Sunday, December 28, 2008

Just the Way I am by Johnny Cash



Just as I am without one plea but that
Thy blood was shed for me
And that Thou bid'st me come to Thee
Oh lamb of God I come I come

Just as I am and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot
To Thee who's blood can cleanse each spot
Oh lamb of God I come I come

Just as I am Lord Thou tossed about
With many a conflict and many a doubt
Fightings fears within and without
Oh lamb of God I come I come

Just as I am Thou wilt recieve
Will dwell come pardon cleanse relieve
Because Thy promise I believe
Oh lamb of God I come I come

Friday, December 26, 2008

Funny

One Day After Christmas

Author Unknown

It's one day after Christmas
I'm crabby and I'm broke.
I'm so full of ham and fruitcake
I think I'm gonna croak.

It's nice to see the relatives
I wonder when they'll leave.
They've been camping in my bathroom
since early Christmas Eve.

They're eating everything in sight
and sleeping in my bed.
I been sacked out in the basement
with my beagle, Fred.

The relatives have all gone out
and left their screaming brats.
The toilet bowl is all plugged up
and I can't find the cat.

It's Christmastime at my house,
the relatives are here.
They eat me out of house and home.
and drink up all my beer.

I love the decorations,
and the sleigh bells in the snow
But I wish those pesky relatives
would take their kids and go.

Those cookie crunchers fed the dog
a twenty pound rib roast.
His feet are sticking in the air
like skinny old fence posts.

Now they're in a free-for-all,
the girls against the boys.
They're fighting over boxes
'cause they're bored with all their toys

My mother-in-law is snoring
in my favorite TV chair.
Those kids are stringing lights on her
and tinseling her hair

I oughta wake her up
before the fireworks begin.
But I wanna see those blue sparks fly
when they plug her in.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Softly and Tenderly by Johnny Cash



Softly and Tenderly
Lyrics for Album: My Mother's Hymn Book
(Rebecca Lynn Howard)

Softly and tenderly,Jesus is calling
Calling for you and for me
See,on the portals he's waiting and watching
Watching for you and for me

Come home,come home
Ye who are weary,come home
Earnestly,tenderly,Jesus is calling
Calling,O sinner,come home

O for the wonderful love he has promised
Promised for you and for me
Though we have sinned,he has mercy and pardon
Pardon for you and for me

Come home,come home
Ye who are weary,come home
Earnestly,tenderly,Jesus is calling
Calling,O sinner,come home

Calling,O sinner,come home

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Ruby Tuesday


Ruby Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Teach over at Work of The Poet.  The basic premise is to post a picture (your own) with either a little red or a lot of red.


I thought I would jump back into posting on a few memes this week.  I recently though I was back in the zone for bloggind, but was sadly mistaken.  Hopefully, I get past the intention stage this time :)

Nothing fancy about the picture I choose this week.  My poor son had a terrible time last night during our Scrabble games.  He kept getting stuck with vowels.  Amazingly he still won 2 of the 3 games we played. 



It's funny.  I suggested playing Scrabble over a week ago.  My son balked and groaned.  Basically he behaved like a typical teenage boy who did not want to entertain his mother.  I said, "We will play soon."  I brought the game out, set it on the living room table, and basically forgot about it.  Tonight he cleared the table, set up the game and insisted on playing tonight. It was a fun 4 hours.  We even managed to cook dinner and make Kool-Aid with lots of laughter and fun throughout the night.

We have pulled out the Sequence game which is brand new.  We played it years ago at a friend's house, and she bought it for my son.  For some reason, it was never opened.  We sort of lost interest in games for a while.  We'll be playing that tomorrow later today or tomorrow.  I may even be able to get mom to join us. She won't play Scrabble. 

Now if I could just find the Skipbo cards.  They have gone missing which is weird as I tend to keep those things very handy :)

Thank you for visiting.  You can find more participants at Work of The Poet.

Interesting article on lead poisoning and the Eagle population

I absolutely love eagles and tend to read everything I can about them.

Lead poisoning hits home

snippets of article:

According to Dr. Luis Cruz-Martinez, a veterinary resident at the Raptor Center, the facility as of Wednesday had received 74 bald eagles this year. Of those eagles, 23 tested positive for lead. There were three positive cases in January, one in February and one in March.

The remaining 18, he said, have come in since Nov. 10 — two days after Minnesota’s firearms deer season opener.

