I love lilies! They are so beautiful. I have a gorgeous lily in my garden now and as you can see, other blooms are ready to burst with the yellow color.
Soon I will have sunflowers and marigolds. The shoots are green and still growing.
A friend of mine just had a baby girl and named her Lily. I think a yellow bloom would be the perfect gift! Both are stunning examples of the beauty of life.
Some kids are smarter than we were in our day. They are growing up faster. They have more struggles and challenges in this modern age.
I saw a news item about a young child prodigy who plays classical piano at the age of 5. He said he'd been playing for 18 months. I clicked on the video and the child was the guest of the Ellen DeGeneres Show and he was good. Then I found several other videos of his work on YouTube. I'm not a classical music fan by nature, but I found this one really captivating. I thought I would share it.
If you want to see more, look for Ryan Wang playing piano on YouTube. He has recently played in Carnegie Hall in New York City.
My dog saw a squirrel in the backyard. As she stood still eyeing her prey, you can see the squirrel on the left side of the tree, starring back at her.
She took one step toward the tree and the squirrel ran up high into the limbs of the tree as if to say "you can't catch me!"
HOW WE RECALL
by Roger J. Robicheau
How we recall that day we swore
To serve our country to the core
That clothing issued brought a view
Of raw recruits, this showed so true
Remembered hair was cut away
This look for quite awhile would stay
Our trek before too long did show
New GI’s marching, row by row
And then one day emerged a form
Each proud trained troop in uniform
We followed orders as we should
To do our best, in pride we would
Some served in peace, some went to war
Brave heroes passed through Heaven’s door
We cherished friends who served with us
Great buddies all, how we’d discuss
So many thoughts will never wane
For what we shared, let closeness reign
Our bond was tight, the best to see
For when we served, this had to be
The purpose was to keep you free
God Bless the brave, deservedly.
Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Many people visit cemeteries and memorials and place flowers and flags, particularly to honor those who have died in military service.
Life doesn't guarantee things will be easy or always go as planned. We can only change the things we can; accept what we cannot change.
Keep moving forward - take one day at a time. Sadness comes and healing begins.
My day lilies have numerous buds ready to open and show their beautiful yellow flowers. All this rain has really made the flowers grow.
My rose bush has almost doubled in height since it was planted. I hope by the end of summer I have large red roses blooming.
The geese are dressed and ready for summer and the porch is set for my leisure time. I have two begonia plants on the porch and flowers growing in the yard.
COME ON SUMMER - I'm ready for hot weather!
I had the trees in my back yard trimmed today. I was tired of the limbs growing up into the electrical wires at the back of the property. Some limbs needed to be trimmed so they would not droop onto the house or my storage shed. They cleaned up all the trimmings and hauled them away too. The best part was that all the dead limbs from the tree where the ladder is shown were cut off to prevent falling in a summer storm. Looks pretty good back there now!
The same guys also trimmed a tree in my neighbor's yard today. They had a truckload full of trimmings when they left.
On May 3, I went to an auction with a friend. I bought a large black oval tin pan which will be great for a flower receptacle. It is too early to buy flowers yet due to the chilly weather we are having here. But maybe later this week it will warm up. I will be looking for pansies and geraniums to add to my flower garden. I already planted aster and magnolia seeds, and I have one pot of strawberries growing.
My finest purchase that Friday night was a heavy brass floor lamp with an oak and brass stem for only $5.00. It had no shade, but had the extended adjustable placement arm like the other two lamps in my living room. I tightened the base and put a light bulb in it. The lamp works fine.
Last Friday, I went to a local thrift shop and found a burgundy lamp shade for $2.00 which fit perfectly and looks good. Now my shiny $7.00 lamp stands in my living room to add more light to the room at night. What bargains you can find if you just look around! (And, yes, I straightened the shade. It was crooked when I took the photo.)
I'm making progress. My back door screen is no longer wired shut. It took a pair of pliers to open and close the door to let the dog out several times a day. I purchased a new door knob at Ace Hardware, only to find out it didn't fit (the door is old). I finally called Cook Home Improvement, since they built the back porch onto the house in the 1970s. He came out, looked at the door, and said he probably had an old door knob in the shop. Today, a guy came out and installed a door knob that covered the holes. The old door knob was long and had a round lock at the bottom. The new ones they make don't have that feature, and the new one I bought was too short and didn't cover the bottom hole. After the door knob was installed, it fit fine, all the holes are covered, and the lock even works. I put the pliers away!
