Playing Catch Up

Okay, it's time for Idol Kick Off and I choose Brook. Oh PLEASE give the boot to the Queen of Whine (and not Neil Diamond's Red Red Wine), the Duchess of Boredom, I want her GONE! I'll be watching for her departure, oh please let it be her departure.

Daddy is quite well and the town is about to hold An Appreciation Day for him (it's a secret, he'll be thrilled. Seems they thought their Doctor had died or worse, moved. Did I mention that he treats 2/3 of his patients for free? It is the poor and the elderly and Law Enforcement who get this gift. He fullfills his oath...first to do no harm.

Baby Kitty needs a name...I am going to have a contest to name the Baby...here's a picture of the now 5 week old bundle of energy....

So, send those names in and we'll chose one ...more pictures to follow!

Thank you all for the support you have been to me...I'm not so tired as I was but what an uplift to the spirit you have all been!

Love to you all

The Driving Lesson

Americans have been having a love affair with the automobile for so many years that most of us living today can not remember when the highways were not overrun with the smells of exhaust and new leather , the word Superhighway seemed like a Science Fiction term and "it was a pileup" brought a picture of a cow pasture to mind, not twisted metal and radiator steam. Oh yes, we love our cars. I remember the sad eyed Buick my dad drove on the Shirley Highway in D.C. to get to work at D.C. General Hospital and his wails of how bad the traffic was. Yet there was a gleam in his eye as he spoke of the wrecks and once accidently getting on the Shirley going the wrong way! I remember the lovely little white over red Mercury with the hardcase spare tire holder on the rear (white). Oh how I loved that Mercury. I remember when Lucy and Desi (opps) Mama and Daddy got the convertible that was transporting us to our new home in Tampa, Florida. Oh wow, to ride in that beautiful four wheeled boat again, seeing Mama and Daddy's smiling and so very happy faces...of course as the trip progressed, the sibling bickering would start and the smiles on parents faces turned to scowls. I can remember sitting in the car parked in the carport, twisting the steeringwheel this way and that, being caught by Daddy who gently reprimanded me, telling me not to turn the wheel quite so violently or we'd fly off the road. Driving lesson number 1. I began to pray for longer legs so that my feet could reach the pedals, I loved hearing Dinah Shore sing about seeing the USA in my Chevrolet (though I'd prefer a Mercury). The romance with the horse and buggy was long over here, the car had replaced it in every way. My Uncle Paul (Snipes) began collecting old cars (antiques they'd be now) and would take us for a ride in the Rumble Seat of his old Tin Lizzy. It really was old at that time, but he had a barn full of beauties, including the most wonderful Chevy ever built, the 1957. Funny how that's all you need to say to conjure up a picture of that beautiful multi horse vehicle.



It was a hot summer and Mama and Daddy had driven us down to spend the summer with Mammy and Daddy Dwight (our grandparents). They were going to stay about a week to visit family and spend time eating Mammy's wonderful breakfasts. I don't remember which car we had, but I was twelve and my legs had grown so long that I was the tallest girl in my class (was about 5'8 at the time) and my feet reached the pedals. Me being the closest thing my father had to a son (tomboy extraordinaire) he noticed that I could now reach those coveted pedals. We were taking a drive down Douglas Mill Road and the car was loaded with cousins and Daddy. The girl cousins and one boy cousin, Buck. Now Buck was about five years old and had elected to go along for the ride because he was the only boy around and there wasn't much for him to do but follow us. So Daddy says to me, "Sandi, do you want to learn to drive the car?" Did I want to learn to drive the car???? My breath was a stitch in my throat, my heart began to palpitate. Did I want to learn how to drive the car? Does a bird want to learn to fly, a duck to swim or a horse to run? Why learning to drive was a dream I held in the womb, I'm sure. I became so excited that I almost forgot to breathe. He pulled over to the side of the road and got out and told me to slide over. He explained the pedals (it was automatic, so no gears to learn, that would come later!) and told me to be very careful not to travel to fast, just go slow as Daddy Dwight driving to church (that was really slow people...). All the cousins (Kay, Chrystal, Becky and Buck) and baby sister Toni were excitedly jumping up and down in the back seat and then Driving Lesson Number 2 began. I did quite well for a time and was in a dreamworld somewhere, perhaps Monico or LeMans when I heard Daddy yelling to S T O P !!! and next thing I knew we were in the ditch. Thank you God it was a shallow ditch but that ended my driving lesson for the day. Buck began to shout and cry (because he had landed in the floorboard and someone's feet had landed oh his back) and Daddy checked him out, told him he was fine and did he want candy to feel better? Oh yes, candy would make everything just dandy. Daddy backed the car out of the (nice and shallow) ditch and we drove down to Mr. Hugh's (Douglass) store. Daddy bought everyone a candy bar and a bag of candy for Buck (the bribe to keep his mouth shut). "Now Buck, " said Daddy, "don't tell anyone that Sandi had this wreck, or that she was even driving, okay?" Buck, mouth smeared with chocolate, nodded furiously, hands reaching for the bag of sweeties. So off we toddled to Mammy's house, Daddy now firmly in control behind the wheel. The car engine was barely turned off when Buck threw open the door and ran to the side porch screaming that "Sandi had a wreck, Sandi had a wreck!" I can still see Mama standing on the porch, hands on hips, eyes narrowed, lips drawn thin...luckily this look was reserved for Daddy, me being a kid, heck it wasn't my fault. But lesson number 3 proved to be "never take a loudmouth bratty baby cousin with you when you get the chance to have a driving lesson." They can't keep secrets. Not even when you bribe them with candy.

