A row of logs,
a row of dogs,
garden rows,
row of toes,
two rows of wild flowers,
and a row of garden gold.
Check with Pat and view other rows.
Join the fun!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
My Girls Never Had A Chance At Normal...
It was literally impossible with a straight spoken, shoot-from-the-hip, don't mess with me mother like myself. I wanted them to learn how to deal with life, no matter what hand they were dealt. No folding in our house, you played the cards you were given.
Beginning life education at an early age, a cat having kittens was a wonderful opportunity to teach them about birth. We gathered round Patches, she didn't mind as she continued her birthing. We talked about uteruses, birth sacks, umbilical cords and carefully related these to the birthing process of people. Patches was cleaning up wonderfully after each kitten to get her naturally high protein (sometimes animals are pretty darn smart). The girls asked if the human moms had to eat the afterbirth. I said, no, that is why humans go to the hospital and they said, oh, and the doctors eat it!!! So much for that lesson.
One thing seemed to be an issue...cleaning. As they grew closer to leaving the nest, they resisted the cleaning even more. Okay, I am working a sixty-hour week, going to college, taking correspondence courses in addition to life in general, I don't think I am supposed to clean a teen-ager's room.
My last words when I left for work, Clean your room or I will. First mistake they made...they did not believe me. Came home after a ten hour day, no rooms cleaned. I don't explode when I am angry, I become calm, determined and very tunnel visioned...hey, I told them.
I removed the screen from the window and began to throw every thing out the window. With Melissa's underwear hanging in the tree, she began screaming and running out to get them. As she ran in with an armload, another batch of stuff went out. If it was on the floor, it left the room.
Hubby was standing in the neighbor's yard visiting, the neighbor became concerned with all the activities and sounds. He asked hubby, Uh, is some thing wrong. Hubby said, Nope, Gail is cleaning Melissa's room. While this was happening Maria was very quickly cleaning hers because she knew she was next!
Years later when we had a foster child, I asked her to clean her room. Melissa and Maria were both here and advised my foster daughter to clean her room. I heard them say, Believe us, you don't want Mom cleaning your room...and I smiled.
My girls are very good daughters, grown with children of their own. I can only hope the price of what Mom called "paying for your raising" is not too steep.
Beginning life education at an early age, a cat having kittens was a wonderful opportunity to teach them about birth. We gathered round Patches, she didn't mind as she continued her birthing. We talked about uteruses, birth sacks, umbilical cords and carefully related these to the birthing process of people. Patches was cleaning up wonderfully after each kitten to get her naturally high protein (sometimes animals are pretty darn smart). The girls asked if the human moms had to eat the afterbirth. I said, no, that is why humans go to the hospital and they said, oh, and the doctors eat it!!! So much for that lesson.
One thing seemed to be an issue...cleaning. As they grew closer to leaving the nest, they resisted the cleaning even more. Okay, I am working a sixty-hour week, going to college, taking correspondence courses in addition to life in general, I don't think I am supposed to clean a teen-ager's room.
My last words when I left for work, Clean your room or I will. First mistake they made...they did not believe me. Came home after a ten hour day, no rooms cleaned. I don't explode when I am angry, I become calm, determined and very tunnel visioned...hey, I told them.
I removed the screen from the window and began to throw every thing out the window. With Melissa's underwear hanging in the tree, she began screaming and running out to get them. As she ran in with an armload, another batch of stuff went out. If it was on the floor, it left the room.
Hubby was standing in the neighbor's yard visiting, the neighbor became concerned with all the activities and sounds. He asked hubby, Uh, is some thing wrong. Hubby said, Nope, Gail is cleaning Melissa's room. While this was happening Maria was very quickly cleaning hers because she knew she was next!
Years later when we had a foster child, I asked her to clean her room. Melissa and Maria were both here and advised my foster daughter to clean her room. I heard them say, Believe us, you don't want Mom cleaning your room...and I smiled.
