Sporatic Bursts of Engery...

A friend asks, "Why don't you post on your blog anymore?" Well, because I'm wasting too much time on facebook; it's because I'm too lazy to think about writing something interesting; it's because I'm too busy procrastinating. It took me more than a month to finish my travel journal on Oklahoma. I finally posted that today. But hey! Here I am with nothing interesting to tell you!
I've had some bursts of energy since it has warmed up here, especially on days that the the rain and clouds are gone and the sun is shining. In fact, I saw some neighbors on Saturday I hadn't seen all winter. Saturday was a sunny day with temps in the high 50s. I put the plants back out on the deck and even pulled a few weeds. I've been working 4 hours on Tuesdays at a local bakery and haven't porked out on sweets--major achievement.
I stalked George Clooney's movie set catering truck that was parked in front of our neighborhood church and tried to get information on the whereabouts of George. He is filming a movie here in St Louis and can be sighted here and there. I never did see him, but he was there having lunch and in the afternoon he was around the corner from my house filming on Magnolia Place. Man! they protect him well. Ha.

<- one of the catering guys.

Anyway, He (my spouse--not the catering guy) and I are planning a trip to Arizona next week and I'll have another travel diary to share with you. In the meantime, I guess I'll just go on enjoying rather uneventful days cooking and cleaning, doing this and that, running here and there, and thinking about all you guys out there. Later, kiddos.

W-O-M-A-N

Well I got up this morning and I was moving fast
I grabbed myself some coffee and I put on my pants, (clothes)
I made a quick list of what we needed at the store,
Grabbed the mail, my purse, my keys then I headed out the door

Singin', "I am WOMAN...W-O-M-A-N!"

I got home and washed the car, made some soup and cleaned the floor.
Then I went outside where I found I could do so much more,
I grabbed the rake, spread 10 bags of mulch and then I moved some piles
Of compost and the bins and then I stood and admired it for a while

cuz "I am WOMAN...W-O-M-A-N!"

(ba-ba-ba-da-bum)
Don't challenge me!
(ba-ba-ba-da-bum)
Cuz it's plain to see!
(ba-ba-ba-da-bum)
I'm full of energy and it is going to set me free!

Oh, "I am WOMAN...W-O-M-A-N!"

written by Me

Road Trip, Chapter III, Oklahoma

You may have noticed that I've put off writing about our trip through Oklahoma. It may be because I don't care for Oklahoma's Great Plains and Frontier countries, and I'm amazed that anyone wants to live there. My brother and his wife and families just love it there--they live in Wynnewood, a little more than an hour south of Oklahoma City. I don't understand it. But the people are nice.

My mother was born in Webber Falls, Oklahoma which is in the Northern portion of the state and a bit prettier than the southern section, but her family moved to Enid when she was a baby. (We didn't take time to go to Enid.) Grandpa was a farmer and the dust bowl problems caused them to pack up their belongings and 10 kids, and drive them all west to California. It was like a scene from "Grapes of Wrath," as they piled into an old truck with their belongings and set out for the promised land. Sometimes I wonder if my feelings involve past lives. I have Indian ancestry. Maybe I was on the The Trail of Tears in a previous life. Anyway, for me, the territory feels sad and depressed.

Anyway, after leaving Texas, we took the most direct route to my brother's home in Wynnewood and were there in the late afternoon. We planned to meet them for Dinner at a Mexican restaurant in the next town--Tio's. We had a nice visit and saw all the kids, told them how much they had grown since we saw them last, etc. The next morning we struck out to Webber's Falls, the small town where my mother was born. There wasn't much there.

<-

Looking East toward the Arkansas River, about a block at the end of this road. The end of this street used to be a bridge that continued over the river. That bridge was moved about 1/2 mile, directing traffic away from the heart of Webbers Falls. It now struggles to even exist as a town, which has claim to being the second oldest town in Oklahoma, established in the early 1820's. From there we headed home to St Louis. This part of the trip was direct and site-seeing consisted of gazing from one side of the freeway to the other stopping only for gasoline and refreshments. Our thoughts were on getting home to St Louis. We had traveled more than 1600 miles in 5 days--a whirlwind of sites and activities. And now we are home and planning for another trip in April, this time to Arizona--another chapter in the adventures of a wild and crazy Midwestern couple. "Y'all come back now! ya heyah?"

Road Trip, Chapter II, South Central Arkansas

We left Hot Springs about 11:00 a.m., after having coffee in our room and showering again in the natural springs that was piped into each room of the hotel, then checking out. We took a last look over the town, park and springs, then headed southwest to Texas making a detour to Arkadelphia and Okalona, in Clark County, Arkansas.





Arkadelphia is located in Clark County, along Interstate 30, about 65 miles from Little Rock, 40 miles from the Crater of Diamonds State Park, and 25 miles from Hot Springs. We stopped at the Courthouse which was built in 1899. I wanted to check out some old court records of my grandmother's family, then we found a cute restaurant, the Honeycomb, and had a nice lunch. (The Honeycomb Restaurant exists for two main purposes: one, providing work for our clients, and two, providing a downtown restaurant with good, affordable food--and the food WAS good and affordable. I had a yummy chef salad that I couldn't finish. I don't remember what He had.)

On to Okalona...

My paternal Grandmother was born in Okalona and apparently I do have relatives there. It was off the beaten path, a winding, scenic road back in time, to a small town with one old convenience store with a broken gas pump out front, a small post office across the street, and an aluminum sided fire station up the road. We stopped in at the convenience store in town and met a fellow that grew up with my distant cousin or uncle (yet to be determined through Ancestry.com) and got directions to the old homestead of a great-great aunt. Well, we just had to go check it out. I'm not really sure if we saw the actual house, but what was there met the description by the old man.

