or approach the soldiers.

The marble boat you see on the left was built by the "Dragon Lady" who was Empress for a short time. The story goes that she spent all the money allotted to the army on frivolous things and when her advisors asked for ships she built this marble boat. This boat is permanently located in the lake adjacent to the Summer Palace on the outskirts of Beijing (then known as Peking).

This is what we called a Chinese Harley with
trailer and the one on the right is a two seater
Chinese Harley.

We visited Beijing first, then Xian, took the
Yangtze River Cruise down the river just before
they finished the dam which flooded many, many old villages causing those people to find other places to live. We went down the Li River and ate lunch on the boat after which 95% of the people got deathly ill. I took peanut butter and crackers having been warned ahead of time that the dishes that were 'sterlized' in the unplugged dish sterlizer had been washed first in the Li River. We finished the trip in Shanghai where we saw lovely gardens and rockeries.

All Living Things

2008-06-19T15:15:00.007-05:00

As I was on my way to the pharmacy I happened to glance to the side of my car and there was a rabbit, listening, but not a moving millimeter. I decided to sit and see how long he stayed there. He and I both sat for about 15 minutes without moving although the sun worked it's way around the tree beside him. I don't know if the grass in his mouth was for dinner or to soften the sides of his/or maybe her hutch. Just beyond him/ her is a garden just filled with lettuce that it has never touched.

I drove into the parking lot of the pharmacy and happened to look up and saw the "Sparrow Apartments" complete with playground. I was so glad to see sparrows instead of the usual "gang" of grackles that I had to take a photo. Who knows how long we will have these little birds with all the construction going on, new malls and houses being built and highways cutting through the countryside. Almost all of the song birds that I had in my yard within the last seven years have disappeared and been overtaken by huge crows, starlings and an occasional blue jay.

These little sparrows looked so happy just to be gazing out looking things over instead of shouting and arguing with each other like the grackles.

Memorium

2008-05-26T23:53:00.011-05:00

As our American Memorial Day weekend comes to a close, I remember all the members of my extended family who fought in wars, both overseas and within our own country.

My Dad emmigrated from Ireland in 1908 when he was 17 years old. His sister had already immigrated to the U. S. earlier and she became his sponsor. She lived in Springfield, MA and therefore, he settled in Springfield. In those days, the government offered citizenship to anyone who joined the Army and fought in a war. He joined the Army just before World War I started and served in France. He survived without physical injury, came home and was sworn in as a citizen in 1918. He did suffer from Post Traumatic Syndrome, a mild case, which made him retreat to his home suffering with anxiety. It was rare during my childhood to be taken anywhere except to visit relatives in Springfield or his cousins in Hartford. This picture was taken around 1919.

Long before the World War I, my mother's great grandfather served in the Civil War, was wounded and got a pension from the government. His family had been here since the early 1700's and he felt it his duty to fight for his country. He died in his 40's and his wife remarried and had twelve children by her second husband. I remember going to visit the descendents of this second family, my distant cousins in Waterbury, CT where my great great grandmother eventually settled. My mother was descended from his first family.

My brother served in the Army during the Korean conflict but was stationed near home at a Nike installaton because my father had had a heart attack and my brother got a dispensation to stay near. My brother's picture shown here was taken in 1983.

My late husband also served in the Korean Conflict from 1950 to 1954 but chose to join the Marines. He came home unharmed long before we eventually met in 1957. His family was Czech and had years before become citizens when his grandmother and grandfather immigrated to the U. S. Here we are on our wedding day on October 26, 1957.

In consideration of these loyal citizens,my family, I would like to ask a question of our government. What is wrong with giving the illegal aliens a chance to become legitimate citizens by requiring them to serve in our armed forces for a period of time? I believe this was done in World War II as well, before the draft was put into place. Doesn't Israel required that both men and women serve in the armed forces? What a great opportunity to increase our armed forces as well as give the people who want to come to the U. S. and take advantage of our way of life, to give back to the country that has given them so much. Our country deserves their loyalty and in exchange they get to have the honor of becoming citizens who revere our American flag.

My family is gone now but I will never forget their part in making our county free.

The King

2008-03-23T20:03:00.003-05:00

Several weeks ago I posted pictures of the turkey harem that runs through my yard daily. We haven't seen the King for a long time but today he came by all by himself. No harem around. Maybe he was looking for the 'lost' girls.

Ohhh Shoes!

2008-03-07T22:03:00.013-06:00

I just love shoes, don't you? There was a time not too many years ago when I owned 300 pair of shoes! I had shelves especially built in my closet to store shoes so I could group them by color and by style so it was easy to choose a pair to wear to work with any outfit.

About two years ago I got rid of all those shoes since I don't go back and forth to the office anymore and now I have about 50 pair, mostly lower heels. I miss those days of shopping for shoes just because I liked them and then buying clothes to match the shoes.

I did keep some because they were such fantastic looking shoes even though they don't fit anymore and I look at them once in a while and wish I could wear them.

Neiman March sent "The Book" last week and as I was paging through I found some shoes that I coveted. No, I won't buy them but I did scan them and will look at them once in a while with that old yearning to go shopping and buy, buy, buy more!

The lime green pair is my favorite and if I could just get my feet to work for more than two seconds walking in those shoes I'd buy them!

More politics

2008-02-26T23:59:00.002-06:00

It's getting closer to March 4th and I am still considering my choice of candicate. The closer it gets to voting time the more nasty the discussions become. I expect that there will be more to come. It's interesting to read what the candidates say to each other during debates and what great charisma Obama has. But unfortunately he doesn't have the experience.

