DRAMA QUEENS!!!!!!

There seems to be a group that always attract drama! Have you ever noticed a certain propensity toward drama by some individuals? One of our college adoptees, Gracie, called today and asked to visit since she needed advice for a current crisis in her life. We love Grace and laugh in front of her because you never see her that there isn't drama going on in her life. Gracie is a Kenyan who is in the states going to college. She is an engineering student and works at two different jobs to support herself and keep herself in college. As many hours as she is working, going to school, and studying, I don't know how she finds time for drama, but invariably there is some kind of drama going on. When I was telling Bobby the latest Gracie story tonight, he remarked that she seemed to attract unstable peers. Perhaps, but she also always has long distance drama going on with her family. She has a brother who is in the Army and is serving another term in Iraq. He should be home in August and will teach at West Point next year, but in the meantime he is in a "War Zone". Her mother recently lost her job and at 48 is considered old in Kenya with no prospects for another job. Her Dad is a farmer and his cows are not giving milk right now, so he has no income. That is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the drama in her life. Personally I like a low key, no drama life!

Today was a flurry of activity or in other words, I was running around like a chicken with her head cut off. I am finishing up preparing for demolition next week and rebuilding my kitchen from the floor up. We are headed to Austin tomorrow to see those "Perfect Grands" and their parents and uncle. Since I was sick and missed that Easter trip, it is past time to put my eyeballs on those people. You never leave town, even for only a weekend, that you don't pay the toll before and after you get back. That's alright it will all be worth it!

BEING A FRIEND!

Lisa second from right.

We girls tend to discuss everything under the sun when running together. I was reminded today of a discussion that we had one day while running. We were discussing breast cancer and those that we know and love that have been affected by it. At the end of the discussion, I looked around and said, "You know the odds are that one of us will have breast cancer. It is just a matter of time." Little did I know that I would live to rue the day that I made that declaration, for you see one of our own has been diagnosed with the disease.

Lisa is probably the "sweetest" in our bunch. She goes along with whatever the rest say and is unassuming and very humble about all of her talents. She will often run with the "Turtles" and protest when you tell her to go ahead. She has more talent in her little toe than most, but never flaunts or is presumptuous enough to laud it over us. She usually is pretty quiet, but always has a sweet smile and an even disposition. You never hear her complaining or moaning and groaning like I am prone, but takes things as they come with her even temperament and sweet smile.

Lisa has had her share of really tough times, but life had made a turn and she and new hubby, Sam, seemed to be on an endless honeymoon. We were all happy for her happiness since we all agree she was so deserving. Her brother, Andy, has recently been diagnosed with cancer and now this.

Lisa is now going down that path that I have seen my sister in law trod as well as numerous friends. What doctor to use, what surgery to have, what treatments to administer. The questions are endless and the options are varied, which requires lots of talking with others, research, and decision making. She has begun the trek down the long road of her illness.

The mountain can seem daunting when you are at the bottom looking up. We learned this summer that the trail will wind and climb for a long time before you reach the meadow at the top. There are times that you are walking the trail that you do not know what is around the next corner. There are times that you think the switchbacks will never end. The trail can become so steep that you have to get on all fours to continue up. There are obstacles and slippy spots on the trail, but the trail always leads up. Once you reach the top of the mountain, you can look back and see where you have come from and look ahead and see where you are going. The climb is torturous and hard and there are times that you think you will never get to the top. With persistence and perseverance, you do reach the top and you conquer the mountain.

Lisa will attack her illness with this same positive attitude. We are called to be her friend, and trod along the trail with her. Climbing the mountain can be foreboding, but when climbed with friends along beside you it becomes a much easier journey. We will pray without ceasing and stand along beside our dear friend as she takes this journey. We will all gather along beside her and be thankful for the perseverance we have learned from all of the miles we have run together. This is a real life marathon and we are prepared to run each and every mile at our friend's side as we run to the goal of restored health.

GOD BLESS OUR FRIEND, LISA!

WHAT A DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I JUST CANNOT BELIEVE TODAY! Some days everything just seems to come together and obviously today must have been that DAY!!!! I rose early and set off for "Yoga". This is normally such a struggle, but today-well I don't even have an explanation! I was able to do EVERY pose-BETTER and LONGER than anyone else in the class. I was blowing all of the young, slinky, agile Coeds away. I even did the head stand and back bend. I was able to stand on my head and slowly pull my hands up-so I was on my head-balanced with no support. I started the normal feet in the air, instead of the back bend and found myself able to drop them to the floor and push myself up into a back bend. Instead of dropping to the floor to come out of it-I was able to slowly unbend and straighten back up. WOW!

Things went so well in Yoga that I decided to go to the weight room. I went through 4 sets of 15 on "EACH AND EVERY MACHINE". Still full of energy and pep, I then worked my abs for 30 minutes. It seemed that with each and every rep I was strengthened and energized!

This had gone so well and I was still feeling so well that I decided to go for a little short-slow run. When I finished my first mile and I was on a 10 minute pace and not even breathing hard. Just to see if I could, the next mile I picked up the pace and found at the end of that mile that I had run a 9 minute pace. UNBELIEVABLE! Since I was still feeling so great and just to see what the old body could do, I let it all out for the third mile- """"" 7 """" minute pace. Who in the world would have ever imagined that I could run a 7 minute mile? The next 2 miles, I slowed my pace back to the 9 minutes to get my heart rate back to normal. The final exercise episode for the day was a 5 mile walk-at a twelve minute per mile pace.

