Tick Tock

The old clockmaker squinted through the lens at the tiny gears.  They must mesh perfectly or it won't be accurate, and his clocks were always accurate.

Image source: tibchris' photostream

Ah, but maybe it's time to retire, to let his apprentice take over.  After all twenty years is a long time to stand in someone's shadow.

"Daniel, it's your turn."

Written for Friday Flash 55.

My House is a Fortress

Tuesday was just another day, or so I thought.  It was one of those picture perfect days, not too hot with a nice breeze.  The yard needs mowing so I change, grab a bottle of water and head out the door. What makes today different?  I close the door (I usually leave the inside door open).  OK, so you know that sinking feeling you get when you realize you've accidentally done something stupid?  That's how I felt the moment I heard the door click behind me.  I was just going to mow the yard...why did I close the door?

I reached back to check, hoping against hope that I hadn't done what I thought I just did.  Yep...locked.  Grrrr!  

Now what?  I assess what I have with me.  My pocket knife, chap stick, nail clippers and a bottle of water.

A cardinal who often visits my window sill.

Being the resourceful gal that I am, I pulled out my pocket knife.  Just for the record, I have no lock-picking skills and the knife didn't do anything anyway.  I walked around the house...thinking.  We have a few basement windows, but they don't open from the outside.  Neither do any of the other windows - they are securely locked from the inside.

There's no choice...I must call hubby and confess.  Since I don't have my cell phone, I trudge up the street to the convenience store to use the phone, make the call, and trudge back.  As usual, he takes it all in stride, explains his need to take an unplanned half day of vacation and heads home.  

It'll take at least an hour for him to get home, so I figured since I came out to mow the yard, I might as well do it while I waited.

The good news from all of this...my house, although a modest brick ranch, is really a fortress.  With the doors locked, no one (especially me) is getting in.

Care to share your best lock out stories?

Quote of the Week

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. - Mahatma Gandhi

Our thoughts, words and actions are like dominoes.  One affects the next, and it affects the next and so on.  We are the happiest when all the pieces flow smoothly, and are in sync with one another.

A Miracle

Image source: Striking Photogrphy by Bo

The wildfire burned hot, and smoke filled the evening air.   Scores of firemen had been battling it for hours, when someone shouted "over here".  There in the bank of a nearly dry creek was a small cave.  Crouched inside was a boy and his dog.  It was a true miracle on that hot August night.

Written for Friday Flash 55.  While this is a work of fiction, devastating wildfires continue to burn in Arizona.  Let's keep these people in our thoughts and prayers, as well as those affected by the recent floods and tornadoes.

Happy Birthday Mom!

June 8, 1925 was a very important day in my life.  I wasn't actually born then - that is my mother's birth date.  You can see the significance for me, right?  I'd like to share with you a little about the woman my mother was.

She grew up on a farm in a small town in Maine during the Depression years, and life on the farm gave her a great love of nature. 

During her teen years, she watched her two older brothers leave to serve in World War II, and she graduated high school two years before the end of the war. 

She didn't talk much about her early life, so I don't know a lot of the details.  After finishing school, she worked different jobs before going to work for the phone company.  During this time she met my father, who was in the Air Force and stationed in Maine.  When his service was completed, he moved back South to work for a trucking company (he was originally from Virginia).  She followed him to Winston-Salem in 1952, and they were married in 1956.

In the 1960s, she saw the assassinations of President Kennedy in 1963 and Senator Kennedy in 1968.  Together we watched the first man walk on the moon, and played badminton and kickball in the back yard.  Some of our best times were outdoors, and I got my love of nature from her.

She was a smart, talented and creative woman, but she never nurtured her talents.  Everything was put aside for me.  I was her focus.  She was completely selfless to the point of going without so others didn't have to.

I still have the Halloween treat bag she painted for me.  It is one of my treasures.  I used it as an example to make Halloween bags of my own a few years ago.  Sometimes it is the little things that mean the most as we get older.

One year we spent long hours making Christmas decorations from styrofoam shapes, beads, glue and old Christmas cards.  That was such fun, and we decorated our tree with them.  I even used them as a history project in school.

My high school graduation fell on her birthday, and I thought that was cool.  I also thought I was grown.  It took a while for me to realize how wrong I was.

