LOOKING UP AT ME WITH THOSE BLACK LITTLE EYES...

She lays there as though she hasn't a care in the world. Well...and why should she ~ after all ~ she has someone else to feed her ~ give her fresh water ~ pat her on the head and brush her when she needs it...and even clean out her...ahem...TOILET!!

What more could a "person" ask for...

She is spoiled ~ rotten ~ and knows it. She dwells on it ~ EXPECTS IT ~ and then runs away as though knowing all this means not a single thing to her.

Her attitude has always been one of complacency and indifference ~ much like some friends of mine ~ maybe even family members ~ but..I DIGRESS.

She will disturb those around her as though it is natural for her to do ~ and will chase and pounce and cause growling and guttural tones out of the other two like I have never seen. Her behavior is that of a spoiled child ~ but then can turn on the charm when she decides it is time to play.

Not one for much cuddling ~ she does have her moments. Like how she will get one of her hundreds of toys ~ bring it to me in her mouth ~ whining while carrying it ~ and drop it at my feet; this means I am supposed to pick it up, toss it down the hallway so she can retrieve it ~ sometimes, mid-air ~ and return it to me while trotting back to me, drop it at my feet and begin the process all over again.

If I go into my office and close the door ~ she is on the other side ~ crying and whining...and then begins to knock on the door ...then if that is not enough, she begins to slam herself against the door ~ all the while crying and shrieking in this hopeless tone ~ waiting for me to run and open the door.

If, by some chance I don't get her to stay on the other side, she will scurry in ahead of me ~ with her butt wagging all the while ~ leading me in while my feet touch her hind legs and she leads the parade. She stops along the way to give one of those "S" stretches ~ as though to indicate this is how it is going to be...and in my time and on my terms.

I give her a quick soft boot to hurry her along...and she runs to the chair and places her feet on the keyboard...as though she knows how to write anything. 

Actually ~ that's a bit scary because I DO expect her one day to be seated here, pencil in mouth ~ playing Tile Towers with Webkinz ~ or Stack-able Scrabble ~ and winning, at that.

Yes ~ it is SOPIE ~ the WONDER CAT! Her antics still amaze me ~ and her playful ways are sometimes more than I want to handle for the day. Every time I clean out the litter boxes ~ she is there...WAITING...to make her mark in an instant...

One good thing ~ I have stopped buying all those expensive toys for her ~ because she truly loves one single toy ~ and those are the pipe-cleaners I get from the craft stores. I take one out, wrap it in a circle ~ and she will play forever with these. Simple ~ unpretentious ~ small cost ~ and a miracle that I found out how she loved these.

My french doors to the laundry room ~ she always opens them. I close them...she opens them...I close them...she opens them...er...you get the picture.

I cat-proof the house when I am going ~ because I know how she is.

And...forget sitting on the porch in the mornings to hear the day begin ~ and drink my coffee. She is on the other side having a hissy-fit...so now I crack open the door just a bit ~ take a seat in the porch chair and let her come on out for a while.

Peace on both sides...but she always wins.

How not to...is a wonder to me.

PEACE OUT!!

 Now that I have your attention ~ a lot of weeble-wobbling going on these days. Jumping around the thermometer up and down ~ like someone on a dance pole. Never know whether to crack open the containers for spring/summer gear ~ or to keep on hanging those sweaters and jackets/coats in the closet. *(sigh)

From one day to the next ~ it changes. Jumping from 75-degrees and short   sleeves and shorts ~ into the winter again the very next day ~ with temperatures hitting rock bottom and freezing. Not to mention those winter-ice-storms and sleet. Brrrrr....what a mixed bag March is bringing thus far.

My lovely Bradford Pear Trees are having fits. I can see them shake ~ with their blooms bursting open and peeping through with those lovely white flowers. And, as they just begin to stretch their lovely branches now filled with blooms ~ along comes the freeze and sleet. Once again, another lost spring burst of bloom ~ dying off too quickly ~ and turning green nearly immediately. Such a beautiful loss for everyone with these lovely trees. I have been fortunate, though, simply because my trees have stayed intact and no limb-loss with the high-winds that this area has been experiencing.

