Drivin' 55

Yesterday, my husband and I volunteered at a local thrift shop, Liberty Thrift Store , helping to sort the thousands of bags of clothing they receive. Ever wonder how those items get to the front of the store? I didn't until I was thrown right smack dab in the middle of being a "thrifty sorter". Each item is inspected for worthless to become an item to sell. Here was our process. First, you inspect the collar. Clean. Check! Second, check out the garment for any stains, tears or missing buttons. Check! Third, don't forget to inspect the zipper. Check! If all things pass, the item is ready to be hung on a hanger and placed on these nifty little "Z" racks. Just like a department store but the bottom braces look like a Z so many racks can be stored in an efficient manner. Oh, forgot to add that winter clothes go out to the front of the store but the off season items must be placed in the bins in the walls. May I add that the staff of Liberty Thrift sto...

Bracing for another uncertain weekend...

There are always more projects on my table or in my head than I can truly finish. If I listed them all you would be amazed. I am amazed. But I am resilient and will complete them all... some day! I snapped this photo a few years back when I still owned my own business and visited craft conventions twice a year. The black walnut stain on the frame along with the perfect choice of fabric caught my eye. What better way to tuck away all of those important reminders in one location. So, I will be searching for a frame at several local thrift stores and place this on my "To Do" list!

I followed through with my plan yesterday and took my camera with me while I ran some errands. Along my travels, I decided to stop at the Don White Memorial Park along the Chattahoochee River. After the two very rainy days, it was beautiful to experience this kind of day. Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy. I particularly loved that my little Kodak camera captured the sunlight streaming down from the sky. Sunshine in my eyes, makes me cry. Since receiving our new Mac computer last month, I felt as though I had little time to really experiment with the wonderful features. In the above photo, I loved the sepia action applied to this photo. I must mention that I just missed a piece of driftwood traveling down the river. Rats. Sunshine on the water looks so lovely. Sunshine almost always makes me high.

There are times when sharing the day to day issues of my mundane life is just short of plain complaining. Truthfully, I haven't much felt like blogging and felt like hibernating until the flowers begin to sprout their little heads upward to reach the sunshine. This winter has been harsh with the extreme cold and then the large amounts of rain. Knowing how this effected me, I couldn't possibly live in an area of the country with little or limited sunshine. Hello, Alaska, how do you do it? However, today the sun is shining, although it is chilly, I plan on getting out with my camera to capture a little of the local fare. See you later.

Less of this...although Tyler Florence's recipe is so delicious... and my homemade chicken pot pie, I'm sorry is out... more of these salads with balsamic vinegar and olive oil... and lots of fresh veggies for the natural carbs... After doing so well on my diet last year and losing 30 pounds, I must admit that I slipped. I will admit that I have gained back less than half of my loss. I am embarrassed to share this with you. This is the game plan. We are purging the bad foods from the house like spaghetti and cabbage rolls and homemade breads so that all temptations are void. Back to proteins and veggies and no caffeine...but not yet... tonight we will have my husband's famous spaghetti sauce and I will savor the flavors and mop my sauce from my plate with the savory garlic bread. Ahhh...I wish I was born thin!

What did you do on MLK day? Me? Well, there was no day of service in my agenda. But wait, does it count when you take the MIL out for lunch? I think it does. Daughter and Grandson picked us up late morning. After two days of rain, yesterday was bright and sunny or as my MIL said "The sun is sharp!" Her comment made Erika and I giggle. On the agenda for lunch was la Madeleine . This has become my new favorite country French cafe! We love their daily soups and always enjoy the pasta of the day. Unfortunately, Monday was not vodka sauce pasta day. :( But the funniest thing that happened was when we were loading Jack and MIL into the car. Being 86 years old, of course my MIL moves a little slow, but she said as she struggled to get her legs into the car, "My legs are dry." I said, "No problem. Let me get the oil can and get your started!" To my amazement, she took offense to that. I just can't win.

Today is a fun day for me. I will be driving over to my friend's house, Debra, to teach class number two with a great bunch of ladies. As you can see, everyone was concentrating and crafting. Busy hands. Crafty ladies. So much fun! Even though this is the Christmas box, it will be the first decoration for the Christmas 2010!

As I sip my dirty martini tonight with eyes glued to CNN and my Cafe World running in the background, I wonder.... Why do some people feel so superior to others? Why do so called good Christians act as though they far from Christian? Why, according to the CNN poll, do 57% of Americans say they will not donate to the Haitian disaster? Why, when China landed in Haiti, did they flaunt their flag as to stake Haiti for their own? Why, after drinking less than one half of my martini, do I feel giddy? Why is it that it will cost me over $1000 bucks to have a sitter for my MIL for one week? What else can I possibly purchase for my Cafe World with my 2 million points? Why did God take that tiny little 18 month old baby after being rescued? Drivin' 55 out...