Tomorrow in the mail, I am expecting the new dryer knob I had to order from the Sears Online Parts website. The on/off knob broke on the inside and would no longer turn the stem for the on switch. I have been using another pair of small pliers to turn the dryer on when needed. I found the Sears online parts website very handy this year. I recently ordered parts for my refrigerator. Mother liked Sears and bought all Frigidaire appliances. (It might have had something to do with the fact that she worked at Frigidaire in Dayton prior to marrying my father.) The new knob was only $3.99 and not carried locally in any store.
Sometimes old things last longer and are better made than new items - quality is important. The dryer works fine, only the knob broke. The back porch door is fine, only the door knob broke. The pliers are being retired and I'm back to turning knobs the normal way.
I have been in many places, but I've never been in Cahoots. Apparently, you can't go alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone.
I've also never been in Cognito. I hear no one recognizes you there.
I have, however, been in Sane. They don't have an airport; you have to be driven there. I have made several trips there, thanks to my friends, family and work.
I would like to go to Conclusions, but you have to jump, and I'm not too much on physical activity anymore.
I have also been in Doubt. That is a sad place to go, and I try not to visit there too often.
I've been in Flexible, but only when it was very important to stand firm.
Sometimes I'm in Capable, and I go there more often as I'm getting older.
One of my favorite places to be is in Suspense! It really gets the adrenalin flowing and pumps up the old heart! At my age I need all the stimuli I can get!
And, sometimes I think I am in Vincible but life shows me I am not!
An old man spent the first few weeks of his retirement in peace and contentment. Then a new school year began. The very next afternoon three young boys, full of youthful, after-school enthusiasm, came down his street, beating merrily on every trashcan they encountered. The crashing percussion continued day after day, until finally the wise old man decided it was time to take some action.
The next afternoon, he walked out to meet the young percussionists as they banged their way down the street. Stopping them, he said, "You kids are a lot of fun. I like to see you express your exuberance like that. In fact, I used to do the same thing when I was your age. Will you do me a favor? I'll give you each a dollar if you'll promise to come around every day and do your thing." The kids were elated and continued to do a bang-up job on the trashcans.
After a few days, the old-timer greeted the kids again, but this time he had a sad smile on his face.
"This recession's really putting a big dent in my income," he told them. "From now on, I'll only be able to pay you 50 cents to beat on the cans."
The noisemakers were obviously displeased, but they did accept his offer and continued their afternoon ruckus. A few days later, the wily retiree approached them again as they drummed their way down the street.
"Look," he said, "I haven't received my Social Security check yet, so I'm not going to be able to give you more than 25 cents. Will that be okay?"
"A lousy quarter?" the drum leader exclaimed. "If you think we're going to waste our time, beating these cans around for a quarter, you're nuts! No way, mister. We quit!"
And the old man enjoyed peace once again.
Today, the escaping cat and my knee took center stage. What a rare cat's tale I experienced.
After my auction adventure last night, I must have twisted my knee and didn't realize it until this morning when I got up and found myself limping and my knee was swollen quite a bit. Since it was also aching, I put on my neoprene knee brace for the day.
My yard man came by around 12:30pm and hooked up my front yard water hose so I can water my flowers without carrying buckets of water from the kitchen sink. It is so much easier now.
I got the hose reel off the back porch and he also hooked that up to the back yard faucet. After a few other small items were finished, we headed across the street to my neighbor's house to do a few things for her (he also works in her yard). As we completed her to-do list, she was standing at the front door with the door slightly open (since there is no screen in her door) and her in-door-only cat Winkers escaped out the front door and began wandering around the front yard. At that moment, her sister and husband showed up at the house and the four of us were chasing the cat trying to aim Winkers toward the front door or the open garage door – without success.
Winkers decided her back yard was where he wanted to roam. They all went into the house and I came home to “use my head” and outsmart the cat. I know this cat. He loves tuna and chicken. I got my emergency can of tuna cat food from the shelf and put some in a plastic bowl and walked to her back yard. Cats are like dogs, food-driven.