    Damage to my home ~ but no trees lost. Good thing. Damage was repaired the very next day and was minor compared to losses of others in this area. Honestly felt as though I was back in Chicago...brrrrr...with those whistling winds all around. Reminds me of that little Fairy Tale...Three Little Pigs...and the wolf comes to mind ~ all huffy and puffy outside my door.

 But...I stood my ground...hung in there...and still standing after all these years. Sorry ~ lyric from a song from some time ago.

Have a terrific spring ~ when it finally gets here. After a couple more days of incessant rain ~ temperatures will once again hit the 70's...and my weeds are doing just fine, thank you.

You are invited ~ COME ~ PICK SOME OF MY WEEDS!!

SO...BITING NAILS...WONDERING...

We have had to sit back on our laurels pretty much while the world continues to evolve. We fuss and furrow our brows, pursing our lips, throw darts with our eyes ~ and can comment 'till the cows come home ~ the honest fact is that we live among people who are part American ~ maybe some not even so and will never be.

With all the latest with our economy ~ prices going up, stock going down ~ retirement funds being lost ~ people swindling money from the rich and middle class ~ getting away with it ~ and now ~ infiltration of those from foreign countries flying or boating here to find a good deal.

Come one ~ come all ~ practically everything is up for grabs these days. Cheap ~ if you can afford it...

People losing homes ~ losing jobs ~ retirement funds being wiped out ~ and 7,000 people showing up for a job interview for a Maintenance Man position.

Where the H*** are we going? How did we get here? When will it all end?

Much can be said for our sanctity of our own space ~ but with people losing everything left and right ~ companies shipping their plants where they can afford to ~ overseas ~ it seems that there is no end to this tunnel ~ and no bottom to this waterfall of cascading water. While we continue to lose grip and slip ~ we have to come out the other side ~ somewhere.

But ~ where?

As I went to the grocery store to pick up a few items ~ I walked to the produce department to pick out some apples and a few tomatoes for my salad. While standing there, gazing as to just which ones I wanted ~ along came this little girl. She could have been around 5-6 years of age, maybe a bit younger. She was a well-rounded little thing ~ cute ~ pudgy ~ with big, black sparkling eyes. She looked up at me ~ and then politely turned around, saw the group of tomatoes in the bin and sat her butt down ~ hard ~ until they literally squashed. The tomatoes were ruined ~ 

I was surprised ~ and I did not see parental controls anywhere ~ no button to push to rewind this picture...so I simply took it upon myself to admonish her...and I said, "...what makes you think that someone wants a tomato where your butt has been..."

She mumbled.

Along came her parents ~ not a single one of them spoke English.

I rest my case.

We need to get a grip ~ and hold on ~ because we are in for the ride of our life!!

Here's your rope!!!

DURING THOSE YOUNGER DAYS...

Traveling was so much easier ~ time did not matter ~ and getting from point A to point B was not even a consideration. Now ~ older ~ not necessarily wiser ~ all things are taken into consideration.

Sort of like the movie somewhere ~ when the person stands on the deck, wets his finger and holds it up into the wind to see which way the wind is blowing (though I would imagine that it simply meant which side got coldest first ~ otherwise, how could one tell where the wind was coming from)...but ~ I digress. One of those analytical days, I guess.

Popping into the car and taking off as I use to do is not nearly as easy now. The bones ache a bit more ~ staying in one position for traveling is not really conducive to all the sore spots that seem to creak and groan while I moan.

And, gasoline prices ~ though better than they were a few months ago ~ can still shock one as we will continue to see in the coming months. Not a prediction ~ but higher costs for everything. With all the stimulus going on for states ~ and roads being improved as each city/town scrambles to utilize that money package that is being given (given?) by our spiffy government ~ the taxes will quickly follow.

Don't beat me ~ I didn't make this up ~ listen to your national news. Better yet ~ turn on your BBC stations. I enjoy their bantor. No glamour ~ just real stuff.

So ~ back in the car ~ less and less ~ traveling distances that are also less and less ~ it appears the bubble is smaller and smaller. One tries to make do with the nearest and closest ~ and the best of the rest.

Not easy to do when you live in a very small community ~ where toothless wonders and overalls are the order of the day. Don't get me wrong ~ I grew up on farms; where the men wore overalls and coveralls and work boots and hats all the time. But. when this is all you see in your community ~ and the women seem to think that looking less than decent while out shopping is alright ~ as though no one is looking at them ~ well, one has a tendency to stay at home and read a book.

