DAZE OF AULD LANG SYNE

What a year it has been! Unsettling to be sure, like a roller coaster ride. One minute you are on top of the world and the next minute, the bottom drops out and you can't see around the next curve, but you know in reason that it is going to get worse before it gets better. 2008--you were great! Recession, election, aggression. You turned us topsy-turvy with all the changes. Worries, hurries and flurries. Intense, suspense, expense. Yep, one thing for sure, it was not a boring year. 2009---will we be fine? Work, work, work. We all need work. Jobs, and homes, and cars. Pride and patriotism again. Pull-together people. Learn from our mistakes. Dear God, please help America be great again. Guide us! How blessed we are, how blessed we'll be, in the land of the brave and the home of the free. Welcome!

NASHVILLE, TN.

Hi, Y'all! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. I certainly did, because it was spent with the family I love so much, mine! We had a peaceful, relaxed evening with my son, daughter and her family and my sweetie. Last year we had a houseful of guests at her house but she had to work until Christmas evening, so we did not invite anyone this year except family. As usual, too much food was prepared, and I'm sure we all ate way too much. At least I did. I will have to diet for months to make up for it. It was so enjoyable, though. Since both boys are older, we got to watch them get Santa gifts on Christmas eve. Lots of electronic gadgets and games, which they loved. I enjoyed seeing them excited. I was blessed this year with gifts I love and appreciate, but then I always do appreciate them. My daughter gave me a long, cream-colored coat for church, and a much needed set of Oneida silverware (12 place settings!) and my sweetie gave me a big set of "Beauiful" cologne, with cosmetic case and goodies, trousers and shirt, and a gift certificate for the sales after. But my big surprise was an all expense paid long weekend in Nashville, Tn. My son took us, the seven hour trip was rainy, but we found gas for 1.39, the cheapest for us yet. Our suite at the Hilton was great, walking distance to Country Music Hall of Fame, and Opry at the Rhyman, for which DS had got tickets. Since my sweetie and I love country music among other types of music, we enjoyed the museum so much. I did not expect it to be as big as it was and as nice. We spent an entire afternoon there and did not see it all. The show at the Rhyman was fantastic. I was excited that Keith Urban was performing, as he is one of my favorites. He did not let us down, he was incredible. Nicole's family was visiting them and all were in the audience. We got to see several others; Jett Williams (Hank Williams,Sr,'s lost daughter), ( story there) Juliette Hough(from Dancing with the Stars) , Jamey Johnson, Chuck Weiss, Riders in the Sky, and other regulars on the Grand Old Opry. And a fairly new group, Cherryholmes, that I thought was very good. The acoustics at the Rhyman are great, so I was not disappointed that the show was not at the new Opry. I had been to the Rhyman a few times spaced over the past thirty years, and it was like visiting an old friend. We ate once at a honkey-tonk barbecue place, close to the Orchid Lounge. A mistake, since it was late evening. The next morn we ate at Pancake Pantry, another N-Ville tradition. We love the one in Gatlinburg and this one was excellent, also. Sunday morning, we went to the Opryland Hotel and it is even bigger than I remembered. We had brunch at Watersedge in the Cascades section. The dancing waters fountain was right at our table. The geysers with music is a trifle hypnotic, but so relaxing. Seeing all the beautiful flowers and trees in full bloom was such a welcome sight after the cold spell we have had. But speaking of weather, Mother Nature cooperated wonderfully. Saturday was a blissful 72 and Sunday, though cooler, was still very pleasant. Kids, of course, were in short sleeve t-shirts. It must be a universal trait to hate jackets until you are 30! All in all, it was a weekend that I enjoyed tremendously, thanks to a wonderful son who knows his Mama so well. My grandson, the one who got the bad burn, is gone back to the surgeon today to determine whether he will need a skin graft on his foot. I am praying that the healing is more than satisfactory at this stage. That would be the greatest gift I could get before 2009. My late husband's brother passed away Christmas and we were unable to attend funeral today as the family lives in Texas but our heart goes out to them as holidays are always hard after someone passes. I hate to end this exuberant posting on a sad note, but if we need any reminder to show family and friends that we love them , this is it. Not just at Christmas , but everyday, we need to say "I love you, I appreciate you, and you are a valued part of my life." And not just say it, show it in our actions. Then we can truly enjoy each day, every day, one day at a time! God bless you all and I love you, my friends.