I have not heard how he stands on illegal immigration and what he intends to do about the immense costs these illegals cost American citizens. I am disturbed about both Hillary and Obama voting NOT to make English our national language.

McCain is sounding better and better even if his stand on Iraq mirrors Bushes. I don't think we can leave these people after we started this unending war without trying to keep out the insurgents but I would like to have our boys returned home as soon as possible. Irregardless about what is done, some country in the Middle East will take advantage of Iraq's weakened state and try to take over the country if we leave. The Middle East just doesn't have a democratic state of mind in my opinion.

I would also like to hear what will be done about national health care without the pharma lobbyists putting their two cents (or in their case million of dollars) in. Even for the people who can afford individual healthcare, the costs are amazing.

Fighting crime is another issue I haven't heard anyone mention. In Texas, the crime rate is rising and no one is safe.

I grew up in a time when we could leave our doors unlocked without worrying about someone burlarizing our house, when the children could play outside unminded and just come home at a certain time. I walked to school for 12 years and never worried about being picked up by someone. A generation late when my children were growing up they were free to wander the neighborhood with other children, playing at each other's houses, building forts in the woods and riding their bicycles down the street without supervision.

Will those times ever come back?

I wish I could believe what each of these candidates are promising. Even in the Clinton years (Bill and Hillary instead of Hillary and Bill) we were promised healthcare for everyone and that collapsed.

Anyway we vote we are taking a chance that the person we vote for will do the right thing.

Political campaigns

2008-02-18T01:43:00.002-06:00

TV commericals have sprouted up on Texas stations recently in preparation for the March 4th Texas primaries. McCain has his spot so we haven't seen him at all.

It's interesting to watch Hillary and Obama's TV spots. I've noticed that Obama speaks directly to the camera as if he's looking straight into the viewers eyes. He is extremely believable and one feels he has singled you out to hear his words.

Hillary's commercial is quite different. She is speaking into a microphone as if she were speaking to a crowd of people and never looks directly into the camera. This gives me the impression she can't talk and look into your eyes at the same time. That approach makes me believe she is lying because she can't look directly into your face.

I heard tonight that she is in Milwaukee while Obama knows he has to get the Texas vote out and is speaking here. Bill is campaigning here. I think Hillary made a mistake in having Bill campaign for her, he is not well liked in Texas and seems to lose his temper a bit when questioned.

I do intend to vote on March 4th and I'll vote for the person who speaks to me (Obama). His commercial seems so much more sincere that Hillary's.

March 4th will be exciting. I think more people than ever before will be out voting this year. We definitely need a change and I think Obama can bring that about but Texas is traditionally a Republican state.

I've got my fingers crossed.

Vacation Time Again

2008-02-05T02:19:00.000-06:00

The weather in Texas is about to become cold and rainy again and it makes me want to get out of here. I wish I were going away somewhere on a nice vacation, somewhere I've never been before. About 3 years ago I went to Japan on a tour with the Modern Museum in Fort Worth and had a wonderful time after I got over the terrible cold. A man that was sitting next to me on the long plane ride kept sneezing and blowing his nose and about two days later I came down with the same thing. We were still in Tokyo at the time. We spent about four days there and I missed a a delicious Italian meal!

I felt well enough to go on the tour of the Grand Palace the next day and later that evening to go to a local pearl shop where I bought the most exquisite South Sea pearls for myself at a very low price.

Since it was an art and architectural tour we visited many reknowned buildings designed by Tadao Ando, the Japanese architect that designed The Modern in Fort Worth. The Temple of Light is considered one of his most extraordinary buildings. It is quite small and in a heavily populated neighborhood but once you are inside, the feeling of being closed in goes away and you feel the 'light'.

Japan nurtures it's children, both intellectually and emotionally with special schools and parks. All of the children we saw were well behaved, some coming from school in their uniforms and some younger children playing in private schools and given free reign to create. We journeyed to the Childlren's Museum and to a private school.

As you can see we couldn't resist playing with the toys. Whoever designed the toys was a genius and certainly had a mind like a child. I wonder if he played with these toys himself. A lot of thought to hand and eye coordination went into the planning and making these toys.

At the culimination of our trip for a little shopping in the antiques area of Kyoto, we turned and saw a Geisha ( in Kyoto they are called Geiko) in training called a maiko or apprentice Geiko, perhaps going for a stroll or visiting friends. We were delighted to snap a picture.

In Tokyo a Geisha is not required to have a long training period and may become a full fledged Geisha right away. In Kyoto, the training period is longer and essentially a Kyoto Geiko has more prestige than a Tokyo Geisha.

I hope to go back someday soon, in the spring time, and visit other parts of Japan. Spring is the best time to go to avoid the monsoon season which is incredibly hot and humid. I bought a Japanese language book to study to learn a few words in order to say hello, goodbye and thank you. I can say them but I cannot read them. If I had to travel alone I would be lost. There are no signs in English and of course why should there be?

Flowers

2008-01-30T02:44:00.001-06:00

Flowers are one of the bright things in our lives. Photography is one of my hobbies and I can't resist taking pictures of all flowers especially those closeups we all love. I found these pictures on my computer and remember the place and time and occasion when I had all these flowers scattered around.

This is a moonflower, it only blooms at night. My daughter Chris has a huge plant in her yard and when I was visiting I took this picture.