Revival

I'm tired. And in my head I see Madelynn Kahn singing on stage, vamping for an audience of drunken cowboys in a Mel Brooks spoof (oh lord how I love Mel Brooks movies and Madelynn Kahn in them) singing about how tired she is...I feel as though if I could sit still for five minutes and just not think or do or feel , how rested I would be. If the phone wouldn't ring or papers wouldn't rustle , if tv's were silent and Doctor's appointments didn't have to be kept...if I could make my mind a blank page and not anticipate the writing that would fill it...if weeds didn't need to be plucked from the pristine beds I prepared, if supper didn't have to be cooked and dishes loaded into the dishwasher because lord I am tired. If clothes didn't have to be washed, dried put away only to be dirtied again, if floors didn't need washing and furniture dusted, if only there was a place for everything and everything was in its place. If only all the responsibilities that I have taken on in my life could be as easily laid down as they were taken up. I have decided to learn yoga so that I can learn to relax. I don't think I have ever relaxed in my entire life. Mama called it being on pins and needles. I can't be still (not in a hyperactive way) I'm a machine of perpetual motion. Even when I am still, I am moving. My mind never stops and some things it conjures up are pleasant to think on, some things that enter into the abyss of my imagination scare hell out of me. I've seen too much, gone to far to turn back and there's still to much to be done. And so I'm tired. But now I look forward to a good nights sleep where responsibilites belong to someone else and houses care for themselves and those who lie sleeping within their walls. And in the morning when I arise with the sun I'll be refreshed and ready to take on the world again. I won't feel this tired again for some time. But when I do, I promise I'll tell you. Because the telling of a thing is the releasing of a thing. And the releasing of a thing is such a pleasure.
ps

for those who would love to see Madelyn singing "I'm Tired" go to Lee's spot at http://chrysalisdreams.blogspot.com/ She has graciously looked for the spot on youtube and posted for me. I have some really great friends.

Kudos to Chesterfield County

I just have to say that I am so impressed with the parents of Chesterfield County Schools. Today a tragedy was narrowly averted because of the quick witted parents who were not afraid to step up to the plate and report what their son alledgely may have been planning. And to the parents who entrusted their children to the care of schools county wide...To read more about this go to The Progressive Journal in my sidebar, the News Leader of Chesterfield County's Paper on Line...See everyone tomorrow.

PS
Blogger is making me crazy...half my Best Blogging Buddies Ever are missing...the address to the Journal is http://pagelandblog.blogspot.com/ So, go read the news...all the news that's fit to print.

Monday Monday

Take the Quiz here!

I found this quiz at Lee's place (see my sidebar of Best Bloggin' Bud's ever Crysalis Dreams will take you over to her place...she's worth the visit.) So, I took it and now if you would like to take it, please do. It was fun.

I have a picture of Baby Kitty here (I'll be so glad when he/she tells us his/her name! I'm going to assume he's a boy and save myself time. Anyway, here he is on his beach blanket and on his beach blanket with Uncle Peanut looking on. He is beginning to look more like a kitten than a mouse and is interacting with us.

We have to go to Shaw Air Force Base tomorrow for updated ID cards, so I won't be in till tomorrow night. Hope everyone has a good Monday, it is possible you know!

