Mini Vacation to the Dismals in Alabama Part 1

Not that I long for the ‘good old days’ but there are just some things that we should all hang on to, such as traveling for little short trips with the family. When I was growing up Daddy was always spraying the cotton fields from early spring till fall so it was up to Mom to take me and my sister for little mini vacations during the summer months.

With the Labor Day long weekend looming, my husband and I decided to take our daughters for a short jaunt over into Alabama to a few choice places. Our oldest daughter plans on majoring in History so she requested places that have historical significance.

Getting into the big white people mover is like crawling into a time warp because of the music I like to listen to. An eclectic mix of tunes from the 50’s to the 80’s are pretty much what any traveling hostage has to listen to when traveling with me. We loaded the van with our bags and a cooler of bottled water plus an extra cooler for food as we wanted to picnic as much as we could. A quick trip to the grocery for fresh fruit and veggies and all the sandwich fixins’ and ice was all we needed to get started on our weekend adventure.

Our first stop was The Dismals located near Hamilton and Phil Campbell. The Dismals is a privately owned geological landmark where you step back in time when the earth was clean and water ran clear. The area is not commercially developed or cheesy. It’s a 1.5 mile nature trail down in a sandstone canyon and despite the "dismal" sounding name, this canyon offers a quiet and unspoiled oasis as Alabama’s last secret hiding place. It's a place of seclusion far off the beaten path with steep moss-covered rock walls, waterfalls, an icy stream, and flora and fauna indigenous to it alone. It's a place shrouded in mystery and in history. There are no flies or mosquitoes or poison ivy. There are trees growing deep in that canyon that are over 350 years old.
We hiked the Dismals for nearly 3 hours and then left to go and see the Natural Bridge. It’s a 148 foot span of sandstone and iron ore that rises 60 ft. off the floor of the forest below. It is truly a wonder of God’s creation. The winding hiking paths took us up and down some pretty rugged terrain and we all decided that we needed to be part mountain goat. Ferns were growing out of crevices in the huge boulders and on the sheer canyon walls. It started raining and we just kept hiking. The sound of the rain coming through the leaves was soothing. We really didn’t mind getting wet. The Natural Bridge is privately owned and the owners have left this area as unspoiled and untouched as possible. Its truly a nature conservatory.
Before heading back to the Dismals for the night hike to see the Dismalites we stopped for dinner at the A&W. Now that was a real step back into time. The little diner was so 1950’s and 60’s. We washed our burgers and fries down with real draught root beer floats served up in frosty glass mugs that A & W is so famous for. We returned to Dismals and sat and waited for darkness so we could go back down into the canyon to see the real stars of the Dismals. Dismalites are the glowing worms that infest the canyon walls. These have been known to swarm forth and skeletonize unsuspecting hikers in seconds. Just joking, of course. The worms only eat the brains of their victims.
No, really, there are glowing worms in the Dismals, though they're actually harmless (as far as we know). The worms are colloquially known as the "Dismalites," and they only exist in a couple of other pockets on the planet, and nowhere else in North America. "Dismalite" is a much better moniker than the critter's actual name, which is "fungus gnat" (or Arachnocampa luminosa). The tiny worms are the larval stage of the gnat, and they glow in order to attract other mites and flies to capture and eat.
Darkness fell out there in the Alabama woods and our tour guide David appeared. He was this tall burly stereotypical biker type of guy with lots of tattoos on his arms and a skull and crossbones do-rag on his head along with the black jeans and muscle t-shirt. He took the first group down the path to the caves where the little worms were. We were in the second group. It was hard enough in the day light negotiating the rough twisting and turn paths, now I was doing it with a flash light! We made our way to the caves and turned off the flash lights and the mossy walls started glowing. There were little points of bluish light here and there like little stars in the black night sky. I could not help but think about the Native Americans that used to live within those stone caves and what they must have thought the first time they saw those little points of light.
We made it back to our motel room in Hamilton after 10pm and we were all very tired. My legs were aching from all the climbing and hiking. As a family we had a great first day of a mini-vacation. We learned a lot of interesting historical facts, heard a lot of folk lore that was based on fact and most of all we learned that Nature can live without man but man cannot live without nature.
You can contact me at hallowed_grounds2633@yahoo.com.

It has been a year since my grandmother called my name.

For 14 nights I sat by her side, talking to her and reading to her and singing. The nurses kept telling me she couldn’t hear me but I would see a tear roll down her soft wrinkled cheek every so often when I would read something I knew she liked. I was there when she drew her last breath. Let me tell you about my grandmother, Earlene Brown Tedford Alexander.

There will never be another Earlene. If ever there was a woman that was proud as a peacock, that would be Earlene. She was always dressed up. When other grandmothers would put on some tennis shoes or other type of sensible shoe, here would come my Mamaw, trotting out in her pumps with that purse slung on that arm. It’s a wonder in all of her 92 years that she didn’t fall and break a bone. The only bone that I do know that she broke was when she hugged one of her nephews a bit too hard and she popped a rib. I thought it was a freak thing that happened until the same thing happened to me a few years later!

My memories of Mamaw are varied. She could make a mean chocolate ‘gravy’ for my breakfast biscuit.

She always doubled up on my name. Vonda Anne always came out as VonDan. I can hear her saying it now. ‘VonDan!, come here and give Mamaw a hug.’. Then it was time for THE KISS. There was never an escape. You were going to get THE KISS.

Through the years I would go and see Mamaw and eat with her. She would make some homemade tomato soup so loaded with hot chow-chow, that you would need a fire extinguisher to cool you down. I could not drink enough tea to cool that heat. Years later she tried to remember her recipe but age had taken that memory.

In the last few years of her life I would go and get her and she would sit and help me peel cucumbers to make pickles or peel tomatoes for canning. Then she would fuss at me and tell me I ought to be ashamed of myself for making an old woman work like that. She didn’t turn down those pickles when they were ready to eat though. “VonDan! Bring me a jar of those pickle we made.”

A few days before she died, she told me she just wasn’t hungry anymore. When I asked her what she thought would taste good, she smiled at me and said a banana split would hit the spot. The next day I packed my cooler full of ice and made a trip to the Sonic and bought a banana split. I took it to the nursing home and when I walked in her room, she was lying on her bed taking a nap. I set the dish on the table and called her name. When she opened those blue eyes and saw that banana split she sat up and clapped her hands. “Ooo! VonDan! I can’t eat that whole thing!” I produced two spoons and we attacked that ice cream like a couple of little kids. She smacked her lips and ate that ice cream with relish. She looked at me and grinned and let out the most unladylike belch! We had the best visit over that one banana split.

When I left her that afternoon, she pointed to the red hat I had given her for her birthday. She had called me one afternoon and told me about a ‘hat contest’ at the nursing home. She wanted to win it more than anything. “VonDan, can you find me a hat? I want a fancy one so I can win this contest.” So I found her a red hat with feathers. She won and she was so proud of that hat. She told me to take it home because she wasn’t going to get to wear it again. She wasn’t going to take no for an answer so I left with the hat.

I can still see her sitting there, head cocked to one side, snow white hair and those ice blue eyes magnified by her glasses, smiling at me. “VonDan, when are you coming back to see me?” Tomorrow Mamaw. I’ll be back tomorrow. She slipped into a coma that night.

It’s been a year since my grandmother said my name.

