I Dare You Not To Laugh!

"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation."
-Plato

Ps. There's now a PacMan Game at the bottom of the blog, enjoy! :)

Affirmations

"Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength."
Corrie Ten Boom

When reading the "Hiding Place", there was one passage that stuck with me...Corrie Ten Boom thanked God for the fleas in the beds of her concentration camp room. Everyone thought her mad, till they realised the fear of the fleas was what was keeping the guards out of their room; and therefore, they were able to speak, share, pray and fellowship with relatively little disturbance.
"In Everything Give Thanks..."
1Thess. 5:18

Wandering Spirit and Pirate Treasure

I was reading at http://lifeonmull.blogspot.com/gspot.com/ "The Wanderer Returns" and the mention of taking their boat to explore the various coves reminded me of my summers by the shore on Kent Island, Chesapeake Bay, Maryland. My grandmother co-owned a trawling boat that would take clients out for a day's fishing. My cousins and I were often put into the trustworthy hands of our gran for time on end...and we became 'mates on the ship' not minding at all whether it was 'get to the mopping, swabby', or 'bring me the bait pail'! When it was time on our own, we would often take the row boat and be gone, exploring up and down the marina. My Gran instilled in us a sense of adventure and imagination, and would take the boat to different areas in and around Kent Island...looking for 'Pirate Treasure'! We would snorkle in the shallows which gave me an interest to later become a Scuba Diver. Her friend was equally fun and devilish, and didn't like the
sailboats because they sometimes cut across the fishing lines (if I'm remembering correctly)...he would have us kids yell out to the sailboats as they passed by us: 'odin, odin, stop the wind and change the tides'! This was where I also learned of the crab bucket, and the tendancy of what human nature can be like sometimes. You see, you never have to put a lid on a crab bucket. At first glance you would think the crabs would all climb out and escape. But they don't; as soon as one crab almost makes it to the top, the other crabs grab him and pull him back down. This was interesting to observe, and a lesson to learn (on how not to be!) I think nature has a lot to teach us, if we only stop for a moment to watch and listen!! :)
"Look at that sea, ...all silver and shadow and vision of things not seen. We couldn't enjoy its loveliness any more if we had millions of dollars and ropes of diamonds."
-L.Montgomery, 'Anne of Green Gables'
Though most of my holiday time is now spent in the mountains with my husband and children,
....I don't think the sea can ever be taken out of my soul!!

Play me the Blues

Trying to edit and erased the original video/photo link, so here's the YouTube link: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wqc209-rwNI

Two men who had much in their lives 'against them' you could say. Thankfully for us, they were men of character and heart; and, they followed their dreams!

"What we play is life."
-Louis Armstrong

"You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don't try to forget the mistakes, but you don't dwell on it. You don't let it have any of your energy, or any of your time, or any of your space."
-Johnny Cash

Born into Wealth

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

-Preamble, US Constitution

"Born into Wealth"....That was what her name meant translated into English. She was born at term but was in the NICU/SCBU for observation. Her parents came here about 5 months ago. Whether they were here legally or not, I don’t know, we’re not allowed to ask, but at least they spoke English. I do not begrudge them for wanting a better life for themselves and their baby. Their country is not known for its upholding of human rights. Given a similar situation, who’s to say I wouldn’t do the same. And, no doubt, from where they came from, this does appear the Land of Plenty. As I was giving the discharge instructions, they asked if they could have more diapers and formula from the hospital as they didn’t have much of that at home. They were nicely dressed, and the mother’s hair well coifed from a salon visit. Their follow up appointment for the baby was at the taxpayer’s subsidized county clinic. About 80% of the patients we see here, where I work, are on some form of assistance, and they keep having more babies….immigrants and home-grown 3rd generation welfare. Most of us working stiffs have as many babies as we can afford, and have personal responsibility to take precautions to help ensure that. How much longer is our Government going to allow the abuse of what was supposed to be a Social Safety Net for those who’ve fallen on hard times, or though working, are still less fortunate? The Land of Plenty used to mean: come here, work hard, exercise personal responsibility, have the opportunity to own your own property, and have abundant opportunity to better yourself through hard work, and make this a better place to live for all of us. However, I’ve found the majority of the people who are on assistance do not have an attitude of thankfulness, but of entitlement…'why should I have to work when I can get it for free'; and, our Government allows this at the expense of the people who do work hard to try and better themselves. Yes, their baby was born into wealth, and We the People are paying for it.

