Monday, April 13, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
25 Random Things
1. After I was born, I pushed my mother away with my little feet when I was stretching and made her cry.
2. I am the eldest of two children.
3. I try to keep my religion a private matter but sometimes my spirituality pours out anyway.
4. When I was young, I wanted to be an astronomer, an archaeologist, and a geologist. I am none of these.
5. I had an invisible friend named James and I was first kissed in the fifth grade by a boy named James. I married a James but it isn't the same person.
6. I enjoy playing the guitar but I don't do it as often as I would like anymore.
7. I like scary things so long as they aren't too gory.
8. I like 68-72 degree weather. I don't like it too cold or too hot and I do not like being in the wind at all.
9. I haven't been in an airplane since 1993, when we flew to Florida to go to Disney for four days.
10. As a small child I liked to go camping when my parents took me but now that I am adult I prefer room service.
11. I am content to be at home by myself but I am happy when my husband is home.
12. My heroes are my husband, my grandmothers, and women who overcome adversity.
13. Chocolate is my favorite food.
14. I used to be a big fan of Xena: Warrior Princess and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I would probably still be watching if the shows were on.
15. I am loyal to my friends.
16. I take things personally, even when I shouldn't, so I say "I'm sorry" too much.
17. I am a romantic realist. I see things through colored spectacles but I realize that I don't always see the truth of the matter.
18. My biggest regret has been my inability to have children.
19. Just because I love someone, it doesn't necessarily mean I like them, although in most instances I do.
20. When I was 16 years old, I hit a deer with my car. Sometimes I still have nightmares about it.
21. Gardening makes me smile. I like the feel of the soil in my hands.
22. I had surgery to remove a huge mole from my chest when I was 5 years old.
23. I miss friends I haven't seen in years sometimes.
24. I cry over happy movie endings.
25. Retirement is not on my near horizons. I think I will be working until I am 70 or older.
2. I am the eldest of two children.
3. I try to keep my religion a private matter but sometimes my spirituality pours out anyway.
4. When I was young, I wanted to be an astronomer, an archaeologist, and a geologist. I am none of these.
5. I had an invisible friend named James and I was first kissed in the fifth grade by a boy named James. I married a James but it isn't the same person.
6. I enjoy playing the guitar but I don't do it as often as I would like anymore.
7. I like scary things so long as they aren't too gory.
8. I like 68-72 degree weather. I don't like it too cold or too hot and I do not like being in the wind at all.
9. I haven't been in an airplane since 1993, when we flew to Florida to go to Disney for four days.
10. As a small child I liked to go camping when my parents took me but now that I am adult I prefer room service.
11. I am content to be at home by myself but I am happy when my husband is home.
12. My heroes are my husband, my grandmothers, and women who overcome adversity.
13. Chocolate is my favorite food.
14. I used to be a big fan of Xena: Warrior Princess and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I would probably still be watching if the shows were on.
15. I am loyal to my friends.
16. I take things personally, even when I shouldn't, so I say "I'm sorry" too much.
17. I am a romantic realist. I see things through colored spectacles but I realize that I don't always see the truth of the matter.
18. My biggest regret has been my inability to have children.
19. Just because I love someone, it doesn't necessarily mean I like them, although in most instances I do.
20. When I was 16 years old, I hit a deer with my car. Sometimes I still have nightmares about it.
21. Gardening makes me smile. I like the feel of the soil in my hands.
22. I had surgery to remove a huge mole from my chest when I was 5 years old.
23. I miss friends I haven't seen in years sometimes.
24. I cry over happy movie endings.
25. Retirement is not on my near horizons. I think I will be working until I am 70 or older.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Books: Sue Grafton
"A" is for Alibi
"B" is for Burglar
"C" is for Corpse
"D" is for Deadbeat
By Sue Grafton
Audio books
Copyrights 1983-1987
I just finished listening to these four audio books. I somehow had missed Sue Grafton's work in my reading/listening.
Private investigator Kinsie Millhone lives in Santa Theresa in California, where she has adventures.
These audios are ably read by Judy Kaye, who does a nice job.
I enjoy the reporterish style, the play by play of what Kinsey is doing (the books are in first person, as most of these things are).
These early books could do with a re-write and a re-release if they haven't already had that happen just to update them so that the detective is using cellphones and laptops, but aside from noticing that I really liked these stories. I have checked out four more of these from the library so I guess I will be catching up on them.
The author calls this the alphabet series so I suppose there will 26 of them; she is still writing them and just released another.
"B" is for Burglar
"C" is for Corpse
"D" is for Deadbeat
By Sue Grafton
Audio books
Copyrights 1983-1987
I just finished listening to these four audio books. I somehow had missed Sue Grafton's work in my reading/listening.
Private investigator Kinsie Millhone lives in Santa Theresa in California, where she has adventures.
These audios are ably read by Judy Kaye, who does a nice job.
I enjoy the reporterish style, the play by play of what Kinsey is doing (the books are in first person, as most of these things are).
These early books could do with a re-write and a re-release if they haven't already had that happen just to update them so that the detective is using cellphones and laptops, but aside from noticing that I really liked these stories. I have checked out four more of these from the library so I guess I will be catching up on them.
