Sunday, January 31, 2010

Guessing Game + More Southern Talk

Can you guess what this is? Answer tomorrow Post.


Part two of guessing game " Southern Sayings"  Can you guess what they mean? answers tomorrow.

1. either fish or cut bait
2. fly off the handle
3. got your feathers ruffled
4. I do declare
5. in a coons age
6. go hog wild
7. go whole hog

Saturday, January 30, 2010

North Meets South!

I am a 7th generation Sourthern Born Rebel on my Fathers side with one Great Great Great Grandfather from Scotland on my mothers side and the rest of the ancestors were all from the South. Nary a yankee among us.

What is more Southern than Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing and Fresh Strawberries?


The War Between The States, also called The Civil War, ended in 1865. My Dad's Grandfather died at Shiloh. You might say I was raised in Dixie and no one in my family ever forgot The War. When I was 17, I dated a boy from Connecticut and my grand mother  had a hissy fit . That is Southern Talk for very upset.
In 1985 I married a Yankee from Pennsylvania. We have over the last 25 years had many an argument over sayings and words. some of you will remember the  Rock, Stone, Pebble post from Nov 09.



I say the road is Blacktop, he says it is Macadam
I say the bug is a Doodle Bug or Roly Poly, he says it is a Pill Bug
I say I have a stitch in my side when I run (if I run, ha ha) he says he has a sticker in his side.
A sticker to me is a little piece of something in my foot that daddy had to dig out because I would not wear my shoes.


my inspiration for this post today came when I found this test on-line.

"Are you a Rebel or a Yankee Test" (take if and see what you are if you dare) if you are from another country, take it any way and see what it says about you. let me know what you are. Note: I also took The Advanced Test.


My test said:
"you are 96 % Dixie Rebel. Is General Lee your grandfather?"
Bobs test said
"you are 17% Dixie Rebel. Wow! you are a duke of Yankdom."

this means I am rubbing off on him and he is now only 83 % Yankee! it took 25 years to do that, so how many years will it take to make him a Dixie Rebel? you do the math.
PS.... more to follow on Southern Stuff! PSS... Remember this is all in FUN

Friday, January 29, 2010

Mushroom or Toadstool?

How do you know when your garbage can is full of toadstools.
Because there isn't mushroom inside.
 
Is this a toadstool or a mushroom? This little guy was only 2 inches high and I had no idea it was pink until I looked at the photo.


this is the top view of the same toadstool. Or is it a mushroom?

Same group of toadstools or are they mushrooms? I think this one must have had a really heavy Toad sit on it.

Heard the one about the toadstool who loved to party? He was a fungi


Since I had no idea what the difference is between Mushroom/Toadstools, I used my google addiction. I thought the ones in the ground were toadstoods and the ones in the store were mushrooms and this funny looking earshaped thing growing on a tree was fungi.
Per WiseGeek here is the difference. seems there is NONE
1. Toadstools and mushrooms are the same and no scientific distinction exists between them.


2. You cannot define either by shape, color, or appearance since there is no standard differentiation between either.

3. Mushrooms aren’t fungi with caps and stems while toadstools lack caps and stems.

4. Toadstools and mushrooms are not defined by level of toxicity: anything classed as either may be nontoxic, mildly toxic, hallucinogenic or extremely poisonous.

Last  but not least:You should never consume anything classed as toadstool or mushroom without having it first examined by a professional mushroom hunter.

If you are not to tired from reading this long post, go to my July 27th Post for beautfiul photos and a good story.

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Sunshine Express





If you read my blog yesterday, you know I had an accident on the way home from my home away from home, Heritage Park Rehab & Long Term Care.
The day after the accident, The dogs went off into their intruder mode, I walked to look out the window and a car was in the drive way. The phone rang, the TV screen (yes the called ID shows on the TV) said Josie's Posies. I answer and he says I left flowers on your porch, I did not want to disturb the dogs.

NOTE: Their intruder mode is VERY loud.



