DINNER OUT

Yesterday I talked my husband into driving me out in the country about 25 miles from home to pick up a small hutch that I had found on-line on Craig's List. It was a beautiful day for a drive. I haven't decided whether to paint the hutch or leave it the natural maple. It will go in the kitchen to display more of my "stuff." Do you think I should paint it all one color, paint only the shelves or leave it the way it is?

One reason Ken was willing to drive me in the truck to pick this thing up was that it was near one of our favorite restaurants. It is called Jimmy's Grill and is a real country locals place. For people who know about it, though, travelers coming from Washington, D.C. to the beaches in Delaware like to stop also. Ken and I love their fried shrimp, although they are known more for their fried chicken. I embarrassed him by taking pictures of our food so I could post them here. I had fried shrimp, cole slaw and corn fritters. He had fried shrimp, limas with slippery dumplings (a local thing) and collard greens. They also have the most wonderful homemade rolls. I know all this sounds pretty ordinary, but I guess you have to be there to experience it. Here are the pictures. Yum!

THIS N' THAT

There is nothing exciting going on here lately. Actually, that is not entirely true. The local Jazz Festival was this past weekend. One of the headliners was Joe Piscipo doing his Frank Sinatra impression show. The convention center hosts several acts a day and many of the local restaurants have free jazz shows. To attend the big shows isn't free, though, and since I am being frugal (maybe an overstatement) these days, I didn't go to anything.

Thursday night will be our annual Realtors' Auction. We raise money for needy children to help give them Christmas presents (each child also gets a warm winter coat) and provide money for worthy causes throughout the year. There will be lots of food and silent and live auctions. It is usually a lot of fun -- local real estate companies compete with each other to create the best "basket" that raises the most money during the live auction.

Next week I leave for Massachusetts to visit my daughter. I am looking forward to it so I can catch up with her and with my grandsons. My oldest grandson recently attended a bar mitzvah - by himself. He was invited by one of his classmates. Beth and Dale delivered him to the temple and then picked him up and took him to the country club for the party. He had a new suit on and wore a yarmulke. He commented to his parents that he would no longer complain about Mass at his church being long - the bar mitzvah service lasted three hours. My youngest grandson is starting to take lessons to play an instrument in school - his choice is the bass fiddle. A beautiful instrument, but so big that he isn't allowed on the school bus with it!

I have been thinking about the various bloggers I have enjoyed who have "retired" from the blogging scene. It is interesting how involved we get with each other and how we miss those who aren't "with us" anymore. Life is so busy these days - sometimes it is hard to include everything in our lives.

I have been remembering my trip to Paris two (?) years ago and wondering if I will ever be fortunate enough to return to my favorite place. In memory, here is a photo I took of the Sacre Coeur.
Bon soir!

P.S. Just remembered something my oldest grandson said. He is taking French in school this year (7th grade). When asked why he chose French he said, "Well, you know it is the best language." That's my boy!

AUTUMN...AGAIN

FOR A FEW DAYS there I thought that summer had returned. Yesterday was around 80 degrees. Yes, it was beautiful, but geez, I thought this was autumn. Today should be in the 60's which is fine by me.


I just read the most inspiring post by Barbara at The Clark Homestead. Stop by if you can. It really expresses what so many people are doing these days and for some, what they have always done. Making do. Being frugal. Doing what our grandparents might have done. I can't say that I am one of these people, but I never did have wealth so some of it comes naturally. But - the idea is there. The seed that germinates into something. If I could I would put a windmill up or install solar panels. I would have a goat to cut the grass and a few chickens for eggs. What I can do is plant a better garden next year. I can refrain from buying that handbag that I don't really need. I can be more aware of where my money is being spent. These are tough times for a lot of people and we can learn from this. I have been reading a lot of blogs written by smart, strong women who are tightening their belts and getting on with life and doing their parts (big and small) to make their lives and those of their families good. There is a lot of doom and gloom out there right now, but I don't read it in those blogs. They are truly uplifting.

