Maxine's Back

Wings and Wonderings

Reading in bed is the perfect way to end my day.  For one thing, it gets my mind off of the worrisome chatter that goes on inside our heads and, for me, that sets the stage for a good night's sleep.  And, I love reading short stories and buy any book of short stories I can get my hands on.  Anyway, last night I was reading a story about the Hands of God, fiction of course.  The story told that when God was creating the birds, an angel flew by Him and asked God to put wings on this creature like the wings of the angels.  God thought that was a neat idea, so He did.  This morning as I listen to the birds singing, I can't help but think about that story. 

Yesterday we were in the garage scoping out the huge cleaning project that awaits us one of these days...or years.  Packed away in a corner I spotted an old box of bottles.  We took them out and hosed them off, cuz there's lots of years of cobwebs and gunk in them.  Four were the old-fashioned blue fruit jars with the glass lids and wire tops.  And, a really tall bottle, like a vinegar bottle, that has a wire top and cork-like thing still intact.  I just love finding things like that and wondering where they came from and what they actually were used for. 

There was a television program on one time that featured finding things, like bottles.  They said the best place to search is where the old out-houses used to be.  Because years ago people would throw their empty used bottles down the hole.  Naturally, this isn't the most appealing thing one wants to do, but serious collectors who are adventurous would put on the right clothes and gloves and get to digging.  I'm just a little afraid there's a little bit (or a whole lot) of that in me.  Something inside me wants to look for stuff from the past.  I'm a treasure seeker.  And, just imagine all the treasures that are buried in the very ground beneath us. 

Whenever we drive past an abandoned farmstead where the house is still standing, my mind starts wondering and imagining what might be inside the abandoned house.  I have a metal detector down the basement, but haven't had it out for awhile now.  Metal detecting is great fun, and when it starts beeping, my heart starts beeping in rhythm with the detector.  I've  found old nails, spark plugs, and a dime.  That's pretty much the extent of that hobby.  Now when I think about it, I think I'm going to buy a new battery and fire it up again.

My trouble is that I have too many hobbies, and in order to satisfy all of them I'd have to live at least three or four long lifetimes.  The only thing I can compare this to would be the embers still burning after a campfire and all of a sudden one of the sparks ignites into a fire.  Well, that's what it's like for me if I find something I think I can do or re-create.  I get all nuts about it, buy the supplies, and then have to see if I'm actually able to do whatever it may be.  I'm not one who believes in reincarnation, so I figure if I want to do it, I'd better get crackin'.  If my attempts are successful, that's great.  If they fizzle, who cares.  At least I've tried.

Wonder what label a shrink would put on me.  Would it be Project Enhanced or Project Challenged?  Hmmm.  Another thing for me to ponder.

Clouds, Calm, and Crosses

First, let me thank M.J. and J.T. for their interesting  feedback in response to my fish fly blog a while ago.  My blog host has been experiencing problems with "comments," but this morning I see that all is fixed and the comments are showing beneath my blogs as they should.  J.T.'s comment can be read  beneath "Thanks, M.J."  Also, if you scroll way down to the bottom of this page, you'll be able to read all the comments about my blogsite.  Always feel free to add your input to any of my blogs.  I love hearing from you!!!     

Sure is foggy.  My hip does not like this weather one bit.  Would appreciate some cooler weather.  My husband just came in from his morning walk, and he says it's awfully humid and also thundering.  So, we know what's close by. 

Yesterday we had our vehicle serviced, and had to take it in anyway because we had received a recall notice.  Something to do with the transmission.  Our dealer needed to reprogram something or other, and so they did that, changed the oil, checked it's heart and soul, and now we're good to go.  They gave us a loaner car to drive, and it looked good on the outside but was pretty rickety on the highway.  We did manage to drive it far enough to have breakfast and then brought it back with the "gasoline warning light" on.  We didn't want to stick any money into the jalopy, so we were thankful when we parked it back in the lot.  At one point we thought we'd have to coast into the parking lot!

The road we took to the car dealership was being resurfaced, and so we had to sit and wait.  Sit and wait.  And, then a little chickie poo came flying up with the pace car and led us on our way past the orange cones that protected the one side of the highway.  Why is it that it's so difficult for us to sit and wait?  But, we had an 8 a.m. appointment, and we like to be on time. 

