Final Letter of 2015

Dear Fabulous Few,

It has been a week ... Funny how quickly the time has moved since we got Christmas out of the way! 

Monday DH took Jack and Jill in for their annual drain on the budget. To hear him tell it, things got a little hairy. Neither dog was impressed by their visit. Jill got terrified and escaped her halter, spreading her stool sample all over the office. Meanwhile Jack was off in a different direction. Guess they have some new vaccine(?) that goes in their nose - Jack growled at the woman and Jill wasn't wanting any part of it. At least the ride report was a good one!

Since all the wind and rain has slacked off, the birds are back. It's mostly cardinals right now. It's nice to see that red flashing out there in the ruins of Sparrow Hall and my window sill.

Father and Son went to see the new Star Wars movie yesterday, in Huntsville. Senior discount was a whole 50 cents! Wow, how generous is that? I guess they had a good time and went out to eat as well. They played with the wii some more before son went home. (Glad to see it being used for a change)

DH is shopping - finding the Christmas things he missed before. Stollen, three kinds. Wonder what else he will find? Nothing quite as good as a thick slice of stollen, toasted and smothered with real butter, and then chased by some good hot chocolate.

No real plans for tonight, maybe a glass (small) of wine before we turn in early. There will be no reflecting on the past year - I can't remember half of it anyway. 

Wishing you and yours a healthy and happy year to come. I'm sure we will have more of the same ... Stay warm, stay safe!
 

Wrapping up Christmas

Typical Tennessee winter weather patterns - warm is wet and cold is clear. It's showing up pretty clear in our future, time to throw another dog on the bed for the New Year! (Actually, she climbs up by herself and snuggles under the top blanket.)

 

 

 

 

DH found the part for his drone yesterday. He will have to bundle up next week to fly it. Today, he's busy with a free preview of some (old westerns) channel. Son picked up Tiger Woods 10 for the wii yesterday, and he's into that too. Do these boys ever grow up?

We still have a table full of cookies, cakes and candies. Hard to believe I am almost sick of that stuff. LOL. I will say, I had about the best Christmas that I've had in years. Good visits with great company. The dogs had a blast - they even came out of hiding when J and his family came and didn't mind the weather. DH grilled twice and our youngest stayed from Christmas Eve until yesterday. By last night, I was shot, but it was a good shot.

Have a great week!

First Flight Glitch

 Picking up the pieces ...

There's a piece ...

Said it went faster than he thought it would. He just had to try it out. It landed in a tree and needed help to get down.

Little boys and their toys!

Have a Merry Christmas!

Hungry Visitors

A few days ago, I was telling a friend that I thought we might need to mow the yard. Some of the grass is growing. I guess somebody noticed and they came to chow down.

Very Interesting!

5 Girls came to partake!

 

Can't tell a book ...

Disclaimer: The opinions on this post are just the ramblings of an old lady, not to be taken seriously, not really.

You know by now that I have been making good use of my Kindle Unlimited. Have not kept track of the titles - too many. Some of them are novellas and some are longer and some are continuing books. 

When I was writing, I was informed that you must have a great cover, well ... That is not always true, as my selections have proved. Some great covers are just that, and content is mediocre. The same can be said for the other way around.

Most of what I have been reading this past week or two have been about mail-order-brides of the west. I never did any research on how much time it took to get from cities on the east coast to various points west, but by some of the stories, neither did the authors. The timelines were so widely varied - somebody was way off. I tried not to think about it.

Some books touted a bride story, and then they were short with an added story - not related, not even the same time frame, and not even something I was interested in. I felt cheated, somehow. I know that I shouldn't feel that way because it was free, but was time I wouldn't get back, you know?

I always worried that I had my punctuation wrong, maybe too many commas. Try reading a book with no commas. Long, run together sentences, which could be read differently. The small writer in me was proofing the whole read and guessing what she had to say.

Spelling. OMG, a proofreader would have made the world of difference to some of the books I read. What was their hurry? The glaring homophones - wow, it was the comedic relief in some rather boring reading. I will take back saying that anyone can write a book.

I did read a lot of good stories that put a person right in the middle of the smoke-filled sod dugout or log cabin. Their lives felt real.

O ~ O ~ O ~ O ~

Jack and Jill both need batteries for their collars. The radio controls are blinking like Rudolph. DH will (hopefully) bring home new batteries after work. Jill seems oblivious, but Jack acts like its a bomb and is acting worried.

