The View from Here

A Work in Progress

I made a wise decision last night. I had planned to work on the “stop sign beds” in Caddo since Gary was working the night shift. Three of the stop signs at our four-way stop in downtown Caddo are planted in cement pipes. This is a photo from last year. I usually plant them for Easter weekend, but with our strange weather and my health I am just getting around to them.

Well, after school I stopped at Lowe’s and began gathering the plants I needed. I’ve already planted flame grass in the Buffalo bed that holds the fourth stop sign, so each of the others gets flame grass as well. Last year I planted sweet potato vine, but last fall I decided I wanted something more permanent so I planted ivy in each “pot” and it is doing well. I bought three more pots of ivy to supplement. However, as I began to choose coreopsis and marigolds I made a decision to only complete one container. I was already tired and I decided that this year the project could be a work in progress. (I should also note that I usually have a very capable and willing helper, but she is currently on vacation in TN.)

By the time I returned home at 6:30 I was exhausted!

In the past I would have considered it my duty to complete all three of those pots. I wouldn’t have wanted anyone to think I had “quit”, or couldn’t handle the task. What nonsense! I realized that I’m doing something no one else wants to do and everyone seems to appreciate, so they don’t care when I do it or how long it takes. Several people stopped to say “thanks” and one offered to buy plants!  I’ll just finish at whatever pace feels right.

I think there are some other areas of my life that would benefit from that attitude! I am a work in progress! I’m always trying to “complete the task” instead of enjoying the journey. Time to slow down a bit. Pace myself. Relax. The tortoise eventually gets across the same finish line as the hare. J

Politics and Money

Sometimes the old newspapers just make me laugh out loud! Here is a gem I found in the January 23, 1925 issue of The Caddo Herald:

“There is talk of a bill in the legislature to allow each member $5 a day as expenses. Better not try it, gentlemen. You knew what the salary provided by the constitution allowed when you ran for office, and should be content with it. If it is not enough, better resign and come home. Some legislators may be worth more, some less than the law allows, but it is the province of the people to make the change. Such subterfuge will hardly be countenanced by a tax-burdened people back home.”

Priceless history lesson folks! LOL Even if I didn’t do genealogy research I would enjoy reading the old newspapers just for items like that.

Have a great day! Pass this on to your favorite politician.

What's working.

I was going to write a topic-specific nutrition blog this morning, but I’ve lost three pounds this week, so I decided to write about what’s working for me. And I’ve made some changes I haven’t mentioned before. But if you get bored, just look at the pretty flowers! J

The most significant change for this week was movement. Our weather has warmed to the point that we are out for recess twice per day, and at home I’ve started gardening. I’ve taken the attitude that apparently my foot is going to hurt no matter what I’m doing, so I might as well be moving. That will improve my overall health, take off more weight, and decrease the weight my foot is carrying.

For breakfast I’m eating cereal at least three mornings per week. I alternate between Special K and Kashi. Both tasty. And I always put frozen blueberries or strawberries in my cereal. I also take a multi-vitamin. The other mornings I have a scrambled egg in a tortilla, or a plain toasted bagel with peanut butter or fruit and yogurt.

I’m carrying a 12-oz drinking cup of ice to school. This is a little change, but means that I drink more water because it is cold. Can’t stand tepid water. I have a refrigerator in my classroom, but it is in the closet, and I can’t traipse back and forth to open it several times a day. So once I take out a bottle of water it slowly warms up and I found I wasn’t finishing it. Now I’m drinking two bottles of water and a bottle of green tea each day. (Breakfast- two cups of coffee and a small bottle of cranberry juice or a glass of milk. After school- two cups of coffee. Dinner- two glasses of tea. )

My lunch now consists of a Special K protein shake and a bag of nuts and dried berries that I’m mixing at home. I’ve never eaten a traditional lunch for reasons I won’t bother to elaborate. Peanut butter sandwiches, breakfast bars, shakes, etc. have always suited my job and schedule. However, the breakfast bars and mixes in a bag have too much sugar and salt. So I’m making my own mix in ziplock bags. I’m using a mix (Ann’s House) of soybeans, cranberries, almonds, and pumpkin seeds that has 150 calories in ¼ cup and contains no sodium. I add ½ a box of raisins and three shelled walnuts to each bag. The bag mix is enough to satisfy my need to chew. I also happen to love nuts and berries. The protein shake breaks down like this: Calories 180, fat 5g, cholesterol 15mg, sodium 230 mg, potassium 520mg, fiber 5g, sugars 18g, protein 10g.

