(I wanted to use other expletives, hmmm)
As I've been putting in 8 and 12 hour days at work plus the two driving hours per day, it's been raining. I've been delighted for my little garden o' pots. The eggplants no longer look dainty, but bold and umbrella-like. The basil is a forest. The peppers are reaching for the sky. And the tomatoes are....
being devoured overnight by armies of stink bugs.
UGHHH.
There are little aliens all over ALL my tomatoes, and give the fact that for the past few days I've peeked out the window and waved at the garden through the rain rather than been hands-on, the little opportunists have devastated what should be the fullness of the tomato bounty. There are big fat tomato-sucking adults and legions of swarming (ugh!!) junior wannabees. And they've set up deluxe condominiums amidst my nearly 5 foot plants. One or two, and I'd be flicking and pinching. THESE just grossed me out. They are ALL OVER.
Did I mention UGH?
The tomatoes are showing the stress and all the present fruits are ruined. I'm not sure what to do since they cover everything (the bugs do, that is). Not sure if I should sacrifice the vines and pull them out and bag them up (don't think we can do a burn right now) or if there is a sure fix I can mix up organically to apply at this advanced stage. I'm not even sure what lesson I'm supposed to learn from this, meaning I'm not sure if I did something wrong that invited them...or if it's just one of the vagaries of growing veggies in Florida.
Any advice is appreciated.
I keep thinking maybe if I had chickens, they'd appreciate the bugs, but then again, not sure if anything would ENJOY something with the first name Stink.
Looks like I'd better search out a good farmer's market ASAP if good salads are to continue.
DARN!!
:) (Still smiling, tho....this is all part of the learning process!)
Now it's time for bed (yep, it's 5:30 pm...I was up and at work at 3 AM for a 12 hour shift, so the old gray mare is retiring for the night...) whilst the rest of the world barbecues... and while the stink bugs continue their tomato glut buffet.
Blog closed for the next 24 ....shabbat shalom, all :)
Friday, July 6, 2007
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Rain, Rain, Come Again!
Whew, what a difference some rain makes!
All of a sudden the lawn is a meadow, the tomatoes are more than half-hearted, and the eggplants have doubled in height. The basil needs pinching back...er, harvesting... and is beginning to look like an overgrown mint patch. The drainage ditches have enough run off to entice great white herons to walk on their stilt legs foraging for frogs, snakes and fish, and likely soon there will be flocks of ibis tiptoeing around making their little whirring noises while looking for moving snacks.
What doesnt kill us makes us strong, or so I've heard, and the exam cramming marathon I've been on in addition to the long work hours has taken its toll. Thankfully, the marks have been high (I THANK God since I definately feel like He's helping me in that category!) and though I'm green, I'm beginning to really enjoy certain elements of what we're doing. I now have two days off, and though I'll be cramming more for the upcoming tests (there are lots more), I'll be able to work in some SLEEP.
And it's soooooooooooooo nice sleeping while it's raining outside! We've had some storms, but now it's an every-so-often shower with nice thunder and maybe some lightning, but really GREAT soaking rains. That'll hopefully deter the occurence of brush fires in this area. And if there's one while I'm at work any given day, I'll be one of the first to be aware of it, at least...one of the perks of the job :)
I'm behind on so many things, and the house is looking quite neglected inside and out. Hopefully, the adjustment period will ease into some sort of normality and I'll hit my stride once there is a set schedule...but I'll have no set schedule till about November. The house will have to be dealt with long before then :) R starts her first day of nursing in the adult program tomorrow, handling a long commute by herself for the first time rather than being bused from here to there with a school group like she was in high school. She's making the arrangements herself, and I'm easing into the background since she's of age and wanting her independence in those areas. Her boyfriend is still in boot camp, and has mixed feelings about having signed up so hastily. He made uninformed choices with a lot of assumptions, and is not being very quick to just learn from it and face what's ahead of him with some backbone. He's trying to find a "way out," and I'm not happy that he's involving R from a distance in the emotion of it all.
But again...I am trying to allow her to live her own life, while being a resource if she wants to utilize my perspective. Ah, youth....
(With the exception of my waist size, I'm SO glad I'm not 18 again! ha)
She's spending time with his little brother, who's missing him a lot. While I'm typing this, she's cracked out her old electric guitar from the storage shed and has hooked up an amp and is testing it all so she can surprise the little brother with it as a gift. She went through her "guitar stage" at just about his same age, and she'd like to hand it on to him. That's on the docket for this afternoon, as well as our going over her first chapter in the nursing book together for review before tomorrow's class.
On the way home from work today, I drove by a couple properties we'd looked at in the past.