We are having a beautiful day, the sun is shining and yesterday's gloom and rain are a thing of the past (for now). Rain is forecast for Christmas, but that can always change, this is Tennessee after all.

Have a great day!

 

 

My Only Hurrah

The humbug is back - ended up having to call for addresses. Poo.

Well, it's over, no one can tell me online shopping is easy, nope. Each website has its own little rules and idiosyncrasies. It wouldn't be bad if they told you the rules to start with, you know? Even a bleep arrow on the page.

What to do first, second, third etc. would have been really nice. I was up until 2:00 a.m. last night, ready to tear my hair out. Then another three hours this evening. Let me tell you - I'm not finished, but I am so DONE. 

I spent so much more than I planned. When DH sees the bills, he's gonna go, "Whoa!" I am just happy that I managed to find the little clicky things to get the free shipping. I knew this would go against the grain (mine). The thing that didn't help was dragging it out too long to get the cheaper (ROFLMAO) gifts. Well, that's as far as I'm going with this HoHoHo thing. (I will, however, enjoy the raspberry jelly filled chocolates on Christmas Eve.)

Christmas, Technology, & Telephones

I sat here today, ready to get this Christmas thing done. Catalogs on hand with a slight notion of what I was going to order. I had the computer warmed up, primed to do my worst. First, I would need to get everyone's address, right? 

Seems everyone has moved, changed their phone number, or did what we ourselves did - disconnected from those troublesome land lines. The landlines that had people's addresses attached to their phone numbers. The white pages are totally useless to me now. I could not find a single address that I didn't already have.

I didn't want to have to call and ask for addresses, they would know what the Grinch was up to. That would totally blow the whole thing and take all the fun out of it. So now I am at a complete standstill. I absolutely can't send to the ones I have the addresses for and ignore the ones I don't - that's just not done.

I feel the Grinch moving back in - the fun is leaving quickly. Somehow, I knew this computer thing was going to nip me in the butt sooner or later and I can't really say anything because I am not in the phone book either. If anyone is looking for MY address they are going to find bupkiss. Not that I want anything - I have more stuff than I know what to do with.

I think I am bleeped until they come up with a phone book for cell phones or something. If anyone has an idea how to get accurate addresses without my calling and asking ... Please let me know before it's too late!

It seems Grandma can't get information, but Fannie May and everyone else can. Nothing like getting old and out of the loop.

"Whatcha doin'?"

Okay, I am always a day late and a dollar short - I was going to take pictures yesterday for wordless Wednesday, but it was raining. Sue me. I have taken to feeding my birds on the window sill. Most pictures (as usual) don't pan out, but I thought these little friends were post worthy. It's kinda nice to look up from my reading to see somebody watching me.

Rabbit Hole Reading

I am enjoying the Kindle unlimited so far. I believe it's worth it. This past week I read the 4 books(sections) of Mabel Crowley By E. H. Nolan. Set just before WW1 until near the end of WW2. A Young woman's story of life in Great Britain to middle age and how things can get screwed up. I am no reviewer, but I did enjoy reading this to it's satisfying ending. 4-5* Needs Kleenex. Well Written.

I also read the Montana Sky Series - basic six books - written by Debra Holland. Set in later 1800s, about the various lives of families settling in a small Montana town over decade or so. They read as separate novellas, but start at the beginning as some of the characters are mentioned as you read along in the other stories. I found this under romance, western, historical - fiction. All nice clean stories. 4-5* Well Written.

Also, counted but time I can't get back - Wool, and a couple of mail-order-groom pap - unrated.

I try to read nice clean fiction. If I see 'bulging' or such - I don't finish reading. I figure that I have a good enough imagination and I don't have a need to read the sordid details. I read for the story, not for structure, although if anything is too bad, it's a waste of time. I find other folk's flaws before I can spot mine. LOL.

Have a good week!

 

Found a rabbit hole ...

I am taking a side trip down a different rabbit hole. Don't worry if I miss more days. I signed up for the Kindle Unlimited. I was reading a saga about a lady in my favorite era - WW1 and I have four books of it waiting for me.

Okay, so I am a bit selfish in my old age, but I do love to read and I hear there are no plug-ins on the other side of the dirt (no wifi either).

Later, friends, I'll peek in from time to time, until I get sick of this little tablet. Happy shopping, etc!

Y'all take care!

Letter from home, November 25, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

Some time has passed since I last wrote. I hope you are doing well, or as well as can be expected. 

