Things That Make You Go Hmm....

It's another rainy and gray Tuesday. It seems as if this is the way the entire Spring will be. On that note I've decided to go through my pictures, and pull out the ones that make me giggle, amuse me, or are just plain silly. It always feels good to laugh, doesn't it?



So, I walked in the bedroom yesterday and this is what I saw.  I told my husband that we now have "his and hers" foot warmers.



The other day I looked out my kitchen window...and this is what I saw.  I guess Fed Ex and UPS have to meet on back country roads to talk to each other. They just want us to THINK that they are bitter, package delivering, rivals. Now the truth is out!



Joe is our senior dog. In dog years he is like, eighty-five. He has arthritis and takes glucosamine & chondroitin daily. He still knows how to be silly and have a good time.




This picture of  me, always makes me laugh. I call this my Nanook  of the North picture. We were in the process of building our house, it was the dead of winter, and I wore that hat everywhere. No kidding. I looked like a citizen of Siberia, Russia. The shades were because of snow glare, not because I was trying to be "Hollywood". Just sayin'.



This is a neighbor of ours. He was out for his morning jog.

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Lord Willing, And The Creek Don't Rise

April showers bring May flowers.....or in my case, THUNDERSTORMS bring flooding.

This morning I woke to high winds, thunder, and lightening. It has rained pretty much the entire day.

The farm land across the road is saturated. There is now a lake where a field used to be.

Such is springtime in rural Ohio.



Springtime is the best and worst of times.

Rain and mud

Storms and flood

Plants blooming, pollen sneezing

Grass growing, allergic wheezing

Farmers planting

Dogs panting

Flip flops to wear

Ponytail hair

Sunshine so bright

Until late at night.

Let's get into gear

'Cause Springtime is here!

New International Version (©1984)
Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime; it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds. He gives showers of rain to men, and plants of the field to everyone.

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From Canada, With Love...

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I had never seen the movies based on the book. At 42, I asked for Anne (with an "e") of Green Gables for Christmas. My husband bought me the collectors edition. The two of us watched the entire series over Christmas vacation. I loved it! The actress, Megan Follows, played Anne perfectly.  I now want to visit Prince Edward Island, Canada. The scenery was gorgeous. The blue of the ocean against the  the green meadows. Those of you that live in Canada, please tell me that it really looks that way....in real life.  I was amused by Anne's spirit. "You can call me Cordelia." Is that your name? "No, but I've always liked Cordelia." What IS your name? " Well, if you won't call me Cordelia, Anne...with an 'e', if you don't mind." Thank you Lucy Maud Montgomery for giving us the wonderful spirit of Anne.

A couple of Christmas's ago I bought my husband, The Red Green Show. I had never heard of it until he mentioned that he had watched it at some point and loved it. For those of you not in the know....it sort of is the Canadian version of Home Improvement. Men meet at the Possum Lodge in northwestern Ontario, to solve the problems of a man's world....much to the detriment of those around them. I laughed my way through those DVD's.

[the "Men Anonymous" pledge, or the Man's Prayer]
All: I'm a man, but I can change, if I have to, I guess.

I have several readers in Canada. To all my neighbors in the north, what are some Canadian shows that you enjoy? (or shows from the past) Make some suggestions for me.

 

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And The Winner Is...

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On December 10th I started a contest to see who could come up with a snappy, new title for my blog. A name that was fun, and would give my blog a little more pizazz. The winner is..... Ruth Webb. Her entry was "From Dawn 'til Dusk" . I liked the play on my name.

So, as I promised she will be receiving a thank you gift from me for her help in renaming my blog. I will be putting up my new blog title soon.

I'll be having more contests in the future. This was fun! Thank you to everyone that participated.

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You Know You Are A Child Of The 80's If......

I'm currently listening to my 80's music on Pandora. It is so funny how a song can transport one back 25 years in time. Who needs a time machine?

Who remembers skinny ties, stirrup pants, leg warmers, slouch socks, jeans with holes in the knees, Swatch watches, Izod shirts, medical scrubs, Polo shirts, prairie skirts, painters pants, rat tail hair, and shoulder pads? I mean come on....you couldn't have gone through the 80's without falling into the fashion blunder of AT LEAST ONE of these things! Don't be scared to admit it. Hey, if you are really brave you might admit to the "Miami Vice" look. Remember Don Johnson with the blazer and T-shirt and loafers with no socks. Come on.

Let's continue down memory road.....Banana clips, Valley Girl, Donkey Kong, BIG hair (I admit it!), MTV is new, Punk and Cabbage Patch kids. Remember Brooke Shields and her Calvins? Going to the mall to just hang out, wearing Jellies, and velour---velour everything. For crying out loud.

What about Baby Jessica? Reaganomics? Acid Rain? AIDS? And Hands Across America? The Huxtables? Family Ties? Facts of Life? Miami Vice?

Movies we had to see---E.T. Extra Terrestrial, Dirty Dancing (No one puts Baby in the corner! Sniff. I miss Patrick Swayze) , Back To The Future  (Hey McFly!), Risky Business (the living room scene...need I say more?) , Flash Dance (made me want to rip all my sweatshirts), Ghostbusters (Who you gonna call?), Lethal Weapon (Mel pre-the drunk years), Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Die Hard (Yippey Ki Yay!) , Fatal Attraction (Poor bunny in a pot), The Karate Kid (Wax on, Wax off), Ferris Bueller's Day Off (Bueller? Bueller? BUELLER!!!), The Breakfast Club (Molly Ringwald was THE ACTRESS of the 80's)and A Nightmare On Elm Street. (I can still sing that creepy song...One, Two..Freddy's Comin' For You!)

