Ten Things of Thankful - Week 47, 2017

The bottom half of the above image shows a row of  wood planks, possibly a boardwalk or an outdoor table, on which there are five Autumn leaves in rust and gold that are in the process of curling as they begin to decay. The top half of the image has a muted background of yellow, gold, green and rust that is probably a blurred image of Autumn foliage. Printed on the background in four lines of  brown text is a quote by Katrina Mayer that says "Thanksgiving isn't just a day... It's a way we can live our lives every day." The image is framed in a double border of gold and rust, and is borrowed from KatrinaMayer.com*

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Well, here we are to the last week of November. It's funny how fast life goes by as you grow older. I can't believe we are just four weeks away from Christmas. It will never really feel like Christmas time here in Texas after growing up in the snow and cold of South Dakota.

How was your Thanksgiving Day? Ours was quiet and relaxing. With most of our family out of range and the others out of touch, we spent it by ourselves, watching the Macy's Parade, the Vikings win and our Texas Cowboys go down in flames once again.  We also enjoyed a really good buffet that our nicest area hotel does for holidays.  I am thankful for blessing of having each other to share the day with. We reflected on how much we have to be thankful for, despite the ups and downs of life.  But just as the quote above says, Thanksgiving isn't just a day of gratitude, it should be a way of life, everyday should include Thanksgiving! 

As I noted last week, Papa Bear, for the first time in 35 years, was given the Friday and Saturday following Thanksgiving off with pay. It was really nice to see him detach from the stress and weariness of six-day work weeks and just relax. I pray that we can make this happen for him in the future. I am thankful that the owners of the truck asscessories shop where he works realized that not everything is about profit, taking care of your employees is also good business.

I am thankful that both my daughter and son had partners to celebrate Thanksgiving with this year, both cooked at home and had great meals.  My son worked Thanksgiving night but his work schedule is changing December 1st, and will give him more weekend time to spend with his girlfriend and her son.  I am thankful her new job at the bank is going well and she really likes it! On Thanksgiving Eve as she was driving home from work in Nashville, a car pulled out in front of her and she was unable to avoid hitting them.  The front driver's side of her car was badly damaged but by the grace of God she wasn't hurt, and we are all so thankful for that, and also that her young son wasn't in the car at the time. The other driver left the scene but later contacted police so a report has been filed and hopefully their insurance will take care of it.  It was an upsetting start to her holiday, and she was sad about the damage to her car, which was only two years old. But the bottom line is that no one was injured. Things are replaceable.

I am thankful for the beautiful weather we are having this year, with many days in the 70's and nights in the 40's for good sleeping. Sweater weather in late November always feels like a treat to me! Yesterday Papa Bear and I were able to work on a couple outdoor projects because it was warm enough to do so.

I am SO THANKFUL for the new glass window pane which has finally replaced the Plexiglas one in our living room that came with the mobile home when we purchased it almost ten years ago! Plexiglas does not make for good widows, it was dirty and scratched and tended to bow out under strong winds, and I was afraid that one day it would sail away!  Papa Bear did a beautiful job of replacing it with a new pane, I am very thankful for his handyman skills.  Of course washing the window pane above it, giving us a crystal clear view out to the deck, made us quite aware of how badly the other windows need a good washing.  Will put that on the ever-growing things to do list.

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I stopped after the last paragraph yesterday to run some errands in town, intending to come back and finish my post last night.  As is typical, life took another turn.  As I was sitting and watching a little television with Papa Bear after supper the Achilles tendon on my right heal decided to start throbbing/burning. I've dealt with ongoing plantar fasciitis and heel spurs on that foot for a couple years now, but it hasn't been nearly as much of a problem since retiring and spending less time on my feet.  What or why it flared up last night is unknown, can't figure it out, but I spent most of the night awake in pain and today has found me hobbling around with a walker unable to put weight on that heel at all. Papa Bear took a day of sick leave to stay home and help me out, and after keeping it elevated and iced it is maybe a little less painful tonight, but I'm still not able to put weight on it.  I will baby it for a few days and hope it heals quickly.  While feeling sorry for myself I thought about all the people and families I know who are dealing with much bigger struggles, and I am thankful that my worries and problems are small.  I am also thankful this year is almost over, it's been a challenging one and I'm claiming 2018 as a year of brighter/better/bolder living... fingers crossed! No matter what is or what comes to be, I am beyond the shadow of a doubt truly blessed. And on that note it's time for more Ibuprofen and another icepack. I'll be around in the next day or two to read your posts and comment. It seems like, despite my best intentions, behind is my current mode or operation, but I'm trying, and there is hope! :-)

Blessings to you in the days ahead... Look for reasons to be thankful in your life, and remember to be a blessing to someone else!

