Destination: Gatlinburg Tennessee
What could be more fun than four females on a road trip? We get along fine, I kid you not. I am blessed with family who invite me on vacation. But four of us, cooped up in a car for two days – would it work? We would make it work. My daughter and two grown granddaughters and I, planned to have an rip roaring good time without husband, father and son-in-law Greg who wisely decided to take to the back roads on his new motorcycle. And we were pleased to let him do it. He of the “Why do you want to stop for a soda? You’ll just need a rest stop. We can’t stop at every flee market, antique store you see.” And “If we are going to get to Gatlinburg we have to keep truckin.”
Needless to say, we planned to stop at every flee market, every antique store, every cute restaurant and every time one of us needed to ‘rest.’ And if he made it to the Gatlinburg cabin before us, he could shop for groceries, prepare dinner and wait for us to appear. Our battle cry was ‘of course, we’ll stop for ice cream, we’re on vacation.’
We had every type of snack invented in the car. We weren’t going to get hungry, no siree. Had them handy too. Snacks in the back seat. Snacks in the front seat. There was chocolate – oh was there chocolate. We are related remember and we have chocolate in our genes. There was twizzlers. I really haven’t figured out why people like twizzlers. They taste like flavored wax to me. But I go along with the crowd and chew and chaw like everybody else. We had crackers and cookies and M&M’s. We had water and tea. Like I said we had everything. Everything that is but room.
The Luggage Snafu
And that is where things became interesting. Four adult females on vacation have a lot of baggage. Daughter Dayna has a large luxury car with lots of luggage space but… Besides our luggage, we had a cooler of water and soft drinks and a motorcycle helmet. A motorcycle helmet? How did that get there? Well, let me explain. If any of us gypsies of the road wanted to ride on the new motorcycle, we needed a helmet. Capice? So let’s begin again: that is four suitcases, a motorcycle helmet, a cooler, and each of us had a small bag besides our suitcases. Oh come on, you didn’t expect me to get everything into one small bag did you?
We packed the trunk of the car. We unpacked the trunk of the car. We packed. We unpacked. I gave up. They packed the trunk of the car. They unpacked, they packed. They finally put the cooler in the back seat of the car. Crowded, but that made sense didn’t it? It if we wanted water or tea, it was right there. “Sure, right there, under someone’s feet.”
“Well, we will take turns sitting on that side of the back seat.”
“Grandma can’t sit back there all doubled up. She already has back trouble.” And so – age has priviledges.
Stay tuned for episode number 2 of Family Vacation coming soon.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Family Vacation
Family Vacation
Destination: Gatlinburg Tennessee
What could be more fun than four females on a road trip? We get along fine, I kid you not. I am blessed with family who invite me on vacation. But four of us, cooped up in a car for two days – would it work? We would make it work. My daughter and two grown granddaughters and I, planned to have an rip roaring good time without husband, father and son-in-law Greg who wisely decided to take to the back roads on his new motorcycle. And we were pleased to let him do it. He of the “Why do you want to stop for a soda? You’ll just need a rest stop. We can’t stop at every flee market, antique store you see.” And “If we are going to get to Gatlinburg we have to keep truckin.”
Needless to say, we planned to stop at every flee market, every antique store, every cute restaurant and every time one of us needed to ‘rest.’ And if he made it to the Gatlinburg cabin before us, he could shop for groceries, prepare dinner and wait for us to appear. Our battle cry was ‘of course, we’ll stop for ice cream, we’re on vacation.’
We had every type of snack invented in the car. We weren’t going to get hungry, no siree. Had them handy too. Snacks in the back seat. Snacks in the front seat. There was chocolate – oh was there chocolate. We are related remember and we have chocolate in our genes. There was twizzlers. I really haven’t figured out why people like twizzlers. They taste like flavored wax to me. But I go along with the crowd and chew and chaw like everybody else. We had crackers and cookies and M&M’s. We had water and tea. Like I said we had everything. Everything that is but room.
