Best get back to business.  I've taken time off to get accustomed to the new number I'll be using when someone asks how old I am.  My birthday was celebrated numerous times with numerous friends, and I made the most of each celebration.  One was canceled due to the hot temperatures, so we're still not done making a big deal out of just another day!

My last creative project is a crocheted wind spinner.  I have a stash of metallic cord left over from when I made bracelets.  It's ideal for making these spinners, so that's what my brain is focused on at the present. 

It spins and is one of the most unusual things I've made in a long time.  At the bottom, naturally, is a string of pizazzy beads.  We were in a thrift store a couple of days ago, and I bought a beaded necklace for $2.  Most of the beads are various shades of sparkly blue, and blue is really hard to find.  

This picture also shows how dry our lawn is.  We need rain.  On those 90-degree days, the best place was inside where the AC kept us cool.  We felt badly for the construction guys working on a new condo next to Venny.  I couldn't help but recall the days when I worshiped the sun, smeared on Banana Boat sun tan oil, and laid in the back yard at mid-day till my skin was about fried.  Now I'm not able to endure walking around the building.  

There's a slight breeze today.  My next task is to water my hanging plant that's slowly showing signs of late-season aging.  Kinda like me.  Yes, I've arrived at the age known for its luck at the gambling casinos.  It's the craziest thing.....some nights I have dreams where I'm with a bunch of people and no one wants to be with me cuz I'm old.  Guess it's my turn to experience the least-understood, and most feared, stage of life.  

The fuzz bucket is back, so all's well at the G-home!

We laughed when we realized the first thing he did was mosey into the bathroom, tip over the wicker wastebasket, and shred the kleenexes that I purposely left in there for him.  One cannot help but wonder what goes on in their minds, how they plot their shenanigans, and how they sneak away to accomplish their tricks.  

The boyfriend had a dental appointment this morning, and I stayed back to welcome the fuzzy one.  It's a good day.  I took all the fresh veggies from the fridge and created a one-of-a-kind casserole for supper.  My boyfriend bought a dozen ears of sweetcorn from a farmer selling sweetcorn from the back of his pickup at Casey's.  Can't wait to smear on some real butter and sprinkle with sea salt.  Yeee-Yumm!     

Don't ask me how two flies managed to get inside our home this morning, but they quickly met their demise upon my getting out of bed.  One thing we don't and can't tolerate is a frickin' fly.  I'd imagine they came inside when we opened the door to go outside.  Which makes me wonder who invented the flyswatter......

Googled to get the answer.....In 1905, Frank Rose of Weir, Kansas (pop. 780), a Boy Scout master, nailed squares of screen wire to wooden yardsticks and called them 'fly bats.'  His troop presented two to each household, a deed that was applauded by Dr. Samuel Crumbine, head of the Kansas State Board of Health, who re-named them 'flyswatters.' 

I'm not sure if I feel much smarter than before I got this answer, but common sense would tell me I know something I didn't know before, so that means I am. 

It's a glorious day, the sun is shining, all is well.  The boyfriend got up before me.  Sleeping late is such a luxury for me, I dread the day someone wakes me up at 5 in the morning when I'm living in a rest home.  Perish that thought!  I most likely will kick and scream until I'm put in solitary confinement or some other nasty consequence is fitting for a spunky one like me.  

We're not cooking meals today, cuz the garden has given us cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, a pepper and so it's salad day.  For supper last night, we each had a divine California Burger with a slice of red onion, tomatoes, the works.  There's always the banter between us about the mustards.  I'm the proponent of the hearty stone ground mustard that's made by grinding brown mustard seeds with water and vinegar until it becomes coarse textured.  The boyfriend maintains his preference for the stuff that looks like calf poop.  It's a 55-year disagreement, and neither of us will budge.  

On Facebook this morning I was shocked to see a photograph example of the amount of sugar that's in ketchup.  In my opinion, life wouldn't be worth living without ketchup.  My mom even made homemade ketchup, and I'd probably give up my favorite coffee cup to have a jar of it right now.  Another one of those things we don't appreciate until years later when we realize it can never be more than a memory.

I'm a condiment person, the boyfriend is not.  I like to jazz up my foods, while he feels that only masks the real flavor of the food.  Can't disagree with that, yet I want to experience all the flavors possible.  One thing life gave me is overactive taste buds.  Food is central to my existence, and it's quite obvious.  Oh, well, I consider myself lucky.  Then I feel sad when I think of those who are starving in the world.  

Boy, my brain is going in lotsa directions this morning.  One more yippee before I close.....little Fud Bud is arriving tomorrow to stay with us for a few days.  That little bugger lifts my heart to happy places.

Till the morrow, ta-ta. 

A week dripped down the drain since my last post.  Wish I had a reason that I could share.  Maybe it can be summed up in two words:  sad heart.  There are things happening that cause me to say that.  Three people who are dear to my heart are going through times of suffering.  My only available assistance is personal prayer and a heart full of love.  We each walk a road that's made of both sharp shards of glass and smooth glass.  There are times of joy and times of sorrow.  

My Tao readings give me support and offer me new insights to the thing called acceptance.  If one can learn to accept things as they come, go with the flow of life's river, then we benefit from what they call Divine grace.  And, that's what I'm trying to do.  No matter how high things go up, we know they will come back down.  It's the cycle of life in everything, even the sun and the moon rise and set.  It's not easy to think of life having a departure date, yet we all have one.  Doesn't matter if we're an oil tycoon from Dubai or a homeless person sleeping on unfolded newspapers.      

