Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Civic Duty

I wanted to write a post about Bessie. I also wanted to sleep in again tomorrow morning. But I just finished smartening up a skirt with a curling iron, because it was the only available instrument, and since that didn't work, I've tried dampening it a bit to try and relax the wrinkles. Fortunately it is a style that doesn't have to be pressed to look okay, but still, I would prefer it ironed.

At any rate, I have to report for Jury Duty tomorrow.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

A New Take on a Comfort Blanket?

The other night I slept with a mouse. Really, truly. I think I subconsciously knew it was there, but I thought it was my alarm clock. I don’t usually sleep with an alarm clock either, but I strangely have been lately, just in case I wake up in the night and want to check the time. Or, more likely, in case Bessie wakes me up in the night and I want to check the time. Bessie is a whole other story, or post. Or several posts as the case might be.

Back from that little sidetrack: The mouse didn’t have a tail, or a cord, more accurately. The mouse was named Dell, I think, at least that is what the writing said. In this case I’m going to believe the writing.

Why there was a cordless mouse in my bed, I haven’t the foggiest. But at least it didn’t have fur and a tail. Although I am slightly troubled about the Dell. It just doesn’t sound as cute and friendly, as let’s say, Freddie….

Once upon a time, there was a little girl, who would stay up late into the night, her pen scratching across the paper, line upon line building itself into a suspenseful tale of murder, mystery, and ancient family feuds. Sometimes it got chilly in the little attic room, sometimes she got sore from sitting on the hard wooden floor. The old house would be quiet, everyone else in the family fast asleep, and the story she was writing would scare its very own author. But then she would hear scratching in the walls, it was a lone mouse that she never saw, but sometimes would hear. She named him Freddie, because Freddie seemed like a good name for a comforting mouse that you never saw, but scratched around, traipsing through the walls, keeping you company late at night.

I was that little girl. Well, teenager really. Writing such suspenseful stories was such a break from the monotony of real everyday life, that included evil politicians, shady lawyers and passing knowledge of someone who would one day be become a killer*.

And it is entirely possible that it wasn’t a cute little mouse but something horrible like a bat. I’m glad the thought didn’t occur to me at the time. Did I have bats in my attic? Frightening thought indeed.

Dell? Doesn't that sound like cold hard plastic to you? Almost like a robot, or whisper "computer."

This is T.W.

I'll be back.

P.S. Any mention of Dell is not to be taken literally, or figuratively, positively or negatively, I may or may not like computers called D-E-L-L, I may or may not like people called D-E-L-L. I may not know what I'm talking about. That's not likely, but I thought I'd throw it out there. :)

*Note: What I said about evil politicians and shady lawyers was said in slight gest. However I did indeed in my life unfortunately cross path with someone who down the road killed people in what was, really, a type of terrorist attack. I do not think that is anything to joke about. Good people lost their lives that day, spouses lost their loved one, children lost a parent. Justice will never bring them back.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Suggested Reading

I saw an add today in the personals that looked promising.

Hey, don’t judge.

Really, if you want some diverting reading, you should try it. I think I even read one once where they were promising a possible set of new teeth. I kick myself – why don’t I ever think to take advantage of these opportunities at the time?

Back to the promising add….He was thirty. Okay, not bad. He was a country boy. Hmm, possibilities. He was currently incarcerated. Shakes head, smacks forehead, I FORGOT TO WRITE DOWN HIS CONTACT INFORMATION!!!!

he. :)

Friday, September 16, 2011

Knock

If you don't knock

no one will know

you're standing at the door.

Carpe Diem!




Inspiration for the day,

~T.W.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Hypothetically...

…The story is this:

Mrs. C. has been thinking about getting some sort of fireplace so she has a mantel to hang her stocking on at Christmas, and really admired the neighbors “electric” (?) fireplace. A description wasn’t quite enough, so we ended up traipsing across to the neighbor’s house, ringing the bell so we didn’t startle her in case she was home, and then going over and peering into her windows to see the mantle through living room window.

Is that even legal?

Is this a true story? I plead the Fifth on the grounds that it could incriminate me.

T.W.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

What I Learned Today

I’m a very mean, horrible aunt! At times. And I didn’t mean to be, it just happened.

You should not mix: your darling little niece and a Groucho Marx nose/glasses mask. I put it on, thinking she would try it after I did, and of course be adorable. It didn’t happen that way, one look at me and she freaked. I truly did feel bad, but it was also very funny. I’m sorry, really I am, but it was.

I was a horrible, bad, no good aunt. She sat on her mother’s lap, sucking her thumb and giving me the evil eye. I did try, but she was having no part of forgiveness. Those beautiful big brown eyes of hers just kept staring at me.

I didn’t want to leave with her mad at me, so I made a cup of tea with the express purpose of sharing. We drank it together, I was forgiven, and all was well with the world again.

It’s a family trait, tea makes just about everything all right.

Still, poor little girl!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Pop Pound Cake

I've renamed this cake - because I can. :) It was originally 7-Up Pound Cake, but I made it with Ginger Ale, and I think just about any carbonated beverage would work, so why feel limited by a title? That's my theory at any rate, and I'm stuck with it.

If you would like to be like me, you can cream the butter and sugar the required 15 minutes by hand. However, in this instance, I'm not even sure I would like to be me and would encourage you to use a mixer, hand or stand, if one is available to you. If not, I've given you options.