(left--Arkadelphia court house; center--Okalona, aunt Clemmy's house? right--Okalona, Mr. Malcom, The old fellow seemed to think we were related in some way.)

Due to time constraints (needing to be in Longview, Texas by 5:30 or 6:00 p.m.), cut our exploration short and headed back to the main road and on South. I'd have to wait for another trip to explore Prescott (where my dad was born) and Hope (where there is some of the best mexican food I've ever tasted).

to be continued...

Road Trip, Chapter One--Arkansas

I've been a lot depressed lately and in an effort to lift the spirit around here, I convinced Him to take some time away from work and go on a 1,500 mile whirlwind drive through four states--twice through Missouri. We did it in five days, staying in different places each night.

So, early last Wednesday morning we climbed into the Corolla and left St Louis heading south on 55. Turning right at Memphis, we took 70 into Little Rock and made our way to my cousin's home

just south of it. They live on a street called Diamond Hill, so named because of the natural crystal found in the ground there. Small crystals litter the yard and glisten in the sunshine. You know I was out there digging for crystals and even found a few little ones that I pocketed and brought home.

The ancient Ouachita Mountain area of Arkansas was considered a mystical location by Native American tribes. The hot and cold springs in the "Valley of the Mists" (now the city of Hot Springs) was considered a place of peace for even warring tribes. Shaman traveled to "power points" in the mountains where the earth's energy was said to be the strongest, and the beautiful Arkansas quartz of the Ouachitas were believed to have sacred and spiritual significance.

Anyway, CC and Jerry had dinner waiting for us and we enjoyed ribs, slaw, and I forget what else--all good. And Jerry made breakfast, serving up his sausage biscuits. We were stuffed. Thanks, CC and J. Although brief, we had a great visit.

Then we were off to Hot Springs for a spa day and tour of the town. We stayed at the Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa, a nearly 500 room resort in the Ouachita Mountains of Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas. The hotel was originally built in the late 1800's but burned to the ground. It was rebuilt in 1920 and has been operating since. This is where I enjoyed a hot mineral bath, mineral wrap, pin-point mineral shower massage, sauna and a massage. The only thing that was missing was a gurney to roll me back to my room. It was the most luxurious pampering I've ever had. Although He wouldn't have any spa business for himself, He was happy to look at the old buildings, go on a historical tour through a bathouse, and do a little shopping. You can't really see in this picture, but He is wearing a silly hat with long blond hair attached to it. Cute, huh. And, I had my fortune told by Zoltar. It's all good.
to be continued...

As Time Goes By...

I'm amazed that everything I do reminds me of our dear Greta-Girl, our pet German Shepherd of 11-plus years that passed-away a few days ago. I'm having a rough time right now and I know, and everyone tells me, it will get easier to bear as time passes.

I've gone through this before. In the 80's, I adopted a kitten that was rescued from a barn wall. It was an adorable, fluffy, pure white ferrel kitten with blue eyes. I named her Sassy-frass. When I brought her home and put her down, she quickly disappeared under the cabinets in the kitchen. It took a day or so to coax her out. Knowing she would get hungry, I placed a saucer of food at the space that she had climbed behind and stood quietly nearby, waiting for her to creep out. She finally did and I swooped in and grabbed her. I blocked that hole and kept her with me until she trusted me, eventually becoming a wonderful and loving pet.

Well, Sassy was out one day, strayed into the street and was hit by a car. She was quickly carried to the vet but she was injured too badly. I decided to put her to sleep. Sassy was only with me about two years but I was smitten. I remember missing her for a very long time.

So, as I remind myself of my grieving for Sassy, I feel somewhat soothed that I will eventually be able to resume my daily activities without sobbing every few minutes about Greta. I'll be able to mop up spilled water and remember mopping up after Greta when she lapped water all over the floor and not cry. I'll be able to make dollar-sized pancakes without crying about the ones I made for her when we had them on Sunday mornings. I'll be able to vacuum the floor and remember all the hair she shed--everywhere--and not burst into tears. I'll be able to handle a plastic bag and smile when I remember when I used to grab one, shake it in the air, and yell out "Poop Patrol," and she came bounding after me to go outside to clean up her trophies. (She was proud of them, often pointing them out to me.) Greta helped me feed the birds, faithfully following me out to the feeder and "helping" me fill it. She never chased the birds but she would run off a pesty squirrel from time-to-time.

There are so many more great things to remember about Greta and I may have to subject you to them as I work out my pain and grief. This seems to help a bit. Thanks for listening.

Our Grand Dame Greta Liesl

One of the saddest things that can happen to us is to lose a pet that we love dearly. We dearly loved our dog, Greta, a 12 year-old German Shepherd. I found Greta at an animal shelter when she was about 8 months old. She had been "turned in" there for reasons that were not really clear. What was clear was that she was a frightened and unhappy. But she took to me and I took to her. After a couple hours, arrangements were made and I brought her to her new home. Greta was with us for over 11 1/2 years, bringing love and joy every day of those years--even when she dug holes in the yard and chewed on furniture. Soon she outgrew those puppy habits and much too soon (for us) she grew old.

We lost Greta the night of January 14th, 2009. This is a small tribute to her memory and the love she gave us, and we hope she comes to visit us from time to time.

She was a party animal.