Mass Exodus

As I noted in my list of things about me, I maintain two websites for genealogical purposes. The Cleveland County Website and the Cleveland County Archives. For the past umpteen years, Rootsweb has hosted these sites free of charge. And my hat is off to them for the space they provided and the tech support, etc. The entire Rootsweb site has been a great tool for those of us who are interested in where we came from. Recently, Rootsweb made an agreement with Ancestry, which is basically a fee based search tool. In fear of RW turning into a fee based site, there has been a mass exodus of files to alternate servers, mine included. I have spent the last week and a half downloading all my files off the RW server, and editing them to show the new url's for each page. A monumental task for not only Cleveland County, but for the entire state of Arkansas and the country as a whole. I'm very very tired of search and replace, changing and deleting, and on and on. And I have small sites compared to some counties and states. My eyes are about gone and my neck is pinched from propping my chin in my left hand while my right hand clicks the mouse ninety-to-nothing. When I finally do get it all moved, I'll let you know. In the meantime, I have the archives totally done and you can view it them at http://www.usgwarchives.org/ar/cleveland/clevelan.html Those of you who couldn't care less, well, sorry for the boring post.

I'm Not a Nurse, But I Play One on TV...

I have a few regrets in my life. Nothing major, but at times I really regret not attending at least a technical college of some kind. At this time in my life, it would have been extremely helpful, had I trained to be a MedTech. Our LPN has been on vacation this week and I've been responsible for several of her duties. Not easy for someone who knows squat about medicine. I've had to answer specific questions for prior authorizations, (faked my way through it) and I even got to help with a simple procedure yesterday. Not to mention having to talk to all the nurses at the local Nursing and Rehab who call countless times a day for orders and directions. (Sure wish I could be paid her salary while she's out. heh heh)

Some have suggested I go to school now, and that it's never too late. I beg to differ. My poor brain and my old body just wouldn't be able to handle that kind of stress. Just the thought of taking a test sends me into a panic. But the good thing is, the LPN will be back on Monday.... Yaaaay.

Easter Finery

It was a beautiful day for Easter. My two babies and my son-in-law came to my house to eat lunch and we took the opportunity to take a couple of photos. J seldom gets to come and be with us. The only one missing was SR, who tried to take off for the day but was unsuccessful. I did prepare the meal last night though and he was able to take his feast to work with him.

Here are our photos.

MK, LeLe and J.


LeLe, J and me.


LeLe and MK.

Happy Easter to all. HE IS RISEN!

Spring

Yesterday was the first day of Spring, and on a local radio station they were asking folks to call in and tell "How you know it's Spring." I started thinking about Springs past and I remembered driving down our old road in Rison. The Dogwoods were blooming and you could smell the fruit trees. The old road was so narrow in one spot that only one vehicle could get through. (LeLe got stuck on the side of that area once when some guy scared her into pulling over so he could get by.) But driving down those lanes with the white patches of Dogwoods peeping through the branches of larger trees is a memory that is etched in my brain. That's one of the ways I know it's Spring. Today is sunny and the wind is high. Kite flying weather to be sure.

Once when I was small and we lived in Shreveport, LA, I was in the Brownie Scouts, and my troup had a kite flying competition. Dad took me down to the open field where it was being held and everyone there "practiced" flying before the actual competition began. My kite was so far up, that I didn't think I would get it back down again. It was without a doubt the highest kite in the world at that point and certainly higher than anyone else's there. My Dad and I reeled it back in and when it came time for the actual contest, I couldn't make it go up that high again. How disappointing. I didn't get close to winning, but at least I had the satisfaction of knowing I had been higher than anyone else there that day at one point.

As I drive around town, I see pretty new decorative "Spring" flags on everyone's house. I don't have a new one, but have two very nice ones from last year that I will alternate. It's too early to work with bedding plants unless I want pansies. They are beautiful, but as soon as it gets warm for good, they fade out. I'm waiting on the periwinkles and petunias. Anyone out there ever heard of "Pickles and Petunias"? That is a memory from childhood I have no idea where it came from or why it was used. I just remember saying it over and over again when I was little. Maybe it was like "Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers".....