But ~ the season is changing; soon, spring will be here, though I can safely say that it will be at least another month before it can be safely said that ice-storms won't happen.

Then begins the real weather: TORNADOES. The one that came through in February of '08 ~ devastated the town right next door ~ with 13 people losing their lives in that community alone. 

This season has been the season of "wind". It has been horrific ~ with damages left and right ~ even I had damage this year and had to have it repaired. Luckily, it happened one evening ~ and I called and got it repaired the very next day.  A real blessing.

Through it all ~ we ~ this town ~ did not suffer like the folks in Kentucky ~ with power outages and people losing their lives because of the cold. With electricity down ~ people literally froze. Terrible ~ and some are still suffering and devastated from the winter storms coming through.

Today ~ with weather being in the mid-70's here ~ the feeling of spring will be hitting me ~ creating in me that urge to get outdoors and start things rollling with planting, etc. But, I must resist that urge and wait ~ hard as it will be for me to do.

Traveling is still on the agenda for me, though. Friends and chapter members back in Arkansas are giving me a faint call ~ and I long to visit my friends there. We talk via phone ~ but there is nothing like going back to see friends.

I predict it won't be long before I will be on the road ~ either shooting some photo shots ~ or taking those off the road places ~ to simply find out what's out there.

See you on the flip!!

Happy Spring...speaking of which...losing that hour will take me a month to recoup!!

Gotta Gotta!!

IT HAS CROSSED MY MIND FROM TIME TO TIME... That we should check out our stockpile pantry to see just what is stored in "there". The endurance shelf, as well!!

What is it ~ is it wasted space? Is it shelf after shelf of useless verbage ~ piles and piles of nouns ~ pronouns ~ dangling participles ~ and questions?

Do we care enough to get in there and clean it out?

Not figuratively speaking, that is ~ you know what I mean.

We try and store what we can when we can ~ but sometimes, things just overflow and we have to open the valve to get fresh water. Letting go might be hard for some; been there, done that.

Being a bit cheeky, here ~ yeah ~ fun is good ~ I have sometimes been accused of looking on the down side of the hill rather than the hill to climb. Being the realist that I am ~ I am intelligent enough to know that with climbing, there comes a time when you also must put on your brakes on the other side, or, you come tumbling down at breakneck speed ~ generally running into someone else who was taking a leisure stroll along the journey-path.

We all have different speeds. We all gear up for the unexpected ~ and take what life gives to us. We share ~ or try to ~ and we often make mistakes. We say or do things that perhaps we regret ~ biting the tongue...Perhaps there are bandages in that pantry for that as well.

Don't be afraid to speak out ~ to speak your mind. Just be very careful when you do ~ that you can also accept the accountability you must deal with in that jump you might comtemplate.

Leaps of faith are great ~ but unless you have wings ~ you best crack open the parachute!!

Free-falling, though beautiful...ends in less than beautiful ways!!

God Bless Us, Everyone!!

WE ALL HAVE CHOICES...

Every single day ~ we choose to get up ~ get dressed ~ brush our hair ~ shower ~ make coffee or tea and begin the day. Every single day ~ we have to make many decisions ~ even before breakfast. Turn off lights ~ close doors ~ let animals in or out ~ change sheets ~ change clothes ~ if you begin to write things down on all you do ~ all I do ~ the pages are endless. If you would begin to describe what it was you did ~ you might even find yourself a bit tired or worn out.

In all of this ~ along with this ~ the choices we make are also regarding friends and friendship. The kinds and types of people we hang out with ~ befriend ~ love ~ care about ~ miss when they are away ~ how we treat them ~ and how they treat us (which, in essense, is their choice).

In there with all that ~ swimming around ~ are perimeters for each. We have expectations; the doors should not stick when we open them ~ the coffee pot will work ~ the water will turn on ~ and so will the light when we flip the switch. Our friends will be there for us ~ and will be kind enough to let us know when we have messed up ~ or when we should back off ~ and that they love us... 

Expectations...

We all have them ~ we all live them. Every single day. Possibilities for choices every day are endless ~ which is why we have beds to sleep in/on ~ so we can be refurbished each night ~ to begin it all over the next day.