The author calls this the alphabet series so I suppose there will 26 of them; she is still writing them and just released another.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
Reasons I have a headache:
1. The tulips, the redbuds, the daffodils, the grass, the mustard in the hayfield, the hayfield...
2. The changing weather as a storm front begins to move in.
3. The hip hop that suddenly came on the radio when I was expecting to hear Adult Contemporary earlier today (my husband had changed the station on me).
4. Missing lunch because I was working.
5. Not sleeping well because my husband was a work last night.
6. Dry sinuses because the whole-house steam humidifier is not working properly.
7. Stress from deadlines.
8. An increase in my blood pressure.
9. Stress from work caused by deadlines and issues that demand my immediate attention.
10. Mold, mildew, dust mites and other invisible creepy crawlies that set off my allergies.
11. Less hair from a cut today that left my tresses seriously shorter than they once were.
12. A $989 bill from the hospital for an overnight stay in the emergency room in February.
13. Glare from the computer screen.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 93nd one.
1. The tulips, the redbuds, the daffodils, the grass, the mustard in the hayfield, the hayfield...
2. The changing weather as a storm front begins to move in.
3. The hip hop that suddenly came on the radio when I was expecting to hear Adult Contemporary earlier today (my husband had changed the station on me).
4. Missing lunch because I was working.
5. Not sleeping well because my husband was a work last night.
6. Dry sinuses because the whole-house steam humidifier is not working properly.
7. Stress from deadlines.
8. An increase in my blood pressure.
9. Stress from work caused by deadlines and issues that demand my immediate attention.
10. Mold, mildew, dust mites and other invisible creepy crawlies that set off my allergies.
11. Less hair from a cut today that left my tresses seriously shorter than they once were.
12. A $989 bill from the hospital for an overnight stay in the emergency room in February.
13. Glare from the computer screen.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 93nd one.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
The Eagle Rock Library
This is the site of the new library in Eagle Rock. It will open in 2010.
Botetourt County is paying just over $1 million for the building. The cost is about $500,000 less than they had budgeted for because contractors were hungry for work and so bid low.
The facility will be about 9,000 square feet, making it the largest library in the county.
Someday there will be a basketball court and community center to the rear of the lot.
The library will sit in front of Eagle Rock Elementary School. Library officials expect a lot of school children will visit when the bell rings in the afternoon.
It will be the fourth library in the county.
Botetourt County covers 548 square miles of territory and it takes an hour to drive from Glen Wilton to the north to Blue Ridge to the south.
That's why there will be four libraries, so folks in the northern end will have some county service.
The other libraries are in Blue Ridge, Fincastle, and Buchanan.
I am vice-chairman of the Botetourt County Library Board of Trustees. I was appointed by the supervisor for the Amsterdam District to serve on this board. My term ends in 2010, at which point I cannot serve again under the Library by-laws. I'll have to sit out a term or two.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Adventures in Reporting #2
Regular readers might think I dislike hot air balloons, but truly that is not so. I only have problems with one particular balloonist, which is a different matter entirely.
Hot air balloons are quite lovely as they float in the sky. They are quite breathtaking and I love to watch them when they aren't scaring my cows.
In November 1986, I went up in one.
Several weeks earlier I had witnessed what, from the ground, looked liked an aircraft harrassing a hot air balloonist. I don't recall if I was at home watching this or somewhere else; at any event, it worried me enough that I wrote a column about it for The Herald. (Yes, I have been writing for them that long.) At that time I had a lifestyle column similiar to the one I have now, only it was under a different name.
Anyway, after I wrote the column expressing my concern for the balloonist, I received a note in the mail (regular mail back then, no email) from Natalie Haley. She was the balloonist I had seen. She offered me a free ride.
I couldn't turn that down, so with camera in hand and husband in tow, I met up with her one Sunday morning at what used to be Howard Johnsons (now it's a Mexican restaurant and a Super 8).
After determining wind direction with a helium balloon, Mrs. Haley decided we would set off from behind Lee's Market (now Bellacino's) in Dr. Fralin's field. She said the wind would take us along US 220 toward Fincastle.
Her balloon was called Skylark, and it was a spectacle of color whether it was on the ground or in the sky.
My husband refused to fly with me. He watched from the ground as I rose up into the clouds.
I wrote about that adventure in a first person article published on December 3, 1986, and for which I won one of the first of my several Virginia Press Association awards.
Here are some excerpts:
"The ground crew released its grip on the massive bulge of air, and suddenly we were going up! I watched my husband grow smaller and smaller as the balloon sailed high into the sky."
"Daleville and Amsterdam look like tiny towns in an HO scale train set from 800 feet in the air. The dogs and cattle sound as if they are right in the air with you. The curve of the earth looks sharp enough to cut you, and suddenly you are one with the clouds."
"The orchards looked small and naked from our vantage point. If the highway hadn't been below us, I would have been lost. The familiar was unrecognizable from our position within the clouds."
"You can't feel the wind, because you are the wind," Natalie Haley said. That aspect is part of the romanticism of the big balloons. There is nothing between the earth and you except a basket, and it was insignificant enough not to matter. Floating is not descriptive enough to describe the feeling you get when you're up there alone."
"It's so quiet and peaceful, it's easy to forget the world exists below."