Hummingbirds

I marvel at God’s creation on a daily basis. Hummingbirds are just an example of God’s work that is truly a wonder. I don’t have a birdfeeder but my neighbors do and those little balls of fluff are really buzzing at the moment. Mom and I have a lot of Lantana that is in full bloom now and those flowers are just covered with the hummers as they are getting ready for the big migration south.
In preparation for the big migration, they make sure they pack themselves full of nectar and insects. Those small birds have to be strong to make such a long flight. Even though hummingbirds are tiny, they have huge appetites. Hummingbirds consume between 3.14 and 7.6 calories a day. That may not seem like much, but if humans (who may eat 3,500 calories a day) had the metabolism of a hummingbird, they would have to consume approximately 155,000 calories a day. That’s about 77 times as much as most humans eat! The hummingbirds’ need for lots of calories is because of their high heart rate and small body size.
Also, when hummingbirds make this incredible journey, they prefer to travel alone. Unlike geese or ducks, traveling in large groups doesn’t increase their chances of survival. Only one bird can feed off of a flower at a time, so waiting for every bird to feed would be a hassle and waste precious time. Also, hummingbirds are so small that predators usually ignore them, so traveling in large groups offers no extra protection. Just because hummers travel alone, however, does not mean that you will not see more than one hummingbird at a time; after all, several may be traveling at the same time and cross paths on their journeys.
They typically travel during the day and rest up at night, except in special situations like that of the ruby-throated hummingbird, which travels over the Gulf of Mexico. It takes more than one day for them to make it across, so the birds must fly through the night until land is reached. Their journey from North America to Mexico typically takes them 2 weeks.
A couple of years ago I was going through ‘painters block’. That is sort of like writers block only with a paint brush. I wanted to paint but nothing was grabbing my attention. I was watching a huge garden spider repairing its amazing web when suddenly a ruby throated hummer flew right into the center of it. It was no match for the web and got all tangled in it. As it struggled to fly with the sticky web coating its feathers it crashed into the side of my house and fell right below the clothes dryer vent. The poor little thing was now covered in dryer lint. It was trying to fly and losing the battle. I then noticed Duchess, my old queen cat, crouching into her predator stance. I was not about to have that little guy become lunch for the kitty so I went over and gently picked him up praying the whole time that he would not peck me.
It was like picking up a cotton ball. He looked at me with his little black eyes and I was looking at that wicked sharp beak. I just knew that I was going to be stabbed. My daughter Erin ran and got some sugar water as I gently pulled the spider’s web off of him and picked the lint off his little body. I dipped my finger in it and held a drop of it in front of his beak and he licked it off! As soon as I finished cleaning him, he jumped on my arm and hopped up to my shoulder. There he sat while I held the sugar water up and he lapped it up. Then he hummed for me! Suddenly he flew away into the trees and then turned around and came back and hovered in my face and hummed again. I think he was saying thank you. At any rate, I went to my drawing board and started drawing hummingbirds. I created several paintings over the next few days of tiny ruby throated hummers. It has become my second favorite bird to draw.
I still sit outside early in the morning before the heat gets to me and watch the hummers as they flit about and every now and then one will hover in my face and hum. I have to wonder if it is the same one that I saved that day. He was sent to me to inspire me to paint. God’s inspiration can be found anywhere one looks; it’s even in spider webs and hummingbirds

Blogging about tea

Blogging from East Bruce

With apologies to Daniel D. Emment who wrote Dixie land in 1859 for a minstrel show as a joke

Oh I wish I lived in the land of Lipton, sweet iced tea is always ready,
Drink it up, drink it up, drink it up Lipton tea!

When a Southerner leaves our little universe, we discover the awful truth about the world outside of dear old Dixie.
You can’t find a proper glass of sweet iced tea! You might order a glass of sweet of tea but chances are what you get will not even resemble that sweet concoction that we were all weaned on. Tea in any other part of the world is not the same. The other evening I was squalling through Steele Magnolias for the umpteenth time and Dolly Parton’s character Truvey called those glasses of sweet tea she was serving “the house wine of the South”. And she wasn’t woofing.

Drinking sweet iced tea is one of the most traditional things about a Southern meal. There is an art to brewing that clear orangey reddish liquid we cherish so much; seven or eight of the small tea bags have hot (not quite boiling) water poured on them along with a cup plus a smidgin more of sugar. Then when it reaches just the right color its diluted to the one and only gallon pitcher whose only purpose in life is to pour the nectar of the gods into a tall glass that is packed full of crystal clear ice.

In the south when we say sweet tea, we mean sweet . I read somewhere (don’t try and pin me down where, I read a lot of stuff!) that Southern sweet tea is twice as sweet as a can of ‘Co-Cola’. I find that hard to believe but there are some ‘nutritional scientists’ out there that swear it’s so. But hey, look at the other sweet stuff we love to eat! We Southerners have a hankering for pecan pie and pralines and sweet potato pie and sweet potato compote, and mint juleps. Oops, did I say Mint Juleps?! Why shut my mouth! Now there’s a classic Southern cocktail if you consider Kentucky as southern too.

Maybe our fascination with sweet tea is with the ice. After all it does get hotter than blue blazes down here and there is nothing more refreshing and hospitable than sweet tea poured over ice. I love to hear the ice crackle as the warm sweet tea pours over it. I smack my lips in anticipation of the sweet treat! And don’t go and try and to sneak in instant tea and pass it off as the real deal. A true Southerner can tell the difference. Tea does not have foam on the top!

My oldest daughter Ariel and I had the opportunity to travel to Washington DC a couple of summers ago. She attended a youth leadership conference and I was taking summer classes at Washington Theological Union. For two weeks she and I attended our classes and communicated each evening by cell phone. As we would recount the days events the one common thing that we both noted was, we were starving. Both of us were longing for good ole white Wonder Bread and a tall glass of sweet iced tea. Oh, I could order the tea and get a glass of tea with a few cubes of ice in it and pack of sugar. That was not going to cut it. The little deli I ate at daily finally took pity on me. They called me Mississippi. ‘Hey Mississippi! Show us how you make tea way down there in the South.” So I did. I showed them how to pack that glass full of ice and just how sweet tea should be and how make a proper tomato sandwich. As they sampled my humble creations I saw them smile. The next day as I headed toward the metro for my trip into the city I noticed a new sign on their menu. New Items! Southern Sweet Iced tea and Tomato Sandwiches. Food and Sweet tea….the universal language.

Food For Thought

Now here’s some ‘food’ for thought. When is the last time you and your family sat down at the dinner table and had a real meal together? Oh you know the kind of meal I’m talking about….Remember when we were kids and we would be outside playing or working in the yard. Mom was busy in the kitchen whipping up those mashed potatoes, boiling the ears of sweet summer corn and black-eyed peas, pulling that big black skillet filled with cornbread out of the hot oven and serving it all with slices of garden fresh tomato and chunks of onion and of course the tall glass of sweet iced tea. Mom stuck her head out the door and yelled ‘Supper!’ and we came running! After a trip to the kitchen sink to wash our hands everyone sat around the dinner table and enjoyed that meal. Now I grant you this might have only been a couple of days out of the week and Sunday was one of those days, but it was a good time for the family.

Fast forward a couple of decades and now what is a family meal like? Jump in the car and go to Sonic or Subway, grab the bag with the sandwich, go home, plop in front of the TV and watch ‘Are you Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?’. Breakfast might be the kids are strapped in the backseat and mom tosses an oatmeal bar at them while she is gulping down the diet soda as she frantically drops them off at school on her way to work.

Our lifestyle today is not conducive to family meals and that is so sad. Just because Mom is at the ball field with the kids during a game and Dad drives up and they grab a burger at the concession stand, does not qualify as a sit down meal together. Some kids today don’t know how to conduct themselves in a dinner situation. They take calls on the phone, they don’t know how to pass food or even pass the salt and pepper (they are married and never go anywhere without the other) and they don’t know how to have a conversation around the table. The dinner table is where a family builds its identity and culture. Legends are passed down, jokes rendered, eventually the wider world examined through the lens of a family's values. Younger kids pick up vocabulary and a sense of how conversation is structured. They hear how a problem is solved, learn to listen to other people's concerns and respect their tastes. A meal is about sharing. So pull up some chairs. Lose the TV. Let the phone go unanswered. See where the moment takes you. Bon Appetit!

Food Pantry and Goofy politicians

Saturday was hot and I and few of my Methodist brothers and sisters were right out there in the oppressive heat sweating off a few gallons of water. No, we were not exercising, at least not in that sense of the word. We were giving out food boxes at the Our Daily Bread Food Pantry. The morning began around 10:30 when my husband and I arrived at the parking lot to start checking off the names of the people that were lining up and give the pickup ticket according to how many family’s boxes they are there to get. Bro. John Foster set up his tent for the cool water station while trying to get people lined up neatly. I had a bag of ice draped around my neck and wore a huge hat. It made the heat a bit more tolerable. The good folks from Louis Memorial had the assembly line going and in one hour we had given out 206 boxes. At times it’s a lot like herding cats.

The Food Pantry gives out food once a month to those in need. Pray about it and then come help us in anyway you can. You will sweat in the summer and freeze in the winter but in your heart, you know you are doing the work of the Lord.