Hubby says: "who would send you flowers?" NOTE: he knew they were not for HIM



I answer: "We can read the card!"
The card said, we heard you had an accident and we hope you are ok, we love you, Heritage Park.
And there you have my Sunshine Express. Not only is my kitchen table spiffied up, but the planter provided me with Blog Material and lots of fun moving the plant from place to place madly Snapping.



 And as you would like and desire that men would do to you, do exactly so to them Luke 6:31 amplified version


Pay it Forward, Spread the Sunshine, Show others you love them! Actions speak louder than words. Call! Visit! Email! Snail Mail!

Lessons from Luke
27But I say to you who are listening now to Me: in order to heed, make it a practice to love your enemies, treat well (do good to, act nobly toward) those who detest you and pursue you with hatred,
28 Invoke blessings upon and pray for the happiness of those who curse you, implore God's blessing (favor) upon those who abuse you [who revile, reproach, disparage, and high-handedly misuse you].

31And as you would like and desire that men would do to you, do exactly so to them.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Catch 22 "a no-win situation"

My husband and I love Flordia living. Most of the time.

We both love the beaches, whether gulf or ocean. We also love bright sunshine and become depressed on dark dreary days. In Florida there are not many dark and dreary days and that is the reason we moved here. That and the fact my husband hates cold weather.


this resturant sits on the Gulf Of Mexico, Bradenton Beach


Year round, rhere is a choice of sitting in bright sun or under an umbrella


Or my preference on summer days, indoors in the air conditioning. These photos were taken on a hot summer day, inside and out. I chose IN. during the winter months I would choose the OUT.
6 months of the year, there is no wait for service, the other 6 months, can be a very long wait.

yesterday my bloggin was cut short and I missed a post due to an accident and we are now a one car family for a while.

A car pulled out of a medical complex in front of me and I could not stop. No one was hurt, just the cars and that is a blessing.
In the winter months our Florida paradise becomes super crowded due to the influx of winter visitors that flee from the cold. This make our crowded roads into traffic jams and since the majority of the visitors are very old retirees, the accident rate climbs rapidly. that makes auto insuance in Florida very high and now we are one of the Statistics.

the man driving the car was 84 and very frail and in my opinon should not be on the roads with a drivers license, he struggled to get out of his car and to walk.

 But how do we decide who can drive and who can not, age limit is not always true for each person.
In Florida we can re-new our license online or by mail and no one ever sees the drivers.
 Also out of state drivers there is no way to monitor.

I am not saying young people do not have accidents, I am saying I don't like Florida when we are flooded with winter visitors.

but our economy relies on them and without them jobs would be lost and business closed.
Catch 22
a frustrating situation in which one is trapped there is no easy solution.
What do you do about elderly drivers in your state or country?


Monday, January 25, 2010

Our Weather Reporter

    
See Fourpaws For Today Post!
               click HERE

Sunday, January 24, 2010

"Bringing Home The Bacon"

My husband favorite breakfast is bacon, eggs, hashbrowns and toast. A couple of days a week he has this meal and today was one of those days. In our house my husband COOKS the bacon And brings it home.

Photos from my archive: Yes, I am guilty of taking photos of my plate in a resturant.
 today's post was born as we munched on Sunday breakfast bacon and bob said, I wonder where the saying  bringing home the bacon came from. I swallowed the last bite and came googling.

The origin of the expression "bringing home the bacon" is uncertain. here are three that I liked.
* It might come from the English custom, which originated in the 12th century, of giving a young couple bacon if they were still happy after a year of marriage.

*  European peasants c. 1500's could only sometimes obtain or afford pork, which made them feel quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man 'could bring home the bacon.' They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and ‘chew the fat.’



* Prize money ws given for catching the greased pig. the winner was said to have "brought home the bacon" or the winnings.



today the term means bringing home money that is earned by doing a difficult task or everyday employment.
 

