LAST NIGHT'S STORM, THIS MORNING'S EXCITEMENT

Ma Nature put on a good sound and light show last night, and apparently she also let loose with a brief puff of wind. This shot is crooked, but it shows the length of the tree. Apparently, the wind gust was only 32 mph, at least at a neighbor's a half mile away, but it was enough to snap a gum tree off and dump it in the driveway, the top just barely landing on the order van. More firewood for my neighbor!

COUSIN BOO

From time to time I feel compelled to do an article on people that are my heroes, role models, or just plain super people, IMHO! In the past, I have mentioned people who have accomplished amazing feats in spite of great physical hardships, feats that I probably could not do if I had all my body parts working in perfect harmony. In our world of today it seems like so much emphasis is on youth. Since my youth is a distant memory, I now look towards people who are no longer in the blush of their springtime yet are not only hanging in there, but are still running on overdrive and doing a damned good job at it!
As I have gone thru 60 odd years of life (and some of them have been odder than others) I have had the good fortune to get to know some amazing and wonderful people. One of them is my cousin Boo. Boo’s real name is Frances Long. I am allowed to tell you that she is now 82 years old. Boo is now a widow, her husband, Jack, was a totally cool guy, but you didn’t want to play cards with him! He’d whup your butt, but have you rolling on the floor laughing while he did it. One of the best things about Jack was he encouraged Boo in her love of and pursuit of MUSIC. Not little letters music, but MUSIC. Boo has been writing, and recording music since forever, and teaching music in her spare time. Boo’s first gold record was sung by the Mills Brothers, I think… back in 1967 . I was barely a puppy then. I remember seeing the record on the wall in her music studio.
She has had a number of songs on the Country and Pop national charts. She received a BMI Award for the number 1 song, “Room in Your Heart” co-written and recorded by Sonny James who also recorded her song, “More Than Ever.”
The Alabama Country Music Association nominated Boo Writer of the Year in 1987. Boo was 61.
In 2001, she won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Gospel Songwriters of Alabama, age 75.
Boo has a Certificate of Merit for the Top 1% from the International Song Contest sponsored by Billboard and KFC.
She won first place in the Mississippi song contest sponsored by the Mississippi Poetry Society, and won 3rd place in the Tennessee Poetry Song Contest in 2001.
The World of Poetry has recognized her with 39 Awards of Merit and the Golden Poet Award for 1986, 87, 88, 89,90, 91, and 92.
Boo has her own music company, Jacilyn Music – see jacilynmusic.com.

Boo just sent me a CD with 20 songs on it. She seems to think I hate some of her music, but I don’t. I just prefer some kinds of music to others. If I had a choice of going to a Bach concert or a Gospel Sing, I would, no doubt, head into the Bach auditorium. On the other hand, if I knew they were performing some of Boo’s music, I would be there in the front row! Actually, I am listening to Boo’s CD as I write this. She included some stuff she KNEW I would really love, some easy listening instrumentals that I will probably put on my computer to listen to again and again – maybe copy to a disc I can use in the car. Boo emailed me to tell me she was sending me a CD.
“I ALSO SENT YOU A C D WITH 20 SONGS ON IT.... DIFFERENT GENRE ... AND AVOIDED THE GENRE I KNOW YOU WOULD HATE. I LIKE ALL THE SONGS.... BUT THEN I WROTE THEM.... HOWEVER I HAVE WRITTEN BUNCHES OF SONGS I DON'T LIKE AT ALL. MAYBE YOU WILL ENJOY A FEW. I HAVE 36 ALBUMS SO FAR AND 3 PENDING ... I HAVE TO GET
ON WITH IT... AT 82 I REALLY DON'T HAVE THAT MUCH TIME TO WASTE SO I DO THE THINGS THAT PLEASE ME MOST. AND RECORDING & WRITING MUSIC PLEASES ME MORE THAN ANYTHING. I DO STILL LIKE TO EAT BUT IT DOESN'T TASTE AS GOOD AS IT USED TO. I THINK THAT COMES WITH AGE. SOME THINGS I REALLY LIKE ARE MOSTLY THINGS I SHOULDN'T EAT ANYMORE... WHY IS IT THAT WHEN YOU GET TO THE POINT WHERE YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU WANT TO DO.... YOU CAN'T DO IT ANYMORE? DOES THAT MAKE GOOD SENSE?”
Boo has even written a song about my little Possum, PITA. It is the coolest song! Boo’s albums include children’s music, country, easy listening, Christian, holiday, and comedy.
Let me make this clear, the only music I actually hate is Gangsta Rap with its words of violence and disrespect for women or any “music” that seems to focus on the F word. Since I believe our thoughts are our prayers, our music would be our hymns. With that in mind, I don’t think music should sound like a curse. Some of Boo’s music is a bit silly, but I am sure God has a sense of humor and would definitely approve! Boo’s F words are Fun, Family and Faith, not necessarily in that order.

