The View from Here

No TV

I have to stop watching television. Seriously…

1. Vampires solving crimes in between entrees? (I had lunch with Ann Rice once. Did I tell you that already? I digress…)
2. $67 million??????????????????????????????? Do we have priority issues in this country or what?
3. “The way Veramyst works is not fully understood.” Then why in the world do I need to ask my doctor to prescribe it for me? Maybe it will clear my sinuses, but turn me into a blood-sucking television star. No thanks.
4. And no, no, no…I do not want to see or hear another word about B.S. She can drop off the planet. I’ll pray for her. Just don’t tell me what she is doing, eating, wearing, saying, thinking, or pretending to sing. And those of you following her…get a life.
5. Is there a gap in communications somewhere? Did you catch the CEO’s shocked face? “Oh my, that poor child was working for us?” Well, duh. Give her the Oscar please!
6. Political campaign? Is that what we’re calling the circus now? Bring in the clowns. Oh, wait, they’re already here!
7. Viva what?? I’ve only seen the advertisements, but if that show lasts another week someone somewhere should lose their job.
8. Please find Katie another job. I’m begging you. Give me Harry Smith any day of the week.
9. Not to pick on the guy, but can’t Subway find another spokesperson? Did Jared get a lifetime contract just for losing weight? Boring…
10. And finally my list of shows that need to be history: CSI Miami, Law and Order of any variety, Ghost Whisperer, The Singing Bee, Deal or No Deal, Vegas, ER, The Office, Rules of Engagement…

Not much...

to say today. I’m sick. Thought I was just having fall allergy problems until my temperature reached 101. Then I had to regroup and rethink. Taking it easy and trying to make sure I can go to school tomorrow. I hate being sick! I don’t do it very often, thank goodness. I generally have a pretty strong immune system, thanks to years around little children. I swear I was sick the first two years that I taught in daycare! Then my system just started fighting back. I guess once it was exposed to every imaginable germ there wasn’t much left to fear. LOL

Children love to spread germs! They will touch and hug and poke you no matter what they have, or what they’ve been doing. They will eat crumbs off the floor, bite their shoelaces, wipe their noses on their shirts, and lick their fingers after playing on the monkey bars. It’s no wonder we’ve developed this “antibacterial” craze. We’re scared to death of our own children!

And getting a children’s disease is never easy on adults. I remember getting impetigo from a child and having to wear this awful purple medicine on the spot…on my chin of course. It itched like crazy, and for a week people kept asking me if I knew I had ink on my chin. Now I have a scar there.

So, back to warm liquids and Tylenol. Hopefully I’ll be better by tomorrow.

P.S. In case you overlooked it, you can read about my life in 1963 by linking to Stories Too Long.

Words

I love words! I’ve always been fascinated by language and how we use it. When I was a young girl I loved to read the dictionary and I tried to learn a new word each week. I followed the advice of my favorite teacher- “Use the new word three times a day for a week.” I’m sure I drove people crazy!

For several years I bought those “word a day” calendars. I tried to learn obscure words or use words in unusual ways. I memorized words borrowed from other languages. I studied words that sounded much more eloquent or educated than my normal expressions.

Now I guess I’ve grown lazy. I use the same words over and over. I rely on my Thesaurus or a right click on my mouse to give me substitutes if my word use gets too stale and repetitious. I don’t have the time or energy to devote to word study. But I secretly miss it. Tonight I had to look up the use and meaning of “forebear” for something else I’m typing. I’m ashamed to say there was dust on my dictionary!

Driven by guilt I flipped through a few pages for old time’s sake. Here are some words I want to share with you:

abnegate: deny or renounce

bifurcate: to cause to divide into two branches or parts

catarrh: inflammation of a mucous membrane

dubiety: a matter of doubt

evert: overthrow, upset 

Wasn’t that fun? Maybe I should buy another “word-a-day” calendar!

Oatmeal

Cold weather always finds me reaching for oatmeal, one of my favorite comfort foods. My mother cooked steaming bowls of old fashioned Quaker Oats for us when I was a kid. The “instant” oats I had this morning weren’t quite as good, but still warm and soothing. And if you like peanut butter, try putting a teaspoon in your oatmeal. I promise you’ll love it!