 
I took this photo of our fruit bowl to prove we DO know how to eat healthy. YES, the bacon was sitting on the same counter as the tangerines, bananas and tomatos.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Rooster Retreat

I had several comments asking where my lovely rooster lives or where I took the photo. He lives with his brood at Manatee Village. I did several posts in December on Cracker Houses. My rooster lives there in a Cracker Barn.

Mr Rooster lives behind the slats you see in this barn. he and his little hens looked very happy there and did not mind the three cameras aimed at them. The shadows in the photos are the sun shining through the slats.

Another view of the barn. these photos are all the same barn, different views at different times and digitally doctored by ME.
Did your mother every say this to you?

"Were you born in a barn? Close the door -- and DON'T slam it!"



Mother also used to say, "Am I Talking to a brick wall?"


Front view of same barn and if you look closely you can see the outhouse that is next to it.



Friday, January 22, 2010

A Joyful Heart

Proverbs 17:22
A joyful heart is like good medicine, a broken spirit will make one sick.



• Did Noah keep his bees in ArcHives?

• How do you get off a non-stop flight?


• If a man is standing in the middle of the forest speaking and there is no woman around to hear him...is he still wrong?


• If someone with multiple personalities threatens to kill himself, is it considered a hostage situation?

• Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice?"




• If you shouldn't drink and drive, why do bars have parking lots?

Ok, I am sorry this is a corny post:

 I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.
                                                               
all One Liners from George Carlin

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Whole Lotta Foolishness Going ON!

I guess I must live under a rock somewhere. Have any of you ever seen this guy before? Yesterday my husband and I went to the county fair and met Rock-It.

We look up and coming towards us is this 9 foot tall Robot and he is talking to us cracking jokes, acting silly so I took a few shots and came home and googled him.  Seems he is famous. I found this info on Rock-It.

ROCK-IT, known as the ultimate galactic mascot, walks, talks and interacts with the crowd. Numerous digital voices enable him to spontaneously talk using his own style of quirky humor. ROCK-IT has a comment about everything, and people love having a chance to verbally spar with a robot. You may even find him on the dance floor when not talking with fair-goers.

Am I the only one that has never seen or heard of Rock-It?
Just for fun, I am adding a few YouTube short videos, so you can hear his voice and see him dance. the first one shows a short dance, the second you can hear his voice.



Monday, January 18, 2010

Cold Snap & HOPE

                    January Average temps in My part of Florida, the sunshine state
                           • Daytona Bch: High 70°-Low 47°
                           • Fort Myers: High 75°-Low 54°
                           • Orlando: High 72°-Low 50°
                           • Tampa: High 70°-Low 52°      
As long as the temp stays within  these guidelines, we have beautiful flowers in our back yard.

this photo was taken January 15, 2007 and is a prime example of what grows in our back yard in January. Until THIS January 2010 when along comes a cold wave, I am calling it a cold SNAP!

this is a flower on the same bush last week after Jack Frost came to visit and this little flower is what happens when Florida has 13 straight days of way below normal temps. One day it was beautiful and glowing, cold and shivering.

Damage Done, 13 days of record breaking cold


As I looked at these flowers and leaves, I compared them to our daily lives. We live our daily lives, each day follow our routine, and along comes a SNAP! it could be a death in the family, a job lost, family problems. Many things can cause our life to unexpectedly SNAP!

One day we are heathy, employed, happy and in control. SNAP! we lay in a crumpled heap, shriveled, shrinking from life. Nothing is as it was! we question will it ever be the same?

The flower and a few of the leaves are shriveled and will never be the same. The bush survived, in 2 weeks there will be beautiful new green leaves,  new flowers, beauty returned. Not the same flowers or the same leaves but possibly even prettier leaves and flowers. I looked at these photos and saw                                       HOPE!


                                   "Where there is life, there is hope."           

"When things are bad, we take comfort in the thought that they could always be worse. And when they are, we find hope in the thought that things are so bad they have to get better.” unknown author



Psalm 31:24
24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.

