At Rest

I caught this nice little buck taking a rest the other day. He's an 8-point buck, but not large enough to shoot. He'll wait for another day, I hope.

Under Roof

Last week, my nephew's house construction continued as the builder installed the roof.

The roof trusses were put in place with a crane.

It picked up each truss and then swung it over to the house.

The waiting men would lower it into place and affix it to the house frame.

This is the house roof after the trusses had all been installed. Gives one a much better idea of
what the house will look like.

This is the roof after the building put down the wood over the rafters and covered that with a material
that is supposed to help with leaks and things. They used to use felt before they put down the
shingles, but now they use this shiny stuff. I'm not sure what it is.

Happy Halloween!

 

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1. Have you ever played with a Ouija Board?

A. Yes, I did, when I was young. I haven't used one as an adult.

2. Favorite horror monster or villain?

A. Cruela DeVille from 101 Dalmations. 

3. If you were dared to spend the night in a “haunted house”, would you do it?

A. Yes. Not only would I do it, I have done it.

4. Are you superstitious?

A. Not really. I don't throw salt over my shoulder or anything like that. I might occasionally knock on wood for good luck.

5. Do you ever see figures in your peripheral vision?

A. I have seen actual ghosts, in plain view. I don't need to see them in my peripheral vision.

6. Ever made a potion of any sort?

A. Yes.

7. Do you get scared easily?

A. Yes.

8. Have you ever played Bloody Mary?

A. Never heard of it. I thought that was some kind of alcoholic drink.

9. Would you ever go to a graveyard at night?

A. Sure.

10. Would you rather go to a Halloween party or go trick or treating?

A. Trick or treating.

11. Whilst watching scary movies, are you the person who yells at the characters, the person with their eyes covered the whole time, or the person who falls asleep?

A. I don't watch scary movies as a rule, but I would be the person who watches and winces a lot.

(This is one of my favorite Halloween movies - Practical Magic)

12. Favorite scary book?

A. I don't read these much, either. I read Carrie a long time ago, and it stuck with me.

13. How old were you when you saw your first horror movie?

A. I was very young - younger than six - when I saw The Blob on TV. Scared the crap out of me. Later, when I spent the night at my grandparents house, I would get up and watch the late showings of Planet of the Apes movies and a movie called SSSSS, both of which were scary to me. (My brother thought The Wizard of Oz was scary and wouldn't watch it for years because of the flying monkeys.) I saw the Amityville Horror and The Shining at the theater when they came out, but I would have been a teenager then.

14. What was your first Halloween costume?

A. I have no idea.

15. If you could have a spooky Halloween pet (black cat, owl, bat, rat, wolf), what would you pick?

A. I wouldn't want any of them, but if I must choose, I choose the wolf, preferably a nice young cub that I can train.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Congratulations Trey and Valerie!

My nephew married today! Congratulations to him and his bride, Valerie!

Saturday 9: Werewolves of London

Saturday 9: Werewolves of London (1978)

Unfamiliar with this week's featured song? Hear it here. (Great questions!)

 

1) In this song, Warren Zevon sees a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand. He wanted beef chow mein. If we Saturday 9ers got together for Chinese, what would you likely order?

A. Sweet and sour chicken with an egg roll.

2) He also says the werewolf's hair was perfect. Are you having a good hair day?

A. It's not bad. I'm due for a cut next week so it's a bit on the long side.

3) Linda Ronstadt was a big Warren Zevon fan and recorded several of his songs. Do you have a favorite Linda Ronstadt song?

A. Blue Bayou. That song really shows off her pipes. However, I also love her song Shattered. When I'm feeling really low and want to hear something that reflects my mood, this is my go-to song.

4) Warren Zevon admitted being afraid of doctors and avoided check ups. Are you scared when you go to the doctor or dentist for a routine visit?

A. No. It's a good thing, too, since I am at the doctor's office at least every 3 months.

5) In 1935, the movie Werewolf of London was released. Do you enjoy being frightened by scary movies?

A. I don't watch scary movies much any more. At least, not the horror kind. These days, just watching the news is freaking scary. More scary than a lot of horror movies, actually.

