And Off To Court We Go

Do any of you remember that I was rear-ended Nov. 30th?  🚗

Nah, probably not , but finally today there was an end to it. 🤸

I had to go to court.... as a witness. Yes, I did witness that crash. And, this morning it was 20 degrees outside. 🌡 Not my favorite weather to be out running around. 

But, none of this was my fault and yet I have had to deal with it for 2 months.

First... dealing with the accident itself, the police, 👮 the wait on the police to get there and being rather shattered emotionally. The nerves are not quite what they used to be when I was younger.

Then I had to deal with the insurances... both of them and found out that now there is no adjuster to come out to inspect the damage. You take pictures with your cell phone to send to them and they judge by what you take as to the damage.  So, twice I had to take pictures, send them to two different insurance companies.

There was the collision repair people to deal with. They did a great job with the repair but it was back and forth down there to give them info, to take my car, do without it for days and then go back to get it.

And, now, this... going to court. 

But it's over. Hallelujah. and as I said, so thankful that it was minor enough that we both had no injuries. 

Linking with Thankful Thursday

Slips of Paper

                             Since I live alone I don't answer to anyone!

   Plain and simple.... so I can get away with being lazy if I want to. 

  I do what has to be done, but there are those little things that I say                      
                            "maybe tomorrow, next week, next year". 

                                         Those things start to count up! 

So, at the beginning of this year I wrote down a bunch of ideas/chores on slips of paper. Folded them up... stuck them in a jar. 

                              And, every morning I draw one out.

Some say things like "Smile all day". I must have looked like a Cheshire Cat that day, here all by myself. But, it made me happy.

                          Some say "call a friend" or "write a letter". 

                                             You get the picture.

Then there are the ones that remind me of what I have put off for ages. Chores that I let slide by.

                     Today I drew out "clean the oven". OH JOY. 

But, won't I be proud of myself tonight when I see that sparkling clean oven. 

          A gal's gotta do what a gal's gotta do .... to get things done!

I Give Thanks

Thank you, every one of you, for the encouraging comments you left (at the news I was slowing down on Blogger). That meant the world to me. I find myself slowing down so much lately. I am watching too much television, I read more. I don't go out as much. Oh, let me tell you about that!!

Last Friday I headed to Walmart. I hate going to Walmart! I had two gifts to buy for the under-priviledged children our Women's Circle was buying for this Christmas. So, I leave the house. It's misting rain so I nearly go back inside. I would have to park a good distance from the door at Walmart and didn't want to get my hair wet!

But, I leave. I approach the intersection but decide to turn left and just try to find those gifts at Walgreen Drugs instead. I sat waiting for the turn light to go green and when it did, I start to pull into the intersection to turn left. I see a car coming toward the red light on the main road and he isn't going to stop.

I am so proud of my quick thinking! I can be pretty slow at some things but I got stopped quick enough to keep from that car from t-boning me in the driver's side (which would have badly injured me or killed me). But.... boom. I am hit from behind. I had stopped.... but the old truck behind me didn't.

The damage isn't bad. Just the rear bumper has to be replaced.

But, for a couple of days I could not make myself go back out and crawl into that car and crank it up and drive away!! The thought of  'What if I had not stopped' went through my mind constantly.

Three days later though I went to Walmart, bought those gifts and went on to my Women's Circle Christmas party to take those toys. But you can believe I did some serious defensive driving!!

My beloved Ford 500. It's 13 years old but she's my baby. The first and only car I ever purchased by myself and she fits my lifestyle great. I even got a letter from the Ford dealership just the other day wanting to buy my car... Ford did not make the 500s but a couple years and they are in high demand now. But, they aren't getting mine!

To Have And To Hold - Wedding Preparations.

My granddaughter married the love of her life on Nov. 10th. Beautiful outdoor wedding and reception.... but.... it was in the mid 40s temperature-wise. It was soooo cold! I am linking with Thankful Thursday, Little Things and Share Your Cup. Here's a few casual shots of the wedding.

The wedding took place in the groom's yard on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.
                                It was a beautiful setting.

It was a family affair.... Everyone pitched in to help. The arch was made by the bride's father and decorated by her mother.

Tablecloths for the reception had wrinkles.. so Uncle Michael ironed while Grandmother (me) assisted.

Set up of the reception tent begins.. 

A basket of blankets were provided for guests should they get cold.

The reception tables were centered with wrought iron pumpkins filled with tea lights and surrounded by fall leaves and pumpkins... and gold bags of Plantation Peanuts for each guest. 

