Back in Time

While we were in St. Pete last month, we happened across an old Volkswagen show at Ft. DeSoto.  Here are some of the more interesting ones.

Does this take you back?

  

Who doesn't love Krispy Kreme doughnuts?  Yum!

It's 2 p.m.  Do you know where your children are?

Move over Smart Cars - Volkswagen is here.

It's Party Time!

These and many more were on display in the parking lot of one of the Ft. DeSoto picnic areas.  People were selling/swapping parts, cooking and eating.  This puts a whole new spin on tailgating.

Quote of the Week

There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them.  - Andre Gide

Taken at the Como Zoo in St. Paul, MN

Like the snake, many things are not nearly as bad as we give them credit for being.  Taking a closer and objective look at our fears may help us to slay the monsters behind them.

Secrets

Image Source: Vegan Traveller

Through the door walked a big little boy wearing a ball cap, torn jeans and dirty tennis shoes.  The door keeps his secrets locked deep within where no one will know his shame or his sin.  His T-Shirt is smeared with his blood and his tears.  "Why did I have to send that stupid text?"




Written for Friday Flash 55.

Ravaged

This sofa once graced a happy home. A young couple sat here enjoying the fire, and contemplating all that life had to offer. Then came the war, and he was gone. Time passed slowly, the letters few and far between. Then, months later, he was returned, but he wasn’t really there. Life didn’t seem to have as much to offer now.

She couldn’t stay – she didn’t want to go. In the end, she took the things she cherished and returned home to be near her family. He sits in a dreary room, day in – day out, most of the time staring blankly into space. He knows she’s not coming back.

Now the sofa, donated and re-donated, sits by the road, soiled and broken. Its cushions long gone to some homeless man living in a cardboard village in a dank alley where the rats roam bravely through the darkened streets.

A fictional story written for Magpie Tales #93.

Quote of the Week

Everyone is kneaded out of the same dough but not baked in the same oven.  
- Yiddish Proverb

We all come into the world in the same way.  Who we become and what makes us different is the influence of our family, our environment and life's circumstances.

Post Turkey Day Blues

Mall of America

My paper is blank

And my brain's turned to mush

Is it the turkey I thank

Or the holiday rush

My thoughts they are fleeting

Like ships in the night

Nary a greeting

Nor squeal of delight

So it's off to the store

In search of great deals

Through every door

I burst with great zeal

Then I stop and I stare

In total dismay

At the items on shelves

In complete disarray

What are they thinking

I thought to myself

The lights are all blinking

But I don't see an elf

So homeward I head
With my parcels in tow
My feet are like lead
And I'm moving slow

I bid good night
To the holiday shoppers
Grabbing a bite
With the holiday swappers

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is a time for giving thanks for everything that makes our lives special.

Here are some of the things I am thankful for:

My husband

My friends

My cats

Good food

Wine 

Diet beverages

Being safe and warm in my house

Being able to buy groceries

Dining out

Summer days

Going to the beach

My sense of smell

My health

Exercise

My leaf blower

Electricity

Being loved

Clouds

Sunlight

Evening strolls

The freedom to be myself

Wishing everyone a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!

Quote of the Week

 
Once you accept the fact that you're not perfect, then you develop some confidence.  
- Rosalynn Carter





I believe this is true.  We can become so concerned with making mistakes, that we begin to doubt ourselves.  Once we are no longer burdened with the fear of imperfection, we are able to accomplish more and thus gain confidence in ourselves and our abilities.

Deep Thoughts

Happy, Sad

Puzzled, Mad

Bored out of your Gourd

Agitated, Frustrated

Revolving, Evolving

Filled with Joy

Filled with Pain

Preaching, Teaching

Forward Reaching

Magic, Tragic

Receiving, Achieving

Fantastic, Spastic

Hot, Cold

Timid, Bold

Fearful, Cheerful

Shrieking, Freaking

Calm before the Storm

How do you do
Not a Clue

What does this Friday say to You?

A Wacky 55 for the G-Man

Nursery Rhyme Redo: It's Raining, It's Pouring

It's raining, it's pouring

And the cat is snoring

Upon the pillow beside my head

And there he will be until morning

This seems quite appropriate considering the rainy day here.

Posted for dVerse poetry.

The Chilly Side

Waves on the Gulf

Result of last night's cold front.

It's a bit cooler today.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Kicking Back

Today's Lunch - Fish & Chips

We're taking some time for a little R&R.  We will return to our regularly scheduled programming next week.