6) In your younger days, did you ever trick or treat while dressed as a monster?

A. I don't recall all of my costumes. I know I went as a witch, but I don't consider a witch to be a monster.

7) When you were a kid, what sweet treats were you happiest to receive?

A. Anything chocolate. And Smarties. I still eat Smarties sometimes.

8) Can you see any Halloween decorations as you answer these 9 questions?

A. I have a Halloween card on my desk that my pen pal sent me, but that's it.

9) Halloween is most popular in the United States and Canada, and isn't really celebrated at all in Japan or South Korea. How would you explain our Halloween customs to a visitor from another land?

A. People dress up however they want, then take their children and go door to door and ask for candy. A threat is implied, as in, you may end up with your house wrapped with toilet paper, if you don't give said candy. It's also celebrated with parties, bobbing for apples, and dancing. It has no religious significance, but some churches find it an offensive holiday, so they offer "trunk or treat" events which still involve giving candy and partying, just more in an evangelically capitalistic Jesus sort of way.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Moderna Update

I had not anticipated such a reaction to my Moderna booster shot. I'd reacted to the second one strongly, but not the first one. So I had hoped that the booster - which was half the amount of the original - wouldn't be troublesome. (I stuck with Moderna all the way, so I've had three Moderna shots.)

Even during a long 24 hours plus of chills, fatigue, and achiness, my arm hurt greatly in the area of the shot.

As the other symptoms waned, I developed a strong pain in my lymph glands my armpit in the arm where I received the shot. The gland swelled. My arm still hurt, too, and then the lymph gland began giving off serious pain.

Last night, I had a night sweat that soaked the sheets. I don't normally have these; the last time I can recall doing anything like that, I was running a high fever.

The night sweat is a good thing. That's my body trying to clear out the congestion and inflammation caused by the booster. The lymph gland is still swollen but doesn't feel as big as it was. Progress?

This could take a while. I wrote my doctor about the lymph gland yesterday and she said it would ease in time. She didn't give me a time frame, but the Mayo Clinic website said swollen lymph glands can last two to four weeks.

Clearing your lymph system when you're sedentary and prone to being ill anyway can be a challenge. One thing I was doing when I had the first round of Covid vaccines was drinking apple cider vinegar in warm water every day. I had stopped that but I began it again this morning after reading that it can help clear the lymph system.

Another way to clear the lymphatic system is to jump up and down on a mini trampoline. I don't own one of those, so every time I stand up, I'm standing on my toes and then dropping down, to sort of bounce things around. Can't hurt anything.

I don't want my experience to keep anyone from taking the vaccine. Everyone reacts to things differently. My husband had the same shot and it was like he never took it. Even though I don't feel all that great right now, and may not for a few more days, it's better than dying of Covid. This is an inconvenience compared to what someone with severe Covid experiences. I've seen the news stories and I don't believe they faked. I've also known about 10 people who've had Covid and died from it. So I don't play around with this disease.

Next time, though, I think I'll start drinking apple cider vinegar a few weeks before the booster (because you know this will become a constant thing, probably).

Thursday Thirteen

Nothing like a little witchiness for Halloween, eh?

These percentages are from a study related to the paranormal conducted by psychtests.com, which is an interesting site with lots of personality tests if you've an interest in those things.

1. 27% of women and 14% of men believe that using voodoo dolls can cause bodily harm.

2. 24% of women and 15% of men believe that love or luck spells can work.

3. 47% of women and 35% of men believe that certain people are born with special powers.

4. 42% of women and 34% of men think telepathy is possible.

5. 57% of women and 42% of men think that some people can predict the future via prophecies or premonitions.

6. 59% of women and 44% of men believe in soul mates.

7. 71% of women and 51% of men believe that if two people are meant to be together, they will be.

8. 42% of women and 18% of men read their horoscope.

9. An almost equal amount of women and men (27% and 28% respectively) believe that there is no such thing as a coincidence.

10. 68% of women and 72% of men believe that there is life on other planets.

