I have been blessed over and over this month. Joey came to spend a week in Oklahoma so we had the great joy of having her with us. I always love spending time with her.
Then Rachel arrived and that was obviously great fun. We are having fun just hanging out at the shop and doing stuff. Becky came this morning for the weekend and it is always a pleasure to have her here to hug and be Becky. So tonight we will have lasagna for dinner, because that is Becky's favorite and I make some really good Stouffers lasagna. I love having her because her favorite meal is the easiest thing in the world.
Martha is coming in a week and we will all go to Edmond for a cousins reunion and Becky will drive down to spend the day there. Then we can go to the cemetary and put out flowers.
At the end of the month we will be traveling to NJ to see Amy and Tim and I really look forward to that. This time we will be able to meet Kizzy and Sig, the new (old) dogs they adopted. Looking forward to that. Maybe we will even be able to see Joeys new apt in NYC.
Doug is busy umpiring and doing census work and old Ghost is still hobbling around.
So we have had a good month and just feel that we are especially blessed because we have had the chance to see our girls.
Now I just need to be able to make plans to see Tom and I will be happy.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
DAYDREAMS
Another study has found that daydreaming is good. It helps solve knotty problems in our lives. I don't know how scientists can look at our brain and watch it function, but apparently they can and do. A study showed that when people daydream, they don't necessarily get the work at hand done, but their brain is wandering and sorting out ideas to solve issues, like career changes and such things.
Maybe that is why youngsters daydream more than oldsters. Possibly that is the reason teens are given to hours of day dreaming.
So..not a bad thing, these daydreams. Just think of the thorny problems you may be able to solve.
Maybe that is why youngsters daydream more than oldsters. Possibly that is the reason teens are given to hours of day dreaming.
So..not a bad thing, these daydreams. Just think of the thorny problems you may be able to solve.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
RUNNING OUT OF ATTENtio....
Can you run out of attention? Interesting article in the NY Times May 5. It talks about being attentive and focused and how your brain cannot do more than one thing well at a time. It works on the theory that the brain's synchronizing mechanism is enhanced by practice and by things such as meditation. They say it is hard for the brain to ignore sounds, such as tv. They recommend using ear plugs when trying to focus in an area when there are many disractions, especially noise distractions. Apparently sight distractions are not as bad.
They think they have identified the fact that attention is a finite resource. So they ask the question, "Do you want to invest your cognitive cash on endless twittering or net surfing or tv watching"?
They say that your brain can process 173 billion bits of information over the course of a lifetime. Man, I hope I don't run out.
They think they have identified the fact that attention is a finite resource. So they ask the question, "Do you want to invest your cognitive cash on endless twittering or net surfing or tv watching"?
They say that your brain can process 173 billion bits of information over the course of a lifetime. Man, I hope I don't run out.
Monday, May 11, 2009
MOMS
I know it is no longer Mother's Day, but I need to say a word about Moms.
Mine was great. I always knew she loved me and took care of me and taught me my faith. She was a big part of my life and I didn't know how big a part she was until she was gone. She died in 1974 and that is a long time ago. But I think of her a lot and miss her guidance. Some would say she was bossy and intimidating. She was, but she had the role of making sure things got done and we got raised. That was her way of doing it and it was the way most Moms of that generation did it. As I get older and hopefully much wiser, I have come to realize that each generation had their own way of being Mom. My grandmother, who I adored, was widowed at a young age. She took care of family needs when the children were growing up and when she became a widow, her children stripped her of her home and belongings and took care of her. She had no decision making in that process. That was pretty much the way it was. She travelled to different kids homes, depending on the need for her help. Or sometimes, just because it was time to move on. My Mother didn't have much decision making either, but it had moved up a step and she helped provide the living. She had complete domain over the family, though..which Gran lacked.
I had lots of decision making within boundaries. Our generation took care of home and family, worked, did the civic stuff and church stuff and made many decisions. Just not things like money and job and stuff like that.
My children's generation did all of that, but had more responsibility with the total picture and Dads helped with the children quite a lot. There is more cross involvement in their lives. My daughter is a better Mom than I was because she is able to talk to her kids about stuff that I only hinted at but did not have real serious conversations about.
This present generation has turned it on its head. You can hardly tell a mom from a dad. That is not a bad thing. Probably brings more appreciation for each other and a better relationship with the kids. They can go to either parent for anything. Before, there was a clear cut division of responsibility. Maybe we are getting it right.
But....Moms are Moms and Dads are Dads. They each deserve their day. I would hate to think that it might evolve into Parents Day because there was no difference.
Anyway, long live Moms. Being a Mom is the greatest thing in the world and the good thing is this. Many women are Moms to people without being a biological mom. I think that is the real purpose of the day.