A quiet moment for bride and her mother, a walk down to the dock, before time for the wedding.

 I will continue with the wedding tale in my Friday Five post. 

Butterflies

On a recent visit to the Botanical Gardens in Huntsville, Alabama I particularly liked the Purdy Butterfly House. We saw some butterflies that were familiar and several that I had not seen before. I'd like to share them today on Saturday Critters and Camera Critters.

A Malachite

Black Swallowtail

Monarch

Peavine Swallowtail

Zebra Longwing

Yellow Swallowtail

White Peacock

Julia and a Zebra longwing

Nostalgia

It's Wordless Wednesday

A New Look

I've been thinking. Yep, I do that from time to time.

I've been blogging for about 10 years now, sharing everything from my everyday life, trips I have made, pictures I have taken and yes, those years of caring for my sweet husband who had Alzheimers. 

People who follow have stopped following, commenters are the loyal few, even those that troll through, that you would never know about if you didn't look at the stats, are diminishing. There must be something wrong somewhere.

Well, I got to thinking. Yep, ....Oh, I said that already. 

I need to either spark up things or just close the door on this business! I am getting older, it's hard to sit at the computer for extended periods of time. My time is more precious than ever before. 

What to do? Hmmmm.

I have a collection (and, honey, I do mean collection, around 800) of quotes and graphics that I have saved ... meant to look at them regularly to sort of inspire, lift me up, that sort of thing. They are just sitting in a folder in MyPictures, for goshsakes, doing no one, not even me, any good. 

So, I thought I'd try something. It might work. It might not. Who knows. So, be on the lookout for a new type of post from me. 

I am linking this post to all those memes I have participated in so that EVERYBODY will get the word! Don't want to leave anyone out! 

Wednesday Memes:                                   Saturday Memes:
Scribble Picnic                                           Saturday Critters
My Town Shootout                                      Camera Critters 

Thursday Memes:
Thankful Thursday

Friday Memes
Willy Nilly Friday
Reflections
Paint Party Friday
Five On Friday

Treasures on Wheels

For Tom's Tuesday Treasures I have a few 'treasures' to share (taken from my archives).

This one is sitting outside a favorite antique/gift shop on Hwy. 58 I believe it is in Virginia. I can't remember the name of the place.

The rest of these are wheeled contraptions of different sorts. I took these photos in Ole Town Petersburg, Virginia.  I don't know what this is, a steam engine of some sort, maybe.

  and then there is the huge barbeque grills outside Saucy's Barbeque.

Do your treasures come on wheels?

Whatyoumacallit

When our group from my apartment complex went out to lunch not long ago I was drawn to this odd piece of machinery which was sitting on the sidewalk outside the restaurant. I have no idea what it is or what it was used for. Do any of you?

Joining in Tuesday's Treasures

This is a shot of the long 'handle' or 'tongue' or whatever it's called. 

Do You Use Google +

Some time ago I mentioned that I had finally grown to enjoy Google+. And, that I might do a blog post about it. Of course, my revelation got mixed comments from my blogger friends. Some hate Google+, some tolerate it, some ignore it and some wish it would just go away.

I admit it's difficult to find your niche with Google+ but I finally did. And, I really enjoy it. Let me tell you how I did it. (okay, all of you that are totally convinced you hate it... I understand... but I hope I might change your mind).

First of all, I love good photography. I love the pictures you blogging friends post. Not all of us are Great Photographers... I understand that. But, we like looking at pretty pictures, right?

I discovered that Google+ is a great outlet to display my better photography. I have never been able to use Instagram so this is my substitute. And, I love it.

                                                         THE BEST WAY TO USE GOOGLE+

1. Decide what you want Google+ to be for you
         (do you want to promote your blog? -
                         connect with people you know -
                                            show off you photography?)
 

(my personal page on Google+)

2. Once you decide what your Google+ page will be, then it's time to start building your circles.
This I did very slowly, with much thought as to the content of that persons contributions to the       site.

 I find that most Americans are just letting Google+ auto-add their blogs (they've never set it to not do so) and that's fine. It's just not what I wanted to do. Most of the people in my circles are people from foreign countries who are posting beautiful pictures of the things I like to look at (art, flowers, birds etc)  ... pictures like the following two

3. Click on Communities.
     This is where where you choose what will show up on the main page (what you will look at each time  you access that site). Join the communities that most interest you.

