The Joy of Six...

Master Carpenter

 My cousin, Donna, sent this to me....truly amazing.

 

Whether you're a bird person or not, this is stunning!!! Not to detract from the sheer magic of it, but in practical terms, how MANY trips would a bird have to make with that tiny little quantity of mud/clay it could carry? (and how far from the nest is the source?)

If you take the construction of a circular bowl in your stride as instinctive how the heck does the bird come up with the windbreak/entrance design that shields the eggs/chicks from the elements and at what point in fashioning the bowl do they start to construct it?

Even if you think you could build this…try it without using your hands!

And now…stop to consider this:
Where did the knowledge to do this come from?

TRULY THERE HAS TO BE A “MASTER CARPENTER!" 

Have a great weekend everyone.... ~Joy

Sign Language

Hi everyone...I hope you're having a good weekend and enjoying the summer.  We've finally gotten some really nice weather over the last couple of days...70's.  We've had some much needed rain too.  My grass is finally starting to look green again.

I've been watching a LOT of the Olympics.  I've loved them since I was a kid.  They just kind of draw me in, and before I know it I'm hooked.

I thought you might get a kick out of these....click on photo to enlarge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take care everyone....  ~Joy

If My Body Was a Car

Scary...but true.  Thanks to Isabel for sending this to me.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If my body was a car, this is the time I would be thinking about trading it in for a newer model. I've got bumps and dents and scratches in my finish and my paint job is getting a little dull.

 

 But that's not the worst of it....

My headlights are out of focus and it's especially hard to see things up close.

My traction is not as graceful as it once was. I slip and slide and skid and bump into things even in the best of weather.

My whitewalls are stained with varicose veins.

It takes me hours to reach my maximum speed. 

 

My fuel rate burns inefficiently.

But here's the worst of it....

Almost every time I sneeze, cough or sputter, either my radiator leaks or my exhaust backfires!

 

Have a wonderful week everyone!  ~Joy 

What the heck have I been up to?

Oy, it's been a while hasn't it?  I didn't even notice how much time had passed since I last posted...hmm, wonder what that tells me.  I guess I was more burned-out than I thought.  I apologize to all of my blogging friends for not visiting you all as much as I thought I would.  Best laid plans, right?  I could easily make a novel out of this post; but I'll try to spare you all the boring details...or at least most of them.

First of all....as many of you already know, I have been dealing with some on-going back problems.  Going to a chiropractor over the past few months helped me a great deal as far as range of motion and getting a few discs in better shape, but I still have some stubborn muscles hanging around; and as much as I've asked the 'man upstairs' for a little miracle work....he must have bigger things on his list.  I'm dealing with it. 

At the end of May I had an upper GI.  All went well, but found out I had some gastritis going on....no big surprise.  I had been having stomach problems on and off for some months.  Medicine and watching my diet has helped me greatly.  Huh, who knew that eating more properly would make a difference....a little sarcasm.  I've never had to worry about such things....apparently until now.  Ah the joys of growing older.

Needless to say, the combination of back and stomach woes kind of took its toll on me and sent me into a little slump somewhere in March.  I'm feeling much better now, but never let it be said that time, love, understanding, patience, perseverance, and good medication don't play a huge part in the healing and recovery process.

June was a very busy month for me.  We had a family wedding here in town, and all my kids came in for it.  Julie came sans family because Bella and Bastian hadn't finished school yet.  She was literally in for the wedding...and was gone the next day.  Way too short a visit with her, but even that brief a visit was good.  Jory, Jess and Olive were here for ten days....partly business for Jory and partly vacation.  Jess and his friend Adam went on a fishing trip to Wisconsin for three days...and had a really great time.

I can't tell you what a wonderful time Aunt Jenna, Uncle Joe and I had with little Olive.  Oh my gosh, she was such a hoot; and talked up a storm.  Repeating everything....I think she talks better than me.  She had us all laughing so much.  Sweet little personality and very loving.  At the end of ten days everyone went home...and left Aunt Jenna and I standing on my grass in tears.  Now when we do 'face-time' on Jenna's IPad, Olive wants to know where Uncle Joe and Aunt Julie are.  She just assumes that we're all back here together at Grandma's house.  Lord, we miss her.  Before you know it she'll be a 'big sister'...just six or seven weeks away.

Okay, this is starting to look 'novelesque,' so I'm going to wrap it up and include some pics from the wedding and the kids' visit....and a couple of Bella & Bastian with their new puppy "Boo."  Now they have two pugs....and a playmate for Boston.