11. 48% of women and 44% of men subscribe to the conspiracy theory that the government is hiding proof of alien existence.

12. 24% of women and 20% of men think that crop circles were created by extraterrestrials.

13. 19% of women and 20% of men believe that aliens have abducted humans.

_____________________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 728th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Oh Moderna!

As soon as the Moderna booster was available, my husband, who'd had the J&J shot, went to the drugstore and received the booster.

He had no issues to speak of. No arm soreness, no aches, no fever.

Yesterday I received my Moderna booster. I started out with Moderna.

This morning, I do not feel well. I had a bad night, and my arm is very sore (the flu shot also made my arm sore too, but not like this). All of my joints ache and everywhere things have hurt in the past, they are hurting now.

I haven't had any acetaminophen; I don't like to take it as it makes my ears ring even worse than they normally do.

Other folks have noted that the booster has done them in. I am not reporting this to make anyone think twice about the booster - obviously it is something that one should receive - but to warn folks not to expect a cake walk.

Reactions depend on the person. It's hard to know how one will react to this booster.

Driving the Blue Ridge Parkway

Thursday we took a picnic lunch and drove the Blue Ridge Parkway for a few hours. The leaves had not changed much, and it was hazy, so the photos did not turn out great. Still, the views are lovely regardless of time of year.

I love these mountains.

Lost In Love

This is a cover of the song Lost in Love by Air Supply. I go off-key a little bit in one place and there's a guitar error near the end, but what the hey. I've never claimed to be a professional at this. My asthma doesn't help; I could tell it was bothering me when I made the video.

Somebody out there needs to see an overweight woman who can't sing that well strumming a guitar this morning, right? I mean, if I can put myself out there, everyone can.

Anyway, this uses a RC-3 Loop Station and has two guitar recordings on it and it is supplying the drum beat. One of the guitars was an electric Epiphone Les Paul Special and the other was an amplified acoustic Yamaha FG-150, which I am playing as I sing, so essentially there are three guitars on this song, all of which I played, including the error.

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1. What is the first thing you wash in the shower?

A. I grab the soap and wash my hands, then wet the soap and washrag and wash my face. I put the soap and washrag down and wash my hair, pick the soap and washrag back up, and work my way down.

2. What color is your favorite hoodie?

A. I don't have a favorite hoodie. I have a jacket that has a built in hood that is washed-out black. I don't like hoodies, as a rule.

3. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again?

A. Since that would be my husband, yes.

4. Do you plan outfits?

A. Not generally.

5. How are you feeling RIGHT now?

A. Tired, my pain level is a little high, and I feel unaccomplished.

6. What’s the closest thing to you that's red?

A. My asthma inhaler.

7. Tell me about the last dream you remember having?

A. My husband and I were looking for a new house. We drove down a road that was rutted and full of potholes filled with water. The house was a ramshackle old place, with the rooms all cut up and it smelled of moldy wood. 

8. Did you meet anybody new today?

A. I haven't left the house this weekend. So no.

9. What are you craving right now?

A. Hugs. Lots and lots of hugs.

10. Do you floss?

A. Yes.

11. What comes to mind when I say cabbage?

A. Coleslaw.

12. Are you emotional?

A. I'm human, so yes, I'm emotional.

13. Have you ever counted to 1,000?

A. 1, 2, 3 . . . 1,000!  I'm not 100% sure of this, but I think when I was in band, we drove a bus driver totally nuts by starting "99 bottles of beer on the wall" with "999 bottles of beer on the wall" because it was a long bus ride.

14. Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it?

A. I don't eat ice cream. When I used to be able to eat frozen yogurt, I ate it with a spoon.

15. Do you like your hair?

A. I can live with it. It's not great hair and it's turning white awfully fast. Since I can't use any volumizer products on it, it's flat on my head and doesn't have a lot of body.

_______________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Bang!

Saturday 9: Bang! (2020)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song is about a young man who is living on his own and doing adult things, like getting his own apartment, eating better and doing his own taxes, but he doesn't yet feel grown up. Do you remember when you felt like a grown up?