 

The above photo is a click-button to the TToT link-up. It is photo of one of our beautiful Texas sunsets with blue still peeking through the clouds; yellow, orange and pink bands around the remaining sliver of bright sun, and a wide band of black earth below it on which I've written Ten Things of Thankful.*

* Descriptions of the included photos are being provided for those who may be unable to view the illustrations.

Ten Things of Thankful - Week 46, 2017

The above image has two overlapping leaves in shades of  bright autumn gold on the right side and a quote by Brene Brown printed on the left side in gold text that matches the leaves that says "There is no Joy without gratitude." Amen to that! The background is in muted shades of autumn gold, green and brown. The image is borrowed from CathyTaughinbaugh.com*

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This has been a busy week with some good things happening and some bad things avoided, so there is much to be thankful for...

First off, Andy one of the now not-so-feral kitties that I feed on our deck disappeared for two days. That's not uncommon in cat colonies, but I worried about him since he rarely misses a meal. The third morning as I headed down the deck steps to my car I heard a loud meowing and discovered that he had managed to squeeze himself under the skirting of our manufactured home and couldn't find a way out. He was mighty happy to be set free, and to be treated to a dish of tuna. :-)  I was relieved, and the small space he fit through has now been closed off.  He and Smoky, the other feral, have grown big and strong, and have become very affectionate and tame. I would be so sad if something happened to either one. I am thankful he was unharmed, and had the good sense to call out to me when he heard me approaching!

I was very thankful to return home from town one day and discover that a nearby neighbor who had been pouring a new concrete pad in front of their house had come and filled up two large potholes in our driveway with extra caliche (Google it). Papa Bear had spoken to them a few days earlier about buying some from them, but they shared it for no charge. It was very kind and much appreciated!

I am thankful that my younger sister got through a minor out-patient surgical procedure yesterday to remove a small lump that had been growing on her forehead for some time. It is most likely non-cancerous but needed to go, and she was nervous about being under general anesthesia. All went well, and now we can desist with the many jokes which were helping her to keep it in perspective. :-)

While on the subject of sisters, I am most thankful to report that my two sisters and I are managing to continue the daily texting and sharing of snippets of our lives with no cross words or petty disagreements. It is such a joy to share as sisters and not feel negative undertones or deal with hurt feelings. Maybe now that we are all in our sixties we have at last grown up!

I am thankful for something new that you might not be aware of.  The USPS (Postal Service) is offering what they call "informed delivery" on their phone app. Each morning they provide scanned photos of the letters that will be delivered to you that day along with updates on any packages that are heading toward you. Our mailbox is on a rural highway, not terribly safe, so it's a blessing to know when something important needs to be picked up, and also when there will be packages to go and retrieve from the Post Office. It's a free service... check it out! 

I am so very thankful this year for the gift of quiet mornings, time to wake up slowly and savor the beginning of my day instead of rushing off to work as I had to do for so many years. I look forward to a time when Papa Bear will also be able to do this.

Papa Bear was so happy to be informed this week that the truck accessories shop where he has worked for 35 years will for the first time be closing Thursday/Friday/Saturday for Thanksgiving, meaning four days off for him! They are also going to close the day after Christmas. This is a very busy time of year in retail and he is exhausted by the end of most six-day work weeks, so the extra days to put his feet up, and maybe do a couple house projects is a real blessing and we are thankful!

I am thankful for local online groups that serve as a place for people to post free ads of things they have for sale. I have sold several things we no longer need that way, as did my daughter before her move to Dallas.  This week I found the perfect rocker/glider and ottoman for my new writing/tv room on "Let Go" in a nearby town that was in excellent condition at a very fair price. Papa Bear went and picked it up for me. Much of our house is furnished with used furniture and I like that, new isn't always better.

