Mixed Message

Here you see a sunset in Kona, Hawaii, a place where I have never been and probably will never go, but it sure looks like somewhere I would want to be. Obviously, it is warm, though, as it's always warm in Hawaii. It's my effort for this week's Monday Muse.

Now for the mixed message part. After a very long and dry summer (it ended last week, in spite of what the calendar says), we had almost enough rain in two days last week to make up for how short we were for the year. Of course, it helped the water table and the lakes and reservoirs, but it came way too late for the crops and flowers. Farmers are still suffering, and I still had to water flowers all summer. I guess it was far worse for them than it was for me! The rain also brought fall along with it for a very delayed entrance. For the first time since early May, there are no 80 degree days in our forecast. Now we are getting daytime highs in the 50's and 60's and had our first frost of the year last night. I think this is late for a first frost. The leaves are finally changing color, but the color is pretty muted because most of the leaves are full of brown spots and holes. Although I am a summer lover, I always like the first few brisk days of fall weather. The drop in temperatures and difference of wardrobe are pleasant changes. Of course, it won't be long before I'm tired of the cooler temperatures, if not the clothes. The cooler it gets, the less I like it. One of my mantras known to everyone who knows me is, "I HATE winter!" Of course, winter is only temporary, and spring will come again--because life is good! :)

This Is Retirement?

Here is a photo of the painting of the photo that I pilfered from my sister's blog, Count It All Joy, a few days ago. It shows just where I would like to be right now (and every day, for that matter!).

Instead of lounging around looking at the beach and the Gulf of Mexico, I am in Kentucky keeping very busy. I always thought that when I retired we would have the chance to go and be at the beach whenever we wanted. Unfortunately for me, last year only one of us could go, and this year only one of us wants to go. We will have to see how this pans out.

Meanwhile, we aren't lounging around anywhere at the moment. We have been very busy for the last several weeks, and even when we do have time to relax, one of us thinks of something that needs to be done. We have been seriously looking at a new home and trying to work out how to afford it and still keep this one for Doug and Kellie. I think we have that one figured out. Then we have been trying to get some maintenance done on this house so we leave it in good shape. Next, we were privileged to have Drew here for several days, and he did keep us busy. That's as it should be, and a good time was had by all. This week, it has been a series of routine doctor visits for me, and on Friday there will be one(not routine) for Doug. Sunday will be my season-pass trip to the local dinner theater. All of this ensures that not much grass grows under our feet, and I am beginning to long for a day when all I have to do is get up and sit around with a good book, a paintbrush, or a DVD control in my hand. That's unusual for me, the goer. It is just an indication of how very busy we have been. However, I am very grateful to be able to get up and go like that. Others aren't so lucky. For me, anyway, life is good!

Guest Blogger

Drew has been staying with us since Monday. His dad brought him and Nick up, but Andy and Nick went home on Tuesday morning, and Drew has had his first big sleepover with us. I must say that Grandpa and I have been very impressed by how well-behaved he has been. This is what we have done in Drew's own words:

" We made Halloween stuff for my house. We went to the Louisville Slugger Museum and the Frazier Arms Museum. We saw shields, armor, swords, guns, and a buffalo. We bought a pen feather, a magnet, and two swords. I climbed on a giant ball glove. I batted balls. We saw them making bats. I got a bat and a ball. We ate pizza downtown. We saw the big river. We came home. I played with my toys and rested. We ate supper at Steak and Shake. I drove the golf cart every day all by myself. Today we went to the store to look for tires. We ate lunch at Ruthie's Lincoln Freeze. I had grilled cheese. We saw the log cabin where Abraham Lincoln was born. Tomorrow I will go home. I've had a good time."

I must say that of all the things that we did this week, driving the golf cart has definitely been Drew's favorite thing to do. I think he would have been happy just to do that all day every day. We have had a great time and look forward to doing it again...Life is good!

Catching Up

I have managed to make it to my painting group for a few weeks in a row again. These are my last two efforts. Both are cut down because they are too big to fit in the scanner. The first is pretty self-explanatory. The second is, too, I guess. It's a tropical storm coming to the Carolina coast. I did this one first and got two identical comments from people who know what they're doing. They liked the picture, but they said the bird shouldn't be centered in the picture. While I know this is true according to art guidelines, I painted this from a photo in which the bird was exactly in the center of the picture. I chose not to try to paint over it and do it again for fear I would really mess it up. But next time I'll know. The seascape is a better effort, and the focal point is not in the center of the picture. I guess my untrained eye doesn't notice these things very much, but being around people who make money at their art and listening to their comments is helpful to me.