Today we're staying put.  I crochet comfort crosses for a local rest home, and they emailed me yesterday to say that they have only three left.  So, I'm gonna get to 'hooking' here and make some more.  My comfort crosses are given to the dying for them to hold for comfort.  My husband's mother was given a soft cross while she was dying--one that the rest home had purchased--so I decided to design my own and simply donate them.  We have tremendous respect for the facility that cared for both of our mothers, and this is my humble form of appreciation.  There is nothing more satisfying than knowing one's parent is in the hands of loving, caring, and respectful people.  And, ours were.

I see rain falling already.  The East Coast is getting hit with scorching temperatures, too.  Typical summer discomforts.  The leaves on the trees are ever so still.  The calm before the storm.  When I was a little girl on the farm, I remember how the cows used to run with their tails up in the air before a storm, and then they'd huddle together beneath a tree.  Isn't it incredible how animals can sense the elements of nature?  Just like when the tsunami hit the Indonesian area, they felt all the animals were okay because they had fled to higher ground.

Gee whiz, the coffee tastes great.  Here's a cha-chink to all my friends who are having a cup right now.  Have a great day no matter what the atmospheric conditions may be where you live.  Looks like I'm gonna busy myself being a hooker!  Ta-ta

Thanks, M.J. !

Gotta tell you about the phone call I got today from M.J..  They had been RVing along the Mighty Mississippi this past week, and she called to respond to my earlier blog where I wondered if fish flies actually served any bona fide purpose.  Well, while she and her husband were relaxing in their lawn chairs, they watched robins and other black-colored birds eating the fish flies, and the robins literally stuffed their beaks so full that the flies hung out of their beaks like little beards.  The black-colored birds jumped off the ground up into the air to trap flying ones in their beaks.  So it is that we have concluded that the short-lived fish flies do actually serve a purpose other than being pesky and terribly messy.  The birds like 'em and will devour 'em, dead or alive.

Just wondering, M.J.,.......did you happen to take photos of the frenzied fish flies flying frightened for freedom while feathered fowl feasted on the fish flies?

Flying High

Have you noticed how playground equipment has changed since we were kids?  We didn't have a swing at our home while growing up, but grampa made us kids a swing out of a wooden plank and rope in the grove beside their house.  It was the coolest thing ever and was a wonderful place to simply go with my favorite boy cousin or all by myself.  I never did like swinging high up in the air like some kids did.  In face, I didn't like anyone pushing me.  Guess I was too chicken and was afraid of flying off and killing myself. 

Nowdays, there are playground sets with colorful slides, swings, ladders, tunnels, bars, and heaven knows what all for the kids to crawl around on and swing from.  The children of today are given equipment to help them with their coordination and balance and all kinds of other skills that weren't even thought about 50+ years ago.  Ours were made simply for fun.  We treasured what we had simply because we had so little.

Remember the merry-go-rounds?  The ones we'd stand on and pump and one side would fly higher than the other?  It had a pole in the middle and simple boards for seats.  For the smaller tots, there was the simple kind that our parents would push to make go around alot slower and safer.  And, then there was the see-saw. 

Water parks are a big thing these days, and I know for sure that I'd never make it going through some of those really long and high ones.  Again, I think there's a chicken inside me somewhere.  I never was too daring in that regard, but rather steered clear of anything that might hurt me.  I know I did get pretty reckless with my bicycle, tho.  Our farm was pretty hilly and so was our driveway, and I can remember taking my bike and going so fast I didn't use the pedals.  My legs would be way out to the side as I went flying down the bumpy gravel.  For me, that was as daring as it got. 

If I had a house with a covered front porch, for sure there'd be a porch swing there.  A porch swing is relaxing and, I don't know, has that southern hospitality feel.  Last year when we spent our vacation in a camping cabin, every morning I'd sit and have my coffee on one.  Our Bichon didn't seem to mind it either.