Mine was great. I always knew she loved me and took care of me and taught me my faith. She was a big part of my life and I didn't know how big a part she was until she was gone. She died in 1974 and that is a long time ago. But I think of her a lot and miss her guidance. Some would say she was bossy and intimidating. She was, but she had the role of making sure things got done and we got raised. That was her way of doing it and it was the way most Moms of that generation did it. As I get older and hopefully much wiser, I have come to realize that each generation had their own way of being Mom. My grandmother, who I adored, was widowed at a young age. She took care of family needs when the children were growing up and when she became a widow, her children stripped her of her home and belongings and took care of her. She had no decision making in that process. That was pretty much the way it was. She travelled to different kids homes, depending on the need for her help. Or sometimes, just because it was time to move on. My Mother didn't have much decision making either, but it had moved up a step and she helped provide the living. She had complete domain over the family, though..which Gran lacked.
I had lots of decision making within boundaries. Our generation took care of home and family, worked, did the civic stuff and church stuff and made many decisions. Just not things like money and job and stuff like that.
My children's generation did all of that, but had more responsibility with the total picture and Dads helped with the children quite a lot. There is more cross involvement in their lives. My daughter is a better Mom than I was because she is able to talk to her kids about stuff that I only hinted at but did not have real serious conversations about.
This present generation has turned it on its head. You can hardly tell a mom from a dad. That is not a bad thing. Probably brings more appreciation for each other and a better relationship with the kids. They can go to either parent for anything. Before, there was a clear cut division of responsibility. Maybe we are getting it right.
But....Moms are Moms and Dads are Dads. They each deserve their day. I would hate to think that it might evolve into Parents Day because there was no difference.
Anyway, long live Moms. Being a Mom is the greatest thing in the world and the good thing is this. Many women are Moms to people without being a biological mom. I think that is the real purpose of the day.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Trains
Joey goes back to NYC tomorrow and needed to get to DFW to catch her plane tomorrow. She has friends to stay with tonight and when her ride to Dallas fell through, we began to weigh our options. Since I don't feel competent to drive in heavy traffic now, I didn't need to take her. Doug was working today and tonight so he was out. We settled on my driving her to Ardmore to catch the Heartland Flyer to Ft Worth where her friend picked her up. Turned out to be a good thing. It only cost $20 and she said it was clean and very comfortable with reclining seats and footrests and it was not crowded. We worried as we were waiting on the train...kids kept appearing from around the corner and she said, "I hope all these kids aren't getting on the train" which evoked a response from a woman..."yes, they are. We are taking them to Gainesville". Wow... But when the train pulled in, about 100 kids got off wearing lime green shirts and they were from Lindsey and had taken a train ride to Ardmore and the school bus was there to pick them up. So I guess the 2nd graders from Ardmore were going to be ferried back by bus. Anyway, they had a car just for them, so Joey didn't see them again and she had a peaceful and pleasant trip. ]
I remember travelling by train with Gran. During the war we used to go to Ponca City by train and to McAlester by train to see family. She always made me dress up and I had to wear gloves and a hat and carry a purse. That is how ladies travel she would say. I am just glad I wasn't old enough to wear hose because she would have insisted on that and I hated wearing hose and still do to this day. (I never spell that right..I am talking about the hose things you wear on your legs...not what you water the yard with!)
I have always loved train travel. So sad we let it bet away from us.
I remember travelling by train with Gran. During the war we used to go to Ponca City by train and to McAlester by train to see family. She always made me dress up and I had to wear gloves and a hat and carry a purse. That is how ladies travel she would say. I am just glad I wasn't old enough to wear hose because she would have insisted on that and I hated wearing hose and still do to this day. (I never spell that right..I am talking about the hose things you wear on your legs...not what you water the yard with!)
I have always loved train travel. So sad we let it bet away from us.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Fixed, not fixed
The Mercedes message light came on saying my headlamp was defective. I needed to travel to OKC and it was going to be rainy and dreary, so I took it to Oneals to have a new light installed. I picked it up and all was well. Next morning, in the pouring rain, gray sky and poor light, I started to OKC only to notice, to my dismay, that the message about the headlamp was once again staring me in the face. I got out and looked and sure enough...the right headlight was out. So I called them and said, "so what? did you take the right light out and put it in the left side?" I am not sure they thought it was funny, as they assured me they would never do that. So, I will take it in today and have it repaired.
It occurred to me that sometimes when we fix one fault that it often makes another fault come to the surface...maybe we need to be careful about fixing our faults. Well, maybe not...maybe we just need to be more aware of how easily our faults can surface. One right after the other, they seem to appear. But as long as we can take them in and get them fixed we will be ok.
I know, this is foolish rambliing, but that is what my mind is doing today.
It occurred to me that sometimes when we fix one fault that it often makes another fault come to the surface...maybe we need to be careful about fixing our faults. Well, maybe not...maybe we just need to be more aware of how easily our faults can surface. One right after the other, they seem to appear. But as long as we can take them in and get them fixed we will be ok.