One other way I'm sure it's Spring, is that I see SR bring out his turkey callers and he begins to practice calling old Tom. He's been on the internet studying callers and buying supplies. Turkey hunting is his passion....well... his passion aside from me of course. HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!!!

Hiding Eggs

I saw this on Shoebox Blog and just had to share.

Least Popular Places to Hide Easter Eggs:

• Under the seat of the car

• Litterbox

• Wafflemaker

• Underwear drawer

• Grandpa

For all of you out there that still hide and seek Easter Eggs..... Keep these in mind!

Weekend Update

As I sit in front of the keyboard, I have my trusty iPod earphones in, and I am listening to a compilation cd of Mercy Me, Lifehouse, and Third Day. I really love iTunes as it makes it so very easy to get what you really want without having to wade through the songs that just aren't personal favorites.

Gratefully, I didn't go into work on my Friday off (yesterday). It was very nice, but I did go on a shopping expedition in Little Rock. We've already established that I have a phobia about driving in Little Rock, but I do have my reasonably comfortable paths. I did not vary my known route and did fine. Only had one anxious moment when at the stroke of 12:05 I tried to leave the parking area of Park Plaza Mall. Those of you who are familiar with Park Plaza will automatically know what I'm talking about. No red light and traffic both ways at the lunch hour is NOT where I am comfortable. By the Grace of God I was able to pull out of the lot without someone crashing into me. And I mean that literally, because as I pulled out, the person across the great divide decided to come across straight at me. As I hesitated to keep from plowing into said person, someone else had to hesitate to keep from plowing into my rear. Amazingly, I did not get all upset as I normally would, so I have to attribute that to the Peace and Protection of my God. Thanks a bunch Lord!

Prior to my escape from traffic hell, I visited every single store in the mall that offered women's clothes. Alas, it was to no avail. I was looking for a dress. You remember dresses? A piece of clothing that covers your body from your neck to your knees and actually looks nice? None to be found that was in the vicinity of my budget. Knee pants, cute tops and shorts were in abundance but I just don't see myself outfitted in that way on Easter Morn. I traveled to West Little Rock to visit my old standby, J.C. Penney to see if I could find anything there. Found cute stuff, but no dresses made for a woman my age who wants to look her age. Now, if I was willing to look like (I'm trying to look) twenty-something or like my grandmother, I would have hit the motherlode. I did purchase a top and a pair of capri pants, and am hoping against hope that I can find a skirt that will work with the top by next weekend. I do still believe in miracles....

I had lunch with a very lively young woman who is a special friend of my son. It was a beautiful day to meet someone for lunch and I enjoyed her company very much. I had been moaning about not having anyone to accompany me on my outing, and at the last moment thought of her and issued the invitation. Thanks for a great time N.

This a.m. I hopped out of bed....uh yeah right.... and made my weekly trip to Walmart early, trying to beat the crowd. I have several things to accomplish today and I'm about half-finished. I found some great diabetic recipes online the other day and I want to try preparing one. Oh, did I tell you my nurse practitioner has diagnosed me with borderline diabetes? That was a happy day. I've been on a "diabetic" diet for over three weeks now. I'm still trying to figure out what to eat. I know most of what I can't have, it's what can have that's giving me trouble. I've lost 2 and 1/2 pounds so far, without any exercise. Guess if I got up off my buns, I could do better. SR is just concerned I will lose too much and begin to look "poor" as he calls it. If anyone out there has some helpful suggestions on how to deal with this, I'm all ears/eyes.

3 Years

Today is the third anniversary of my Dad's passing. I still miss him more than I ever thought I could. It's also my sister's birthday. She decided to make that a positive instead of a negative. He chose to go to the Lord on her birthday. I'm so proud of her.

LeLe has posted a slide show of Dad already, but I wanted to post some photos of him too. He was a wonderful Christian, husband and father and deserves to be remembered frequently.





Love you Daddy. Miss you.

You've Got Mail

I love mail. Email, snail mail, instant messages, cards... I don't know why, but I always have. Maybe it's just feeling that someone out there is thinking about me enough to send me a note. Maybe it's boredom and lack of social life. Maybe it makes me feel like I get a little personal gift each time I receive something. What can I say? I'm just an email/mail junky. I have a few friends that I have been known to email every day and then some who I only email periodically, but I would email three or four times a day if I had a reason and the other person wanted to discuss a specific topic. I also bet, if I asked for a show of hands, of who in the past has regreted sending an email, most would say "Aye." I did that recently. As soon as I hit the send button, I began fretting over it. Not that I had said anything repugnant or negative, just that maybe I'd rambled on too much. It turned out fine in the end thank goodness.