Growing up when I did, there were no helmets or knee pads for us to fasten onto ourselves.  We took the bumps and bruises and each time we got skinned up, we learned a little bit more on what not to do.  So much of my childhood I spent by myself, sitting on a hillside covered with wildflowers.  I'd sit up there and dream about stuff that little girls dream about, but that's what childhood is all about.  Maybe that's how I learned to think for myself and plan ahead.  From watching and listening to my parents and grandparents, I was made aware of the pitfalls that could possibly be ahead of me and so I carefully thought about that as I grew up.  And, the funny part is that I'm still trying to set the stage for my future years.  Planning for what may lie ahead.  We can't know for sure what that's going to be, but we surely can ready ourselves as best we can.  If someone would ask me what was the best advice my parents ever gave me, I'd have to say it was the way they lived themselves.  Mere example.  Maybe I was easily impressed, but I was impressed just the same.    

Lush Green Morning

Boy, are we getting saturated!  Lotsa rain yesterday and continuing on into today.  We're out back on our patio where we're protected by the roof and screen, and honestly we love rainy days.  Isn't there a song about rainy days and Monday mornings?

We're serving the goldfinches and orioles breakfast beneath our patio eaves.  They're darting back and forth to the feeders and back into the evergreens.  The yellows and oranges look alot brighter on dark, dreary days.  Wonder what it's like to be a bird perched inside a thick blue spruce.  Bet it's cozier than all get out in there. 

Between downpours, our town managed to squeeze in the display of fireworks last night, but the weather watchers advised to start them shortly after 9 o'clock rather than wait till the usual 10 o'clock.  The air was heavy and wet, so we don't think the fireworks were as high up in the sky this year, but pretty nevertheless.  It would have been a shame if they would've had to be canceled, because so many people invest alot of time and effort into them setting up. 

It feels like "the day after."  Hardly any movement in the village.  Am sure families are happy to sleep late and stay indoors out of the rain.  Maybe Our Creator sends us stormy weather simply for that very reason. 

I can't help but wonder what it'd be like to live near a desert where rain is scarce.  It's difficult for me to imagine a world that isn't lush and green in the summertime, like today.  All things with roots in the ground must be very joyful with this big drink they're getting.  And how refreshing it's got to feel for the animals that live in the woods.  We take rain so for granted, and the weather channel is always warning us about rains headed our way, like it's a bad thing.  Ah, contrare.

There are three chipping sparrows munching on the food that the finches drop from their feeders.  They're wearing their brown caps and are so sweet.  Sparrows have a special place in my heart, simply because they're looked upon as unnecessary pests.  To me, all birds are beautiful and serve some purpose in the chain of life, and each is beautiful in its own way. 

We're careful when we take our poochie out in the wooded areas, because eagles and hawks are notorious for swooping down and picking up little animals and flying off with them.  Omigod, could you imagine something like that happening to our little girl.  I'd have to be carted off to a padded cell where my eyes would rain for the rest of my days . 

Bath Time

Happy Independence Day!  Where I live, the sky is dark and heavy, looks like it will open up and give the earth a good old-fashioned bath.  Weather alerts were beeping already yesterday putting our area on flood alerts for the next couple of days.  Wouldn't be surprised if tonight's fireworks would be called off.  Went to bed last night and the sound of fireworks and big booms sang me to sleep.  Someone in town was thinking ahead of the rain and celebrated on the Eve of the 4th.  I think that may have been a very smart idea.

Our little garden wants the rain and is doing its best to produce some peas and beans.  We eat the peas raw mostly and add them to salads.  Summer salads are scruptious, 'specially when the veggies come from one's own soil (or a thoughtful neighbor's soil). 

A few years back a gentleman lived down the street a few houses from us, and he was a top-notch gardener.  He lived alone and had a garden to feed 20.  He'd put tables up in his front yard, lay boxes of vegetables out for sale, and mark them ridiculously low prices.  On the honor system, no less.  He simply left a coffee can out there in which we put our payments.  What a treat that used to be for me, I'd come home from the office and walk down for something yummy to put in a stir fry or whatever we were having for supper.  When the tomatoes ripened, he'd have 5-gallon pails of tomatoes waiting to be carried away.  Once in awhile he'd stick his head out the door and tell me to just take whatever I wanted, that I didn't need to pay him.

