I couldn't believe my eyes and my ears the other night.  It was about 6 pm three days ago.  My husband and I set out for our usual six miler.  We needed to get this run over with fairly quickly because an impending storm was headed our way.  It was a nice early evening despite the threatening skies.  It was humid and warm but not overbearing and we were having a nice run keeping watch which way the clouds were heading.  We were just ahead of the storm it was l...

Gah!  Why didn't I check before making my decision first?  I should have known.  Liberty always has great speakers.  I could kick myself now.....*Kick* there I did.  Still don't feel much better. Next Saturday is graduation day at LU and I could have been there sitting near the front.  Turns out I'm going to be there anyway but not until early evening and by then graduation is over.  I finished my two year course I was taking for LU in February. ...

I love this time of year.  I love to dig in the dirt and put in the little seedlings and seeds in the rich black dirt knowing it won't be long until I'll be reaping what I've sown. In this case, there will be tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini and greenbeans and it wasn't rich, dark dirt but mostly sand with a mixture of the good stuff for good measure.  I can taste that chocolate zucchini cake now.  I haven't had a real garden for a few years now.  The best I'...

I'm not a big risk taker.  I like to make up my mind and be done with it.  And be happy with it.  I'm talking about painting the interior of my new home.  I've lived here a year and it's time.  It's time to pick the colors.  The problem is, I keep changing my mind and worrying I'm going to wish I did something different.  I do not want to repaint.  I want to be done with it once I do it the first time.  It wouldn't be so hard if I didn't ha...

Thanks Tonya for your gracious hospitality.  It was fun getting to know you a bit better and getting to finally meet your family.  Thanks for showing me around and making me an awesome roast beef sandwich and delectable brownies.  I can vouch for you to our JU friends that you are a woman of many talents!  You have a lovely home and family.  I'm sure you know you're blessed even if Gavin still plays at your feet at a whopping six years old!  He's adorab...

There's head knowledge and then there's heart knowledge.  Sometimes you know something just because you know it.  But then when you go thru the experience of it, it really strikes home.  Have you ever had that happen to you?  You know, when you think you know something but after experiencing it  then you realize you really didn't know what you thought you knew?  Does this even make sense?   Well to me recently I really came to the realization of some...

When I was in Maine I used to listen to a preacher, now deceased, named Adrian Rogers.  I loved him.   He had some pretty good wisdom and pithy sayings to dispense on a daily basis.  He always kept me smiling.  Anyhow I recently read something he said and thought I'd share.  I can hear his booming voice now.  "You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom.  What one person receives without working for, another...

  There's been alot of talk about the plane going down in the Hudson lately. It was a great heartwarming story of survival.  I've seen the pictures going around the web of this plane in the hands of the Almighty placing the plane safely in the water.   Of course, being a Christian I believe that to be true.  Immediately after hearing about it I couldn't help but think maybe there was somebody or sombodies who God especially was saying "their...

Back home in Maine I'm now getting reports they are having lots and lots of fun with lots and lots of snow!!!  NOT!!!!   I just want to say to all my friends back home in Maine and New Hampshire......I feel your pain.  Really.  I do.  That's why I'm not there anymore.  I had enough pain in the neck cold weather and have had my fill of shoveling snow to last a lifetime already.  Anyhow, someone sent me this diary of living in Maine and I t...

We hit the road racing circuit this morning by participating in a local 5K. It was my first race in a year and a half with virtually no speedwork at all.   I was literally sweet talked into doing this a few weeks ago because my back has been a problem now for many months and racing is not at the top of my list right now.  When I got up at pre-dawn this morning, and very cold I should add,  I groaned  and warned my husband I wouldn't be able to fully race this because my ba...

Many know that holidays can be depressing.  Up until now, I've not experienced that.  With a busy family I've been too busy to be depressed.  There just seem to be enough time between Thanksgiving and Christmas to get it all done.  The cleaning, the decorating, the cooking, the shopping, mailing out Christmas cards etc.  Too much to do in a short period of time. Every year about this time I swear I'm going to do the Christmas cards in June.  I never do.  For...

It's been quite a Thanksgiving weekend both for me personally and world-wide by listening to the news this morning and the last several days.  First of course, were the attacks in India.  How tragic and unneccessary.  For what?  Many died at the hands of another just because.  Basically.  My journalist son called to say the first two reported came from Lynchburg which is where he is.  Many already know a Rabbi and his wife were killed. ...

We've been here a year now and still have not settled into a church to call home.  We wish to find a place where we can be useful.  We are able bodied workers who are more than ready to roll our sleeves up and be put to work.  We started out in one church, stayed there for about 7 months or so and then moved on.  It was clear this church was stagnating and didn't seem to want to go anywhere or do much of anything. They had no children.  Quite often I was the youn...

I have a new friend Pete.  He's married to one of my new gal pals I hang out with here in sunny Florida.   I read this today and thought of Pete.  So Pete, here you go.   Especially for you!       "The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them"  Mark Twain 

I had been looking forward for months on returning to my home state of Maine.  I longed for the bright colors of fall and the crisp red apples that awaited me as we planned our trip back home.  I was not disappointed. With my suitcases packed with fleece, long-sleeved shirts and real shoes and socks not to mention a winter coat I boarded the plane with much anticipation.  This anticipation only grew as we approached the coast of Maine and oh.....the colors even from the...