A. I was born grown up, but I suppose when I began keeping my brother and staying home with him during the summers instead of going to my grandmother's would have been a turning point. I think I was about 14.

2) He mentions not being sure of his login password. Is this something you struggle with? Or are you able to zip into your accounts?

A. I have a password method that works well for me.

3) Both the video and CD cover show the band playing games of chance. What's the last game that you played?

A. The last video game I played was Elvenar, which is a city building game. I haven't played any games of chance in a long while.

4) This week's featured band, AJR, is named for the three brothers who make up the trio -- Adam, Jack and Ryan Met. Until recently, all three brothers lived at home and wrote songs together in the Met family living room. Do you have siblings? If so, what's something you enjoy doing together?

A. I have a brother. We do not spend much time together although we talk on the phone frequently. If we had the time, I suspect we'd enjoy going to movies together, perhaps having a little book club, and having dinner. Our schedules don't mesh well enough for such things, though. However, do we do enjoy Christmas Eve and try to spend time with one another then.

 

5) The oldest Met brother, Adam, now lives with his girlfriend in an apartment near Columbia University, where he is a PhD candidate. During the school year, he only works on his music on weekends. Next summer, in 2022, he should be done with his studies and plans on touring the country with the band. Some tour dates are already scheduled. If possible, do you like to make plans far in advance? Or do you prefer spontaneity?

A. I prefer a little advanced notice if it is something that involves more than grabbing my handbag. But if it's just a quick trip to someplace close, I'm good with that.

6) Jack and Ryan also attend Columbia and share an apartment with their dog. They like to unwind on Fridays, after a week of classes, with a game of air hockey, followed by sushi or sashimi at their favorite Japanese restaurant. What did you do on Friday night?

A. The same thing I do every other night. Shower, put on my jammies, and either watch TV or read.

 

7) In 2020, the year this song was popular, the most streamed TV show was The Office. The show went off the air in 2013, but during the pandemic and quarantine, it found a new audience. What series have you binged on recently?

A. Batwoman, I suppose, until I decided it was unsettling me to the point of depression and I stopped watching it. 

8) According to Amazon, the best-selling novel of 2020 was Where the Crawdads Sing. Is there a novel you'd like to recommend to Sat 9ers?

A. Well, not that one. I did not think it was that great of a book and I think it's popularity is due solely to the title. Greenlights, by Matthew McConaughey was good for an autobiography. The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton, is an older book but still applicable today. Uprooted, by Naomi Novik, is a good fantasy read. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is excellent if you want a historical novel.

9) Random question: Your local drug store has self-check out. You confess to your best friend that you absent-mindedly missed scanning an item, walked out of the store with it, set off security and were caught unintentionally shoplifting. The store manager believed you so there were no repercussions, but you were mortified nevertheless. Would you expect your best friend to share your embarrassing story with his/her spouse?

A. I always expect my married friends to share with their spouses, whether I want them to or not. I hope they don't if I ask them specifically not to do so.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Purple Sunset

 

Thursday Thirteen

1. History has turned a page. Or has it? I feel like we're in the midst of historical changes, like a zephyr is nudging us in the wrong direction, softly, silently, until we wake up in another world.

2. Dismayed is not the word for how I felt when I read the former guy's dissing of Colin Powell. Why be crude and rude when someone dies? Is this is how a narcissist with no empathy for anyone else reacts when the attention is not upon him?

3. I have been listening to Air Supply and Bread lately. I find them calming voices from my past. It makes me smile to think of the young girl I was, twittering with my friends over the words and the smoothness of these voices. Did we swoon with the release of each new song? They were the Ariana Grandes of my time.

4. Speaking of Ariana Grande, I had never heard of her  I posted about her on Saturday 9 but paid little attention to her until she began judging on The Voice this season. I have listened to some of her music since, and can only conclude I am now the old person who shakes her head at what the young folks are listening to these days. Although she knows her stuff, I give her that. She's been a great coach.

5. Other TV shows I've been watching include Survivor, which I have watched since it first came on although I have no idea why or why I continue to watch it, Supergirl, which is not ending its final season on the best of notes so far, Stargirl, which I sometimes find confusing, and . . . that's about it. I am looking forward to seeing Dune on HBO Max this weekend.