Later I ventured out to go listen to some political speeches and to stump for my dear friend Mabel Murphree who is running for Public Service Commissioner of the Northern District on the Republican ticket. I heard some good speeches and some that made me stop and go HUH!? One such speech maker said he doesn’t believe in the ‘Toyota Way’ referring to the coming Toyota Car Plant in Union County. After listening to this candidate I think he is sadly misinformed about what the term ‘Toyota Way’ means as well as not understanding the Japanese culture.

Listening and learning are key principles to Toyota, that and a desire for continuous improvement. The Toyota executives came to North Mississippi and they saw a potential workforce of hardworking people that desire to have an education and good jobs and they saw that our culture and people are not that different from theirs. Toyota saw our potential folks! How long has Mississippi been the front page whipping post for America? How long has Mississippi been ridiculed for being ignorant and backwards? How long have we been laughed at because we talk with a southern drawl and since we talk slow, we must be slow thinkers? Now is our chance to show America and the world that we are not dullards. I am glad that there are visionary people in the PUL Alliance. They worked hard to make this plant happen. I am proud of Gov. Haley Barbour for going to Japan and meeting with Toyota and getting us this plant.

I think I can safely assume that most people haven’t traveled to Japan. I have and I have friends there and when they travel to the US they come to Mississippi. It is a beautiful country and they hold their traditions close to their hearts just as we do. They love their children, just as we do. They have extremely strong family connections and take care of their own, just as we do. They also have one the strongest educational and work ethics of any country I know, probably more so than we do. So, Mr. Candidate, before you go and start bashing the ‘Toyota Way’, read and listen and then make an informed decision. I, for one will be talking to people and I will cast my vote for the candidate that understands what that term means. The polls open at 7 AM on Tuesday August 7th. That’s my 54th birthday and I can think of no better way to celebrate the day than to work at the polls and to cast my vote.

Be Prepared

You can collect almost anything these days. The Franklin Mint makes a mint selling everything from replicas of antique cars to porcelain scenes from “Gone With the Wind.” Well, I have a collection of my own: Umbrellas! I must have gone through about 20 of them and I think there are 5 at home. I have several with the Velcro closure. I have one with the snap closure. I have one with a silver button. I have one with Mickey Mouse. I have one that looks like a sunflower and one that looks like a Monet painting. It all depends on where I was when the thunderstorm hit. And every time it happens, I tell myself, I’m not going to buy another one, and then I’ll be out shopping somewhere and it starts pouring down rain so I give in and buy another one. And then, a week or two later, when the weatherman is predicting rain, I forget one of the ones that I already have and go out of the house without one. So what I’m about to say falls under the category of “Do as I say, not as I do.” Because I do exactly what Jesus tells us NOT to do in today’s gospel. I end up not being prepared. And I get soaked. I sometimes think I’m single-handedly keeping the umbrella industry afloat. But Christ today tells us something every Boy Scout knows by heart. Be prepared. Be like the servant who is awaiting the master’s return. Have the lamps lit. Be at the door, ready to greet him. Be prepared. There is an almost anxious tone to this gospel – and I suspect we often think of it in terms of the second coming, or the last judgment. Be prepared for Christ’s return, and to have to give an accounting of your life. Be prepared to be judged. That is part of it. But I’d like to suggest another way of approaching this passage. One more hopeful. Because this particular gospel is not about an ending…but a beginning. Be prepared…for something wonderful. Be prepared for God to come into your life. Be prepared to open the door to Christ…and let him in, and to serve him. In a way, this gospel is nothing less than a profound parable about the vocation to the Christian life. We are all called. Each of us has a vocation, a calling to fulfill for God. But are we able to answer it? Are we listening for it? Are we prepared? Are we ready for whatever God wants us to do with our lives? Are we looking for Him, anticipating Him? Are we ready to give Him what He wants and needs – our time, our talent, even perhaps our lives? I think it’s misguided to think of this as just referring to material wealth. After all, Christ had earlier told his disciples that life does not consist of possessions. No, I think this passage goes deeper. What we have been entrusted with can’t be measured in dollars, or kept in a bank. You can’t stash it away in a safe deposit box or a trust fund.We have been entrusted with something better, the most monumental gift: our faith. The letter to the Hebrews puts it so eloquently that faith “is the realization of what is hoped for, and evidence of things not seen.” It is something beautiful and mysterious. And it is ours. Our Catholic Christian faith has withstood two millennia of persecution and denial and doubt. And it has been passed on to us – the deposit of faith, and all the sacraments. In short: we have been entrusted with much. And much will be required. You can never know when God might come to your door, asking you to give something back. Be prepared. Be prepared to feed the hungry, or shelter the homeless. Be prepared to listen to a child who is hurting…or comfort a friend who is lonely…or say a prayer for a stranger in intensive care. Be prepared to stand up for those who have no one to stand up for them. The weak, the frightened, the old, the unborn. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much. And still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more. Look around you at the faith that has been handed to us. And look before you, to the tabernacle, where the Eucharist, Christ himself, waits for us. And look to the altar, where the greatest mystery of our faith is about to unfold. We have been entrusted with everything. What will we do with that? This morning, we pray to be ready whenever God comes, for whatever He may ask us to do. Light the lamp. Wait by the door. Be prepared. Be prepared for something wonderful. And of course…if you don’t remember anything else I’ve told you this morning, please remember this: Don’t leave home without your umbrella.

voting and VoTech high schools

Sundancer is into day 6 and coming toward the finish line. So far the stats show they are coming in at number 1. These kids have worked their bums off on this project. They are awesome and their teachers are to be commended for the dedication shown . Good Luck Sundancers

I can't wait to see tomorrows results.

voting and VoTech high schools

Whoa, signs, signs.Everywhere a sign.Blockin' out the scen'ry.Breakin' my mind.Do this. Don't do that.Can't you read the signs? The lyrics to that song from the 70’s goes through my mind these days as I see all of these political signs across the landscape. Everywhere you turn there are signs. Big ones, little ones, red ones, blue ones, bright green and some with pictures are popping up faster than weeds. Years ago when I worked in an ad agency, we just thrived on election years. It meant fast and furious work trying to get each and every political hopeful just the right design for his or her campaign. It was tough trying to make sure each one was different and eye catching and would get the message across. One political race I am watching with interest is the Superintendent of Education for Calhoun County. I chose to homeschool my daughters. My oldest decided she wanted to go to BHS last year and I am proud to say I was a pretty good teacher and she was a great student because she made the transition well is now a rising senior and university bound in ‘08. I home schooled for several reasons and most of those reasons had to do with curriculum. There needs to be much higher standards for our students so that they can be fully prepared for colleges and universities. I dare say that if Rip Van Winkle woke up today he would see that there really hasn’t been too much in change in the Mississippi curriculum over the years. Oh, there are new updated textbooks every so often, but are there enough for all the students? Is what they are learning actually going to help them make a high score on the college entrance exams or just look good on paper so it looks like no child is left behind? Are they all going to have to take remedial classes that first year of college or can they jump in with both feet and make the grade? Not all students are college or university material. There are many that just don’t want to or can’t go on to college. They want or need to get out into the world and get a job. So for those kids, Calhoun County needs a Vocational High School. I think one of the shining examples of a great Vocational High School is at Houston. Those kids have built a solar car and they have won the Dell Solar Car Challenge race years in a row. They are committed and invested to that program. I wonder what those students have gone on and done with their educational lives after they graduated from Houston High? My family and I drove over to Houston last week to see the solar cars as they came through Houston on their race to New York state. It was amazing to see that there are four Mississippi schools competing this year. We watched those kids as they got those cars ready and positioned in the sunlight to recharge the batteries. They were very professional and scientific and you could tell they knew their stuff. The support of the community was evident also. A Vocational High School in Calhoun County is something that we need to support. Students need the option of going to school to learn a trade or going to school to prepare for college. How on earth do you think they would ever compete for a good paying job in the coming Toyota plant? Have you tried to find a plumber lately? How about an electrician? Or a good mechanic? A good vocational program can teach the basics for so many professions. Carpentry, electrical, plumbing, appliance repair, automotive…..there are so many areas in which kids could get hands-on training so that they could actually be qualified for a job at graduation. The drop out rate would decrease. I urge everyone to talk at length with the candidates and find out where they stand. Then get out and vote on August the 7th. One vote can make the difference for the educational future of our children.

Sundancer is on the move!

Sundancer is out of the gate! They left early Monday morning for the road trip. Man I am envious of these kids. In a good way! This is the most wonderful opportunity for them. Years from now they will look back at all of this and I hope they will be proud of their acomplishments.