We landed in a field near Trinity. After putting the balloon away, Mrs. Haley poured champaigne over my head for my maiden voyage, and presented me with a certificate as she recited what she said was the balloonist's prayer:
May the winds welcome you with softness.
May the sun bless you with his warm hands.
May you fly so high and so well that God joins you in laughter.
And may he set you back again into the loving arms of mother earth.
Hot air balloons are quite lovely as they float in the sky. They are quite breathtaking and I love to watch them when they aren't scaring my cows.
In November 1986, I went up in one.
Several weeks earlier I had witnessed what, from the ground, looked liked an aircraft harrassing a hot air balloonist. I don't recall if I was at home watching this or somewhere else; at any event, it worried me enough that I wrote a column about it for The Herald. (Yes, I have been writing for them that long.) At that time I had a lifestyle column similiar to the one I have now, only it was under a different name.
Anyway, after I wrote the column expressing my concern for the balloonist, I received a note in the mail (regular mail back then, no email) from Natalie Haley. She was the balloonist I had seen. She offered me a free ride.
I couldn't turn that down, so with camera in hand and husband in tow, I met up with her one Sunday morning at what used to be Howard Johnsons (now it's a Mexican restaurant and a Super 8).
After determining wind direction with a helium balloon, Mrs. Haley decided we would set off from behind Lee's Market (now Bellacino's) in Dr. Fralin's field. She said the wind would take us along US 220 toward Fincastle.
Her balloon was called Skylark, and it was a spectacle of color whether it was on the ground or in the sky.
My husband refused to fly with me. He watched from the ground as I rose up into the clouds.
I wrote about that adventure in a first person article published on December 3, 1986, and for which I won one of the first of my several Virginia Press Association awards.
Here are some excerpts:
"The ground crew released its grip on the massive bulge of air, and suddenly we were going up! I watched my husband grow smaller and smaller as the balloon sailed high into the sky."
"Daleville and Amsterdam look like tiny towns in an HO scale train set from 800 feet in the air. The dogs and cattle sound as if they are right in the air with you. The curve of the earth looks sharp enough to cut you, and suddenly you are one with the clouds."
"The orchards looked small and naked from our vantage point. If the highway hadn't been below us, I would have been lost. The familiar was unrecognizable from our position within the clouds."
"You can't feel the wind, because you are the wind," Natalie Haley said. That aspect is part of the romanticism of the big balloons. There is nothing between the earth and you except a basket, and it was insignificant enough not to matter. Floating is not descriptive enough to describe the feeling you get when you're up there alone."
"It's so quiet and peaceful, it's easy to forget the world exists below."
We landed in a field near Trinity. After putting the balloon away, Mrs. Haley poured champaigne over my head for my maiden voyage, and presented me with a certificate as she recited what she said was the balloonist's prayer:
May the winds welcome you with softness.
May the sun bless you with his warm hands.
May you fly so high and so well that God joins you in laughter.
And may he set you back again into the loving arms of mother earth.
Monday, April 06, 2009
My House
This is my house as seen from the other side of the farm.
The house is difficult to see from the road; you have to be looking for it to find it.
The vinyl siding is brown. Originally the house had cedar siding on it, but that proved difficult to maintain. So we covered it with vinyl.
My husband built this house in 1987. When I say "he built it" I mean just that. He measured and hammered. He spent an entire summer putting our home together, him and his friends.
It is a packaged home or "kit house" made by Timber Truss. I think it is this plan, only we reversed the blueprints and turned the garage doors to the rear. Because we do not have a basement we turned the garage into a single car garage so we would have some place to put the furnace.
We don't have a basement because we built on a rock pile and didn't have the money then to blast it out. Sometimes I am sorry we don't have a basement because it would be a good place to dump stuff.
The house is not very big but for the two of us it is fine. We had plans to add on had we had children, but since that never happened we have never made changes.
We moved in in November, in time for the holidays. We've been here ever since and have no plans to go anywhere else.
This is home.
Friday, April 03, 2009
Help! My boxwoods are dying
About five years ago, I noticed a dead branch on one of my boxwoods as we came out of winter.
I cut the dead branch, thinking perhaps the snow had weighed it down and broken it.
The dying continued. And so it continues to this day, a branch at a time.
These are current photos, taken Monday. The first boxwood has long since died and been removed.
I had five boxwoods and now I have four. The one on the end is half dead.
Grandma Firebaugh gave us these boxwoods 20 years ago. I planted them and they thrived. Then the branches began dying one by one.
She has passed away. She was the one person who might have known what was wrong with my plants. She was a great gardener.
The only thing I could come up with was mites. I have sprayed and sprayed and put down all sorts of pesticides for mites.
It hasn't helped.
I found some information that indicates it could something called English Boxwood Decline that affects boxwoods after they are 20 years old. It says there is no cure, though.
It also says it can be caused by drought, which actually is when this started appearing, after the drought earlier this century.
The death has spread to yet another boxwood and I am loathe to give up on my lovely shrubs. Does anyone have any ideas?
I cut the dead branch, thinking perhaps the snow had weighed it down and broken it.
The dying continued. And so it continues to this day, a branch at a time.
These are current photos, taken Monday. The first boxwood has long since died and been removed.
I had five boxwoods and now I have four. The one on the end is half dead.