6. Poems are eluding me. I have been trying to write poetry for some weeks now and failing miserably at it. I have one good line and I don't know what to do with it.

7. Christmas shopping has also been on my mind. I've been trying to take care of this as quickly as possible because of shortages. My list constantly diminishes as children grow up and move on, and folks die, and others are simply inaccessible for whatever reason. I remember when we bought mountains of presents to give away, and now it's just a little trickle.

8. Tomorrow I may climb a mountain. Not really. I'm in no shape to climb a mountain, you see, but I may be able to take a trolley up. It depends on the weather, as well.

9. There's a meteor shower going on until November, with the pinnacle last night. But surely some other night will bring me a shooting star, right?

10. The Shooting Star was the name of the roller coaster at Lakeside when I was young. That was an amusement park that began in Salem in the 1930s or thereabouts. It was the place to go the summer I was 17 - every weekend they had a rotation of musicians coming through to play under the pavilion and I went to all sorts of shows, unbeknownst to my parents. They weren't much on asking what I was doing and the shows were over about 9:30 or so, so I wasn't out late and I was always with a friend. I heard a lot of country music stars then - I wish I could find a list somewhere of artists who played there as it would considerably broaden my personal list of musical concerts I have attended. Lakeside closed around 1986; they could not remake themselves after most of the park was underwater during the devastating Flood of 1985.

11. Fleetwood Mac is playing while I write this. Chain, keep us together. I wonder what chains will keep this nation together, rounding back to my original thoughts. Are we bound? Or has Atlas Shrugged and we've nothing left to bind us together as a people?

12. As my poor readers can see, my mind is all over the place tonight. (I'm writing this Wednesday night.) Scattered and shattered thoughts are simply pouring through me, and I don't seem to have a grasp on a single topic. But that's ok. This is a roving Thursday Thirteen, a buffet of my brain. I hope something is of interest.

13. I think we mispronounce Wednesday. We pronounce WinsDay. It looks like it should be pronounced Wed-nes-day. I know, a strange thing to end on, but words are weird and sometimes I think about them too much. 

_____________________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 727th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

The Nephew's House Has Walls

This has taken a long time to reach this point - but the nephew's house is underway, finally. I know he needs to move in as quickly as possible with a new little baby boy and a precocious two-year-old in the four-room house he lives in now.

I hope he and his family are always happy when they move into their new home.

Orange Harvest Moon

10-19-2021 Moonset, Taken with Nikon Coolpix B700

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1. What's something you've recently accomplished solo?

A. I quit biting my nails. I actually accomplished this around April 2020, and of course I had to do it by myself. They still look somewhat bad because I pick at them sometimes, but I don't bite them anymore. I also keep them cut short. Also I wrote another song. You can hear it here.

2.  What's one product you use that never ever fails?

A. Jiffy cornbread mix. So long as you have the milk and egg, it makes great corn muffins.

3. Have you found your place in the world? Where is it?

A. I'm where I'm supposed to be.

4.  Worst movie you ever saw?

A. Something with Adam Sandler in it.

5. What's the last fun thing you did?

A. I went outside this morning and shot photographs. I enjoy doing that.

6. What's your favorite Italian dish?

A. Is spaghetti Italian?

7. Have you ever been to France? Do you have any desire to visit there, and if so what would site or city would you most want to see?

A. I went to France when I was still in high school. I went to Paris and I wouldn't mind a return trip, now that I am older and (hopefully) wiser. I would love to go back to the Louvre Museum.

8. Have you ever been to Disney, any of the parks at all? Are you a Disney superfan or something less than that? They're open right now so tell us, would you go if you had the time/money/a free trip?

A. I have been to Disney in Orlando, in 1993. I would go back if I had a free trip. It is expensive.

9. Your favorite place to go when you want to be quiet as a church mouse? Would those who know you well describe you as more church mouse or perhaps more like mighty mouse?