 ...........

Cruz-Martinez said 30 milligrams of lead can kill a bald eagle, and smaller amounts can hamper respiratory and neurological functions. An aspirin, by comparison, weighs 325 milligrams.

.............

“Basically, what we’re using to hunt animals, to hunt game, is affecting a lot of other wildlife species, and now that lead was found in venison, it’s really very striking the potential danger for people.



“All this research in birds has been telling us the problem,” he said. “Now that it’s gotten into the human (food) chain is when we have our best opportunity to work against this poison to prevent more wildlife mortality and prevent a human disease.”

.............

Cruz-Martinez said the Raptor Center has applied for a grant to embark on what he calls an “interdisciplinary approach” to the lead issue. The project, he said, will look at the social and cultural aspects of hunting, the willingness of hunters to switch to nontoxic ammunition and a campaign to educate the public about the potential dangers of lead to humans, animals and the environment.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

In The Garden by Johnny Cash




I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses
And he walks with me
And he talks with me
And he tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known
He speaks and the sound of His voice
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing
And he walks with me
And he talks with me

And he tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known
I'd stay in the garden with Him
'Tho the night around me be falling
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling
And He walks with me
And He talks with me
And He tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known

Monday, December 08, 2008

A bit late, but here goes :)

THANKSGIVING TABLE PRAYER

We thank You, Lord, for harvest gifts
Bestowed upon us here;
We're thankful too for blessings sent
Each day throughout the year.

We're thankful for the Pilgrims
Who braved the perilous sea
That all may worship here today
In this land of the free.

For shelter warm and family ties,
For loved ones far and near;
We're thankful for each little child,
So special and so dear.

For daily bread in ample share
We lift our thanks to Thee;
Oh, may we share with those in need
Wherever they may be.

We're thankful for this food prepared,
Each loved one gathered here.
We're thankful for Your presence Lord;
You seem so very near.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ideals Magazine, Kay Hoffman

Sunday, December 07, 2008

East to West by Casting Crowns



Here I am Lord,
and I'm drowning
in your sea of forgetfulness
the chains of yesterday surround me
I yearn for peace and rest
I dont want to end up where you found me
and it echoes in my mind,
keeps me awake tonight

I know you cast my sin as far as the east is from the west
and I stand before you now,
as if I've never sinned
but today I feel like I'm just one mistake away
from you leaving me this way

and Jesus can you show me
just how far the east is from the west
cause I can't bear to see the man I've been
rising up in me again
in the arms of your mercy I find rest,
cause you know just how far the East is from the West
from one scarred hand to the other.

I start the day the war begins
endless reminding of my sin
time and time again your truth is drowned out
by the storm I'm in
today I feel like I'm just one mistake away,
from you leaving me this way and Jesus can you show me,
just how far the East is from the West
cause I can't bear to see the man I've been
rising up in me again
in the arms of your mercy I find rest
'cause you know
just how far the East is from the West
from one scarred hand to the other.

I know you've washed me white,
turned my darkness into light
I need your peace to get me through,
to get me through this night
can't live by what I feel
but by the Truth your Word reveals,
I'm not holding on to you
but you're holding on to me,
you're holding on to me

Jesus you know
just how far the East is from the West
I don't have to see the man I've been,
rising up in me again
in the arms of your mercy I find rest
'cause you know just how far the East is from the West,
just how far,
from one scarred hand to the other.

Found this in an email folder....good reminder.

CHRISTIAN WAYS TO REDUCE STRESS ...

An Angel says, "Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice."

1. Pray

2. Go to bed on time.

3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.

4. Say No to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health.

5. Delegate tasks to capable others.

6. Simplify and unclutter your life.

7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)

8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places.

9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.

10. Take one day at a time.

11. Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety . If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.

12. Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases.

13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc.

14. K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble.

15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.

16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.

17. Get enough rest.

18. Eat right.

19 Get organized so everything has its place.

20. Listen to a tape while driving that can help improve your quality of life.

21. Write down thoughts and inspirations.

22. Every day, find time to be alone.

23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until it's time to go to bed to try and pray.

24. Make friends with Godly people.

25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.

26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good "Thank you Jesus."

27. Laugh.

28. Laugh some more!

29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all.

30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).

31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).

32. Sit on your ego.

33 Talk less; listen more.

34. Slow down.

35. Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.