She watched with much trepidation as I grew up, got my license, got a job, and eventually moved into an apartment.  I was still her little girl, and that never changed.

When I married, she acquired a son whom she loved.  She and Daddy always referred to us as "the kids", and continued to do for us even though we both had jobs and our own home.

There are many times when I still wish I could ask her something, tell her what I've been doing or just have her over and cook for her, like she did for me for so many years. Many of our conversations centered around food.

There never comes a time when you stop being your mother's child.  That bond is always there.  She taught me values and to treat others with kindness and respect, and filled my head with knowledge you don't get from books and school (common sense).

I am proud to be her daughter, and even more proud to have been her friend.  If I ever manage to be half the woman my mother was, I will consider that I have succeeded in life.

Happy Birthday Mom.  I miss you!

Quote of the Week

A day is Eternity's seed, and we are its Gardeners.  

- Erika Harris

Tend your garden carefully, for what you do today will influence all your tomorrows.

A Tortured Soul

Caught in a world between the living and the dead.  
A lonely, dark place where forgotten spirits dwell.  
She cries out but no one hears.  
"Why?" she sobs.  "This wasn't supposed to happen.  
 My little boy won't remember; my husband will forget.  
I never realized how precious life is.  
Few do until it's too late."

Written for Friday Flash 55

The Wrong Number?

I've heard that life's little embarrassing moments make good stories, so here goes.  Fortunately, I was home alone with no witnesses.

I was calling hubby the other day on his Blackberry (company phone) because when he's on the road he uses the GPS on his Droid (personal phone) to navigate.  Apparently it is like some people and can't talk and navigate at the same time.  No problem - I've got the Blackberry number programmed into my cell phone.

I open my contact list, scroll down to his name and click.  I select the number and hit "call".  Doing good.  About that time the home phone rings.  Great!  With the cell phone at one ear, I grab the handset and glance at the caller ID.  It's showing the city and a number which usually means it is someone's cell phone.  I should answer this - it could be a friend calling.  Did I mention I didn't have my glasses on and didn't get the number?  Never mind, it gets better.

I answer the call while waiting for hubby to pick up, and I hear a woman's voice.  This is weird -  I am hearing it through my cell phone.  Oh crap, have I called someone else by mistake?  How embarrassing!  I start to ask who I have called and explain that I was trying to call my husband, and must have gotten the wrong number.  But wait...and this is where it really gets embarrassing...what I am hearing on the cell phone is the same thing I am saying into the other phone.  It turns out the "friend" who's call I answered was me.  I picked our home number instead of hubby's cell number.

Now I talk to myself  frequently;  it just doesn't usually take two phones to do it.

Note to self:  Put on glasses before making phone calls.

Care to share an embarrassing moment?

Quote of the Week

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.

- Eleanor Roosevelt 

Wise words from a wise woman.  Embrace each day and revel in that which makes it new for that is what keeps us from growing stale.

Memorial Day Tribute

Image source: Rusty Russ

Memorial Day weekend has become the kick-off for summer activities, parties and vacations.  But more importantly, it is when we honor all those who have served our country and kept us safe at the risk of their own lives - many of which ended far to soon.  Let the flag wave and the bells ring, for Freedom is anything but Free.

Two of my uncles served in World War II, and I have many pictures taken during that time.  It is not something they liked to talk about.  My Uncle Charlie was awarded a medal, and although I've searched high and low, I can't find the paper with the information so I don't know what it was called, but he got it for bravery, leadership and refusing to leave his men under fire even though he had been injured. 

He was one of the special men in my life.  He was a carpenter by trade, and like my father, he was never afraid of anything. 

Here he is with the WWII flag.  Notice that this is not like our flag today.  This flag has only 48 stars.

Uncle Charlie

So when you plan your celebration, light up the barbecue, or pop the top on that first beer, remember those whose sacrifice made it possible.

And now I would like to leave you with this thought - something Uncle Charlie would say now and then.  

If a man's sick he's not well and everything he eats goes to his stomach.  

Nursery Rhyme Redo: Little Jack Horner

Little Jack Horner - All Grown Up

Image Source: Vistavision

Little Jack Horner alone in the corner
Regretting his recent lie
He tippled his rum - said what have I done
I'll be in this mess til I die

Not Winning!

