Somewhere - Sunday Scribblings

This week's prompt is "Somewhere".  What came to my mind first is the beautiful song from West Side Story.  I have always loved musicals and West Side Story is one of the best.  I think it is a wonderful illustration of how things have changed so much in the last 40+ years. 

Tony and Maria's somewhere is quite possibly here and now.  I am very happy to live in a much more diverse time and place where my multi-cultural children (my husband is hispanic/filipino and I am caucasian) are not subjected to the injustices that they might have faced just a few decades ago.  I live in a beautiful, diverse community with many races and cultures represented.  I live in a time where it is possible for an African-American to run for President and a strong, beautiful mother of five to run for Vice President!  I think I just may live "Somewhere!"

Before you watch the video, scroll down to the playlist and hit pause so you can hear the audio.

Five Quotes

I've been tagged to list five of my favorite literary quotes.  This is not easy since I love reading all kinds of books and I had a really hard time narrowing them down but here goes:

1.  "Wealth is not the same as income.  If you make a good income each year and spend it all, you are not getting wealthier.  You are just living high.  Wealth is what you accumulate, not what you spend."   

The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley Ph.D, and William D. Danko, Ph.D.

2.  "Is there a single person on whom I can press belief?  No sir.  All I can do is say, Here's how it went.  Here's what I saw.  I've been there and am going back.  Make of it what you will."  

Peace Like a River by Leif Enger

3.  "All our work and money and it's just away like that?  To stand forty years empty, and then go in a flicker of an eyelid!  Just when we had it fixed up."  The aunt in her shop, sniveling into a tissue.  A silence.  "What about the outhouse?"

He could hardly believe what he heard.  The house gone and she asked about the crapper.  

The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx

4.  "In our television age, when pictures without context immediately influence our emotions, when cause and effect are deemed irrelevant, when only suffering is important, human sympathy and a deep desire for peace can turn into a weapon of tyranny."  

The Case for Democracy by Natan Sharansky

5. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  

John 3:16

The Holy Bible

Wordless Wednesday

How I Met My Superman ~ Sunday Scribblings

I don't believe there are "accidents" when it comes to meeting people.  I believe there are "divine appointments".  

I was just 18 years old when I met my husband, a.k.a. "Superman".  He actually lived in the same neighborhood as I did.  But, we met at a church more than 30 miles away. His parents had met my Pastor (another amazing story) when I was in High School and they started attending our church every once in a while.  I got to know his Mom a little bit and usually chatted with her briefly when I saw her.  I found out that they lived in our neighborhood which was one of those "small world" moments since the church was in another city.

If I saw them outside when I drove by, I would wave hello.  One day, their youngest son came home from the Air Force.  I would see him in their driveway waxing his car all the time.  I would wave, but he rarely noticed and had no idea who I was.  I started to get a crush on him.

I actually wrote a note to my best friend that year, that I wished he would notice me and ask me to the prom.  I told her that we would then fall in love and I would be Mrs. G. and we would have three children.  It was all fantasy of course!

A year after I graduated from High School, I had moved on and gotten over my little crush. I was sitting in church and noticed him walk in and stand at the back of the room.  I had never seen him close up.  He looked a little bit nervous about walking in, so I got up and asked him if he would like to sit with my parents and I.  I was just being neighborly!  :)  We walked out into the hall and started talking.  After several minutes of conversation, he asked me for my phone number so we could go out sometime.  I was really surprised and gave it to him expecting him to call in a few days or maybe a week later.

When we got home from church, the phone was ringing.  Guess who it was?  He asked if I'd like to go out that night.  I said yes and then he asked me for directions to my house.  I laughed and said "well, you pull out of your driveway, turn right and then make your second left, my house is on the left!"  He had no idea I lived in his neighborhood, or that I already knew his parents, or that I used to wave hello when I saw him outside!  He was there within five minutes to pick me up.

