Monday, September 30, 2013

It's Here!

I feel just like a child on Christmas Eve.
In less than an hour, I’ll be welcoming October, my favorite month of the year!  I’m not going to go on and on like I usually do on this day. By now, most of you know how I feel about October and fall, in general.
I asked Mr. H. a couple of days ago if he’d read the blog post I put on that day. “No, I haven’t,” he said, “but I’m pretty used to your October posts. It probably won’t be a surprise, will it?”
Informing him that October wasn’t here yet, I said, “Don’t get ahead of yourself. There’ll be another post on the first. You can count on it!”
I’ve always loved fall!
I can’t say with one hundred percent certainty, but it’s been bandied about in my family that my very first words were, “How long is it till October?”
Strange – my love for autumn, considering I was born in springtime, don’t you think? There’s no explaining it. Nor the fact that my favorite color is orange!
All I know for sure is that, in April, when everyone I know is oohing and aahing over springtime with its flowers and new growth; and in June, when 95 percent of the population is headed for a beach somewhere to burn their bodies to a crisp and eat seafood; and in July, when they’re rushing to get in the last swim, the final picnic and camping trip, I yawn and say…
“How long is it till October?”  
~~~ 

Saturday, September 28, 2013

That Could Change Things



 September 28th
Only two days until my beloved October makes her appearance! I’ve been watching impatiently as September slowly winds down just as she’s supposed to – with sunny days, cooler nights, clear blue skies and a softer, gentler mood altogether. She’s obviously preparing the way for her sister, not enviously, but lovingly, like a maid of honor making sure everything is just right for the bride so that the first sight of her will evoke approving “Ahs” from everyone who beholds her breathtaking beauty. 
How could I not love October?
The first man I ever loved was born in this magnificent month. My father. And he was every bit as gentle as October. He had a smile like a soft, white cloud that could melt a chocolate bar at twenty paces.
He hated discord and was a peacemaker his whole life. He also hated things in disarray. When my mother tore up the house to clean or paint, he was uncomfortable and most unhappy until things were back to normal again.
I’m afraid I inherited that quality.
Mr. H. is in the process of choosing a new TV and cabinet to place it on, but I’m dragging my feet, kicking and screaming all the way!
I hate change!
This evening, I suggested I go visit our daughter in North Carolina for a few days and he make all the changes while I’m gone. He actually agreed. But then, the dratted conscience kicked in like it always does when I’m about to do the wrong thing. (Can’t get away with anything!) 
My daughter, who just got a new TV herself, phoned and advised me to stop dragging my feet and “just do it,” because, “You’re gonna love it!” she said. “After you get it all set up, you’ll wonder why you waited so long.” I don’t know about y’all, but I think the whole thing sounds a little suspicious. It would almost appear that Mr. H. put her up to making that call.
Anyway,  it seems I’m outnumbered and will spend my Saturday shopping for things I don’t even want.
I’d rather eat a brillo pad!
But there is one good thing about it. It’s supposed to be 80° and sunny – a beautiful day – and only two days away from the first of October. Still, there's a concern: according to our historical weather report, in the past ten years, it’s rained 7 out of 10 times on this date!
That could change things.
If I wake up and it’s raining, all bets are off – and no phone call from any family member will convince me to go shopping!
~~~
 

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

More Thoughts on Growing Old

 
Old age arrives suddenly as does the snow
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If you survive long enough, you're revered - rather like an old building. ~Katherine Hepburn
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There is a certain age when a woman must be beautiful to be loved, and then there comes a time when she must be loved to be beautiful.  ~Francoise Sagan
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Old age embellishes everything. It has the effect of the setting sun on the beautiful twilights of autumn.
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Most people stop living before they are dead. ~Renee Long
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The person who considers himself too old to learn something has probably always been that way.
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The key to successful aging is to pay as little attention to it as possible. ~Judith Ragan
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The entire life of a human being depends upon “yes” and “no” uttered two or three times between the ages of 16 and 25.
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So long as one continues to be amazed, one can delay growing old.
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Whatever with the past has gone; the best is always yet to come! ~Lucy Larcom
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It is by growing old that one learns to remain young.
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It's not about the lines on the face - it's about the wisdom behind them.
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Youth is a wonderful thing.  What a crime to waste it on children.  ~George Bernard Shaw
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Where did the time go? Yesterday, I was a girl, and today, I suddenly find myself in the autumn of my years with the cold winds of winter breathing down my neck.  ~Peggy Toney Horton
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There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning.  ~Louis L'Amour

~~~
 Photo by www.granma.cu  

 

Friday, September 13, 2013

Whispers of Youth

 
Hi everyone. Happy Friday!
 
I've been busy for the past week. Haven't been blogging much. I'm sorry about that. I love blogging!
 
I've had a lot of things to write about, too, but am in need of rest and may turn in early for a change. Hope to be back to normal after a good night's sleep.
 
But first: I want to tell you what I've been doing. 
 
I've been putting together another e-Book. This one is a little different. It's poetry. Really old poetry! I wrote most of it when I was in my teens and early twenties. A few were written later, but not many.
 
While you're reading, try to remember that teenagers are full of hormones and emotion. Most of them think the world revolves around them. They love, hate, laugh and cry with more gusto than adults do. And then one day, it's over - around eighteen or nineteen years old and, hopefully, life gets a little more normal.
 
It was during that period in my life that I wrote most of these poems. I hope you enjoy at least a few of them.
 
Peggy~

~~~

Sunday, September 8, 2013

All Roads Lead to Home


Yesterday, I had a “senior moment.”

