Lights Out!

Our daughter is home but the storms are just starting, literally. Shawna blew out her birthday candles, cut the cake and passed around the ice cream. An hour later, all the relatives were on the road. They had to take off for two reasons. Reason number one: Monday morning is a work day. Reason number two: there was a severe thunderstorm coming in. And severe it was!

It was one of those storms where the rain comes in from the sides in waves and sheets instead of vertically. It poured for a half hour with enormous cracks of thunder and lightening. The rain did lighten up but the thunder kept going. Around 7:00 PM, the lights went out.

Fortunately, my mother was very giving. Quite a few years ago she moved to San Antonio. As she was packing up she shared many of the items that had blessed our home with memories. One of those items was an antique oil lantern. She gave me the antique glass lantern that had decorated our display shelves. I always keep this lantern full just in case of emergency. This evening it chased the shadows from our living room.

It is strange to think how dependent we have become on electricity. Every time we turned around I heard my husband, the kids or myself trying to flip a switch to turn on the lights. Or, how about our entertainment? Normally we spend the evening watching T.V., playing on the computer or the son is on the phone with his girlfriend.

This evening was an exception as we lit the lantern and pulled out a board game. We had a good time playing a "Harry Potter' board game. It was a take-off of the game "Clue". My husband and son have been playing Clue on the computer and have been beating the game quite often. You would have thought that they would have won with all the practice that they have been getting. Guess who won? Yep, it was me. It was a fluke, but I'll take what I can get.

It slowly got dark and it was reminiscent of many years ago when all that was available were lanterns and candles. I went for a walk later on that night. As I walked I looked at the many houses that were without electricity. Even without the powers of modern convenience our house still had more light than any in the neighborhood. What does that say about our family? I can't figure out if it is positive or negative. On one hand we were prepared for this kind of situation. On the other hand, even without modern convenience we wanted our environment to have a lot of light. Is this wasteful or just the way we are? Do we want the light to chase away the encroachment of darkness. Is this a primeval reaction? Or, does my family like a lot of light?

She's Back!

My lovely daughter has returned from her wandering ways. We picked her up from the local airport on Sunday, 8/12/07, at three in the afternoon. There we were watching & waiting for her to walk up the ramp and what do we see? One of her girl friends!

She took forever! We finally see her walking side-by-side with a young man. She's gone for 7 weeks and comes home with a new boyfriend. Will the trials and tribulations of life continue? We can only hope!

Her mother that has known her for almost 16 years didn't recognize her. Her hair was longer. She was taller, darker, more muscular and wearing a shirt I didn't recognize. She was doing this little sheepish smile thing knowing that her parents were watching her walk up the ramp with her young man.

It was great to wrap my arms around her and give her a hug! Her father was smiling and waiting his turn. We brought her home to a family of relatives. Her 16th birthday was just a few days away so I made her a cake from scratch (a personal gift from her father and myself, something she was hoping for). It had been a long time since everyone had been together for a birthday. My little girl isn't so little anymore and although this is a big thing for her (and us). It reminds me of my own 16th birthday celebration and what it big event it is. This special day only comes once in a life time! Here's hoping that she will remember her 16th for many years to come.

Thats amore Dean Martin

I told you I love Dean Martin. He always seemed to have fun while performing.

Little Did He Know

I started a new job recently that is located to the most tempting shopping area. Shopping, most people like (or love) to go looking for a new pair of shoes or a fantastic new outfit, but my idea of shopping heaven is the local garden store.

When telling my husband about this prospective job I purposely neglected to tell me that it was right next door to the fantastic gardening store, Mulhalls. My husband enjoys the work I put into the garden but he KNOWS that I get carried away. One year I had so many plans on my plate that I couldn't get all the manure into the ground. I just ran out of time. And, of course, he dislikes working outside when it is hot and humid, which in my area, is quite often. This means that any plans I make, I had better be sure that I can complete them because he is no help whats-so-ever. This isn't a mean or bad statement about my husband, it's just the way he is. On the other hand, if I really needed the help he would lend a hand. This way I get the satisfaction of knowing that the success in the garden is the result of my own two hands.

So, when I finally told him about the fact that Mulhalls is literally across the street from where I work, his response was, Eye's rolling--"uh-huh, now I know why you wanted that job." It takes a lot of restraint but so far I haven't bought a thing. Although, it does make a nice place to take a walk during lunch hour.

Mulhalls is fantastic! They have this jingle on the radio that goes "Mulhalls has it all." It really does! I spent a 1/2 hour just walking through the water fountains and statues. I still didn't see it all. That's going to take many more hours of walking and admiring. I can't wait to see what they will have up for the Halloween season.