I really do not know where this entry will go. I feel the need to
express the whirlwind of random thoughts that occupy my mind
at the present time. But I am not sure how to frame them in a neat
concise way so that they are not perceived as discordant notes from
a fragmented mind. None are significant, yet none are irrelevant.
Usually when I reach this state of mind, I write a poem. Poetic
liscence enables me to express the bubbling, churning well-spring
of emotions and ideas that form and rise unbidded to the surface.

Many of the things I could write about are important only to
me, and not to my few but faithful readers. Do I bother them
with the mundane descriptions of my everyday life, reveal
my innermost thoughts and passions, or should I relegate this
blog to topics that are generally acceptable, such as the weather?

I am a modest, private person, often hesitant to allow close
friends to enter that inner sanctum. Yet, I yearn for close friends
who accept me as I am, with all my eccentricities and minor
phobias. Yet, that invites criticism and I shield my id from
anything but constructive criticism. Or what I construe as
constructive criticism. Too sensitive? Yes, I am. I was often
urged by professors to publish my poetry and essays, but I
could never bring myself to make that first appearance with
creations that I deemed less than perfect. Much less.

Through this blog, I have embraced the fact that even less
than perfection can be valued and accepted. A venture that
started out to be a cataloging of events in a mediocre life has
brecome a vehicle of expressing personal emotions and ideas.
For that, I am thankful. And when I am gone, someone,
somewhere, may know and remember that I existed. That
I was here and that I was glad that I was.

Oh, golly! That's profound. Get me out of here and into
a lighter realm. Next time, I promise.... well, maybe, humor?

ACCIDENTS HAPPEN

My daughter called last night to tell me she had made a trip to the ER clinic with my youngest grandson, who is eleven. She went on to tell us the reason. She picked the boys up after school, the older one had basketball practice at 6:00 so they decided to stay in town until then. The younger one asked for hot chocolate so she stopped at a fast food place to get it. I think she went through the drive-through. Any way, he had the styrofoam cup in the back seat when they started through a traffic light and she had to stop suddenly. The lid came off when it tumbled onto his foot, sending the scalding hot chocolate into his shoe. She stopped to see how bad it was, but the light was dim and it had not blistered yet, so she took him on home, crying. When they arrived, she saw that it was a very bad burn. Twelve large blisters had raised and the whole foot was red. (He counted them) She at once took him to the clinic and they treated the foot and bandaged it. He had a second degree burn. He told me that the Doctor said that he had the biggest blister he had ever seen. He repeated this to me somewhat proudly. They told him to miss two days school and then they would dress it and reevaluate it. My son wanted to take me there at once but daughter said she would stay with him today and I could come tonight and stay with him tomorrow as she had meetings scheduled she should not miss. A burn hurts so bad, he needs a little petting from Nana. He called me this morning to come so his mother could go pick up crutches for him. (She told me to wait) The sweetest thing, though, he said, "Nana, I want you to talk to Mom. She is beating herself up over this, saying it was her fault, and it was not ." So I got her on the phone and told her what he said, and she did sound low, so I told her that Accidents Happen to everyone, no matter how cautious they try to be. Both of us are over-protective and guilt-ridden if anything happens. She has so much on her mind all the time, trying to work and be SuperMom , too. It is such a hectic season, also. We are having terrible wind here today. It will almost knock you off your feet. I went out to retrieve various things that had blown from my yard, across the road into the field. Lawn chair cushion, emptied flower planter, garbage can lid, and metal dog dish among the items I picked up! A cold, fierce wind that is much worse than March is blowing. I hurried back in as fast as I could . So much for my porch decorating. It will have to wait. Is there a hurricane on the coast? Hope you have a happy, safe and healthy holiday season. One day at a time!