Temporary Insanity

I commented on  this post on Addicted to the Click that some things I have done in the past can only be covered by the words Temporary Insanity. I read this statement in an email last week.
Lord, Keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth


And One thought led to another and I realized My Mouth has been a problem most of my life.  I found a few quotes that fit my thoughts and chose Bird Houses for photos because I like them.


The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right time,
but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.


He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity. Proverbs 21:23


Wouldn't it be nice if whenever we messed up our life we could simply press 'Ctr- Alt- Delete' and start all over?
But since we cannot delete things from our past or take back words spoken, we are fortunate to have a God that is forgiving. This led me to the thought we should all practice forgiveness and if we let God keep his hand over our mouths, we would not need to practice forgivness nearly as much.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

The "Answer" IS....

Comments on yesterdays Post  made me smile. I created the post with no intention of it meaning anything but what you saw. After reviewing the post, I realized the photos did not tell the whole story and I added the question: " Can you tell me what the pictures are?"
Comments were: don't know, it is what is obvious , can't wait to find out, I think I can, try, try again , don't give up. All of the answers were right and wrong.

The answer is,
"Things Are Not Always What They Seem"

The photo yesterday showed only the top of the cross, this photos shows a little more and you might realize it is a cross. but that is not the whole story. this cross is a warning of a steep curve on Riverview Blvd. It stands in the owners yard and was built out of wood and reflectors. in the dark there is no way to tell the road makes a complete right turn, the cross warns us of trouble ahead. The owner chose to make a crown of steel thorns and put a draped scarf on it at Easter. this told another story. the meaning is twofold.
Be Careful, the road ahead is not safe, don't worry, the King has come and has risen.

the lamp and the train had no meaning, they were just photos I liked, they are what they seem to be. The top of a lamp and a toy train but some of you found meaning in them, what they meant to you.
the decorative star is not what it seems, I took the photo at the above Castle, see Solomons Castle


The decorative star may look pretty in the picture, but it's orginal purpose was a murder weapon, a Medieval Mace, weapon of choice in another century to wreak murder and mayhem on others. Not What It Seems at all.

When things happen to us in our lives, sometimes what appears wonderful, sends us down a path that leads us to the worst moment of our lives. When bad things fall on us, a few miles down that dreary road ,we realize that dreary road led us to the best thing that ever happened to us.
                                          Keep On Keeping On
                              "things are not always what they seem"
                           And Our God is a God of Second Chances!

Friday, January 15, 2010

Portrait of an Acheiver

"Whatever the mind can conceive can be achieved".


Can You Guess Who??
Failed in Business - Bankruptcy, 1831
Defeated for Legislature, 1832
Sweetheart/Fiancee Dies, 1835
Nervous Breakdown, 1836
Defeated in Election, 1836
Defeated for U.S. Congress, 1843
Defeated again for U.S. Congress, 1846
Defeated once again for U.S. Congress, 1848
Defeated for U.S. Senate, 1855
Defeated for U.S. Vice President, 1856
Defeated again for U.S. Senate, 1858


You've just met ABRAHAM LINCOLN - Elected President of the U.S.A., 1860


"You cannot fail... unless you quit!"



"A Few Little Words Of Wisdom" by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Follow your heart, never surrender your dreams.
Constantly work towards your goals.

Believe in yourself, and always be truthful.
Take time to enjoy life's pleasures.

Keep your mind open to new experiences.
Think before acting, but don't forget the joys of spontaneity.

Make your own decisions.
Look out for yourself but remember that you share this universe with others.

Look for the good in others, Everybody has their own song to sing.
Live each moment to the fullest, for a moment too soon becomes a memory.

Look for opportunities, not guarantees.
Hope for the best.

Give people a chance to love you, for that is how you learn to love.
Live your life for yourself, but always be considerate of others.

Believe in tomorrow, for it holds the key to your continued success.

                       Can you guess what the pictures are? answers tomorrow