Drivin' 55

It seems as though we are bombarded everyday about the H1N1 virus these days.  One can’t go 5 minutes watching the news without either a story about the shortage of the vaccine, the reported 19 deaths of young children, or the long lines of people lining up to acquire the vaccine.  Though it seems that I do not fall into the recommended age group, I do not have to ponder whether or not to participate in the mass of people attempting to be vaccinated.  Every year my husband and I get our annual flu shots, but I wonder if I would get the new vaccine.  The Swine flu peaked in Georgia as soon as the children went back to school in early August.  It seems to be waning at this point.  Somehow I believe that the media has blown this story out of proportion because they seem to do this with every mass story.   Gee, the media has never done this before, right?  Bottom line…will you get the H1N1 vaccine?  Will your family members be vaccinated?...

Fall is all around us.  In some parts of the country, especially up in the Northeast, fall has given way to a snowy blanket. Not here, though.  After what seems like months of rain, the clouds are gone and the sky is again blue.   This being our first fall season in our new digs, I felt the urge to do a little decorating.  Wouldn’t you know it, the first, very first box I pulled out had all of my autumn decorations.  Good thing for me, otherwise the hubby would probably have given me “the look”.  Shh…don’t tell him I still want my Halloween Department 56 house out for Jack to delight in.     These are just some random shots around the castle.  Can you tell I love these colors?  I find fall colors very restful and calming. I’ll never be a fan of the modern look.  Nope, not me.  I tried it when we first got married and well, I buried that bad ideas decades ago!   I still cannot get over the fact that...

The crisp fall weather has planted me firmly into the season. I am making soups. Knitting. Crocheting. Planning on the holidays before us. I even have my beef tenderloin in the freezer for my Christmas dinner thanks to a great sale.  Thanks to all of those great emails I receive, I found these little guy! Look how adorable they are!!! Chip Dale Come to me! I’d buy these if they didn’t do anything, but they serve a purpose. The are salt and pepper shakers!  Can cuteness actually harm me? They are from Pottery Barn   and reasonably priced at $24. My suggestion to you is if you are invited to a grand gathering, bring these as a hostess gift. She will love you already, but then again, I’m sure she already loves you! Happy Fall, Ya’ll!!!

Good morning, Saturday, how are you today?  I always love your entrance to the weekend.  From college football to enjoying time to myself, you are a good friend.  You allow me to work on my craft projects, catch up with my blogging friends and may even find some time to hit the treadmill today. I look forward to sitting on the bench in this photo and reveling in God’s beautiful work of art. Happy Saturday, my friends!

Good bye, Summer. It's been a lovely season. You provided us with so much sunshine and warmth. But now get the hell out of the way because I want some cool autumn evenings to enjoy the porch and dine alfresco by twinkling candlelight. My Internet connection has been very temperamental these days. Me thinks all of the rain has somehow soaked the wires somewhere in the earth and messing with every one's feed. Thank goodness my ATT tech is coming today.

When my creative juices are flowing, my workspace is NOT orderly. I need everything at my fingertips. Here's proof. Here’s the view of my desk looking straight ahead. Yes, I have Face Book open because I don’t want to miss anything! Clutter everywhere. On my left side, you see a vast amount of very necessary tools and supplies. My Zutter over on the left. My bottle of lemon water (I have to drink 5.33 bottles a day!). My Vera Bradley eye glass case. Lots of paper right underneath the case. And a cute little utility bag that is crammed with so many tools that I just cannot live without. My phone sits on the left. Lots of glue dots, yes, sometimes they stick to me. That tiny green bottle is a Smooch product (something I can’t life without). Oh, my project. You weren’t supposed to see that yet. The green thing is my most loved paper cutter. It is the best! I have a little flat screen over there on the right. I was watching Still Standing. Nice shot of Jami Gertz’ boobies! Al...