On a lighter note, here are a few pictures of some decorating I have been doing. I love my Fall "tablescape." We never use the dining room table, but this Thanksgiving we will do it proud because my daughter and son-in-law and grandsons are coming to Grammy's house - driving all the way from Massachusetts. With the dog.



Those glass domes and soup tureens were all bought at thrift stores for a few dollars each. The vintage suitcases the same. Really. See how frugal I can be?









There's a picture of Chloe strolling by. And of course, the king of the palace - Beau the poodle with some of his treasures - a sock and two stuffed animals that are now stuffing-less.


Have a wonderful day, dear bloggers. I love you all.

TODAY ON BEECH DRIVE

What wonderful weather we have been having. I just love autumn. I have a pumpkin and mums on my front doorsteps, Indian corn hanging on the door and an "autumn tablescape" on my seldom-used dining room table. My daughter and son-in-law and grandsons are coming down from Massachusetts next month for Thanksgiving. I am going up there at the end of the month to visit over Halloween. Life is good.

Yesterday I drove up to Pennsylvania to meet up with my sister to put flowers on our parents' grave. (Here is a picture of my sister relaxing while waiting for me to arrive at the cemetery - late as always. She has the holes dug all ready and waiting for the flowers.)

On my way back to the turnpike to head home I drove past the house in which I grew up, past my old elementary school and high school, past houses where friends used to live. I stopped into my mother's favorite consignment shop (we used to love to go there together) and I bought a beautiful blue wrap scarf to wear with my blue jeans. Mom would have approved. It was a happy-memory filled day.

Thanks for stopping by!

THE SANTA LETTERS by Stacy Gooch-Anderson

Tristi at Tristi Pinkston, LDS Author sent me this book and asked me to join a virtual book review tour.

The author, Stacy Gooch-Anderson lives in Salt Lake City with her husband and four sons. An award winning journalist and public speaker, she began her career at eighteen when she "found her voice" and began to share her ability to tell inspiring stories.

Gooch-Anderson's writing is generally real and crisp, albeit some descriptive elements and dialogue could be tightened. The author tells her story by including anecdotal Bible passages and interpretations which are understandable and inspiring. For those who are not readers of the Bible, The Santa Letters is unintimidating and friendly in its approach.

The story begins with Emma who has been left a widow and mother of four children after the death on Christmas Eve one year ago of her beloved husband William. For a year she has suffered through the grieving process while trying to keep her family afloat, both financially and spiritually. With Christmas looming ahead of the family, Emma wonders how she will ever provide the children with any Christmas gifts or spirit. Surprise, surprise! Letters and packages signed "Santa" begin arriving every day from a mysterious person. With each missive, hope for this family is ever closer.

This little book is elegant in its simplicity. Keep it on your bookshelf to take down during the Christmas season. Its inspiring story is a classic.

Thank you, Tristi, for inviting me to be a part of this virtual book tour. It was fun!







Violetlady

PICTURE OF THE DAY

There is nothing in the world I hate more than mushrooms. Fresh, wild, boiled, sauteed, fried, baked, stewed, growing in my yard. They make my skin crawl just to look at them. These are growing in my yard today. Yuck.

TODAY ON BEECH DRIVE

I made it to church today - had to sit in the choir loft because I was a little late and the place was packed.

It is 90 degrees today and it feels like the humidity is high as well.

I am in the process of reading three books right now: Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich, R is for Ricochet by Sue Grafton and The Santa Letters by Stacy Gooch-Anderson. I don't usually read more than one book at a time, but two of these are library books and I have to get them read in a timely manner. The Santa Letters is being read for a review which will appear here on September 22. I also have books that are heavier reading and I read them sporadically. I just finished James Lee Burke's latest, Swan Peak, which was (as always) excellent. That man's writing is so beautiful; his prose is like poetry. I have been working my way through Sue Grafton's alphabet mysteries from A to T.

I am off to the movies with some friends to see Brad Pitt and George Clooney in Burn After Reading. I'll update my opinion tonight.