My girls are very good daughters, grown with children of their own. I can only hope the price of what Mom called "paying for your raising" is not too steep.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
My Camera Committed Suicide!
The day began cool and the weather WAS perfect. The sun peeks through the tree limbs, promising a warm day. We got lucky, the clouds moved in and the monster heat we were having didn't make it today.
I removed the battery, the disc and have placed it in the sun, hoping it will resuscitate itself. I tried the battery a minute ago, the lens opened and is full of water. If I can get it to work, this will be my special effects camera...looking through water! No, gonna leave it in the kitchen window and hope the water leaves.
You may be wondering how I saved these pictures. Marcy's and my camera have the same disc so I used hers to download mine.
The moral to this story is...I should have been working instead of playing!!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Independence Day and The American Dream
I waited today, for some unknown reason, to make a Independence post. I have just discovered why. My brother-in-law, Don, sent me a wonderful speech. I was waiting for this...Thank you, Don.
To all the men and women who have served or are serving, THANK YOU. Not only do we, as a nation United under God, owe our independence to many, other countries have been aided by this nation, too.
VIETNAMESE IMMIGRANT
On Saturday, July 24th, 2010 the town of Prescott Valley, AZ, hosted a Freedom Rally. Quang Nguyen was asked to speak on his experience of coming to America and what it means. He spoke the following in dedication to all Vietnam Veterans. Thought you might enjoy hearing what he had to say:
35 years ago, if you were to tell me that I am going to stand up here speaking to a couple thousand patriots, in English, I'd laugh at you. Man, every morning I wake up thanking God for putting me and my family in the greatest country on earth.
I just want you all to know that the American dream does exist and I am living the American dream. I was asked to speak to you about my experience as a first generation Vietnamese- American, but I'd rather speak to you as an American.
If you hadn't noticed, I am not white and I feel pretty comfortable with my people.
I am a proud US citizen and here is my proof. It took me 8 years to get it, waiting in endless lines, but I got it and I am very proud of it.
I still remember the images of the Tet offensive in 1968, I was six years old. Now you might want to question how a 6-year-old boy could remember anything. Trust me; those images can never be erased. I can't even imagine what it was like for young American soldiers, 10,000 miles away from home, fighting on my behalf.
35 years ago, I left South Vietnam for political asylum. The war had ended. At the age of 13, I left with the understanding that I may or may not ever get to see my siblings or parents again. I was one of the first lucky 100,000 Vietnamese allowed to come to the US. Somehow, my family and I were reunited 5 months later, amazingly, in California. It was a miracle from God.
If you haven't heard lately that this is the greatest country on earth, I am telling you that right now. It was the freedom and the opportunities presented to me that put me here with all of you tonight. I also remember the barriers that I had to overcome every step of the way. My high school counselor told me that I cannot make it to college due to my poor communication skills. I proved him wrong. I finished college. You see, all you have to do is to give this little boy an opportunity and encourage him to take and run with it. Well, I took the opportunity and here I am.
This person standing tonight in front of you could not exist under a socialist/communist environment. By the way, if you think socialism is the way to go, I am sure many people here will chip in to get you a one-way ticket out of here. And if you didn't know, the only difference between socialism and communism is an AK-47 aimed at your head. That was my experience.
In 1982, I stood with a thousand new immigrants, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and listening to the National Anthem for the first time as an American. To this day, I can't remember anything sweeter and more patriotic than that moment in my life.
Fast forwarding, somehow I finished high school, finished college, and like any other goofball 21 year old kid, I was having a great time with my life. I had a nice job and a nice apartment in Southern California. In some way and somehow, I had forgotten how I got here and why I was here.
One day I was at a gas station, I saw a veteran pumping gas on the other side of the island. I don't know what made me do it, but I walked over and asked if he had served in Vietnam. He smiled and said yes. I shook and held his hand. The grown man began to well up. I walked away as fast as I could and at that very moment, I was emotionally rocked. This was a profound moment in my life. I knew something had to change in my life. It was time for me to learn how to be a good citizen. It was time for me to give back.