What a day-------WHAT A DAY, INDEED-----Wow-what a day-April Fool's Day!

NATIVE FLOWERS!!!!!!!

Wild Azalea

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly on Left Bloom

I have a "Wild Azalea" in my back that is blooming now. You will note in the top picture that the blooms actually look a lot like a honeysuckle bloom, but they are pink. Honeysuckle is also a vine and this is a plant. This is what my "Master Gardener Friend" calls a "Native Plant". Native plants are naturally occurring plants that some even call weeds. We have a wide variety of wild flowers in Louisiana since this is considered an almost sub-tropic climate. Pappaw Conville found this and brought it to me a number of years ago. It has done quite well and with little or no attention. The azaleas that you buy at the nursery are prone to disease and require quite a bit of attention including spraying and feeding. I made a decision some time ago that I would not plant anymore azaleas. I prefer more low maintenance plants and do not want to spend a lot of time spraying and fighting bugs and disease.

I am slowly packing up my kitchen for the big remodel. It is amazing what gets stuck in drawers and cabinets over the years. I pride myself in keeping things culled to that which I use, but somehow some of the pots, pans, dishes, etc. have gotten a little out of hand. The most disturbing thing is the keys that you come across that you have no idea what they go to. My personal philosophy is that if I don't know what it goes to and have not used it in the last 24 years, then I probably do not need it.

We ran 5 miles this AM in the heat and humidity. The acclimation period of adjusting to the heat and humidity is tough! The adjustment curve can be steep and the pace definitely slows down. A long hot summer of profuse sweating is just around the corner!

YOU ALWAYS WORRY!!!!!!

I remember as a younger adult looking at what I considered "Senior Adults" at that time and thinking they had it made. Their kids were all grown and out of the house, they had cute little grandchildren, and their lives seemed to be their own. They were through the years of what I refer to as "Active Parenting". No more late nights, no more expenses relating to those off-spring and they were free to live a self-absorbed life focusing upon their needs and desires.


YEAH RIGHT!!!!

In case all of you young moms and dads think this will be the case someday, THINK AGAIN! Those days of "In the trench" parenting are over-but the worrying-well I don't think the worrying is ever over! Even those kids that are approaching "Middle Age" are still on the radar. You are concerned about the economy, their jobs, the dangerous society we are surrounded by, the cost of educating their children . . . . . . . . . the list can go on and on.

We and some of our peers have children that are floating around trying to figure out what they want to do with their lives. This is difficult for us to understand as need was the "Mother of Necessity" when working was concerned. We wanted good jobs and aspired to good jobs but bottom line was-we did not have the luxury of not working. I am not crying in my mug nor complaining, for I feel like I am the better person for this. We desire for our kids to have jobs that they love, but also understand looking back that there are no perfect jobs; just as there are no perfect people, there are also no perfect jobs.

Bobby & I both feel like our parents did not worry about us, our kids, our jobs, our future, or any other pertinent subject. They felt like they had done their job and had us raised and then we were on our own. Perhaps worrying about adult children is a generational thing, beginning with our generation. I really don't have an explanation except to say that things are very different now.

My friend, Barbara sent me an interesting article about this subject today which was the incentive for this post. Check it out and see what you think:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-03-24-boomers-kids_N.htm

I did not agree with everything the article said and definitely have no designs for our children taking care of us in the future. We used to kid Camille and tell her that we had her late in life so she could take care of us in our old age. That is certainly not our plan and we pray that we never need their help. Independence is the desire of each and every person that I know. The article does give me some comfort in knowing that I am not the only person worrying about their children.

I believe there is a scripture that states you don't add anything to your life by worrying. This is certainly "The Truth", but turning off worrying can sometimes be as difficult as turning off breathing.

MORE SPRING

Bobby & I went for a drive this afternoon and admired all of the dogwoods blooming. They are absolutely at their peak. If you want to see a proverbial sea of dogwoods, you should drive through Lanfair neighborhood. There are literally ten or more in almost every yard in the neighborhood. It is like driving though an orchard of cotton tipped trees.

My friend, "The Hummingbird", has shown up. The hummingbirds send out scouts that come ahead of the large flocks that should arrive within 2 to 3 weeks. The first bird appeared a couple of days ago and I immediately put out my feeder. I saw him on the feeder today and he is SO SMALL. After flying all of those hundreds of miles, there is no reserve left on this the tiniest of birds. It is truly a wonder to think about these tiny birds, whose nest is the size of a quarter, fly hundreds of miles from their winter homes in South America. I would love to see that sight for myself.

The wisteria vines are in full bloom in many of the area trees. The wonderful thing about wisteria, besides the fact that it is beautiful, is the smell. Wisteria smells like Spring. A sweet smell that permeates the air when you happen by. It is always a delight to be out for a run and happen upon a tree covered by the delightful vine. You smell the flower before you see it and the scent follows long after you have passed the beautiful sight.

Larry, Susan, Mona & I ran this AM. I am thankful I had already done my weekly long run, so only 5 miles this AM. Mona has been out of action for a while and has the crud I had last week, so we went really SLOW and walked the hills. Just glad to get the exercise in.

I'M NOT SO DUMB AFTER ALL!!!!!!

I FINALLY figured it out! This is the same picture as below-but edited!
Red Japanese Maple-Leaves Have Opened Island Azalea Bed-In Full Bloom
White Azalea Bed-Behind Bird House

Bachelor Button-Gift from Babs

OK-a little time and a little patience and I figure the photo dilemma out! Enjoy the pics from my yard!