Tuesday4 Happy Tuesday Maxine Cracks Me Up

 Tuesday4

Sunday, July 23, 2023

Friendship

".,,there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" psalms 18

 It's time once again for Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4.

 Let's talk about friendship.

1. Do you have or have you had a special or best friend or do you consider all your friends the same?

To be very honest, my maternal grandmother was my best friend. 

I love this photo. I am at her side along with my mom behind me and my mom's sister Annie. 

I lost my grandmother in 1967. All 

the wonderful friends who were confidantes 

are now gone too. 

2. Many in the past had close relationships and fell in love through letters.  What do you think of online friendships.. are they real ? Are there friends who last a lifetime?

I have several friends from blogging as well as pen pals when I was a young teen. So yes, you can have long time and life long friendships.  Depending on the person, yes I believe they can be lifelong friends. I had a friend I knew since our days in the playpen together. Her politics and mine don't blend so she choose to step away. Sad to say, she was a real honest to goodness Karen! I'm not kidding. 

3.  Are there stories, movies or TV programs that you enjoyed because of the friendship or relationship portrayed in it? I've read books where I loved the friendships. Those are always nice ones with life long commitments. RaeAnne Thayne is an excellent author in my personal opinion and she creates friendships that often withstand the times.

4. What does friendship mean to you?

Honesty, always keeping up with you, even to send a message to say hi how are you. But I truly value those who go beyond that. Mollye Self was one of these extraordinary friends. Even as she knew she time on this earth was limited she kept in close contact with me. That my friends, is a true friendship. People like Sally DiStefano who shared her faith and another sweet soul who was living in her last few years on earth. Another blog friend LaVoice told me she spoke on the phone almost daily with Sally. My dear friend Vivian took all my secrets I shared with her to her grave. She actually surprised everyone by donating her body to science. She was a hard working, unique person and had the most wonderful parents. I loved them all so much and one by one I lost them. People don't have many friends like that in their lifetime. My sister-in-law Cheri is another friend I love and cherish. I think because we have similar values and share so much that others don't understand. I was telling her recently how sad it is when a blood relative ignores you and she told me she would give anything to have a conversation with her younger sister she lost many years ago. Then my sister Patsy. She was almost a second mother to my sister Mary and I. We were all very close. I spoke with my big sis on the phone sometimes daily. She shared so much with me. Being an Army wife she had to pick up and leave everything she was use to to travel unknown roads. She is another real hero to me. Strong women. May we be them. May we raise them, May we know them. My grandmother had 2 sisters but her husband, my grandfather I never knew had 3 sisters. He was a very good man because he was raised with parents who loved all 4 of their children dearly.  My husband has a brother who no longer speaks to us and an older brother who passed away in 2015. He is very close to his only sister. I am grateful

Happy Tuesday 

It doesn't sound like this will be a happy story but I recently found out a gal I worked with for many years had passed away in 2013. It made me so sad . Lora was a tough chick, she had a few failed marriages and a daughter with Cerebral Palsy. She had two sons as well and there were times those of us who worked with her wanted to wring her neck! She always put a relationship ahead of her kids. But she found someone who seemed very genuine and moved to Tennessee to be with him. They married and I lost contact with her. So I choose to believe that she had found happiness  after all the sad failed relationships she had.  She was smart and we had many laughs and she once helped me host a Princess House show in a mobile home park where she knew the manager. She drove into Denver to pick me and all my stuff up. She helped me set up and took all the kids swimming while I hosted this show. She had a big heart and I hope she is enjoying heaven these days. Rest in peace Lora Jene. 

Lora didn't like her photo taken so this was a childhood photo. She struggled with her weight her whole life and I believe perhaps the gastic banding  surgery took her life as it  did the life of another friend  Michelle in 2010. Lora always reminded me of Mama Cass Elliot. She was a large woman and wore her long hair red.