Pop Pound Cake
3 cubes real butter (1 1/2 cups)
5 eggs
2 Tablespoons vanilla
3 cups sugar
3 cups flour
¾ cup Ginger Ale, Sprite or 7-Up

Cream butter and sugar for 15 minutes; add eggs, one at a time. Blend in vanilla. Add flour slowly while continuing to mix. Fold in pop. Bake at 325° for 1-1 ½ hours in a greased and floured bundt pan. Two loaf pans may also be used instead of a bundt pan.

Edited from a cookbook in my grandmother's private collection. (He! Aren't most cookbooks in "private collections"?)

This is T.W. - over and out.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

NEVER FORGET!

It seems hard to believe that ten years have passed. Ten years.

I'm sure there are some amazing posts today from people who haven't forgotten. I thought this post from Thrifty Decor Chick, with pictures of some of the quotes from people who experienced it so closely, was a fitting tribute.

I knew what they were talking about when they mentioned how much a firefighter’s helmet means to him. I've seen tears in a guy’s eyes when his helmet was returned to him, a token of his service. To so many of us, it's just a helmet, but not to firefighters. It really makes me stop and pause to realize how few of the helmets were recovered from the rubble of the Twin Towers.

To the loved ones of every victim the attack left behind, my thoughts go out to you today especially, but I haven’t forgotten through the intervening years either.

God Bless America!

Saturday, September 10, 2011

The Story I Haven't Told My Sisters Yet

The girls have been sleeping in the “well house” since we got it painted in the nick of time for a visit from a special friend. It really does make a terrific slumber party location. However…. It does tend to get warm during the day so come evening when it has cooled off outside, it’s still warm inside our current “bedroom” which can put a damper on sleeping. In order to save electricity, I decided that rather than turning the air conditioner on, I would just leave the door open so the cool night air could come on in. I even propped a piece of foam up so creatures couldn’t just wander in at will (though there was still a gap) and left the light off so bugs wouldn’t make their way inside.

All fine in theory.

My sisters were out on the town and I was doing some reading I had to get done before bed. The overhead light was off and I was reading by flashlight when I heard some noise. I thought, “Oh, dear, I let a whole slew of months in and now they were fluttering around making a racket.” I shined the flashlight around, and I didn’t see moths. What I did see was a mouse eating something off the floor and looking at me. Hmmm. Nightmares of chasing the little varmint around the well house flashed through my mind. He gave me temporary hope, although a somewhat sinking feeling all at the same time, when he ran over and tried to escape through a gap under the door. If he could get out, that would deal with the problem, but it also would mean he could get back in.

His attempts didn’t prove to be successful, so I needed to deal with him. I tried the easiest thing that came to mind.

I opened the door for him.

This is T.W. – showing mice the door.

Friday, September 9, 2011

Girls Party

We had a girls party today to watch the newest(?)version of Sense and Sensibility. I made Jam Thumbprints as my contribution to the tea. I didn't have mini muffin cups to bake them in, so they weren't as cute as these, but at least I had a pan to bake them in period. Even if it was only a 9-inch round cake pan. And I had an oven that wouldn't heat the camp trailer kitchen to uncomfortable temperatures. All things considered, I should be counting the small blessings. :)


To Clarify....

I realized that my post “Paraphrasable” could be misunderstood, which might be a good thing, because saying just exactly what was running through my mind is probably best left off the record.

In the best interests of being more gracious, and etc., I hope that this will explain what I was thinking without becoming a full blown rant.

On to the point…

I didn’t mean that I’m hoping to be somebody’s first love as in, “where are you? I’m WAITING!” But more, should someone come along, I want to be their first choice. Not, “Well, all the other girls I was interested in didn’t work out, so I guess you’ll do.”

“Oh, take a damper, mister.” I don’t think I’d say that to their face, but I’d probably feel it, which would be worse - for them I imagine. My brother once said that I had a nitrogen cooled cold shoulder.

So in a nutshell, to clarify, I’m not pining for love. It’s just when I saw this blog post, the words resonated with me for a multitude of reasons. One being that I know a few girls that have sort of been left in the position of feeling they were second choice. I personally feel that is simply awful.

It brings Rachel and Leah to mind. Can you imagine being Leah? Really, think about what she must have felt! She may not have had any choice in the matter of her marriage, but it seems clear to me that she desired her husband’s love. She was always “the one he ended up with.” The late Princess of Wales springs to mind as being in this exact position. While I’ll cut Jacob some slack (wouldn’t he be relieved!:)) since he was tricked, I don’t give the Prince of Wales so much leniency.

It’s possible that Leah fell in with her father’s plan of deception willingly, and suffered the consequence of it, but it’s still sad. My advice to the ladies would be to think twice before in desperation to get married, settling for being second choice. I’m not saying absolutely don’t, because I won’t tell you what God has for your life, but do think about it.

That’s all I’m saying for now, I’ll save all further rants and good advice for a book. :)

A lovely Friday to you my readers!

~T.W.

I'll be back

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Thought Provoking

My mother and I were in an antique store talking to one of the owners when the three hour train trip she would be taking soon came up in the conversation. Both her sons were flying in to meet her, only a few hours of flying in comparison to a three day ride on the train. But the story is….

One day when she was in Europe the plane was having a rough time of it and she told God, “if you get me out of this, I’ll never fly again.”

People ask her, “and you’ve never flown since?”

She looks at them and says, “Would you lie to God?”