Grandma Firebaugh gave us these boxwoods 20 years ago. I planted them and they thrived. Then the branches began dying one by one.
She has passed away. She was the one person who might have known what was wrong with my plants. She was a great gardener.
The only thing I could come up with was mites. I have sprayed and sprayed and put down all sorts of pesticides for mites.
It hasn't helped.
I found some information that indicates it could something called English Boxwood Decline that affects boxwoods after they are 20 years old. It says there is no cure, though.
It also says it can be caused by drought, which actually is when this started appearing, after the drought earlier this century.
The death has spread to yet another boxwood and I am loathe to give up on my lovely shrubs. Does anyone have any ideas?
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Thursday Thirteen: When the Internet is Down
Things to do when the Internet is down:
1. Call the service provider several times to find out when it will be fixed.
2. Work without researching things on the Internet.
3. Listen to the radio instead of Pandora.com.
4. Watch TV instead of hulu.com.
5. Read a book. Or two.
6. Go shopping.
7. Wonder how many emails you're missing, and if any of them are important.
8. Ponder the speed at which your garden grows at Farm Town on Facebook and wonder if your virtual potato field will rot before you get back to check on it.
9. Clean the house, including drawers and closets.
10. Call the friends you usually email and have a real conversation over the telephone.
11. Have a little unexpected interlude with the husband in the middle of the day.
12. Exercise more than normal.
13. Go to the library to use the free wi-fi with the laptop!
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 92nd one.
1. Call the service provider several times to find out when it will be fixed.
2. Work without researching things on the Internet.
3. Listen to the radio instead of Pandora.com.
4. Watch TV instead of hulu.com.
5. Read a book. Or two.
6. Go shopping.
7. Wonder how many emails you're missing, and if any of them are important.
8. Ponder the speed at which your garden grows at Farm Town on Facebook and wonder if your virtual potato field will rot before you get back to check on it.
9. Clean the house, including drawers and closets.
10. Call the friends you usually email and have a real conversation over the telephone.
11. Have a little unexpected interlude with the husband in the middle of the day.
12. Exercise more than normal.
13. Go to the library to use the free wi-fi with the laptop!
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 92nd one.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
The Home Builders Show (Or: Friday Night)
Friday evening my husband surprised me by suggesting we grab dinner out and then go to Salem to the Home Builders Show.
I always enjoy the home builders show but he has never cared for it. I don't know why; maybe be he is in the business as one of his three jobs?
So off we went. The place was full of displays. I was amazed.
We looked at replacement window places because we are considering making that investment. Our 22-year-old windows leak badly and in the winter I know all the heat goes out the cracks. We have attempted to put up things to stop the draft but to no avail.
Another thing I would like to do is put in a walk-in shower. One with a seat. This is forward-thinking for when we are too old to get over the side of the tub. I figure we should go on and make the house relatively handicapped accessible before we need it, you know? An accessible bathroom is the missing piece.
The third thing I would like to do is add on a sun room. I don't think that will ever happen because my husband doesn't like sun rooms, mostly because he claims they always leak.
Barring that, I would like to get an outdoor shed because if I can't bring myself to throw junk out of the house, I would like to store it if nothing else. That isn't going to happen either, though.
Anyway, we looked at those kinds of things. We still haven't made up our minds on the windows but we did see a few things we liked and will investigate. That is the purpose of the Home Builder's Show. To bring in business at a later date.
After we left, we found ourselves in a police blockade on US 419 as we headed for the interstate. This was a sobriety check. It was pouring rain and the policemen were in yellow slickers checking licenses. Their little police hats were in plastic and water raced off their brims.
I have been driving for 30 years and this was the first time I'd ever been in a sobriety check. I guess we aren't out late enough or in the city at the right times. We miss all of the excitement.
I have a problem with sobriety checks and similar things because I think they are fundamentally un-American.
Of course we breezed through that without incident - neither of us drink. It rained very hard all the way.
And that was the end of our Friday night.
I always enjoy the home builders show but he has never cared for it. I don't know why; maybe be he is in the business as one of his three jobs?
So off we went. The place was full of displays. I was amazed.
We looked at replacement window places because we are considering making that investment. Our 22-year-old windows leak badly and in the winter I know all the heat goes out the cracks. We have attempted to put up things to stop the draft but to no avail.
Another thing I would like to do is put in a walk-in shower. One with a seat. This is forward-thinking for when we are too old to get over the side of the tub. I figure we should go on and make the house relatively handicapped accessible before we need it, you know? An accessible bathroom is the missing piece.
The third thing I would like to do is add on a sun room. I don't think that will ever happen because my husband doesn't like sun rooms, mostly because he claims they always leak.
Barring that, I would like to get an outdoor shed because if I can't bring myself to throw junk out of the house, I would like to store it if nothing else. That isn't going to happen either, though.
Anyway, we looked at those kinds of things. We still haven't made up our minds on the windows but we did see a few things we liked and will investigate. That is the purpose of the Home Builder's Show. To bring in business at a later date.
After we left, we found ourselves in a police blockade on US 419 as we headed for the interstate. This was a sobriety check. It was pouring rain and the policemen were in yellow slickers checking licenses. Their little police hats were in plastic and water raced off their brims.