One of the properties we'd discussed bartering/trading with the owner has recently had a for sale by owner sign put back up. The contact info listed, among other things, a barter website. We never heard back from the owner about the likelihood of his being interested in such a thing, so it surprised me he's posted it on this site. Can't quite make sense of the site, but it seems it's geared towards businesses and asset trades and such. I'll be asking my hub if he knows anything about that, but since he wasnt too gung-ho about that particular house (we liked the property, but the house needed everything fixed) we may just leave it alone...we'll see.
I keep having the notion that in the right time, the right property will come along, and not until then. Come next week, I'll begin receiving my first paycheck...To Pay Off the Debt...a wonderful feeling!!
Now let's hope that I can keep up with the exams...the final has to be passed in one shot, or I'm out, even after training etc. Can we say Eeeek?? :)
I'm taking it one thing at a time.
For now, a shower, my PJs, clean sheets, and sleeping........while it rains......
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh........... :) bliss
All of a sudden the lawn is a meadow, the tomatoes are more than half-hearted, and the eggplants have doubled in height. The basil needs pinching back...er, harvesting... and is beginning to look like an overgrown mint patch. The drainage ditches have enough run off to entice great white herons to walk on their stilt legs foraging for frogs, snakes and fish, and likely soon there will be flocks of ibis tiptoeing around making their little whirring noises while looking for moving snacks.
What doesnt kill us makes us strong, or so I've heard, and the exam cramming marathon I've been on in addition to the long work hours has taken its toll. Thankfully, the marks have been high (I THANK God since I definately feel like He's helping me in that category!) and though I'm green, I'm beginning to really enjoy certain elements of what we're doing. I now have two days off, and though I'll be cramming more for the upcoming tests (there are lots more), I'll be able to work in some SLEEP.
And it's soooooooooooooo nice sleeping while it's raining outside! We've had some storms, but now it's an every-so-often shower with nice thunder and maybe some lightning, but really GREAT soaking rains. That'll hopefully deter the occurence of brush fires in this area. And if there's one while I'm at work any given day, I'll be one of the first to be aware of it, at least...one of the perks of the job :)
I'm behind on so many things, and the house is looking quite neglected inside and out. Hopefully, the adjustment period will ease into some sort of normality and I'll hit my stride once there is a set schedule...but I'll have no set schedule till about November. The house will have to be dealt with long before then :) R starts her first day of nursing in the adult program tomorrow, handling a long commute by herself for the first time rather than being bused from here to there with a school group like she was in high school. She's making the arrangements herself, and I'm easing into the background since she's of age and wanting her independence in those areas. Her boyfriend is still in boot camp, and has mixed feelings about having signed up so hastily. He made uninformed choices with a lot of assumptions, and is not being very quick to just learn from it and face what's ahead of him with some backbone. He's trying to find a "way out," and I'm not happy that he's involving R from a distance in the emotion of it all.
But again...I am trying to allow her to live her own life, while being a resource if she wants to utilize my perspective. Ah, youth....
(With the exception of my waist size, I'm SO glad I'm not 18 again! ha)
She's spending time with his little brother, who's missing him a lot. While I'm typing this, she's cracked out her old electric guitar from the storage shed and has hooked up an amp and is testing it all so she can surprise the little brother with it as a gift. She went through her "guitar stage" at just about his same age, and she'd like to hand it on to him. That's on the docket for this afternoon, as well as our going over her first chapter in the nursing book together for review before tomorrow's class.
On the way home from work today, I drove by a couple properties we'd looked at in the past.
One of the properties we'd discussed bartering/trading with the owner has recently had a for sale by owner sign put back up. The contact info listed, among other things, a barter website. We never heard back from the owner about the likelihood of his being interested in such a thing, so it surprised me he's posted it on this site. Can't quite make sense of the site, but it seems it's geared towards businesses and asset trades and such. I'll be asking my hub if he knows anything about that, but since he wasnt too gung-ho about that particular house (we liked the property, but the house needed everything fixed) we may just leave it alone...we'll see.
I keep having the notion that in the right time, the right property will come along, and not until then. Come next week, I'll begin receiving my first paycheck...To Pay Off the Debt...a wonderful feeling!!
Now let's hope that I can keep up with the exams...the final has to be passed in one shot, or I'm out, even after training etc. Can we say Eeeek?? :)
I'm taking it one thing at a time.
For now, a shower, my PJs, clean sheets, and sleeping........while it rains......
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh........... :) bliss
Thursday, June 28, 2007
The Job Ate My Homework
Ha!
Just got a nice comment from Willa who has been so busy at her new job which leaves her very little time for relaxation. I'm relating!