We went on our first date that night and had a wonderful time.  The next morning as I was getting ready for work, he arrived at my door with roses in hand and wearing his Deputy Sheriff's uniform (I love a nice uniform!).  He had worked the night shift after our date and came to my house after work.  I was hooked! Our second date was that night, and we went out again the night after that...  We were inseparable from then on and were engaged within six months.  We got married two years later and we have three children. 

Memories of Grandma

One year ago today, my beloved Grandmother passed away.  She had been suffering from Alzheimer's Disease and also had breast cancer surgery a few months prior to her death.  She was very sharp, witty and loved to use her mind.  Alzheimer's was the worst thing for her to have had to suffer because it diminished her most prized possession - her mind.  She played crossword puzzles and Upwords daily (sometimes for hours) to keep her mind sharp until the last few months when she could no longer formulate the words.

She really liked to tell a good joke.  Every week she would come to dinner at our house (we lived in the same neighborhood) and she always tried to have a new joke to tell us.  

Just before she passed away, my parents took a very much needed break from the 24 hour intensive care that she required.  They went out of town for a few days and I stayed with Grandma.  I have some great memories of the time I spent with her but I thought I would share one of my favorites.

One night when I was sitting with her watching television she looked up at me.  "What hotel is this?" she asked.  I explained that we weren't at a hotel, but that we were in her bedroom at her home.  She looked confused and then said "No wonder the service here is so lousy!"  I laughed so hard and she just looked at me with a twinkle in her eye, knowing that she had said something funny but not necessarily sure of what it was.  

Less than two weeks later she passed away.  I was so blessed to have spent that time with her and still miss her very much.

Unspectacular Quirks - Hmmm Do I Have Any? Oh yeah..

My "God Sister" Kristi, has tagged me on this little challenge to list six unspectacular quirks of mine.  I hope I can narrow it down to six because I am a walking "quirk fest"!  :)

1.)  I cannot touch paper after my hands have been wet, especially after I have washed dishes.  I can use paper towels, but even when my hands are dry, they are so sensitive that I can't touch any paper for at least 5 minutes or so.  It's like fingernails on a chalk board to me.  Weird!

2.) You wouldn't think so if you looked at my desk, but I have a strong need to have things in some kind of order.  I recently helped somebody move and had to restrain myself from taking over and giving orders to everybody as to how it should all be done.  Hmmm, control freak?  I don't know, I think it is more of an ability to see things in a big picture view.  I dissect things in my mind.  I should probably harness this and turn it into a business, but I don't think I'd have many friends.  Everybody hates the organized person...look at that poor Martha Stewart.

3.)  I sing all the time.  In the car, my children retreat to their Ipods so they can drown out my constant singing.  I doubt that I sound very good, but I just can't help it!!  I love music!!

4.)  I rarely go outside without sunglasses.  Does this count as a quirk?  I can't see outside without my sunglasses because my eyes are very light sensitive (and blue) and they water in bright sunlight.  I'm sure some folks wonder if I think I'm some kind of  Supah Stah!

5.)  I am a very annoying news junkie - especially political news.  Rarely a day goes by when I don't say to somebody "did you hear about such and such?" I feel I must relay the latest news to my friends and family, especially my poor husband.  I know it probably drives them crazy.

6.)  When I laugh really hard, I cry.  There have been some occasions when something hilarious has happened and I end up with a look of anguish and tears streaming down my face.  This always baffles my kids. They usually stop laughing and ask me if I'm okay.  

I now have to tag six people.  I'll tag Mom, Kimberly, Karla, and my new blogging friends, Jamey, KGraham, and Beth. Here are the rules:

1. Link the person who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog.
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them.
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Wordless Wednesday ~ Grandma 3/28/1920 - 8/22/2007

Confession Tuesday

This week I've done several new things with my blog.  I added music, changed the background, joined Entrecard, and started using Sunday Scribblings for writing inspiration.  I hope to write more and get more people reading my posts.

Now, for my confessions for this week:

1.)  In just three days, I will be 35 years old.  Wow!!  I used to think 35 was ancient.  I have said before that I don't feel any older than I did in High School and I hope it stays that way.  I do take my health more seriously now and I will try to start eating better and exercising more.  I said try so don't expect me to throw out the Oreos just yet.