36 . Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before. GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Bring on the Rain by Mercy Me




I can count a million times
People asking me how I
Can praise You with all that
I've gone through
The question just amazes me
Can circumstances possibly
Change who I forever am in You

Maybe since my life was changed
Long before these rainy days
It's never really ever crossed my mind
To turn my back on you, oh Lord
My only shelter from the storm
But instead I draw closer through these times
So I pray

Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings
You glory And I know there'll
be days When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to
praise You Jesus, bring the rain

I am yours regardless of the clouds that may
loom above because you are much greater than
my pain you who made a way for me suffering
your destiny so tell me whats a little rain

[1st Chorus]

Holy, holy, holy
Holy, holy, holy
is the lord God almighty
is the lord God almighty
I'm forever singing

[2nd Chorus 2x]

everybody singing
Holy holy holy
you are holy
you are holy

[2nd Chorus 2x]

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Matchless by Aaron Shust



Son of a Man, Great I am, King of heaven,
son of god, you hold the measure of my days
Holy Lamb, spotless Lamb, You are worthy, I am not
Before Your throne I stand amazed

Every tongue confess and every knee will bow
To Jesus Christ the Lord forever, hear our praises now

Your name is matchless, Your name is priceless
Your name means more than i could know
You're so far above me, the way that you love me
goes further than any love could go

Wonderful Counselor, Root of David, morning star
you are the way, the truth, the life
lion of the tribe of judah, Mighty god is who you are
The only perfect sacrifice

In your name you took the blind man and you gave him back his sight
In your name you took the dead man and you brought him back to life
In your name you took this prisoner and you opened up the doors
And I will sing before your throne forever more

Sunday, November 16, 2008

I'm a Reciever by ApologetiX

I love this Christian parody band.



I thought God was only Jewish fairy tales
Meant for someone else with lots more faith
all my doubts oppressed me-but that's the way it stayed
Till a voice said, "Honey, call My name"
Then I got His grace--now I'm a receiver
God replaced--the doubt in my mind--I've been loved (ooh, aah)
I'm a receiver--got the Redeemer in my life
I thought God was more impressed with givin' things
He said, "Boy, I gave the best I got
"What's the use in strivin'? All your dept is paid
Didn't leave a punch-line on My grave"
Then I got His grace - now I'm a receiver
Got a place--a palace on high--up above
I'm a receiver--I'm gonna be there if I die

What's the use in strivin'? all your debt is paid
Check out Romans 10:9--I got saved
When I got his grace--now I'm a receiver
Mama says--I'm out of my mind--I've been touched (ooh, aah)
I'm a receiver--I got Ephesians 2:8,9
Then I got His grace--now I'm a receiver
Not afraid---about when I die
Now I'm a receiver, of the Redemer, better believer, yeah, yeah yeah!
Now I'm a receiver-- 'cuz I got his grace.
Now I'm a receiver-- not afreaid to shout it on high.

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

I think this has become my favorite hymn.  It's a wonderful song written by Robert Robinson. 

This version is by the David Crowder Band




Come thou fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Streams of mercy never ceasing
Call for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet
Sung by flaming tongues above
I'll praise the mount I'm fixed upon it
Mount of Thy redeeming love

Here I raise my Ebenezer
Hither by Thy help I come
And I hope by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wondering from the fold of God
He, to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm constrained to be!
Let thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart Lord, take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above

Thursday, November 06, 2008

She returns..............

Well, I hadn't realized it had been that long since I blogged.  Life has been interesting since my last post.  I won't go into long and boring details, but will give a quick list of what has happened.

The brakes on my car were indeed fixed and paid for by the church.  It turned to be a whooping $160 rather than the projected $500 by Sears.  I knew Sears was full of it, but at the same time I was wary of how much it could be.

While the car was off being fixed, I had a nasty trip to the ER with a severely abscessed molar.  That required Mom coming home and driving me.  Poor thing didn't sleep much that night and missed work.  I ended up with a lovely prescription of Lorecet (which is hyrocodone or Dr. House's favorite drug Vicodin).  I also had an antibiotic called Clindamycin.  A week later, said tooth was pulled, and now I have an extra hole in my head.  Extra blessing is that I finally found a dentistry clinic with a sliding fee. Kiddo has an appointment for the 19th.