So here is the point in this blog – and I haven’t even come close to making it yet – Boo is definitely one of my heroes in life. Not because of her music. Not because she has written some of the nicest songs I have ever heard, and even though a big part of my admiration for her is because at 82 she is still writing and recording and supervising the production of her music, that is still not all of it. Boo is one of the sweetest, most loving women I have ever had the pleasure and honor, to meet and know. She has the most infectious sense of humor – I swear she will have you in stitches in 2 minutes. Look at the picture of her standing in front of the window at the top of this post. See that hint of a Mona Lisa smile? See the laughter in her eyes? The beauty of her soul just shines thru and she can’t stop it! I just had to share it with you. Besides, she calls me her favorite cousin... or do I call her my favorite cousin???? Or do we both... well, you get the idea... As the kids today would say, Boo rocks.

Doesn't she look so well behaved and proper?????? That's not to say she isn't, mind you....

WHERE YA BEEN?

Answer - if I am not out in the garden, I am out politicin'! Well, not really... Last week we went to the State Democratic Convention (I have given up on the Republicans and this time it is the last time. I ain't comin' back!) I have never ever been involved in poitics except to complain like most everyone else - but this time, things have gone too far. I will not get into my deepest feelings, but I have to say - I have jumped to the other side. HE may be a WAR president, but I am for PEACE. Bring our kids home. Anyway, for those of you who have never seen me or those of you who have not seen me in YEARS - here I am with probably our next governor, Brian Moran. Now I am still listening to the other candidate, the jury is still out, but this guy impressed me.

Needless to say, it is that time of year where every spare minute in the morning is spent outside pulling weeds, cutting grass, cleaning up whatever needs to be cleaned up... All I can say is I wish the grass would grow in the yard as well as it does in the garden! This morning I picked peas, again, and dug my onions. See the carrots behing the peas? And the grass in the peas?

The tommy-toes needed more tying up. It is exciting to see the little ones on the vines. These are the cherry tomatoes.

The yellow wax beans are almost ready to pick. This is the first year they have made it to the picking stage. The other time I grew them, I did not have a fence around the garden and so the rabbits or deer ate the whole crop. I think I got 3 beans.

The deer also ate my blueberry bushes down to stubs this last winter because I took the netting off them and did not get it back on fast enough. That was one of those weeks when I wasn't able to walk out there, let alone do any work. Oh well. So, this is the only bush they did not eat.

This fall I am going to have to build a net cage for the raspberries. I think I have gotten 4 raspberries this year. But, so what. Half the fun is just having the plants and thinking I am going to maybe get something to eat from them! The other half is knowing I have well fed birds, deer, and rabbits!

The deer have eaten most of my neighbor's hostas. So far, mine have made it this year - but this one was chewed to the ground last year. It has struggled to come back and even bloomed this year. I really didn't expect it to make it so I had planted a pansy there last fall. This is the combined bloom! A bigger blue hosta is only a couple of feet away. I have noticed a number of leaves coming down during the last couple of thunderstorms. This yellow leaf must have landed on the hosta last night. A yellow leaf! It isn't even officially summer! Wow!

Next, the lilies!

A MAGNOLIUS DAY

Yeah, I can spell better than that... but that is what a neighbor of mine says... "It is a magnolius day!" It is the time of year when not much seems to be happening in the flower garden and things are just starting to happen in the veggie garden - I actually have tiny peas in those pods, for example. But, it is the time of year when the magnificent magnolias are in bloom. Oh how I love magnolias. Yes, they are messy to clean up after, but who isn't? Its nicer than a litter box or certain people's smelly sox on the floor. I won't mention any thing more about that! The cactus has just opened! What a yellow!

I have been busy in the yard trying to get half way caught up with the weeds and briars. I was doing real well, too, but my doctor grounded me. Well, the pain grounded me, I am just so stubborn I need someone "in authority" to actually say the words for me to understand it was time to back off or I would not make it to my class next month with the Dalai Lama - and this is a chance of a life time, so I'd better not blow it! But the weeds, honeysuckle, wild berry bushes, poison ivy, baby locust trees, sumac and such can really take over a yard if given any opportunity. And they really do take over the old stumps where I can't get in too close with the mowers. That pile of stuff growing on this stump is over my head! So... I have to get in with the hedge cutters and serious branch clippers and heavy duty rake. It is a tough job! See the little magnolia tree next to the big tree? OK, it is not that small, it is 8 feet tall - but it was completely buried under honeysuckle, VA Creeper and any other weed that could grow out there. The briars grow up into the trees and cover the azaleas and camellias if given a chance. Can you even find the azalea under all that stuff?? It is in there, right under the briars. These briars came out of the trees around the azalea. It was like playing tug o war with a tree! I had to quit when I got as far as the poison ivy.

Then, too, we have had a couple bad T-storms lately and lost a few branches. Who is going to clean this up? Spook? Punkin? Doesn't look like it, now does it? Not a lick of help from that department.

So, I thought I would try to look at the bright side of things... I was able to walk out in the yard and take a few pictures of the few things that are blooming... my sole surviving hollyhock (why can't I keep hollyhocks???) a few pansies the deer haven't eaten... The Peace rose is starting its second set of blooms. Soon the blueberries will be ripe. I can almost taste them! One of my Buddhas has almost disappeared behind the English daisy plant. I am going to have to see if I can split that plant up this fall. I hope you appreciate the effort it took to take these shots... not just the walking, but this is the first day of needing the A/C in order to breathe, but I also graciously (well, maybe not) fed this years first batch of starving mosquitoes to get these pictures. You're welcome!