This is the view I have gotten of Sundancer as it boogies down the highway!

Blogging on Friday the 13

Blogging from East Bruce

Vonda Tedford Keon

Do you know anyone who is so paralyzed by fear that they won’t stick their head out of the door on Friday the 13th? I read that a study was done by the Stress Management and Phobia Institute and they concluded that 17 million people are affected by Friday the 13th. I wonder if these are the same people that throw salt over their left shoulder when they spill it, or refuse to walk under a ladder or step on a crack. Friday the 13th didn’t get any hype until prior to the 19th century. I love to study history so I decided to do a little impromptu research on the subject. The Last Supper, was held on Thursday, with Judas numbered among the 13 guests (Jesus plus the 12 apostles). Then Jesus was crucified on Friday. Then there is the theory of when the death angle went through Egypt and killed all the first born. This Passover day was the Friday the 13th of Nissan which I would agree was a very unlucky day for the non-Hebrew people. The rest of what I found was a bit ridiculous and unfounded so I just decided to do what any sensible person would do on Friday the 13th ; I am taking my cup of coffee out to my gazebo and sitting down to enjoy reading one of the books in my ‘gotta read this’ stack and enjoy the cool breeze and relax.

It has occurred to me that life has gotten so fast and furious, even in our rural area, that we as people don’t really get the chance to visit or ‘sit a spell’ with our friends and neighbors. How many times do you catch up on the news of the community by happenstance because you ran into someone in the grocery aisle? It’s a shame that we don’t see our neighbors and friends like we used to. I blame this on not having a porch. Modern houses don’t have a nice shady place out front to sit and wave at your friends as they go driving by. We don’t grab our iced tea and go chill on the porch at the end of the day. It’s too easy to turn on the TV and plop on the couch than it is to actually talk to someone. Bring back porches I say! Or gazebos at least.

We could just pick up the phone and call folks. The majority of the folks I know have cell phones in their pockets now. Pesky contraptions that they are, they sure do come in handy. There are days that go by that I don’t get to see my mom because I am all over the place working but I can call her. The only problem with a cell phone is I don’t remember phone numbers any longer. If it’s not stored in that memory card I can’t call. That is a shame. So I have to call Mama and use her like directory assistance. Her number is the only one I can remember now. I remember the number that matters the most right?

I am cantor at my church, St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church. The cantor is the song leader and there to help the community worship. The songs and Psalms and scripture that are sung at each service are sung prayers for the congregation and for me. Through the songs the congregation becomes involved in the worship instead of just sitting there. It matters not how well a person sings. It matters that the words are intoned with sincerity and are from the heart. Each week I look at the Psalms and Sacred Scripture that I will be cantoring. The cantor sings the verses and the congregation sings the response. It is a beautiful moment during the service to hear the voices sing in unison and to know that we are all singing the same praises and prayers. This Sundays Psalm of response is excerpts from Psalms 69. The response is beautiful, ‘Turn to the Lord in your need and you will live.” Simple words to live by this weekend.

Sundancer

This is Sundancer. It is a solar car built by the students at Houston Vo-Tech. It wins races. The Winston-Dell Solar Car challenge is next week (July 16-July 24). They start in Roundrock Texas and drive to New York State. I'm going to Houston Wednesday July 18 to see the car when it rolls into town for the night. If you want to come along give me a call.

Sundancer has won multiple years. Scott and I saw it a couple of Sundays ago on hiway 45 and that thing was booking down the road. If Calhoun County had a Vo-tech center, our students could be learning to make a solar car or at least learning how to use technology to the fullest degree. They could go on to work in the Toyota plant. There are just times that 'book sense' doesn't cut it. You need vocational skills to get a job. And what about farming? That needs to be in your blood but the average age of a farmer these days is mid to late 50's! I don't know about you but I don't really trust the big mega farms to feed me. Remember the spinach scare? Now I ask you, have you gotten sick from eating anything of Mr. Johnsons peas and tomotoes? I thought not. There is not a darn thing wrong or demeaning in being a farmer. ITs a tough life and long hours and I thank God for a farmer with every bite I take. Just like I hope one day to drive a solar powered car and I know that the technology will have been developed by some kids from Mississippi. Sure wish some kids from Bruce could be in on that parade.

Blogging from East Bruce

Blogging from East Bruce

Vonda Tedford-Keon

If you don’t live in the South, it is hard to imagine what life is really like in rural Mississippi. That is why it is so important when we have visitors from other states (anywhere that is not in Dixie), that we show them true Southern hospitality. This past week the congregation of St. Luke Catholic Church was blessed with a visit from a group of teenagers and their chaparones from Casey, Illinois. They helped us with Vacation Bible School for the children of our parish and then we gave them the full Bruce, Mississippi experience.

They were treated to the ‘cooks’ tour of town and a little history lesson. Then we all went to Saturday dinner at Bubba T. Chickenbone’s Family Smokehouse for some of that fine Bubbateenie Pizza and tall glasses of southern sweet tea. We then walked to the Bollinger Family Theater for the show. It was an enjoyable evening for the group from Illinois. They were in awe at the amount of talent, professionalism and love that was evident on that stage. Thank you, Bollinger family for your shining example of Southern Christian Spirituality. Sunday afternoon they were treated to a swimming break with a Lonesome Dove before heading on up the highway for some Oxford culture. Thank you all for helping us give our visitors a taste of the true Mississippi culture.

There is nothing more relaxing than a slow steady rain. The rain is very welcome after this drought. I hope it’s not too late to help the crops. As I was out driving, I noticed the fields of corn, beans and sweet potatoes were looking green and lush. I also noticed that the grass in my yard seemed to grow a foot overnight! Anytime I look out my kitchen window and see water standing in the dry creek bed between my house and Mom’s, I know its been a good rain.

There is an old dead tree standing in my yard that apparently bothers everyone but me. I can’t count how many people have pulled into my driveway telling me what they would charge to cut it. They can’t tell me how they can get it down without taking out my gazebo or bridge or goldfish pond or without making ruts in Mom’s yard. So I always say no. Anyway, it provides a home for a family of those endangered woodpeckers I keep reading about, and in one of the holes is a family of sugar gliders. The tree is coming down little by little as nature has its way. When the wind gets to blowing just right, a pretty good chunk of that old rotten tree will fall. I have yet to hear a limb fall but little by little it is getting shorter and shorter and I still have my gazebo and bridge and fish pond.

Calling all W girls and guys! There has never been, to my knowledge, an Alumnae chapter of MUW in Calhoun County. Join Vonda Tedford-Keon and Mack Spencer on Saturday, July 21st at the Historic Pittsboro Methodist Church, for an organizational meeting. Our guest speaker will be Susan Puckett, President of the 118 yr old MUWAA. If you graduated from the W or only attended for a semester, you are welcome to come and join the Long Blue Line and share your W stories with us. For more information call Vonda at 983-9118 or Mack at the Monitor Herald.

Chasing the Mouse

I hate mice. I can co-exist with the little buggers as long as they stay outdoors and not trespass in my habitat. Well one has invaded my realm. A few weeks back Scott told me he thought he saw one in the hallway. I have searched and sniffed and run wet cloths along the baseboards looking for mouse trails. Nada. Then about 3 weeks ago as I stood at the sink washing dishes, the blamed thing walked right in front of the sink on my counter. I nearly killed myself when it happened. I started trying to hit it and it ran right across and disappeared behind my fridge. I went bezerk and cleared off the counters and cloroxed everything. Found his little grubby trail too. I put out one of those sticky traps and all I have caught was gnats.

Friday, Scott told me that we didn't have anymore oatmeal because the mouse had been in the box. All of my boxed food is kept in the lower cabinet of the kitchen. I started pulling things out and ended up throwing out a lot of food.
That little rodent had been all over everything including my plastic boxes that I keep bulk food in. More clorox!! I put the sticky trap in the bottom cabinet and about 2 hours later checked and it was totally covered in gray fur and that thing had gnawed its way off the trap. So much for being humane. It is now bald and peeing and pooping its way through my house. So I set out the clap traps dosed with peanut butter and more sticky traps and the green death pellets! Every night I check the traps and nothing. I figure now that it smells clean it won't come back. Until tonight that is. That thing is figuring things out. It pushed the trap into something in the cabinet and threw one of the traps and ate the peanut butter! This is war! I will win and catch that little bald rodent and relish the thoughts of flushing it down the toliet at this point. I am not going to cart its little squeaking self off down the road just so it can re-invade my home.