Update on The World's Worst Patient

I just wanted to let everyone know that Daddy is doing so much better that St. Toni of Columbia (who was in danger of being demoted to Simple Caregiver) , has taken the little bell that sat by our beloved father's bedside and thrown it out the front door where it rests for eternity in a drain pipe in front of her house. No longer sure that anyone is trying to kill him (unless he stays at St. Toni's for much longer) he is up and about and able to take a little broth. And a steak. Don't forget the baked potato...sour cream with that please. Salad? Who wants a stupid salad...where's the butter? Who hid the salt and pepper?

We love him. Mama spoiled him for any women but those in his family who are used to his demanding (yet somehow loving) ways. I hear the phone ringing. I'll let the machine get it. I'll listen to make sure that St. Toni is not on the line with information on when he may be expected to return to our loving care.

The Simple Caregiver assures me that the end of the week will see him back in the bosom of his family. I love him, you all know that I do. But who has the directions to the Airport?

How to reassure the practically Immortal they are not dead

In the following imagine that the ornery old man who is my father is speaking like Ricky Ricardo...I did tell you I was reared by Lucy and Ricky, right? Okay, so as you read, remember the accent. And that particular little whine that latins have when they are trying to get a point across...

Okay, it's been an exhausting week, and it's only Thursday. I can't imagine what my sister Toni is feeling...like death warmed over would be my guess. It all started Monday...I was giving the kitten (which we call Baby because he's not old enough to tell us his name yet) his 9 AM feeding when the phone rang. So I'm balancing kitten and milk filled syringe and a phone (of course the Baby takes umbrage at the audacity of anyone trying to interfere with the feeding he has anticipated for two hours and promptly pees on me.) It's my younger sister Toni and she's saying "well this is what's happening, I'm on my way down to Cheraw (she lives in Columbia which is not exactly just down the block) because Crystal (our cousin) has Daddy and is on the way to the hospital ER with him." I drew a blank for a minute and then I said WHAT? Toni wasn't sure exactly what was wrong but said our sister Holly had been down on Saturday and she had felt something just didn't seem right. Did I mention that our father is 92 years old? Did I mention that he is still extremely clear headed and healthy and practicing medicine? I didn't? Well, he is and he is. He has been practicing medicine in this county for about 45 years. He is never sick. He is the healthiest man I know, and we decided long ago that he would outlive us all. So I get everything here settled, tell Mac where I'm headed and get to the hospital pretty closely behind Toni. I go in search of my father and am taken to the cubicle where he is resting and find him, Toni and Crystal. He is in agony, terrible pain, he tells me . He announces to me immediately "Sandi, help me they're killing me". Doctor's are notorious for making absolutely awful patients. "Daddy, they're not killing you...what's wrong?" He tells me he doesn't know, but it's a terrible pain and he's been feeling not quite himself for about 2 weeks. We later find it's been more like 2 months, but we were in no position to know this. I've often heard that animals hide their illnesses and pain in a manner of self defense. I liken Daddy to the old War Horse who refuses to relinquish control of his gait to any young whippersnapper with his hands on the reins. So they give him pain medication, determine he has a bowel infection and prepare him to see the surgeon. Luckily the pain medication doesn't let that information about possible surgery through or he would have bolted. We're consoling him and answering health questions asked by Chuck, the Charge Nurse who asks "Doctor, when did you retire?" The three of us, (Toni, Crystal, me) turned to look at him as if he had lost his mind. Daddy looks at him as if he is just slightly soft in the head. "I am not retired, I still work everyday." Chuck looks at us and says "really?" as though this doddering old man can't possibly still be at the art of medicine. We all nod as one. Sudden respect from the young Charge Nurse who is now hoping to be half this healthy when he is in his nineties. Daddy is moaning in pain as Chuck begins asking questions. High blood pressure? no Heart disease? No Diabetes? No And on and on and he is in disbelief. "Look Chuck," I said, "except for the excruciating pain he's in right now, he's in better shape than we are, and probably in better shape than you are." The Surgeon eventually sees him, and he is scheduled for surgery at 7:30 AM the next morning. They put him on fluids and and antibiotics and he is settled in, and it's clear that the pain meds are not touching the depth of it. In between moans of agony he is introducing us as "my babies " to the nurses and doctors that are in and out. And we stand there around his bed, this group of old babies, to console him. He begs me to stand at the OR door and make sure they don't kill him. "Don't leave me Sandi," he pleads. I assure him I'm not going anywhere, and he is satisfied. He is pleased that Toni is staying for the duration and seems happy that we will protect him from any harm.
He announces to anyone who will listen that he is dying. We assure him he is not dying, that he's too ornery to die and try to get him calm. In between demanding to know why he didn't call us when he first noticed that he was sick and telling him that no one was trying to kill him my sister Toni (who I plan to nominate for Sainthood while the Pope is here) was on the phone notifying our brother and other sisters of the situation. Finally at about 4:30 PM the pain meds had seemed to be working a bit better when Toni's husband Tim called. Toni asked Daddy if he wanted to speak to Tim and of course he did. He took the phone and said "Tim, come here and get me they're trying to kill me". We refused him any telephone contact after that. Did I mention it was a rough week? Well, it certainly doesn't improve. The 7:30 surgery isn't done till after 1 pm the following day. I at least have the luxury of going to my home and getting some rest (seems poor health is an advantage after all) while Toni has become one of the walking wounded having had no sleep (or not much at any rate) trying to care for the Nominee (World's Worst Patient) 24/7. Sister Nikki arrives and tries to take over the duties Toni and I have been handling for two days and we swat her away like an annoying mosquito, relegating her to the bedside to hold his hand and let us Grownups handle this. She is twenty years younger than I am and ten years younger than Toni. We can be forgiven for treating her like the child she is. Toni and I give each other glances when Nikki tries to take over. She hasn't figured out that she can not win against the powerful front we become. Finally the surgery is over and Daddy is back in his room. When he opens his eyes and sees all of us, brother Michael has now joined the group, he asks quite innocently, 'I am alive? Not dead?" Michael once again consoles him with the now popular words of "no Daddy, you're not dead...you're to ornery to die." It's the dark humor of the Douglas Clan that gets us through. But in my heart I know that when the Angel of Death arrives, he's going to have his hands full...our father will not go gently into that good night.