UPDATE: Burn After Reading was hilarious!! If you have a chance, go see this movie. The dialog is full of a certain four letter word, so I would not have young people see it, but if you don't mind that it is full of a lot of laughs. It is a Coen Brothers movie if you are familiar with them ("No Country for Old Men.")

That's the news from Beech Drive today.

LEST WE FORGET...

WE MUST ALWAYS REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED HERE SEVEN YEARS AGO TODAY.

A SAD DAY

I attended a funeral today. A man who worked for my husband died suddenly last week. The sad thing is that he had been estranged from almost all of his family for years. And there they were -- mourning his loss. Why is it that it takes a funeral to bring people out who couldn't have been bothered before? It serves as a reminder to me to cherish my friends and family while we are all together on this earth.

The funeral procession traveled (with a motorcyle escort) to a veterans cemetery for the burial. The deceased was a Marine veteran who served in Vietnam. There was an honor guard with the guns and bugle salute. Although I barely knew him, I was in tears. Something about those lost years that could have been spent with family and the fact that he had served his country and it was finally being honored.

Love each other,

TODAY ON BEECH DRIVE

I am a Realtor and today was my day on the schedule to be on duty. It was dead! No calls, no one stopping in, nothing. The real estate market is definitely in a slump and according to all reports, it may continue for awhile yet. People are buying, though. The market where I work in Delaware is primarily vacation home or retirement home shopping. If you are buying within the resort town proper the prices for a single family home are close to or exceed a million dollars. "Deals" are non-existent anymore.




After I got home I took Beau for his walk, stopping along the way to chat with neighbors and other dogs. For the second time in as many weeks Beau went after (with teeth bared) other much larger dogs. It seems to happen if the dog runs towards him (usually in happy exuberance). Beau believes the dog is being aggressive so Beau defends himself and me. At least this is what Beau told me!



We have been dealing with fleas for the past month. First the Frontline stopped working and then the Advantage stopped working. He is now on Promeris and Capstar and they seem to be working. I still see a flea here and there and he still scratches, but I think it is improving. I bought flea foggers which I haven't used yet. What a pain.


I have a pot roast simmering in the crock pot and I will make mashed potatoes and veggies for dinner. I always use the crock pot for roasts - even a chuck roast can be cut with a fork. I don't use it for other recipes, but I love it for things like soups, roasts, stews.


The storm here didn't turn out to be anything. I hope the same is true for all of you. Hurricane Ike is the next one we need to worry about!


Good health and happiness to you and yours,

FAMILY MATTERS

Last week my sister and I traveled to Pittsburgh to visit our Uncle Bud, who is one of three remaining siblings of our mother. He is now eighty-five and still going strong with more vitality than either of us. My fondest memory of Uncle Bud is when I was a little girl and he lived in Texas. He told me I could come out there and be a cowgirl. And he still remembers that! It doesn't matter that the dream never came to fruition -- it was the dream that mattered.

Uncle Bud gave us a wonderful tour of Pittsburgh - driving through the city, looking at it from high outlook points, eating the best fish sandwich I have ever had at a fish market on "The Strip." We took a ride on the Incline which is both a means of transportation and a favorite tourist site. Pittsburgh was voted the most liveable city a few years ago and I can see why.

I came home with a sewing machine (which belonged to my late aunt) and a family scrapbook which I will treasure since apparently I have become the "keeper of the flame."

With all my best,

THE BIG BOAT

Three years ago dear husband and two friends bought an old boat. They got it for a song. Well, not literally, but it was very inexpensive. It is a 62 foot long trawler formerly used as a "head boat" (meaning people pay by the head to go out fishing without it being chartered) on the Delaware Bay. While bringing it in for repairs by the previous owner it was dropped and barely withstood total damage. Husband saw beyond the rust and crud and saw a beautiful sight.


This boat, or as I somewhat unaffectionately refer to as "that *#&! boat", has given these men hours and hours and hours of fun. It is fitted to sleep six people comfortably and double that uncomfortably. It has two bathrooms (I mean heads), tiled with real toilets. There is a full kitchen and tons of electronic things that I don't understand. It is almost finished. It is supposed to be put in the water in a few weeks and the rest of it will be completed after it is in. The name of the boat is "Last Chance" -- meaning it may be their last chance to take it from Delaware to Florida via the Inland Waterway. This has been husband's dream for many years.