I got these Cymbidium orchids for a retirement party that I gave for the President of the company I work for. The party was at my house, my first party for a large group.

This green Phaleonopsis was gorgeous and exactly matched the towels in my guest bathroom! That may not be politically correct to have flowers in the bathroom but that room just looked so sophisticated with these orchids in it, before the party I just went upstairs to look at it a dozen times.

This flower grew from a bulb on my back deck and I can't remember what it's called. Can anyone identify it? The wonderful coral color was a joy to look at until our hot Texas summer got to it.

These weird looking flowers are called "Kangeroo Toes" and are a really colorful shade of orange.

They lasted all summer and really made a statement against the white stucco wall on the walkway that leads to my back door.

One of these days I'll take some really good pictures of my flowers and post them here. My photography attempts can only get better with practice I hope.

Are We Good Citizens?

2008-01-26T22:38:00.000-06:00

I love quizes and I took this citizenship quiz thinking I knew all the answers. I didn't. I got 84% of them correct. The secret is to read the questions carefully, try to remember your high school or college American history and hope for the best. Try taking this quiz and see how you do.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/news/interactives/citizenship_quiz/index.html

I think you who are naturalized citizens probably will do better, having had to take these lessons before you take the oath to embrace American citizenship. Whatever score I got on the quiz, I am truly a loyal American. I want passionately to not have our freedoms taken away, a more peaceful and safe environment for my children and granchildren and their offspring.

Visitors

2008-01-19T17:32:00.000-06:00

I've had daily visitors to my yard. In the spring there are some hens and one gobbler usually with six or seven little ones trailing behind. Last fall there were thirteen hens who grouped together to range all over the community here pecking at the ground looking for seeds and bugs to eat. They make the pilgramage everyday around the same time.

This picture was taken from the side yard which goes downhill into the woods. They possibly have nests in the woods, I've seen them sit on my fence and fly up into the trees but somehow I think they make nests on the ground.

I don't know if it's one big gaggle or several families that roam around. I have yet to catch a picture of the male fanning his tail feathers but he is impressive.

Off they go into the neighbor's yard. I have seen them pecking at my dining room window but as soon as I run to get the camera they are this far away. Turkeys are funny birds, when they fly they make a sound like a freight train. They call to each other at night and sometimes I can make a sound like they do and they will answer back. I wonder what I'm saying in turkey talk!

What do you know about immigration?

2008-01-16T18:00:00.001-06:00

Do you have definite opinions on immigration?

Watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WJeqxuOfQ

I was shocked to learn these facts. What can we do about it?

Dogs

2008-01-13T03:01:00.000-06:00

Does eveyone love their dog like I do? I left today to go shopping and I was gone for about 3 hours. When I came into the house, Tinker greated me like I'd been gone for a week. She does exactly the same if I'm gone 5 minutes to go out to the mailbox and pick up the mail. She bounces around and gives me kisses and wags her tail. It's as if she is saying "At last you've come home, you've been gone so long."

I think dogs are the only creatures that love us unconditionally. A few years ago I went on vacation for 10 days and she stayed at my son Dave's house, playing with their dog Abbey and having a ball. I went to pick her up even before I went home to unload my suitcase because I missed her so much. She was sitting in their front window looking out when she saw my car and the look on her face was unmistakable. She actually couldn't believe her eyes and did a double take when I came up to the door. I think she thought I was gone for good. I went inside and she crouched down on the floor and cried and then ran and got her leash off the doorknob and brought it to me as if she were saying, "okay let's go home now, I'm ready to leave".

For weeks after she never left my side. She walked from room to room with me, sat next to me while I was on the computer. If I went to the store she was in the dining room window watching for my car to come down the street and then met me at the door.

If I go over to Dave's house just to visit nowI can't pry her out of the car! She thinks I'm going to leave her for a long time again. If I take her food dish and water dish, her blanket and her food with me, she gives me a resigned look and eventually gets out of the car, she knows she's staying for awhile.

This dog of mine gives me endless joy.

New Hampshire primaries

2008-01-05T23:00:00.000-06:00

I watched the New Hampshire primaries on TV tonight. I missed part of the Republican debates but then there isn't anyone I admire on the Republican list of candidates.

It is going to be interesting following the candidates until we have our Texas primaries in March when I'll have to make a decision to vote for just one person. I like a lot of things that each candidate said, including some things by Hillary. I didn't expect that. She has great determination and does have experience in a higher office but considering the money troubles and the hooplah of Whitewater I'm just not sure she can stay away from the big corporations. I have heard how much public money they spent when her husband was President, about things they took with them that belonged to the Whitehouse, their arrangement with their protection detail which is paid for by the taxpayers. She is experienced in working for herself I can say that.

I liked the things John Edwards said and his passionate ideals on taking money from lobbyists and getting rid of their influence in his cabinet if he were elected but then I've read that he has an illegimate child on the way. That could be opposition badmouthing or it could be true.

I liked what Governor Richardson said about having experience balancing the budget as governor and his experience working with international governments but there has not been much coverage on him in the news so I don't know any more about him.

Barack Obama clearly has a big audience but he can't really state a definitive plan for the change he is campaigning for. But I like him. Don't know if I'll vote for him until I hear more. I've read many slandering emails about him but can't believe everything you read about anyone. I thought he sounded sincere.

So that about takes care of the four Democratic candidates that debated tonight. I'm anxious to hear more from them and the other candidates and next time I'll mange to catch the Republican comments as well.

What is your opinion?

Are people not spending money anymore?