Today would have been my mother's 99th birthday. I cannot begin to imagine how her life would have been if she had lived til now. Circumstances and life choices made for a rough go of it for her. I can only wish it would have been better for her.

Mom in 1994 with generations

 
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, I guess my youngest is coming to visit. I really don't have anything big planned. I did, however, take a stab at cleaning the floors yesterday, as I no longer have a helper. Every muscle in my legs aches and I am not going to even think of trying to work over a hot stove for dinner. I remember years ago of cooking Thanksgiving Dinner for most of the crew, all they did was show up. I should have done something about that. Well, by now they know first hand that it's not easy, it's not cheap, and it's more work than they really want to do. I know longer hear, "Are you cooking?" Forgive me, this is just an old woman rambling on about circumstances in her life.

We have had our killing frost, three nights in a row actually and autumn is withdrawing in favor of the winter weather. Brr! We had a low of 20F twice, which is a shade unusual for this early.

Jill has taken up sleeping with me. She likes to get under the top blanket, aligning herself with my legs. She makes for a rather large 'hot water bottle' and that's okay. Guess I will have winters of a one dog night from now on. I still haven't found a 3/4 bed. LOL.

I'm still reading lots of fiction. I read many of the free books on Smashwords.com and the supply seems endless. True, some of them aren't that great, spelling can be a problem, grammar can be a problem, BUT I read something memorable every day. It amazes me that there are so many good stories out there! As far as I am concerned, it's the content that counts.

I'm thinking of my friends out there, going through trials of their own and wishing them the very best. 

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all.

I love videos, BUT ...

I also pay a lot for my GBs of wireless service. I hate to remind folks who live where they have fast and unlimited service that I don't and there are still lots of people out there who are in the same position.

Once I click on a video, it begins to load and even though I may not want to watch 18 minutes of politics, or 5 minutes of some unknown singer, or even 3 minutes of cute puppies sitting under a tree barking - I am paying for whatever comes in. I have to be a "Quick Draw" to shut the bleep thing off!

I know that I am a little gun-shy, as far as clicking on things of interest. I also know that I would watch more of your fun things and recipes and educational items IF I knew ahead of time how much of my precious GBs would be used. Would it be too much trouble if I asked you to time your videos and write it in the beginning where I (we) can see it before clicking? I have noticed that a very few of you do this, and I thank you!

It started as a plain blah sunset ...

After the edge of the storm ...

Yesterday

Yesterday, I posted early and then my day began. Before sunrise, the sky was something else. It looked as if the artist had a heavy hand with the paint. I was delighted.

You can see our truck in the front. DH has it sitting in the front yard with a 'For Sale' sign in the window. Needless to say, the artwork was long gone before the sun actually rose. (I was ready though, for something truly spectacular)

A few hours later, Jill said she had to go outside and as I opened the front door, we were surprised to see a tall white-haired, bearded man at the top of the porch steps. Jill and I were both startled. Immediately bristling, Jill went out the door with me screaming, "Jill, Jill, it's okay!" I could see the man had someone there looking over the truck. She panicked. I could see she was between a rock and a hard place - wanting to protect her mommy and needing to evacuate her bowels. (And me worrying about her thinking about biting the man) As soon as I could, I got her back into the house - dripping on the floor. She came in, ashamed yet angry about the 'intruder.'

It goes without saying, that Jill gives the full meaning to the phrase, "Scared sh*tless" and I had a bit of clean up. It was not the first time, if you remember the first time her daddy took her for a ride in the little red convertible... 

The man didn't buy the truck, I was exhausted, and Jill spent the better part of the day upset. I'm hoping for a better day today. How about you?

Jill and the monkey

Jill 111516

Jill has a new toy, a monkey or maybe it's supposed to be a gorilla I don't know. Tonight I found her with the monkey, a teddy, and a puppy in my bed. She likes to lay up there and watch me at my desk. Actually, she goes where I do, carting her latest 'favorite' baby. Tonight it was the monkey. I often find them in my bed. I don't mind one or two, but there is a limit you know. She couldn't believe I tossed all three of them on HER bed when she decided to go to sleep. The look said, "Of all the nerve!" I just have to love my Jill, even if she tears the bed apart making a nest for her toys and leaves them there at bedtime.