I have been driving for 30 years and this was the first time I'd ever been in a sobriety check. I guess we aren't out late enough or in the city at the right times. We miss all of the excitement.
I have a problem with sobriety checks and similar things because I think they are fundamentally un-American.
Of course we breezed through that without incident - neither of us drink. It rained very hard all the way.
And that was the end of our Friday night.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Socks
I don't know how to darn a sock.
This thought came to me in the middle of the afternoon on this day, a Friday, when I was supposed to be working on the backlog of articles that await my attention.
Instead, I was cleaning out my husband's sock drawer.
We both have a lot of socks. We collect them. My husband in particular never wants me to throw out his hosiery.
So I was surprised yesterday when I sent him out on errands and he actually followed my suggestion to buy himself new socks. If he did, I told him, I would throw out every one of his old socks and replace them with new.
I actually had already purchased 12 pairs of new socks for my drawer with the intention of doing the same. I made that purchase three weeks ago and had left them in the bag because I hadn't found the time to dump my sock drawer.
I always feel guilty when I throw out old socks. Shouldn't I darn them, fix the holes, shore them up for reuse? Doesn't this make me one of the consumers, part of the disposable society?
Well, yes. But I don't know how to darn a sock. Nor do I have the time to learn. And when you think about how long you wear a sock, they're pretty cheap.
Old socks can be used for dust clothes or for stuffing a stuffed animal, or for an oil rag out in the garage. But generally I just throw them out because if I don't they end up back in the drawer.
If I were really keen to preserve and reuse, I would make a sock quilt out of them. "See, honey, that's the sock from that time you stepped into the pond when you were saving the cow and your boot came back all covered with black gunk that wouldn't come out. Remember?" I can see us now, in our 80s, recalling those fond times.
My husband's socks are filthy even after they've been washed three times. The man is a farmer and a fireman and he digs ditches (he does have those three jobs) and they are all dirty jobs. He grinds the dirt into his socks and no amount of bleach will get it all out.
His work boots also bleed color into his socks, so they often turn brown.
His socks get very thin quite quickly, too, and I have been remiss in not replacing them sooner.
Perhaps it was for this reason that he brought home 24 pairs of brand new socks yesterday.
And a few hours ago I dumped them in the wash (we wash everything before we wear it around here), and then I ignored the writing that beckoned me and headed for the sock drawers.
Because my husband is a hard-working man, and he deserves comfy socks on his well-worn feet.
This thought came to me in the middle of the afternoon on this day, a Friday, when I was supposed to be working on the backlog of articles that await my attention.
Instead, I was cleaning out my husband's sock drawer.
We both have a lot of socks. We collect them. My husband in particular never wants me to throw out his hosiery.
So I was surprised yesterday when I sent him out on errands and he actually followed my suggestion to buy himself new socks. If he did, I told him, I would throw out every one of his old socks and replace them with new.
I actually had already purchased 12 pairs of new socks for my drawer with the intention of doing the same. I made that purchase three weeks ago and had left them in the bag because I hadn't found the time to dump my sock drawer.
I always feel guilty when I throw out old socks. Shouldn't I darn them, fix the holes, shore them up for reuse? Doesn't this make me one of the consumers, part of the disposable society?
Well, yes. But I don't know how to darn a sock. Nor do I have the time to learn. And when you think about how long you wear a sock, they're pretty cheap.
Old socks can be used for dust clothes or for stuffing a stuffed animal, or for an oil rag out in the garage. But generally I just throw them out because if I don't they end up back in the drawer.
If I were really keen to preserve and reuse, I would make a sock quilt out of them. "See, honey, that's the sock from that time you stepped into the pond when you were saving the cow and your boot came back all covered with black gunk that wouldn't come out. Remember?" I can see us now, in our 80s, recalling those fond times.
My husband's socks are filthy even after they've been washed three times. The man is a farmer and a fireman and he digs ditches (he does have those three jobs) and they are all dirty jobs. He grinds the dirt into his socks and no amount of bleach will get it all out.
His work boots also bleed color into his socks, so they often turn brown.
His socks get very thin quite quickly, too, and I have been remiss in not replacing them sooner.
Perhaps it was for this reason that he brought home 24 pairs of brand new socks yesterday.
And a few hours ago I dumped them in the wash (we wash everything before we wear it around here), and then I ignored the writing that beckoned me and headed for the sock drawers.
Because my husband is a hard-working man, and he deserves comfy socks on his well-worn feet.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
1. Some days thinking of something for Thursday Thirteen seems next to impossible.
2. What can I write about that I haven't written about in the previous 90 entries?
3. Hmm.
4. I can't think of anything to put for the remaining sentences.
5. Okay, I will list the books on the bookshelf that I have yet to read.
6. Wish You Well, by David Baldacci
7. Where I Want to Be, by Adele Griffin
8. The Hex Witch of Seldom, by Nancy Springer
9. The High City, by Cecelia Holland
10. A New Earth, by Eckhart Tolle
11. The Shock Doctrine, by Naomi Klein
12. The Dragon's Son, by Mararet Weis
13. Quentins, by Maeve Binchy.
Not the best TT I've ever done, that's certain!
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 91st one.