Winkers let me walk within three feet of him with the tuna smell aimed in his direction. Bingo, he wanted it. He walked straight to the bowl I sat on the ground and whish – he was immediately scooped up into my arms in a firm grip and I headed for the house. My friend saw me coming and opened the back door and inside we went, safe and sound before Winkers wandered into one of the two cat-killer neighbor's yards. (See my previous blogs about the cat killers entitled Monster Among Us and One Can Only Hope.)
My yard work is completed for the day. And I am on the couch with my leg elevated to ease the pain caused by more walking and bending than I planned for today. My neoprene brace will ease the pain eventually and Winkers, the escape artist, is safe and sound inside. Mission accomplished!
My favorite fast food restaurant is on the move. I went to Wendy's today and spoke with an assistant manager and asked "moving or adding a new location" and learned the news.
A couple days ago, when I drove by our Kroger store, I saw the front part of the parking lot torn up, a construction trailer parked there, and a sign advertising the new Wendy's Coming Soon. Kroger sold off (or leased) one out-lot to Tim Horton's coffee shop a few years ago. Now they have done it again, with Wendy's Hamburgers.
The projected opening date is July 1st and they will abandon the building in the Washington Square Shopping Center. As I was told today, their current building is old and has outdated equipment. He said Wendy's has new equipment for their enhanced menu options, and it was cheaper to build a new building with all their new equipment, than to renovate the old building. I guess that makes business sense, but that means they are moving to the other side of our 'downtown' area. The 'other side of town' only has three food choices (McDonalds, Subway, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. My end of town has Arby's, Burger King, McDonalds, Wendy's (currently), Ranchers Roast Beef, Subway, Taco Bell, Frischs, Bob Evans, and all the pizza places.
I did more research and went to the website and learned:
"Wendy’s is in the process of changing a whole lot about the company — from introducing new menu items to remodeling stores and crafting an updated logo for the brand. New Wendy’s locations won’t just have a new logo — they’ll also feature Wi-Fi access, fireplaces and digital menu boards. The restaurant remodel is part of a broader campaign that includes the new uniforms and the new logo. It has the advertising component and also marketing, including our digital program and menu innovations.”
The website stated that the significant redesign of their locations costs about $750.000. "But the return on investment is there. We’re seeing lifts of 25 to 30 percent on a sustained basis."
"We are so serious and believe in this program that for 2013, we’ve got a $10 million incentive pool. We will provide a $100,000 incentive to the first 100 franchise restaurants that are remodeled to this design, and we’ve had a very, very strong interest in that from our franchisees."
Therefore, my analysis shows that we are getting a new Wendy's look, upgrades, and conveniences, but I'll have to drive across town to get them. For those who do not live in my area, I'll be clear and tell you that our whole town of 14,000 residents is only about 3 miles wide, so it's really no big deal to drive across town. It just sounds good to say it!
In the late 1800s, times were tough for workers in the U.S. You can blame the growing rise of corporations, which didn't always create the best work conditions. Workers' campaign for an eight-hour work day reached a milestone on May 1, 1886.
It's now called MAY DAY and is celebrated by workers.
May day for me is - my flowers are now in bloom and spring has finally arrived. My yard got mowed and trimmed today and is looking great. My peonies are budding and my tulips are in full bloom. The next to open and shine will be my lilies. Today, I planted astors and marigolds and watered my strawberry plant. All is good lookin' at my house.
I was out in my back yard looking at my evergreen trees and noticed something strange coming from inside the area under the limbs. I asked my yard man and he said it was a honeysuckle bush growing.
I did some research on the honeysuckle bush and found they are invasive vines or bushes that like evergreens. The name of my particular bush is called lonicera ciliosa. Some species produce edible fruit, some produce slightly poisonous fruit, and they do attract humming birds.
Therefore, next week THEY WILL BE GONE, whether they look good or not. 
I would be more inclined to visit the new StreetSide62 Italian Bistro restaurant under construction next door to Goodwill than I would be to go to, or recommend going to any cash advance business.
My yard work is completed for the day. And I am on the couch with my leg elevated to ease the pain caused by more walking and bending than I planned for today. My neoprene brace will ease the pain eventually and Winkers, the escape artist, is safe and sound inside. Mission accomplished!
In the late 1800s, times were tough for workers in the U.S. You can blame the growing rise of corporations, which didn't always create the best work conditions. Workers' campaign for an eight-hour work day reached a milestone on May 1, 1886.