I have been reading, get this - Western Romance! I have read nearly all of the free Smashwords selection under that heading. It's fun to fantasize and want a "Do-over" I think I would make a successful mail order bride, LOL. I have finished most of the free Regency books, not so sure about wanting to live back then - I don't believe I could be that prim and proper. Most modern day romance isn't all that great unless the characters travel or are out of the city. I am not all that thrilled with modern technology or the crowds. Not much to fantasize about ... I did notice a lot of things about the authors, a lot of them make their main characters writers and they are successful. Also some are rich and they spend their money. They have a fantasy all their own, LOL! Nothing wrong with that, it just doesn't sound realistic enough to be caught up in the story.

Last bit of news and I hope you can take the shock - I have been getting food catalogs in the mail and I am considering ordering some for Christmas. This old Bah Humbug can hardly believe it herself. The urge may only last as long as long as I don't watch any of those dad-gummed commercials on TV.

New day starting, have a good one!

Setting us up for the chill

We're having quite a nice day today, mostly sunshine, a light breeze, and 72F. What is not to love? True, it is not going to stay this way, but this fall has been better (warmer) than last fall.

Looks like we will get our first frost this week, we have been fortunate that it stayed away as long as it did. We usually have first frost in October.

I hope you are having pleasant weather, wherever you are.

Power... pfft!

I'm sitting here in the dark. I guess the power company is working on something. The lights, heat, and puckity quit working at 12:00.

Bless 'em. It's getting a tad chilly in here. I thought I would read a bit and play a bit as long as I was so rudely awakened by the bleeeeeeep of the shut-off warning on my puckity, I guess I had slept just enough to be wide awake now.

They should have us "lit up" in a few hours. I suppose I will find out how long the non-replaceable batteries will last in my hat. I have no idea where another flashlight is. :-) Looks like they are dimming already. Haha. Cheap junk.

Have a Good Sunday!

SAD light

Daylight savings time ended on Sunday. That brought quite a shock to my weakening system as the days had been becoming shorter and shorter as autumn progressed. It happens to me every year, so it was no surprise. I, like so many others, seem to depend on sunshine. This year, I bought a SAD light with hopes of lessening my bouts of seasonal depression.

I will say one good thing about the light, it has me making a more regular wake-up time on my own without benefit of a startling alarm clock that had me pushing the snooze button and feeling worse about waking up. It does take some getting used to doing it on schedule, but if I'm up on my own - what can I say.

This particular light has three different brightness settings and three different timer settings. Now, I don't know if this type of light therapy is proven or not. I just know that to wake up willingly and not drag out of bed works for me.

This thing is really white, but the room light is on because it's overcast.

This is the 'HI' setting

This is the 'LOW' setting

  You do NOT look directly at it, the light is set to the side. I look at my computer and the light faces between me and my monitor. These lights come with detailed instructions. I'm just telling you what helps me face the day since the days have shortened. Your results may vary.

Last day of October

October 31, 2015

I imagine you all thought I died, sorry. 

I don't know where the time goes anymore. We are in full autumn now, although we haven't had that first killing frost. Almost ... When we do, the fig leaves will curl up and drop dramatically. It does look as if it's all pretty dead out there already, no idea where the pollen is coming from.

Most of the birds have flown home in the reverse order of when they arrived this spring. Though upon leaving, they didn't have the exuberance they had this spring. The mourning doves are pretty steady company, along with a few cardinals and, of course, the sparrows.

I imagine the weather is going to be a downer for the town kids tonight. I don't see any trick or treating happening. We have a fine, cold, steady rain coming down. It's that chill you to the bone kinda rain. Halloween weather has never been predictable here. We have had heat and shorts weather and freezing rain, kind of like that famous box of chocolates.

Here's hoping you all have a great weekend and a happy Halloween!

Lighten up?

Halloween Spook House? Nope, right in the front yard and close to an elementary school where children walk, or are driven to and from every day. Controversial? You bet! The comments to the news postings are pretty much split on this subject. One group of people say it's too much, too graphic, too hard on the children that see it. Another group of people say these folks are within their rights, name calling the nay-sayers, and they should grow a pair. I didn't read all the comments, but one person actually said screw the kids. I will say that it sounded like a lot of the comments for the yard art were from teenagers and non-parents, though not all. I will say that most of the commenters that think it's great, cannot spell and use a potty mouth.

Somehow, in light of all the events happening in the news, I don't think it is the wisest move to have something like this on display in your yard for over three weeks. That is just my opinion. I say they are well done, although not appropriate where little kids will see on a daily basis. Would be great in a spook house or for a backyard party. 

For those who think this display is all fun and after all this is Halloween and we should suck it up - please tell me how a small child is supposed to UNSEE THIS?

 

[I can see clearly now] Bright, bright, sun shiny day!