The kitten in the wellhouse

Well yesterday was pretty much the day from hell. Pretty much, I say. But wait, it gets worse. It was so much fun getting into the routine, planting beds of Celosia and Salvia (for the hummingbirds which have arrived in droves). I reluctantly pulled on my gardening gloves (rather work without them, but need to protect my nails these days) and went up to the daffodil bed to start my planting. I kept hearing this whimpering bark from the neighbors up front. I promised myself to go and check on the dog when I finished what I was doing. I hadn't seen a sign of life for several days, no vehicles there, so suspecting an animal in need I laid my gloves aside, got up off my knees (and that took some doing) to go see Mac in the main garden by the woods. I asked if had heard the dog and he had. I told him I was going up and take food and water with me in case. I walked through the brambles and a few trees carrying a jug of water in one hand and a bag of food in the other. I saw him at the same time that he saw me...I began to talk to him, soothingly, his tail began to wag him and I saw immediately that he had no food or water. I poured the water first, and he set to with a will...I patted his head and talked to him and put the food in the other dish and he began to eat. Then he had to offer his thanks so we spent about ten minutes in a mutual admiration mode and then I left him to enjoy his meal in peace. After returning to the house I went in to wash my hands and turning the tap...nothing. Just a little air. I could feel my eyebrows pulling together in irritation and went back out to the big garden. "We don't have any water," I complained. "Did you check the breaker?" was Mac's question. I had to explain that yes, I had checked the breaker and that it was tripped and I couldn't get it to hold in place. We have a well, you see. Some of the best drinking water in South Carolina runs beneath the ground of Chesterfield County...the best is in Jefferson. We had had to have a new pump put in before we moved in, and have only had minor troubles with it since then. Sure it was an electrical problem and not a pump issue, we began to look for help. As usual, when the help you can depend on to be there isn't there (Craig and Joanne had gone to Tennessee for the weekend) it's difficult to locate anyone else, either. Mac went over to the brick well house and opened the door. He called to me to come there and I joined him. I could hear the plaintive mewling of a kitten. Just one...and we aren't sure how it got in there...only about 2 weeks old, it needed help. It was cold and hungry. I took it into my hands to warm it and then into the house to try to fix it some warm milk. Pump and water issues far from my mind now, I got a bit of warm milk into it, plugged in the heating pad and got one of Mac's woolly sweaters and put it in a plastic tub to warm. After I was sure the little nursery was snug, I placed the baby inside, gave it a snuggle toy to lay against and went to the computer to look for help. I knew that the best alternative was probably going to be Pedialyte, but needed to know how often, and how much. I found a great site and copied the information. Then I went back to trying to find someone to come check the well. Then it was off to CVS to get the Pedialyte and a couple of syringes till I could make it WalMart for the pet nursing bottles and special kitten formulae he would need later. I finally got hold of a nice man who came to check on the well and he found that it had simply overheated, suggesting that we get the switch in the well checked. Thanking him, I went back into the house to check on our new boarder. I still have no idea how the baby got in the well house...It's a mystery.