PAMPERED, .......BUT (butt?)

My bachelor son and I share a home. He has a full apartment on the ground floor while I reside upstairs. We finished the upstairs of our split level home first and lived there while we completed the ground floor. We eventually took the double car garage and changed it into a multi-use great room for him. After his father passed away, he continued to live there (seven years now). He had moved back leaving a successful career in Cincinatti, to be with ailing father and grandfather. He dated a classmate through college, law school, and two years employment. (She also became a lawyer.) Our family was fond of her. The relationship could not endure a long distance romance and with no desire to relocate, it ended suddenly eight years ago. Since then, he dated a doctor steadily (eight years now) while they both got their practices going and just recently, their relationship seems to have reached a stalemate. Seven-year itch? An ultimatium? We do not know what the pivotal point was, he is such a private person. Anyway, for now at least, he is a somewhat disgruntled tenant, stressed to the maximum. His usual pleasant demeanor changing to critical complaints makes me wonder about it and worry that somehow his living here is getting the blame for his present predictament. For instance, I had to take towels into his bathroom yesterday, and noticed that there was no tissue on the shelf. I went upstairs, got some of mine and placed it on the holder. Later on, after work, this was his gripe, "Can't we at least buy decent toilet tissue? That stuff you buy is not fit for service station restrooms." I reply, "Just trying to keep a few bucks from going down the drain." So, he retorts, "Oh, no! I can't wait for you to get off that frugal kick. Ever since you heard the word recession, all I've heard is save, save,save. If a lawyer can't afford Charmin, he ought to change professions." That got my dander up and I snapped back, "How do you think you got that education? By us cutting corners and saving?" Later, I sheepishly added, "I know you worked all through school, and then still took student loans, so you should know it does not come easy." To that he replied, "Oh, no, here comes your favorite phrase, 'Poor people have poor ways!' '' Mom, you have not been "poor" for at least 50 years, (since you married Dad). Why do you still believe you are.? " I didn't say, "Well, I thought I was for sixteen years prior to that." He said, "Here we go again. The old outhouse with the Sears, Roebuck catalogue hard times tale!" Later that day, still fuming from his unusual outburst, I thought to myself, "Yes, I lived with parents those years who had endured the Great Depression and survived on their frugal ways." They paid cash on the barrelhead or did without until they could afford something. I was privileged to raise my children in a loving family in good economic times. They never realized any struggles that we might have had financially. But with my firstborn I can remember hanging her cloth diapers on the clothesline in freezing weather, They froze dry. Now, with my son, Pampers had come along. And so began the Pampered generation. Maybe that it to blame for the present panic felt by an economy doing a nosedive. Pampers, thats it. Wonder what he will tell his children (if he ever has any) about hard times when he was little. I can imagine it something like this: "Would you believe we didn't even have wind- shield wipers on the commodes or hiney blow- dryers? I don't know how we survived those hard times and that awful toilet paper." Well, I have vented now and feel better. I do not mean that I do not fully appreciate all he does.. I love him with all my heart , and I know he loves me, also. Now, if he could just quit smoking.....................! the blame for his present predictament.