Quote of the Week

Nothing revives the past so completely as a smell that was once associated with it. - Vladimir Nabokov

The smell of freshly baked bread transports you to your mom's kitchen.  The salty scent of the sea returns you to a special vacation.  The delicate fragrance of a rose reminds you of your first bouquet.  These are all examples of how scents can bring the past to back to life.  Our sense of smell is a unique link to memories, good or bad, pleasant or painful, happy or sad.  

It's a Good Life

A few of my favorite shots to brighten 

an otherwise dreary day.

I love my blankie

Queen Sophie

A sunny spot

Three's Company

Have a great weekend!

Write From The Heart

Photo courtesy of Magpie Tales

Janet threw down her pen in disgust. “Whatever made me think I could be a writer in the first place?” Her cat, curled up on the sofa, barely acknowledged her outburst.

“Just because I wrote a few short stories and dabbled a bit in poetry over the years, I suddenly thought I could write the next great novel?” Never mind that her friends had been reading her stories for years and encouraging her to write more and longer pieces. You’ve got the knack. You’ve got talent. You can do this!"

“Ha! What do they know? No, that’s not fair. They were probably just being nice, and who knows maybe they really enjoyed my scribblings but that doesn’t mean I’ve got any real talent."

While she was ranting to herself about her inability to put any coherent words down on paper, she glanced at a magazine lying on the table and saw a quote by someone whose name she didn’t recognize. It said “Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self” by Cyril Connolly.

That struck a chord with Janet. "Maybe that’s what’s wrong with me. I have been so worked up about trying to find the right plot, and the right storyline. What do people want to read?"

"Yeah, that counts for something, but it’s not everything. For a story to be good, you need to put yourself into it."

Finally! She put her pen and paper aside, and turned to her keyboard and began to write. This time from the heart.

Written for Magpie Tales.

Quote of the Week

Image Source: Wikipedia

There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls.  

- George Carlin

Strange things happen on All Hallow's Eve.  Let's listen in!  

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween

Image source: Joelk75

All kids, big and little, like Halloween, right?  All the candy, and parties and candy, and now the latest craze - Trunk or Treat, which I just heard about last year.  This is a relatively new Halloween activity where children go from trunk to trunk in a parking lot collecting candy, and is a safer alternative to traditional door-to-door trick or treating.  All you need is a parking lot, cars with decorated trunks and loads of candy.  Add ghosts, goblins, pirates and super heroes, and throw in Cinderella and a witch or two and you have the ideal Halloween recipe.

When I was growing up, we walked around our little neighborhood which had all of four streets.  There weren't even any street lights back then. As the sun was setting, the neighborhood kids, decked out in dime store costumes, took to the streets toting their bags or plastic jack-o-lanterns hoping for the "good" candy.  Yeah, baby, I'm talking CHOCOLATE!

The pictures below shows the bag (front and back) that my Mom painted for me one Halloween.  Did I mention that she was creative and talented?  This bag is one of my treasures.

Who wouldn't want a custom made, hand painted Halloween treat bag?

Fast forward to adulthood, and living on a busy road that isn't suitable for trick or treaters.  Upside?  I get to eat ALL the candy.

Now we come to my artistic talents.  I painted some treat bags a few years ago when Ashley's kids were here.  Below we have a witch with some bats and a ghost.  Scary, huh?

Boo!

And here we have a very spooky tree, a full moon and a black cat - all essentials for Halloween.

Mrrrooowww!

I'd love to hear about your Halloween memories.

Faces of the Sea

Once upon a midnight blue

I sailed a sea of green

A more gorgeous sunrise

My eyes have never seen

Once upon a night so dark

The sea now ebony

And that perfect sunrise

Is just a memory

Written for dVerse poetry

Quote of the Week

Image Source:  Wikipedia

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.
- Confucious

We are distracted and things heard are easily forgotten.  Things seen are filed away like snapshots.  Things done are learned, understood and remembered.

All About 60 (in 55 words)

Image Source:  Herkie

There are 60 months in 5 years.
There are 60 inches in 5 feet.
There are 60 minutes in an hour.
There are 60 seconds in a minute.
60 years - known as the diamond wedding anniversary.
A mile is 5,280 feet and is divisible by 60.
60 years is also known as three score.
Zero to 60 is an automotive standard of performance.
Gone in 60 seconds.

 

This was written for Friday Flash 55.