It was a tree that was my downfall and American Idol

I was asked by David McMahon at authorblog (http://david-mcmahon.blogspot.com/) to explain how I had received a broken neck. And my "mostly recovered" comment. To put it quite simply, one morning Mac and I were pruning the big old pecan tree out front and feeling 22 rather than 52, I was swanning about on a ladder that was leaning against the big old limb that Mac had been working on when the chain saw got caught in the cut. So, he asked me to hold onto the chain saw and idiot that I am, I obliged. You know I never do what he asks me to do till I've had time to think it over and decide what lies in my best interest. I should have stuck to that policy, but noooooooo. I grabbed hold of that chain saw (whose motor was still running...no one thought to turn it off) with one hand and wrapped my arm around the limb of the tree. He pushed up on the limb and I swear it exploded like a gunshot in my ear. The limb (which had to have weighed forty five pounds) hit the ladder, leaving me holding the chain saw and no place to go but down. And down I went, (wondering if the chain saw was still going) breaking two ribs and as it turned out, my neck, in the process. Lucky girl that I am, later when the paralysis hit (neck to toe) and the doctor told me I'd never walk again, I just asked him to do the best he could, that I would leave the rest to God. I knew a lot of people were praying for me and I just felt it in my heart. No one was more surprised with the outcome than Dr. Santiago. While I don't dance much, I do indeed walk. While the swing in my stride that Mac once adored is more of a halting movement, it's movement. Sometimes it's more halting than others, depending on the weather. I still tend to get a bit of paralysis if I sit to long (hence no long trips if it can be avoided). And of course, there is no tree climbing anymore. I ran into a friend a few weeks after leaving the hospital who had fallen off the roof of her house while repairing the chimney. She told me we were getting to old for climbing trees and doing roof work. I tend to agree. But in my head, I'll be climbing trees when I'm ninety.

I was so bored last night with American Idol, it's hard to put into words. K(C?)risty Lee Cook was the only one I stopped cleaning the kitchen for. David Cook sent me back to heebie jeebie land...what ever made him choose that song, and then that cheesey "give back" written on his hands? My prediction is Syesia and Brook will be sitting in the bottom two...I just hope next week is more entertaining!
Hope your week is a great one.

Shoes

I know I haven't mentioned going to the Doc's much the past little while. My Pod Doc that took such excellent care of my once really pretty feet, up and left for parts unknown. (No, really they were once a foot fetishist's dream...long and slender, fine boned with delicate ankles...nails covered with bright red nailpolish called "I'm not really a Waitress" (which I still wear...just not on my toenails anymore). Because the once lovely feet are also aflicted with the hateful Rheumatoid Arthritis, they are no longer a dream...good heavens, nightmare, now that might cover it. The first time I was told I had RA, and that the ankle bones in my left foot were mostly shot, I sat on my bed (carefully tucking my legs beneath me while I still could) and cried. The left ankle was already affected, swollen and ugly, while oddly the right foot was still absolutely untouched. I hadn't been able to wear proper shoes in ages. I tried, but it was a no go. So, I lined up all the beautiful shoes I have collected over the years, the gorgeous Italian high heeled Sandals in a lovely reddish brown leather, strappy and sexy, the lime green silk heels that I wore to my son's wedding...the black leather boots that hugged the calves of my legs like a lovers hands, the ugly steel toed boots I once wore with my uniform that were strong enough to save my life, but gawd ugly (and oddly comfortable.) I held the red satin pumps (oh yes, I love me some high heels...) with the wrap around my ankle and tie in the front satin straps and wept because not only could the swollen ankle not accomodate the lovely straps, but my balance was mostly gone due to the broken neck injury I have mostly recovered from. I cried because these shoes were only decorations now, decorating my closet mostly. I bagged them up to take to the dump, but couldn't quite make myself wallow in that much self pity, so I put them back in the closet in a box till I decide what to do with them. Yes, I was a whining ,whimpering mess who sat on her bed and cried over SHOES. I had been through so much what with heart surgery, paralysis, (when the doctors told me I'd never walk again, I laughed in their faces because I knew God would not have brought me this far to leave me lying on the ground. I knew it.) The night of the world's noisiest pity party was the night I saw a show about the young men and women who are returning from war with their arms and legs so sadly damaged and missing and some coming home in coffins that I knew...I'll never cry over anything so insignificant as a pair of shoes ever again.