4. It will take time. Don't get in a hurry. If you are interested in a large number of visitors... then you       follow everyone .... but that's where you will lose interest in the site itself. It becomes too muddled.

 5.  I have been very picky about who I add to my circles. They are those persons who have great pictures to share and in the categories that I had chosen in Communites. For me it was ART, BIRDS, FLOWERS.... things I liked. Soon that was what was showing up on my feed. (when I first began it showed just a large variety of things)

 I just love going to Google+ once a day and scrolling through the pretty pictures of those things. It's a peaceful, enjoyable little journey to a place I don't get to go in person. And, I don't get what I don't want because I have been very selective in my choosing!

6. My contribution.... Every other day I post one of my better pictures. Other people get to see my work and I like to be able to share in their joy and them, in mine.

                                                 Did this help to change your mind?

I'd love to hear your stories about your encounter with Google+ (if you have) 

Five Yellow Things

Color has always been a part of my life. I can recall flashes of different color that meant something to me as I grew up.

The pale white of the milk that my aunt poured from her milking pail.

The pretty blue of the bachelor buttons in the flower garden

The grey and white of my cat Noddy.

Yellow, however, was not part of my growing up. It has begun to weave itself into the colors that I most cherish in this later part of my life.

Some of my favorite yellow things:

I like the idea of riding a bicycle through the streets of a very small French town, my basket filled with large yellow flowers.

I've always been a huge fan of trains and I hate it that the caboose has disappeared from the tail of the train. They are now relegated to museums and picture books. 

One of my favorite vegetables to eat is the crook-neck squash. These however have been made into swans. 

Any long, flowing dress makes me feel very special. This one would wrap me in sunshine.

  

Pretty yellow butterflies flitting amongst the blossoms. 

 Five of the things that makes me smile.

I'm linking with Willy Nilly Friday

(a day late but better late than never)

A Simple Life for Me

I am so thankful for air conditioning. The East Coast is getting toasted big time and that means Virginia, too. 

I was standing in line at the grocery store today when a man in front of me asking if I could possibly turn the sun down a notch or two. I told him I tried that yesterday but it didn't work. 

I miss sitting on my balcony, watching the deer. It's just too hot out there, besides the deer are staying cool back in the woods. 

I did get a couple of pictures of the resident's garden just a couple days ago. I particularly liked the sunflower 

and yes, neighbor Don gave me some of his ripe tomatoes. They were so good. 

I even have my own little 'garden' on my balcony! One lone pepper plant. But, hey, it has a pepper on it ready to eat. 

I like living in a 'community' like atmosphere. Those that wish to, have become friends, help each other and share in joys and sorrows. 

Some residents still work so they pretty much do their 9-5 and then crash in their apartment to get ready for the next day's 9-5. We seldom see them. That's okay. They will retire one of these days.
It's an ideal situation for me.  

I am joining with Tuesday Afternoon. Kara's blog is A Spirit of Simplicity. That's my kind of living! Why don't you check us out? 
                                                                                                                   

Good, Random Fun.

In all the hustle and bustle of us getting ready for Christmas (and believe you me, I am hustling this morning) hehe... sitting here at the computer, I am. But, I will get busy. I promise.

Remember the old tv show and they would say 'It's Howdy Doody time'?  Well, this morning it is blog time and I will say 'GOOD RANDOM FUN ' time. It's also time to post a MURAL 

How about it? Will you join me? Oh, come on! Won't take but a minute.

GOOD.......... the feeling I got last night during a Christmas performance at church. Things like that put you in the right thought process for what Christmas is all about.

RANDOM..... One day I was wandering around the farmer's market in Smithfield. I came upon this beautiful dog and just had to take it's picture. Of course, I don't remember which breed she is, nor what her name is. But, isn't she gorgeous?

FUN.......I love finding unexpected little or large works of art in the most unusual places.
                                                              This one is LARGE.
It covers the side of a building in Smithfield, Va. where Smithfield hams and bacon come from.
                                                   Ta Da.....Hence, the pig farm mural.

 

So, now I am off to do some last minute Christmas shopping. See you back here real soon.
   
                                                                                                                         

Picking Peanuts

It's Rubbish Tuesday 

TA DA...

Don't you think this old peanut picking equipment that sits outside the Plantation Peanuts Shop in Wakefield, Va. would qualify as Rubbish!

I wonder how many lbs. of peanuts that thing picked in it's heyday.

                                                                You all have a peanut-picking happy week, you hear.