 

Jory and Olive

Jory and Olive

 

The bride and groom...Stephanie (my neice) and Matt

Aunt Jenna and Olive

Sweet Olive

Mommy and Olive

 Olive...nature girl

 

Uncle Dan and Olive

 

Daddy, Olive and Mr. Bear

 

Olive and her monkey

Olive and Uncle John...mmm, that's good. 

 

At the park

Mommy and Olive

Mommy, Olive & Aunt Julie

 Chris, Bastian, Julie, Bella, Boston....and Boo

Bella and Boo

Bastian and Boo

I hope everyone has been well, enjoying life....and dealing with the horrendous heat that has hit so many of us.  See you soon dear friends.... Love, Joy  xo

Happy Mother's Day

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Mother's Day.  I saw the following on a friend's Facebook page and thought it was touching and beautiful.  I think it originated here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/springintheair

 

Letter from a Mother to a Daughter:

 

"My dear girl, the day you see I’m getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I’m going through. If when we talk, I repeat the same thing a thousand times, don’t... interrupt to say: “You said the same thing a minute ago”... Just listen, please. Try to remember the times when you were little and I would read the same story night after night until you would fall asleep. When I don’t want to take a bath, don’t be mad and don’t embarrass me. Remember when I had to run after you making excuses and trying to get you to take a shower when you were just a girl? When you see how ignorant I am when it comes to new technology, give me the time to learn and don’t look at me that way... remember, honey, I patiently taught you how to do many things like eating appropriately, getting dressed, combing your hair and dealing with life’s issues every day... the day you see I’m getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I’m going through. If I occasionally lose track of what we’re talking about, give me the time to remember, and if I can’t, don’t be nervous, impatient or arrogant. Just know in your heart that the most important thing for me is to be with you. And when my old, tired legs don’t let me move as quickly as before, give me your hand the same way that I offered mine to you when you first walked. When those days come, don’t feel sad... just be with me, and understand me while I get to the end of my life with love. I’ll cherish and thank you for the gift of time and joy we shared. With a big smile and the huge love I’ve always had for you, I just want to say, I love you... my darling daughter."

 

Happy Mother's Day!

 

Gone Fishin'

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm taking a little time away from blogging.  I don't imagine it will be for very long....knowing me.  I've thought about taking a break from blogging many times, but just could never seem to do it.  So many of my blogging friends have taken time away...and some of them haven't come back.  That's not my intention, but I just felt I needed to take some space at this time.  Take care everyone...hope to be back soon...and feeling rejuvenated.

And...Happy Birthday to my brother Ken; who shares his birthday with the IRS.  Love you dearly, and am so blessed to have you as my big brother.

See you soon...and I hope to stop by your places to keep up with what's going on with all of you.  Love, Joy  xo

The Easter Tree

 

This is beautiful...thanks Sue for sending it to me....Happy, Happy Easter everyone.  ~Joy  xo

 

An Easter tree exists, and it can be found in Germany.  Around 1945, when he was just a young boy, Volker Kraft saw his very first Easter Tree (Eierbaum, Osterbaum or Ostereirbaum, in German), and decided he would have one of his very own, when he grew up. Time passed and young Volker became a married man, with a family. But his childhood dream stuck with him and he decorated his first Easter Tree, in 1965. He used 18 colored plastic eggs.

But the tree was growing fast and he and his wife, Christa couldn't afford to waste so many Easter eggs. So they began drilling holes into the eggs, using the contents in the kitchen, and the painted shells as decorations. When their children grew up, they started helping with the decorating and the Easter Tree became a family tradition, known not only in their home town of Saalfeld , but all of Germany. After their kids moved out of the house, it seemed the Easter Tree would finally catch a break, but grandsons arrived and the Krafts went back to decorating their giant tree. The number of Easter eggs hung by the trees branches grew every year and in 2010 it reached an incredible 9,500 eggs.

 

(Click on pictures to enlarge.)

 

 

 

 

 

Hi, it's me Olive...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Grandma said I could come on her blog again to tell you 'bout some really 'citing news.  Guess what?  I'm gonna be a big sister.  Me....Olive.  I'm not sure 'xactly what that means and what I gotta do; but it looks like my mommy and daddy are happy 'bout it.  I know it's got somethin' to do with my mommy's tummy; which is gettin' kinda round....like my ball.  I think mommy and daddy knew 'bout this news for a while, but didn't tell hardly anybody 'bout it til now.  I know they told my Grandmas and my Grandpa...and maybe a few other people; but now mommy is talkin' 'bout it a lot more...to friends and stuff.  Everyone looks pretty happy, so I wanted to share this good news with all of you...my Grandma's friends; and besides...I like this blogging thing.