After the trip to the ER, I did indeed get to go to Women of Faith in St. Paul.  It was fantastic and extremely tiring since I was still fighting the tooth infection.  I absolutely love the range of topic.  I especially enjoyed listening to Patsy Clairmont and Lucy Swindoll.  Those ladies are wonderful.

I was able to hear Anita Renfroe sing her Mom Song live. If you haven't heard this, go listen now.  It's everything a mom says in one day condensed into a 3 minute song.

Also take a moment to visit this youtube video of Patsy Clairmont talking about her friend Carol who is dying of cancer.  It was mentioned at the end of WOF that she checks youtube to see how many hits her story has gotten each day.  It's a bright spot in her day. 

Luci Swindoll closed out the WOF conference and as expected she was fabulous.  She reminded us that big things happened with small steps.  

Since we arrived back from the WOF conference, our church has had a few problems in communication.  YUCK!  If you feel led, please pray for unity and healing.  We have lost two families over this.  There is still anger and hurt that needs to be dealt with properly.  Again YUCK!  I hate conflict, and I especially hate it at church.

Over the past month, I have been working on winterizing the house, garage, and yard.  It will be worth it, but right now it's tiring.  Luckily, we have all been pitching in and getting things done.  By we, I mean Mom, kiddo and I.  With any luck, we can keep our heating costs low this winter.  I am praying the new windows really help with this. 

I am still plugging along with school.  I am transcribing files now and wondering if I will ever hear every word the doctor says.  At least, I am not having nonstop headaches now that the nasty tooth is gone! 

I have new glasses.  The pair I bought 18 months ago from Wal~Mart finally bit the dust.   The left lens finally shattered when it fell out at Panda Buffet.  Thank the Lord for 39dollareyeglasses.com and having a valid prescription.  I was able to have new specs by Thursday after ordering them on Monday evening.  It only cost a $81.  It would have been around $70, but we paid for UPS overnight air shipping.   I like this new pair---even if though I am stuck with plastic lenses.  I can make due until next spring with these. I am just so grateful for modern technology and the internet.  I need my glasses!!!!

Kiddo is still the same as always.  He was FANTASTIC when I was so sick for a few days with that dumb tooth.  He has helped with the yard work (only a little complaining).  He didn't even complain when I cleaned his room without permission.  *lol*  I just did it.  I rarely mess with his domain.  He actually said he liked it later because he could see the floor.  *lol*  I mostly piled stuff up on his wardrobe and pulled out all the laundry (mostly clean) piled on the floor.  My son has a weird habit of collecting comforters & sheets in a corner of his room.  Currently, I am in the process of re-laundering them and storing them in a place where they hopefully won't get dirty again. 

Okay those are the highlights of the last few weeks.  I'll try to get back to blogging semi-regularly and posting pictures.  With any luck I will even have a SkyWatch Friday post up tomorrow :)

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Two recent blessings.

These two things have been in the works for a week or so now. I just got final confirmation today.

First, the guys at church have offered to pay for getting my car fixed (brakes). We've been down to one car which means I miss classes and services since we live so far away. We've simply been putting it off due to other priorities. It's been like 3-4 months.

One of the ladies in my Ladies' Class ratted me out :) She told them that benevolence begins at home, and she suggested the church pay to fix my car. One of the guys brought his truck and trailer over and picked it up. That was a 120 mile round trip. I can't believe he did that. He will be taking it to get it fixed and I'll pick later.

Next weekend I get to go to a Women of Faith conference. A group of ladies are going, but one backed out due to having a conflicting engagement. I get to attend in her place. All I have to pay for is my food and souvenir type items. I am excited :) I can't wait to see Pasty Clairmont. Her books make me laugh so much. Anita Renfroe is going to be there too! She is an awesome speaker/comedienne. I am so excited to be traveling with the ladies from church. They are a laugh a minute. It's going to be a blast!!!!!!!

http://www.womenoffaith.com/conferences/stpaul/


On another note, I haven't been blogging much the past couple of weeks or visting blogs. I've been spending most of my time studying or trying to take care of winter prep. I plan on taking a few moments here and there to catch-up over the next week or so.

Saturday, October 04, 2008

Christmas Lists: Yea or Nay?

I vote Yea!

I like how a list enables me to get new ideas from my son.  I can't possibly notice all of his interests the older he gets.  I'm just not as involved as I was when he was 4.  I notice the biggies, but the smaller ones that aren't in front of my face go unnoticed.