I have the bad habit of putting assorted things in a "special place" so I remember where to find them. Then, of course, I forget where that special place was. It happens with regularity as I grow older and am so easily distracted.  I am thankful that surprisingly often if I think about it quietly and wait for the right location to come to mind, it will.  I've had that happen three times this week, misplaced items appeared almost magically. I am thinking that I need to designate one "special place" and put every little thing there that I will be needing later, so I wouldn't have to challenge my memory like this! :-)

One of my favorite lines from the famous poem Desiderata by Max Ehrmann is "If you compare yourself with others you may become vain or bitter,  for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself." This proves itself true time and time again as I challenge my friends and my brain with Words with Friends and now Chess with Friends. Over time my WWF skills have improved considerably, and I can occasionally beat some of the really good players... like Val! :-) I am a terrible chess player, I play on impulse and never have a real strategy.  In both places I have encountered people who are far better than I, but are willing to play with me so that I can gain experience and hopefully better skills. I pay it forward when I play with those who are developing their skills. I never let people win, and I don't want people to let me win either, but there is a way to be encouraging rather than just trounce someone for the fun of it. I am thankful for those who challenge me to do better, and for those who remind me to stay humble. Do you play chess? I need more opponents!

Last, but definitely not least, today marks the anniversary of my friend Mariah's death. In 2009, at the age of 14, she committed suicide by hanging herself, despondent over a boyfriend's recent death in an auto accident. I am thankful that this horrible tragedy, along with many other suicides by young people on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, served to increased awareness of the problem and new intervention programs were implemented which have undoubtedly saved lives. Today I honor her memory and I wish her spirit peace. I am thankful for all her mother does to reach out to other young people on the reservation who are struggling in a very difficult living environment. As I noted to my many young rez friends on Facebook today, Mariah's story is a lesson to remind us that suicide is never there answer, there is always hope.

This is a photograph of Mariah dressed in her Lakota (Sioux) jingle-dancer regalia for a wacipi (powwow). Her black dress is adorned with shells and bells fashioned from rolled pieces of tin, her long dark hair is braided and tied with large beaded medallions. She is holding a folded Pendleton blanket over her left arm and a feather fan in her right. She has a shy sweet smile. She loved cats as much as I do and we talked about them often. She had a beautiful, tender heart.

Blessings to you in the days ahead... Look for reasons to be thankful in your life, and remember to be a blessing to someone else!

 

The above photo is a click-button to the TToT link-up. It is photo of one of our beautiful Texas sunsets with blue still peeking through the clouds; yellow, orange and pink bands around the remaining sliver of bright sun, and a wide band of black earth below it on which I've written Ten Things of Thankful.*

* Descriptions of the included photos are being provided for those who may be unable to view the illustrations.

Ten Things of Thankful - Weeks 44 & 45, 2017

The above image is of a two lane highway winding through a valley lined by tall trees displaying beautiful shades of bright autumn gold amidst dark evergreens. A quote by Alice Walker is printed on it in white text and says "THANK YOU is the best prayer that anyone could say. I say that one a lot. Thank you expresses extreme gratitude, humility and understanding." The image is borrowed from Success.com.*

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Week 44 - The deadline for linking up my TToT post for the 44th week of this year has long since passed, but that doesn't mean I wasn't grateful, only that I had other priorities. I turned out that the flooring project was more time consuming than we could have imagined and she ended up spending nine days here, returning home last Wednesday.  Needless to say, I wasn't going to spend time at the computer on the last day we had together, and we were scrambling to get finished.  But wow... the results of our combined efforts (mostly hers) are professional and amazing!  She removed all the old vinyl from our front and back hallways, front bathroom and kitchen, and the worn carpeting from the living room, and replaced it with this beautiful commercial grade vinyl plank flooring.  By turning the living room/kitchen into one cohesive area it makes the house feel so much bigger than ever before, and we LOVE the heritage oak color/pattern which very closely resembles wood flooring but with all the ease of caring for a vinyl floor.  It was hard work, and we still need to do the base trim, laundry room and Master bath at some point.  We have plenty of flooring left for it. I am also going to paint the walls a soft gold color to add more warmth. As you can see in the photo below, Sophie our elder cat has claimed the new area rug as her domain. :-)

The above image is a photo of our living room taken from the adjoining kitchen area which shows the new medium oak vinyl plank flooring, our leather reclining loveseat, one of the two large oak rocking chairs, end tables and tall curio cabinets.  Sophie is laying contentedly on the multi-colored large shag area rug in earth colors that occupies .the center of the room. Matching runners can be found in both hallways.

