Monday, July 28, 2014

RALPH

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             Ya know, sometimes one just overflows with pride.   I often wonder what my boys might have become if they had had the opportunity to grow up. David would be just a few years younger than Ralph.
              I had Ralph as a young'un in elementary school my first year of teaching - that year when, no matter how long you teach, you will always remember those kids, where they sat, what they did... Ralph was in the 3rd grade that year. He was not an outstanding artist, not the class clown, or the kind of kid you had to give "that LOOK" to... but he had Something. I was not able to define what that was - still can't, but in the course of my 38 year career, I have been so blessed to have had a few kids with that Something. They didn't all become big shot politicians, but they all became FINE men and women- people to be proud of. I confess, having had and lost 2 boys, I paid more attention to my boys than my girls in school, and especially in that age bracket, always wondering if mine would have been like this kid or that...........
                My pride in Ralph is not exactly politically oriented, tho I am proud of his beliefs and the stands he has taken in his political career... but it is as a doctor where he so greatly shines in the hearts of so many here. This article does not begin to give him the credit he deserves - he does not seek publicity or fame. He is often very understated, even underrated. Humble. My kind of guy. He does tons of pro-bono work, flies out to Tangier, for example, to care for kids when they come home from CHKD. No one mentions the stuff he does like that, and that is the way he wants it.
Check him out here. Ya gotta love this guy.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/ralph-northam-vas-low-key-lieutenant-governor-juggles-politics-and-pediatrics/2014/07/27/9bfcbf72-fd7f-11e3-8176-f2c941cf35f1_story.html

Friday, July 25, 2014

ROSICRUCIAN CREED OF PEACE

I had forgotten all about this. I became a Rosicrucian when I was a kid in my early 20s. A neighbor just sent it to me. Seemed strange to see it again after all these years. I share it with you.

I am guilty of war when I proudly exercise my intelligence to the disadvantage of my fellow man.

I am guilty of war when I distort other's opinions, which differ from my own.

I am guilty of war when I show disregard for the rights and properties of others.

I am guilty of war when I covet what another has honestly acquired.

I am guilty of war when I seek to maintain my superiority of position by depriving others of their opportunity of advancement.

I am guilty of war if I imagine my kin and myself to be a privileged people.

I am guilty of war if I believe a heritage entitles me to monopolize resources of nature.

I am guilty of war when I believe other people must think and live as I do.

I am guilty of war when I make success in life solely dependent upon power, fame, and riches.

I am guilty of war when I think the minds of people should be regulated by force, rather than by reason.

I am guilty of war when I believe the God I conceive is the one others must accept.

I am guilty of war when I think that a land of a man's birth must necessarily be the place of his livelihood.

The true articles of peace cannot be legislated but are drawn up in the
personal aspirations and conduct of the millions of little people. When all men will frankly perceive their common dependence, an understanding will emerge that will transcend the barriers of time and space, creed and race.

[Rosicrucian Order - Creed of Peace - Ralph M. Lewis - 1944]

Thursday, July 24, 2014

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?

The addition is finally going up! We will soon have a RugRat Room and an ADA compliant bathroom. Can you imagine not having to drive home when you, um, ya know… Here are the beginning shots. I just could not wait until it was finished… so stay tuned!

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Stay tuned!

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

WHO WOULD YOU INVITE?

Years ago we used to play a party game where everyone had to think of 12 people, dead or alive, that they would invite to a dinner party. It was always an interesting question to ask people, “Who would you invite?”

I had a set answer for a number of my imaginary guests… people I would love to question about things that puzzled me the most in my life. I mention this because I just read a blog post that was about Steve Allen. He was always on my guest list. So was Mark Twain sitting right there with Jesus and Buddha, maybe Ben Franklin. After that, my list might vary from time to time. Usually I had either Justinian or Theodora – I had some serious questions for them. And maybe Cheops or Khufu or Akhenaton would be there.

Who would you invite?

Thursday, July 17, 2014

RUSTY IS THINKING…

ABOUT STARTING HIS OWN BLOG. But he still needs help with the typing part. Have I mentioned he is a Klutz? We told him being a Klutz is a very special Kitty thing. Well, it is!

Anyway, the point is, he often sits on my lap and reacts to things I find on the web… so I will share some of them with you… and maybe set up his own blog. Stay Tuned!

zen kitty

Wednesday, July 09, 2014

DUSTY GOT A JOB!

  DSC_0754 DSC_0765Well, I am glad to report that brotherDSC_0780 Dusty got a job and it is a perfect fit for him. Being a house kitty is wonderful for Rusty,  but not so great for Dusty. Having to wash the bathroom rug on a daily basis was getting old, if you know what I mean, and then he decided to see how absorbent the big Karastan was… and that is not something that can be tossed in the washer. So… we needed to find a new home for him. It was a shame because he is a very lovable cat… BUT… Anyway, he has the perfect home, and job… he is a barn kitty a few miles from here. High class horses, too, so the stable is air conditioned – great for these 90+ days. And, to replace his brother, he has a little boy who loves him to pieces. Best of all, he can pee anyplace he wants and no body will even notice! YEA! Here, we noticed.

So we are back to just Rusty inside and Spook outside… and to be honest, that is enough. The clerk at Wal-Mart asked me if something had happened, then apologized as she realized she might have spoken out of place. But I have gone from buying food for 6 cats to buying for only 2. The stacks of cat food I used to buy – well, it is down to only one box a week.

Best wishes to Dusty and his new family, 2 and 4 legged!

Tuesday, July 08, 2014

I FINALLY SHOT MY ELUSIVE FOX!

NO, NOT WITH A GUN… geez. Really. And it is not a great shot as it is out the kitchen window which was washed a year or 3 ago… hey, you wanna come wash windows here? I will show you where the ladder is and hand you the Windex  and a roll of paper towels. Have at it! Anyway, the point of this post is, several people have heard about the gray fox family that lives in our woods, somewhere between Frank’s and my properties… and many of you have said you have never seen a gray fox. Well, we have had them living here ever since I have lived here, and I must admit I did not know what it was the first time I saw it either OR the first time I heard it bark!

See him in front of the mower barn right next to a peony, in front of the trash cans? Compost pile is to the left of him… that is where he is headed.

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Gray foxes are good tree climbers, but not great jumpers. I can usually tell when one is prowling around, generally checking the compost pile. Spook jumps up on the shed then the mower barn roof and keeps an eye out from up there. Safe decision.

 

I found a video that has the sound of these foxes… it is very distinctive, and can scare the crap out of you when this starts out under your bedroom window in the middle of the night!  OK, truth… it scares me anytime I hear it, just because it is so unearthly and loud. I have heard it for years yet it makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Picture and sounds are from http://retrieverman.net/2012/03/27/gray-fox-screeching-and-barking/

Wednesday, July 02, 2014

DAY LILIES

NO LILIES in the fields here… instead they are here and there, in various corners and places, wherever there was an empty space, and some spaces were not so empty! Anyway, I was asked by a couple people about my lilies… so here they are.

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Some are tiny, DSC_0474some huge DSC_1678

 

The Calla Lilies are my favorites. They have just started to bloom this year. Funny, I can’t find the pictures of the rest of them. Strange.

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I don’t think I ever picked any of them out. They were mostly gifts. To be honest, there are a few I would gladly share… So, unless you are in the neighborhood with your own trowel and a bucket, we will just share them this way. Enjoy!