I know, this is foolish rambliing, but that is what my mind is doing today.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Gardens
I guess it is time to take down the poetry, though I quite enjoyed it. Tim said I missed his selection and it is called "MICROBES" and it goes like this: Adam hadam.
Ok, fine, Tim. Thanks, I can remember that.
I suppose it is time to plant gardens, but you won't find one here. We don't have enough sunshine where the dirt is. We manage some flowers, but if I needed to plant a victory garden, I would be in trouble.
I don't suppose many of you know what I mean by a Victory Garden. When I was a child during the 2nd world war, we all had victory gardens. Everyone turned their yards into gardens and we grew everything we could. We canned, made tomato ketsup, jellies and jams..though you had to figure out how to do it without sugar. We would save sugar coupons for our family on the farms so they could make preserves and share with us. Since we had a sizable yard, and there was also a community garden on the half block behind us, Dad grew tobacco and cured it in the garage and made his own cigarettes and pipe tobacco. We all would go to Mother and Dad Careys farm and pick the berries and the fruit trees. It is amazing how much you can do without sugar when it comes to making deserts and jellies. Mothers had to be quite careful with their ration coupons to be sure there was enough to eat. So growing the gardens made it that much better. At least you always had vegetables. We canned corn, beans, peas, beets and carrots. But let me tell you, the carrots we grew were awful. Our ground was not sandy enough to grow them so they did not fork and break off when you pulled them. Also, we dud not water too much. Mostly carried buckets of water to the garden and watered with a ladle. Yuk...the potato beetles were a mess and the kids had to go pick them off and whomp them with a brick. But you better know the difference between a lady bug and a potato beetle. Lady bugs are your friends. Onions and potatos went down in root cellars. Onions hung on the wall of the garage if there wasn't a root cellar. Potatos were packed in sand.
That was when Dad decided to beautify the yard and planted big canna beds. Cannas are big tall and big leafed plants that produce showy flowers. He always had a circular garden full of them.
My Gran cracked the whip on the garden, though. She was in charge of canning and she said what was planted and when it was picked. When she said to go pick beans, you had better get your bucket and go pick and they had better be the right size. She was a gentle soul, but she expected to tell you once and have you remember. But she always made it fun as she was patient enough to let me 'help' do things I was not big enough to do. I did not learn patience with kids from her. I was more like my Mother, she had little patience to teach you..but Gran would spend hours showing you how. Then you needed to remember it!
Well, if you plant a victory garden, don't forget to plant some marigolds at the end of the rows. It helps keep bugs away. That's what they told me anyway. I think it just made the work in the garden a little more pleasant to have a bit of color.
Ok, fine, Tim. Thanks, I can remember that.
I suppose it is time to plant gardens, but you won't find one here. We don't have enough sunshine where the dirt is. We manage some flowers, but if I needed to plant a victory garden, I would be in trouble.
I don't suppose many of you know what I mean by a Victory Garden. When I was a child during the 2nd world war, we all had victory gardens. Everyone turned their yards into gardens and we grew everything we could. We canned, made tomato ketsup, jellies and jams..though you had to figure out how to do it without sugar. We would save sugar coupons for our family on the farms so they could make preserves and share with us. Since we had a sizable yard, and there was also a community garden on the half block behind us, Dad grew tobacco and cured it in the garage and made his own cigarettes and pipe tobacco. We all would go to Mother and Dad Careys farm and pick the berries and the fruit trees. It is amazing how much you can do without sugar when it comes to making deserts and jellies. Mothers had to be quite careful with their ration coupons to be sure there was enough to eat. So growing the gardens made it that much better. At least you always had vegetables. We canned corn, beans, peas, beets and carrots. But let me tell you, the carrots we grew were awful. Our ground was not sandy enough to grow them so they did not fork and break off when you pulled them. Also, we dud not water too much. Mostly carried buckets of water to the garden and watered with a ladle. Yuk...the potato beetles were a mess and the kids had to go pick them off and whomp them with a brick. But you better know the difference between a lady bug and a potato beetle. Lady bugs are your friends. Onions and potatos went down in root cellars. Onions hung on the wall of the garage if there wasn't a root cellar. Potatos were packed in sand.
That was when Dad decided to beautify the yard and planted big canna beds. Cannas are big tall and big leafed plants that produce showy flowers. He always had a circular garden full of them.
My Gran cracked the whip on the garden, though. She was in charge of canning and she said what was planted and when it was picked. When she said to go pick beans, you had better get your bucket and go pick and they had better be the right size. She was a gentle soul, but she expected to tell you once and have you remember. But she always made it fun as she was patient enough to let me 'help' do things I was not big enough to do. I did not learn patience with kids from her. I was more like my Mother, she had little patience to teach you..but Gran would spend hours showing you how. Then you needed to remember it!
Well, if you plant a victory garden, don't forget to plant some marigolds at the end of the rows. It helps keep bugs away. That's what they told me anyway. I think it just made the work in the garden a little more pleasant to have a bit of color.
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