2007-12-08T21:34:00.000-06:00

I had a jewelry show on Friday, really part of the Medical Alliance money raising effort. The day includes a style show, luncheon and bazaar (where I had my booth set up). The booth itself looked great, the jewelry was all new this year, a combination of glass, natural stones and gemstones. I wanted to cover all areas that would appeal to the most people. I am usually the only one that has glass lampwork jewelry which made my booth different from the other eleven jewelry displays this year.

The distinction didn't help this year. There is a new group going to the shows now, younger with young children and they look like they aren't buying unique jewelry. There were several booths with cheap knockoffs ala John Hardy, etc. They sold a lot of things, everytime I looked there was a large crowd aound that booth. There was another large booth filled with Chinese made items, more the natural stone type, turquoise and other stones. One woman had exquiste craft jewelry with gemstones only and she also made all the silver items. Another booth had fine jewelry as in jewelry store items. And there was me, with unique items. I don't think the fine jewelry was in the running for purchase at all, and I meant to ask the other woman with the gemstones if she sold much but I just wanted out of there. I think we packed up everything in about 30 minutes.

I sold three pieces, one leaf type pearl necklace with blue topaz and 14kt gold findings, another necklace that looked very oriental with beads by Pati Walton and a moss agate pendant that looked like a Chinese or Japanese watercolor. The other necklace had a glass focal bead by Jen Geldard with a pendant of green amethyst and strung on blue pearls with lapis in between with gold findings. I had hoped to sell more but it looks like the customers only want to spend money on the knockoffs.

This show had always been my best show of the year but I think that the people who arranged for the vendors had too many jewelry makers there. Next year if I am invited I will ask how many jewelry vendors there will be and make a decision then. My expenses this year were more than my profit.

It's always disappointing when I work for weeks getting just the right combination of colors and textures and then putting it all together and then not be able to sell them. I am thinking about having a trunk show here at the house before Christmas. Possibly I can sell some things that way.

The people who are my regular customers say they always get compliments on their jewelry whenever they wear something that I made so there must be other people out there who would like it if they would try it!

Feel like dancin'

2007-10-18T21:50:00.000-05:00

I found this clip in my email today and I thought it was so cute! This is lifted from someone else's blog but it's certainly a worthwhile cause.

http://birdloversonly.blogspot.com/2007/09/may-i-have-this-dance.html

Just click on this link, I think the owners will forgive me.

It really is a year!

2007-10-17T17:26:00.000-05:00

It really is "Thoughts Randomly Spoken". About one year ago I posted the last blog and speaking of.....

I went to see Kinky Friedman on Monday night at Barnes and Noble for his booksigning of "You Can Lead a Politician to Water but you Can't Make Him Think". I found him to be a very nice man, a loyal Texan who wants the best for Texas.

He talked about some of the reasons he lost the election, what he would do differently and how he stills feels about some issues. Take teachers for instance; he believes teachers should be paid more than they are and should be able to teach their chosen subjects rather than teach to the TACS test. About that very issue, my daughter Kathy just resigned from her teacher's position in the IISD because of the long hours and low pay. She taught in one of the best schools around for special ed students and her subjects were science and physics. She was sad to leave because she loves her students and the other teachers and loves teaching but the school system demanded more and more of her time which left nothing for her family. This is happening all over Texas. The lottery was formed here for the express purpose of helping the educational needs of the state but so far no money has gone to the school system.

Another problem is voter registration. Voters in Texas have to be registered six weeks in advance of elections. Why? Kinky thinks same day registration like they have in other states would have helped him get more votes. He was very, very popular with the young people and spoke at many college campuses, unfortunately when these students went to vote they found they weren't registered and couldn't register so he lost their votes.

I for one hope he runs again. His ideas should be put into practice and we should vote these self-serving politicians out of office.

By the way that's Kinky Friedman with the cigar, the other one is me.

Elections

2006-11-02T01:30:00.000-06:00

I hope I'm not the only one in Texas and other states that are voting for new governors, Congressmen and State Representatives that believes campaign speeches are getting progressively into 'dirty fighting'. I cannot believe some of the things that these people are saying about one another and the worse it gets the more people will vote for them.

I watched "Bill Maher" this past weekend and the guests that were on believe that the one who is the nastiest appear to be the strongest and therefore more people will vote for them. That is probably true for the people who don't do 'due diligence' about their candidates. But it seems they must notice that things aren't right with their present adminstration, or is it a fact that the evil one knows about is better than the one they don't know about?

Here in Texas our present governor has done nothing for the people of Texas during his four year term and now that it's election time, he's suddenly doing everything that everyone complained that he wasn't doing for four years. He's admitted that he would just wait because more people pay attention during the election year. He has implemented plans to do all the things he should have done before. WTF? Is this fair? What the 'dirty politics' does do is bring to the forefront the faults and self-serving incumbent's past performances. This incumbent has more money to spend by far than the other candidates because of his favors to big business and his buddies. He has a large war chest thanks to them.

Kinky Friedman has a grassroots following, has had more single contribution although small than any of the other cancidates and he's not a politician. He genuinely cares about the people of Texas, it's children and it's teachers.

This is actually the very first time in my life that I have contributed to person's political campaign because I believe he is not self-serving. He is running as an independent. The present Governor has implemented a plan to split up the voting districts so that certain areas cannot win against him and his Republican party. This proposal went to Congress for the vote (naturally it's overwhelmed by Republicans) and this proposal passed into law. He has privately made deals with independent contractors to sell them State Park Land, has contracted with a foreign insurance company which is run by his former state employees for health insurance. Now there are 100,000 children in Texas without health insurance. But you know, he's a good looking guy and has charisma so what's not to like, huh? (I'm being sarcastic here.)