I was thinking about oatmeal the other day when I went shopping. Mom used to look for oatmeal, soap, cereal and other products that had “bonuses” or “gifts” in them. We got glasses, cups, bowls, spoons, and towels inside “specially marked boxes”. I loved to help her look for the soap that Dolly Parton advertised on television. I can’t even recall what brand it was, but the towels inside were pretty.

Products change every time I go to the store. Last week my laundry soap had disappeared and been replaced by a new “concentrated” version in a new container. No one asked me if I was unhappy with the old version, but I guess it doesn’t matter. I’ll just use the new one and be quiet.

And I guess “steam in the bag” is going to be the new standard in frozen vegetables because it’s getting more and more difficult to find anything else. I like the fresher quality, but I’m not crazy about the higher price. But again, fewer choices means I’m going to buy them.

I’ve drifted off the path. I started out thinking about winter food and how much I enjoy oatmeal and soup and pasta and hot chocolate and all those winter comfort foods. I didn’t mean to get distracted by all the changes at the supermarket. And don’t get me started on crustless bread or yogurt in a tube or pre-cooked bacon. We won’t even recognize the “food” consumed by our great-great grandchildren.

Well, I’m off to make some hot chocolate. I have a few questions for you first:

1.      Did your mom ever make cooked rice (with butter and sugar) for breakfast?

2.      Did your mom make butter and sugar sandwiches for you after school?

3.      Did your mom make buttermilk biscuits every day?

4.      Did your mom make cinnamon oatmeal cookies?

5.      Did your mom make hot chocolate with real cocoa?

If you answered “yes” at least three times then you’re old…and you had a great Mom!

Street Gardening

         

This photo would normally be posted to my Caddo site, but in case you don't venture over there very often I wanted to show you my little "street garden" at the corner of Buffalo and Arkansas. I thought it was awesome in the spring with larkspurs and poppies, but it has also made a great fall garden. I'm very pleased with it and happy that I get to see it each time I go to the post office. I'm going to plant tulip and daffodil bulbs in it this weekend.

          Spent much of the day at the genealogy library. Found some interesting tidbits of information that will eventually be posted on my other site. I now have enough information about Caddo to write a book! Maybe I will.

          Well, it finally happened...Gary got stung by a scorpion. He picked up the mop pail that sits by the back door and there was one on the edge. Got him on the thumb. He said it didn't hurt "much". I don't want to know from experience, thanks anyway.

          For the past few days I've been enjoying the antics of a group of bluebirds. Six of them arrive each evening to take a bath in the birdbath that is just outside my kitchen window. I watch them splash and dip as I'm cooking dinner. They have a little competition from some sparrows and a couple of flickers who also want to bathe. I must remember to hang up a bluebird house for spring.

          I've been preparing report cards this week. Always reminds me of my own days in school. I loved to get my report card and take it home to Mom. She always made a big deal out of the event. I think report card day was actually more important to her than our birthdays!

          Well, I'm off tomorrow. Gotta love fall break! Going south to do some shoe shopping. later...

Moon Sand

They say there is a sucker born every minute. Well, today I paid $3.88 for 10 oz. of "sand with a non-toxic binding agent". But I have to tell you I love the stuff! Moon Sand has been around for a while, but I didn't try any until the beginning of this school year. I bought five pounds of plain white Moon Sand from a catalog and my students have enjoyed it more than I ever imagined. So today I bought 10 oz. of "orbit orange". It's also available in space blue, planet purple, rocket red, lunar yellow, Martian magenta, and satellite white. The great thing about this stuff is that it doesn't dry out and it can be used over and over without any "maintenance". I don't have to remind my students to cover it or put it back in the container. It cleans up easily and it doesn't stick to anything. I've tried regular sand, rice, macaroni, and styrofoam peanuts in my classroom sandbox, but this is the best. If you need a Christmas idea check it out at Spinmaster or WalMart or your local toy store.

I'm also enjoying some new puzzles I purchased from the Melissa & Doug line. I love wooden puzzles because they are durable and also feel good. I bought mine from Craighead's in Caddo!

Later...

