~ Kind of Random ~

Sometimes when reading, you come across something that just makes you pause, think about and read it again and then maybe again.

The below excerpt is from an article in a magazine that came to our office by accident, and it gave me that moment … it may not ever make it any easier having a loved one or friend go through a hard illness, of even if I may someday have to go through a hard illness myself, but it is something, I hope I will remember always.

“…. Divine retirement. That’s how my father-in-law, Howard Martin, referred to dying. “It’s just a transition from here … to There,” he’d say. He made that transition May 11th after 4 ½ years of cancer slowing taking him away. As caregivers, Bill and I had our share of anger with God. Why would this wonderful Christian man have to suffer? Howard would say it was the closest a human could ever get to understanding what Jesus went through on Earth. …” “A Revelation on Old Hickory Lake by Christy Martin” emphasis added


The bold/italicized parts are what stuck with me.

We are doing a Beth Moore study on Revelations at Church now; and she talked a good little bit about John, the beloved disciple; and how he was the last of the disciples alive at the time and how he … (I think this is how she worded it …) had not had the opportunity to honor and glorify God through his death like so many of the other disciples had, i.e., beheaded, hung, hung upside down, etc., in other words, killed because of their beliefs and love of our Lord.

There. I will just end it here. Because these things … above … have been good for me to hear and ponder on this week. I hope they are good for you too.

After re-reading the above, it sounds like I have had death on my mind, but I haven't. I have had life on my mind.

That’s all I got.

~ Beach Photos ~

Five days at the beach - it was nice = the weather was awesome and we had a very relaxing time.

This was where I hung out most of the time .....





This is our only couple photo from the beach ... I haven't quite got the hang of self photos ...






I watched this little crab dig a hole, he was a little worker bee! Isn't he cute! Well, since it was working so hard, it is probably a female!





See his work! double click ...







This little seagull kept posing ... so I snapped away ... I have way too many photos of this darn bird!




This one put on a show of his hunting skills ... kind of gross, but I couldn't stop myself from taking these photos .... double click again ...
























And these I just liked ... double click again ...



































And what are beach photos without the sunset photos??? double click again ...
























That's all. Well, actually there were a whole lot more, but that's all I will share, don't won't to bore you all too much!


Well, just two more ....

From the bottom step of the deck .... nice.


From the deck ...





It really was a very pretty five days at the beach!

~ An excerpt from my beach read ~

I don't know why but I always enjoy reading something just a little bit smutty while I am at the beach .... ~.~ I loved my beach read this time - I thought this was an interesting comparison ... what do y'all think? '-'

"A man who makes soup for you has to be fantastic in the sack. ..."

" ... Think about it. Soup takes time. It takes patience. It takes attention to detail. A man who makes soup knows how the take his sweet time with things. He uses the right ingredients, and he whisks in the seasonings with the the right flick of the wrist. Then, and only then, he turns up the heat to finish things off. Bring matters to a simmer. And you know about good soup right, the longer it takes, the better is taste."

Savannah Blues by Mary Kay Andrews

Does your man make you soup? G makes two kinds, vegetable beef and white chili, both homemade with lots of chopping and sauteing involved ... both are awesome. Just saying.

~ Evening Meals ~

I've learned ... the evening meal with my mom is an "event". I have gotten so used to doing everything on the run or in front of the TV and never sitting back and just enjoying the "evening meal" without all the extra background noise - it seems odd but refreshing to sit down to a meal with my mother and husband when she is here; or mother and sister when I am there and just have a meal and visit, sometimes we are at that table for almost two hours.

I haven't gotten to the point that I want to have this "event" every night, but sharing it with my Mom when we are together is nice.

~ Sometimes Dreams are Cruel ~

I am on a float in river, tied off to a boat. People fishing from the boat and a young boy hooked a giant size otter and reeled it in; as it was being reeled in past me, I looked into it’s bright blue eyes and told it how sorry I was that it had been hooked and how sorry I was they were not going to let it loose; the otter looked back at me with sad eyes and said that was okay, it just hoped they went ahead and finished him off if they were just going to let him die anyway.