It looks like maybe next month I will have a chance to display my paintings on a wall of the new library where we do our weekly painting. I could have done so this month, but I would have shared the space with another woman, and her paintings are far superior to mine. She paints in a very realistic style, and her pictures are almost like photos. While I paint from photos, my work is rougher and more impressionistic. Her work looks just as good close up as from a distance. Most of my paintings look better from a distance, which is part of what impressionism is all about. At any rate, I didn't think it would be such a good idea to have two such different styles side-by-side, so I will wait for another chance, probably next month. Meanwhile, that means I must frame some of my work, notably the pictures that are on canvas board instead of stretched canvas. With that in mind, I made a trip to Hobby Lobby this morning and bought frames at half price, but they still set me back about $80. Add to that the price of the canvases and paints that I just had to have, and the bill came to almost $140! This is an expensive hobby. When I display my pictures, I have been encouraged to put a price on them as the other ladies do, but I have no idea what to ask. They are asking $200-$300 for their work, but they aren't selling any, either. I don't think my work is worth nearly that, but it would be nice to recoup the cost of materials and frames. Maybe I'll put up prices in the $50 range. Makes more sense to me.

Meanwhile, I have entered two paintings that I did from Alissa's photos in the local festival art contest. The winner gets a ribbon, so it sure isn't for the money. I just like the idea of having something I painted on display somewhere besides my kids' homes, although I'm glad they like them enough to frame them and hang them up!

I have found a hobby that I really enjoy, and I am getting some time to pursue it. Life is good!

Welcome, Neshira and Aiva

Neshira (Shira to me) and Aiva joined our family officially on Saturday, September 22. They have unofficially been part of us for the last year or so, but now it's official! I don't have very good pictures of the lovely wedding in the meadow of Pigeon Forge, TN, because I was busy just enjoying the event. Both Alissa and my sister Peggy took some lovely ones, though. Mine all seem to have been taken from the side and just of people milling around.

At any rate, it was a simple and beautiful wedding, and now Chip and Shira are enjoying a well-deserved honeymoon in the Smokies. They have a secluded cabin in the mountains, but they have easy access to all the tourist attractions that they can afford in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN as well as Cherokee, NC. I'm sure they won't lack for activities in that very busy and scenic area.

We are so pleased to add Shira and Aiva to our family. Shira is a lovely young woman who shares Chip's slightly offbeat interests and way of looking at life. They are both kind of like modern day hippies, and they enjoy simple pleasures. Both of them like poetry and music and have a deeper philosophical side that most of the rest of us Rausch's do not. They are both somewhat shy and self-effacing and are so well-matched. Shira makes our guy happy, and that is a major accomplishment! Chip spent many years waiting for just the right girl to come along, and now she has. He's ready to settle down and take care of his new family. Aiva, who will be three very soon, is just icing on the cake. She is a delightful and loving child, who, in spite of the picture above, usually has a big smile on her face. We love having a new granddaughter! We are so happy to have both of the ladies in our family and look forward to many happy years for the newlyweds and their daughter. Life is good!!

The Many Faces (and Hairstyles) of...

...me! I know it has been awhile, but I am finally getting around to finding and posting pictures of me and my different hairstyles at various points in my life. You can see I have changed a great deal. Thanks for Peggy for most of the pictures. I took them off my "Happy 50th" poster that she made for my surprise party nine years ago...

As you can see, I've always been blonde, in some shade or another. Even now, not too much gray hair shows up in my darker blonde hair. As a child, my hair was platinum blonde, very fine, very thick, and very straight, although you can't tell it by all the pictures of me. Invariably, the pictures showed me with a fluffy hairdo. This was due to the diligent efforts of my mother, who washed my hair each Saturday night and then sat me on the floor between her knees and proceeded to torture me by twisting my hair into tight pin curls that were secured by bobby pins, many of which had lost the protective rubber tip. This started when I was very small--the first picture you see was taken when I was four, and in the second shot I was about six or seven. Every Sunday my hair was a combination of fluff and frizz, and it got progressively less curly throughout the week. I remember growing hair long enough for a ponytail when I was about eight, but I think my mom thought this was too much trouble to maintain because I went back to short hair after that. About that time, Mom tried home permanents, which left me feeling like a ball of frizz, and I hated them. They were stinky and ugly. I think I continued to get them until I was in junior high, when I took over my own styling. At that time, I swore I would never get another perm--more on that later.

When I started fixing my own hair, I did the brush roller thing. Since my hair was so fine and I didn't want perms, I had to roll my hair every night and sleep on the curlers. Picture number three shows how I looked throughout much of high school, although with different hair lengths. I would get a short haircut at the beginning of each summer and let my hair grow until the next summer, with longer hair in the winter. My hair was odd and hard to style, and keeping it pretty was complicated by the fact that I wouldn't tease my hair or use hairspray because I hated the way it made my hair feel. And I wanted that soft and smooth hair because I was a hair twirler. I had a specific hank of hair that I fooled with much of the time, and it felt good between my fingers. When I was in high school, the look was a flip hairstyle, which you see in picture number four. Usually I couldn't achieve this look, and one side flipped up and the other turned under, but I seem to have managed it in this picture when I was 18.

About that time, hairstyles began to change, and long, straight hair was in. Finally, a low-maintenance look! The next two pictures show that style. The close-up was my senior college picture and the one used in my engagement announcement that ran in the paper.

I kept my long hair throughout college and the first several years of marriage, but in my mid-twenties, I was ready for a change, and I got it. I got a shag haircut with many different lengths, and it lasted several years. From that point on, I kept my short hair as it was easier to care for and keep neat, and with three kids, that was a necessity.