Lists give me a way to avoid the same old, same old gifts.  My son doesn't do sports, crafts or mechanics, so lists give me ideas.  Lists also eliminate the gifts that sit in a box for eternity until kiddo can toss it without being seen.  A prime example would be the wood burning kit that is sitting in the garage.  Why did I buy something like that for an super not-crafty kid?!?!  Stupid mom moment!

Obviously, we don't do the huge gimme list.  But he does frequently give me a starting point.  For instance, he tells me which PS2/PC games are interesting, what type of movie and which are his favorite.




Friday, October 03, 2008

Teenagers are weird creatures.

Thursday: Roast night.

The boy balks at riding his bike to the store for carrots for tonight's roast. He balks even louder when I send him a second time for more. They were A LOT cheaper than I thought. Two minutes after getting home, he offers to peel potatoes and carrots. About 15 minutes later, he offers me his Reese's PB cup. He had bought one for each of us.


Friday:  Chili night. 

I throw hamburger in microwave to thaw before running to store to grab ingredients.  Come home and start frying hamburger while kiddo volunteers to peel onions.  Claims he wants to learn how?!?!  I notice that I am out of chili powder.  Why couldn't notice that before my first trip to the store when I was checking my ingredients?!?!  While I have to make a second trip to the store for chili powder, my son cuts the onions up while keeping an eye on the meat.  After I get back he volunteers to open all the cans (tomatoes & beans).  He willingly rinses all of the empty cans for recycling and starts cleaning up.  He even vacuums my rugs in the kitchen (two runners for the dogs as they slip on the vinyl).


Weird boy that I have :)

Monday, September 29, 2008

I like this economic plan :)

Granted I know it will never happen and it's a joke, but it makes more sense than what the politicians (all of the idjits) are peddling.


The Birk Economic Recovery Plan

Hi Pals,

I’m against the $85,000,000,000.00 bailout of AIG.

Instead, I’m in favor of giving $85,000,000,000 to America in a ' We Deserve It Dividend ' .

To make the math simple, let’s assume there are 200,000,000 bonafide U.S. Citizens 18+.

Our population is about 301,000,000 +/- counting every man, woman and child. So 200,000,000 might be a fair stab at adults 18 and up..

So divide 200 million adults 18+ into $85 billon that equals $425,000.00.

My plan is to give $425,000 to every person 18+ as a We Deserve It Dividend. Of course, it would NOT be tax free. So let’s assume a tax rate of 30%.

Every individual 18+ has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes.

That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam.

But it means that every adult 18+ has $297,500.00 in their pocket. A husband and wife has $595,000.00.

What would you do with $297,500.00 to $595,000.00 in your family?

Pay off your mortgage – housing crisis solved.

Repay college loans – what a great boost to new grads

Put away money for college – it’ll be there

Save in a bank – create money to loan to entrepreneurs.

Buy a new car – create jobs

Invest in the market – capital drives growth

Pay for your parent’s medical insurance – health care improves

Enable Deadbeat Dads to come clean – or else

Remember this is for every adult U S Citizen 18+ including the folks who lost their jobs at Lehman Brothers and every other company that is cutting back. And of course, for those serving in our Armed Forces.

If we’re going to re-distribute wealth let’s really do it...instead of trickling out a puny $1000.00 ( “vote buy” ) economic incentive that is being proposed by one of our candidates for President.

If we’re going to do an $85 billion bailout, let’s bail out every adult U S Citizen 18+!

As for AIG – liquidate it. Sell off its parts.

Let American General go back to being American General. Sell off the real estate.

Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.

Here’s my rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn’t.

Sure it’s a crazy idea that can “never work.”

But can you imagine the Coast-To-Coast Block Party!

How do you spell Economic Boom?

I trust my fellow adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion ' We Deserve It Dividend ' more than I do the geniuses at AIG or in Washington DC.

And remember, The Birk plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam.

Ahhh...I feel so much better getting that off my chest.


P.S.
I know the math is goofy.  It's a joke so don't think too hard on it :)

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Ruby Tuesday




Ruby Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Teach over at Work of The Poet.  The basic premise is to post a picture (your own) with either a little red or a lot of red.  This week The Teach has requested we post a picture with a little red in it.




This is yet another flower picture from my visit to the Como Zoo and Conservatory this past June.  I truly loved visiting that place. If I had known it was so spectacular, I would have stopped every summer after my annual camping trip.  It's not like it's out of my way or expensive (free-will offering).