Clear skies and sunshine!

Good Morning! After 10 continuous days of dark and drear, the sky is clear! (I'll only mention the bleep cold for past several days) The picture is for visible proof of sunny day and no clouds. Maybe the forecast for today is the truth and the warm will rebound for a while. The past few days, we had to run the central heat.

It appears my camera has had it. After what DH paid, it should have been good until I passed on. Sigh ... They don't make anything that lasts anymore. My heart beats between the click and click of the shutter. I only have to be holding it for it not to focus properly. I will have to test it on timed w/out me to test otherwise. BUT the shake warning comes on holding it still. Hard to take impromptu pictures of anything that moves. Note: I will not be getting a new camera, anything less than what I had would make me unhappy, so why spend that $ again. Right?

The only birds here this morning are the mourning doves. I guess the sparrows and cardinals are sleeping in. 

I hope you are having a sun shiny day too!

A tad damp and chilly

Too early!

This is the fireplace we bought and hooked up when we first moved in here. It eats oxygen. BUT, we decided to hook it back up again for emergency heat if the power goes out. He lit it today, I have to say, I would rather freeze than to have to try to breathe very long using this.

Back to the drawing board. I had thought solar generator, but (no, that's a BIG BUT) as we have had a full week of cloudy days, I don't think that's such a great idea either.

There is not enough wind here for a wind generator and the outdoor latrine has been out of order for any methane gas. JK folks. 

 Wood smoke would kill me the quickest. Those pellet stoves are bad news too.

Living in an all electric home is cleaner, just not reliable way out in the boonies. We have been pushing our luck out here for the past ten years, will this year be the bad one? We get some hellacious ice storms here.

Post Script: Treasure your lungs, folks. This is no bleep way to live.

Wordless Wednesday

Here comes autumn!

 

'Twas not to be ...

You all know (or you should by now) how crazy I am about the moon. (Maybe it's from the moon?) Here are my attempts at catching that bloody super moon eclipse. I will say that I was very, extremely, profoundly, heartrendingly disappointed. I saw no "blood." All I could see the whole time it was eclipsed was black. My camera was a disappointment to me too, and my arms, the whole thing. Naturally, Tacky cat came to see what I was doing and wanted to help.

Start - kinda

Thinner clouds

Almost covered,

 Then - nothing but black ...

Over and coming out of it.

 I did see a lot of wonderful shots contributed by those lucky enough to actually see the event. Thanks, Y'all!

Yard Ornaments

I planned to post earlier, but I had this irresistible urge to take a nap first. Now, of course, I feel more like crap than refreshed. DH never made it to town today, seems he had the same urge. So, instead of buying 3 "For Sale" signs for the yard ornaments, sleep won us both. I didn't take a picture of the truck - it needs to go too or be swapped for something that is more desirable and trustworthy.

Yard Ornaments ca 1994 & 1985

 Have a wonderful weekend!

Latest Garage Occupant

At last! I am tired of, "Hon, look at this one," and having to drop what I'm doing to look at yet another old car. What I would like to see next is "For Sale" signs on some of what looks like a used car lot in our yard. Really!

Oh, this one is a 1941 Dodge that's older than I am - wish I looked as good, and I pray that it functions better than I do!

Wordless Wednesday

Feed me!

An early morning

Picture I promised before, as you can see over half is on the ground.

Chilly this a.m. the pond is warmer than the air. Brr!

Tacky heard me outside and came a-running!

My Mourning Doves are back and a few sparrows. The crows are here this morning eating the wal-mart cheap feed - mostly cracked corn. The doves and sparrows don't touch ...

Have a great whatever Y'all!

Bye - Bye Birdies

Has been a while, sorry. Feeling kind of blah and sneezing like crazy. The pollen count has been high lately.

I don't seem to have any more birds ...

I don't know if it was time for them to give up the neighborhood or if the new bag of seed we got from Wal Mart is the reason. Maybe the little guys knew their housing was going to be trashed by a storm. I don't know. I see crows. Even my Cardinals who live here year round (until now) have bid me a Hasta-la-bye-bye. 

A day or so after the new bird seed, we had a storm. It was very windy, and everything was going sideways.

This womb is getting to me!

Jill's bed takes up so much room, I am actually considering getting a larger bed for myself and throwing hers away. She always wants to sleep with me anyway - right? Think it might stop the tromping around in the night and give me different usable space. A lot of this stuff has to hit the garbage can. Why save it anyway? Oh, I know that I really wanted to die and leave the mess for someone else to clean up as revenge, but ...