Background:  As I've mentioned before, I still own the house where I grew up, and it is less than 2 miles from where we live now. I went there to wash the car because there are paved driveways.  Below is an excerpt from an e-mail I sent to my hubby detailing my attempt to vacuum and wash the car. He laughed and suggested I share it with you.

The back driveway

"Went over to blow out the driveway, vacuum out the car and wash it.  Frustrating!  I only had one cord, so too short.  Went to get the black cord on the box.  Attached to the battery charger, so I drug out the heavy orange one and figured out how to set it up.  Blew the driveway.  Unplugged the blower, hauled out the blue vac, and cleaned the car.  OK on to the real frustration.  I hunted for the car wash brush.  Found it, managed to get to it.  Good.  Had soap, brush and bucket.  Go out to get the hose.  Pull it out and no nozzle.  Back to the basement.  Found a nozzle I thought would work.  Needed a washer.  Put one in.  Back to the front, put the nozzle on.  Good.  Turn on the water.  Hose not connected.  OK, connect the hose to the weird dual thingie on the spigot.  Leaks.  Flip both switches.  Leaks.  Take the hose loose, take off dual thingie, put hose back on.  Leaks.  Phooey!  Check back driveway - no shade.  Put everything away and came home."

I guess you could say I was "not winning" that day.  Got any frustrations you'd like to share?

Quote of the Week

Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak.  Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world.  Try adding some bright colors to the picture by including humor, and your picture begins to lighten up.

- Allen Klein

We are the artists of our lives, and they are only as bright as we paint them.

Where Did All The Words Go?

Image source:  Chris Halderman

No words anywhere, nothing, zip, nada.  Where did they all go?  Was it something I said?  Have I taken them for granted?  Maybe they're all in hiding, deep in the night in the furthest crevasses where light never reaches. Maybe they're being held prisoner and being forced to make sentences.

Please help find the words.

Posted for Friday Flash 55.

Got Mulch?

Need something to do on a Saturday morning?  Go get the free mulch from the city.  We did!  The city offers free leaf mulch twice a year, in the spring and fall.  You take your truck and/or trailer and they load it for you.

6-foot truck bed

 This mulch looks more like topsoil, but it's good stuff.

A new natural area

 Makes mowing easier!

A new look!

Part of Kevin's handiwork before he left - we just added more mulch.

I wish I had a picture of the trailer we used for the rest of the mulch.  It holds a full scoop.  For perspective, the truck has 1/2 scoop.  The next weekend we got another trailer load for a total of 2 1/2 scoops.  

Whew!

Quote of the Week

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.

- Dr. Seuss

Imagine your favorite vacation, a special meal, or perhaps your childhood. Now imagine not having that experience, not feeling how it made you feel. Knowing what you know, you can smile because it happened rather than mourn its passing.

The Stately Rhododendron

After most of the azaleas have gone by, the rhododendrons take the stage.  While both are classified under the name rhododendron, the azaleas have smaller leaves and the blooms are individual instead of forming a blossom cluster.  The leaves of the rhododendron are larger and more leathery.

Rhododendrons are found in many countries throughout the world, and used extensively in landscaping.  There are many species of rhododendron in varying sizes and colors.  

This is one that we've had for many years, and actually it is two plants. They are hardy plants that will provide years of beautiful blossoms.

Ups and Downs

This end up

Fragile easily broken

Handle with care

Insurance

There is none

Upside down

Inside out

Outside in

Shattered

Tattered

Ripped and torn

Hangs in shreds

In the wind

Bruised and shaken

And then

It stirs

Revived still alive

Rises again

The skies clear

The sun shines

Luck smiles

Once again

Life is good

Posted for One Shot Wednesday

Quote of the Week

The dead should not rule the living - Thomas Jefferson 

Photo credit: Cliff1066

There is a difference between following time-honored family traditions, and continuing to do a task the same way "my father and grandfather did", when changing with the times can make the task easier, more efficient or more cost effective. 

This quote is open to other interpretations.  Please feel free to share yours in the comment section.

It's Pool Time

She lies in the summer sun along side the pool, a romantic novel shading her face.  The cool water sparkles like a thousand diamonds.  Her radio is playing fun summer tunes.  Every 15 minutes comes the public service announcement, "Time to turn so you don't burn".  At this she rises and slowly descends into the water.

This was posted for Friday Flash 55.