Thank you for visiting.  You can find more participants at Work of The Poet.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Camera Critters

 
  
A couple more pictures from my recent vacation.  This is off a pier on Lake Pepin in Pepin, WI.

Camera Critters is hosted by Misty Dawn. Please take a moment to stop by her site to find other great posts involving critters.

It's nice to see she hasn't forgotten.

I don't know much about the views of the polictical parties in Britain, but I like what J.K. Rowling had to say and did.

J.K. Rowling gives $1.8M gift to UK ruling party

Friday, September 19, 2008

SkyWatch Friday


SkyWatch Friday is hosted by a team of bloggers (Tom, SandyCarlson, and Imac).  Be sure to stop by and visit them.

The following pictures were taken by pier in Pepin, Wisconsin on June 28 of this year.  I think I was kneeling in the first one in an attempt to get the entire tree.  That is why my photo is a bit lop-sided.  The hills on the other side are Minnesota.  

 
Here is a close-up of the roots.  There were a few other trees growing like this.  
 

In the following two frames, I am still around the tree, but concentrating on the bigger view here.  The clouds were moving pretty fast which changed the lighting nicely.


 


Thank you for visiting.  Please stop by SkyWatch Friday to find more participants.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

When I was a kid, mom used to sing to me.

Mom didn't sing the tradition kiddie songs much. She preferred to sing the songs she loved. That was Country & Western songs, which as most can guess is not your typical children's fare. I loved to hear mom sing. We used to have some great car rides and we never needed a radio.

Some of my favorites were:

Johnny Cash "Long Black Veil"




Johnny Cash "5 Feet High and Rising"



Johnny Cash "I Got Stripes"




Johnny Cash "Frankie & Johnny"



Notice a theme? Is it any wonder Johnny Cash is one of my favorite singers/songwriters.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Ruby Tuesday


Every Tuesday, The Teach from Work of the Poet hosts Ruby Tuesday.  A fun meme that asks you to post a photo (your own) with a little red or a lot of red in it.


 
This is another photo that I took while visiting the Como Zoo and Conservatory last June.  Hope you enjoy it.  
Thank you for visiting!  If you leave a comment, I will try to visit your blog soon.  I am still playing catch-up after my bout with vertigo.

Please stop by Work of the Poet to find more participants.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Feeling better.....

Well the vertigo has passed, but I seem to have a battle with sinusitis on my hands now.  BLECH!  When I have been up, I've been studying or visiting a couple of message boards.  Mostly I'm just reading and making small comments.

I have not spared much any time for blogs or blogging.  Yesterday's post was scheduled a while back.  I plan on doing some catch up later today and tomorrow.  Unfortunately I missed most of jientje's door project and all of Robert's Show Me project.  I wish I had been up to participating.  Those sounded fun!  Just checked my feeds and I think may be skipping some posts as I have nearly 600 unread items.  Y'all have been some busy bees!

Life here on the prairie has been pretty calm.  We have had lots of cool weather with more wind that we need thrown in.  We even had a slight frost a couple weeks back.  I told mom recently that we went from spring to fall with a few summer days thrown in for good measure.  We really did not have a warm summer.  We have had lots of cool days and the leaves are all ready falling.  They aren't turning colors, just falling.  It may be the wind which has been pretty fierce lately.  The garden is almost finished producing and I feel like it barely started.  I have to work on getting it in quicker next year.  I just hope we have an earlier spring.  This year we had frost around Memorial Day.  Maybe I will be industrious and start things inside next year.  Probably not.

Miss Smokie is starting to molt, but it's not really coming off like in previous years.  I don't think she really got warm enough this summer for her undercoat to loosen up good.  Here is a picture of her last year in October when she was nearly done shedding molting.

 
 Recently in my schooling to become a medical transcriptionist, I have been working on editing and proofreading.  I have found that I do not remember as many grammar rules as I thought.  For instance, capitalizing seasons, I had to go look it up.  *lol*  I suddenly feel old at only 39 and all it took was having to remember all those punctuation rules.  I'll just say right now that I hate commas!  If you need a fun site to double check something try out The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation.  Now don’t go looking for mistakes in this post.  I am sure there are plenty.  
Hope y'all have a great week!  

Sunday, September 07, 2008

Can I just say…

Vertigo sucks!  I like fair rides at the fair not while sitting in my recliner or in front of the computer.  Thank goodness for meclizine.