Thinking of getting some bookcases and making more of my things vertical. Does that make sense? Ideally one of those tall pantry like things with shelves for books and boxes ... I guess I should let my fingers do the shopping. Any suggestions for 'space saving' would be nice.

Have a great day, night, whatever! 

Do games die?

I play "Free Cell" a lot, it's my favorite. I play when I am on the phone (hands free), when I'm bored, and when I'm plotting - anything. I'm not great at it, so it is challenging enough to keep trying but not discouraging enough to send it to the hinterlands. I have played it on this computer tens of thousands of games since I got it. Today, however it decided to throw me a curve.

 Out of the blue, it began stacking a row wrong. I couldn't get it moved where it belonged. I finished the game and hoping it was just a fluke, began another.

 Things that make you say, "Hmm ..."
I played that game and quit. Played something else.
Then I tried it again. It's fine - or is it? Is my game dying or is it my computer? 

Good Sunday All!

At Least I am Predictable

Jill, family member since August 15, 2009

I didn't mean to, but, yeah, I did forget about her anniversary post. Jill has that look - it I took off her collar and stuck her in a cage, I could make a plea for poor, badly treated, dogs. She fears the camera, loud noises, rain, seeing the radar on TV, well, just about everything. It's just her nature. I can get better shots outside when she hasn't a clue that I will be taking pictures.

Jill thinks she is a lap dog, a 36# lap dog. She's a good guard dog and tells me everything that is going on within her sight. Leaves blowing, dogs running, neighbor working, grass growing ... She is horribly spoiled, but we love her and I guess we made her that way - the beaten look? - I have no idea where that came from. It is hard to believe she's six already!

Dear Readers,

I know it has been a while. There's not much to tell.

I apologize to those in parched places, but we had a gully washer here this afternoon. If I could have sent it your way, believe me, I would have. The thunderstorm that came first was - hmm - shocking almost? I think I must be losing it, but as lightning hit nearby, I swear that I saw a bright red ball of light shoot through the window and headed for Jill. LOUD thunder with that one. I heard it as I saw it pass through the room. It was like one of those laser lights, you know? Shock collars were taken off immediately. The storm had to be right overhead. A few minutes later, Kablam, my computer screamed, it was bright white outside in the flash. DH said it looked like it hit between the oaks. We will examine tomorrow. Scared all of us, not just the dogs.

Picture is of my number 3 son - J. He was here last weekend, cannot remember why. I took a picture of him and his mustache. I think it looks pretty good! (Not that I would want one, I would probably slap myself silly in my sleep, thinking it was a bug or spider on my cheek.)

My presence is getting thin on the web. FB is so full of hate and politics. Everyone has an agenda. Meh.

I am a lousy writer, and have no business even trying, but I am at it again. The story may not make sense, but then again, few will ever see. It keeps me out of trouble. I ordered some wrist things and they help with the pain. I slept through, all night, last night. First time in months.

Sparrow Hall is looking pretty rough. The rosy house finches have all but abandoned me. I still have lots of sparrows and doves. I suppose I will see more variety again as fall nears. That won't be long, I think. The redheaded woodpecker was here in Sparrow Hall the other day for a look-see. I'm not fast enough to get the shots I want. Bleep.
Take care of yourselves!

It will come ...

The sun was setting as I took this shot. No, during the day, it doesn't look that bad, but it does make me think of the days ahead. The leaves are fading fast. They are drab and dull. It was very windy before and the yard is full of dead/dying leaves. I would venture a guess that we will have another early autumn. We had a good rain, along with the wind. The yard is full of robins too. They come in droves after a rain.

SO ... Today, I had by first full day of being 70. I don't count much of yesterday, as I was born shortly before midnight. Haha. I don't really care for the classification of "Old." It's tough enough getting there without that slap in the face. I do have some very lovely people in the ranks I have joined, though. (I agree, girlfriend, this one is pretty hard to take.)

My youngest came for a visit today, bearing an ice cream cake from the Dairy Queen AND DVDs for us. Dad received Dad type stuff and I got some funny stuff. I think he has me hooked on "Weeds" as I had never seen the series. I really enjoyed the first show! I know it's old, but it's new to me! DH and I both had a good birthday.

It is Jill's adoption day anniversary. We have had her in our family for six years now. She will get a page of her own next week - IF I remember.

Sparrow Hall has started to split down the middle, I don't believe it is going to last through fall. (Big frowny face)