The training has commenced. There is so much to be learned, soaked up, plunged into, and drowned in that I am wondering if I've been operating all these years with the mental capacity of a hamster. A remedial one at that.
First have come the codes memorization, the indoctrination, and the multi-layered computer programs and screens. And the deadlines. First day was test one. Second day was test two. The past two tests three and four were back to back the past two days, with columns of numbers to be memorized, each number the code for a particular event.
My brain is numb, and were this a job I wanted less, I'd have found some honorable way to back out of it well before now. But despite the confusion and cramming stage I'm currently in, I DO want to do this and I'd surely like to see if the old girl has it in her....CAN I do it?
Answer: I'll give it the ol' college try...I'll never know unless I do! :) Next up, a column of ten-codes used in dispatch, and two to go next week. And having to remember the 100 signal codes I've already learned.
I pray daily!!! Miracles have happened all along the way, so forward, ho! (and I'm SO grateful to the Almighty for helping me...especially in the sleep and memory departments)
I worked 8 days the first stretch of training, then had 3 days off. Now we're on an alternating 8 and 12 hour day schedule, for the time being. The 12 was yesterday, so this 8 hour day felt like a piece of cake.
On my days "off," it was the only time I had to study for the tests for this week, or at least the first two. (I'm studying for the third now cold turkey). But it was so nice to be home....HOME...much of that time off, and I'm a bit homesick to be home. It's a season right now for what's at hand, and it's exciting. But I was reminded WHY we're doing it all this particular way. We actually got a call from a lady who received one of J's mailing letters about doing a land swap, and though it didnt work out (she gave us another lead, though), it fuels the fire of continuing to follow leads and making a way towards our own place in the country.
Gotta scoot now and leave the blog undone so that my homework won't be. This is my progress journal, and the past tests met with high scores (thank you God for helping me!). I'm praying for success for the upcoming ones, especially the next one.
I'm really valuing the time I DO have at home when I finally get to see my husband and daughter each day/night. And I'm seeing daily how fragile life really is, and am coming home and really SEEING what matters most to me.
There's little time for anything else during this phase. It's a marathon, and I'm out of shape, but still chugging along! With this schedule and the 70 mile roundtrip commute each day, I've been lucky to get 4 or 5 hours of sleep most days.
I'd love to sit here and dig into that promised but neglected Pollinator project, but it'll have to keep a while longer. I only have enough time to water the plants, harvest them, and eat some great salad.
And catch up on that elusive thing called sleep...
It's raining here.....hope you're all getting some!
Just got a nice comment from Willa who has been so busy at her new job which leaves her very little time for relaxation. I'm relating!
The training has commenced. There is so much to be learned, soaked up, plunged into, and drowned in that I am wondering if I've been operating all these years with the mental capacity of a hamster. A remedial one at that.
First have come the codes memorization, the indoctrination, and the multi-layered computer programs and screens. And the deadlines. First day was test one. Second day was test two. The past two tests three and four were back to back the past two days, with columns of numbers to be memorized, each number the code for a particular event.
My brain is numb, and were this a job I wanted less, I'd have found some honorable way to back out of it well before now. But despite the confusion and cramming stage I'm currently in, I DO want to do this and I'd surely like to see if the old girl has it in her....CAN I do it?
Answer: I'll give it the ol' college try...I'll never know unless I do! :) Next up, a column of ten-codes used in dispatch, and two to go next week. And having to remember the 100 signal codes I've already learned.
I pray daily!!! Miracles have happened all along the way, so forward, ho! (and I'm SO grateful to the Almighty for helping me...especially in the sleep and memory departments)
I worked 8 days the first stretch of training, then had 3 days off. Now we're on an alternating 8 and 12 hour day schedule, for the time being. The 12 was yesterday, so this 8 hour day felt like a piece of cake.
On my days "off," it was the only time I had to study for the tests for this week, or at least the first two. (I'm studying for the third now cold turkey). But it was so nice to be home....HOME...much of that time off, and I'm a bit homesick to be home. It's a season right now for what's at hand, and it's exciting. But I was reminded WHY we're doing it all this particular way. We actually got a call from a lady who received one of J's mailing letters about doing a land swap, and though it didnt work out (she gave us another lead, though), it fuels the fire of continuing to follow leads and making a way towards our own place in the country.
Gotta scoot now and leave the blog undone so that my homework won't be. This is my progress journal, and the past tests met with high scores (thank you God for helping me!). I'm praying for success for the upcoming ones, especially the next one.
I'm really valuing the time I DO have at home when I finally get to see my husband and daughter each day/night. And I'm seeing daily how fragile life really is, and am coming home and really SEEING what matters most to me.