Hope everyone had a better weekend than I.  

Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Ruby Tuesday and Opening Doors



 
I am not sure if this is a city building or the caretaker's shed for the nearby cemetary.
Ruby Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Mary over at the Work of the Poet.

Opening Doors is a week long meme hosted by jientje over at Heaven in Belgium


Thank you for visiting.  Sorry I'm late in posting for today :)

Ten Commandment Boogie (Go Fish)

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Camera Critters and Bridging the Gap #7 (last day)


All of the bridges below are used by some sort of critter. The first three pictures were taken at the Assiniboine Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba.


 
  
These last two were taken at the MN Zoo in Apple Valley, MN.
 

Bridging The Gap is hosted by Alice over at I Was Born2Cree8 all this week.  Please take a moment to stop by her blog for a visit and to find other participants.   I have thoroughly enjoyed this meme. Thank you so much Alice for devising it.

Camera Critters is hosted by Misty Dawn. Please take a moment to stop by her site to find other great posts involving critters.


Thank you all for stopping by.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Bridging the Gap #6 and SkyWatch Friday




Bah Humbug…  I had wanted to combine both memes today, but due to unforeseen circumstances I had to use that particular bridge photo earlier this week.  That's what I get for leaving my camera in a car that was traveling 90 miles away for 3 days.  I hate it when goofs are of my own dumb making. (lol)  Oh well, the best laid plans of mice and men, I guess. 

I do have a couple of combination photos that I can use, but it feels a tad like cheating.  Those who have followed my bridges this week will probably figure out why pretty easily.

All photos were taken in July of this year.  

 
Those who were here on Tuesday will recognize that bridge in the background.  Those who were here on Wednesday will recognize the stone bridge as being from a Japanese Garden.  This garden has been featured here before, but not this past week.  

  
 
  
 

This last picture is from underneath the stone bridge.  My camera wasn't quite sitting on the ground, but pretty doggone close.

I have to say that I think Japanese gardens are my favorite style.  I enjoy flower gardens, but there is something amazingly peaceful about a Japanese Garden.  A couple of informative websites are The Japanese Garden and The Japanese Garden Database.  Of course the old standby of Wikipedia is helpful as well.

Bridging The Gap is hosted by Alice over at I Was Born2Cree8 all this week.  Please take a moment to stop by her blog for a visit and to find other participants. 
SkyWatch Friday is hosted by Tom and a couple of his friends (Sandy Carlson and Imac).  Please take a moment to check out some those great photos.

Thank you for visiting.  Please come back :)

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Bridging the Gap #5

Bridging The Gap is hosted by Alice over at I Was Born2Cree8 all this week.  Please take a moment to stop by her blog for a visit and to find other participants.  It's been lots of fun doing this project and visiting others. 
Here is an interesting bridge located at a park in Argyle, MN.  Argyle is one of those towns that came into existence due to the railroad.  James J. Hill owned the Great Northern Railway and completed the line between Crookston, MN and the Canadian Border.  Here is a brief history of the Great Northern Railway from the Great Northern Historical Society.   Now on to the photos....
From the front....
 
Up a bit closer....
 
Going into the car....
  
A peek at Middle River as we go inside.  It's down, but it can flood.  The town is diked to prevent flooding from this river which empties into the Snake River which empties into Red River of the North.  Folks these are some of those strange north flowing rivers we barely hear about...  
  
  
 inside....
  
Other side....
  
Back of car....
  
Now when we get on the other side of the car there is a field with this old building.  I think this was once a squatter's cabin or maybe just a settler's cabin.  I wasn't able to speak to anyone who knew at the time of my visit so I can't be sure.  The city website doesn't mention this so I can't check it at the moment. 
The first view is coming right off the train car bridge.  The building is sitting on a concrete slab and is raised on blocks.  I assume this is to protect it from further water damage.  If I had a better flash or it had been sunny, I would have tried to get inside pictures.  I can say that the loft/second story floor is no longer present.  It's just a shell of a building.  Still I found it interesting...


This is the back of the cabin.... 
  
This is still the back, but I was on a bit of a trail....
  

Thank you for visiting.  Please visit some of the other participants of this fun meme.  You can find them at I Was Born2Cree8.

Bare pantry

My son cleaned out our pantry (dry goods) about 10 days or so ago. My son, who is 24, works in Retail/Grocery so he's the king of expira...