I’m not snacking after school. I think that’s because I was actually more dehydrated than hungry! And I think the lunch change has helped. So I haven’t consciously decided not to snack, I just haven’t needed it.

Dinner changes have been minimal, but significant. I’m now eating more fresh veggies than frozen. Less salt, more vitamins. Also eating three veggies per night instead of two. And I usually eat a salad with lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, and sometimes avocado slices. Less meat, no bread. In fact, I threw out two loaves of bread (odds and ends of four kinds) at the end of last week because we just haven’t been eating it. So this week I only bought tortillas and wheat wraps. Also stopped buying packaged rice mixes and just make plain. I’m eating fish, usually salmon, three times a week. (Gary is working the evening shift several times a week- summer hours- and I’m eating alone.)

Gary and I used to eat in a restaurant at least once a week. Now we eat out once or twice a month.

Just in case you are ready to think I’m a saint, I’ll let you know that we have made a conscious decision to continue one of our indulgences- pizza. And yes, I buy the frozen! We only eat it once a week, and I’m eating less of it, but making my own isn’t worth the trouble right now, especially since I’m trying to spend precious time on gardening. In the summer I plan to make my own.

We also eat ice cream, sherbet, or frozen yogurt every night. I buy those little individual cartons of ice cream and sherbet. Probably start making my own again in another week or so. The yogurt is the “whipped” yogurt and I think I mentioned before that it is delicious when frozen.

I’ve now lost twelve pounds. Not enough for anyone to notice, but I feel better already. And I feel like I’m making less effort now to eat better.

Have a healthy day!

Cohorts

Symbiosis is a partnership between two types of organisms. In the plant world there are three kinds of symbiotic relationships:

Mutualism- advantageous to both

Commensalism-benefits one partner without having much impact on the other

Parasitism-benefits one partner and harms the other

Plants, insects, and animals that have a symbiotic relationship are called cohorts.

I thought about this yesterday as I drove home from Durant and saw some Indian paintbrush alongside the roadway. Many people do not realize that Indian paintbrush is a hemiparasite and always grows near a “host” plant. It sends out special roots to steal nutrients from other plants such as Oxeye daisy, little bluestem grass, buffalo grass, or blue bonnets. That’s why most people are unsuccessful when they go out to the prairie, dig up the plant, and take it home. It dies before it can find a new host! I learned this lesson about ten years ago when I tried to do the same thing.

You can buy seeds and start them with host plants. Or you can buy plants from a nursery, but make sure they include a host plant. High Country Gardens sends fringed sage with theirs.

I started this post for my Caddo blog in order to discourage people from digging up Indian paintbrush. However, it occurred to me that this little tidbit of information from the plant world can help us out with our human relationships if we remember the definitions listed above. We should strive to have as many mutually beneficial relationships with people as possible, and few if any parasitic ones! J

Have a great day!

She's back.....

I have the eyes of a 50 year old! Don’t laugh. When I was fifty I could drive without my glasses- exactly what I did yesterday, and I could read like crazy with my bifocals-exactly what I will be able to do when my new glasses are finished next week! I got a gold star from the ophthalmologist. Apparently it usually takes about five weeks for eyes to heal and stabilize after surgery, but mine have done so in a week- to the point that my glasses were driving me crazy yesterday.

Nothing looks right. I was concerned about my sight and had premonitions that something had gone wrong. Turns out that the only thing wrong is my current prescription! Even my left eye has improved- on its own- to the point that it almost matches the vision of the other eye. Amazing! Dr. R says that sometimes happens when the vision of the weaker eye was only slightly different. My distance vision in my left eye has always been close to perfect, now it is even better. So the tops of my new glasses will be essentially clear, with my bifocals for reading. That was my choice rather than reading glasses. I HATE the whole “take off-put on” thing because I read so much during the day.