There's little time for anything else during this phase. It's a marathon, and I'm out of shape, but still chugging along! With this schedule and the 70 mile roundtrip commute each day, I've been lucky to get 4 or 5 hours of sleep most days.
I'd love to sit here and dig into that promised but neglected Pollinator project, but it'll have to keep a while longer. I only have enough time to water the plants, harvest them, and eat some great salad.
And catch up on that elusive thing called sleep...
It's raining here.....hope you're all getting some!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Legislation and the Term "Organic"
I'm short on time, but this article is worth noting...and acting upon.
Let's not let the term "organic" be further made a joke.
http://www.scientificblogging.com/news/organic_food_definition_will_soon_contain_38_more_inorganic_ingredients
Let's not let the term "organic" be further made a joke.
http://www.scientificblogging.com/news/organic_food_definition_will_soon_contain_38_more_inorganic_ingredients
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Oh the Barneys and the Fifes...
Not much time.
I sum up...
(Cue the Mayberry "deputy" music)
New job (911)has commenced, and the first few days are observation in which I'm paired with operators who will later become my trainers after I've completed the Academy. I'm supposed to be getting a better feel for things this way. Being a hands-on sort, there is only so much of a feel one can get till being trained on the multiple screens and applications. But I've REALLY enjoyed the folks I've been assigned to accompany.
I'm beginning to hear some of their experiences, too, and to get my "sea legs" as calls are taken. I'm finding my years of being a mom to my daughter as well as having kept other children is coming in very handy. A cool head is needed while trying to get basic information and sometimes requiring problem-solving skills, and no two calls are exactly the same.
I'm about to head to bed, again, due to the schedule we are keeping right now. I have a twelve hour day tomorrow, and I've already spent the time off today catching up with my daughter, after having pulled some crazy hours I'd normally be home.
But just wanted to mention one funny thing...
My trainer today was telling me about some people who've watched too many police shows on TV, or who like to listen in on the open public dispatch lines for police and fire calls. Since most of the lingo is in signals and codes, some of these callers will try to use the same vernacular when they call in. My trainer was chuckling when telling me about this.
This is the example she gave...(no real codes, names or places given here)
Operator: 911 emergency, what is your location?
Caller: My ten-thirty-one is Such-N-Such, and I'm at mile marker 80.
Operator: (Nonplussed) Can you verify your phone number for me?
Caller: (verifies)
Operator: Do you need police or an ambulance?
Caller: Maybe the police. I just need to report a ten-41.
Operator: Tell me exactly what your emergency is, sir.
Caller: A ten-30 just passed me doing 90 in a 70 and is ten- 41 and is endangering the lives of others.
Operator: Sir??
Caller: I said a speeding car overtook me on the highway doing 90 in a 70 and is driving recklessly... Oh yes, I did get their tag number. It's Florida tag A-C-6-7-Q.
Operator: (Repeating the tag numbers back...) Your cell phone is breaking up...can you repeat that tag number, sir...was that a Q or a 2?
Caller: (Repeating slowly and loudly for clarity) That is A as in Alpha, C as in Charlie,
six, seven, Q as in cucumber...
Photo link: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.all-americaselections.org/Images/Library/Cucumber%2520Diva.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.all-americaselections.org/Winners.asp%3Fyear_win%3D2002&h=474&w=300&sz=51&hl=en&start=9&tbnid=siP1DfyNAHq42M:&tbnh=129&tbnw=82&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcucumber%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN
I sum up...
(Cue the Mayberry "deputy" music)
New job (911)has commenced, and the first few days are observation in which I'm paired with operators who will later become my trainers after I've completed the Academy. I'm supposed to be getting a better feel for things this way. Being a hands-on sort, there is only so much of a feel one can get till being trained on the multiple screens and applications. But I've REALLY enjoyed the folks I've been assigned to accompany.
I'm beginning to hear some of their experiences, too, and to get my "sea legs" as calls are taken. I'm finding my years of being a mom to my daughter as well as having kept other children is coming in very handy. A cool head is needed while trying to get basic information and sometimes requiring problem-solving skills, and no two calls are exactly the same.
I'm about to head to bed, again, due to the schedule we are keeping right now. I have a twelve hour day tomorrow, and I've already spent the time off today catching up with my daughter, after having pulled some crazy hours I'd normally be home.
But just wanted to mention one funny thing...
My trainer today was telling me about some people who've watched too many police shows on TV, or who like to listen in on the open public dispatch lines for police and fire calls. Since most of the lingo is in signals and codes, some of these callers will try to use the same vernacular when they call in. My trainer was chuckling when telling me about this.
This is the example she gave...(no real codes, names or places given here)
Operator: 911 emergency, what is your location?
