Happy Anniversary Blog; about a week late.

I have been blogging for a year now. My first post was on Jan 30, 2008 and there were no photos because I didn't know how to post them yet. My post read:

"I'm sure that I don't know what I'm doing, but I'm also sure that this is the start of something wonderful. A place of expression and understanding that will be here for myself and others. This will be 42 acres of words, poems and photos that tell the story of one person and her belief that she has something to offer others. She would like to share how she sees the world with whoever will listen."

This post is my 310 th. and I thought I would add a few of my favorite pictures to celebrate the day. There were so many wonderful memories and if I ever figure out how to post more than 3 photos on each post I will become a totally satisfied blogger.

I wasn't sure what I was doing when I started all this. I just knew that I wanted to write about and photograph my world so that I would have a journal of parts of my life that I could share with friends and family. I realize that my obsession with photography has become a very large part of each day and that these photos fuel my writing. I think the photos make the writing more interesting .
I've made some new friends around the U.S. and broadened my knowledge about people. I've learned from a wonderful lady in Pennsylvania how she bares the pain of her childhood but continues to life a life for others who suffered too. I met a woman in Georgia who sent me a bag of grits wrapped in duct tape because I had never tasted them. I've meet women who are amazing artists and share their beautiful gift with others; whether the gift is art, poetry, gardening, farming or creating a lovely home ...,women who love their life, their families and God. Women who struggle with the same problems as I do and try to make sense out of this "...one wild and precious life".
Blogging is a really odd word( I like "life journaling" or "life netting", but I think the word "Blog" is here to stay. Some people laugh when they hear that I do this, but those of us who journal each day and take time to leave a comment, or two, that might help someone or give congratulations, or support a persons effort, understand. This is a labor of love. You have to care about others , have a curiousity about life, and want to, as one of my friends has on her sidebar..."Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart." (w. wordsworth).

In my second year of posting I hope to met more interesting people, write more poetry, learn to LINK( I'm clueless ), post more than 3 photos at one time and continue to enjoy this time-consuming obsession that has become a part of my life.

Vintage Thursday

After weighing in at Weight Watchers yesterday( yes, I have lost 19 lbs.) and losing one more pound, I celebrated by going to one of my favorite thrift stores in town. ( Can you believe it Sis, I consumed half that box of See's candy and still lost 1 lb.) This must have been my LUCKY day because I found 10 silver spoons in a zip-lock bag for $6.00. Can you believe it? Most of them shined beautifully with some silver polish and a little elbow grease. The one on the right was in the worst shape and didn't have much silver left on it . It was very tarnished. I can use it for digging in the creeks around here for gold bearing gravel. (Yep! I only use the best equipment on my quest for California gold.)

These are two of my favorites. The left one, with the "B" on it, doesn't have any mark on the back. I love initials on silver. It makes the piece so personal and you know someone probably had lovely place settings of these to fashion a beautiful table for some long ago celebration.
The spoon on the right is my very favorite. It's so delicate and has the mark 1847 Rogers Bros.A on the back. I could see my grandmother serving tea or coffee with this one, and maybe a few Italian cookies.

I don't crochet, so I have undying admiration for folks who do. This piece is large; about 20 inches across. It's off-white, trimmed with a dark blue edge. There are two or three small ,but pale, stains on it. They're not too noticeable and only near the middle. I will try to wash them out. I would probably have a plate or something sitting in the middle anyway so I'm not too concerned about these small discolorations.
I have no idea what the little scrunchee thing is for. It was attached with the tag. Does anyone have a clue what this might be?
The store was having a "yellow tag sale" and the $4.50 price for this lovely handiwork was 50% off so it was only $2.25.

I JUST LOVE THRIFT STORES!!!!!

Wordless Wednesday: "Heaven touched Earth"

This photo...

plus this photo...

...equals this collage.

"Heaven touched Earth" ~c.c.~ , collage using Picassa 3. photo manipulation.

Clouds and Sunlight

These are pictures of my sister and I. We used these sweet stand-ins to show the story of my sister's ordeal. Sis is not going to be photographed for a while, by her request. Both little dogs were given, by me, to her many years apart. The little puppy is her's from many years ago when (as a little girl) she found it in her stocking at Christmas. The yellow hound was brought to the hospital with me when we picked her up after the operation; a week ago last Friday.
Sis was released from the hospital two days after she had a Craniotomy to remove a tumor from the left-front of her brain . They do not let you stay long these days and want you up and walking around if at all possible. She had a half-circle scar from the top of her forehead to her left ear and her left eye was swollen shut and very black and blue. She had a horrible headache and couldn't talk too well. The doctor wanted to know if there were arrangements for her to recouperate with as little noise or disturbance as possible; especially in the first 48 hours. So we decided that the best place for her was her condo in Pacifica and that's where she and I went for a week. Her husband came everyday with food, get-well cards and flowers from friends and family.
The first 48 hours were scary and I was reminded, again, how much our bodies can suffer recovering from modern medicine's ability to keep us from death.

Each day was long and nights even longer for Sis. The pain was extreme until about the 4th or 5th day. I fixed her food and made her drink WATER. I made her as comfortable as possible. She slept a lot the first few days and then..., slowly, she felt a little better. I read her a Mary Oliver poem on a card I made for her and waited for the clouds to lift.

By the 7th day Sis was doing so much better. Her eye was open and she could see out of it but it still didn't work with her right eye,yet. That will take more time. Her headache had subsided and she ,generally, felt better. I drew this picture of her on the kitchen blackboard with the beginnings of a smile. The clouds disappeared and the sun showed it's reflected light across the room from the suncatcher in the window.
On Friday, we packed up and went home. On the way we stopped at the hospital to have the stitches taken out. All went well and the doctor said a biopsy showed that the tumor was, definitely, not malignant. Such good news. Such very, good news.

We returned to Sis's house, in Lafayette, 9 days after the operation. It was filled with people and dogs, movement and noise. (This is what LIFE sounds like.) Everyone was glad that she had returned and, even though she was tired, she was glad to be home.

Life changes. What was normal is, now, a different normal. and , as Mary Oliver says, each of us "....just happens to be where (we) are in the universe...".
I believe that we all have a purpose; maybe more than one, and with good intentions and a kind heart, we will do the thing that needs to be done..., and life will become less a mystery.

So, as I drove home, yesterday, I thought again of the words in the Oliver poem and I finally cried tears of relief for my sister.
"...good morning, good morning, good morning.
Watch, now, how I start the day...
in happiness, in kindness."
and with a great sigh of relief I added..., in thankfulness.