Also, surgery on the left eye can be put off until the cataract makes it necessary. I had two- one growing slowly and the other fast- on my right eye. Only have one of the slow-growing ones on the left and it is not at the point where it is interfering with my vision.

 

 
  

Also got a release to go back to lifting and gardening.  Looks like it is going to be a great weekend to do so! Stacks of compost await and the weeds have had control far too long!

Have a great day!!

Frustration

Having some issues this morning. My blood pressure is still too high and I’ve been told by my doctor that I need to try a third medication to control it. So now I will be taking an ARB, a central agonist, AND a calcium channel blocker in hopes of countering the effects of my obviously defective genes. High blood pressure as been the bane of generations of our family, on both sides.

Of course the frustrating part is that my doctor tells me at each visit that if I would just exercise and control my weight I wouldn’t have to take so much medication. At the same time he seems to either ignore or minimize the fact that I have had some sort of physical pain- foot, back, ankle, calf- for the past ten years. He forgets that before my pain became chronic I was known as “one of the most regular customers” the gym had ever seen! I was never the “hare”, but I was a darned good, steady tortoise!!

I am currently having so much heel pain that I would gladly walk with a cane if I wasn’t afraid it would make matters worse, AND interfere with my teaching. My doctor gave me some samples of a medication found to be effective for nerve pain. However, the first serious side effect listed is “may cause thoughts of suicide”. Oh, yes, I want to pop that into my mouth and take my chances! Let’s see, how many members of our family have had mental health issues…six, eight? It also may cause dizziness and should not be used while driving until you are sure it isn’t affecting your ability to do so! Am I supposed to walk to work, or just take a week off until I’m sure the drug is not messing with my mind? Good grief!

He also told me to walk on the treadmill for about ten minutes a day until I gradually work up to thirty minutes. Been there, done that in December. A week of the thirty minute schedule=intense pain ever since.  I told him that and he said try it again. Of course he also told me to avoid walking and standing on cement! Has he been in a school lately? Shopped at WalMart? Looked at his own office floor?? I was ready to say something ugly. But of course I didn’t.

I’m thinking of checking with my insurance representative to see if I can go to a podiatrist without a referral. Don’t get me wrong. I love my doctor and wouldn’t trade him for major care and emergencies. He has saved Gary’s life more than once, and improved mine a great deal. However, it has been my experience over the years that one of his colleagues is better for injuries and chronic pain. And the Lord must agree because in recent years I’ve had at least four accidents/injuries that required me to be treated by the colleague because my own doctor wasn’t available at the time. So…I’m wondering if my foot pain wouldn’t be in better hands with an expert on foot care.

Okay, enough whining for today! Sorry.

 

This is why...

“Yes!!” I shouted.

Jan just laughed because I often shout in the library. Besides I was thrilled with my latest find and no one else was there. Then she came over to view the tiny screen. We had already discussed my purpose for afternoon.

“You have the patience of a saint. I would never have spent that much time on it.”

I’ve been searching since December for the obituary of Annie Wells who died on May 28, 1925. You would think that with the date I would be able to find it quickly. No such luck. I thought that perhaps she had been overlooked. So…what I do with a difficult search is put it on my “master search list” and just return to it from time to time as I get new ideas. I’ve had people on my list for as long as two years before finding information about them! And I often find the information in odd places, when I’m searching for someone else. Mrs. Wells has been on my list since December. And I was in a bit of a hurry to find her because a member of her family will be here later this month to arrange a new headstone for her. (The fate of her headstone and the location of her grave have been lost over time.)

Anyway, back to yesterday’s find. Over the weekend I worked on an obituary book I’m compiling for Gethsemane Cemetery. It will eventually contain all of the obituaries I can find for all of the people buried in the cemetery before 1950. (Many no longer have headstones, or any other record of their burial, other than the obituary.)  This weekend I found this obit in the “locals” of The Caddo International News, February 22, 1877: Died. On the morning of Feb. 19, eight miles west of Caddo, Ben Cox, son of Mr. Hugh Cox. I believe that holds the record for the shortest obit I’ve ever found. Yesterday I thought about that obit and decided to look again for Mrs. Wells, in the locals. In case you aren’t familiar with the locals, that’s where the editor listed “Mr. Franks visited his mother Sunday.” Or “Mrs. Jones bought a new sewing machine.” Honestly. In the old papers there were usually two or three columns of local news just like that. I should also note that after around 1900 the obituaries were usually listed separately, often on the front page of the paper so that everyone could attend the funeral. So my first search for an obit is always the front page, then the “news” pages, seldom the locals.