Relationships

My daughter made a couple of comments in her blog this week that made me think about my relationships with other people. I have very few BFFs if I’ve used the current lingo correctly. I’m fiercely independent and I can be a bit of a recluse at times. Yet, I love people and I have a lot of friends and acquaintances that I enjoy. You already know I do a lot of emailing and writing rather than talking on the phone. However, this week I’ve come to realize I’m a “people junkie”. I’m not sure I could go a week without communicating with someone. I enjoy a variety of people for a variety of reasons. Each brings something unique to our relationship. Each has shared a portion of my life in a way no other person has or will.

I used to think of the people in my life as jigsaw pieces making up the picture of who I was, and so if a piece was gone it created a hole. But that isn’t true. Once a person is a part of your life, they have changed it forever. Each relationship creates change and change creates physical or emotional reactions. Those reactions become a part of who you are.

I like to think that I contribute something to each relationship as well. I try to be understanding and helpful. I try to be available. I try to be positive. I think it’s the nature of humans to want to please others. You can’t have a successful relationship, even a casual one, if you are only interested in what the other person can do for you. But I no longer waste my time on people who only cause me grief. I once thought of myself as someone who could help people to the point of “fixing” them. Most people don’t want to be fixed. They just want to do what makes them happy. If what makes them happy leaves you miserable or angry or afraid, then you are simply in the wrong relationship, with the wrong person. Best to move on while you still can.

I didn’t have a lot of close friends as a child. But I never remember feeling lonely or upset for very long. There simply wasn’t time. We moved so often that I not only learned quickly how to make friends and adapt to different social groups, but also how to give them up and move on. My only real regret is that my very best childhood friend died just as we were getting reacquainted as young adults.

My aunt told me a sweet story a few weeks ago. Thanks to the internet she located a woman she had been friends with many, many years ago. She’d never forgotten the woman, came across her photo recently, and decided to look for her. She not only managed to find her and talk to her, but they plan to get together soon. Finding someone like that is like looking at a movie of your past. No one else shared that brief period of time with you in just the same way. No one else shares those exact memories.

As I get older I can see that some of my relationships will last as long as we are both alive. I like that. I like the feeling of continuity. That’s a gift for a gypsy like myself. Other relationships, especially with younger people, are more temporary because I know they will move on to bigger communities, better opportunities. I also look forward to new relationships. I’m enjoying my new colleagues. I’m getting to know new people through my work in the community. I’m emailing new people because of my blog. Some of the newer people in my life have caused me to reexamine my ideas and opinions-just another opportunity for change.

I seem to spend a lot of time lately thinking about relationships and friendships and family. I suppose that happens as one moves to the other side of fifty. Now that I’m quickly sliding toward sixty I am more and more grateful for the people in my life who are still here. Each year someone close to us dies. I remember my grandmother commenting on how sad it was to be the last living member of her very large Sunday School class. She treasured the friendship of each of those women.  She treasured the times they had spent together, the prayers they had prayed for each other, and the laughter they had shared. 

I challenge you this week to take a look at your own relationships. Don’t waste time on people who cause you stress or pain or anger. Instead, give more of yourself to those who add to your joy and peace and strength.

Google

Okay, I admit it. At least every other month I Google my own name. My son laughed when I mentioned it the other night. I suppose it makes me sound like one of those attention seeking fools who needs to think they are important. Wait that is me…LOL. However, I have a perfectly logical reason for checking on my name.

Once upon a time, before I got the brilliant idea to have a “day job”,  I wrote full-time and actually sold a couple hundred articles and craft ideas each year, mostly to parenting and education publications. One day I was shopping in one of those “teacher stores” with my daughter, when I opened a book and saw one of my ideas. Only problem was that I hadn’t sold it to that particular publisher. I flipped through the book and found no less than three of my ideas. After I got home I went through my contracts, found I had sold the ideas to the parent company of the one that published the book and, deep within the fine print, had given them the right to do exactly what they had done- use them again in one of their other publications. Needless to say, I’ve read subsequent contracts more carefully. And that brings me around to why I Google my own name, and sometimes also the titles of my most recent articles. I want to find out if my work is floating around in cyberspace. And it is.