Not only are both John and I delighted and so very grateful for this priceless gift of her time, talent and money, but also for the help she gave me in cleaning high places, organizing some of the endless clutter, and getting me jump-started on getting my life back in order.  She also bought plants, and kitty furniture and toys, making them think that Christmas came early! 

While it wasn't all fun, and some days we were tired, sore, and grouchy, we are both very proud of our efforts and it gives me a new perspective on our little house... I am loving it again, and would now invite you in if you showed up, whereas before I probably would not have!  There are still a couple rooms in major need of decluttering/organization, but I have a list of projects and will stick with it until done no matter how long it takes.  At long last I feel hope, and I have my daughter to thank for that! <3

Week 45 - Our manufactured house has three bedrooms, and the one at the East end has been collecting storage overflow for some time.  It is dubbed "Sophie's room" because she is 14 now, an elder, and often desires time apart from her more rowdy feline siblings.  She is allowed in and out of her room at will and runs down the hall to put her paws up on the door when she wants in. :-)  I cleaned it up when my daughter came to provide guest room space with an airbed for her, and also had DirecTV reconnected to the flat screen tv.  Now that she is gone, I have organized the room into a writing study for me, the first time in a long time I've had my own little corner and writing desk, where I can sit looking out the window and enjoying the cats keeping me company while I write. Currently I can see the horses in the corral next door, and vehicles moving down a corner of the highway in the distance.  When we first moved out here seven years ago we didn't have any neighbors, now we do, but we still enjoy a fair amount of privacy and the ability to do what we like on our little piece of land without city regulative interference.  We can still enjoy the huge star canopy overhead from our hot tub at night (my daughter really wanted to take that home with her :-)

I haven't had many plants in the house because so many are toxic to cats. You have to be really careful when purchasing them, also cats like to dig in the dirt!  My daughter taught me to cover the dirt with medium landscaping rocks that are too heavy for them to rearrange, so they leave the plants alone, and leaves they like to chew on can be sprayed or wiped with diluted lemon juice or vineagar to keep them in tact.  Several pretty new plants are now gracing our windows and floor, and both of our Christmas cactuses have gone in to Christmas bloom mode, the first one opening today!!  Green things growing in the house is so good for the soul!

Additionally, my daughter did an amazing job of adjusting and insulating our front and back entrance doors so we now have no drafts coming in, and the new furnace is keeping our house wonderfully cozy, major improvements from what we dealt with last winter.  Big blessings despite the expense. 

As several of you have noted, I have taken a much needed break from blogging and the computer in recent weeks.  I needed some time to assess where I wanted to go with my main blog, and how much time I want to devote to it.  I will soon be ready to pick it up again, maybe before the end of the year, and maybe at the beginning of next.  In the past I was spending more time with my face in the screen than I was in living in the moment, and I am revising that.

I do apologize sincerely for my absence at TToT and your blogs for the past few weeks, I was truly busy, and tired by nightfall, and it just had to be set aside, as much as I hated to do so.  I will be commenting on your posts from the current link-up today, and then will gradually work my way back through all the ones I missed, because I love hearing about the positives in your lives!  This hasn't been an easy year for many of us, in fact it's been a particularly hard one, but there have also been countless blessings that make life good, and I remain so very very thankful for all that God has given me, and for the friendships that have been formed here.  I appreciate you, and I am thankful for your patience and ongoing participation in the TToT!

Duty calls... task of the day is to clean and reorganize the kitchen drawers... and then scoop the kitty boxes.  I lead a very glamorous life! :-)  I am incredibly blessed at this age to have the freedom to plan my own days, and do things that need doing and things that I enjoy... I will get Papa Bear's  afghan finished yet!

Blessings to you in the days ahead... Look for reasons to be thankful in your life, and remember to be a blessing to someone else!

 

The above photo is a click-button to the TToT link-up. It is photo of one of our beautiful Texas sunsets with blue still peeking through the clouds; yellow, orange and pink bands around the remaining sliver of bright sun, and a wide band of black earth below it on which I've written Ten Things of Thankful.*

* Descriptions of the included photos are being provided for those who may be unable to view the illustrations.