Caller: My ten-thirty-one is Such-N-Such, and I'm at mile marker 80.
Operator: (Nonplussed) Can you verify your phone number for me?
Caller: (verifies)
Operator: Do you need police or an ambulance?
Caller: Maybe the police. I just need to report a ten-41.
Operator: Tell me exactly what your emergency is, sir.
Caller: A ten-30 just passed me doing 90 in a 70 and is ten- 41 and is endangering the lives of others.
Operator: Sir??
Caller: I said a speeding car overtook me on the highway doing 90 in a 70 and is driving recklessly... Oh yes, I did get their tag number. It's Florida tag A-C-6-7-Q.
Operator: (Repeating the tag numbers back...) Your cell phone is breaking up...can you repeat that tag number, sir...was that a Q or a 2?
Caller: (Repeating slowly and loudly for clarity) That is A as in Alpha, C as in Charlie,
six, seven, Q as in cucumber...
(Oh my gosh, STILL LAUGHING!!!)
The phonetic alphabet will never be the same.
Photo link: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.all-americaselections.org/Images/Library/Cucumber%2520Diva.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.all-americaselections.org/Winners.asp%3Fyear_win%3D2002&h=474&w=300&sz=51&hl=en&start=9&tbnid=siP1DfyNAHq42M:&tbnh=129&tbnw=82&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcucumber%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Closed for shabbat
This week has been so busy with preparations for both my daughter's schooling and the beginning days of my new job. It sometimes feels as if there's a birthing process before any worthwhile undertaking in which you just have to gently ride out the demands and all the To Do lists, and any complications. But it is so worth it!
Before taking this job, I wrestled with the reality that it would sometimes require work days that overlapped the sabbath, since that is central to our family's core convictions before God. My conclusion was that there are certain jobs, related to protecting or saving lives, that do not qualify as doing commerce (even though we're paid to do those jobs). Doctors and nurses are still needed, police and emergency workers, guards, etc. There were always watchmen needed on the walls in biblical times, on all days. There is still something inside me that is uncomfortable and conflicted, as if I'm interrupting a correct order of things. I do have a peace that I'm to do this now, though, and that there will be opportunities later to try to tailor a more flexible work schedule to the other days.
I'm very very thankful.
R is finally registered in her school, all uniforms ordered, rides and bus routes roughed out. Books will be gotten next week, and the bus routes tested. J is still plugging away at his job, fairly happily, and the shift he is now on seems to work well with his body's time-clock better...he is resting really much better when he sleeps now, and is waking refreshed.
Very grudgingly, after checking out all other available options, we had to make the decision to purchase an additional used vehicle. That really hits us where it hurts financially, which goes against our plan of not acquiring further debt obligations. It was one of those situations we tried to get our brains around, since I need this job...we all need for me to have this job. The researching and locating of a vehicle within an acceptable price range was thrown into the already busy days of the past two weeks, and we found one we thought would be about right. Most older models are not gas-efficient, and that doesnt make us too happy. The commute is a given, though, since our area is still rather small and growing. The day after we bought the vehicle As Is, the AC went out...or maybe I should say it works when it wants to. So we added repair shop to the already busy schedule and I ran both weeks' errands in our unairconditioned existing vehicle while the newer one was in the shop. Florida weather feels QUITE warm in an oven on wheels, ha!
After all that, the newer vehicle requires AC money we don't have as yet, and so I will content myself with Sometimes AC, and just have some fun with the rolled down windows. That said, in all other ways, I LOVE the new car :) (Because it has a lot of other things going for it, and though we didn't spend much money comparatively, we did get a lot for our money which we'd not have opted for in a newer one).
We rested last night. The uniform is hung awaiting its first outing later today. The codes I'm trying to memorize are swirling about in my head and I feel like it's the first day of school.
I've caught up with friends I won't get to talk to by phone for a while, and I think maybe, MAYBE, things are at a point where they can run themselves here without too much drama for the next little while.
The Pot Garden soldiers on, and I jealously look forward to the days down the road I can re-unite with it for longer periods and have a chat with the eggplants and peppers and actually harvest some of that basil. The weather's seeming very very hot, and it's not even officially summer here yet.
If the schedule allows, I will try at some point to sneak some time at the beach after the early shift, since the location is right nearby. I can't think of a better mini-vacation to de-stress. I'm also wanting to begin a daily walk, to rattle these bones (and their padding) into better shape.
I am so thankful for family, friends, blog friends, garden, dreams, JOB!, and health...and for open doors and those that were closed. I'm thankful to the Almighty, who guides and blesses and remembers.
