June 2008

Old Lotions Smell Like Witch’s Brew

June 16, 2008

I know you are glad this isn’t a “scratch ‘n sniff” blog! While sorting in the bathroom, I came across a box filled with lotions and potions. They were expensive beauty products I had bought (I probably enough on them to run a small country for a year), but they had gotten shoved to the [...]

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Gift Giving Simplified, Or Not!

June 15, 2008

For years I have kept a drawer in my house that we have called “The Mathom Drawer.” If you have read J.R.R. Tolkien’s series of fantasy novels, you might know about “mathoms.” According to Tolkien, “Anything that Hobbits had no immediate use for, but were unwilling to throw away, they called a mathom. Their dwellings [...]

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Freecycle

June 14, 2008

With all the junk we need to toss, our quickest solution would be to rent a dumpster and just fill it up and have it dragged away. In one Saturday, we could vastly reduce the amount of stuff we have. But, that’s not the best solution! What we consider trash might be someone else’s treasure. [...]

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I Knew That People Had Big Hearts

June 14, 2008

Just a few days ago, these three afghans graced the porch of my friend Connie, in Gladewater, Texas. Now, they are in a box on their way to me. An afghan from Jenny McB. is in the mail, too. And, Sherry has one she will deliver in person when we meet (which will be soon, [...]

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The Angel of Marye’s Heights

June 13, 2008

I’ve been working on my story repertoire the last few days. In that process, I came upon a tale from the time of the Civil War. Times of conflict can bring out the very best in some people. Richard Rowland Kirkland was one of those people. I wanted to share with you his story (facts [...]

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A Timer Keeps Me Moving

June 13, 2008

At least fifteen years ago, I bought a book called Simplify Your Life, by Elaine St. James. It was cutting edge at the time; it was written back when people were still caught up in the mindset that more is better. I’ve figured out that more stuff is stressful! Bite off a little chunk each [...]

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How Do I Sort These Books?

June 12, 2008

It’s time to remove some books in our lives. I know it’s true, and I have been denying it for years. It’s time to put on my “big girl panties” and deal with it. Since we hope to move to a house that is at least one third smaller than this one, I have optimistically [...]

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Thursday Thirteen #42. One Woman’s Trash Is Another Woman’s Treasure

June 11, 2008

I thought I would take you on a visual tour of my house for Thursday Thirteen. My sister looks down her nose at my decorating style. She complains that I have too much stuff. And, she thinks my stuff is just “too weird.” Y’all take a look and tell me what you think. There’s no [...]

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Bibliophile or Bibliomaniac?

June 11, 2008

I find them at yard sales, stacked aside in boxes. They whisper to me from the boxes under the tables. Paperback and hardback books for less than a dollar apiece! Oh, Sweet Heavens! I can never resist loading my arms and bringing them home to my house. They need me! Sad, isn’t it? I would [...]

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You’ve Got Mail. Junk Mail, of Course

June 10, 2008

You brought the mail in today, and I know what you found. Your mail looks exactly like mine. You had Bills Catalogs filled with brightly colored and totally unnecessary plastic objects Magazines you will never take the time to read And, an armload of other junk mail There are credit card offers, coupons for things [...]

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Share A Square Anniversary

June 9, 2008

“You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”~Kahlil Gibran A one year anniversary is around the corner. I’m talking about the Share A Square project, of course. It’s been an exciting year of watching as people gave of themselves; gave generously from [...]

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The Librarian Is Your Friend

June 9, 2008

I visited the home of a librarian in Mexico. A single woman, with her children grown, she had mastered the art of “simple living.” She worked for the American Schools in foreign countries, and found herself moving to a different country every few years. Because of those moves, she had learned to keep her possessions [...]

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Beauty Doesn’t Last Forever, And Neither Does Your Makeup

June 8, 2008

When I was in my twenties, I prided myself on the fact that I didn’t wear makeup. I guess that I was having my belated “Hippie” phase, and I thought I was totally cool because I eschewed such extravagances. When false eyelashes were “in style,” I sneered that they made women look like they had [...]

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An Adventure In Simple Living

June 7, 2008

Many years ago, in my life with “Mr. X.,” a Vietnamese family came to visit our home. By the standards in Southlake, Texas, which was filled with “McMansions,” our house was modest. In fact, we joked that we lived in “the slums of Southlake.” Our house was on almost an acre with four bedrooms (one [...]

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Looking For The Blues

June 6, 2008

Well, I’m not looking for “the blues,” exactly. I’ve had my share of the blues. I’m looking for “blue.” The color blue. That’s all because of my friend Robin, at Around The Island. She participated in Anna Carson’s Project Blue, and people are sending photographs from all over (of course, the photos feature the color [...]

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Thursday Thirteen #42. It’s Graduation!

June 4, 2008

Do any of y’all have graduates this year? We have one about to graduate (Yippee!) and he is the last of the bunch. That means that the last few weeks have been busy, and it isn’t going to slow down soon. For Thursday Thirteen, I guess this is thirteen observations. 1. I love this quote [...]

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Dona Nobis Pacem

June 4, 2008

Today across the blogosphere, we are blogging for peace. This song by Nanci Griffith says all I have to say, but she says it better. Click it to play, close your eyes and enjoy. I wish you peace.

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I Have To Get On The Ball

June 3, 2008

The Magic Number is: Yes, I said 349. Now, if I were playing baseball (and if I were a batter), that wouldn’t be an embarrassing batting average. I think. I don’t really know, because I don’t understand baseball. I don’t get the point of the game. You hit a little ball, run around in a [...]

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Sitting Ducks

June 2, 2008

I don’t know why this local news story has affected me so deeply. Maybe it’s remembering when my children were small and I took them to Bedford Boys Ranch to feed the ducks. I loved watching the kids squeal with glee when they saw a Momma duck and her band of babies waddling beside the [...]

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