Awards from my pals...and Mama's Angel Biscuits

You know, these awards are so heart warming to me. It means maybe I'm doing something right and that others find some humor or upliftment in what I have to say and I thank San at Life with A View (and what a view it is http://alifewithaview.blogspot.com/) for this Gratitude with Attitude award...I will admit that I definitely have an attitude. I got it from my Mama. And for Vee to think me worth the E for Excellence award...well...thank you my dear Vee. She is a most excellent blogger and you can find her at http://ahavenforvee.blogspot/. Please visit my friends, you certainly won't regret it! Later in the week I will passing these awards right on out, but first I want to share the recipe for Angel Biscuits then as we have a storm moving in, will sign out for awhile. Well, after visiting the rest of my friends.



Mama collected recipes the way some people collect stamps or coins. She had so many different types of recipes that should I live to be 99, well I won't have gotten through a quarter of them. She was the kind of cook that should unexpected company arrive she could take a pound of shoe leather and you'd think you just had fillet Mignon. The Angel Biscuit recipe came from an old Southern Living Magazine years ago and was a blue ribbon prize winner at the Columbia State Fair in South Carolina in (according to notes) October, 1954. They are light tender biscuits, easy to make and the best things to eat them with are...well, anything. Mac loves them with honey on them. He has decided to eat at least 2 tablespoons of honey daily since he discovered that he can't take any of the cholesterol lowering meds. This is the recipe, and whether you think you can make a biscuit or not, please try it! I'm going to skip down a line or two so you can copy and paste and print this recipe.



Angel Biscuits
Ingredients:

2 cups buttermilk

1 cup vegetable shortening

1 package dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water

4 tablespoons sugar

5 cups regular flour (not self rising!)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

melted butter (optional)



Procedure: Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Warm the buttermilk with the shortening stirring to melt. Let it cool to lukewarm. Add the yeast which you have softened in the 1/4 cup warm water. Add the sugar.



Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Add this to the buttermilk mixture. Stir to mix and place it in a covered bowl and let it sit overnight, if you like. If you want biscuits immediately, put 1/2 cup of flour on a butcher block or cutting board, spread it about, then break off about 1/4 of the dough and put it in the flour. (The leftover biscuit dough will keep in the fridge for up to five days. In all this recipe makes makes about 3 dozen biscuits if you have a crowd coming!) Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough, knead just a few times and roll it out to about 1 inch in depth, take a biscuit cutter (or a can that has both ends cut out). Place each biscuit on a baking sheet (Or preferably in cast iron skillet...I use my spider) and bake at 400 degrees for about fifteen minutes, or until nicely browned on top. Brush with melted butter if desired.



Now these are wonderful, you're going to love them...please let me know how they turned out for you. So much better than those "fresh" frozen biscuits...they are to die for!

Rainy days and Thursdays...And An Award from a Friend

I know everyone is just sick to death of hearing about how we've been in a drought and still need ten inches of rain to bring us out and blahbablahbablah....but anyway, it's raining! Not hard, just whispering rain, and it's been doing this all night and oh how I love it! Yesterday we worked all day in the yard, planting Lantana (I just love Lantana) moving the Canna Lily bed and mulching everything deeply so that the rain be retained for awhile. So happppy...and today we get to rest to do inside things. I just finished giving the kitchen a thorough cleaning and put away. I decided for supper tonight that we'll have chicken fried steak and angel biscuits with white gravy for supper. I'll throw in some Brussels sprouts and green beans...no rice or potatoes...gosh, I'm hungry already and it's no where near supper time! Tomorrow I'll post pictures of supper before the devastation...and give you the recipe for dinner. I know people buy those frozen biscuits, and they are great for convenience but a little tough. A real biscuit should just about float off your plate to your mouth...and they're not that hard to make. Believe it or not, I use an empty bean can that I put in the dishwasher as a biscuit cutter. It makes nice large biscuits that you can use as a breakfast biscuit to rival Hardee's or any of those fast food places...just have to remember not to twist your biscuit cutter...straight into the dough and back out...but I digress. So yesterday we worked our collective heinies off and now I've done a bit of housework. Soon as I finish up in here, I intend to go vacuum then pick up my next book...and read. My idea of a perfect Thursday.

