My Reading Blog

The other night as we crawled into bed, the radio station that we listen to was playing some "oldies".  By oldies, I mean waaaay back to my parents generation.  The Big Band Era. They were playing some Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Jimmy Dorsey, Guy Lombardo and on and on.  Oh what a flash back I had. My parents loved music and loved to dance.  As the tunes were playing, I could envision my parents moving around the dance floor with smiles on their faces and not a care in the world.  Before they were married, they went to the Rialto in Joliet, IL to spend a fun evening with friends.  I think if my Dad could have found a way, he would have become a drummer for some Big Band! Another flash back that was brought to mind - the Saturday nights when there was a dance as the Askhum Coliseum (a small town just south of where we lived).  I don't remember all the details, but I'm sure the band was local and there were no DJ's or records or recordings.  A...

My old laptop has been slowing going downhill and needs to be replaced, so I've been contemplating and looking and investigating and waiting for the right price. What do I need, what do I plan on doing with this computer?  How big a screen, how big a hard drive, how much speed?  The questions are endless. Or should I just go with an I-pad?  No, hubby couldn't handle that! So a deal came up and after much hemming and hawing, I bit the bullet and ordered it It arrived. NOW To get it set up to imitate the "old" one.  You know us "older" folks don't handle change very well and somethings are really difficult to understand. The first amazing thing was that my desktop picture was there as soon as I turned the computer on.  My browser was in tact and everything looked familiar.  Now to load the programs and documents that I needed to work with. The main challenge was to get my e-mail addresses loaded into the e-mail program.  Of course, m...

Last week we basked in warm temps Sunny skies Sunday the snow flittered out of the sky Very lightly and pretty As the day wore on, the snow continued Larger flakes Stacking one upon another Grey skies Gloomy day Not so pretty snow An inch, then two  It stopped Only to begin again on Monday Another inch, maybe two or three The wind blew The temperatures dropped Ice formed on the pond and roads Tuesday, frigid temps Gusty wind Sunny skies Prediction for the weekend 60+ and sunny The Ozark's Changing Weather  

The more I focused on my OLW in 2017, the more JOY I received and hopefully gave. We had many travels this year including: Trips to: Angels Camp, CA Petoskey, MI Williamsburg, VA Mission trip to Guatemala Comfort, TX Cruising to the Southern Caribbean Many trips to IL to visit family In all these trips I found JOY abounding, especially seeing places that I had never been to and meeting new people who love to share their areas. JOY was brought to mind every morning that I sat on my renovated porch and watched God's handiwork displayed in each sunrise and sunset. JOY was ever present when I spent 8 days in Guatemala helping to build latrine enclosures and stoves.  The smiles and hugs that ensued made me so grateful that I could once again participate in this mission trip. JOY always comes whenever we spend time with our kids and granddaughters.  Sharing in their happiness and difficulties makes me burst with JOY. But, none of this JOY could take place with...

As I sit on my front porch sipping a cup of coffee, I watch the clouds slowly moving across the morning sky. The sun is inching up over the horizon turning the sky into a brilliant masterpiece that God has painted. The oranges, mixed with pinks, blues and purples turn quickly to yellow as the sun brightens the morning sky. The day has begun Thank you God for this beautiful painting!

As we celebrated Thanksgiving this year with family, we shared all that we were thankful for.  The main theme remained "Family", followed by the blessings that God gives to us each day and for those servicemen and women who serve (and have served) our country. We were again blessed to be able to spend Thanksgiving Day with a group of 49 young sailors who will be completing their basic training this week.  This is the third year that hubby and I have joined our son and daughter-in-law in helping to host a dinner and day away from base.  When in basic, these men and women are totally isolated from the world.  They have no phones, computers, internet, newspapers, CANDY.  But on Thanksgiving Day, they are granted a leave from base. They have access to phones to call home, newspapers to read, cards to play, TV to watch and a delicious meal to leisurely enjoy.  Plus Santa brings present for each of them to enjoy.  This year Santa brought some drones, min...

Wednesday was our day off of working.  A trip across Lake Atitlan to San Antonio was planned in a small boat accommodating 16 people.  It had rained overnight and the wind was blowing, but we boarded the boat for a 20 minute ride across the lake.  The waves were rocking the boat and the captain seemed to think that faster was better.  Needless to say, most of us got somewhat wet, but the two sitting up front got the worse of it.  Once we arrived in San Antonio, our guide gave us an overview of the town and then we headed to the pottery shop. The molds Every piece that they make there is done in a mold, fired, glazed and painted and fired again.  Each piece done with love and care.  Of course, we got to do some shopping in their shops and brought some pottery back home. Painting each piece We headed further into the town, uphill towards the market place.  Because this is a Mayan community, all of the women and gi...