TREASURE HUNT

Well, I've done it again! My annual treasure hunt is underway. This tradition is many ,many years in the making and has become such a customary part of our holidays that it has even extended to birthdays and anniversaries. You see, I start shopping early for gifts, when I am out somewhere and something catches my eye that I think a family member or friend will like. Even if the event to cele- brate is months away, I squirrel it away, to bring out and wrap at he proper time. I have a large, two-story house, but it has become filled to the max throughout my many years of receiving gifts from my family and friends. Being overly senti- mental and slightly superstitious, I seldom part with gifts given to me, regardless of the price or age of item. (I still have the plaster handprints, the hand-made cards, and painted ornaments that my children made thirty and forty years ago.) That's just the kind of mother that I am. Though my head tells me to part with things, when it comes to discarding my treasures, I cling to them as if they were living instead of just things. (Not only mine, but my children's trove of memorabilia.) My closets are filled with ancient cheerleading outfits, sports equipment, love letters, and such keepsakes from their school years. I tried to give Daughter all her treasure but she does not want clutter in her new house. "You keep it for me, Mom. The boys may want to see it someday." To which I reply, "Okay, but when I'm gone, you will have one heckava time sorting it out. You'll have to get one of those dumpsters park in the driveway for a month or so." This tears at my heart because not too long ago, we went through the same thing at my mother's house when both parents had passed away and the house need to be emptied for sale. My sister and I spent weeks sorting and sitting crying while we looked at things she had collected. It prolonged the grief , I suppose, but it also brought back many precious memories of our childhood. I think memories are the best to collect and as we get older, they sometimes slip to\ the back of our minds and need to be refreshed by a aged photo or doo-dad. I said all this to say that my house is full. Even though it is big, closets, drawers, bookcases, Everything is full, so when I start stashing my Christmas gifts, I have to search for places to put them. I have six , long , narrow drawers under a king- sized waterbed that can hold small things, I put jewely boxes, colognes and other small thing in there for safe keeping. I resolved this year to only buy small things which are usually more expensive anyway, so that they could be easily wrapped and stored, then transported to their varied recipients. GOOD PLAN, if it worked. Then, when I was dining one day in fall at Cracker Barrel, I came upon a fine set of horshoes in a wooden carrying case, and a neat croquet set which my sweeties DD had admired, but passed over even though they were both half price. Aha! A good gift for her family, that could be enjoyed for many summers. So, I went back later and bought both of them with smug pleasure. I could mark that off my Christmas list. When I got home, I realized that I needed a place to store them until time for giving, and I began to look around for a place. Several places occured to me that were large enough to hold them, but when I went there, they were either full or not big enough. Finally, I must have found a place where they would not be in my way for months. I dunno. Friday, as I prepared for my trip to sweetie's DD's home for their annual dinner and gift exchange, I needed to wrap their presents. And so it began! The treasure hunt. Now, it started out fun but as I could not remember which of the places I had finally stashed them, it turned frantic. As the day progressed, I changed from a leisurely packing organizer to a frantic madwoman, tearing madly from place to place, searching every nook and cranny for the elusive gifts. I left behind a trail of jumbled closets, opened suitcases , boxes and bags that would take me a month to repack. So much for my early planning. I finally despaired of finding them, and thought I'd have to go shopping , but I finally put together a collection of gifts intended for others to take to them. I may find them in time for her February birthday. When I called my daughter later and related my frantic search, she said in a matter- of-fact tone, "So, what else is new? Mom, you have been doing this as long as I can remember." And she is right, darn it. I reminded her that it all began because Santa could not hide her gifts anywhere she coud not forage them out of and secretly play with for some time before Christmas. She knew all my hiding places and I had to be really creative to elude her prying eyes. She said, "Oh, but it was such fun. It made it last a long long time. And I learned to rewrap gifts so neatly, so that you didn't suspect." Yes, I did suspect and finally, one Christmas, at a loss for anywhere she could not get at, I had resorted to leaving them locked in the trunk of the car. That Christmas eve, the children were so excited that they could not go to sleep. We waited and waited for silence so that we could retrieve the Santa gifts from the car. Finally, Hubby went off to sleep and I was left to handle it alone. It was bitterly cold, near zero, and an icy snow had fallen, making the driveway slick. I bundled up and gingerly made my way to the car, thinking I could do it in two or three trips. To my surprise, the key would not turn in the icy lock. I fumbled frantically until my fingers were frozen and the tears on my cheeks had frozen also. I even tried pouring a pan of hot water over it to no avail. I went back inside and awakened Hubby with my panicked tale. He said, "I'll get up at daylight and try to get them out." I was awakened the morning of Christmas Day by two excited children who had run down to see an empty tree, cookies not eaten. I will never forget the look on their faces as they felt it had finally happened, they had been so bad that Santa had forgot them. My desperate Hubby, who had overslept , had to wait almost until noon before he could thaw the lock. Santa was sure running late that year. A memorable Christmas, for the wrong reasons. My DD assured that they had already known who supplied Santa, but that was the night my Hubby and I stopped believing in him. When we talked about this experience yesterday and the lost gifts, my daughter reassured me, "Mom, thats as much a tradition for me as any other. You pull out hidden gifts for a month after Christmas. I actually look forward to it." I guess I will continue to hide them from myself, Despite all my scourging myself about being less sentimental and more organized, I hope they like me this way. I'm too old to change now. Happy holidays, especially Merry Christmas. I