During my 30's, I thought I needed to do something to jazz up my flat hair, so I started getting perms (done by a professional), even though I was leery of the frizzy look I had had as a child. The perms weren't frizzy, but I still felt like a poodle when a perm was new. It began to look good about 2-3 months after I got it. I never did figure out a way to get a perm that didn't leave me too curly in the beginning, so I abandoned the perms a few years ago. I now get my hair cut about every 5-6 weeks and use a curling iron when I wash it. I still don't put much effort into styling it, but my hairdresser has been cutting my hair for over 20 years, and she has got it down to a science. It's very easy to maintain a neat look. I am proud to say that I have never colored my hair, although I do confess to occasionally using a spray that is 50% peroxide and 50% water to keep it from getting too mousy in color.

I have always considered my hair one of my better features because it is naturally blond and very soft and silky to the touch. It's not fancy, but it is my style, which is unadorned and down-to-earth. It fits me to a tee, I guess. Now you know more than you ever really wanted about my hair. I'll try to think of something more interesting next time...

I'm Still Alive...

It seems to have been a few weeks since I have had a chance to post anything. It has been extremely busy around here. Now that the old guy is feeling well, he goes with me most of the time when I have somewhere to go, and then we end up going somewhere else. Between Curves, doctor appointments, hair appointments, getting my car fixed, and a few social occasions tossed in, it seems we have had something on the docket to do every day from September 4 through September 14 and many other days as well. For various reasons, I will be missing my painting session for three weeks in a row. Of course, one of those Mondays was a holiday, so the library wasn't open anyway. And this coming Monday is Grandparents' Day at Drew's school, and I'd much rather be there!

We have still been looking at travel trailers and patio homes, even though we won't be getting one of either for at least a year. We have found a few patio homes we really like, and I think the old guy is getting ready in his mind to make the move. I expect it will be a few years, but just looking at the new homes makes me eager to move to a new place with not so much maintenance. Of course, that means we need to go through all the things we have accumulated over the years and cull out the things that are most important to us. Better we do this now than wait until we are so old that the task becomes overwhelming instead of just daunting, as it is now.

Because we have been so busy, I have had very little downtime to be at the computer or even to read, and I find myself longing for a quiet afternoon at home as much as I longed for activity early in the year. Guess I'm never satisfied. :)

Reading Alissa's post about hairstyles the other day made me think about the various hairstyles I have had over the years. I found a few pictures. As soon as I have time to scan them, that will make a humorous post, I'm sure. Meanwhile, life is good (and busy!)...

Why I Blog...

This is in response to Alissa's post. I started blogging because it seemed all the other females in my family were doing it, and I felt left out. So, in spite of the fact that I usually have little to say, I decided to start a blog of my own, figuring I would put my paintings up there for family members to see. Of course, for the last two weeks, I haven't been able to get the last two paintings to upload. Last week's was so-so, but I am proud of this week's, so I will keep trying,

I was one of those people who didn't tell someone that I was doing this. I didn't tell the old guy because he has nothing good to say about computers, e-mail, blogs, or any of that stuff. I believe that if he would get interested in it, he would like it, but he much prefers television, telephone, and face-to-face contact, which isn't always feasible. Now I never lied about it, and he never asked, so the rest of the family and I just didn't mention it. However, a few weeks ago, he did ask about it, so I told him that I did have a blog, mainly to share my paintings. He just "Oh," and that was that. Of course, he hasn't ever asked to look at it, and that's fine with me, as I do mention him occasionally. The blog was especially helpful when he was sick. I could keep several people posted at one time.

Nowadays, I still like to post my paintings, if I can, but sometimes I just like to write to vent about things or share birthday memoirs and other memories. It's fun to read about others' histories and compare them with my own. And of course, I love reading about the grandkids and seeing Alissa's photos of them and other scenery. I can use her scenic photos as resources and often do. I look at blogging as another means of communicating with the outside world, even though only a handful of people read my blog. Actually, that's quite enough as I would never be able to keep up with lots of other blogs!

I imagine that I will keep this up for awhile because I enjoy it. Unlike Alissa, I don't blog every day, but I try to make it once a week or so. This way, I don't feel much pressure to find something to write about. I just write when the muse strikes. Like now...

Well, I just tried to put the pics up again, and there they are. The first is of Flathead Lake in Montana, and some of it is cut off because it's too big for the scanner. People in my art group told me this one was "Very bright," before I even added the bright green grass. I can assure you the colors were as bright in the newspaper photo. The second on is an Oregon sunset. I did it today, and I really like how the colors came out in it. The pros did, too. Life is good...

In Spite of the Dire Predictions...

... the old guy's kidneys are back to almost normal function. I had felt that this would be the case, but he and the doctor were concerned, and it made him worry needlessly. However, I guess he wouldn't be happy without something to worry about! :) Meanwhile, after a few rocky weeks, he seems to have recovered his equilibrium, and I have noticed a big change in him. He has started taking an interest in household chores and maintenance that he has been too lethargic to bother with for the last several years. My pantry and kitchen have been reorganized, the carpets have been cleaned, and outdoor maintenance is being done as well. We have been browsing in travel trailers and patio homes, and now he actually seems interested in getting one of each. Of course, I realize that any other adverse event will affect all this, but for now we are enjoying ourselves.