The dear sweet Kat at http://justabeachkat.com/ has honored me with an E for Excellence award and I am so proud to be honored by this dear friend. You really must go visit with her if you haven't already made her acquaintance. She is a cancer survivor, and she offers so much to us in the spirit she shares. You'll love husband George and Wheaten terrier daughter Miss Daisy. She is so interesting and it's always a pleasure to stop by and visit. Now, I am supposed to present this to the ten others that I feel deserve it. So, here goes:

First of all I'd like to present the E for Excellence award to

Lee at http://chrysalisdreams.blogspot.com/ for her valued friendship and her bootstrap philosophy of life that makes you admire her courage and tenacity.

Cowgirl at http://cowgirlat.blogspot.com/ better known as Riverdale Ramblings for her humor and the way she shares her feelings with no holding back and her go get em attitude towards life. She's an angel, no really!

Mima at http://mimad.blogspot.com/ who faces the worst of MS everyday and manages to get through life with a smile (though through gritted teeth at times, I'm sure...) and a sense of humor!

My sweet niece Kari at http://grannyskywalker.blogspot.com/ better known as Just Livin' Large for her complete disclosure of how she feels about everything...or as we call it, Kari's rants...she is fun and able to say what we want to because she doesn't care if she p*sses you off or not...

Teresa at http://tpmom4ever.blogspot.com/ better known as Living the Life. Teresa is family oriented as most of us are, and she takes such pleasure in her family and in the sharing of that pleasure.

Also Seamus at http://dampdog.blogspot.com/ who shares the nature of his world with us and then illustrates it with pictures. His writing shows the pleasure he takes in life and the joy he spreads in the doing of it...

Jan, you rock...I love coming in to visit with you as well. Though we haven't known each other long, I think we hit it off right away! So Jan at http://azbax.blogspot.com/ this E is for you.

Merisi of Merisi's Vienna for Beginners...wow...she'll take you on a trip and you won't even have to leave your house...no, I'm not talking about marijuana...her photography is like a mini Travelogue...you will be impressed...just run over to http://merisi.blogspot.com/ and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Jamie Dawn at http://jamiesmindlessblather.blogspot.com/ for her...well, for her. She's fun and she's irreverently irreverent. I love her preaching...she should be in the pulpit...

Now, I really can't leave out David at Author Blog (http://david-mcmahon.blogspot.com/ ) because without his encouragement to other bloggers I wouldn't know half of the ones mentioned here. He is sort of the Master of Ceremonies who brings this crew together. I know awards don't mean that much to him, he does what he does out of love of the written word. But anyway David...here's to you. Should anyone ask me to take them to my leader...be prepared for company.

American Idol...

Okay, last night was awesome for me because I love Dolly...have since I was a kid. Now Kari and I have this little thing going that we hope you will all join in...every Wednesday morning or afternoon, is Idol Wednesday. Critique your least favorite and most favorite...let us know who you would boot off...and since I really can't wait to say it .... David Cook you ROCK OUT LOUD. I have been a big fan since the beginning...except of his hair styles...for heavens sake find a comb and get rid of the rooster look...it looks bad enough on Ryan Secrest. I started out loving Carly (Smithson) but she is not improving, she's going downhill. The look on her face says either "I need a laxative" or "I just took a laxative." No no, Carly...I am sorry to say that there isn't a girl singer that I think will be our next American Idol. Young David sounds like a young Vince Gill, that can't be bad...but I can't say he'd be a Pop singer...more a Broadway singer...and a quite good one! I think Ramiele (Malubay) should have been booted like, four or five weeks ago. Michael Johns was just wonderful last night, but David Cook still has it as far as I'm concerned...so, for tonight I think Ramiele should pack up all her cares and woe, here we go, singing low...by by songbird... See the rest of you next Tuesday night...or at least I hope we will!

I've Been Tagged!