The Luggage Snafu
And that is where things became interesting. Four adult females on vacation have a lot of baggage. Daughter Dayna has a large luxury car with lots of luggage space but… Besides our luggage, we had a cooler of water and soft drinks and a motorcycle helmet. A motorcycle helmet? How did that get there? Well, let me explain. If any of us gypsies of the road wanted to ride on the new motorcycle, we needed a helmet. Capice? So let’s begin again: that is four suitcases, a motorcycle helmet, a cooler, and each of us had a small bag besides our suitcases. Oh come on, you didn’t expect me to get everything into one small bag did you?
We packed the trunk of the car. We unpacked the trunk of the car. We packed. We unpacked. I gave up. They packed the trunk of the car. They unpacked, they packed. They finally put the cooler in the back seat of the car. Crowded, but that made sense didn’t it? It if we wanted water or tea, it was right there. “Sure, right there, under someone’s feet.”
“Well, we will take turns sitting on that side of the back seat.”
“Grandma can’t sit back there all doubled up. She already has back trouble.” And so – age has priviledges.
Stay tuned for episode number 2 of Family Vacation coming soon.
Destination: Gatlinburg Tennessee
What could be more fun than four females on a road trip? We get along fine, I kid you not. I am blessed with family who invite me on vacation. But four of us, cooped up in a car for two days – would it work? We would make it work. My daughter and two grown granddaughters and I, planned to have an rip roaring good time without husband, father and son-in-law Greg who wisely decided to take to the back roads on his new motorcycle. And we were pleased to let him do it. He of the “Why do you want to stop for a soda? You’ll just need a rest stop. We can’t stop at every flee market, antique store you see.” And “If we are going to get to Gatlinburg we have to keep truckin.”
Needless to say, we planned to stop at every flee market, every antique store, every cute restaurant and every time one of us needed to ‘rest.’ And if he made it to the Gatlinburg cabin before us, he could shop for groceries, prepare dinner and wait for us to appear. Our battle cry was ‘of course, we’ll stop for ice cream, we’re on vacation.’
We had every type of snack invented in the car. We weren’t going to get hungry, no siree. Had them handy too. Snacks in the back seat. Snacks in the front seat. There was chocolate – oh was there chocolate. We are related remember and we have chocolate in our genes. There was twizzlers. I really haven’t figured out why people like twizzlers. They taste like flavored wax to me. But I go along with the crowd and chew and chaw like everybody else. We had crackers and cookies and M&M’s. We had water and tea. Like I said we had everything. Everything that is but room.
The Luggage Snafu
And that is where things became interesting. Four adult females on vacation have a lot of baggage. Daughter Dayna has a large luxury car with lots of luggage space but… Besides our luggage, we had a cooler of water and soft drinks and a motorcycle helmet. A motorcycle helmet? How did that get there? Well, let me explain. If any of us gypsies of the road wanted to ride on the new motorcycle, we needed a helmet. Capice? So let’s begin again: that is four suitcases, a motorcycle helmet, a cooler, and each of us had a small bag besides our suitcases. Oh come on, you didn’t expect me to get everything into one small bag did you?
We packed the trunk of the car. We unpacked the trunk of the car. We packed. We unpacked. I gave up. They packed the trunk of the car. They unpacked, they packed. They finally put the cooler in the back seat of the car. Crowded, but that made sense didn’t it? It if we wanted water or tea, it was right there. “Sure, right there, under someone’s feet.”
“Well, we will take turns sitting on that side of the back seat.”
“Grandma can’t sit back there all doubled up. She already has back trouble.” And so – age has priviledges.
Stay tuned for episode number 2 of Family Vacation coming soon.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
First DBook Ever
History was made right here in Springfield when George Joslin wrote the first DBook. That's right not Ebook but Dbook. It is a book for Deaf, signed in ASL (American Sign Language) and spoken in English for those who hear.
Joslin is an ordained ministery who has many years experience working with the Deaf. He wrote the story about the deaf man in the Bible, how he might have reacted to seeing Jesus, what he and his deaf friends might have thought about the man who walked about the country side healing and talking to people.