Meanwhile, a few other random thoughts, as Alissa would say. There was supposed to be a painting of Flathead Lake on this post, but after 3 tries at uploading the image and being kicked offline, I decided to wait with it for another time. Such is life, I guess. I wanted some feedback on this one, too, so I will definitely try again when blogger isn't being so temperamental.

School is back in session again, and the neighbors have all parked out in front of our house to wait for the bus. Seems their middle schoolers can't walk a half-mile down the road to get home. We will be "blessed" with several cars parked out front and people out of them chatting for 30 or more minutes each school day until June, I guess. For some reason, this bothers me, and it doesn't bother the old guy. It used to be the other way around, but we seemed to have changed on that front. I just don't like people parking on the grass which is right-of-way, but that we maintain and then settling in and blocking traffic. Guess I'm the old curmudgeon now.

We are having a heat wave and drought right about now, and we have had an average daily high of 98.1 degrees since Aug. 1. And no rain, either. Today it's 105 out there. They keep predicting a break in the weather, but it hasn't happened so far.

Belated happy birthdays to Alissa and Chip. Chip turned 30 on Aug. 9, and Alissa became 33 yesterday. We haven't had a chance to celebrate with either of them yet, so we will be having a joint celebration on Aug. 25, when we can all get together. Chip is now sharing his birthday with his new baby cousin (Welcome to Grant and Congratulations to Matt and Whitney!), so celebrations will probably be combined more often in the future. It seems that as the kids grow older and other family members join us, it is getting harder and harder to find a time when everyone can get together and celebrate. Again, that's life, I guess.

Our grandson started first grade this year and was very proud to do so, but he is having some beginning-of-school adjustment problems. I feel sure things will settle down soon, but I do remember dealing with those kinds of problems, both from a parent's perspective and from the teacher's. All there is to say about that is that I'm glad my kids are grown and that I'm retired. Someone else can fight the good fight now!

Guess that's enough randomness. As always, life is good...

A Day Late and a Dollar Short...

Yesterday was my dad's birthday. He became 84 years young . This is my dad when he was a young boy and this year. He had that steel guitar, but I don't think he became very skilled at playing it. He was an only child and was pampered, but not too much, by his mom. She did stuff like cut crusts off his sandwiches and fix ONLY Franco-American spaghetti, but he did not turn out to be a spoiled brat. He graduated early from high school and married my mom when he was not quite 20 years old. Shortly after that, he joined the Navy during World War II. He served on a radio repair ship in the Pacific. When he came home, he was a father as well as a husband and son, and my family settled into a post-war life. He began working at GE, where he worked until he retired. He always regretted that he didn't get a chance to go to college, but he worked hard and earned himself a professional engineer certification.

During the time I was growing up, Dad was the main breadwinner while Mom took care of the household. However, when he came home from work each evening, he had plenty of time for us. He would do things like lie on the floor and fly us like Superman or get into our little wading pool and cool off with us. Every year he and Mom took us on a neat family vacation, one week to someplace we hadn't visited before and one week to Erie to visit our grandparents. I looked forward to those summer trips, and it's probably where I developed my love of travel that I still have. He was a strict disciplinarian, but a loving one,and we toed the line. No matter where we were playing in the neighborhood, when he came outside and whistled, we came running. It was suppertime or time to go somewhere.

Once all of us grew up and left home, it was just Mom and Dad, and they got along just fine without us. They traveled together, settling finally on winters in Panama City Beach, Florida, in the mid-1980's. Dad still winters in the same spot now. Mom and Dad were each other's support during the health crises they both suffered and during the time following my grandparents' illnesses and deaths. Dad saw how much his father had depended on his mother for everything and how he deteriorated after her death. Without knowing he would later be in the same situation, Dad vowed then not to let the same thing happen to him. And it didn't. During the time of my mom's illness, Dad picked up the slack and did all the household chores and took care of her, in spite of having such painful knees that he could hardly walk himself. He became very adept at caring for her and for his own needs, which would serve him well after she died.

After Mom died, Dad made a conscious decision to go on and try to enjoy life, and he has done well at it. He has had his knees replaced and remains healthy and clear-minded. He does things that will keep his mind active, and he doesn't seem anywhere near his age. People hear that he is 84, and they immediately think of him as nursing home material, but he's not. I just think of him as Dad, the go-to guy he has always been. I don't worry about him driving or going places by himself. He is very capable of taking care of himself, and he is justifiably proud of it. Of course I wish him many more happy years of traveling to Florida and enjoying the company of his friends. Happy Birthday, Dad!

P.S. I forgot to say that I admire and love my dad ever so much. I hope I age as gracefully as he has!

Sunrise, Sunset...

We go from a sunrise in the Smokies to a sunset in the desert. I guess the theme is scenery. I can't paint pictures of people or animals, but I seem to do okay at scenery. I ended up scanning both pictures directly to a file, so some of the picture is missing because the canvas was bigger than the scanner. In the picture of the Smokies, there is supposed to be a pale yellow sun coming out of the clouds at the right of the picture, so imagine it there, if you will.