2. What can I write about that I haven't written about in the previous 90 entries?
3. Hmm.
4. I can't think of anything to put for the remaining sentences.
5. Okay, I will list the books on the bookshelf that I have yet to read.
6. Wish You Well, by David Baldacci
7. Where I Want to Be, by Adele Griffin
8. The Hex Witch of Seldom, by Nancy Springer
9. The High City, by Cecelia Holland
10. A New Earth, by Eckhart Tolle
11. The Shock Doctrine, by Naomi Klein
12. The Dragon's Son, by Mararet Weis
13. Quentins, by Maeve Binchy.
Not the best TT I've ever done, that's certain!
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 91st one.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Mark your calendar
In light of recent interest in a bloggers meet up, I propose May 7 at 1 p.m. at Bellacino's in Daleville.
Bellacino's is easy to get to. It's about a mile or so away from Interstate 81 at Exit 150 on US 220. I can give directions if anyone needs them.
They serve pizza and grinders and the food is good. I'm afraid its buy your own, though.
This is a meet and greet, nothing formal.
We'll meet and talk blogging and local stuff and go from there!
Diane at Blue Ridge Gal says she will be there, too.
I look forward to seeing you!
Bellacino's is easy to get to. It's about a mile or so away from Interstate 81 at Exit 150 on US 220. I can give directions if anyone needs them.
They serve pizza and grinders and the food is good. I'm afraid its buy your own, though.
This is a meet and greet, nothing formal.
We'll meet and talk blogging and local stuff and go from there!
Diane at Blue Ridge Gal says she will be there, too.
I look forward to seeing you!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
99 Red Balloons
Saturday morning when I went out to get the newspaper, I found a red balloon in the side yard.
Obviously it had drifted down from the heavens after being a decoration at a party.
Maybe the party was 50 miles away or next door. I had no way to know.
Other balloons were tied to the string and the lone survivor vainly attempted to hoist its deflated companions back into the sky.
I really wanted to release the red balloon from its tether and send it back out from whence it came. But I didn't because released balloons, particularly ones with strings on them, are bad for the environment. Animals can get caught in the strings and the plastic certainly doesn't degrade well.
So I carried the balloon into the garage, where I left it to deflate on its own.
Balloons make me sad because they yearn so much to be free and to fly off. They don't want to stay trapped on the earth, bound to a string. They want to visit the clouds and float above the ground, seeing trees, houses and cars from a totally different vantage point.
So I could not pop the balloon and throw it in the trash. Instead I left it and found it completely deflated the next morning.
Now I keep thinking of the words to the song 99 Red Balloons.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
The Local Locals
I know of a number of different bloggers from my county; I have met six of them. That doesn't count some business bloggers, either. If I count those there are more.
I know there are others, but maybe they don't mention their location (which is how I usually find local bloggers) or for some other reason their blog just doesn't come up in search.
The local bloggers that I have met in person are:
landuvmilknhoney
Brambleberry blog
Summit Manor
Gracefully Bound
The Blue Ridge Gal (just met her Friday!)
Destiny Booze
I think there are only three bloggers on my Botetourt list that I have not met.
Aside from the bloggers listed on my sidebar, local business bloggers are Botetourt Foot Doctor (a local podiatrist; a good read if you have trouble with your feet), and the Botetourt Paranormal Society (some spooky sort of folks). I have met the people behind these two blogs, too.
To be fair I have to mention the Roanoke Times Botetourt View blog; the author of that, which they call The Notebook, is a good friend (and competitor) of mine who also lives out here.
That's a lot of people I have met personally who blog. A lot of local blogs, too, though really not so many given that we have 32,000 people in this county now.
To my knowledge, few of the bloggers are what you might consider real "locals."
About 2/3 of the people who live here now aren't from here originally. They moved in from elsewhere, from the northern states or the western states or from somewhere in the valley.
To the real locals, unless your momma and granny lived here too, you're not a local. That's as true for folks who moved here 40 years ago as the ones who just got here yesterday.
I am not a true local even though my grandfather grew up on a farm at the foot of Caldwell Mountain and I can trace my ancestors back to 1790 or some such. That's because for a little while my mother's family lived in Salem and didn't stay in the county. My mother and father returned here in 1969, when I was seven years old. I consider myself local, though, even if I lack the full pedigree.
I was saddened today to read a comment from one of the area bloggers about local folks not being very welcoming. The blogger said she had yet to make friends with folks in the area.
I don't know how long this person has been here, but I don't doubt for a moment what she says. I haven't lived anywhere else as an adult so I can't say how folks make friends in other places, but making friends here is difficult.
It's hard even if you know people already and went to school here. And it is particularly hard if like me you're rather introverted and shy and not prone to making the first move.
Unless you go to church, there simply aren't a lot of places to go and meet people. Many of the folks I know because of my work.
That's one reason I enjoy blogging. It opens up a whole new world of friends, and some of them I get to meet in person. And while I may never meet some of you, there you are. Truthfully it's a comfort to know that you are out there, too (because I never imagine that you're reading me because you're up to no good).
Some folks must read my blog and never leave a comment, based on my stat numbers, and that's okay. I hope I entertain you, if nothing else. I consider my unknown visitors my secret friends.
The folks who do comment bring a smile to my face. Frequent commenters make me feel warm and fuzzy when I see their names on my posts. It's the cyberspace equivalent of having somebody drop in for tea!