One day the kind man healed the deaf man. After that the deaf man, Benjamin, witnessed for Jesus. This is a story deaf and hearing both can understand and enjoy. I believe it is truly God inspired. It is the first of it's kind and I hope Joslin writes many more.
Read about in today's News Leader at this URL.
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110226/LIFE07/102260327/Biblical-story-inspires-dBook?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Life
and
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110226/LIFE07/102260328/Speaking-reading-their-own-language?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|p
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Reply Reply All Forward Forward
Joslin is an ordained ministery who has many years experience working with the Deaf. He wrote the story about the deaf man in the Bible, how he might have reacted to seeing Jesus, what he and his deaf friends might have thought about the man who walked about the country side healing and talking to people.
One day the kind man healed the deaf man. After that the deaf man, Benjamin, witnessed for Jesus. This is a story deaf and hearing both can understand and enjoy. I believe it is truly God inspired. It is the first of it's kind and I hope Joslin writes many more.
Read about in today's News Leader at this URL.
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110226/LIFE07/102260327/Biblical-story-inspires-dBook?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Life
and
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110226/LIFE07/102260328/Speaking-reading-their-own-language?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|p
Mail Search
Reply Reply All Forward Forward
Monday, January 31, 2011
SUNDAY BLOG ON MONDAY MORNING
The title of our Sunday School lesson yesterday was Right Not to Remain Silent. Many people in our world do not have the right to share their views, both political and spiritual. So I’m taking my right to share my spiritual views on my blog. Come along as I share our lesson from yesterday.
I’ve always been intrigued with the miracles in the Old Testament. The book of 2nd Kings tell about the prophets Elijah and Elisha, to the evil kings in Judah and Israel. Miracles in these Old Testament books abound. If you want to read about miracles, read about Elijah and Elisha.
What I want you to learn from 2 Kings 7:3-16, is God takes care of His people and we should tell others about His grace to us.
Here is the story in a nutshell. The Syrian Army had surrounded the Israelite city of Samaria. The citizens of Samaria were starving. They were to the point of committing cannibalism. If they surrendered to the Syrians, they would be killed. The king blamed the prophet Elisha. Elisha prophesied that by the next day the city would be saved and there would be plenty of food.
Elisha’s prophecy came true. God caused the Syrian Army to hear a noise of chariots and horses and the sound of an army coming upon them. The Syrian Army ran away. Four lepers decided to go the Syrian camp. They thought they might as well die there as die at the gates of Samaria. They were surprised to find the Syrian camp empty. They took what they wanted and hid it. The lepers could have kept the good news to themselves but they didn’t. They told the people in Samaria. They didn’t owe the people of Samaria anything. Those people had shunned them because of their disease. But they shared the good news that the Syrian army had ran away. The city was saved. There was food for all.
Remember God is on your side. He is working for you even if you can’t see his work right now. If God is doing something good in your life, share it.
I’ve always been intrigued with the miracles in the Old Testament. The book of 2nd Kings tell about the prophets Elijah and Elisha, to the evil kings in Judah and Israel. Miracles in these Old Testament books abound. If you want to read about miracles, read about Elijah and Elisha.
What I want you to learn from 2 Kings 7:3-16, is God takes care of His people and we should tell others about His grace to us.
Here is the story in a nutshell. The Syrian Army had surrounded the Israelite city of Samaria. The citizens of Samaria were starving. They were to the point of committing cannibalism. If they surrendered to the Syrians, they would be killed. The king blamed the prophet Elisha. Elisha prophesied that by the next day the city would be saved and there would be plenty of food.
Elisha’s prophecy came true. God caused the Syrian Army to hear a noise of chariots and horses and the sound of an army coming upon them. The Syrian Army ran away. Four lepers decided to go the Syrian camp. They thought they might as well die there as die at the gates of Samaria. They were surprised to find the Syrian camp empty. They took what they wanted and hid it. The lepers could have kept the good news to themselves but they didn’t. They told the people in Samaria. They didn’t owe the people of Samaria anything. Those people had shunned them because of their disease. But they shared the good news that the Syrian army had ran away. The city was saved. There was food for all.