She made me laugh out loud once telling me she didn't

 cook much, that a mouse had set up housekeeping inside her oven. 

Her dad was a mail carrier in their small Nebraska town. 

She was a
"Knowledgeable "Nebraskan. I loved to tease her because there was joke going around years ago that said,  U of Nebraska football players and their fans think the N on the football helmet stands for knowledgeable.

She was so proud of her degree from her birth state .

She could work on her own car and was extremely smart, except when it came to  men. 

Rest easy Ms. Lora Jene.

So we find, after all, that the things we thought small
      Loom colossal above all the host;
That the best of God's gifts are the friends we can call
      To our side when we need them the most.
~W. Dayton Wegefarth (1885–1973), "The Bright Things of Life"

"A good friend is cheaper than therapy." Author Unknown

"Only a true friend will tell you when your face is dirty." Sicilian Proverb

May all your days be filled with beautiful friendships. I appreciate you here. Ellen and Brian thank you for the advice for my C A T as Blake calls him. He loves that kid too!  We are going to get an appointment with him at the CSU Veterinary School of Medicine. I will keep you all posted.

Tuesday 4 Happy Tuesday Maxine Cracks Me Up

 

Sunday, April 30, 2023

The Party

 Another week has flown by and we are already staring a new week in the face.  Time for  Toni's Tuesday 4.      

 Everyone loves a party.  Imagine you are arranging a party or an affair for a friend.    Perhaps a home wedding or a milestone birthday.   Share with us your best ideas please.  Money is not a concern.....

1.  a. What is the occasion? 

A tea party! I would hold it outdoors and set up small tables so different people could sit with others they do not know as well .   

    b  Will there be a theme to the party? Yes, I love or at least I use to love the Kentucky Derby. Hats must be worn. I have many so I could let those who don't have a hat borrow one.

2.   Will there be music in the background or perhaps a hired band or DJ?  What music will play? Music is lovely so softer music fitting for an elegant tea party. There is a band called The Tea Party. hmmm....have to check it out. Music is definitely different but not loud rock or anything 

3. Describe how you will decorate the house for the party/wedding. Lots of tea cups and saucers and trays of mini sandwiches, fruit, cookies, cakes , scones  and tea breads. I have lots of Pinterest recipes, ideas, favors, so I would go the extra mile to have my guests enjoy themselves. 

4. What kind of foods will you serve and will it be finger foods or a sit down meal? Catered or home style?  What kind of cake? All the food would be tea related. Finger foods, sandwiches, scones, tea cakes, lemon curd, clotted cream. various teas. 

 

Vanilla cake is always a good choice. These are just the sweetest looking tea cookies that are tiered.  I will invite you all to my tea party. There will be lots of pastel colors and quiet moments to share favorite tea stories too.

"There is something in the nature of tea that leads us 

Tuesday4 , Happy Tuesday and Maxine Cracks Me Up and Sunday Stealing

 In memory of Toni Taddeo please join Tuesday4

 Welcome back!   

There are some things we just enjoy quite a lot. Let's talk about it okay?

1. Which book could you read over and over again? The Good Earth and To Kill A Mockingbird. Pearl S.  Buck and Harper Lee, two of my all time favorite authors. My late uncle was an avid reader and had an original copy of The Good Earth. He let me borrow it once as he knew I was careful and respectful of books. I wish I could have inherited that book after his passing, simply because we shared such a love for it. I believe I have gone through at least 5 copies of To Kill A Mockingbird.

2. What movie or TV program could you watch and never tire of watching? Maine Cabin Masters. I watch it faithfull twice a week. On Monday it is on from 7 A.M. to midnight. I tape the ones I can not watch. Although I am a Colorado native and have not visited Maine, I would love to have these awesome folks remodel a cabin for me, if I had one. Sigh...I can dream can't I?