Anybody else out there an email junky? I probably check my mail 15 or 20 times a day. Man, do I need to get a life or what!? ;)

Winter Wonderland...in March

Ok, so in Arkansas, when it snows, it's a major event. When I lived in Bethlehem, PA, life went on as usual. I lived up there for about a year and I only remember one time that school closed for the snow. But here in Arkansas, all you have to do is hear the word snow and everyone begins freaking out. Bread shelves and milk coolers magically clear in a matter of a couple of hours. Why do folks think they will starve is they don't have milk and bread? Me? My only concern was having enough toilet paper.

Anyway, I have been watching the beautiful March snow most of the day. It started late this morning and is still going strong at a little after four p.m. It reminds me of my grandmother, who convinced my grandfather to enclose her front porch in plastic, and install a gas heater so she could sit and watch the occasional snow. It snowed the day we buried her and we were all thrilled for her. We knew she was looking down from Heaven with a huge grin on her face.





I took some quick shots of the day and thought I'd share with everyone. Not as impressive as J's shot of Russellville earlier but still pretty to look at.
Those of you who are actually in Arkansas will not be impressed, but anyone out there who lives elsewhere might be a little interested. In a day or two, it will all be gone and the temps will climb back up to what they were at the first of the week. (Short sleeve weather) Just stick around in this place if you don't like the weather. It always changes in a couple of days.

So This is March?

J took this photo at work this morning in Russellville. It's lovely and makes a beautiful desktop wallpaper. Wish I was there!!!

Jonquils and Memories

When I was growing up, everyday we drove by a house we referred to as "Miss Bessie's House." She was a mysterious woman I can't recall ever seeing, but her yard was always covered in blooming Jonquils every February. She didn't have just a few flower beds of them, they almost completely blanketed the entire yard. It was always so beautiful to top the hill, and see the explosion of yellow. I was blessed with that sight this afternoon as I drove to my Mother's house for her 69th birthday celebration.

It made me think about my childhood and the expectation of those flowers every day in February. It reminded me as well, of when I was a grown married woman and I transplanted some bulbs at our old homeplace. My great grandmother evidently had a very green thumb, because even several years after her death, her yard was still filled with beautiful blooms of countless varieties. I don't remember what year it was, but it must have been after LeLe was 4, because that was the year we moved into the house she grew up in. I remember walking around my great grandmother's place, (no one living there then) and digging up Jonquil bulbs. I planted them all over my yard. I wish I could have brought some of them with me, just for sentimental reasons. Before my cousin took over the place, there was an azalea bush in front of the porch that was almost as tall as the porch roof. It was absolutely wonderful. My uncle inherited her green thumb and thought it best to trim it back. I'm sure he was right, but I was disappointed. I tried to dig up some shoots of her enormous Magnolia tree, but was unsuccessful.


And that brought to my mind for some reason, a day when I was very young, and my grandfather put my brother and me on his horse, named Old Scott, and walked us over to my gr-grandmother's place. She was gone by then, but my great aunt lived there still. I was terrified, but I think it was the height of the horse, and not the horse itself I was afraid of. My brother however, was "stepping in high cotton" as they used to say.

My aunt had hair down past her waist and it was strange to me that a woman old enough to have solid gray hair, wore it so long. She stuck her head out the door, and she was braiding one side of it, the other side was still free. I was amazed. I'd never seen anything like it. She always wore the braids wrapped around her head. Unfortunately, a few years later, she fell and broke her wrist, couldn't braid it any longer and cut it all off. I really was disappointed about that.

I don't know why those memories surfaced today, but I wanted to get them down before I forgot. Maybe my great grandchildren will read this one day and think.... "Wow!"

Saturday Stuff

This February day is absolutely beautiful. The sun is out, the temp is in the 60's and it's glorious. I've been working on sprucing up my birdbath flowerbed and finally finished it. Photos below.

Before:


Progress:


Finished!