GLAD TIDINGS

I am so happy to be home again. I feel as if I have been away much too long, even though my little jaunts have mostly consisted of short trips and overnighters at my daughters home, I am ready for some home and hearth. I have finished my Christmas shopping and I will not be traveling much as the roads become more treacherous. Time to hibernate? Well, maybe, because the cold weather really cause old Arthur to kick up his heels. Arthritis is no fun and that bad knee gives away sometimes. I do not need a fall. Anyway, here I am, back to blogging and reading blogs. Tis the season to be jolly, and with all the family feasting that we will enjoy, I am hard-pressed to keep my fellow and I on a diabetic diet. For instance, at his family's party this weekend, I had to pass up old-fashioned stack cake, prune cake, NY style cheesecake, coconut creme pie, and cookies galore. His daughter is good at baking and everything looked so good. I was proud of my willpower, and had turkey, dressing and veggies! So hard to diet during holidays! I so enjoyed being with the three little girls, ages 6, 4, and 2, The twin boys are 17 months old. Little ones bring freshness and life to a family gathering. The six-year old girl is a drama queen with a big imagination. She passed gold wrapped candy coins to all of the adults without telling what she wanted us to do with them. Then she sat down and rang a little bell. I realized that she had been impressed with seeing the workers for the Salvation Army ringing their little bells and had asked to hear about them. Such a sweet thing for her to play-act. The play she is in at her church was tonight but we needed to come home. I wished we could have stayed for it. I hope I never reach the point where I am annoyed to be around children as some older folk do. My sweetie and his grandson had their usual political debate which ended as usual in a draw. Neither one will give up on changing the others affiliation and they keep trying. They are equally stubborn but mainly, I think they just enjoy the debating. I am hoping for a break in this cold spell as I have not done outside decorating yet. I have new pre-lit garlands to hang on the porch railings with big red velvet bows. I think Tuesday is supposed to have the best weather this week, so I may do it then. I hate to wait much longer, as most of the houses are already decorated. Look so pretty at night. I must cut this posting a little short as it is late, and I need to get some rest as I have a lot to do tomorrow. I always have to catch up after taking time away from home. The happy greeting I got from my pooches when I got home let me know that I had been missed. I could hardly get out of the car because they were so overjoyed to see me. For now, I will bid you good-night and good morning as it is close to one a.m. Have a good week and enjoy life, one day at a time. God bless each and everyone and the U.S.A.

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

Twenty-five days and counting. I am going to try to find my little calendar that counts down the days. It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Hey, that would be a good song title, wouldn't it? Or lyric, but I think someone beat me to it. My first Black Friday, my daughter talked me into going with her. I always dreaded the crowds, and the the terrible tales about the rudeness of shoppers almost made me not go again. But there I was right in the midst of it. We had elected to shop in the smaller shopping center with a Walmart instead of the super Walmart nearby. I heard later that it was hectic there but surprisingly, the ones we encountered were very nice and polite. I got quite a bit of my shopping done, and enjoyed a nice lunch with my daughter. Believe me, I did not have to be rocked to sleep that night. The snow is softly falling outside, and I think it is too wet to accumulate, but I may wake up to a winter wonderland tomorrow. Right now, I think I will enjoy a nice cup of hot chocolate and snuggle in to read a while.