Wish we could grow fruit in this climate, like limes and lemons, grapefruit and oranges.  Citrus is my fave, I'd have to say.  And, I need limes for my vodka yummies when cocktail hour arrives!  I like things tart with a bit of zing.  Like Emmerill would say......to kick it up a notch!

A light mist is already starting.  Like my husband said, if the fireworks fizzle out, we'll go to Plan B and have a rain dance!!!  Our neighborhood salutes this wonderful America of ours, with flags flying high.  The weather really doesn't make us much difference.....all that is important is that we are all safe, free, and have the privilege to celebrate any way we choose.

Have a fun-packed day, but be careful and stay safe!

Bing Bing Bing Baseball

Went grocery shopping yesterday, mainly to pick up groceries for the weekend.  I'm so excited for Sunday, which is already tomorrow, because we're having a traditional 4th gathering at our house.  Took my handy dandy coupons along so I'd be sure to save a few bucks, and actually had a relaxing time picking up the things I needed.

I do have to say, tho, that I stopped dead in my tracks when I spotted the bags of bing cherries!  Omigod, they were huge, perfectly ripe, deep burgundy red, and there were no duds in the bag so far as I could tell.  The price didn't impress me one bit, but I thought to heck with the price on this one.  It's a special treat that comes around here only once a year, and I'm gonna have it!  Washed 'em soon as I got home, and they are absolutely to die for. 

The produce shelves this time of year are stacked with nectarines, berries of all kinds, melons, cherries, plums, on and on.  We've not had such good luck with watermelons this year, have to say.  Don't know what that's all about, but some are a light pink inside with no taste.  Just can't eat 'em.  The cantalope, however, have been excellent.  I guess I'm a fruit freak, cuz my daddy loved fruit and it was a staple in our house growing up. 

Also went to a couple of "elite repeat" stores and found myself three pairs of capris pants that fit perfectly and a t-shirt that has never been worn.  Four items for $8.  Ain't bad.  I'm helping our world by recycling, but I'm also living the way I've always lived.  Let somebody else buy the clothes first for big bucks, then I'll buy 'em the second time around for little or nothing.  Their wallet shrinks, and mine doesn't!

We're up fairly early this morning.  We are going to trolley over to a nearby town to a moving sale and then go out for breakfast.  It's not like we need to buy anything at a moving sale, but it's what we enjoy doing.  Never know what we might bring home to change the scenery a bit.  I've kinda gotten to where if I bring something home, then I also get rid of something.  That way I can halfway balance the accumulation around here.  Heaven only knows how much a person can stack up in 43 years!!

I must confess, tho, dear blog, that I think I am going off the deep end.  While in the Good Will Store yesterday, I glommed onto three plastic bagsful of baseball cards.  I held them in my hand thinking there just might be a valuable one in there, so my curiosity won out and I brought 'em home with me.  Yup, 63 years old and I'm sorting a baseball card collection and recording them on a spreadsheet so I know what I have.  Now, is that nuts or what?

Have to say, before yesterday I knew zap about baseball card collecting.  But, today I know names like Fleer, Topps, Upper Deck, Pacific, and Score.  Baseball is one sport that I do enjoy cuz my daddy was quite a ball player when I was a little girl.  One of the cutest pictures of the two of us is when I was two years old and he was holding me in his one arm and his other arm was inside his shirt.  He'd broken his collar bone playing baseball.  But, anyway, this silly new project is a kick, and my goal is to see if I can recoup on eBay more than the $15 I paid for approximately 350 baseball cards. 

There's always something around the corner waiting for us if we go out there seeking a bit of excitement and adventure.  I'm always looking for things to fiddle around with, but I'm gonna have to start being a little careful.  At my age, this adventure of mine could easily be misconstrued as "childish."

A Source for Courage

Our household subscribes to a handful of publications, one of which is"Guideposts."  This 5"x7" put-in-your-purse magazine has proven the test of time, as it started back in the 1940s when it was co-founded by the famed Dr. Norman Vincent Peale.  My husband's mother subscribed to it for years, and many times I found myself curled up in her recliner reading the short stories of inspiration and hope.  The stories are true, written by ordinary people, who share their real-life experiences that grab one's heart and make a person really stop and think.