Other than that, I don't have much to say. In spite of the lovely summer weather, I have been feeling kind of down, which is unusual for me, cockeyed optimist that I usually am. I guess everyone goes through down periods once in a while, but I sure would like to regain my usual cheerfulness. It make life so much better to look through rose-colored glasses than gray-tinted ones, even if it isn't always realistic. I'm sure this will pass, though, because, as you know, life is good...

Oh, Well...

You were going to be "treated" to a picture of my latest painting, of a desert sunset, but I couldn't get it to upload. So you will just have to imagine the silhouettes of saguaro cacti against a background of a sky that darkens from a brilliant yellow to a coral pink to deep purple. Maybe I will try to post it next week when I paint another scene. Otherwise, you will just have to visualize it. I chose the Sonoran desert for a subject because I loved visiting it almost as much as I love the beach, and I knew I needed to paint something different. It turned out pretty well, I guess, but you may never know.

On another note, the old guy and I went to visit Alissa, Andy, and the boys last weekend for the big birthday bash. A good time was had by all. This was our first visit there in almost a year, and it was also our first overnight trip in just about as long. I think the old guy viewed the trip with some trepidation, but we were both pleasantly surprised by how well he did. I know it tired him, but we both saw that he can make short trips like this without too much duress. That's a plus! :)

However, just as we thought it was safe to get back into the water (to quote "Jaws")and health issues were improving, we went to the doctor today to get the results of the monthly bloodwork. While my cholesterol was responding pretty well to the Crestor, it seems I will need a larger dose to get the numbers where the doctor wants them. Not a big deal. Unfortunately, the old guy didn't get as good a report. It seems his creatinine number is up, and the doctor is concerned. This has happened before, and reducing the dose of furosemide has brought the number back where it should be. So he has to cut his dose of furosemide in half and check it again in a few weeks. While this isn't great news, it could be worse. However, the old guy being who he is, is very worried. He has been waiting for the other shoe to drop for some time, and now it has. He said, very seriously, as we came home, that by next year at this time, he will probably be on dialysis! I think he is overreacting, but I do understand. He has been through a lot, and he has grown to always expect the worst. I know he is concerned that he will begin retaining water again. It seems it is a very delicate balance. It promises to be a very long two weeks. Hopefully, he will cheer up some and we can have a grandson visit. That would be diverting--at least for me! :) Anyway, we wait and remember that life is good.

Hmmm....

This seems to be one of those few occasions when I am at a loss for a topic. I like to update the blog around once a week, but my life isn't too exciting these days. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Retirement is far preferable to working, at least the job I had. I always thought I was born to be a teacher (and I do believe you have to be born to it), I loved being a teacher, and I think I was a pretty effective one--when I actually had some say in the way I taught and how my daily routine was organized. Unfortunately, the job of teaching, at least at the school where I worked, is not what it once was. Nowadays, the day is rigidly constructed for you, and all of the lessons must be closely coordinated with the other teachers in your grade. You must all teach the same lessons at the same time each day. Many of the lessons are strictly scripted. There is no room for individual differences in teaching styles or in learning styles and abilities of the students. If they don't get it, too bad. You must be ready to go on to the next lesson when the other classes do. And now, to further complicate things, they are going to try to coordinate throughout the entire district, and students will be tested quarterly on the computer to make sure they are learning the material. There does not seem to be room for the teachable moment or the fun things like art projects or learning centers like we used to employ. It's all business and all about the test scores these days.

Don't get me wrong. I always teamed up with my friend, and we planned our lessons together to teach the same things. However, we didn't necessarily teach the lessons at the same time, and if one of us fell behind a little, the other made changes to fill the extra time. Lesson plans were often revised and carried over if we didn't cover them due to teachable moments, slow learners, or classroom interruptions. We had similar teaching styles, but we weren't clones, and that was fine. Now I feel like a robot could do the job. Of course, I am no longer involved, so maybe it works better than it sounds, and this does seem to be the wave of the future of education. New teachers seem to accept it okay. However, my friends who have been in teaching for awhile don't much like all the new strictures. I guess that's one reason I am glad to be retired. I long for schools to be like the ones I loved as a child, and they are LONG gone. I had thought I would miss my job and the kids when I retired, but oddly enough, I don't. I don't go back to the school to visit, and when school starts next month, I will be glad to be sleeping in!

I'm not saying that I would never be interested in being involved in the schools in some way. I think school is in my blood. I love going into a school and experiencing the familiar sights, sound, and smell that is part and parcel of it. I just want to be there on my own terms--like reading stories to kids or tutoring them in some way--when I feel like it.

Well, it seems I had something to write about, after all. I just had to get rolling! Life is good...

Calgon, Take Me Away...

That used to be the advertising slogan for a brand of bath beads many years ago. A woman who had had a stressful day would get into a bathtub full of Calgon Bath Beads, and immediately she would feel as if she were somewhere far away and fun to be, all alone. Funny, it never worked that way for me. I just felt coated with oil when I tried it. I guess I just have to find other ways to get away.