I thank Him for watching over us with such care, and restoring places in my life that were long bereft. And for my husband, a wonderful husband and father, and who had another birthday this week.
So very, Very, much for which to be grateful.
Shabbat shalom :)
Before taking this job, I wrestled with the reality that it would sometimes require work days that overlapped the sabbath, since that is central to our family's core convictions before God. My conclusion was that there are certain jobs, related to protecting or saving lives, that do not qualify as doing commerce (even though we're paid to do those jobs). Doctors and nurses are still needed, police and emergency workers, guards, etc. There were always watchmen needed on the walls in biblical times, on all days. There is still something inside me that is uncomfortable and conflicted, as if I'm interrupting a correct order of things. I do have a peace that I'm to do this now, though, and that there will be opportunities later to try to tailor a more flexible work schedule to the other days.
I'm very very thankful.
R is finally registered in her school, all uniforms ordered, rides and bus routes roughed out. Books will be gotten next week, and the bus routes tested. J is still plugging away at his job, fairly happily, and the shift he is now on seems to work well with his body's time-clock better...he is resting really much better when he sleeps now, and is waking refreshed.
Very grudgingly, after checking out all other available options, we had to make the decision to purchase an additional used vehicle. That really hits us where it hurts financially, which goes against our plan of not acquiring further debt obligations. It was one of those situations we tried to get our brains around, since I need this job...we all need for me to have this job. The researching and locating of a vehicle within an acceptable price range was thrown into the already busy days of the past two weeks, and we found one we thought would be about right. Most older models are not gas-efficient, and that doesnt make us too happy. The commute is a given, though, since our area is still rather small and growing. The day after we bought the vehicle As Is, the AC went out...or maybe I should say it works when it wants to. So we added repair shop to the already busy schedule and I ran both weeks' errands in our unairconditioned existing vehicle while the newer one was in the shop. Florida weather feels QUITE warm in an oven on wheels, ha!
After all that, the newer vehicle requires AC money we don't have as yet, and so I will content myself with Sometimes AC, and just have some fun with the rolled down windows. That said, in all other ways, I LOVE the new car :) (Because it has a lot of other things going for it, and though we didn't spend much money comparatively, we did get a lot for our money which we'd not have opted for in a newer one).
We rested last night. The uniform is hung awaiting its first outing later today. The codes I'm trying to memorize are swirling about in my head and I feel like it's the first day of school.
I've caught up with friends I won't get to talk to by phone for a while, and I think maybe, MAYBE, things are at a point where they can run themselves here without too much drama for the next little while.
The Pot Garden soldiers on, and I jealously look forward to the days down the road I can re-unite with it for longer periods and have a chat with the eggplants and peppers and actually harvest some of that basil. The weather's seeming very very hot, and it's not even officially summer here yet.
If the schedule allows, I will try at some point to sneak some time at the beach after the early shift, since the location is right nearby. I can't think of a better mini-vacation to de-stress. I'm also wanting to begin a daily walk, to rattle these bones (and their padding) into better shape.
I am so thankful for family, friends, blog friends, garden, dreams, JOB!, and health...and for open doors and those that were closed. I'm thankful to the Almighty, who guides and blesses and remembers.
I thank Him for watching over us with such care, and restoring places in my life that were long bereft. And for my husband, a wonderful husband and father, and who had another birthday this week.
So very, Very, much for which to be grateful.
Shabbat shalom :)
Sunday, June 10, 2007
The Jazz Singer
Gail, Gail, Gail.
I just listened to your sample MP3 clips, and what can I say other than "Girl!"
-----------------------------
We're all familiar with the question, "what do you want to be when you grow up?"
We put those questions to children quite often...
Fireman? Doctor? Astronaut? Airplane pilot? Teacher?
My sister and I would stage mock plays when we were little, whenever we were at our grandparents' house. Old drapes were our gowns, and lampshades were our Audrey Hepburn hats. We'd announce ourselves from outside the room where the adults were gathered talking, run in and say "Tah DAhhhhh!!!!" then proceed to act out some story or fashion show. I think at some point we spiced things up in the designer wear category by digging deeper into Grandma's bureau. She had a real collection of older bauble type jewelry that she never wore. And she was very modest and kept most of her private things, concealed. I have to say she was a really good sport when we'd model wild outfits pieced together from hers and my grandpa's wardrobes. Aside from the collection of hats, scarves, and Coty makeup, we'd dash out, sporting headdresses made of her whalebone girdle and "evening wear" featuring her very robust and utilitarian 18 hour bra.
That was about the extent of my sister's and my stage careers...