Well I voted early this year just to make sure I got my vote in. We have 6 days left until election day. I wish this blog could become public, I want to get all those people who don't usually vote at all to get out there and vote for Kinky Friedman.

What a Difference a Day Makes ( actually 18,250 days)

2006-08-30T23:09:00.000-05:00

I went to my 50th high school class reunion and realized that the 18,250 days since have passed like they are yesterday. It was wonderful to see old friends and guess who they were before you looked at the picture and name pinned on their chest.

The days were so important to us then, most days going by slowly until the night of the Prom, or the night of Homecoming or summer vacation. I wish time would go as slowly now. I don't know if seniors in high school have a section in their year book about superlatives or not but we did. We had the Class Clowns, the Most Dramatic, Class Politicians, Most Popular, Most Optimistic, Best dressed and so on. The only one I managed to get was Best Looking along with Martin.

Above is the picture of us together that was in the yearbook. Below as we are 18,250 days later.

A Killer Strikes Again

2006-08-19T19:46:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a busy day here, I had plenty of errands to run and finally got home about 4:00 pm expecting to take some aspirin and lie down to get rid of the headache I'd developed.

I had let Tinker out as soon as I returned and when I went to let her back in she didn't come to my call. I whistled and called and she still didn't come. I heard a sharp barking noise, the high rasping hysterical kind, so I changed clothes, put on comfortable shoes with a tread and went down the hill.

There she was digging a huge hole near the drainage ditch. She was crouched down frantically digging under the fence. We've had bobcats in the neighborhood and I was afraid that she was just trying to get out under the fence after it. That wasn't the case. An armadillo was plastered flat against a rock with it's stomach facing the rock and clinging for dear life. It had seen Tinker and run and burrowed under a rock only to find another rock on the other side; deadend for sure.

She suddenly came trotting out into the yard with the armadillo in her mouth, shaking it and crunching at the same time. Horrible sound that. She has huge back teeth and if she can get something that far back in her mouth it's a goner. Possums are dispatched with one crunch around the shoulders so they can't run. This armadillo had been crushed pretty flat but was still moving. Tinker would let it drop and if it tried to run she grabbed it and shook it some more and crunched some more.

I was in a panic trying to get it away from her but she was determined to keep it. Everytime I came near should would pick it up and take off. Finally my thinking cleared a little and I got the hose and sprayed her with it and she dropped the armadillo and ran up the hill.

With it firmly nestled in my shovel I hurled it over the back fence and then went to catch Tinker. I had called a friend who came over to help me get the dirt, blood and gore off of her with dog shampoo and she finally settled down.

Normally she is the sweetest dog, very affectionate and very smart but let a critter into the yard and she becomes a hunting dog - a killer! I'm hoping this little foray satisfied her bloodlust for a least a week. She knew this armadillo was out there, she could smell it through the walls of the house and looked for it every night. Luckily it was stupid enough to come out in the daytime or else I'd be shoveling at 2:00 in the morning like last time.

Long Ago and Far Away

2006-07-27T23:31:00.001-05:00

I'm reading another book about Mary Magdalene, one of several I've read lately that are similar to the DaVinci Code. That book has been so contraversial but I can't help wondering if parts of it could be true.

I've taken a lot of flak from family and friends about my interest in other possibilities, like the idea that Christ didn't die on the cross, but was aided by Pontius Pilate and some apostles in faking his death, rescued from the tomb and continued his married life with Mary Magdalene, had children and lived for a long time. We do know that Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute, this idea was refuted by the Catholic Churce in 1960. They admitted that this was a lie, a story made up by certain Pope's to discredit women in the early life of the Christian church.

Everything else is just a guess. I've read extensively about the lifestyle of the Jews at the time of Christ, their religious beliefs and their moral standards. I don't believe they would have allowed a grown man to teach children unless he was a married man. A boy was not considered 'born' into his family and religious group until he had his Bar Mitsvah at the age of 13, so if he spent 12 years studying in the Temple, he would have been 24 at the time he spoke to the money lenders in the Temple not a boy of 12. It seems that many other customs would have been followed as well.

There was a time period after a man and woman were betrothed before they would actually have the marriage ceremony. No matter what they did before the actual ceremony a woman was considered a virgin until the actual ceremony. Could it be possible that Mary and Joseph had sex during this time and she became pregnant and at the time of her marriage she would have still be considered a virgin, hence, the virgin birth?

Does anyone else think about these things? Is this considered blasphemy just thinking about this?

I was brought up in the Catholic Church and partook of all the sacraments but I don't know if I actually believed any of the things they taught. I knew I felt good going to church and as years went by I didn't attend church anymore. It wasn't until I read a book about the Holy Grail that I started to think about the possibility that Christ was an ordinary man who had a family but wanted to preach goodness and peace among men in his lifetime and that Mary was his wife and the mother of his children. He never intended to found a new religion but worshipped God as his spiritual father, not his biological father.

I've started a new book called "The Expected One" by Kathleen McGowan. It's a novel and takes place in modern day times, is not as intriguing as the Da Vinci Code and others so I'll only know if it inspires in me more heavy thinking after I finish it. I do want to still read the Thomas Gospels and the Gnostic Gospels although I may get more feedback from my family than I want unless I keep my ideas to myself.