Thus the picture. I went back to my favorite subject this week and did a watercolor. I do believe acrylic is my medium, but I think I need to branch out once in awhile. Just painting this idyllic scene relaxed me.

That doesn't mean, however, that I don't need a vacation. I really, really do. We live in a very small town about halfway between areas where there are shopping and entertainment venues. We have little of that in Lebanon Junction. When I want or need to do these things, the fastest way to get to where I want to be is by I-65, which is a major north-south artery. People from the north are headed to the beaches in the south, and people from the south are headed to the metropolis's in the north. There are ALWAYS vehicles from all kinds of states on the road, and it is even more crowded with travelers this time of year. This makes me very jealous. There is not an occasion when I get on that road in either direction that I would not like to just keep on going. I guess that, unlike Alissa and her dad, I was just born with the wanderlust, which it seems only Doug, the youngest, has inherited. It doesn't appear as if a long vacation is in the near future for me, and I understand why. However, I must admit to getting very restless at this time of year and wishing to go somewhere, anywhere.

Fortunately for me, our grandsons are having their annual birthday bash next week, and their grandfather wants to go. I have made reservations at a motel with a pool for two nights, and I am planning to make the best of them. We probably could get by with only staying one night, but Terry doesn't have all that much stamina yet, and I thought it would be hard for him to make the drive and the party in all one day. And this way, we get to see each of the boys on his very own birthday. This will be my summer vacation.

Not only that, I will get a short trip in the fall, too, as Chip and Shira are planning a destination wedding in Pigeon Forge, TN. This makes another weekend trip, since it is about 5 hours away. And the parents of the groom must be there, after all.

See, I just need to be patient. Even if I am not making the trip from Vancouver, B.C. all the way down the west coast to Ensenada, Mexico, this year, I am not giving up on it just yet. I probably should, but that's the trip I have always wanted to take, and maybe one of these days it will happen. Meanwhile, I will be content with short trips to Hopkinsville, KY and Pigeon Forge, TN and be grateful to the kids who are making this opportunity possible for me! Life is good...

Monday Muse--On Wednesday?!

Okay, so I'm a little late in getting this posted. After a hiatus of a few months due to Terry's health problems and a few holidays, I returned to the library for the weekly painting sessions a few weeks ago. These are my two latest efforts, both taken from photos by Alissa. I am attempting to branch out from my beach pictures to other scenery and flowers, but I think I am still better at the beach pictures. I guess they are right when they say you should paint what you like, and the beach and the desert are what I really like. Not that I don't like other scenery or flowers, but they are not my strongest talent.

Having said that, I will say that I entered two pictures that were previously posted here (March 31 and April 7) in the Bullitt County Fair just to see what would come of it. I ended up winning a blue ribbon for my watercolor of the mountains and lake and a red ribbon for my picture of Alissa's country road at dawn. I actually liked the red ribbon picture better than the blue ribbon one, but I wasn't the judge. I also won $8, to spend on art supplies, I guess. I was pleased, but I suspect that my two paintings were the only ones entered by an adult. I don't know that for sure, as I didn't go to the fair, but I can't imagine winning both first and second place in a pool of other entries. And none of the artist ladies that go to the library on Mondays entered anything, either. Anyway, I was pleased for the ribbons and for my pictures to hang somewhere for awhile where someone besides my family sees them. I truly think I have painted better pictures than the ones I entered, but most of my best work is in the homes of Alissa and Doug. They like my beach and desert work, too!

I guess next week I will try a watercolor again, as I've done acrylics for the last three weeks. I am not as comfortable with watercolor as acrylic, but I think I need to do one every once in a while just to keep from forgetting how to do them. Of course, many of my watercolor pictures end up looking like acrylic ones anyway, but that's okay. Art is all about what the beholder sees, anyway. I am always striving to make my work look like the photo or the scenery from which I am painting, but a lot of people are a lot more abstract and less detail-oriented when they paint, and their work appeals to many viewers, too. I guess that's what makes it art!

(P.S. I just went back to proof-read this, and I noticed that I scanned the flower picture upside down. I don't think it matters a whole lot, except that the shadowed petals were on the bottom when I painted it. Of course, when Terry looked at it, he said it looked better sideways because what I painted as buds on the side looked like a stem to him! Like I said, it's all in the eye of the beholder!)

Caught!

When I was at the doctor with Terry last week, I asked the doctor to write me a new prescription for my allergy pills. He said he would, and I should ask the nurse to pull my chart so he could note it. They couldn't find my chart since I hadn't been there for myself in over 3 years. That's when he said that maybe I should come in and have some bloodwork done. Now I have bloodwork done every month at the rheumatologist's office, and he checks everything under the sun--except cholesterol. So my primary care doctor wanted a cholesterol check. Since I haven't had it done in almost 10 years, I readily agreed. I didn't expect a problem, in spite of my generous size. The last time it was checked I was as large as I am now, and it was 200, which was at the high end of normal. Since that time, I have improved my diet and my exercise routine. My cholesterol was bound to go down, right? Not! When the doctor walked in the room with the results, he had this long face and serious manner. He said I was not all right, after all. My cholesterol was 265, and my bad cholesterol was about 65 points higher than it should be. I think my triglycerides were high, too, but the good cholesterol was okay. Go figure. I asked him how this could be when I eat a low-fat, low cholesterol diet and exercise regularly. He said it was probably hereditary. Anyway, he sent me on my way with samples of Crestor to take. He acted as if things were serious, but I noticed that he gave me the pills with the minimum dosage, so I doubt that I am in danger of having my veins clog up tomorrow. He also didn't tell me to change my diet and lose weight. I am to take them for a month and see if they make a difference. Surely they will.