I finally found Mrs. Wells in the locals for June 5, 1925, second column, in between “newlyweds visit…” and “Mr. Cullen spoke at the church…” :

Mrs. Annie Wells, aged 77 years, died at Kenefick last Friday and was buried Saturday in Caddo Cemetery. Mrs. Wells was the mother of C. R. Wells and several other sons, and was a kindly soul much beloved in the community. The friends of the family extend sympathy in their bereavement.

I typed it up, sent it by email to the family member who had contacted me last year and received a prompt “thank you” reply.

This is why I find genealogy research fascinating, even when I’m not working on my own family. This is why the work suits me and my patient personality. This is why I search for dead people. J

 

What's in a name?

Karen gave me a lovely gift for my birthday. It’s a pin with my name and six beads- representing my children and grandchildren. It’s something I actually picked out myself because she wanted to make sure that it would suit my style and be something I would wear often.  We talked about what she wanted and what I wanted and I loved searching the internet for something that would satisfy both of us. I found this perfectly perfect pin at Wire Name Jewelry . I think I’m going to be his biggest fan!! Please take the time to look at this site. It has lots of other jewelry options and I think the possibilities for personalization are just fascinating. Be sure to look at the charms! Yes, there is an elephant for a future project! J

I Blame Gran

Okay, I know this is Monday and it’s supposed to be about nutrition. In an “over the river and through the woods” sort of way it is. Today is the tenth anniversary of my grandmother’s death and I’m using her as an excuse for my wayward ways on the path to healthy eating! Don’t worry, she had a great sense of humor.

My grandmother Bea (Dad’s mother) was one of those people who loved to make other people happy. At an early age she learned she could do that with her cooking! She was a good cook and enjoyed cooking, a lethal combination for the recipients of her talents. There were always cookies in the cookie jar and plenty of ingredients in the refrigerator and pantry for anything from lasagna to a chocolate fudge sundae! Oh, did I mention that she also grew up during The Great Depression??

Gran talked about the big “D” all the time. It was her reason for buying twenty pounds of sugar at one time or having six cans of coffee in the pantry. “You never know…” she'd say. I guess having “done without” made such a profound impact on her that she was determined to never go through that again. If the country ran out of sugar she would at least have her own supply!

Gran‘s cooking was old school- lard or Crisco, butter, salt, sugar-and more was always better. Gravy was a staple and bacon was a condiment. And cheese…oh, my, the woman loved cheese!

Gran’s cooking was very different from Mom’s. Dad always says HE taught Mom to cook. Gran always said SHE taught Mom to cook, and I think what both of them really meant was that they convinced Mom to cook with more seasonings and spices. I think her basic inclination was to use more vegetables and fewer additives because that’s the way she was raised on the farm.  Gran spent more time in town, and at the old hotel, and was exposed to more variety. Anyway, at Gran’s I was introduced to sour cream, garlic, heavy casseroles, and an endless array of spicy foods. Apparently when Gran moved to California, just before my birth, she went wild over Mexican and Italian foods.

Of course Gran also retained some of her “Okie ways” and made the best fried chicken you ever tasted. She made her own hominy (which I HATED). She made hog’s head cheese. For the uninitiated that has everything to do with a hog’s head, and NOTHING to do with cheese! Lol  She made fluffy biscuits topped with thick white gravy. She made pinto beans that brought truck drivers to tears!

Yes, Gran cooked in a variety of public places, and owned a café. For a while she cooked at Johnny’s, a little hole in the wall café in the middle of an industrial area of town. Delivery vans, trucks, and pickups began crowding into the parking lot at around 6am and the lot didn’t clear out until they closed the doors in the evening. I remember being in the place several times when it was so crowded I thought I couldn’t breathe, but I was so proud to hear the guys raving about Gran’s cooking. I didn’t understand their fascination with beans and biscuits until I realized that both reminded them of home and their own families.