Everyone around here knows about this boat. It attracts quite a bit of attention because of its history and its size.

In all her glory.




This picture was taken a few days ago when they moved this giant crane thing under it to adjust the supports to facilitate painting the bottom.


Three happy guys.



So wish us luck. I am not a boating person, but I may end up to be for brief periods of time!

VACATION PIX

Here are some pictures from my recent vacation in New Hampshire:



Robert Frost's house. We visited his farm in New Hampshire. He is one of my favorite poets.

Mt. Washington is near North Conway and it is a big thing to drive or ride up to the top which is over 6000 feet up. There are several actual climate changes on the mountain. It was foggy that day so we didn't make the trip, but you can see the temperature on this sign at the visitor's center. It was about seventy degrees where we were standing.

I like cemeteries and we discovered this wonderful old one on a back road. Look at this wonderful stone wall which you see all over New Hampshire, which is called The Granite State.

Here is the back of the cottage we rent.

Grandson and friend. The boys love to catch little creatures by the lake.

Moultonborough General Store - just part of their candy selection.

View from the cottage. We even had loons on the lake!

My sister was determined to make some "s'mores." We had bought a tiny little grill at Walmart just in case the gas grill at the cottage wasn't working (which it wasn't). I think she managed to get one s'more out of the waning flame.


My sister and I decided to do something silly, so we had henna designs drawn on our hands. Linda's is on her hand (both sides) and mine is on my wrist. I really liked having that intricate and pretty "bracelet". The artist who did them said they would last at least a week, but Linda's was disappearing fast after a few days. The photo shows them after they were just done. The paint kind of peels off and leaves a reddish tint to the skin which is really quite pretty. The custom of this originates in eastern countries and are traditionally done for weddings and special occasions.

Thanks for stopping by!

WHAT TO BE WHEN I GROW UP

I am sixty-two years old. There is no getting away from it anymore. I have never fibbed about my age and I want to accept the advancing years with as much grace as I can. I have friends who have had or plan to have cosmetic surgery of various sorts: reductions, enlargements, enhancements. While I am not against anyone doing whatever they want to their own bodies, it is not for me. Along with the physical changes of these years, there are the mental. I still feel as though I am in my thirties - with all the hopes and plans for the future. The reality is different. I still wonder what I want to be when I grow up -- and then I remember my age. There are just so many years left. There are not fifty years ahead -- maybe if I am lucky another twenty years. Oh, but the dreams and plans are still there and some of them can come true. I think that part of the fun of it is in the dreaming. Perhaps I have a touch of Walter Mitty in me -- probably all of us do.

I started this post thinking about the things I would like to be when I "grow up." It has taken a different slant, so now back to the beginning. The first thing I can remember wanting to "be" was a dog breeder. My friend Ruth was going to be a horse breeder and we spent hours planning our stables and kennels and the names of our animals. We were seven years old.

When I had my first dog I wanted to be a veterinarian. When I was a "Candy Striper" volunteer in the hospital I wanted to be a nurse. Then I wanted to be a medical secretary and went to a school for that after high school. As an adult I decided to go back to school and become a psychologist or a social worker. Now I am a realtor. Totally not in keeping with my personality traits, but here I am. What do I want to be next?

My father was a "P.R. (public relations) man." He worked for a major museum in Philadelphia and was well-liked and well-respected. He was also a talented writer and instilled in me the desire to write well. I was told throughout school that I had the ability. I did nothing with it, but through the years there was always the tickle in the back of my brain to do something with this ability. However, the more I read the more I doubted that I had what it took to be a writer. I stopped trying. I think I have had a thirty year writers block.

This blog helps. But even in this rather basic writing outlet, I still struggle to find anything to say that is worthwhile and interesting, much less creative. But the dream is in the doing sometimes. So here I am.

Thanks for listening.