As a child, I was also horse crazy. It really hasn't gone away, it's just mellowed a bit. It started before I was even able to walk. My first toy was a stuffed donkey on rolling wheels, and I wore that thing out. Then on to the plastic horse with springs on a metal frame. I "rode" for years that plastic steed. Then came Breyer horse models, Marguerite Henry books, Walter Farley, horse care guides, tack stores. No REAL horse, mind you, but as close as I could get to them. Horse barns (there's no better smell than that and saddle leather to a horse lover). If I couldnt HAVE a horse, I still made up games as if I did. We raced (ran) and I was really fast. We jumped hurdles. I lined up outdoor garbage cans and would jump then re-enacting National Velvet (as would my equally horse-crazy best friend, which is how she ended up taking a spill and spraining her ankle).
I told my parents emphatically I wanted to be a jockey. As in the petite riders of very swift and very large thoroughbreds. This went on for years, despite the fact I'd never yet ridden a horse or been taken to a racetrack. By the time I was in fifth grade and was the tallest girl in my class, my parents broke it to me, somewhat gently, that I had already surpassed the height of the taller horse-racing jockeys in the business, and was likely to keep growing.
Despite my attempts to slouch down in my seat and wear flats, I still grew. So my dream morphed to horse breeding. I would own and operate a horse farm. (I just knew this in my heart...there was no doubt. I even had the names and breeds picked out, and was working on the bloodlines).
This, of course, has not happened, but look where having a love of the country life has brought us now :) Look how many titles we've had and how many hats we've worn in the journey. I think our kids would panic less when faced with the question of what they want to "be" if they realized that no one single hat defines a person nor keeps a person in a static place.
Now in my forties, I'm surprised to find how many of us who've had to do many jobs we've not particularly liked, usually from necessity, still find outlets to continue growing in the areas that energize us. Whether it's writing, singing, entertaining, gardening, being outdoors, sewing, knitting, painting, playing an instrument, raising animals, baking, etc there are some things that begin to unfold simply because of the freedom and joy we feel while trying them.
I applaud all our attempts and all the things that bring us joy. I applaud the folks who try things because they CAN and WANT to...for the joy of it, and not necessarily for their profit potential or having to be a virtuoso. I can't dance for the life of me, but I love to try. And I love (ok, I can hear the snorts, lol) belly dancing music. I even enrolled my daughter and me a few years ago in a belly dancing class together (talking about "making a memory"..hahaha). Let's just say she has more natural ability than I do in that area, but I still love it. I love so many other things. Maybe I'll get a chance to do some of them, maybe not, but there are a thousand things to try, and do, and love.
There was a line in Chariots of Fire that went something like this:
In response to the question put to the champion runner of "why do you run?" his reply was "because when I run, I feel God's good pleasure."
I've always taken that to mean, rather than fulfilling others' expectations, that there are some things we are BORN to love doing because they are a part of our very individuality. And when we do them, we feel joy simply in being who we ARE....soaring in the things that bring us joy, or even trying new things we wonder about.
I have a real friend who is one of those remarkable women you can pick right back up with, even after months or years, without missing a beat mid-conversation and automatically connect...and especially laugh. She has a full career, is strong, original, and intelligent and takes time to savor the things that bring her joy. She is an adventurer in life...an inspired cook, passionate organic foodie, and the real thing when it comes to die-hard girl talk. In short, she's perfected real friendship.
That's one of the reasons I'm so delighted for her now, as she branches out into a new avenue of discovery. Among being so many other things, she's a remarkable jazz singer. It has become for her an area that gives real range of expression to so many of her inner worlds...she's singing publicly now (others are discovering her fabulosity!), and it's a pleasure to listen.
For a brief introduction to Gail, and to hear her interpretations through song, there are a couple of clips on her page at www.gailpettis.com. If you're in her area, hearing her live is a rare treat :) I think she'll have a CD out this fall sometime.
Great for listening to as you, or we, are doing the things we LOVE, as well...
Here's to what brings us those feelings of discovery and those "runners' highs" in our lives...and the doors of continued possibilities standing ajar.
-------------------------------------
Hey, Gail....
"....Tah Dahhhh!!"
I just listened to your sample MP3 clips, and what can I say other than "Girl!"
-----------------------------
We're all familiar with the question, "what do you want to be when you grow up?"
We put those questions to children quite often...
Fireman? Doctor? Astronaut? Airplane pilot? Teacher?