A. I assume I am a church mouse, being an introvert and all. I don't need to go anywhere as I am home most of the time.

10. Do you bake your own bread? Last time you had hot out-of-the-oven homemade bread? What's your favorite kind of bread?

A. I do not bake my own bread and I do not recall when I last had homemade bread. Nor do I have a favorite bread.

11. What's something you might say is 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'?

A. Computers and cellphones.

12. Share with us five little things you're grateful for today. Small blessings. One catch-they all must start with the letter T.

A. Tasty salad for lunch, Time with husband, Time to read the newspaper, Turkeys in the wild that I photographed this morning, Tender kisses.

13. Tell us where you were and something about what life was like when you were 20- 21.

A. I married when I was 20. I lived at home until I wed, and then we moved into a tiny little four-bedroom rental house that is about 1/2 mile from where I am now. It was cold and we only stayed there until the following summer. I was working at a law firm and my husband was a firefighter. I started going to classes at the community college to obtain my associates degree. 

14. What's on the menu at your house this week?

A. Salad and soup. Maybe pork chops.

15. Something you recently purchased where a coupon was involved? Do you regularly shop with coupons?

A. I bought some Christmas gifts online yesterday and there was a coupon applied at the checkout. I put the digital coupons on my cards for the grocery stores and use coupons at CVS.

_______________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Livin' La Vida Loca

Saturday 9: Livin' La Vida Loca (1999)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

This song always makes me think of Shrek.

1) Ricky Martin sings that he and the girl dance in the rain. Do you feel like dancing this morning?

A. If I can get the music on, eventually my foot will tap and some body part will sway. But mornings are not really my time of day.

2) The lyrics tell us the girl prefers champagne. When did you last enjoy a glass of the bubbly?

A. I do not drink and cannot remember the last time I had champagne. Maybe in 1989 when my sister-in-law married.

 

3) When Ricky first heard "Livin' La Vida Loca," he imagined  the subject of the song was a "Bond girl," the glamorous love interest of James Bond in the movies. Since 1962, there have been more than 20 Bond films. Have you seen any/many of them? Do you have a favorite Bond?

A. Not really. I don't know that I've watched a Bond movie in its entirety.

 

4) Ricky tells interviewers that when he was very young, he'd sing in the family kitchen, pretending a wooden spoon was his microphone. Crazy Sam admits to lip synching into a black Magic Marker. When you gave imaginary concerts, what did you use as a microphone?

A. Whatever's handy. A soda bottle. A comb. Hairbrush. Oh, wait, said when you "gave" imaginary concerts. I still do that. Doesn't everyone?

5) Ricky began working at the tender age of 9, performing in commercials. How old were you when you received your first paycheck?

A. I think I was 15 when I first spent a summer working for my father.

6) Ricky does yoga to stay in shape. Have you ever tried yoga?

A. I watched a tape once. The woman went through the routine so fast and turned herself inside out so quickly that I knew I'd never, ever be able to do that. Does that count?

7) Ricky is of primarily Spanish descent, with a little French mixed in. When you think of French cuisine, what comes to mind?

A. Escargot.

 

8) Ricky once had his own restaurant, Casa Salsa, in Miami Beach. Have you ever worked in food service?

A. No. Oh no, wait. That's wrong. When I was about 14, I worked over at Camp Fincastle in the kitchen, washing dishes. Camp Fincastle was a church camp. It's since been bought up by a corporation and is some glitzy wedding and meeting venue.

 

9) Random question: What is your best quality?

A. I will have to ask someone else as I do not know. Alexa just compared me to an AA battery when I asked her. I don't know what that means. My friend says I am very compassionate, very empathetic, and curious.

_______________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Family Gravestones

While my father was on vacation in California, I asked him to take photos of the headstones of relatives as he said he was going to be visiting cemeteries.

These are the photos he texted me, and I'm putting them here to keep track of them.

Notice anything odd?

I was first struck by the lack of grass, then realized this is quite the indicator of the drought
and fire conditions in the western USA.

My father's oldest brother.

My grandfather.

My father's sister. I never met her in person and only ever talked with her on the phone.

My grandmother.