For anyone wishing to contribute to the horrible tragedy in Haiti, here is another link from the William J. Clinton Foundation . Bill Clinton has been involved in Haiti well before the earthquake struck on Tuesday. His television appearance yesterday gave me comfort that this is a person who cares and wants to do whatever possible. Let me say this... ...that I am very proud of my country and our current President whose recent appearance on tv telling the Haitian people that help is on the way. Our American military should be front and center in this long and arduous process to recover, assist the injured, feed the people and rebuild this poor nation as best as possible. This attempt makes me extremely proud to be an American.

warm weather wishes

Would you believe mutiny?

It's never too late to teach the little ones the responsibility of chores!

After several months of being involved in an advertising agreement, I have chosen to divorce myself from them. It seems like every other day they are telling me my header is too large or that my video is impeding upon their logo. It makes me so angry that I just want to SCREAM! So.... I divorced myself from them. sorry that the title may have caused you some concern!!! I think it was kind of funny...you have to admit!

I'm ready! My favorite Uggs, too!

Hot tub! I couldn't refuse...

As all of us in the Southeast are doing, we are constantly checking weather forecast. Some local channels, and you know who you are WSB , are already in that manic mode. All of their meteorologists have a dazed look in their eyes. They are giddy with anticipation of a big snow event. And let me just clarify myself as to what constitutes a "big snow event" in Atlanta. First, just the forecast of snow makes everyone nutso. Store shelves are emptied of bread, makings for chili, brownie mix and milk. If we actually do get snow, and I must say that we will get flurries once a winter, all TV is interrupted for "black ice" warnings Yes, we are a bit crazy! Secondly, if there is an inch of snow, than the weather channels declare "Snow Jam 2010"! Nothing else in the world is news worthy as Snow Jam 2010 becomes our only news event. Since living here in Georgia, we once received 7 inches of snow. Trucks could not come into replenish the store shelves. Sch...

here's what is in store for us this Thursday... Jan 7 Snow Shower 38° 22° 40% I don't think I ever read this type of forecast for the Atlanta area ever.... YIKES!

This truly amazes me that I have posted over 500 posts in almost 2 years. What blows my mind even more is that you, my readers...family...friends, have read over 500 of my posts! Honestly, I don't think I have anything very interesting to say. Recently, I have been very lax in the photography department. This is something I plan on improving in 2010. This photo I took this morning, while driving, down the road to our home. I love this road for its topography and the fact that this is a tree lined. Several months ago, some very intelligent civil engineer thought it would be a grand idea to place a radar detector at the bottom of this hill. The speed limit is 35 mph which is very difficult to maintain. In order to comply, one needs to coast downhill with brakes on. If you look closely, I am maintaining a speed of 29 mph. I always hit the gas about 15 feet before I pass the sign. In celebration of my 500th post, I will have a give a way later this week. Just sayin'!

Today, I am dealing with the loss of a friend who lost her battle with cancer. In addition, today marks the 14th anniversary of the death of my father in law. Not a good start to the new decade, is it? My friend, who I won't reveal because she always was a very private person, was fun and crazy. Her favorite lines were "Get out!" or "Shut up!" That makes me smile now because I can hear her say them in normal conversation. She was the best mom ever to her three children and her grand daughter, well, that little one "did" hang the moon! These children brought her so much joy and helped her throughout her cancer treatment. My friend did not have health insurance. Perhaps, it is because of this that she did not go to the doctor when she started losing weight for no apparent reason a few years ago. When she did finally seek health care last May, she had no other choice but to go to the state run hospital. It is all over the news that this hospital i...

Year 2010 Overview Taurus always gets tagged with things like "pleasure-seeking" and "materialistic." That's probably unfair, in most cases. You're just as good at dishing out the pleasure as you are at seeking it, and who doesn't like a few nice things around? Sadly, there's been just too much struggle in your life the last couple of years when it comes to those two very important parts of your life. Thankfully, 2010 marks the end of that long uphill struggle . Your pleasurable pursuits have been a little more restricted than you'd like over the course of the last two years or so. That's over with now, so ... game on! The big events this year will not so much be a matter of major happenings as they will be things that have been in the works and are slowly revealing themselves . In the last two years, you've put a lot of work into what makes you happy, while Saturn transited your solar Fifth House. Now that those pressures are finally bei...