Michael Jackson in his hey day. I wanted to wear a sequined glove and be able to moonwalk. He really was a musical genius, sad that he became so odd at the end of his life.

Do you remember Mt. Helens exploding in 80?  Getting up really early to watch Lady Di marry Prince Charles in 1981? Tylenol recalled nationwide because some freak laced capsules with cyanide in '82? Trivial Pursuit came out in 1983. Apple introduced the first McIntosh in '84. New Coke was the joke in 1985. Bill Gates took the world by storm in '86, and the Challenger exploded while we all watched it on TV at school. In '87 televangelist Jim Bakker goes down. Pan Am flight explodes over Lockerbie, Scotland in '88. In 1989 a huge earthquake hits the Bay area in CA. The Berlin wall falls, and hurricane Hugo takes out a big chunk of the Carolinas.

Did you know that all these things were created in the 80's? Post Its, Sony Watchman, Microsoft, Apple Macintosh, disposable contacts, Rogaine, disposable cameras, Nintendo,cordless phones, and cell phone networks. Wow.

This trip in the time machine makes me want to go play Pac-Man, or Rubik's Cube....or maybe go rollerblading.

Hey, don't worry about the fact that those of us that remember these things are in our late 30's and 40's now. Who cares? We are kids of the 80's and our decade ROCKED.

Elephant Elbows

It is time to take stock of my situation. I'm speaking of my elbows. I know they have gotten rough...and I might add, what is with that? What do my elbows do to get rough? It makes absolutely no sense to me. I now am the proud owner of "elephant elbows". They are rough, dry, wrinkly, and ashy looking. That is not attractive. Not that I see my elbows all that much. But still.....yucky elbows could mess up my whole "look". Not that I have "a look", but you know what I mean. I mean who wants to go through life with virtual strangers pointing and staring and making comments under their breath about elephant elbows? What's a girl to do? I can understand rough feet. I walk on them all day. They are battered and abused. But elbows???  I will slather on some lotion and hope for the best. Life is too short not to have smooth elbows.

Candy, Cats and the City

This past week my family experienced a whirlwind vacation through part of the midwest. Just on a side note...the midwest in mid August is blazing hot. Like inferno hot. Like stick your head in an oven kind of hot. Just sayin'.

We left last Saturday morning (as always, just getting out of the house and on the road is a challenge) heading to Greenup, Illinois... A cute little town in rural Illinois. Picture a mix of Mayberry and the Old West. I was really diggin' the down town area. The old buildings with the second floor balconies were examples of architectural endurance. In amongst the visiting with family and cooking out, and crazy card games, and fluffy cats and a hyper dog......we also had opportunity to eat at this super retro restaurant, the Candy Kitchen. The Candy Kitchen has been around since 1924. It was owned and operated by the Loomis family, who came to the U.S from Greece. Over the years it has changed owners, been boarded up, been renovated, opened, closed and is now doing a thriving business serving up good food mixed in with a hearty helping of nostalgia. If you are ever in the Greenup area you must visit this place. It is worth it.

We also visited a restored, covered Bridge on the National Road. I love covered bridges. There is just something about them. Something rugged. Something old fashioned. Definitely something one doesn't see very often anymore....and that   makes it special.

Next, it was off to a suburb of Chicago. I'm sure Chicago is a fun city...but, honestly the traffic leaves a lot to be desired. I much more enjoy having to share the road with the Amish, here in rural Ohio.  We were stuck in bumper to bumper traffic, in the heat, with other drivers that were not so very nice. One semi -truck kept honking his horn and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Patience, people, patience!!! While visiting in the Chicago area we had opportunity to eat some real Chicago style pizza, that was very delicious. Probably also a ton of calories...but who cares? When on vacation calories don't count, right?

I had a good time playing with the dogs. Shaggy and Scrappy. Both very smart and a lot of fun. Who wouldn't love dogs that were obviously very intelligent, and yet were not above waking one in the morning with a sloppy, drool filled kiss?

Next stop, Portage, Indiana. Family took us to the Dunes on Lake Michigan. Beautiful. When looking at Lake Michigan it is difficult to believe that it is indeed, a lake. God sure has made a beautiful world. Of course while enjoying His beautiful world I was "lunch" for about a million black flies and am also now sporting a nice sunburn. Such is life.

The family also attended a Rail Cats baseball game on Saturday evening. TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME! It was a lot of fun. I love "the boys of summer". Nothing like hundreds of people packed into a stadium yelling for the home team. It was a close game. The Rail Cats lost but only by one run...and it was exciting all the way through the end of the ninth inning. You can check out the Rail Cats site and if you are in the area, go see them play!

It's been a busy week. Also a glorious week. Monday seems kind of drab after all the fun of visiting and hanging out with family and seeing the sites. Sigh. I knew it would come to an end and I'd be forced back into reality. Sigh, again. It was a great way to spend a week--and memories do last forever.