Reflections by a mountain stream

My son is reading "Treasure Island" for school so I thought I'd include a RLS quote:

"Marriage is like life in this - that it is a field of battle, and not a bed of roses."

wait, not that one... ;) .....how 'bout this:

"Every heart that has beat strong and cheerfully has left a hopeful impulse behind it in the world, and bettered the tradition of mankind."






Hopefully you won't tire of my Sierra Nevada
photos taken last May near our friends' place http://www.cardinalvillageresort.com/
It's a wonderful place to go hiking, fishing, and general meandering with a touch of history as well (Bodie ghost town is 'up round the corner'! :)
As I had a nice evening with the kiddies tonite watching the Pixar film, Ratatouille, which was witty and fun, and with a nice message... I find myself sitting here wondering what to talk about. I've been enjoying reading several blogs, including the readers here, and only wish there were more time in the day to absorp it all!! Especially for the visitors here, I absolutely love some of your topics on your blogs, the sharing, the humour, the similarities, the differences of ya'll....it's been a lot of fun meandering, as it were, amongst all of the different places!! So this will be my post tonite...a thanks to all of you for your creativity, gift of words, and willingness to share your thoughts!! :)
Slainte!! (cheers/health)

Enya-Boadicea

My friend introduced me to the music of Enya of whom I was unfamiliar. This one song caught my attention for two reasons. One was the title, Boudicca, the ancient warrior queen who stood her ground and fought for justice for her people; even though the end was tragic, her courage to take a stand ultimately led to a less oppressive Roman rule. http://womenshistory.about.com/od/boudicca/p/boudicca.htm
I like the quote : by Eleanor Roosevelt, "A woman is like a teabag-only in hot water do you realize how strong she is." History has shown us countless times of 'ordinary' people caught up in 'extraordinary' circumstances which have revealed the character traits of courage, integrity, and compassion. I'm currently writing an essay on Character, and would love to hear your opinion on what is Character, or what is lacking in Character with today's Society.
The second reason was the beautiful space photos. The vastness of space, and here we are on this tiny planet some trying to blow it up, some trying to live peacefully. As I've been thinking a lot about what is Character, and what I've observed with today's Society, I would like to draw attention to the heroes we have around us. Who or what do you define as a hero??
I read a lovely story on the Scotsman today of an injured Bosnian infant being given a new lease on life due to people who cared enough to get involved http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1811082007 . My teen heard about a charity helping kids, and wanted to donate as she decided to shorten her waist length hair http://www.charityguide.org/volunteer/fifteen/locks-of-love.htm. There was a child-less couple that adopted a prematurely born drug-baby from the NICU/SCBU where I work, knowing that this infant may have difficulties. When we turn on the news, we are barraged with the negative; as I've mentioned before, Life is a Balancing Act. Today, I'm focusing on the positive! (and good luck to Scotland's Fitba Team!!!!) :)

A Tree Firmly Planted

“How will our children know who they are
if they don’t know where they came from?”
_John Steinbeck

I visited a few blogs recently that got me thinking more 'aboot ma roots'. Cultural Heritage and History have always been interesting topics for me. Due to my father's prolonged illness when I was young, I tended to be left with my respective sets of grandparents who thankfully wished me to have knowledge of 'where I came from'. However, I find it quite amusing that both sets seemed at odds with each other and where we all were living. The oddities of human nature, sometimes! (Amusing now after pondering it all, but not really all that amusing at the time) Perhaps some of you can relate?