I really need to talk to someone who is already a big sister to find out what I'm gettin' into...maybe cousin Bella could help.  She looks like she knows what she's doin'.  I know there's a baby involved....smaller than me.  I'm not sure how much time mommy and daddy will have to spend with it; but I know how much time they spend with me, and I might need to talk to this baby 'bout that.  If the new baby is little and cute like my dolly, then maybe I could play with it a lot...so mommy and daddy could get some rest.  I could even take it for a walk in my stroller if my dolly doesn't mind.  If any of you have anything to tell me that could help me be a good big sister, please let me know....or tell my Grandma so she can tell me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I heard this baby is s'pose to come to our house at the end of somethin' called August.  And then guess what?  Somethin' called September comes right after that and I'm gonna be two whole years old...yeah, the 14th.  This new baby can come to my party.  Isn't that great?

Okay, now I just gotta figger out where it's gonna sleep.  I pretty much got my room set-up just the way I like it.  Maybe mommy and daddy will let it sleep in their room.  But I can show it around and tell it what not to touch; and I have lots of toys for it to play with.  This could be a really good thing....

That's all I know right now.  Thanks for letting me share this 'citing news.  Mommy says it's always good to share.  Wish me luck.  I've been gettin' ready and practicin' my cleanin'.  Bye-bye...Love, Olive  xo

You Were On My Mind

Tomorrow would have been my late husband’s 67^th birthday.  He’s been in my thoughts a lot lately….I’m not sure why these reflective times happen when they do….maybe they’re my way of grieving....even now.  When Joel died over six years ago I felt numb and a little lost; but I also felt a huge responsibility to pull it together and keep everything organized.  I didn’t want anything falling through the cracks because I was falling apart.  The ‘organized’ me took over and in the process cushioned me from the great loss I just had.  Sometimes I feel like this big, old house is swallowing me up; and without him here to banter with and check-in on from time to time…these rooms feel pretty vacant lately.  Lord knows we didn’t spend every waking hour attached at the hip, but I always knew he was around doing his thing while I was doing mine…. and I could always touch base when I needed to….and vise-versa.

Joel was an enigma….a character…..sometimes you just loved him to death; and other times you wanted to wring his neck.

He loved:

His family, and felt great pride in his kids

Sailing, sailing, sailing, and everything that surrounded it….especially the camaraderie of all his sailing friends

John Wayne movies….and could be found with tears running down his face while watching one

Football

History and famous battles and wars

Watching children learn…and being a part of it

Wine, beer and his ‘drinkie-winkies’ (cocktails)

Shrimp and gyros plates

Books….any and all; including his family’s set of World Book Encyclopedias when he was growing up.  He had a photographic memory and could actually tell you the page an entry was on.  He read many books over and over again, especially those that made him cry.

News and commentary programs…especially ones you could call into with questions or comments….and he often did

A medium rare steak and a good cup of coffee

Playing bridge with friends...and later on the computer

The computer…for business and pleasure...loved Flight Simulator

Oxford button-down shirts

Wingtip shoes

Pizza, potatoes, and pork roast

Bargains….of any kind

Politics and debating them with anyone who would listen…..and those who wouldn’t….it didn’t matter

Good music

Ice cream

Salad, hot peppers on beef sandwiches, and barbecued ribs

Smoking

Playing trivia games

Making concoctions in the kitchen

Taking things apart and then putting them back together again

Fixing and repairing things around the house….cheaply

Duct tape (refer to above)

Magic tricks…and did many himself

Listening to his kids laugh….and me too.

 

He hated:

Paperwork….lucky me

When there was no one around to debate with….but there was always the phone

Broccoli and cauliflower…and peas

Being reminded to do something…or as he thought of it…. ‘nagging’

Injustice

‘One-ups-man-ship’

Doing taxes…and worse yet….sending them our money

Doctors and dentists

Being interrupted during a good show

Cleaning his desk

Wiping up messes

Hospitals...visiting or staying

Yard work, hence we had a landscape service for many years….and I still do

Arrogance

Buying a new car; which is why we had so many used ones

Sassing back; which is why our kids never did it

Shaving on weekends….weekends were for sailing, who needs to shave

Bad grammar and mispronunciation

 

He was:

Never too busy or too old to learn something new

A hard worker and a good provider, but for a time when he was out of work….and a little lost

Bright….really bright

Stubborn and self-healing

A big softie inside

A procrastinator

Intuitive

Competitive on family game nights

Good at selling things, but didn’t really love it

Hard to walk away from when he wanted your attention

Friendly and loyal

Good in a crisis

Patriotic

A Marine

Horrible about taking care of his health and sharing things that were bothering him

Someone you could ask about anything.  Somehow he always knew the answer....or where to find it.

