In Case You Needed A Little Grace Today ...

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Disney World circa 1980

When I was a kid, occasionally my family would hijack my grandparent's motor home, park it at a small lake 45 minutes away from my house for a few days, and call it a vacation.

This vacation was fine with me. Sure we were a family of four crammed into an RV for seven days with a working toilet that my dad refused to let anyone use, but my parents brought along the nine inch black and white TV so I was (quite literally) a happy camper. I could watch Eight Is Enough reruns and munch Doritos with my sister on the sofa/pull out bed/dining table thingy.

My needs were simple.

Then, for some inexplicable reason, my family decided to go to Disney World when I was in second grade.

My first thoughts upon hearing the news? Disney World! Hot dog - that's the coup de grace! Then I quoted Jimmie Walker with a hand smack and a loud "Dyn-o-mite!"

Yeah. I was cool then, too.

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Yay Dirt! Part Trois

We have a garden. A very large garden. And I use the term "we" very loosely.

The garden belongs to my husband. I just visit, take photos, and pick produce at will.

But you knew that already.

Earlier this evening I was messing around out in the garden and I found these lil' beauties:

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A List of My Ten Most Recent Thoughts

It's been a while since I've posted a list of seemingly random and unrelated thoughts cluttering my mind.

I'm sorry. I know how you all love these lists.

What follows is a list of the next ten thoughts to cross my mind. Seriously. I'm going to type the next ten thoughts that I have.

Here goes …

1. I really need to clean the bathrooms. Wait.  That's not new. I always need to clean the bathrooms because I hate that job and I always put it off and the bathrooms rarely get cleaned. Grody. Probably shouldn't have typed that. Sorry.

2. How many times are you legally allowed to use the word "and" in the same sentence? Is it one time? Nine? What? I need to consult a web page or an English teacher about this matter. I'm pretty sure that my high school English teacher would be totally rolling over in her grave right now. Well, if she were deceased and all.

3. My 20th high school reunion is this Saturday. I'm seriously considering going. I'm seriously considering not going. I'm seriously considering going and wearing my old Prom dress. Of course, I can no longer squeeze into the thing so my only other alternative would be to wear it wrapped around my neck as some sort of sparkly scarf.

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The Horses: This Time It's Personal

I haven't written about the horses that live in my backyard in a while. No particular reason why, I guess they just haven't been doing anything very interesting lately.

And it's been hot. Real hot. Too hot to lug a camera (with attachments) out to the fence that separates me from the horses.

Apparently the horses are very sensitive and have felt slighted by my neglect.

I had no idea they cared about me and my camera so much, but I should have known because I usually receive such warm welcomes whenever I visit them.

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I Used to Be Smart

Once upon a time in a far away land (1987) I was smart.

No, seriously. I was smart.

I was on the Honor Roll all through High School and was on the Dean's List (Honor Roll for the college set) every semester but one at BSU.

I have the certificates and everything.

Then something happened and I done lost my smarts. Not all my smarts, just some. I'm still smart enough to know that I'm not as smart as I used to be.

Make sense?

Good. You are officially smarter than me.

I'll give you a certificate and everything.

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God Wants Me to Have a Pool

God wants me to have a pool.

It's true. Know how I know? He keeps sending me signs.

Exhibit A: We have a very large, very flat backyard. Perfect for a pool. With a diving board.

Exhibit B: I have a spot all picked out in the backyard for our deluxe, in ground, salt water (though I'm open to chlorine) pool. With a nicely landscaped patio surrounding it, of course. I have pointed out this special spot in the yard for a few summers. My husband (who absolutely DOES NOT want a pool) planted a large oak tree in this particular spot and the tree died. Gone. Poof. No more oak tree.

Exhibit C: I bought season passes to the public pool for this summer and I've gone several times. Only one time was without incident. The most recent pool episode was a few days ago and the water turned (of all colors) brown.

Brown, people, brown.

Nothing empties a crowded pool faster than the water turning brown. Cognitively I know the water turned brown for some completely rational reason, yet the junior high kid that lives inside of me automatically thinks someone had a bad reaction to a gas station burrito and got a raging case of the schidoozles right there in the shallow end of the public pool.

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A Date: Hummingbird Style

She agrees to meet him at the restaurant, her blind date. She's a cautious gal.

She gets there early.

It's not a new place to eat. In fact, she's been here before. The sugar water is pretty good.

She samples.