My sister and I would stage mock plays when we were little, whenever we were at our grandparents' house. Old drapes were our gowns, and lampshades were our Audrey Hepburn hats. We'd announce ourselves from outside the room where the adults were gathered talking, run in and say "Tah DAhhhhh!!!!" then proceed to act out some story or fashion show. I think at some point we spiced things up in the designer wear category by digging deeper into Grandma's bureau. She had a real collection of older bauble type jewelry that she never wore. And she was very modest and kept most of her private things, concealed. I have to say she was a really good sport when we'd model wild outfits pieced together from hers and my grandpa's wardrobes. Aside from the collection of hats, scarves, and Coty makeup, we'd dash out, sporting headdresses made of her whalebone girdle and "evening wear" featuring her very robust and utilitarian 18 hour bra.
That was about the extent of my sister's and my stage careers...
As a child, I was also horse crazy. It really hasn't gone away, it's just mellowed a bit. It started before I was even able to walk. My first toy was a stuffed donkey on rolling wheels, and I wore that thing out. Then on to the plastic horse with springs on a metal frame. I "rode" for years that plastic steed. Then came Breyer horse models, Marguerite Henry books, Walter Farley, horse care guides, tack stores. No REAL horse, mind you, but as close as I could get to them. Horse barns (there's no better smell than that and saddle leather to a horse lover). If I couldnt HAVE a horse, I still made up games as if I did. We raced (ran) and I was really fast. We jumped hurdles. I lined up outdoor garbage cans and would jump then re-enacting National Velvet (as would my equally horse-crazy best friend, which is how she ended up taking a spill and spraining her ankle).
I told my parents emphatically I wanted to be a jockey. As in the petite riders of very swift and very large thoroughbreds. This went on for years, despite the fact I'd never yet ridden a horse or been taken to a racetrack. By the time I was in fifth grade and was the tallest girl in my class, my parents broke it to me, somewhat gently, that I had already surpassed the height of the taller horse-racing jockeys in the business, and was likely to keep growing.
Despite my attempts to slouch down in my seat and wear flats, I still grew. So my dream morphed to horse breeding. I would own and operate a horse farm. (I just knew this in my heart...there was no doubt. I even had the names and breeds picked out, and was working on the bloodlines).
This, of course, has not happened, but look where having a love of the country life has brought us now :) Look how many titles we've had and how many hats we've worn in the journey. I think our kids would panic less when faced with the question of what they want to "be" if they realized that no one single hat defines a person nor keeps a person in a static place.
Now in my forties, I'm surprised to find how many of us who've had to do many jobs we've not particularly liked, usually from necessity, still find outlets to continue growing in the areas that energize us. Whether it's writing, singing, entertaining, gardening, being outdoors, sewing, knitting, painting, playing an instrument, raising animals, baking, etc there are some things that begin to unfold simply because of the freedom and joy we feel while trying them.
I applaud all our attempts and all the things that bring us joy. I applaud the folks who try things because they CAN and WANT to...for the joy of it, and not necessarily for their profit potential or having to be a virtuoso. I can't dance for the life of me, but I love to try. And I love (ok, I can hear the snorts, lol) belly dancing music. I even enrolled my daughter and me a few years ago in a belly dancing class together (talking about "making a memory"..hahaha). Let's just say she has more natural ability than I do in that area, but I still love it. I love so many other things. Maybe I'll get a chance to do some of them, maybe not, but there are a thousand things to try, and do, and love.
There was a line in Chariots of Fire that went something like this:
In response to the question put to the champion runner of "why do you run?" his reply was "because when I run, I feel God's good pleasure."
I've always taken that to mean, rather than fulfilling others' expectations, that there are some things we are BORN to love doing because they are a part of our very individuality. And when we do them, we feel joy simply in being who we ARE....soaring in the things that bring us joy, or even trying new things we wonder about.
I have a real friend who is one of those remarkable women you can pick right back up with, even after months or years, without missing a beat mid-conversation and automatically connect...and especially laugh. She has a full career, is strong, original, and intelligent and takes time to savor the things that bring her joy. She is an adventurer in life...an inspired cook, passionate organic foodie, and the real thing when it comes to die-hard girl talk. In short, she's perfected real friendship.
That's one of the reasons I'm so delighted for her now, as she branches out into a new avenue of discovery. Among being so many other things, she's a remarkable jazz singer. It has become for her an area that gives real range of expression to so many of her inner worlds...she's singing publicly now (others are discovering her fabulosity!), and it's a pleasure to listen.
For a brief introduction to Gail, and to hear her interpretations through song, there are a couple of clips on her page at www.gailpettis.com. If you're in her area, hearing her live is a rare treat :) I think she'll have a CD out this fall sometime.
Great for listening to as you, or we, are doing the things we LOVE, as well...
Here's to what brings us those feelings of discovery and those "runners' highs" in our lives...and the doors of continued possibilities standing ajar.
-------------------------------------
Hey, Gail....
"....Tah Dahhhh!!"
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