I'm so proud of my Bug!!!

This is when I wish I had internet access at home. But I don't, so I'm writing this in my journal and will type it up tomorrow.

I just got a phone call from my daughter. My oldest grandbabe just placed second in her category (needlework) at the Beta Club State Competition in Tupelo! That means she's going to the Nationals in Orlando in June!! WOO HOO!!

She knitted a blanket and randomly applied crochet bowes. The bows were inspired by my Mom, and lil sis helped teach her to crochet, but she did all of this herself. I'm so VERY proud of her! She's been knitting for a couple of years now and has gotten really good at it. It was her idea that just knitting the blanket wouldn't be good enough to win the competition. She wanted to add a little "umph" and thought it would help to have a combination of needlework techniques in the same piece. She asked my lil sis for help/ideas and lil sis suggested doing bows like some our Mom had done on a sweatshirt she had made for us years ago. So.... this is the result.

Oh, and she also had tryouts last week for high school cheerleader (she'll be a freshman) and she made it!!!

How about the fact that she's at the top academically in her class??

And did I mention that I'm SOOO VERY PROUD of her???

Ok, yes...

I was messing with him.

He's a big ol fat cat and I couldn't resist...

I had to put "Coop" on Ghost to see how he would react.

It was pretty funny.

Then, suddenly, he's like WTF??? and turned on me.

It was all over then...

Bless his heart... :P

You want me to do WHAT??

Yeah, he's grinning alright. He's laughing because he saw my BIL and Big Sis approaching for a ride and he's thinking, "This is a joke, right??"

But NOOOO, Mr. Camel-man in his white dress and little red turban wasn't kidding after all.

This is an actual excerpt from the email Big Sis sent me about their camel ride: "Did you notice, the camel that we rode--when we walked up and started making pictures, it was like he was grinning for the camera. But you should have heard him when D sat down!!!! He looked around at us and GROANED!!!!! Like "You have GOT to be kidding me!!!! I'm suppose to GET UP with these two HIPPOS on my back???"

She said it, I didn't! LOL!!

Anyway, it looks like it's all well because the camel with his happy little hat on appears to be quite content carrying his, ummm, "load".

Now for the bonus pictures. Big Sis says she is seeing LOTS of baby camels right now. I guess it's that time of year.

They are coming home some time in June and I can't WAIT to see them!

uh, that's Big Sis and BIL are coming home. NOT the camels. :)

For JB

This is for you, my dear!!!!

We've picked on JB for a while now about his foot fetish.

Not that he REALLY has a foot fetish, but he's just fun to pick on!!


Well....this is just the beginning!!!

What's funny, is that after taking the sock off (ok, so it's chilly in here and I had my socks on), I went out with my trusty camera, then got fixated on the bees in the azaleas!! Sorry jb, but bees won out over my idea for taking pics of my feet in the flowers....

Sorry, jb, the bees were just really cool and mesmerizing.

But I love you anyway!!

And one last foot in the flowers just for you!!

LOL!!!

For My BFF G

For my BFF G:


Your azaleas are beautiful right now.

A carpenter bee was enjoying the bounty...

Can't help but wonder what's up with this strange half pink petal thing going on...

They are absolutely glowing in the sun.

I sure wish you were here...

They really are beautiful.

I miss you so much...

Memories of an Iris

I know I've mentioned how much I love my little place in the country. Right now, I am blessed by a tiny spot of brightness in the form of snow white iris in full bloom.

I cannot look at a white iris without thinking about my late husband, H. He loved to take pictures and one time, he took a closeup of a stark white iris and framed it and gave it to me as a gift. There was just something very simple and sweet about that little gift. He was very proud of the picture and it touched my heart that he wanted me to have it.

It's funny how little things will sometimes make me think of him. And miss him. He taught me so much in our short time (7 years) together. Besides being a great father to my child, he was the toughest, bravest, kindest man I've ever known. He's probably a huge part of the reason I have not had a successful relationship since. There will never be another H.

So, as I walked around this little clump of iris this morning and took pictures, I said a little prayer of thanks for the time I had with him.

And for the gift of the single white iris.

Wisteria

Wisteria, did you change your face again?


Those of us who loved you when, can't even find you.






Wisteria, did you lose another man?








Did you make him understand that he can't touch you?













Wisteria, did he take you to the fair?







Were the folks that you met there the same that we met?



Wisteria, did he teach you how to dance?





Did he bring you paper fans to hide your secret?



Was he just like all the rest when he got to the sad part?





Did he stay a bit too long to save his heart?



Wisteria, are your lips still lily white?


Do they still bloom just at night and die at sunrise?






Rest in Peace Dan Fogelberg

Recognize this face?

Of course you do! This is the infamous Charlie Daniels. I saw him at the Pearl River Resort last Saturday night. He puts on an awesome show!

I managed to get real close during the finale, which of course was "Devil Went Down to Georgia". But it's REALLY hard to get a picture of his actual face. Most pictures you see of him are exactly this. Head down, hat prominent, but you always know who it is. At one point, I did manage to catch him in profile while playing towards his guitarist.

He absolutely still rocks! He is an incredibly patriotic man, proud to be a redneck American. He brought me to tears more than once. When he played a tribute to our troops and I was sitting next to my nephew who is in the Air Force, I was bursting with pride. When he did How Great Thou Art in his very own special way, tears were streaming down my cheeks. Just thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes.

He may be in his 70s, but he never stopped, for over an hour and a half. Absolutely fabulous show. If you ever get a chance to go see him, do it. It's worth it. He is a true American treasure.