My point in all this?  When someone chooses to be hateful and disrespectful ~ it is their choice. Even when they do not know someone ~ there is disrespect. When we see behavior ~ that is not in "tune" with what "we" think it should be ~ the only thing that is taken into consideration is the viewer ~ not the person being viewed. So, snap decisions are made ~ judgements are done ~ and the chastizement begins. Regardless of the feelings of others. Charge on, oh, stupid one!!

None of us can walk in someone else's shoes. There is no fit ~ the walk would be uncomfortable ~ and the journey long and perhaps more dusty and less satisfying. 

Luckily ~ we have options in our lives to disregard those with little respect ~ with little concern ~ and who really care little for the hearts of others.

There is no real excuse for disrespect. It is offensive and uncalled for. So ~ when you are making up your mind regarding someone you know little about ~ perhaps you may wish to pull out your mirror ~ distortions and all ~ and recall the imperfections in your own reflection.

Perhaps, then and only then ~ will you begin to "get it". All of life is not red and purple ~ though some might believe it to be so ~ it is not all about fluff and stuff ~ though some would hope it to be. This is not a marshmallow world ~ though some would love to suck it all in.

In our multitude of daily choices ~ we have the option to turn a corner ~ to change direction ~ to be caring and/or forgiving ~ and to be thoughtful as opposed to thoughtless. When options are given, choices to be made ~ it is up to us to be wise in those thoughts and decisions ~ and to not be careless in flinging darts so they hit hearts. Sometimes in our thoughtlessness ~ we cease to realize that everyone on this earth has a life ~ personal and/or public. It is easy to make a decision about someone based on how he or she is dressed ~ how they speak ~ what their hair looks "like" ~ how they walk ~ and we make a judgement call ~ right away. Within seconds ~ we have decided whether or not   we will like this person ~ or, whether we will be jealous of this person ~ or that this person could never be a friend. We choose to be hateful or kind ~ or choose to be thoughtless. 

    Not always a wise thing to do ~ because many times ~ it can come and bite one in the hiney.

Be honest with yourself ~ be genuine ~ and care enough for yourself that you don't go off half- cocked without knowing the spirit of others.

Oh...and thanks for asking...I am a realist.

But, I thank God every single day for my life. I just don't know how I could manage on this earth without HIM in my life.

you get the idiot award!!

GAG ME!!

I try and be about as natural as I can be ~ considering I have silver hair (from Dad, thanks, Dad)...and not outta that smelly bottle ~ and my eyes are green ~ not from envy ~ as every gal puts her bra on the same pretty much...and, the last time I looked..we brush our teeth pretty much in the same manner.

I like low shoes..someone else likes spikes...so who is the best?

No one...is better than anyone else.

And, when I see folks acting as though they have the "best answer"...or that we should..."...just do it this way or that way..." what they are really saying...is, "...do it MY way..." cause everyone else is wrong.

The method to achieve that attitude is to come on strong and suggest that you should listen to "me" and that "I have all the right answers"...and this is what you need to do.

"Last Word"...in other words.

Gag me!!

UNCLE!! UNCLE!!

My fault!! Link was there ~ I was using the doggone wrong way to enter it. That's what happens when you go away for awhile and don't use something....you lose it.

But...I wrote the right person and told her to give me a swift kick after I turned around...

So ~ chalk it up to an old lady...HEY!! OUT THERE!! Thanks for humoring an OLD LADY!!!

OK...

Though I have chosen to not write at the QMB1 at this time ~ and do not go there to write but only to read ~ tell me why it is that the link to get to my site is now broken and I get a message: "whoops!!"...

Why is it that I have to jump through hoops to get here to this site.

This makes a person feel a bit paranoid about all this, now...ya think?

Shame on those in charge who have not fixed this problem in over a week or more!! What message does this send?

Not a very good one, I can tell you that.

Am I a bit upset?

Yeah...but it doesn't pay my bills to be pissed...so all I can do is complain.

Right.

© (photo taken by this writer ~ please do not copy without credit)

©IN TOUCH

THOUGH NEGLECT IS NOT PART OF MY ACTIVE ROUTINES...I can definitely consider myself as being remiss in my Spiritual Life. With much soul-searching going on ~ those inner voices lend wealth to the ripples that flutter throughout my daily routines.