I do still consider myself a Christian but I'm trying to figure out why beyond pure faith. I'm the kind of person that wants to see something for myself or have someone prove it to me before I believe. Is this a bad thing? I know I'll still have my own opinions whether I express them or not.

Reunion!

2006-07-20T22:35:00.000-05:00

I am going to my high school class reunion. I've made plane reservations, rented a car and made hotel reservations and all I have to do is lose 30 lbs. in 3 weeks! That is if I want to show up like the last reunion which I went to as a size 6!

I don't think it's going to be possible given that I waited until the last minute to make the decision to go. Now I have to get around the fact that all the other people won't seem as old to me. I'll be one of them, one of the old people. It will be fifty (50) in case you didn't read that correctly, years since I graduated from high school. I felt like 10 years ago I was young, I didn't recognize anyone. Who were these people? I thought I went to the wrong event! This year I'm going to fit right in unless I starve myself for the next 3 weeks and maybe lose a couple of pounds. Or maybe I'll be the only one who has gained weight and people won't know who I am. I'll definitely need that label they give you to stick on your dress.

I grew up in a small town in Connecticut, lived almost across the street from the grammar school and went to the same school through 6th grade. Almost everyone that I started kindergarten with went through all the grades with me, right up until high school. There were 2 grammar schools, one was Broad Street School where I went and Linden Street School across town. In Junior High School we all gathered together in 7th grade and went on through high school together.

This photo is my 4th grade class with Mrs. Smith. I was madly in love with the boy in the second row on the left as were all the other girls. The girl in the top row second from left had the inside track all through grammar school.

I think some of these people will be at the reunion. I've been emailing the girl sitting on my right, Beverly, and it seems amazing to me that we can email like it hasn't been 30 years or more since we've communicated with each other.

The picture below is my 3rd grade class with Miss Tomasso. Most of the same kids but the girl in the 2nd row on the left side was my best friend and I noticed this is the last photo of her in my class. She lived on my street and her name was Audrey. She moved away after 3rd grade but we were friends from kindergarten till then. I remember a time when I was at her house playing and we went inside and her mother was running around in the kitchen with water collecting at an alarming rate all over the floor. The flood was coming from the bathroom just off the kitchen and the toilet had stopped up and she was running around looking for a plunger. It frightened me so much that after I went home I was afraid to flush the toilet for about a year. Audrey moved to Maine and after that I played with the boys on the street, playing baseball, riding bikes, playing cowboys and Indians, marbles and after dark playing hide and seek.

You probably won't recognize me, I hardly recognize myself. In the first picture I'm the 3rd from the right in the 2nd row. In the second picture I'm 4th from the right in the first row. I hope you noticed that the boy I had a crush on is standing next to his 'girlfriend' in the 3rd grade picture. That 'relationship' lasted until 7th grade or 8th grade when I got lucky and he let me wear his watch for two weeks until someone else started wearing it and I was heartbroken. I wonder if this guy is still a ladykiller!

Yesterday

2006-07-11T13:09:00.000-05:00

I had a wonderful day yesterday going over old family pictures with my daughter Kathy. I want to scan all of the old pictures even though we don't know a lot of the people.

My mothers side of the family came from Waterbury, CT. At that time Waterbury was a very large thriving city with lots of different manufacturing companies one of which was Scovill Mfg. They made brass buttons and metal snaps and such. I think they still make metal snaps for western wear.

My mother was born in 1901 in Waterbury, CT. Here is a picture of her at around six months.

This family group was inseparable at least for picture taking. On the left is my great grandmother Mary Bates Thackeray Dunworth and clockwise is her younger daughter Bessie M. Thackeray Wheeler, her older daughter (my grandmother) Mae Thackeray Beckerhouse and in the middle my mother Anna Mae Beckerhouse around the age of three. My great grandmother was married first to a Harry Thackeray and we have traced him to Ohio sometime after 1892 but Mary stayed in Waterbury. We think he relocated and they were divorced although we haven't found that evidence. She later married Ezra Dunworth and thereafter became known as Grandma Dunworth to my mother.



My grandmother and grandfather were still married at this time when my mother went to have her picture taken at a photo studio in a 'balloon basket'. She was about eight years old in this picture. The original is an old tin type.



I think a lot happened in the household during the years between the eight year old picture and this one taken in 1920 when my mother was 19 years old. The Thackerays were divorced in a particularly ugly divorce, my grandmother claiming physical and mental abuse and my grandfather claiming adultery. My mother lived with Grandma Dunworth for several years during the upheaval and she always hated it. They lived upstairs over a tavern that my great grandmother and her second husband (the Dunworths) ran in Waterbury. She saw a lot of sights that made her a teetotaler all her life.



She met my father a year later and they were married in 1923.



Of course there is more to the story...both before and after!

I've Gotta Tell You Something, Mom

2006-07-07T11:20:00.000-05:00

The year was 1988 a few days after the 4th of July when my son came home and said, "I've gotta tell you something, Mom". My heart sank but I sat and listened to the son who never did anything wrong. He had always watched and listened to what everyone else was doing and managed to keep himself out of the doghouse by just getting out of the way. He'd gotten good marks all through school and never caused a problem. "I think I burned a house down" was his next statement.

He and his friend John had found some fireworks that were left over from the July 4th celebration and decided to set them off in John's backyard. After the bottle rockets blew they couldn't find the remnants so they left to do something else. When they got back fire engines and police cars were lined up in front of John's next door neighbor's house. They readily told the police that they had set off bottle rockets and didn't know where they had gone.