Coop's Big Adventure

We got to the hospital around 6:20 since we were told to be there at 6:30. Of course, there was a pile of paperwork to sign.

Then it was off to take some bloodwork, blood pressure and temp.

After that was done, it was back to the waiting area to do just that. Wait. And wait.

I'd been told that the doctor likes to schedule surgeries where he doesn't keep people waiting for hours. Actually, it really wasn't too bad. I was taken to the "holding area" around 8 and the fun began. First donning a really cool blue backless number and a snazzy blue cap.

The anesthesiologist came by, followed by the doctor (who is pretty darn hot I might add) and talked about what was going to happen. Then the doctor autographed my hip so he would remember which one needed the work done.

After another wait of half an hour or so, they wheeled me into the operating room.

Oh, and for the record, if there was ever a time when I know for sure what my name is and my birth date, it is now. EVERY person that laid a hand on me today would look at my wrist band, then ask me what my name was and my date of birth.

Anyway, they gave me something into my iv that made me feel really good. Next thing I know, I've got an attractive bandage on my hip.

All in all, it was a very good experience, which is good because it was my first ever surgery. It would have sucked to have a bad "first time".

The staff at the hospital were all incredibly nice. The nurse that took care of me in the recovery room was exceptional and did a great job of explaining everything I needed to do post surgery.

So far, I'm still somewhat under the influence of drugs, but not really hurting and am hopeful that my days of non-stop hip pain are now over.

It's time...

I've put it off long enough. The pain in my hip finally drove me to go see a doctor and the anticipated "you need a new hip" diagnosis ended up being "your hip looks fine". WHAT??? I saw the x-ray myself. My hip looks fine. WTF??? So WHY does it hurt so bad???

Anyway, after an MRI and a diagnosis of a torn labrum (yes, what A-Rod had), I'm now scheduled for a relatively non-invasive arthroscopic surgery tomorrow to fix the problem. Lil sis is going to come get me and take me home with her (because her house is all one level) to recover for a few days.

I could kick myself for postponing this for so long, but I had myself convinced my hip was a knarly knot of corroded bone and was going to need replacing. It's what I get for procrastinating.

Merle

My little man kittie.

Watercolor losing Arden yesterday made me miss my Merle so much. He was such a good cat.

I adopted Merle after I started commuting to Dallas. Ringo got to where he was SO clingy (literally under my feet BEGGING for attention) on the weekends when I got home, that I decided he needed a companion. There was a girl at work (I'm sorry to say I don't remember her name) that had some kittens needing homes so I went over to her house and immediately fell in love with this little, tiny, orange tabby with a big M on his forehead. (I wish to goodness I had some pics of him, but he was pre-digital so I've got to do some digging).

Because of the "M", I knew his name was supposed to begin with it, but just wasn't "feeling" a name for him. Generally, as soon as I meet a cat I know what the name is supposed to be. Not with Merle. At the time, I was reading a novel where the lead character's name was Max. That didn't feel right. I was living in a little two story cabin up on the reservoir and my lil sis was staying with me a couple of times a week. She knew I was trying to "feel" the name for my new baby. One night, I remember it well, she walked in and proclaimed "I've got it!" "Merle!" I knew immediately that was the name. No, not Merle Haggard, no, not anything remotely resembling an association with anybody. The name "Merle" just felt right.

I'm one of those that believes that a cat's name cannot sound anything like any other cat you may have. Yes, I do believe cat's recognize and understand their names (unlike some people). But I knew, as soon as she said it, that was his name. Merle. Perfect.

Merle ended up being THE solution to my problem with my clingy cat, Ringo. I left EARLY on Monday mornings and wouldn't get back till Friday night commuting to Dallas. Lil sis was there a couple of times a week to feed, and at the time, I had a screened porch with an automatic litter box that took care of "personal" stuff.

I'd get home on Friday evenings and Merle and Ringo would just have the BEST time! I took pictures and would enjoy them all weekend. Then came the move. I moved to a house outside of Raymond, proceeded to get laid off and ended up moving to my shop. Of course, Merle and Ringo moved with me.

I'll have you know that when I finally got a little cottage 3 blocks from my shop (which had then closed due to the economy and running out of funds), he went EVERY day to "work". I knew he left every morning at daylight and didn't return until the sun was going down, but I wasn't sure where he went during the day. Then, one day I found him inside the shop (lots of access through the metal walls) and realized that he was going and spending his days "tending shop". Bless his heart. It was like he was responsible to make sure everything was okay there while I had gone back to work in the real world. I'm talking EVERY day. He left in the morning and would come home in the evening just like it was his job.

Then, a year ago at Thanksgiving, I came home after a couple of days with my parents and found him on the hassock, lying in a typical "Merle" position, but he was dead. I have no idea why. There didn't appear to be any trauma. He was only 5 years old, which is young for a cat. I called my friends in Crystal Springs and they offered me a place to bury him. They took a backhoe and dug a grave. Friend and a guy that worked for him reverently carried his box to the place and placed him in the grave. Friend's wife read a poem and we all cried. I will never forget that, ever.

Oh, and we had stopped by the former shop and got a stepping stone that Friend's wife had done a mosiac in. Friend had carved "Meryl" in the stone. I didn't have the heart to tell him that it wasn't spelled right. It doesn't matter. My baby boy Merle has a fabulous place to rest in peace. This is a pic I took while sitting next to his grave.

And right now he's doing his "job" and showing Watercolor's baby, Arden, the ropes in heaven.

The tree he is buried under...

Rest In Peace my darling Merle.