If you're a local blogger I hope you point me toward your blog so I can read your work, too, if I don't already. I greatly enjoy reading other people's take on life in our area.
And I hope I get to meet you in person. Who knows? Maybe one day we'll really be dropping in for tea!
I know there are others, but maybe they don't mention their location (which is how I usually find local bloggers) or for some other reason their blog just doesn't come up in search.
The local bloggers that I have met in person are:
landuvmilknhoney
Brambleberry blog
Summit Manor
Gracefully Bound
The Blue Ridge Gal (just met her Friday!)
Destiny Booze
I think there are only three bloggers on my Botetourt list that I have not met.
Aside from the bloggers listed on my sidebar, local business bloggers are Botetourt Foot Doctor (a local podiatrist; a good read if you have trouble with your feet), and the Botetourt Paranormal Society (some spooky sort of folks). I have met the people behind these two blogs, too.
To be fair I have to mention the Roanoke Times Botetourt View blog; the author of that, which they call The Notebook, is a good friend (and competitor) of mine who also lives out here.
That's a lot of people I have met personally who blog. A lot of local blogs, too, though really not so many given that we have 32,000 people in this county now.
To my knowledge, few of the bloggers are what you might consider real "locals."
About 2/3 of the people who live here now aren't from here originally. They moved in from elsewhere, from the northern states or the western states or from somewhere in the valley.
To the real locals, unless your momma and granny lived here too, you're not a local. That's as true for folks who moved here 40 years ago as the ones who just got here yesterday.
I am not a true local even though my grandfather grew up on a farm at the foot of Caldwell Mountain and I can trace my ancestors back to 1790 or some such. That's because for a little while my mother's family lived in Salem and didn't stay in the county. My mother and father returned here in 1969, when I was seven years old. I consider myself local, though, even if I lack the full pedigree.
I was saddened today to read a comment from one of the area bloggers about local folks not being very welcoming. The blogger said she had yet to make friends with folks in the area.
I don't know how long this person has been here, but I don't doubt for a moment what she says. I haven't lived anywhere else as an adult so I can't say how folks make friends in other places, but making friends here is difficult.
It's hard even if you know people already and went to school here. And it is particularly hard if like me you're rather introverted and shy and not prone to making the first move.
Unless you go to church, there simply aren't a lot of places to go and meet people. Many of the folks I know because of my work.
That's one reason I enjoy blogging. It opens up a whole new world of friends, and some of them I get to meet in person. And while I may never meet some of you, there you are. Truthfully it's a comfort to know that you are out there, too (because I never imagine that you're reading me because you're up to no good).
Some folks must read my blog and never leave a comment, based on my stat numbers, and that's okay. I hope I entertain you, if nothing else. I consider my unknown visitors my secret friends.
The folks who do comment bring a smile to my face. Frequent commenters make me feel warm and fuzzy when I see their names on my posts. It's the cyberspace equivalent of having somebody drop in for tea!
If you're a local blogger I hope you point me toward your blog so I can read your work, too, if I don't already. I greatly enjoy reading other people's take on life in our area.
And I hope I get to meet you in person. Who knows? Maybe one day we'll really be dropping in for tea!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Happy Birthday Grandma
Today is my paternal grandmother's birthday.
She is 89.
My Grandma B. lives in California. I haven't seen her since 1987 or thereabouts.
Before that, I saw her only a few times. She and my grandfather left Virginia during my first year of life and headed west in hopes of finding greener pastures.
All of my father's family went with them, except him. He stayed here. I don't know why.
Anyway, until I was 10 years old, my father's parents were folks I talked to on the phone a few times a year. They were people who sent me somewhat inappropriate Christmas gifts (because of course they knew nothing of who I was or what I liked to do.)
They visited when I was 10 and stayed several weeks. My grandmother and I did not connect as well as my grandpa and I did. Grandpa and I were cut from the same cloth, so to speak.
Grandma has a very loud voice and she likes to talk. She also likes to read and stay to herself. She was always nice to me, though.
When I was 12, my father drove us out to California to visit his family out there. The trip was long and when we arrived the family was in turmoil because one of my teenage cousins had run away from home. Again.
Unfortunately I have not been back since and I don't know when I might return. These days, since I have so much trouble with my ear (pain, dizziness, nausea) when I am driving up a mountain, I am afraid to fly. I can only imagine what that would do to me.
My grandparents returned again in 1981. They arrived in March and planned to stay through June to see my graduation from high school. I was very excited about that. Then after about two weeks my grandmother announced they had to go home. The reason she gave was because she was afraid no one was cutting the grass at the house.
Really, she was sick I think but I didn't know that. I was very hurt and quite unhappy with this particular state of affairs. Being 17 and thinking 17-year-old thoughts, I took it quite personally.
My grandparents returned again in 1987 and met my husband for the first time. That is the last time I saw them. My grandfather passed away two years later.
I called my grandmother yesterday to wish her happy birthday. I used to call quite frequently but in recent years she's been unable to hear me. She still lives alone so unless I think my uncle might be there I don't call. Instead I send her cards and letters and copies of the newspaper when we have a special edition and I've written lots of stories.
She was feeling pretty perky yesterday and she answered the phone herself. She said she could hear me fine. We talked for 45 minutes.