A trip to the local pumpkin patch, a.k.a., farm stand, proved well worth the trip. My hubby asked why was I taking photos of cherry tomatoes and hot peppers. I told him because they were pretty and colorful and I was going to blog them. He rolled his eyes! Aren't' they pretty? I did not purchase any of these, but managed to get lots of other fresh veggies for the week. This little pumpkin was $40 bucks. Tell me, who would want to carve this unique pumpkin? Finally, the best for last. Here's Jack who 5 minutes earlier he was fast asleep. Somehow, he wasn't that into the pumpkin patch pictures. He was all about the sleeping.

The sun came out this morning and bestowed a simply beautiful day. I made sure I had my camera on the seat next to me. I am rather proud that I snapped over 160 photos, not all scenery. These are several of the ones I wanted to share with my peeps. Today's gentle breeze disturbed the water just enough to minimize the reflection from the trees. Doesn't it look as though someone painted the lake. The fall colors drip into the foreground. This very happy weeping willow gets sufficient water supply and thrives. The horizontal line in the background is a walk way separating the two lakes. Proudly, I am pleased to say that neither of these photos were altered in any way. It is all God's beautiful gift to me.

So it was supposed to be a glorious sunny, cool morning. I even rose at 9:00 am today, downed a cup of coffee and peered out the window. What I saw didn't make me happy. Clouds. Overcast. Dreary. Drab. Now what do I do? I was going to go down to the lake and take some shots of the glorious fall colors reflecting in the lake, but not now! So out of the archives, thanks to Google, I found this lovely photo of what I wanted to see today here in Georgia. Can you see me there? Walking down the path, gently tugging my new beagle puppy on her leash? Way down the road off to the left there? Yeah, I got nothing either. Looks like I will go over to my daughter's to watch the Georgia vs Vandy game. Both are 5 - 1 and should present to be a good game. In my fantasy Saturday land, Georgia beats Vandy 45 - 3 and rises to #5 in the college rankings!

Fungus, baby...it's everywhere! I fell in love with the color of the moss and lichen on the base of this tree. Mind you, I do not have a macro lens. I realize it lacks the defined edges, but I will keep practicing. Loblolly Pine trees run rampant here in Georgia. The trees reach a height of 30-35. Pine cones litter the grounds and we use the needles to mulch our flower beds. We have copious amounts of pine cones. Any decent dog will use the pine cones as a chew toy resulting in bleeding gums. Now, it may be a Southern thing but these acorns are not shiny. If you visit Chronicles of a Country Girl , you will note that acorns in her neck of the woods are shiny. I have yet to find a shiny nut. (giggle...excuse me...I just have to chuckle) Now I ask you, what do you see in this malformed tree? Should Goldie Locks beckon for Papa Bear? Or is the a gorilla in the woods? You tell me!

This Sunday is filled with warm sunshine, humid breezes and the long shadows that reminds me of the next season that will be upon us very quickly. Ahhh....Fall! I cannot wait. As I take a peak into the 10 day forecast, I am excited to say that although tomorrow brings us cooler weather, this upcoming week will be delicious! There is nothing better than sleeping with the windows open and having the cool night air drift across your sleeping self. The freshness of the night transpires one to burrow down under the blanket or comforter to find that coziness of warmth and security. Ahh...Fall. I'm a'waitin!

Labor Day is almost over and it means back to work for all us bums. As of right now, I am not working, but guess what? I have an interview on Thursday! Yes and boy am I excited about it. I'm not going to say too much because I don't want to jinx it. However, I will spill just a little hint. If I get hired, I could end up owing my future employer more money at the end of each week than I earn if I am not careful. Discounts for friends? Hmm...I'll have to find out. September means lots of things to me. My little sister has a birthay this month. She will be 49 this year. My MIL will celebrate her 85th birthday. My surrogate grandchild will be 6 and I can hardly believe that. The most exciting thing that September brings is the advent of fall. Without a doubt, fall is my most favorite season. The colors of fall are so my decorating scheme. (told you I was a closet decorator) Seems to me back in the 70's when I married my sweet husband, earth tones were so in. You can't...