Sometimes exasperating

Sometimes exhilarating

An Aries….pretty typical one

A hockey player in his early years

A writer….a good one, with several published pieces. 

A good speaker….he always had a way with words

A good friend

A loud snorer

Witty, funny...very funny

A good card player

A pretty good singer

A pretty bad dancer

 

He is:

Missed...and remembered      ~Joy

Whew, I'm not in this batch! The Darwin Awards

 

Yes, it's that time of year again when the Darwin Awards are bestowed, honoring the least evolved among us.  Here is the glorious winner:

1. When his 38 caliber revolver failed to fire at his intended victim during a hold-up in Long Beach, California would-be robber James Elliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barrel and tried the trigger again. This time it worked.

And here are the honorable mentions:

2. The chef at a hotel in Switzerland lost a finger in a meat cutting machine and after a little shopping around, submitted a claim to his insurance company.  The company expecting negligence sent out one of its men to have a look for himself. He tried the machine and he also lost a finger. The chef's claim was approved.

3. A man who shoveled snow for an hour to clear a space for his car during a blizzard in Chicago returned with his vehicle to find a woman had taken the space. Understandably, he shot her.

4. After stopping for drinks at an illegal bar, a Zimbabwean bus driver found that the 20 mental patients he was supposed to be transporting from Harare to Bulawayo had escaped. Not wanting to admit his incompetence, the driver went to a nearby bus stop and offered everyone waiting there a free ride. He then delivered the passengers to the mental hospital, telling the staff that the patients were very excitable and prone to bizarre fantasies. The deception wasn't discovered for 3 days.

5. An American teenager was in the hospital recovering from serious head wounds received from an oncoming train. When asked how he received the injuries, the lad told police that he was simply trying to see how close he could get his head to a moving train before he was hit.

6. A man walked into a Louisiana Circle-K, put a $20 bill on the counter, and asked for change. When the clerk opened the cash drawer, the man pulled a gun and asked for all the cash in the register, which the clerk promptly provided. The man took the cash from the clerk and fled, leaving the $20 bill on the counter. The total amount of cash he got from the drawer....$15.  (If someone points a gun at you and gives you money, is a crime committed?)

7. Seems an Arkansas guy wanted some beer pretty badly. He decided that he'd just throw a cinder block through a liquor store window, grab some booze, and run. So he lifted the cinder block and heaved it over his head at the window.. The cinder block bounced back and hit the would-be thief on the head, knocking him unconscious. The liquor store window was made of Polycarbonate.  The whole event was caught on videotape.

8. As a female shopper exited a New York convenience store, a man grabbed her purse and ran. The clerk called 911 immediately, and the woman was able to give them a detailed description of the snatcher.  Within minutes, the police apprehended the snatcher. They put him in the car and drove back to the store. The thief was then taken out of the car and told to stand there for a positive ID. To which he replied, "Yes, officer, that's her. That's the lady I stole the purse from."

9. The Ann Arbor News crime column reported that a man walked into a Burger King in Ypsilanti, Michigan at 5 A.M., flashed a gun, and demanded cash.  The clerk turned him down because he said he couldn't open the cash register without a food order.  When the man ordered onion rings, the clerk said they weren't available for breakfast. The man, frustrated, walked away.

 (And now....*A 5-STAR STUPIDITY AWARD WINNER*)

10. When a man attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street, he got much more than he bargained for.  Police arrived at the scene to find a very sick man curled up next to a motor home near spilled sewage.  A police spokesman said that the man admitted to trying to steal gasoline, but he plugged his siphon hose into the motor home's sewage tank by mistake.  The owner of the vehicle declined to press charges saying that it was the best laugh he'd ever had.

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In the interest of bettering mankind, I'm sharing these with all of you....unless of course one of these individuals by chance is a distant relative or long lost friend. In that case, be glad they are distant and hope they remain lost.

*** Remember.... They walk among us and they vote!!! ***