So Happy Birthday, Grandma B! I hope you have a great day.
She is 89.
My Grandma B. lives in California. I haven't seen her since 1987 or thereabouts.
Before that, I saw her only a few times. She and my grandfather left Virginia during my first year of life and headed west in hopes of finding greener pastures.
All of my father's family went with them, except him. He stayed here. I don't know why.
Anyway, until I was 10 years old, my father's parents were folks I talked to on the phone a few times a year. They were people who sent me somewhat inappropriate Christmas gifts (because of course they knew nothing of who I was or what I liked to do.)
They visited when I was 10 and stayed several weeks. My grandmother and I did not connect as well as my grandpa and I did. Grandpa and I were cut from the same cloth, so to speak.
Grandma has a very loud voice and she likes to talk. She also likes to read and stay to herself. She was always nice to me, though.
When I was 12, my father drove us out to California to visit his family out there. The trip was long and when we arrived the family was in turmoil because one of my teenage cousins had run away from home. Again.
Unfortunately I have not been back since and I don't know when I might return. These days, since I have so much trouble with my ear (pain, dizziness, nausea) when I am driving up a mountain, I am afraid to fly. I can only imagine what that would do to me.
My grandparents returned again in 1981. They arrived in March and planned to stay through June to see my graduation from high school. I was very excited about that. Then after about two weeks my grandmother announced they had to go home. The reason she gave was because she was afraid no one was cutting the grass at the house.
Really, she was sick I think but I didn't know that. I was very hurt and quite unhappy with this particular state of affairs. Being 17 and thinking 17-year-old thoughts, I took it quite personally.
My grandparents returned again in 1987 and met my husband for the first time. That is the last time I saw them. My grandfather passed away two years later.
I called my grandmother yesterday to wish her happy birthday. I used to call quite frequently but in recent years she's been unable to hear me. She still lives alone so unless I think my uncle might be there I don't call. Instead I send her cards and letters and copies of the newspaper when we have a special edition and I've written lots of stories.
She was feeling pretty perky yesterday and she answered the phone herself. She said she could hear me fine. We talked for 45 minutes.
So Happy Birthday, Grandma B! I hope you have a great day.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
Places within driving distance of my home that I'd like to visit:
1. The Greenbrier. I really want to see the bunker where the bigwigs would have holed up during an apocalypse.
2. Richmond. I haven't been to the state capital since I was 11 years old. I would like to tour the Capital building, see some civil war sites, visit museums, and see the Hollywood Cemetery.
3. Mill Mountain Zoo. The zoo is in Roanoke, and I'm only 20 minutes from it. I haven't been since I was a child, though. I would like to visit it sometime this year just for fun.
4. Natural Bridge Zoo. Just because I've never been there.
5. Attend the Highland Maple Festival. It is this weekend and I've never been, and I won't get to go this year, either. But can't you just taste pancakes with fresh maple syrup on them? Yum.
6. Virginia Festival of the Book. This is also going on right now, and once again I won't be attending. This always sneaks up on me. Since it occurs in March when I am either working on a special edition for the paper or sick, I don't know when I will get to go.
7. Mount Vernon. The home of George Washington. I've seen Monticello and would like to see this as well.
8. Cass Scenic Railroad in West Virginia. I have heard about this and it sounds like fun. It's a steam locomotive!
9. Big Stone Gap. Mostly because I love Adriana Trigiani's books about the place.
10. The Swinging Bridge Restaurant in Paint Bank.
11. Visit the Library of Congress. Okay, so Washington D.C. is a bit of a drive, but it's doable.
12. While I am in D.C., I should visit the Smithsonian.
13. And finally, I would like to tour Dixie Caverns. It's located just outside of Salem and I haven't been in the caves since I was a child.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 90th one.
1. The Greenbrier. I really want to see the bunker where the bigwigs would have holed up during an apocalypse.
2. Richmond. I haven't been to the state capital since I was 11 years old. I would like to tour the Capital building, see some civil war sites, visit museums, and see the Hollywood Cemetery.
3. Mill Mountain Zoo. The zoo is in Roanoke, and I'm only 20 minutes from it. I haven't been since I was a child, though. I would like to visit it sometime this year just for fun.
4. Natural Bridge Zoo. Just because I've never been there.
5. Attend the Highland Maple Festival. It is this weekend and I've never been, and I won't get to go this year, either. But can't you just taste pancakes with fresh maple syrup on them? Yum.
6. Virginia Festival of the Book. This is also going on right now, and once again I won't be attending. This always sneaks up on me. Since it occurs in March when I am either working on a special edition for the paper or sick, I don't know when I will get to go.
7. Mount Vernon. The home of George Washington. I've seen Monticello and would like to see this as well.
8. Cass Scenic Railroad in West Virginia. I have heard about this and it sounds like fun. It's a steam locomotive!
9. Big Stone Gap. Mostly because I love Adriana Trigiani's books about the place.
10. The Swinging Bridge Restaurant in Paint Bank.
11. Visit the Library of Congress. Okay, so Washington D.C. is a bit of a drive, but it's doable.
12. While I am in D.C., I should visit the Smithsonian.
13. And finally, I would like to tour Dixie Caverns. It's located just outside of Salem and I haven't been in the caves since I was a child.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is my 90th one.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)