*Flash forward a storm is coming up on the water causing huge waves, the boat takes off with me still on the raft and we are being tossed everywhere with waves as tall as buildings crashing all around us. I think they have forgotten I am on a raft tied to the boat, so I just hang on as well as I can.

*Flash forward and the boat turns into a car and I am in the backseat, we are crashing off a wave onto an interstate highway filled with 18 wheeler trucks, we are having to swerve in and out before our car finally levels out.

I wake up I am in the back seat of my parents car and I think I am dreaming, I look around and rub my arms realize I am not dreaming - this is real. I ask Mom where we are going, she never answers and then I look over and Dad is driving and staring straight ahead, it takes me a second, but then I remember, wait, Dad is gone, died last year, I start calling Dad? Dad? Daddy?!? DADDY DADDY !!!! he never turns toward me and then his faces starts to distort and not look like him anymore.

Then I am sobbing, hard body shaking tears and Gary is rubbing my arm, asking me whats wrong and telling me its okay, its okay, I am still crying and I realize its 5:38 AM August 28, 2010, I am in my own bed, my Dad has been gone for 9 months and 20 days and I feel like I have just found out he died.

~ LANDSCAPE 2 ART CLASS ~

So, I have been taking a landscape class at the art musuem, its been fun, I like the teacher, we have one class left and then I am taking a break from classes. I am going to try it without teaching for a while and see how I do ....

We'll see!

2nd painting started 4th night ....




























Almost finished 5th night .....



























I have one class left; its been fun, but I am ready for it to be over.

~ LANDSCAPE 1 ART CLASS ~

1ST CLASS


























2ND CLASS













































3RD CLASS - FINAL
LANDSCAPE FROM BIG SPRING PARK

~ a senior moment ~

Double-click on image to read better. :)

~ Isaac, Stephanie and Allison ~

Allison...



and family ....







It was fun.

~ A day ~

Here is the scenerio: Work had been crazy; stressed to the max, sat at my desk in the privacy of my office and squalled like a crazy woman for 10 minutes today from the pressure; note: crying really does relieve some stress; managed to leave on time for the first time in about 2 weeks; plus, I have been away from home for 4 days; husband and 3 dogs alone in house for 4 days - yes its going to be messy; out of dog food; out of human food; stopped at grocery store on way home from work - husband said left over pizza in fridge so don't have to cook ... then when you are about 8 minutes away from home, husband calls and says ... oh Zach (20 year old stepson) and his new girlfriend are coming for dinner, but we should have plenty of left over pizza .... uh yeah right, I am going to serve left over pizza to company; so back to grocery store, rush home, try to clean messy house, put a decent dinner on; oh and the bathroom ... well, I just won't go there, but yes, had to clean it too, they show up early; dinner is late, but pretty good, and I am beat! Clothes are still in suit case unpacked, still lots to do, but I have decided to hang up my wonder woman outfit for the day and go to bed.

Can any of you identify?

~ House/teen sitting ~

Staying at my employer's home again, watching his teenagers and his home ... basically all I do with the teens are keep tabs on who they are with and where they are - they are good kids - and they are pretty self-reliant - which is good.

Last night I set their burglar alarm off at around 11:30 PM and most likely woke the neighborhood up! Argh! Also, earlier in the day I went upstairs to their "playroom" to figure out what the loud noises were and it looked like a blizzard had hit - they decided it would be a great time to tear out the stuffing of a huge bean bag chair and take turns jumping into the pile - there is white fluff everywhere. All I could see of one of them was the top of their head sticking up through the fluff.

They have assured me they were cleaning it up themselves ....

~ 2nd night class ~

My cell phone take crappy photos, or maybe its the photographer ... anyway here is my second night class results ... still not finished but is looking a little better.




Maybe I will bring my real camera next time.

~ A short and random Photo Blog ~

I love this woman. I love her so much. Even if she does read too much when she comes to visit me. I still just absolutely adoringly love this wonderful awesome woman. My mother by the way.





This is a face only a mother could love, and that's me, I'm her mother. Sweet baby Maggie! Isn't she adorable!