I have managed for many years to escape issues with blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol in spite of my weight. I guess I was bound to get caught sooner or later. At least the blood pressure is still good, and the sugar is fine. Overall, my health is very good, in spite of the rheumatoid arthritis, so I'm not worried about a little cholesterol problem. Things could be SO much worse. Life is good...

Happy Father's Day..

..to all the fathers everywhere who love and care for their kids. I know several who fit that category, starting with my own very wonderful dad, continuing with my kids' equally wonderful dad, and going on from there to the next generation. I think being a father is a very tough job that is sometimes underappreciated by society. While becoming a father has always happened in the same way, the being of a father has changed a great deal, just in my lifetime.

When I was growing up in the 50's, fathers had very defined parameters. They were the "breadwinners" who mainly were responsible for outdoor jobs and home repairs. Many, if not most, fathers were the main disciplinarians for the family. "Wait until your father comes home" was a familiar refrain for mothers, and it was expected that father would deal sternly with misbehavior when he came home from work each day. Most evenings fathers would come home to a home-cooked meal and then relax the rest of the evening. I must say that my dad did not necessarily fit that stereotype. He did do all the outdoor work and repairs, but he also cooked once a week to give my mom a break. He was not above housework and he played with us kids. I remember him lying on the floor many a night and "flying us like Superman." My mom mainly took care of our punishments as the misdeeds occurred, but if Dad was around he took equal part.

Of course, things began to change in the 60's. Many women began exercising their abilities and talents with jobs outside the home. It was expected that dads carry equal parts of the household load, and this was naturally not well received among many males. Change was slow. I think it was hard for the dads to relinquish their "sole breadwinner" status, although it became increasingly necessary to add second incomes to families.

Things progressed slowly in the 70's when Terry became a father. He was a great and involved dad, but since I was a stay-at-home mom, he didn't feel the need to be involved in the daily running of the house and childcare. He played with the kids and taught them lots, but as he told me, "Changing diapers just didn't do much" for him (like it did for me, apparently).

Then during the 80's, I became a working mom, and Terry stepped up and helped with some of the household chores and the childcare, but he was still more interested in his farm than the house. I can't complain because I had absolutely no interest in the farm and more in the house. We balanced out pretty well. The kids helped him outside, and helped me inside. Life wasn't all work, but you certainly couldn't say that we didn't expect the kids to do their part!

Fatherhood in the 90's and up to now has really become a full partnership. A father is no longer the distant authority figure that existed in the early part of the 20th century and before. A good 21st century dad changes diapers, drops off the kids and picks them up from the babysitter, babysits so Mom can get a break, picks up the toys, and cooks meals as well as playing with and disciplining the kids. I think this is a great change, and I admire all those young fathers who want to be and are so involved with their kids.

Of course, we still have the uninvolved and distant fathers. I feel sorry for them and more for their kids. They are missing out on one of life's greatest pleasures. Being a father is a huge responsibility. I am so glad that the men I know take it seriously. Happy Father's Day to them!

I've Been Tagged..

..and I thought it would be easy, but my computer wouldn't copy the list of questions from Alissa's blog, so I am having to try and retype them. Hope I am fairly accurate. These questions are supposed to have one word answers, I believe, so I'll try, even though I am definitely a more wordy person than that...

1. Where is your cell phone? table
2. Relationship? married
3. Hair? blonde
4. Your sister? younger
5. Work? retired
6. Your favorite thing? peace
7. What was your dream last night? unremembered
8. Your favorite drink? Diet Dr. Pepper
9. Your dream car?convertible
10. What room are you in? family room
11. Shoes? sandals
12. Fears? guns
13. How do you see yourself in 10 years?content
14. Who did you hang out with this weekend? Terry
15. What are you not good at? math
16. Favorite muffin? lemon poppyseed
17. Wish list item?RV
18. Where you grew up? Louisville
19. What is the last thing you did? shower
20. What are you wearing? Pajamas
21. What aren't you wearing? robe
22. Pet? cat
23. Computer? two
24. Life? Good!
25. Mood? pleasant
26. Missing? grandkids
27. What are you thinking now? remembering
28. Car? Blazer
29. Kitchen? messy
30. Summer? favorite
31. Favorite color? yellow
32. When was the last time you laughed? today
33. When was the last time you cried? Wednesday
34. School? career
35. Love? certainly!

Whew! I did it! Now anyone else who cares to do this can do so with my encouragement.

Birthday Season Is Here!