You see, America is not a place on the map, it isn't a physical location. It is an ideal, a concept. And if you are an American, you must understand the concept, you must buy into this concept, and most importantly, you have to fight and defend this concept. This is about Freedom and not free stuff. And that is why I am standing up here.
Brothers and sisters, to be a real American, the very least you must do is to learn English and understand it well. In my humble opinion, you cannot be a faithful patriotic citizen if you can't speak the language of the country you live in. Take this document of 46 pages - last I looked on the Internet, there wasn't a Vietnamese translation of the US Constitution. It took me a long time to get to the point of being able to converse and until this day, I still struggle to come up with the right words. It's not easy, but if it's too easy, it's not worth doing.
Before I knew this 46-page document, I learned of the 500,000 Americans who fought for this little boy. I learned of the 58,000 names scribed on the black wall at the Vietnam Memorial. You are my heroes. You are my founders.
At this time, I would like to ask all the Vietnam veterans to please stand. I thank you for my life. I thank you for your sacrifices, and I thank you for giving me the freedom and liberty I have today. I now ask all veterans, firefighters, and police officers, to please stand. On behalf of all first generation immigrants, I thank you for your services and may God bless you all.
Quang Nguyen
Creative Director/Founder
Caddis Advertising, LLC
To all the men and women who have served or are serving, THANK YOU. Not only do we, as a nation United under God, owe our independence to many, other countries have been aided by this nation, too.
VIETNAMESE IMMIGRANT
On Saturday, July 24th, 2010 the town of Prescott Valley, AZ, hosted a Freedom Rally. Quang Nguyen was asked to speak on his experience of coming to America and what it means. He spoke the following in dedication to all Vietnam Veterans. Thought you might enjoy hearing what he had to say:
35 years ago, if you were to tell me that I am going to stand up here speaking to a couple thousand patriots, in English, I'd laugh at you. Man, every morning I wake up thanking God for putting me and my family in the greatest country on earth.
I just want you all to know that the American dream does exist and I am living the American dream. I was asked to speak to you about my experience as a first generation Vietnamese- American, but I'd rather speak to you as an American.
If you hadn't noticed, I am not white and I feel pretty comfortable with my people.
I am a proud US citizen and here is my proof. It took me 8 years to get it, waiting in endless lines, but I got it and I am very proud of it.
I still remember the images of the Tet offensive in 1968, I was six years old. Now you might want to question how a 6-year-old boy could remember anything. Trust me; those images can never be erased. I can't even imagine what it was like for young American soldiers, 10,000 miles away from home, fighting on my behalf.
35 years ago, I left South Vietnam for political asylum. The war had ended. At the age of 13, I left with the understanding that I may or may not ever get to see my siblings or parents again. I was one of the first lucky 100,000 Vietnamese allowed to come to the US. Somehow, my family and I were reunited 5 months later, amazingly, in California. It was a miracle from God.
If you haven't heard lately that this is the greatest country on earth, I am telling you that right now. It was the freedom and the opportunities presented to me that put me here with all of you tonight. I also remember the barriers that I had to overcome every step of the way. My high school counselor told me that I cannot make it to college due to my poor communication skills. I proved him wrong. I finished college. You see, all you have to do is to give this little boy an opportunity and encourage him to take and run with it. Well, I took the opportunity and here I am.
This person standing tonight in front of you could not exist under a socialist/communist environment. By the way, if you think socialism is the way to go, I am sure many people here will chip in to get you a one-way ticket out of here. And if you didn't know, the only difference between socialism and communism is an AK-47 aimed at your head. That was my experience.
In 1982, I stood with a thousand new immigrants, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and listening to the National Anthem for the first time as an American. To this day, I can't remember anything sweeter and more patriotic than that moment in my life.