Remember God is on your side. He is working for you even if you can’t see his work right now. If God is doing something good in your life, share it.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
FROM MY BOOKSHELF
I predict that Danielle Steele's new book Legacy will be on the TV Screen soon.
Brigitte is content to go with the flow until one day she loses her job and her boy friend. Shocked and bored, she agrees to help her mother with the family tree. Much to her surprise, her journey takes her to the Dakota's and to Paris where she discovers her ancestor the Marquise de Margerac was once a Dakota Sioux Princess named Wachiwi.
Wichiwi's American adventures takes her from the plains of the Dakota's to New Orleans, across the Atlantic to the Court of Louis the XVI and Marie Antoinette.
Brigitte finds purpose and love (and a job) in Paris. Ah, Danielle always leaves us with a happy ending, doesn't she?
Brigitte is content to go with the flow until one day she loses her job and her boy friend. Shocked and bored, she agrees to help her mother with the family tree. Much to her surprise, her journey takes her to the Dakota's and to Paris where she discovers her ancestor the Marquise de Margerac was once a Dakota Sioux Princess named Wachiwi.
Wichiwi's American adventures takes her from the plains of the Dakota's to New Orleans, across the Atlantic to the Court of Louis the XVI and Marie Antoinette.
Brigitte finds purpose and love (and a job) in Paris. Ah, Danielle always leaves us with a happy ending, doesn't she?
Friday, May 28, 2010
Memorial Day - Bitter Sweet
I saw a clump of daisies along the roadside today. They reminded me of home, my childhood home.
I'm sure my mother breathed an exasperated sigh when she saw me or my brother bringing her yet another armload of daisies, but she always found a clean jar, put them in water and placed them in a prominent place to be enjoyed. No doubt, Germtrol was used frequently after a foray into the daisy field. Germtrol eased the itch accompanying chigger bites.
Daisies bring a memory of another kind also. May 30 was a holiday not overlooked in our family. As long as I can remember, Decoration Day was family day. It was a time when families gathered at the gravesites of loved ones long gone to pay tribute by laying flowers on the graves. Originally designated as Memorial Day for fallen soldiers, we called it Decoration Day.
In Dad’s family, the accepted mode of decoration was to place seasonal garden flowers or wild flowers on the graves. Sometimes the bouquets would be placed in jars or cans. Peonies and roses gathered from the yard were popular. Many times huge peony plants or climbing rose bushes were planted at the gravesite to provide a natural decoration.
I remember gathering huge armloads of daisies. These were put in water to await the next day when they would be placed on graves. I liked the huge peony blossoms, but I hated the ants. Anywhere there is a peony depend on it being full of ants.
Mom's family followed another custom, that of making flowers for decoration. Mom was known in the community for her crepe paper flowers. She began early in the spring buying colorful red, pink, green and white crepe paper so she would have enough time to make the many sprays needed for family graves. She made her own patterns, carefully cutting each petal just right. The shape of the petal depended on the type of flower she intended to make. A gladiolus petal had a sharp point at the end. A rose was rounded with small petals close to the stamen and larger petals outside. Each petal was pulled or crimped into place around a crepe paper bound wire which formed the center or stamen of the flower. Dad salvaged the fine copper wire from discarded car battery cables.
Mom held the petals with her left hand using the right hand to add more petals, holding them in place as she turned the flower. When the shape suited her, she anchored the petals with fine wire. The wire was then disguised with a strip of green crepe paper wound around and around until it finally ended at the end of the flower stem. The leaves were fashioned from green crepe paper and attached in the same manner.
Mom made gladiolus, roses, sweet peas and larkspur. Most often several flowers would be bound together in a spray and placed on the grave. No matter that the first rain would wash them away; they were a labor of love which she never failed to perform. It was not unusual for people to make a special note of the type of flower Mom made and the next year someone would copy the design and use it themselves.