Now I am going on a cleaning binge. If something is setting on the floor I am cleaning it or throwing things out that we don't use. nothing is safe at this point. I opened my pot holder drawer and stuffing exploded out of it. That thing had been in there shredding my pot holders. I needed new ones so I should thank it for giving me a reason to get new ones but eeww.!! its been in that drawer. More clorox!

I hate mice. Last year when my grandmother lay dying in the nursing home, I sat there for days and nights with her. And one of those nasty critters came out and got on the table where my bag of oreos was sitting and started eating my cookies. It took me a couple of days but I caught that one. Before she died we had to throw away a lot of her things because it and its friends had been all in her belongings.

And one night my Aunt Ruby woke up screaming holding her head and in her hand was a mouse that had climbed on to her bed and was in her hair. She had told me that it had happened before and no one took her seriously. They did that night.

Mice and huge spiders I can do with out. I don't like using chemicals but I may have to to keep the pests at bay. Does Sulfur really work for repelling snakes? We found a 5 foot long snake skin in the yard. Not a good thing to find.

Still Waiting

Well I went in for the interview and I am still waiting. I was told that I was in line for the part time as needed position. But so far no phone call and they haven't put anyone else in that slot. So either they aren't going to hire or they just haven't gotten behind enough to call.

I am staying pretty busy with the part time merchandising. Not my favorite thing to do but it is work. I had to watch Pirates of the caribbean over the weekend. 3 times and then I actually went back and paid to see it the next night with the girls. I was not really watching the film for entertainment the 3 times I was paid to watch it. Doing the movie checks is pretty cool and not hard at all except for dealing with the theater managers. They are so suspicious that I am going to give them a bad report or something of that nature.

This week I have had to travel to all my stores and do resets on diapers. I can do those in my sleep. I still have 8 more stores to do in the Tupelo area which is out of my reion but its extra money and I need it. The great white whale was really sick and I had to park it for a few days until I could get the money together to get it repaired. Thank goodness it was not serious and was an easy fix. I am so thankful for my mechanic cousin. Rodney is a whiz at fixing things most of the time.

just waiting and waiting

As I sit and recover from the next phase of reconstruction, I am still waiting on finding out about the part time job. Its posted at the hosptial and I talked with the supervisor. I am next on fhte list for consideration. I sure hope I get it. I might only be 20 hours a week and its an on call type of thing but its better than nothing. I perhaps can continue to do my merchandising PT work as well and make enough that way to get us out of the hole.

darling oldest daughter is really gearing up for college. She is going to take the ACT test again and is trying for the higest score she can go for. She really wants the scholarships and I do too. Funny how there weren't any out there for me or I was not ever told about them. I had the grades for them. But I worked my way through on a work study. Even taught some art history when the professor was ill my senior year. I would like to get a masters in studio art but that will have to come later. I would be an OWL for sure. Older Wiser Learner.

Surgery this time was not so bad but I am a little woozy. No pain to speak of this go round. I'll be glad when its over with.

Pizza dough spinning

This kid is a student at Ole Miss and is from Oxford just up the highway from us. Now this is talent. Majoring in journalism and working radio on the side and then picks up this little talent and has gone national and international with it. And they say today's kids aren't creative. just watch him in action. This is phenomenal! I would love to see him in person.


Watch Chris Spin at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXb_16FJ2CU

watching old movies

The last thing a hopeless romantic needs to do is come across 'AN Affair To Remember" in the middle of the night. I had every intention of going to bed a quasi-decent hour until I saw the Annette Benning/ Warren Beatty version was on the Hallmark channel. Now I have seen this thing I don't know how many time and I still squall like a baby. And last night was no exception. I tried not to cry but I did. I went to bed sobbing like a baby and woke up with red eyes. Such a good movie. a 4 hanky to be sure. I don't care if its Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr or Warren and Annette. 'An Affair to Remember' is just that. memorable.

Thoughts on purses

Why do we carry purses ladies? Just think about it. WHY do we saddle ourselves with one of those things? Because our mothers and grandmothers and great grandmothers before us carried one? Because we feel an innate need to carry everything but the kitchen sink around with us on the off chance that we will actually need it?

I hate my bag! Yes I said HATE. I absolutely, positively HATE my purse. Now if you are one of those women that just can't live unless you have the latest fashion purse or has to be color co-ordinated with your outfit, stop reading right this moment. This is not going to be a pretty tome. I am writing this for all those women that realize that they are bad at bags. They understand that their bag is a reflection of their bad housekeeping, hopeless disorganization, their chronic inability to throw anything away and their absolute failure to have a bag that matches each and every article of clothing they might own!

This is for the woman whose bag is full of squashed, vintage candy bars, loose 'curiously strong' mints covered in God only knows where the lint came from! This is dedicated to woman that has tubes of lipstick with no tops, melted Chap Stick of unknown vintage and half drunk bottles of water. This is for the woman that has wadded up bunches of Kleenex in her bag and you are not quite sure it was used or not. Eeeewwww! But it comes in handy when you run into that roadside rest stop and there is not a smidgen of toilet paper to be found!
There are scratched reading glasses, leaky ballpoint pins, crumpled and torn loose checks from the checkbook and that extra toothbrush that I think might have been used to scrub the bathroom tile with at one time from the looks of it.

I am one of those women that is still carrying a 'winter bag' in July while everyone else is carrying those darling little Vera Bradley cloth bags flashing a profusion of summery colors for all to see! I am no good at bags! I don't give a hoot if I am still carrying a straw bag in the winter snow. I don't care if I carry leather in the summer. I am no good at bags. After my mastectomy I could not carry a bag so I decided it was time to downsize. I got a cute little organized one and proceeded to throw out the trash. I found a flashlight I thought I had lost, $75 in loose change (I kid you not! The purse had a lining that was worn thru and the loose change had been slipping in there for years!) my bank debit card that I thought was lost, an extra pair of comfy slippers and a pair of panties (haven't got a clue!), a cosmetic bag that I forgot to zip so it was not only nasty, it was empty, 3 rosaries that were knotted together and it took a lot of prayer to separate them, the kids report cards for 3 years, the keys to my house, my moms house and a business I had closed down 8 years earlier and a book that I was reading. I could have fled a nuclear holocaust with what I had in that bag.

So I downsized for a while, but little by little things start creeping up on me. Pretty soon I found myself slipping that cute little organized lightweight bag into a larger bag and then a larger bag and then a suitcase!! I finally have found the answer to my problem tho. I don't give a rip what people think about my purse now. I found just the right thing for me. Its a back pack. And I do clean it out pretty regularly. I throw in my wallet with all the necessary papers that I need, a chapstick, my cell phone, a bottle of water, and my big heavy key ring. I don't care that its not fashionable or cute or cost less that 12 dollars at the local Wal-Mart. Its functional, its waterproof, its disposable. Its not a Prada, or a Dunne Bourke, or a Vera Bradley or any other high dollar high profile bag. Its just a bag. It reflects me, it doesn't have a style therefore it can't go out of style!

Oh I still have my cute little evening bags that I use about twice a year that are only good for holding a tube of lipstick that I never use. But the rest of the year, I am perfectly content with my plain Jane, utilitarian bag.

Math challenged

There!! I said it. I admit it. I am mathamatically challenged. Most artists are. Why do you think the term 'starving artist' is so appropo?

And my darling husband is no better. So our poor children don't get any decent math 'genes' from us. Which is sad for out darling daughters. Poor high school Junior daughter is wallowing in math at public school. As long as we could do it at our own slow pace at home we were just fine. But she is now where she has to do it according to the prescribed time line and she has a dork for a teacher. This poor man is a basketball coach and its obvious that if you aren't into sports then he is not into you. He also is not qualified to teach algebra 2. I don't mean certified. He is certified to teach anything but he sure is qualified to teach it. At any rate he found out the day before school started that he had to teach this class of algebra 2. He lost the kids on the first day. He rarely sends home any school work. They rarely do any problems from a book and the ones that he sends home he doesn't qualify. So are they proportions, equations, distributive property, ratios? What the heck do you want them to do? Well last night I finally found the algebra help that we needed. It's like Eureka! We have lift off. We can do some problems and actually understand them. At least until she walks into his room and and he totally confuses her again.