I found that a Japanese student referenced one of my gardening articles in some sort of paper. I would have been more excited if I had been able to read more than just my name and the title of the article. J I also found out that one of the articles I sold this summer is online, even though I thought it was only going to be in the print version. Found out a chapter I wrote for a book is not only in print, but most of the chapter is online. Odd to sit at the computer and read it when I haven’t received my own copy yet. Saw a reference to an article I wrote nearly a ago- still floating around.

Being a writer, even a part-time writer, makes me a bit paranoid about being misread, misunderstood, or misquoted. I’m not sure I have much to say most of the time, but when I do I want to know who is reading it. These days it could be anyone, anywhere. So…I Google my own name.

Friends Old and New

Well, Heritage Day is over and my feet are still killing me. I walked the length of Buffalo Street at least twenty times yesterday and it was worth every step. Heritage Day is my favorite Caddo event- a day of fun, food, and fellowship. I talked with one of my classmates of nearly forty years ago. I didn’t recognize him and I’m sure someone had to point me out to him or he wouldn’t have known me. (Not that I’ve changed all that much since high school. LOL) I talked with a woman I’ve only known before through email. It was such fun to finally meet her in person. I chatted with former residents that I hadn’t seen in a year. I visited with cousins who live right down the road. Hadn’t seen them in months. Spoke with friends who are just like me- so busy we seldom see each other.

Heritage Day is also a day when the whole town strives to make sure our visitors have a good time. The city workers were cleaning and mowing all week. Several organizations worked on booths and floats and contest entries. Townspeople mowed their lawns and put out flowers. Local business owners donated prizes and candy and gifts for contestants. Even some of our newest residents and business owners were involved in yesterday’s celebration. It’s great to see how much can be accomplished when we work together as a community. It gives me even more hope for our future plans.

Yesterday was also a reminder of how enduring our old fashioned family roots are in the chaos of modern life. Many of the families represented in the parade and other events can trace their families back to the earliest days of Caddo’s inception. Our state is 100 years old this year, but Caddo celebrated its 100^th birthday in 1972! And many of those who celebrated then were present yesterday. I marveled at Maurine Craighead sitting outside the store that still bears her family name even though she no longer owns it. She was behind the counter of the store when I was a child. Her father had a business before that and was a graduate of the class of 1908. Such continuity is reassuring to me when I read of yet another strip mall being built by anonymous people who will move on down the road if the grass seems greener.

I know our little town has problems. I know that we lack many things that people need and we have to go to bigger towns to get them. But the joy of coming back home afterwards just can’t be matched anywhere else. Someone told me yesterday that Caddo is home, no matter where else they live, and no place will ever feel the same.  Well, I agree- and that’s why I work somewhere else, and shop somewhere else (if I must), and often visit somewhere else, but at the end of the day I come home to Caddo. It’s where my roots are and where my friends are.

Global Warming

           My son will  grumble when he sees I’ve used this title, but goodness gracious it’s hot, hot, HOT! It’s only been a few weeks since I was cozying up with my blanket and pulling my long-sleeved shirts out of storage. Now it’s back to 90 degrees! It’s October and the kids are still wearing shorts to school. Crazy. I wonder if we’ll have a drastic change before Halloween.

Today is my grandson’s birthday and also my sister-in-law’s birthday. Hope they both had a terrific day!

I’m still working on projects each night. Lots of flyers and posters and display photos for this weekend. When this is over I plan to get out and work in the flowers for at least a couple of weeks. This is a great time to plant trees and shrubs and wildflowers in our area. I especially like to plant poppies. Over the past few years they have become one of my favorite flowers.

I realized today that I really, really like my new job. My class and I are developing a good relationship. I’m beginning to know more of the staff. I’m feeling at home. I’m enjoying my new time schedule. I’m less stressed and more confident. Sometimes you just don’t realize how stressful a situation is until you are out of it. I can’t believe how much better I feel and sleep just because I’m getting up at 5:30 instead of 4:45.

We’re having pizza for dinner tonight and then watching Survivor while I attach photos to a presentation board.  Exciting life out here in the sticks! LOL I wouldn’t have it any other way.