Yes, I've been tagged, by my sweet Great Niece, Jodie Adams (http://jodieslifeinokinawa.blogspot.com/ who is living in Okinawa with her hubby Nick, who has made his career with the Air Force. It's sort of a family thing, that Military Career thing. They are expecting their second daughter (Maddy is actually Nick's daughter from a former marriage, but you wouldn't know that Jodie is the evil stepmother, because I refuse to use the word Step...and she is far from Evil...she's Maddy's other Mother). This is Jodie's second natural born child. Their first sweet pea is growing in God's Garden. His name is Conner and he wasn't here very long, but we love his sweet self and he will forever live in our hearts. We picture him in our minds growing and learning, because we know that just because he isn't here with us in body, his Spirit is Ever with us. So now we await the darling Kara who is due to arrive on May 4th. I can't wait for the jokes to start...Kara was born in Japan? Funny she doesn't look Japanese...Okay, so on to the Four Tag...

We all know how this goes, cut and paste and put your answers in place, right? But be sure to go visit Jodie and see what her answers were...I'll put the four I want to tag at the end of this...

4 Jobs I have had in my life:
1. Office Receptionist
2. Dog walker...loved that one
3. Cafeteria worker in Marine Chow Hall...hey, not glamorous, but I was the first woman Teamster in my family...and the last as far as I know and wow, the pay was good.
4. Retired from Law Enforcement, Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office...fifteen years.


Movies I have/would watch over and over again.
1. Ghost
2. Gone with the Wind
3. The original version with Robert Blake of "In Cold Blood"...makes the horrendous crime that occurred show you why I believe in Capital Punishment much better than I could explain it.
4. It's a Wonderful Life...I can watch it anytime of the year.

. Places I have lived:
1. Georgia...
2. Tampa Florida
3. Colts Neck New Jersey
4. Beaconsfield in the county of Buckinghamshire, England


People I want to bitch slap right into the middle of next week:-
1. The grocery store employee who was so busy harassing the clerk while she was trying to check me out (oh wait, I did bitch slap him, but into next month, not next week!)
2. Any newscaster who stands with the family of a victim of a heinous crime and asks "what do you think happened here and what do you want to see happen to the accused?" What do they think the family wants to see happen? Can we bring back drawing and quartering? Hot tar and feathering...or maybe just a good old whipping with a bullwhip.
3. Okay, so it's newscaster time again...If I hear one more of these people say "can you give us a sense of how it felt when that tornado bore down and took away your house (your town, your church) all the time waiting to hear the old cliche about the locomotive of a train. Will someone give them some SENSE? Can I get an Amen???
4. Wow, this is fun...Paris Hilton. No explanation needed...


.People that email me regularly:

1. Evil Sister
2. Good Sister
3. Actual Sister, Toni
4. Lee



TV shows I watch: Fictional.
1. Bones
2. Medium
3. Amsterdam
4. Law and Order (Criminal Intent)



TV shows I watch Nonfictional

1. The Naked Archaeologist (History Channel
2. 48 Hours (CBS)
3. The First 48 (A&E)
4. HGTV any time I get a chance!

Places I have visited:
1. Miami Florida
2. London, England
3. Atlanta, Georgia
4. Calais, France



Favorite Foods:

1. Eggplant Parmigiana
2. Collard greens and fried cornbread with hot pepper sauce
3. Ribs with cole slaw
4. Anything Evil Sister prepares...she's the best cook I know still living...no one could beat Mama's cooking...no one...Paula Deen would be in envy of her skill.



Where I want to be right now:
1. Pretty comfortable at home, this will be hard...but let's see...Barnes and Noble
2. England...
3. Okinawa to see Jodie and be there when Kara arrives
4. Traveling with Arianna anywhere she wants to go



Things I'm looking forward to this year:
1. Spring break with Arianna visiting us
2. The first tomato off the vine (eating it in the garden, salt shaker in hand...juice dripping down my hands ...opps, 'scuse me while I wipe the drool off the keyboard)
3. The first Watermelon out of the garden, busted open at the edge of the garden, scooping the red meat out and cramming it in my mouth as fast as I can, same salt shaker, same drooling scene...gee, you're gonna think I'm a slob...but that's how we did it when we were kids, right Toni?
4. Christmas...always Christmas



Okay, so there you have it. Thank you Jodie...that was fun. Now, who to tag...four that I haven't tagged before...
1. Carol at http://katherinesdream.blogspot.com/
2. Vee at http://ahavenforvee.blogspot.com/
3. Lee at http://chrysalisdreams.blogspot.com/
4. Sarah at http://everythingstopsfortea.blogspot.com/

And there you have it...I enjoyed it. Hope you will, too.