My favorite things

I have been a huge fan of For Better of For Worse since it started. I could swear that Lynn Johnston was living my life or parts of it. And She always was going thru the same things I was at the exact same time. We had babies 'together' and went thru menopause 'together'. Now her father is living thru the effects of a stroke and she has crawled into that aspect of my life also. I lost my Dad nearly 11 years ago and before that for 3 years we lived with the residual aftermath of a massive stroke not unlike the one that the comic strip Grandfather is living thru. This week has been all about the aphasia aspect of it and she has nailed it down once again. It brought tears to my eyes today seeing how it is from the viewpoint of the stroke victim. My Dad couldn't tell me things either, all he could do for a while was say s*** or loblolly pine tree. That made for some interesting conversations and dinner table talk to be sure! OR picking up the fork and calling it spoon but then if I said 'show me the fork' he would point right at the fork. So the brain knew the object but the words were just elusive. He never could get my name again but he would just always call me the 'elderest' if I asked him who I was. And He remembered my birthday by numbers so I changed my phone number to those and he could always call me. Matter of fact he changed everything to those numbers because he could remember them. He labled me and my sister by what he remembered us doing. I was the painter and she was the cook. (Both our specialties, Art and Food). He is still alive in our memories even tho he left us so long ago.
Thank you Lynn Johnston for triggering my memories and for being so understanding of what goes on with a stroke victim and the family.

Recovery time

Tuesday was surgery day. I started fasting on Monday since I couldn't have anything after midnight. That is so hard. Surgery was scheduled for 11:30 AM and I could not have so much as a sip of water. I ate a bowl of oatmeal and drank a 20 oz glass of green tea before midnight and that got me through.

I finally found me 2 pair of warm pajamas that had button front tops. Those were hard to find this time of year.

My blood pressure was a bit elevated but that was because I was a bit apprehensive about being put to sleep. I have a tendency to want to not to wake up. I can hear people talking to me but I can't respond. I told the anesthesiologist about it. I don't know what he did but I woke up this time with no problem. I came thru the surgery with no problems. Until I got home.

I'm not really sore or hurting now. I took the pain meds at first but by Wednesday morning I was sick as a dog. I could not even hold down water. I don't know if it was a 'bug' that jumped me or what. I didn't get sick from the meds after the first surgery. I decided not to take the pain meds and have been taking tylenol extra strength instead. that is really all I have needed.

Dr. Adams removed the saline tissue expander and inserted the silicone implant. Its healing nicely and looks and feels quite normal. I am very pleased with the reconstruction so far. I am not sore except for the area around the sternum. He gave me a little extra something or toher for cleaveage. I should have told him I didn't have cleaveage before. It doesn't hurt but it is annoying. Its getting better tho.

I'll go back on Monday for a checkup.

Its not too little storage!

I finally see the problem!! Its not that I don't have enough storage space! I have too much stuff to put in my home to start with. For starters lets roam through my kitchen. yes it needs more cabinets and counter space. ANd I really could use a more updated refrigerator instead of the loverly harvest gold one from 1970 that sometimes starts freezing things in the lower part instead of the freezer part! But what about this angle......there are only 4 of us living here. We have the ocassional dinner guest over. I have enough dishes for for 12 people....3 times over. I have plastic plates and china plates and pottery plates. I think the plastic is going to get tossed. I have a 'ton' of odd and end glasses and coffee cups. They are going to hit the donation pile too. I am going to pare this mess down until all I have left are plain glasses, my Christmas china and the nice place settings that I saved and got for myself a few years ago. I may just box up the dishes and sotre them in the basement and label them as college bound for when my girls finally leave the nest. But I don't need them cluttering up my cabinets. So the kitchen is my next organization target. Maybe I can finally find space for all my little gadgets that I like to use when I cook. And as things wear out or break down, THEN I will replace them.

I do have a pantry and I don't like going to the grocery store so I buy in bulk the mainstays that I use regularly like corn and peas and diced tomatoes and other veggies that I process and can myself in the summer.

Things that make me go whaaaaa!!!!

Why is it when I get a new coffee pot, I keep the old carafe like it will really fit the new one!

Why do I keep the plastic storage containers when the lids have gotten warped?

Why on earth do I constantly have to check the back of the refrigerator for the cure for some disease because I forgot to throw out the leftovers!?

Surgery and financial wrangling and deductibles

Used to be that a person could get ready for surgery the old fashioned way, get your house cleaned and straightened up, make sure there were plenty of cooked casseroles in the freezer so that all the family had to do was pop one in the oven and viola! dinnner was served while you recovered. The clean laundry was neatly arranged in closets and drawers and the beds all had clean sheets for you to recuperate on.

Now, its wrangling with the hospital financial offices over who is going to get the deductible, them or the doctor and everyone wants you to pay them the deductible first. I just got off the phone with the surgery center and explained that the deductible was already met through the doctors office. That means that when I get there I will pay one third of what they think I owe. And I just got the last surgery paid for this week on top of paying the surgeon his 20 percent that my insurance doesn't cover. I got a little specheil about wondering which one would file first. I can tell you from the past experience that the doctors office filed really fast. much quicker than the surgery center did. Those bills just dragged on in. And for something that will take half the time that the first one took it seems like the price is higher this go round. I know that we are lucky to have health insurance but it seems so hard to be able to actually get something done. This isn't cosmetic, its reconstruction for heavens sake. I have waited 6 nearly 7 years for this day, to be cancer free and on my way back to the way I was (plus a few years of aging!) before the mastectomy.

I can't begin to say enough about my doctor. He is wonderful. the TOP DOC in my humble opinion with his reconstruction skills, very compassionate and a dry sense of humor. I am ready for this next surgery to be over and get this uncomfortable saline bag out of my chest. I don't think I would like the saline implants at all. I am glad that I going to have the silicone 'gummy bear' implant by Mentor. Its going to be much warmer and look pretty good too.

Health care for the American people needs to be less imposing. I don't believe in going to the ER for every little thing that happens and unfortunately that is what a lot of people do. I take responsiblity for my health and I only go to the doctor when its absolutely necessary or for my yearly checkups. Now I have a regular overall exam, the yearly breast exam, the yearly bloodtest and bone density exams, and after this year I will add the yearly visit to Dr. Adams to my list to keep up the progress on this implant for the study I will be in to help other women like me. My nose is twitching as I become more and more of a guinea pig for medical research.
You are welcome fellow breast cancer survivors. You had better be 'TICKLED PINK' as I 'MAKE STRIDES' for us in the recovery and reconstruction department.

Three Trees (a moral story)

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving andeveryone would see the beauty."Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull. "Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the Hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me.

"After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter," and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree the woodsman said, "This looks like a strong tree. I should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship. When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true. One of the Woodsmen said,"I don't need anything special from my tree, I'll take this one," and he cut it down.

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feedbox for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for.

The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreamsof being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end.

The third tree was cut into large pieces, and left alone in the dark.

The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams. Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time.

Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and He stood and said "Peace" and the Storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be goingyour way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, God will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best. May your day be blessed, may God cradle you in the palm of His hand!

Thursday's Musings

It is so so cold. the weather is so bizarre this time of year. The yellow bells are trying to bloom one day and the next day its bitter cold and sleeting. If we don't get snow we get ice and I would prefer not to have that. I don't like extreme heat or extreme cold. I could really be a bear cos in cold weather I just want to curl up under a warm cover and sleep.

Well I sent off the 20 percent to the doctors office for my surgery. Isn't that something? You have to pay the 20 percent up front before the surgery is performed. Guess I can't blame them. I should start doing that for all of my art work. Get at least a third of it up front to cover the cost of the supplies that I will have to purchase to get started. A business head I don't have which is probably why I don't have a 'business' any longer.

Have you ever had a cat in heat? Lord have mercy on us if we live thru this. I now understand what the term 'caterwallin' means. That is all she does. And that danged tomcat is out in the yard calling her. She sounds awful. ITs like we are killing her. Its a good thing people don't act and sound like cats. On second thought I have seen some humans that acted just the way this cat is right now. Oooo slap my face!!!!!

Attitude is everything!!!!