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Should Have Grabbed the Cheetos

Have I ever mentioned that I heart Subway?

Well, guess what?

I heart Subway!

It's the bread. I'm a fool for the bread.

And the fixin's - lettuce, spinach (fresh baby spinach!), tomato, cucumber, green peppers, olives, banana peppers, mayo, spicy mustard. I'm a fool for the fixin's.

Oh, and the chip selection. I'm a fool for a good chip selection. Usually I choose Baked Lay's because they're tasty and I'm on a crusade to make myself less jiggly. But if I'm feeling naughty, I'll grab a bag of Cheetos.

Today, I announced at breakfast with just the right amount of subdued tone and awed reverence, is Subway for Lunch Day. And I am feeling virtuous, so it is a Baked Lay's kind of a day.
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In Case You Needed Some Joy Today ...

… here you go.

Sunflowers are delightful, aren't they?

So bright, so yellow, so joyful.

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It Really Doesn't Take Much to Entertain Me ...

… but you probably knew that already. 

I had a return of the easily amused this weekend.

This time it wasn't glass a la my Back to the Future pictures from Minnesota. It was … shadows.

Yep. Shadows.

I was messing around taking pictures of some sunflowers when the sun was starting to set this weekend. I got a couple of good sunflower photos and I may post them later. Haven't decided yet. 

Anyhoo, when I turned around I saw my shadow, thought "Woowee!", and immediately started vogueing a la Madonna circa 1989.

I called over to the nearest child and demanded that she spend some quality time with her mother by making goofball shadow pictures. That's me on the left and the nearest/quality time spending child on the right.

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My Blue Ribbon Experience

This is 4-H judging week in my community. For those of you who aren't familiar with 4-H I shall attempt an explanation.

Kids in grades 3-12 do various projects ranging from raising goats to freezing homemade jams to making a working lamp. The projects are grouped by age and category, then judged, and ribbons awarded.

The be-all-end-all-ribbon in 4-H is the dark purple Grand Champion of which only one in each age group and category is awarded.

The next highest ribbon is a lighter purple Reserve Champion. Once again, only one reserve in each age group and category is awarded.

Everyone else is awarded a blue first place, a red second place, or a white third place ribbon, with multiple kids winning blues, reds, or whites.

This morning my daughter earned a blue ribbon, which was immediately admired and then promptly handed to me to hold until we were ready to leave the judging.

Translation: I shoved it in my purse.

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Shaking Things Up

I've been a treadmill user for over ten years.

Up until last Fall, I was strictly a treadmill walker.

As in walk, don't run.

Run? Fuhgeddaboudit.

I don't want to get sweaty, thank you.

The only two reasons that could possibly make this body run were going to something awesome, like a giant sale at Old Navy. Or from something scary, like zombies.

I still don't know what got into me, but one day I decided to run for a bit on the treadmill.

Know what? I liked it.

Kinda.

I liked the big calorie burn and that made me decide that I could live with running.

On the treadmill. In my basement. With a TV hooked up to a satellite dish.

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Artsy Fartsy Part Quatre

My Aunt visited me a couple of weeks ago. And she brought her camera. You know what that means?

A photo excursion!  Whee!

First stop: a tunnel

I don't know why I like this picture, but I do. It could be because I felt a little naughty and dangerous standing in the middle of a seldom used country road taking a picture. 

Geez, I could have been hit by a tractor or something.

I'm all about living on the edge, man.

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Happy 5th of July!

Happy 5th of July!

Yesterday was the 4th of July. 

Were you aware of that? Probably. The fireworks and whatnot quite possibly gave you a clue.

I love the 4th of July.

Seriously.

It is rapidly approaching Christmas as my favorite holiday.

I'm a fool for cookouts and fireworks.

And the Go-Gos, but I digress.

A big part of my Independence Day celebration is my city's Stars and Stripes concert. Guess what kind of music is played at the Stars and Stripes concert?

No, not the Go-Gos.

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Best. Text. Ever.

Most of the time, the auto correct feature on my phone drives me bananas. It really does. But sometimes … it's funny.

Really, really funny.

This is a text I received yesterday afternoon from my daughters' piano teacher. She's a lovely gal that I have been friends with for about twenty-five years.

There is a certain closeness and a sense of freedom that comes with knowing someone for that long.

You feel like you can tell them anything.

Or in some cases, share too much.

About fifteen minutes before the piano lesson was to begin, I received this text from her:

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