I'll bet most people don't think of birthdays as having a season, but in our family, they seem to. Of the 18 family members that live in Kentucky, 14 of us have birthdays in June, July, and August. Isn't that amazing? Those other 4 must feel like the odd men (or women) out. :) This probably isn't a big deal in most families, but ours goes all out for birthdays, which means an active round of parties every summer.

I guess we need a little history here. When I was just 5 years old, my immediate family (parents, brother, and sister) moved to Kentucky from Pennsylvania. We were apart from all the extended family, so we had small birthday parties. I don't ever remember having a party that was for other kids to come. However, my mom made birthdays a big deal for us kids, all of whom had summer birthdays. We didn't have to do any chores on our birthday, got a supper of our favorite foods, and the cake flavor of our choice, with homemade 7-minute frosting in the color or our choice. Yum! Added to this was a generous portion of presents. In short, our birthdays were special, and I loved being "queen for a day," so to speak.

Even as we grew up, birthdays remained a big deal. We all married, and 2 of the 3 spouses had summer birthdays, too. They were added to the party list, but to be honest, I don't think they understood or appreciated (at least Terry didn't) how special the birthdays were. Terry caught on and had a couple of big surprise parties for me, but he never wanted to do anything special for his.

As we started having kids of our own, my brother Bob and his family moved out of state, and they fell out of the party rotation. However, my 3 kids and my sister Peg's 2 kids all had summer birthdays, some quite close together. Alissa and Chip, for example, are only 6 days apart. At this time, Terry lobbied for us to combine their birthdays into one celebration, but I steadfastly refused. Like my mom before me, I wanted each child to feel special on his or her particular birthday. There were already a lot of parties and birthday gifts, but it was still a manageable amount.

Then the kids started getting married. Of the 5 kids, 4 of their spouses or fiancees have summer birthdays. Now the number was getting unwieldy. Add in 2 in the next generation and one on the way, and it's really out of control. The grown kids couldn't always get to every party due to work, being out of town, or other obligations. It was getting very expensive to buy presents for every birthday, especially for the young people. A few years ago, it was suggested that we do one big celebration for the whole family on one day and draw names for gifts. We did this, and it was a fun event, but it seemed that my sister and I were probably reluctant to let our family tradition die out just like that. We continued to host parties for our own kids, and we invited all to come if they wanted. Just no gifts were exchanged. That us how we have continued. My dad continues to host parties for my sister and me, and we still get to be "queen for a day." People come when they can, but there is no pressure, and we no longer exchange the gifts with extended family, which came as a relief, I'm sure to the younger generation!

At any rate, the birthday season begins today with Neshira, Chip's fiancee. She is 24 today, and she doesn't like big deals for birthdays, I'm told, so there won't be a big party for her. However, we still wish her a happy birthday! On Monday, I will be the next, celebrating year number 59, the last year before I am officially old, I guess. We'll go to Dad's that day. On Wednesday, we will be celebrating Doug's 27th. The party will be here. Then we'll have a break until July, when most of my sister's family and our Kellie will celebrate. In August, we'll have Matt, my nephew, Dad, Alissa, and Chip and the new great nephew. That will wrap up the party season, I guess. It will be a busy summer, and I love it! Life is good...

An Idyllic Spot

As a response to a request from Sue, here are a few pictures of our pond. You may have to look close to see the water, but it's there. Alissa probably has some much better pictures of it than I do, as she is the much better photographer. However, it's not about the pictures, but about the pond...

The pond is on the right rear quadrant of our 10-acre hobby "farm." Actually, it used to be a working hobby farm, but now it is mostly just a pretty pastoral setting. Our house is located at the left front quadrant of the property, so the pond is about as far from the house as you can be and still be on our property. It is far removed in time, too, I guess. Back at the pond, there are no sounds of television or even much of cars or machinery, despite the fact that it is not far from a small road that runs behind it. It is very quiet and peaceful, and the only sounds you usually hear are birds or frogs. It sits in a wooded copse, and there is a large hill that blocks the view of the house.

Once upon a time, in our first years at the farm, the pond was used by cows and horses for watering. It was a vital source for livestock water, especially in winter when the kids and I would bundle up and drag back there to break the ice with a sledgehammer so the animals could drink. However, the pond, which was never very deep to begin with, dried up in the summer of 1984, when we had a drought around here. The bottom cracked open, and for several years, water would seep out the bottom, and since it is not spring-fed, the pond almost became extinct. That's about the time the pine tree died and fell across and above the surface. We left it there for frogs and turtles to use. Around about 1990, the floor had resealed itself, and now the pond survives as a small reflecting surface and home to frogs, turtles, bugs, and an occasional snake.

It's also a retreat of sorts for me, as it used to be for Alissa and her friend Jennifer when they were kids. Now I like to take my book, my lawn chair, and a Diet Dr. Pepper back there on pleasant afternoons and escape from the noise of life. I take the walkie-talkie with me in case Terry needs to get in touch with me, but mainly I just either read, doze, or just listen to the sounds of nature. It's idyllic, indeed.

When we finally pack up our stuff and leave this house to Doug and Kellie, I will miss having the pond to escape to. But I know that Kellie will enjoy it just like I do, and future grandchildren will explore back there just like our kids did. Meanwhile, life is good...