And, I did a little painting for a friend ... not really happy with it, but it was fun.



And this is the 1st phase of my landscape painting class at the museum ... green blobs ... supposed to be a section of Big Spring Park as seen from the doorway of the musuem classroom .... we'll see ....

~ wedding of a friend ~

So, I helped a friend with her wedding this past weekend, did a little decorating, a little photographing, and just a little friend time ...













It was a sweet wedding, for a sweet couple, a sweet beginning ... ahhh love ... isn't it grand!

~ In case any of you were wondering where I stood on this ... ~

My favorite ...



Thankfully, I do not have this problem ...

Love this one!

arghh ....

All courtesy of an email I received today!

~ I like lists ~

(borrowed from another blog ... )

Feel free to play along!

I am…. goofing off at work
I think…. I stressed my fish by changing its bowl today
I should…. try to get all of my ironing done tonight
I dream…. of going on a tropical vacation ... soon
I want…. to go spend a long weekend with my friend Pam soon
I know…. who my Redeemer is ...
I don’t like…. nosey annoying people
I smell…. nothing. nope *sniff* *sniff* nothing. whats up with that!
I hear…. the radio
I fear…. for someone dear to me with problems to overcome
I usually…. chat with my Mom everyday
I search…. for the good in people
I miss…. my Father
I always…. sit in the same spot on the couch
I regret…. hmmmm what shall I choose, what shall I choose ...
not finishing college. There.
I wonder…. how much my dogs understand when I talk to them
I crave…. originality in my art oh, and other areas too I guess.
I remember…. a fun day in the past.
I need…. a pedicure - really bad!
I forget…. to take my Nexium daily
I feel…. blessed
I can…. love even when disappointed
I can’t…. seem to build up my IRA
I am happy…. most of the time
I lose…. my voice easier than before my last surgery
I sing…. not as good as I used to
I listen…. to books on tape more than the radio
I shop…. too much. There I admitted it.
I eat…. out too much
I love…. my husband, my children, my family, my friends, my animals, my Lord,
and the list goes on ...
I wish…. I could magically lose the weight I need to without trying real hard!

~ No time ~

I have things wondering through my head all the time that I might like to blog about; even form the words to say, but I never seem to have the time when I have the thoughts to blog, and I never seem to have the thoughts, when I am the time to blog .... Y'all have really missed out!!! (~.~)

So, anyway, here is a question for Going Goofy ... see the photo below; I was playing with my photos the other day and was wanting to attempt to do a photo collage with different exposures or color .... any suggestions? Really should have limited it to four also ... There is a famous photograph or photographer who did or does this isn't there ?????

Help.

This breaks my heart ...

... and we haven't even seen the worst yet


Breitbart.tv » Lots of sharks, lots of oil seen off Alabama Coast

~ Butterfly Sitter Needed ~

I have a friend who is going out of town for a few days. We were emailing each other about trip planning, etc., and she added, other than having to board her dog, she is trying to find a butterfly sitter because she has 3 monarchs which will be "hatching" (my term - not hers, and I am sure that is the wrong terminology for this ... ) while she is gone and someone will need to be there to release them ... She has a butterfly garden and several butterfly houses. If she didn't live so far away, I think I could handle that job. A butterfly sitter! It even sounds fun.

~ I missed my vacation ! ~

We were supposed to go to Seagrove Beach from May 28 through June 6 and we missed it. We actually had to cancel. My doctor was going out of town for 3 weeks and wanted to see me before he left ... the week I was supposed to be on vacation ... and even had me scheduled for surgery - just in case - which Praise the Lord I didn't need! BUT since it was unknown at the time and I knew I couldn't take vacation for a week and then be out due to surgery for the next week consecutively without my employer going ballistic .... sooooo we cancelled our vacation :( And now we probably will not be able to reschedule until September because of other summer commitments; and by then the oil will have most likely taken over the beaches of Sea Grove - BP is really on my hit list!

My whole summer feels off now - we always take Mem week for vacation and now I have the whole long summer staring me in the face - its kind of depressing missing your vacation. Blah!