In the last issue, there's an article about two women who met through http://www.ourprayer.org/.  This is a website that one can log onto anytime, day or night, and make a prayer request.  There are volunteers who then prayer for you.  Two ladies, whose husbands were both experiencing kidney diseases met through this website, emailed each other, compared notes about doctors' advice, what they were going through, and prayed for one another.  One lived in Ohio and the other in Canada.  Both husbands needed kidney transplants and received them within six weeks of one another.  They've now had ten years of friendship, and "Guideposts" shares a picture of the four faithful friends.

I think we need more inspiration the older we get.  Lots of new things pop up in our lives, mostly centered around our health, and it's always comforting to know someone out there truly understands because they're going through the same thing we are.  Having "Guideposts" laying on the coffee table or hearth gives one a quick source for encouragement, which we all need once in awhile.

It's my thought that most human beings have within them the urge to talk to a Higher Force, especially when things go haywire and we feel like the problem is bigger than we are.  My idea of prayer isn't repetition, but rather a good  old  one-on-one with My Creator.  I can pretty darned close and personal with Him sometimes, but so far He hasn't thrown me out of the game.  In fact, I think He likes it when I'm honest and up front with Him.  I've also warned Him that when I meet Him someday, He'd better have some pretty good answers for the questions I've got stored up for Him.

So it is that if you come to my home please feel free to pick up this little magazine if you see it laying here somewhere, and also don't hesitate to read a short story or two, and tear out one of the subscription orders.  Or, you can go to http://www.guideposts.com/.  I just think I'm gonna pour me another cup of coffee now when I finish my blog and re-visit the July issue myself.

2nd Half of 2010 Starts Today

July will be a busy month.  Let's see, today Canada is celebrating its birthday, we're celebrating National Boating Day, and Sunday we celebrate America's birthday.  

Queen Elizabeth is visiting Canada for this year's birthday celebration.  Happy Birthday, Canada, our kindred neighbor.    

Just imagine all the bbq's, picnics, river outings, fireworks, baseball games, parades, flying of flags, roasting of hotdogs and marshmallows, and campouts going on.  Man alive, we have such great memories of going to the river with friends for the weekend when we were young, and when I think of all the stuff we used to drag along with us, I don't know how we did it.  Coolers, tents, clothes, coffee pots, snacks, meat to grill, eggs and bacon for breakfast, sun screen, tanning lotion, sleeping bags, pillows, saws to cut firewood, on and on and on.  We took boats out to a sand bar, floated around on inflatables, and spent the whole weekend in the sun (and sometimes in miserable rain).  Most everyone tried water skiing at one time or other.  Sometimes the sunburns got pretty nasty, but who really cared.  We knew our skin would eventually peel off and heal up.  The food and the booze and the laughter made those years truly unforgettable.  When it came time to go home, we had to pack and load everything up in the boats, then we had to unload it all and re-load it in our vehicles, drive about 50 miles home and unpack everything again.  All we wanted to do was get in the house, take a shower, wash the sand off of our bodies, put on clean clothes, and cozy into cool sheets on a real bed.  When the alarm clock rang the next morning, we were tired but we headed back to the workplace red as beets, satisfied knowing we'd made the most of a few days off.

Needless to say, that same energy is no longer with us.  This 4th we're staying close to home.  Entertaining friends and watching the thousands descend upon our town for the Sunday night fireworks.  We have a local group that organizes and displays a sky full of ooohs and aaahs, and we still oooh and aaah at them.  I can remember as a little girl our family coming to town for the fireworks, and I'd crawl up on the car hood and lean back against the windshield to watch the sky colorfully light up above me.

The booms of firecrackers and cherry bombs and lord knows what other explosives will be echoing over us the next few days.  But, that's what makes America's birthday so special.  Our America resounds its freedoms, its rights, and its privileges.  I feel so incredibly blessed and am so thankful that my ancestors left their native lands in Europe in hopes of improving life for themselves and their children.  So many people went through so much for me to be where I am.
 
As I look out my front window, the trees are swaying, the sun is shining, and life is good.  We bought a new flag for this weekend, and also have two half circle red-white-blue banners on our front porch.  Guess when it comes right down to it, my heart and soul keep patriotism at the top of my priority list right next to spirituality.
 
America, you are so beautiful!  And, Canada, you are such a good neighbor to us!