To get back to my title, Gran loved me. I was her only granddaughter. You do the math. If I wanted something she did everything in her power to get it for me. If I wanted another cookie, no one was going to tell me “no”. Cake? Ice cream? More chicken? No problem! Any admonishment from my parents was either blatantly ignored or met with “now a little more won’t hurt…” J So…I blame her for my love of food- especially cheese, nuts, fried chicken, and ice cream. I blame her for my inability to stop at “just one”. She also added a few genes to the pool that I’m sure I could do without.  Of course she would threaten to “put me over her checkered apron” if I didn’t also mention that she taught me to be tough and independent. So I guess I’d better stop making excuses and putting the blame on her.

Easter Sunday

The first thought that came to my awakening brain this morning as I made coffee was profound regret that I no longer own an Easter bonnet. I know…crazy…but that’s the way my mind works. Easter hats were the norm when I was a child. In fact, hats were routine apparel for any Sunday. Mother owned a few, and Grandma Bea had rows of them at the top of her closet. Each was kept in its own little box to protect it from critters (us) and dust. Most of Gran’s hats were tiny brimless things with veils. They were held in place with lovely pearl topped hat pins that Gran kept in her jewelry box. My favorite was a burgundy velvet one. I loved, loved, loved the feel of it.

I also loved hats with big brims and flowers, and Easter church service was always the time and place to see the best ones. Some of Gran’s friends must have spent a fortune on hats! And gloves of course. Let us not forget that no self-respecting woman in a hat would be caught without gloves.

I don’t think I have a photo of me wearing a hat as a child, although I do remember owning a couple. One in particular comes to mind because it was a hard little thing that hurt my head, and I wore it anyway. I thought it made me look so grown up! I do have this photo of me as a teen, wearing my Easter hat at an FHA event.

April also brings back a flood of family memories. Easter was usually a time for bigger and better family gatherings than Christmas, especially if it fell in April, because the weather was so much better, and travel was easier. Gary and I were married on March 31, which in 1972 was also Good Friday. We chose that date because it was the only weekend when both of us could get off work! Mom and Dad were married in April, just before he graduated from high school. Gran was born (1908) and died (2000) in April. Tomorrow marks ten years since she went to be with Jesus.

  

Another wonderful Easter memory for me is of years spent working on passion play dramas for a variety of churches. I especially enjoyed the outdoor one we did with the First Baptist Church of Caddo. Sherry Morris and I had so much fun making the costumes (and reminding people to take off their watches!). We also helped create the sets and spent hours and hours making fake rocks! I also worked for years as a costume designer and seamstress for Trinity Baptist Church in Fresno, CA. They had an outstanding music/drama program and it was my privilege to participate in some soul saving presentations of the death and resurrection of our Savior.

Easter is also an annual reminder of the day I gave my heart to Jesus. I remember the moment like it was yesterday. I remember my best friend’s surprise because we hadn’t talked about it. I remember walking down the aisle to take the hand of Vance Crowe, our preacher. I was baptized on a Wednesday at a summer revival when I was sixteen, but the memory comes back to me each Easter, not because of the reminder of the sacrifice of Jesus, but because I wore a white dress with rows and rows of embroidered flowers on the skirt! I told you I was crazy. I’ve often tried to recall if perhaps I bought and wore that dress earlier for Easter, but my mind memory lacks that detail.

I was reminded this week, too, of all the Christian people who have blessed and changed my life. When I went to see my ophthalmologist Thursday I read this note on his door- “In honor of the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we will be closed on Friday.” What an honor and privilege to be treated by someone with such honest faith! And he is just one of many who grace my life. I have colleagues who pray with and for me. I have family members who are devoted to making the world a better place. I have friends who manifest Christian love and service each day. Much of the joy and peace of my life can be attributed to the people who surround me with their love.

I hope you are blessed this Easter Sunday by warm memories, faithful friends, and loving family members.

And because I’m also a weak, sinful woman with a wicked sense of humor, I leave you with this photo of my children on Easter Sunday 1986…just because they thought I would never dare post it! Love you sweet children! Honestly, I do…