So, on with today's thoughts.  All's well in our little corner.  The boyfriend spent Saturday with his brother's family, while I stayed back and watched the plants grow.  I'm watching a daily vlog from Japan where a little girl eats her supper every day.  She is stubborn, and her daddy dotes on her every whim.  Don't ask me why I watch it daily, but I must see if she ever will get disciplined.  Parental enabling is not something my generation experienced.  

Our area was blessed with over an inch of rain.  Even heard thunder and a bit of lightning.  Music to my ears.  

My July newsletter article is finished and submitted to the editor.  This month I wrote about the sweet grass basket that we recently received from someone special.  Everything has a story if you go look for it.

Our little fuzz bucket is returning on Wednesday.  His stay will be only over the weekend, but will give me time to have a shot of my canine cocaine!  

Today's sky is filled with huge whipped cream clouds.  Makes me think of chocolate syrup and caramel syrup and chopped pecans!  

It's good to be back.  The days I don't write there's something missing in my world.  Writing is my passion.  One of them.  Till the morrow, I pray my followers have a day of smiles.  Ta-ta.     

This is a Dah Moment!

Picked by Marty

After living seven decades, I didn't know that blueberries could be grown in our part of the country.  The picture I'm posting today shows the beautiful blueberries that were picked three blocks from the home we lived in for fifty years!  That's my dah moment!

Blueberries are one of the healthiest fruits we can eat.   They have fiber, Vitamins C and K, iron, manganese and potassium, only 80 calories per cup, no fat and low in sodium.

I just love 'em in the spectacular salads that I put together for lunches.  

Thank you, Robin, for sharing this picture.  Man alive, if only I'd have known this years ago.  

 

Today from 2 to 7 p.m., Venny is having an outdoor quilt show.  All types and sizes of quilts can be displayed on individual unit deck railings.  The log cabin quilt that Dale's Mom made for us is the one we chose to display.  I took this picture through the screen door, so it's not the clearest.  But, thought it's special how the boyfriend is standing beside it. 

Spent most of today trying to think through my July newsletter article.  Think I've retyped it now about 7,000 times and still can't get it the way I want it.  Some would say it's a wasted day, but not to a writer.  All editing whether adding, deleting or rewording, is a way to better the final draft.

Got a call this afternoon inviting us to dinner tomorrow night at one of the local country clubs.  Sweet surprises bring smiles.

 

The July 4th holiday is in the rear view mirror, along with the other springtime calendar celebrations of Valentine's Day, Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day and Memorial Day.  The old saying is that once the 4th is over, we're on our way to autumn and its amazing changes.

This Monday past we were invited to Cuddy's house for a freshly baked blackberry cobbler topped with scoops of vanilla ice cream.  This followed pina coladas for us girls and more traditional drinks for the guys.  The blackberries had been hand-picked, and in my estimation, that's as though Our Lord handed them to us.  Truly, an impromptu invitation that made one's soul feel well cared for.  Of course, little Cuddy was a main feature.  Actually, today he's getting a hair cut at his favorite spa, which will make him more comfy.  I get a kick out of watching Cuddy show us how he loves his daddy.  I took a couple of pictures of the flower bed in front of their home........

Iowa Cyclone Colors

I've been away from my blog for a few days.  The two of us chose to stay home over the Fourth.  The boyfriend fixed bbq ribs and mashed potatoes for our supper.  We reminisced about our patio parties of the past.  One nice thing about life is that we can take our memories with us when we move to another place.  

I've been doing my usual arm-chair traveling, mostly in the mountainous regions of Iran where the nomadic people live totally off the grid.  It's fascinating how they incorporate a sense of style in their cave-like lives.  They cover the desert ground with the most beautiful rugs and blankets.  The women's dresses are made of beautiful and sometimes flashy fabrics.  One thing that strikes me most is how creative these nomadic people are.  They fashion their necessities out of stone and the earth.  They have access to transportation and go into town to buy food, toys for their children, and their clothing.  They load up and take a goat or sheep to market and then use the money to buy their stuff.  

Last Friday we took pizzas up to a G-clan get-together.  It's almost impossible to get families together anymore, so we take our turn to entertain by furnishing pizzas and taking them in their direction.  The old-fashioned family gatherings are being replaced with summer sporting events.  It's just one more way our generation is fading away.  

The other day I was watching something on YT and a guy about our age made the remark:  "I'm learning to let go of those that are letting go of me."  Yowza, that was a masterful way of putting my feelings into words and perspective.  More and more I'm feeling more like a *footnote than part of the story.

We did get a bit over an inch of rain, for which we're very grateful.  The sound of thunder and lightning in the sky was most welcome.  Hearing thunder always makes me think of life when I was a little girl.  We lived in a 3-story old stone house.  On stormy days, we'd put blankets over chairs, then crawl inside our tents.  Never felt safer than back then, and those feelings I will take with me to the end.  

The boyfriend is running errands.  I chose to stay home.  Am working on my July newsletter article, which requires quiet time.  The day is overcast, and it's nice to sip my cuppa and maybe zip off to some far-away land and see what life is like there.  Recently I was asked if we still like to travel, to which I replied that our traveling days are over.  But, when I think about it, I'm traveling to different parts of the world every day.  It costs me nada, and I don't place myself in places of possible harm.  My mode of travel is my therapy!