Fast forwarding, somehow I finished high school, finished college, and like any other goofball 21 year old kid, I was having a great time with my life. I had a nice job and a nice apartment in Southern California. In some way and somehow, I had forgotten how I got here and why I was here.
One day I was at a gas station, I saw a veteran pumping gas on the other side of the island. I don't know what made me do it, but I walked over and asked if he had served in Vietnam. He smiled and said yes. I shook and held his hand. The grown man began to well up. I walked away as fast as I could and at that very moment, I was emotionally rocked. This was a profound moment in my life. I knew something had to change in my life. It was time for me to learn how to be a good citizen. It was time for me to give back.
You see, America is not a place on the map, it isn't a physical location. It is an ideal, a concept. And if you are an American, you must understand the concept, you must buy into this concept, and most importantly, you have to fight and defend this concept. This is about Freedom and not free stuff. And that is why I am standing up here.
Brothers and sisters, to be a real American, the very least you must do is to learn English and understand it well. In my humble opinion, you cannot be a faithful patriotic citizen if you can't speak the language of the country you live in. Take this document of 46 pages - last I looked on the Internet, there wasn't a Vietnamese translation of the US Constitution. It took me a long time to get to the point of being able to converse and until this day, I still struggle to come up with the right words. It's not easy, but if it's too easy, it's not worth doing.
Before I knew this 46-page document, I learned of the 500,000 Americans who fought for this little boy. I learned of the 58,000 names scribed on the black wall at the Vietnam Memorial. You are my heroes. You are my founders.
At this time, I would like to ask all the Vietnam veterans to please stand. I thank you for my life. I thank you for your sacrifices, and I thank you for giving me the freedom and liberty I have today. I now ask all veterans, firefighters, and police officers, to please stand. On behalf of all first generation immigrants, I thank you for your services and may God bless you all.
Quang Nguyen
Creative Director/Founder
Caddis Advertising, LLC
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Not Even Noon...
We hit the shade for a while.
Maggie models my safety glasses with a smile.
The sun rises higher as I rest.
Came in to empty the camera,
say hello
and headed back out again.
Who said I had a day off??
My Evening Stroll...
Too hot to walk in the middle of Saturday, I waited til it was less hot. A few dogs joined me and we made a circle through woods and fields and back home again.
Ki-Anne insisted on bringing her football.
Being dusk, the calves eyes reflected the flash.
Please note the very present yellow canine blur on the right.
She left her foot ball on the terrace as she ran to the cattle.
We found wild berries ripening.
Dark almost caught me.
Once again the land renewed my spirit,
reminding me why I am here.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
This N That
We have good neighbors. I got a call at work Friday (remember how our old house was robbed?) that a strange truck was parked in the yard of the old house. The neighbor described it as a beige step side truck and no one could be seen. She asked if I wanted her to run them off. I said, no, I'll call hubby. Couldn't reach hubby, called Bev, she said, If I try to run someone off, they'll whip my butt. SOOOOOO, finally got ahold of hubby and it was him sitting at the old house in a SILVER Step Side Chevy!!! Brave Bev came to get whipped and every one had a good laugh! Except me.
The white deer has been spotted with a fawn this year but she is moving closer to the highway. Hope she comes back to the protection of the hills and valleys.
Just a few snapshots of our week At The Farm...never a boring moment!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Hey, I Want To Make This Whole Map Green!
Internet Explorer is the most used browser and Windows is the most used Operating system. Over 38,000 views of this blog just amazes me and I don't count my visits. I did not have this counter when I first began so I can't even imagine what that count would be.
I have written over 1300 posts since I began in September of 2008. It has been a wonderful journey.
I owe the beginning to my sisters. I owe the continuance to all of you. You have lifted me up when I was down, laughed with me, celebrated life's milestones and supported me, many of you through this entire journey.
I humbly thank you.
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