I went to get my hair cut at the same place I’ve been going for many years. This was not an unfamiliar location. It was a beautiful, sunny day, so I can’t blame the weather either. Actually, I can’t blame anything except the fact that I was sleepy.
I’m always sleep deprived.
I went to bed at 4 a.m. and got up around 10. Not too bad, you might say, but I do that every night. The fatigue builds, I think.
And so... when I left the beauty salon, I pulled out to the highway and mistakenly turned left instead of right – the direction I always go. Realizing what I’d done, I felt foolish and exasperated for a minute or two. Even thought about turning around, but then it dawned on me that it wasn’t a big deal; I could get home this way, too. It would just take a little longer.

Laughing aloud, I said, “No biggie. All roads lead to home.”
I suppose, when you think of it that way, there are no wrong turns, are there? 
  

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Fall is in the Air




September 4th.
How did it get here so fast? It doesn't seem like that long ago that I was complaining about having to have an emergency appendectomy. The same day, without warning, my laptop died a sudden death. It was January. Considering how it started out, I was convinced that the year 2013 was going to be unlucky for us.
By the time I recovered from surgery, it was March. Spring had sprung! Not my favorite time of year, but I do like Easter, which was on March the 31st this year. However, I was forced to write posts about all the things that went wrong over the Easter holiday.
Our refrigerator took a break and didn’t work throughout the weekend, while we had out-of-town guests. One of our toilets malfunctioned at the same time. The disposer decided to spring a leak and emptied water under the kitchen sink just minutes before our guests arrived. That should have been enough, but it wasn’t. While I was making pies for Easter dinner, the kitchen water faucet was suddenly possessed by demons and spewed water all over the kitchen. But, somehow, despite all these problems, we managed to get through the weekend and actually enjoyed a nice Easter with our large family.
Then came April.
In this beautiful month, I had an unusual experience while trying to get to a doctor’s office for an appointment. I got my heel stuck in an elevator track and, while standing there waiting to be set free, I couldn’t help but wonder…  if someone pushed a button right now, would they find half my body on the second floor and half still on the first? It was nerve-wracking to say the least!
By the first of July, with more than half the year gone, I realized how quickly it was passing and wrote: Mark my words, as soon as the last firecracker pops on the Fourth, it’s all over! We’ll still swim, picnic and perhaps go to the beach, but for all practical purposes, we’ll be speeding toward fall, colored leaves and another school year.
And here we are: The kids are back in school. The temps are dropping. Everything is changing. Fall is in the air. Pumpkins are displayed en masse in front of Kroger. Mums, too. It’s a wonderful time of year!
Ah, September!  How happy I am to see you again!
For Mr. H. and me, the cherry on the sundae is that yesterday was our anniversary! Our life together has been a long, eventful journey. Looking back, it seems like only yesterday that we were young kids just starting out on our own. The world was our oyster and we thought we had forever to make our mark, but it has passed like a dream. Sometimes I find myself asking, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”
Life is good, but there’ll always be some bad times like we had the first four months of this year. You can count on it!
Being happy doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. It simply means you’ve learned to look beyond the imperfections and enjoy life one day at a time!
 ~~~

Sunday, September 1, 2013

The Ninth Month

 

The 9th month of the year is an outstanding one.

In the Southern United States, it's the warmest month of the year and the Northern States have very cool nights. It's harvest time for crops and that's why Switzerland calls September the harvest month. In the Northern hemisphere, the beginning of September leads to the beginning of meteorological autumn while it is the beginning of the meteorological spring in the Southern hemisphere.

Below are some fun facts about September:

1. The birthstone for September is the sapphire.

2. The zodiac signs for September are Virgo (August 23 - September 22) and Libra (September 23 - October 22)

3. The birth flower for September is the morning glory.

4. On September 1, 1905, Alberta and Saskatchewan were established.

5. On September 1, 1939, World War II began in Europe because the German troops invaded Poland.
 
6. On September 2, 1789, the United States Department of Treasury was established.

7. On September 3, 1783, the Revolutionary War in America ended after Great Britain signed the Treaty of Paris.

8. On September 6, 1901, William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States, was assassinated.

9. On September 8, 1565, the first permanent white settlement was founded in St. Augustine, Florida.
10. On September 10, 1846, Elias Howe patented his sewing machine.
 
11. On September 14, 1847, United States forces took control of Mexico City.
 
12. On September 14, 1940, the Selective Service Act was passed by Congress which provided the first peacetime draft in the United States history.          

13. On September 14, my beautiful daughter, Toney, was born! What a special day that was!!!  (See pic below)  HAPPY BIRTHDAY TONEY! 
 
14. National Chicken Month
 
15. National Rice Month

16. National Potato Month

17. National All-American Breakfast Month

18. Labor Day - first Monday of September

19. September 8 - Pardon Day

20. September 13 - Uncle Sam Day (his image was first used in 1813)

21.September 16 - Mexican Independence Day   
 
 

 ~~~