Overall, I believe their intentions were good, ...however, conflicting it was at times!! Over the years, I've sifted and sorted their information, to create who I am today, however 'zany'!! ;)
To try to explain briefly, my American Southern grands wanted me to know my Southern Presbyterian Scots/Ulster Scots heritage, and fighting for the Confederacy and the Amer. Revolution, and that I was a Southern lady not a Yankee (we lived in Pennsylvania), while my grands from the UK (Sco/Eng, RomCath/Ang) via Argentina didn't want me too American, and were quietly miffed that I was not being raised Catholic or at least Angelican (They had to leave Argentina due to Peron, and were only in America for economic reasons, and were loyal to Queen and the Union). There weren't too many open fechts (fights) but sometimes you could feel an undercurrent. I suppose when people feel strongly about things, it's not always easy to be at peace with the 'opposing side'....but I'm still convinced, however naively, that Love does conquer all things! :)

So, with all that said, knowing your heritage is important, it really does help mold our character, though it doesn't completely make us who we are. We can be encouraged by the perseverance and courage of our forebears, as well as learn from their mistakes. In all this, I am still a Christian, though not big on religion nor doctrine. My children will know both mine and my husband's heritage and of our faith. However, I will not force anything on them; I will leave it to my children to decide what they will take on as part of their own identity as adults! Hopefully, we will impart a foundation to them, so that they can be firm of faith and character to bravely go out into this world. Do any readers passing through here have stories or opinions you wish to share on this? I'd love to hear them, maybe to know that I'm not alone in the madness!! ;))

The worlds first engineer

Life is a Balancing act, somewhere with feeling deeply and laughing heartily. I hope you enjoy this video, it gave me a chuckle...ah, human nature, it is what it is, sometimes!

Ain True Love

This is a song from the American Civil War film, 'Cold Mountain'. Haunting and timeless. I do not know these people, yet their story speaks to me, as I've had family/friends serving in war zones.
I was recently visiting family in Pennsylvania and I took my 13yr old son to Gettysburg. The museum there was awesome with its artifacts, photos and personal stories of the people.
Haunting and timeless.
It brought back childhood memories of playing in my uncle's family barn...there was an old storage area, and amongst the old this and thats, I found an old Civil War uniform left hanging there as if it were worn yesterday. I was afraid to touch it, but I always wondered about the man who wore it.

All gave Some, Some gave All

This post is somewhat belated as I had to work this past weekend. When I was younger, I never thought much about Veterans Day. My grandparents told me of the various wars our family had been involved in, even back to before the American Revolution, believe it or not. As a child, I thought of it as a history lesson, that's all; I didn't understand the personal sacrifice nor the heartache involved. Now that I'm older, it's with quiet and solemn regard that I hold these fallen and surviving heroes of our military. Everyday men and women who served their country proudly. We owe it to them (and their families) to help them in any way we can and to let them know that their sacrifice was not in vain. I had originally thought to make this post more of a rant, as I can get pretty stirred up about this issue, but I'd rather leave readers here with a quiet regard for our duty towards helping our veterans. Whether it's donating clothing or money to the various support charities, volunteering at the veterans' hospital, letters and care packages, or being part of a group to lobby the government for better treatment of our vets, we can all help. (Just think, if the vets had even a small percentage of all the goodies our Politicians get, and it's the Politicians who are responsible for starting these wars, anyway....darn it, there I go again....nope, I'm not going to rant....)

We're all busy with our various pursuits, but we do owe the people in uniform something even in a small way....many drops in a bucket make a pail of water!

As a tribute to their fighting spirit:

"We're surrounded. That simplifies the problem!"

_ Chesty Puller, USMC

"Courage is endurance for one moment more… "

_Unknown Marine Second Lieutenant in Vietnam

Wild Mountain Thyme

Mojave Desert Musing

" Many of us want to make a difference with our lives. Everyone has different perspectives, and may come up with a solution to a problem that no one else would have thought of. I value your opinion. Together we can become more than we could be by ourselves."

-Talking Bear, http://sleepybearhollow.blogspot.com/

Ma Hoose, Ma Rules!

I was in a quiet reflective mood until I entered the world of Scots' blog....I recovered well enough to finish a response to a post, however, anything more involving 'deep thought and contemplation' will have to wait!! This is the wonderful funny that gave me a laugh:
http://scotz.blogspot.com/2007/11/scottish.html

Okay, here's a funny back at you! It's not quite language oriented as it is such absolute nonsense....still!!! :D I now have the correct response to give to my children when they say "but, Why?!" "I don't Want to..." (I thought it important for my kids to watch this training video, but when I tried to use the command phrase with my kids, so far it's only produced giggles and funny looks...I wonder why, it seemed to work for this guy??!!) ;DD
Sorry I couldn't figure out how to post the video...my technical assistant (my teen) is away at the moment!!
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=N7-knVWRdM0&eurl=