The next day the paper announced that two boys (unnamed) had set off fireworks and that they were responsible for the burning of the house. I called John's Mom in a panic and she said not to worry about it right then it would take a while for the investigation. Eleven or twelve firemen had been taken to the hospital with toxic smoke poisoning and the investigators were going to find out why.

About two months later Dave was called to a lawyer's office to give a deposition and he told the attorneys for the insurance companies they had set off fireworks and hadn't found where they had landed and they didn't know if they had caused a fire or not.

We never heard anything more about it directly but the paper published a story about the house and a lawsuit the firemen had started against the insurance companies.

It wasn't until a few years later that we heard the house had faulty wiring and some weird kind of insulation in the attic and that the investigators thought the fire had been caused when the wiring had sparked and started a fire that eventually ignited the wood shingled roof and then the house before anyone saw the flames.

Does this look like a "firestarter"? His sweet innocent face looked the same at three years old as it did in high school in 1988 and still does to this day.

Mike's Birthday

2006-07-02T23:32:00.000-05:00

Today is my son Michael's 47th birthday. Here is a picture of him when he was about 2-1/2 years old with his older sister Kathy who was about 3-1/2 years old. Mike was a great little kid until he decided to climb out of the playpen and after that he was just gone. He was the one who decided what he was going to do, where he was going to go and when. No matter how often he got in trouble he was determined to do what he wanted.

I had to keep him tied to the clothesline. He had a harness and he could run the length of the yard which was very large but he couldn't run in front of the house and into the street. Of course that's where he wanted to go and he figured out how to get out of the harness and the first place he ran to was the street. After that I had to keep him in the house unless I was going outside too, that was a good idea until he thought to bring a chair to the door, unlock the latch, get down, put the chair back, open the door and go out the front into the street!

He is still a lot like that, will figure out how NOT to do something or to do something he shouldn't do when it would be easier for everyone if he just did the right thing the first time. Maybe in the next 20 years he'll mellow out!

Victoria's Secret

2006-06-30T16:45:00.000-05:00

I received a clothing catalog in the mail today - Victoria's Secret. I wonder what my mother would have thought about the pictures in it. The most risque catalog I ever remember her reading was the Sears Catalog. From everything I heard about my grandmother though, she wouldn't have been shocked and neither would one of my great grandmothers, my mother's mother's mother. They were both divorced in a time that divorce was not ever considered. I didn't even know divorce was an option back then. My grandmother was born in 1883 and was married at 18. My great grandmother was born in 1860 and was divorced from my grandmother's father whose name was Thackeray and married another man named Dunworth. They all lived in Waterbury, CT and Mr. Dunworth lived with his first wife a few houses down from the Thackerys. What does this suggest? More than friendly neighbors? Maybe a secret but not Victoria's.

The woman on the left is my grandmother but you can't really see her face very well. She was about 23 in this picture. On the right is my grandmother's mother and at the time of the picture already Mrs. Dunworth. My real grandfather is in front of my grandmother and Mr. Dunworth is in front of my great grandmother. She doesn't look very old but he looks ancient and mean. My mother is in the middle. My grandmother and grandfather had another child, my Uncle Carl after this picture was taken. My mother went to live with her grandmother after the divorce. I don't know where my uncle was, maybe still with my grandmother. I think she must have seen a lot going on in those years because she was always very ladylike and a real goody-goody the opposite of my grandmother. My great grandmother owned a tavern and they lived upstairs. My mother never drank or smoked or looked at any other man except my father. She said it was from all those years of seeing those drunks from the window upstairs. Those years must have had a profound effect on her psyche. There is more to the story of course.

Awake or dreaming

2006-06-29T02:21:00.001-05:00

The other night I dreamed that my dog ran away and she didn't have her collar on. I whistled and called for her to come back but she was hell bent on catching a cat on the other side of the street. I woke up with Tinker licking my face anxiously. Did I whistle in my sleep or call her name? I've often woken up from a dead sleep crying with tears running down my face. My pet's reaction the other night leads me to believe that I must be acting out my dreams out loud.

I've dreamed before that I was in a submarine and couldn't breathe. I fought to open a window to let in some air and finally woke myself up in a cold sweat. The next morning I found that the painting over my bed was hanging askew and I remember in my dream that I had ripped off the window to get some air and then put it back. It must have been the picture I ripped off the wall and then put back on the picture hanger and not getting it on straight.

Does this mean I might walk in my sleep or walk outside and come back in and go back to bed or do I restrict myself to doing things only in my room. I don't take sleeping pills or anything to help me sleep. Is this phenomenon a normal thing? I have often wondered what dreams mean and have even read books about it but they all sound silly to me. Are dreams our subconscious minds acting out things we would or wouldn't do during our waking hours?

I have very colorful dreams during times of stress but they don't seem to have anything to do with the condition causing the stress. Sometimes these dreams can be very interesting and I don't want to wake up until the dream is over. Especially the shopping dreams where I try on new clothes endlessly - I'm always wondering what I'll finally pick out.

Some people tell me that they don't dream at all. That seems unlikely to me, I think they just don't remember them or they never get into the REM sleep stage where dreams appear.

My big question is do dreams help us get through our days because we are releasing tensions that occur during the day that we can't get rid of during the day. I wonder if people who do yoga or biofeedback have these colorful, interesting dreams or are their daily tensions already released and they have nothing to dream about?