This year I will follow tradition and lay flowers at the gravesite of my loved ones. It will be a bittersweet day. Memories are sweet and remembering the loss is sad. I will lay flowers to show respect and honor their memory and to show my love that never dies.
I'm sure my mother breathed an exasperated sigh when she saw me or my brother bringing her yet another armload of daisies, but she always found a clean jar, put them in water and placed them in a prominent place to be enjoyed. No doubt, Germtrol was used frequently after a foray into the daisy field. Germtrol eased the itch accompanying chigger bites.
Daisies bring a memory of another kind also. May 30 was a holiday not overlooked in our family. As long as I can remember, Decoration Day was family day. It was a time when families gathered at the gravesites of loved ones long gone to pay tribute by laying flowers on the graves. Originally designated as Memorial Day for fallen soldiers, we called it Decoration Day.
In Dad’s family, the accepted mode of decoration was to place seasonal garden flowers or wild flowers on the graves. Sometimes the bouquets would be placed in jars or cans. Peonies and roses gathered from the yard were popular. Many times huge peony plants or climbing rose bushes were planted at the gravesite to provide a natural decoration.
I remember gathering huge armloads of daisies. These were put in water to await the next day when they would be placed on graves. I liked the huge peony blossoms, but I hated the ants. Anywhere there is a peony depend on it being full of ants.
Mom's family followed another custom, that of making flowers for decoration. Mom was known in the community for her crepe paper flowers. She began early in the spring buying colorful red, pink, green and white crepe paper so she would have enough time to make the many sprays needed for family graves. She made her own patterns, carefully cutting each petal just right. The shape of the petal depended on the type of flower she intended to make. A gladiolus petal had a sharp point at the end. A rose was rounded with small petals close to the stamen and larger petals outside. Each petal was pulled or crimped into place around a crepe paper bound wire which formed the center or stamen of the flower. Dad salvaged the fine copper wire from discarded car battery cables.
Mom held the petals with her left hand using the right hand to add more petals, holding them in place as she turned the flower. When the shape suited her, she anchored the petals with fine wire. The wire was then disguised with a strip of green crepe paper wound around and around until it finally ended at the end of the flower stem. The leaves were fashioned from green crepe paper and attached in the same manner.
Mom made gladiolus, roses, sweet peas and larkspur. Most often several flowers would be bound together in a spray and placed on the grave. No matter that the first rain would wash them away; they were a labor of love which she never failed to perform. It was not unusual for people to make a special note of the type of flower Mom made and the next year someone would copy the design and use it themselves.
This year I will follow tradition and lay flowers at the gravesite of my loved ones. It will be a bittersweet day. Memories are sweet and remembering the loss is sad. I will lay flowers to show respect and honor their memory and to show my love that never dies.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
I'm Out of the Technology Loop
Last Saturday’s ORA program, featuring Diana Botsford, was very interesting. I found out just how far out of the technology loop I really am. Hey, I just mastered Facebook and Twitter is presenting a challenge. Now I find out there are Vooks, Kindles, IPhones, IPads, and watching movies on your computer.
I have one excuse. I still have dial up internet. Can you believe it? ATT has forgotten my section of town and they keep trying to sell me a bundle with DSL, Telephone and Television included. Really! Here’s a message to AT&T: Get DSL out here and I’ll consider the rest.
I don’t live in the boonies. I live within the city limits of Springfield and there is no reason not to have DSL out here.
That is my rant for today. Excuse me as I blindly, slowly grope my way into the future world of technology.
I have one excuse. I still have dial up internet. Can you believe it? ATT has forgotten my section of town and they keep trying to sell me a bundle with DSL, Telephone and Television included. Really! Here’s a message to AT&T: Get DSL out here and I’ll consider the rest.
I don’t live in the boonies. I live within the city limits of Springfield and there is no reason not to have DSL out here.
That is my rant for today. Excuse me as I blindly, slowly grope my way into the future world of technology.
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