Attitude
There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today?" So she did and she had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head. "H-M-M," she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today?" So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head. "Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail." So she did and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head. "YEA!" she exclaimed, "I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Attitude is everything.
Be kinder than necessary,
for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,Speak kindly.......Leave the rest to God

my new aristocratic title

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Her Grace Lady Vonda the Infinite of Longer Interval Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

This is fun. I think I like this name!

keeping in shape

well I am slowly but surely adding to my exercise routine. I bought an exercise ball for my core exercises. It took forever to inflate that thing. I have always been weak on the left side because of having polio when I was younger. Its hard for me to use the resistance bands with that side. I am walking carrying weights in my hands. and trying to hit 5 miles a day when walking. My step counter goes on in the morning and I take it off at night. Every step counts.

My surgery is scheduled for Tuesday morning January 30. I have to send in the money next week for the 20 percent that insurance doesn't cover. Its gonna be tight around here for a while. I have to go ahead and get the surgery now because if we put it off I won't be able to get the implant shape that will actually look right. I will be part of study on this particular shaped implant so that other women that have had the type of surgery that I have, will be able to go thru reconstruction and look some what normal. Using the regular 'round' implant is not what a radical mastectomy patient needs. She needs a teardrop shaped implant in order to achieve a natural look.

I don't like being put to sleep but its necessary for surgery, so I want to be able to be in the best possible shape. I wish I could finish losing the weight that I need to lose but I would rather take it very slowly.

Sitting on this ball actually takes some serious concentration. My back feels good tho.

studio photos

this is one shot of my art studio. It faces the north and the cold air just really seems to seep in that window so I hung my flamingo shower curtain in front of it. I have flamingos everywhere, even on my ergonomic kneeling stool. This is pretty organized for me.

This is the view behind me when I am sitting at my drawing table. Its shelves and drawers full of art books and my canvas and paintings and more flamingos! I have a lot of stuff!

A great Homeschool article

This is a great article about homeschool in Mississippi. I get so tired of people asking about the 'socialization' of my kids. Since when is it normal to be around only people your own age? That is not real life. I really don't want my kids learning from some of the other kids anyway. Listen to the slang they pick up (My bad! instead of my fault) or the horrible spelling (I luv Bois: I love boys!) and then the mean attitudes. oh yeah that is all that I want my kids to learn so they will fit right into society. Read the article below.
V


To view this item online, visit http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53622

Thursday, January 4, 2007
Homeschool regulation: The revenge of the failures
Posted: January 4, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
By Bruce N. Shortt, Ph.D.
© 2000 WorldNetDaily.com-->© 2007
In their never-ending effort to "help" homeschoolers, public school bureaucrats periodically try to increase homeschooling regulations. This makes K-12 education perhaps a unique endeavor: it's a field in which the failures regularly, and astonishingly, insist that they should be able to regulate the successful.
Never mind that homeschoolers consistently outperform children institutionalized in government schools or that the longer a child is institutionalized in a government school the worse he does in relation to homeschooled children. Never mind, also, that international surveys of academic performance show that in the course of 12 years government schools manage to turn perfectly capable children into world-class dullards. No, the same education bureaucrats who consume an annual cash flow of roughly $600 billion to achieve previously unknown levels of semi-literacy and illiteracy among otherwise normal American children feel compelled from time to time to abandon their diligent pursuit of intellectual mediocrity to offer proposals for regulating homeschool parents.
The latest outbreak of education bureaucrat compassion comes from Mississippi. There the Grand Panjandrum, indeed, the very Mikado of Mississippi education, Superintendent Hank Bounds, is working at creating a panel of Quisling homeschool parents to determine whether homeschool families should be further regulated.
(Column continues below)
Why does the estimable Superintendent Bounds think that homeschooled children would benefit from more attention from Mississippi's crack team of government educators? Well, because he worries that some parents might take their children out of government schools and then fail to educate them. As Bounds inarticulately put it in a November news conference:
"… [Y]ou must realize we all have this moral and ethical responsibility to deal with those situations where clearly it's nothing more than a child abuse situation when parents pull their children out of school, say they're being homeschooled just because parents ... don't want to be involved in the education of their children. ..."
Subsequently, the editorial staff of Jackson''s Clarion-Ledger came to Bounds' aid by translating this gibberish into English. Evidently, Bounds and his Clarion-Ledger cheerleaders think that Mississippi parents are removing their children from Mississippi's government schools just so that they can deny them an education at home.
Interestingly, neither Bounds nor the Clarion-Ledger point to any evidence that this is a significant problem in Mississippi or anywhere else. In fact, a little reflection would indicate that this expression of "concern" is more than a little disingenuous. After all, if you really don't want your children to be educated, the most effective strategy is to institutionalize them in one of Superintendent Bounds' government schools. That obviously requires much less effort than keeping them at home.
Moreover, if Bounds really wants to characterize a failure to educate as "child abuse," then what is to be said of him and his bureaucrats who are responsible for a school system in which a catastrophic failure to educate is the norm? According to the U.S. Department of Education's National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, often known as "The Nation's Report Card," Bounds' bureaucrats have failed Mississippi's children and taxpayers as follows:
Reading: 82 percent of Mississippi's fourth-graders cannot read at grade level, with 52 percent not being able to read at even a basic level. By eight grade, 82 percent of Mississippi's children still cannot read at grade level, with 40 percent being unable to read at even a basic level.
Mathematics: 81 percent of fourth-graders are below grade level in math, with 31 percent lacking even a basic grasp of mathematics. By eighth grade, math illiteracy is burgeoning in Mississippi: 86 percent of students are below grade level in math, with 48 percent lacking even a basic understanding of mathematics.
Science: 88 percent of fourth-graders are below grade level, with 55 percent lacking even a basic knowledge of science. By eighth grade, 86 percent of Mississippi's children are below grade level, with an amazing 60 percent lacking a basic grasp of the subject.
Lest anyone be under the impression that the NAEP has unusually high academic standards, testimony before the Board of Governors for the NAEP indicates, for example, that the "advanced" mathematics questions for the eighth-grade NAEP are at best comparable to fifth grade questions in Singapore's math curriculum. So, while the NAEP may not require high levels of academic competence, it does highlight Mississippi schools' systematic failure to educate.
And just where does the performance of Superintendent Bounds' Mississippi education bureaucracy put Mississippi's children nationally? Dead last in fourth-grade reading and eighth-grade math (tied with Alabama), and third from last in fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading. Note that Bounds' schools manage to produce these prodigious levels of academic failure by spending roughly $7,000 per student per year, an amount that would pay tuition at many, many excellent private schools. One shudders to think what Bounds' "educators" might accomplish with even more money.
Apart from worrying about the possibility that a homeschooling parent somewhere might be lying in bed eating bon bons instead of teaching junior, Bounds and his editorial friends also fret about homeschooling parents who have not finished high school. With a little research, however, anyone, even including editorial writers, can discover that there is evidence indicating that children homeschooled by parents without a high school diploma are at no disadvantage at all compared to public school students.
As it turns out, in a basic battery of tests that included writing and mathematics, homeschooled children whose mothers hadn't finished high school scored in the 83rd percentile while students whose fathers hadn't finished high school scored in the 79th percentile. Bear in mind, too, that children in Mississippi public schools do not on average come close to doing this well on any legitimate, nationally normed test. Moreover, there are also studies that indicate that regulation does not have any positive impact on the academic achievement levels of homeschooled students.
Of course, no attack on homeschooling is complete without someone raising the "socialization" question. At least in this Bounds' pom-pom wavers at the Clarion-Ledger did not disappoint: "Can homeschooled children cope with social pressures, people skills? More is learned in a classroom and school setting than A-B-Cs. …"
Again, like the other "worries" deployed in scaring the public into supporting expanded homeschool regulation, a little research would have shown this to be a baseless concern. In 2001, Greg Cizek, associate professor of educational research at the University of North Carolina, summarized what researchers know about the "socialization" question: ''It is basically a non-issue. … If anything, research shows that because parents are so sensitive to the charge, they expose them [their children] to so many activities." More recently, a study of 7,000 homeschooled adults found, among other things, much higher levels of civic involvement, participation in higher education, and life satisfaction among them than adults who were not homeschooled.
By attacking homeschool parents, Bounds is playing a familiar game. The goal is to distract the public's attention from the abject failure of the public schools for which he is responsible. After all, no government school system so thoroughly fails to educate as Bounds' schools. Nevertheless, Bounds wants the public to believe that the same bureaucrats who daily busy themselves producing massive illiteracy in Mississippi's public schools should have more power over homeschool parents, even though homeschooling parents are already doing a magnificent job with their children.
Perhaps we can all agree with Superintendent Bounds in one respect, however. Mississippi does need more regulation of education. Consequently, as a public service, here is my modest proposal for reforming Mississippi's public schools: Homeschooling parents should regulate Bounds until the students in the government schools for which he is responsible academically outperform homeschooled children. Unfortunately, this recommendation is not likely to be accepted, which means that state superintendents of education around the country will continue to be able to tell parents upset about the job their local schools are doing, "Well, at least we're not Mississippi."
Related special offer:
Get Shortt's book "The Harsh Truth About Public Schools"
Bruce N. Shortt has a Ph.D. from Stanford and a law degree from Harvard, was a Fulbright Scholar, and serves on the board of Exodus Mandate. He is the author of "The Harsh Truth About Public Schools" and several resolutions on Christian education submitted to Annual Meetings of the Southern Baptist Convention. Dr. Shortt is a member of North Oaks Baptist Church and currently practices law in Houston, where he resides with his wife and homeschools their sons.