Bloggers Blogging Blogs

2006-06-24T19:29:00.000-05:00

If you are fairly experienced at blogs you probably don't do this, but as a new blogger I find myself sitting for hours and hours chasing links and reading and reading about other people's lives. Is that because mine is so uninteresting or is it because these things are like scavenger hunts, clues to track down in order to find the prize? The prize being, I guess, the most interesting absorbing blog that I can attach to my blog as a link for others to read. I found beautiful photos, a blog about female fantasies (that was informative), pictures of babies and children and even pictures of cats that look like Hitler!

I don't know what the actual count is but there must be millions of blogs out there and since most had comments attached, someone to read them.

This pastime could take up weeks of my time, months even. It could even replace food in my life which would be a blessing in disguise but the one thing it couldn't replace is books. I still prefer books with long, long stories instead of short stories.

I can even lie down and read my books without having to tilt my head back to look at them through my bifocal lenses.

Am I going to be on the cover?

2006-06-21T21:15:00.001-05:00

I've been asked to do an online interview about lampwork beads, my purchase of them and my jewelry designing. I wish I could do an interview on how to make them but oh no, it's all in the buying. Important people want to know these things. How did I get interested in lampwork beads, making jewelry, ebay auctions and especially why do I spend so much money on them.

What can I say, "I love them". Each little bead is a work of art. A little creation first from someone's mind and then from that person's hands. What's not to like?

As for how much I pay for them - that's my business. Do I ask the guy down the street why he didn't buy a Kia instead of that Mercedes? It's none of my business. I can't exactly say that in this interview though so it's my chance to be tactful. Full of tact.

Since I went off of the antidepressants I'm not so full of tact. Words spill out of my mouth and they are all about grievances I've had for a while now and never mentioned to anyone.

So I'll try to do this interview with my glass at least half full of tact instead of half empty of tact.

Shooby Dooby Doo

2006-06-20T14:30:00.000-05:00

I'm listening to some of the greatest music. Do you remember Jim Croce? Back in the 70's he was very very popular with songs like "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" and "Time in a Bottle". About two months ago I bought a CD entitled "Jim Croce His Greatest Hits". My favorite song on the album is "These Dreams".

There was a nightclub here in Fort Worth in the 70's and the women all dressed up in long gowns and high heels to go out dancing on Saturday nights. This was a real classy place, not the cowtown ballroom type thing. I can still remember being out on that dance floor with my husband dancing to "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" by Jim Croce, "I Can See Clearly Now" by Johnny Nash and "Baby, Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me" by Mac Davis.

That nightclub is now closed of course, and has been turned into offices. The building still looks the same though, out by the river off of University Drive in Fort Worth. I miss that atmosphere, the live band so close to the dance floor and eating dinner while watching others dance, the women glittering in long gowns and the men handsome in their dark suits and ties.

Remembering Dad

2006-06-17T21:22:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was Father's Day. I cooked for my boys and their families but Father's Day is really about thinking about or remembering your own father. My Dad was born in County Kerry, Ireland in 1891 into a family of eight children. The little village of Fahan was their birthplace. Mostly neighbors married neighbors because there were no automobiles and walking or riding donkey's was the only mode of transport. My father's father did marry someone from another town in Ireland and I wish I knew how that came about. My father emmigrated to America when he was 17 years old, fought in Europe in WWI and became a citizen for the privilege of risking his life in battle.

He married by mother when he was 31 and my mother was 21. My brother was born in 1930 and I was born eight years later in 1938.

My Dad was a very quiet man and I don't remember spending any one-on-one time with him until I was five years old. He had saved up his spending money (money was tight in those years during WWII) and took me by the hand and we walked downtown to a shoe store. He bought me a terrific pair of shoes I wanted and I walked proudly home in them. I was limping as we walked into the house and I showed my mother what Daddy had bought me.

My mother was mad because they were too small but I really really wanted them and told him that they were fine. I think I wore them only one more time because of course they made my feet hurt. When I was in my early teens he bought me a pink 78rpm record player, again with money that he had saved.

Times were different then, fathers went to work and mothers stayed home. There was no playing in the park, coaching baseball or swimming in the lake like fathers do now. Yet I never felt like I was deprived, I felt like I belonged to a family even though my father wasn't communicative, he presence was always there.

I think my mother wore the pants in the family. My Dad was just a very very quiet man except on Sundays in summer when he could be heard rooting for the Boston Red Sox as he listened to the games on the radio.

Even though I never knew the man underneath the dad, I miss him. I wish I had talked to him more, asked him more questions about his life in Ireland and how he met my mother and what he thought about while he sat quietly in his chair in the living room.

Decisions, Decisions

2006-06-17T02:35:00.000-05:00

I have been thinking about a decision I have to make about whether to go back to work at the office fulltime. The pros and cons have been floating around in my head since yesterday. I miss the companionship and camaraderie of the people I work with but I don't miss getting up early, putting on makeup and business clothes and driving for 45 long minutes in heavy traffic to get there. My return would give me an outlet for some of my creativity in certain areas but rapidly decrease that same creativity in other areas such as the jewelry making I enjoy, working with metal and other artistic endeavors that I've been waiting for 32 years to learn. I've worked at the same job for 32 years. There are some exciting things happening at work that I would like to participate in but just the thought of giving up my hobbies depresses me.

I'm happy that I am able to make this decision, not everyone has the choice, but I don't want to regret the choice I make (the grass is always greener, right?). I think I need to think about this some more.