2.)  I am really looking forward to going out of town with my family next week.  We are tagging along with my husband on a work related trip.  We haven't seen him in over a month so we are very excited to go.  We are heading to Branson, Missouri.  This will be our first time there so if anybody has any suggestions of what to do feel free to share them.

3.)  I hate leaving my dogs behind.  It really wouldn't be a vacation if we brought the dogs.  They are a lot of work and they take up a lot of room too!  But, we will miss them terribly and of course we worry about how they'll miss us too.  Thankfully, this time, we'll have a neighbor watching them so they can stay in their own home instead of the kennel.  I hope that it will help them miss us less. 

4.)  I'm having a really hard time getting my act together for school this year.  I have almost gotten everything done for the curriculum but I still haven't decided about the co-op.  Our homeschool co-op is an hour away and I really wasn't looking forward to the drive, or the gas costs.  I just found out that they are moving the location even further away so I really can't decide if we're going to go this year or not.

5.)  My sons are getting phone calls from girls already and I'm freaking out!  My oldest is 13 and girls are text messaging him frequently.  My middle son is 11 and he gets phone calls from girls almost every day.  How did this happen so quickly?  I'm sure when my daughter starts getting calls, the whole house will be in an uproar.  :)  The kids have been told that there will be no "dating" but rather, "courting" so we can avoid the pitfalls as much as possible until they move out on their own.  So far, of course nobody is arguing this position.  We'll see what happens when they're 16... 

I hope everybody has a great day!  Thanks for reading.

Ask

Ask

If you do not ask

there is no answer.

If you do not dance

You are no dancer.

If you do not sing

You are no singer.

If you do not love

You are no lover.

If you do not believe

You are no believer.

Ask

Believe

Love

Live

 

Confession Tuesday

Okay, so I skipped last week.  I have been very busy with all that keeps me busy and pretty much forgot about it.  Last week, my best friend Lori and I got all the kids together (her 2 + 1 friend, my 3 + 2 friends) for our first annual "Camp Gesundheit".   

It was basically a two night, three day sleepover/camp where we just let the kids have fun.  We went to the pool, park, played outside and made a few crafts.  There was also a movie night and I broke out the giant popcorn machine.  It is a very big movie style machine that we bought for Joshua's bar mitzvah but haven't used since because it is so difficult to clean.  On the last day we went bowling before saying our goodbyes.  It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to doing it again next summer.

On to my confessions for this week:

1.)  I am impressed with myself!  Amazingly, I've actually completed a few of my "to do" items before my husband returns home.  I cut the grass again, I purchased the deck seal (though I haven't applied it yet), I pruned the hedges and started to work on the weeds, and I got my office somewhat organized.  I still have several things left to do, but all in all, not half bad considering my kids have had three sleep overs in the last two weeks for a total of 7 extra children plus all of the normal day to day tasks.

2.)  I am addicted to books.  I love summer because I have a little more time to read.  I just love going to the library or the book store to pick out a new book~it is one of life's joys.

3.)  The farm dream is back on.  The pictures above are from a farm that we toured a few weeks ago during "Farm Tour" day here in our County to promote agriculture.  There were several wildflower fields and different types of produce and livestock to see.  Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge them.

The entire family is in agreement that we would like to have a farm one day.  We have all spent hours talking about what we would like to do or have on our farm.  Today we talked about animal names.  Josh decided that he would want a miniature donkey named "Eddie the Ass", a pot bellied pig named "Kosher" and a miniature cow.  Havilah decided she would like to have some rabbits and Gabe decided he would like to have an ATV to drive around.  

4.)  I already have Obama fatigue.  Lord, I hope that man does not get elected or I'll never be able to watch the news.  I am already so tired of hearing his voice with his contrived accents!  He seems so fake and comical to me that I'm becoming cynical over everything that comes out of his mouth.  At least with Bush, I didn't get "fatigue" until about his fifth or sixth year in office!  I am looking forward to the debates, however, and hope that John McCain will wake up in time to close the deal. 

 

Lazarus arise!!