Back to work

Well today is the day that my other students are supposed to come to school. So far only one has made it. I haven't heard from the others. Sure hope they come on.

I took pictures of my new and improved downstairs area. It is neat compared to what it had become. I still have a lot I need to try and figure out if I can live without it. clutter just becomes a fact of life when you have children around. I started by cleaning out my bookshelves. I have so many duplicates and 'fourplicates' of text books and I don't need that any longer. So I am selling off my extra textbooks. who needs 4 math books in all levels of math and algebra!! Or English Grammar from grades 4 on up? It is amazing just how much room I now have. And I filled one book case back up with novels and my theology books that I had been stacking in every corner and on every flat surface that I came to.

I am really happy with my studio area. It looks so nice and organized now.

Green Tea, airbrush art and klutzies

Ahhh the studio is shaping up nicely. AND I found the chuck to my favorite airbrush when I moved stuff around. I searched for a month and finally gave up and drove to Memphis to get a new one. So now I have a spare. I can also get back to working on the rendering of the '66 corvette stingray that I was working on. Word of caution....do not allow husbands around drawing tables when doing airbrush work. especially semi-klutzy ones. This is the 2nd rendering of the same car I am doing. The first one was already about 30 hours worth of work when the green tea was spilled on it. I held my cool and bit my tongue and just threw the first one away. You can do a lot of things to a painting or drawing in progress but you can't spill anything on an airbrushed painting in progress. It is instantly ruined.

I will take a picture of the said studio and the rendering in progress sometime this week. I have one more major little item to move and that is a huge bookcase with all my many textbooks. I have moved that poor thing so many times. And the books are lucky to still have spines attached. I love my books tho. I have thousands of them and they are all over this house. I should have my own 'presidential library'.

Artist getting more organized

I am making huge inroads on the organization project. I spent all day in my closet. I found maternity clothes and its been over 14 years since I needed those. There is nothing uglier than spandex gone bad. I carried bag after bag after bag of old, stained, waaaay too small clothes out to the dumpster. I have got to stop keeping things like I have been. Hopefully this will be the beginning of not being a clutter bug. Tomorrow I will start on my art room. I have always had a good idea what I wanted my studio area to be like. I intend to get it headed in the right direction this next week before I start back to teaching the kids on the 4th.

Two of my wayward kitties made it back home today. Garfield came home wailing something fierce. He can be quite vocal when he wants to be. Dottie the calico queen also showed back up . I think they were both locked up in someones storage building. They were both hungry and scratched up. Dottie has done nothing but sleep. Garfield ate a big meal and then headed back outside. I can't keep him inside. He will spray everything in sight. Little TJ is no where to be found. I figure he was killed by the pack of dogs that roam at night. He was too young to know how to get up a tree to save himself. Poor Dottie has had 5 litters and Garfield is the one one of her kin that has lived. I'm going to keep her inside this go round so maybe she can raise a litter and I can finally get her spayed. She is such a pretty cat. She has had a calico kitten each time but they have never lived more than a few days.

Look at these wonderful people

I just love all our wonderful helpers at the food pantry. Jan tore herself away from her new little daughter Charlie Ann to come down and help us out.Donnie and Andy are always there to help. Mr. Hannaford is a mainstay. If I didn't have Jackie to run interference for me I might be snookered by more people that I care to think about. She can be a bossy butt at times but her heart is as big as she is and its a good heart. Some of my helpers are camera shy and they were hiding from me. But we were getting ready to open the flood gates and had out those boxes. If you have a good back you need to come and help us out. I can't seem to get those young'uns to some on Saturdays to give out the food. Oh they will collect it for me. And there are many thankful people for those collections. But the strong backs are needed for 'toting' those boxes out the doors for the ones that can't carry it. All I heard on Saturday was "I'm gonna need a BIG Tylenol when I get home." Each box was filled with a 3 lb. ham, a 2 lb can of Chicken a 1 lb can of shredded pork, 10 15oz cans of veggies and fruits as well as the 2lb bags of rice and cereal and liter of milk. So each box weighed in at 20 pounds or more. Ya'll pray that we get another helping hand from FEMA for 2007. I hope that we can get even more this year. The pantry desperately needs it. Our overhead is low. The utility bill is about the minimum each month. The insurance is 300 or 400 a year. I forget how much on that one. The shipping each month for the food runs around 200 to 250 and we still have to drive down to the drop off point and then bring the food back. The December shipment was 3999 pounds and that cost us 200. The majority of the food is donationed but we have to pay for it to be shipped from Jackson to our pick up point in Starkville. I can only use the FEMA money to buy food locally so that buck doesn't go as far. But both grocer's do a wonderful job of giving us as much as they can both bear for the best possible price. And the pantry does have non-profit status. There are no employees. I could use a filing cabinet if anybody has one they don't use any longer. Some good folks donated a desk for me and a good chair and we have a long table and some folding chairs for when we have to sign people up and for re-registering.

Scott built all of the pallets and the tables that we stack the foodstuffs on. The rollers were donated by a store that was going out of business. Those have been a God-send. The boxes just load so much easier when you can roll then down the line instead of pushing with all your might.

Some of the pantry recipients come and cut the grass for us and make sure that the trash is put on the street and then move the dumpster back for us. They also come and help carry out the boxes. It makes them feel better that they can give and not just take.

December Food Pantry was huge!

The December food give away was a huge success. Or Surprise. Take your pick. We had the 2nd half of the FEMA money that I had been holding on too for 6 months so that we could get hams for the Christmas box. It's only about a weeks work of meals but its something. Those were really nice boxes this time. The first two pictures are of all 225 boxes that we put together. We still had a good bit of miscellaneous canned goods left over for emergency boxes. We made up 225 boxes and had enough money to have 225 hams. Last year we gave out 196 hams so we thought we would get some extras for this year.



There were 159 boxes stacked up on the pallets and the rest were on top of the long row of tables. Our volunteers worked hard and fast on Thursday the 20 to load up those boxes. Then on Friday evening James Wright drove up with our hams and we carried them into the pantry. The hams had to be added as the boxes were picked up on Saturday the 22nd. People started lining up in the Bollinger Theater's parking lot by 9:30. WE don't give out the food until 12.

All the volunteers for Saturday turned out and we started giving out those boxes. I started worrying about 12:45 if we were going to have enough to go all that were coming. I don't broadcast what will be in a box ahead of time. I did have a couple of folks that I took to the side and talked to about scamming us. I had found out that two 'households' were actually one. They knew that we can only give one box per household. I hope one day that we can give a larger box to the larger families. But that is a thought for another day. When we hit the 225 mark Sr. Mary Jean and Jan Spradling and Joe and Millie Goforth and the others from Calhoun City and Vardaman threw it into high gear and made up more boxes. Sr. Mary ended up having to give some gift cards to Freds and Piggly Wiggly to the last 3 people in line. We gave out a total of 244 boxes and then the gift cards so there were 247 households that we gave too.

Christmas and New Years is sort of like Easter and Christmas at Church. You only see some folks at Easter and Christmas time like they can get all of their religious nuturing in those two holy days. Its like that at the pantry. WE might see some of these people a time or two during the year and then we won't see them again until its time for a presumed special box. I would love to be able to give out a great box year round. But that is not always possible. But I do know that there were some nice dinner spreads for the Christmas feast this year.