After many years of running this way and that ~ feeling unsettled in so many ways ~ I have begun ~ in earnest ~ to SEEK OUT AND qualify those shallow-tactics of mine ~ in the hopes that real purpose for my life will rejoin my attitudes of thinking. IT HAS NOT BEEN AN EASY TASK to come full-circle with oneself and find that what is staring back at you ~ is less attractive than at first glance.

Having always been faithful to know that this Universe ~ all that surrounds me ~ all that "is" ~ did not happen by mistake or without forethought ~ without reason or rhyme ~ my disregard has somehow fallen short of what I really need to be doing.

Faithful ~ yes ~ in so many ways. Believing that my Heavenly Father created all ~ and that I am in it ~ without doubt. Not because of my religious history and family orientation; rather, because I have been speaking on a personal level ~ a talking and real level, if you will ~ with the very ONE whom people find so much doubt.

With so much of family and friends scattering in the winds like leaves on a brisk fall-day ~ and heartache and breaks just around the corner ~ pelting like cold rain ~ I think of myself as being the dark cloud ~ always under ~ always wondering just why it would be me suffering....and for so long.

I remember Job in the Bible and all that he went through ~ his losses ~ his family ~ his business ~ his health ~ and the bargaining that was done for his very life ~ how could I consider myself above such educational and inspirational worth as Job and how God made his life a living hell for so many years.

I think of my lack of closeness with my HEAVENLY FATHER ~ and I find myself sucking in my breath and forgetting to breathe. He cannot be just "part" of me ~ HE MUST BE IN ALL OF ME.

IN ME.

SO MANY DECISIONS

...have I made without his intervention. So many times ~ alone in my thinking without praying through ~ and so many of doing on my own ~ only to reap the aftermath ~ like the storm that has gone through ~ devastating everything in its' pathway.

Longing to be a much better person ~ not for credit ~ not for honor ~ not for fame or fortune ~ but for a more simple life. A life of trusting that answers will come ~ but I need to remember that HE provides all for me ~ not the government ~ not the material things ~ not any of that.

The mature side of me has always thought I can work through it. I can do without....as some would believe they don't have to take their medicine once they begin to feel better; paying no attention to the fact that the reason they are ~ is BECAUSE of the medicine. Yet ~ believing it can be done without support ~ they linger out there until they come crashing down and wonder just why it happened.

For me ~ the realization that I cannot make it on my own has come full-circle. Way over-due.

So much heartache within my entire family ~ so much sadness ~ so much breach of kindness ~ of broken spirits ~ of family members wanting..."...to just go a thousand miles from here and live in a cave..." and words that will break a parents' heart.

When all else fails ~ when you try it on your own ~ when you cannot turn to another person to complain ~ when you know you have to make changes ~ or there will be none ~ and when the pain is so great that you are fearful of your own health...

It is then you become more atune with the difficulties of Job ~ and spirit his experience created for all to read. More than read ~ it fulfills a promise for me.

Every decision that is made by me ~ will be turned over to MY HEAVENLY FATHER. Regardless of what it might be ~ no matter how big or small. For HE is all encompassing ~ HE is all forgiving ~ all KNOWING ~ AND IT IS HE and only HE who will see me through all difficult times.

I am prayerful of HIS LOVE FOR ME ~ and all that HE has given me. And, all he will continue to provide for me. And, all that HE is teaching me.

With HIS guidance ~ HIS understanding ~ my prideful ways can be behind me ~ my shallowness can be thrown away ~ and replaced with a kind heart ~ a more gentle spirit ~ and to be more like HIM every day.

Often praying for what my purpose will be ~ and still learning ~ there was a song I heard the other day ~ sung by the Simpsons out of Kentucky ~ and a line from the song read: BE STILL AND LET GOD MOVE.

And, that is simply what I must learn to do. HE is the great teacher ~ and I owe HIM everything in my life. I can only pray that I will be worthy of such a teacher.

And, I pray that what I learn will humble me beyond what this world can offer.

Peace to you if you are reading this.

Joy to your heart ~ in your spirit ~ and may God be In you...always.

Saundra

©