3. What meal do you like enough to eat several times a week or several times a month?  Got a recipe to share for it? I love a three minute egg with grapefruit and whole grain toast or Avocado Toast. I love eggs over medium. I'm a breakfast person. I also love pancakes, waffles and crepes and I make all of them from scratch. I have easy recipes I have used: Trial and error. I have learned to put 5 stars on the ones I use forever. I also have a Belgian waffle iron which I purchased in 1972, the year I graduated from high school. Other than needing a new power cord, it works like a charm.

4. What place do you enjoy so much that you go back again and again? Why do you like it so much?  Other than my own home, which is where I really love to be, I love the Colorado mountains and love to go there at least once a year.  We love the Avalanche Ranch too. It is an amazing place to visit , especially in the dead of winter. They have natural hot springs and we enjoyed several hot springs with  some really great people mostly from Michigan there. I also love Kansas. Our youngest son attended college there and he spent five years in Kansas. We loved traveling there because it was a much shorter car trip than most places we love. Plus the people are friendly and my dear friend Linda lives on a farm in Kansas. I would love to go back and visit her again and again. 

 Stealing Sunday

 1. How long have you lived at your current residence?  We bought our current home in November 2010. We purchased our home from  having financing pre-approved, visiting homes and moving into it in 10 days! People think we are pulling their leg but our finance guy Dave, was a saving grace for us as we had rented a house before that for 9 years and the landlord was in bankruptcy for 1 1/2 years before he tossed us out. We were afraid we would be homeless as no one wanted to rent to us because two of our kids were teenagers! My husband found an on line ad for Dave's company and voila, we were blessed by the grace of God.

2. What changes have you made to it since you got there? This is an older brick house, built in the 1960's. People were obsessed with trees back than. We had to remove two of them due to a water main line, we replaced a water heater and the HVAC system . So many projects left to do, all we need is more money! haha We removed a third tree this past summer. 4 to go!

3.  What surprised you about living in your place or in your neighborhood?  We have some really nice neighbors. It is a quiet area. Lots of stores are nearby.  It is a good area to walk the dogs in too.

4. If someone were moving in next door, what would you warn them about?  Probably the renters next door. They have three dogs and have been reported by other neighbors for leaving them out in the extremely  cold weather. The are are young couple, very unfriendly and  wecall them the "Witness Protection People". We once threw toys over their fence to help their first dog stop barking. After dark, they came outside and threw them back into our yard. 

5. If you have to move in the next 45 days what are you not taking with you?  That would be tough for me. I love what we have but after seeing people fleeing the Marshall fires 20 minutes from our own home, it makes a person realize you need the absolutely essentials and all living people and pets and get outta there.

6. What are you currently reading?  My oldest daughter lent me a book about Ron and Clint Howard which was a good book and I also read a book called Tea for Honey by Elizabeth Caddell, an older author and book. I also started  reading a book about MLB NY Yankee catcher Thurman Munson, who perished in a plane crash for the second time. I am a huger MLB fan. My stack of books will be as tall as I am if I don't get busy and finish some of those in the stack. 

7. What did you recently finish reading? A book about actress Sharon Gless, an older book about Dinah Shore and a cookbook by Joanna Gaines from Magnolia Farm.

8. What do you think you'll read next? I love older books so I have a book about Fred Astaire, my most favorite dancer since I was a small child. A book about Western NY that I start and stop reading. Also a few more books by Elizabeth Caddell.

9. When did you take the road less traveled?  2014, through a National Forest in Arizona. My husband thought he found a google travel plan that would have saved us time. Instead we were stuck on a two lane dusty road for over two hours, behind a rude guy driving a HUGE RV with  Canadian license plates.  He would not allow us to pass him. As a result we ended up driving through a National forest after dark arriving at our destination over 4.5 hours late! Except for the cacti, I thought I was in my own backyard with the pine trees!!!

10. Did you ever participate in a talent show? No, the closest I was to acting at all was in the second grade as the angel holding the star over the manger in the Christmas play at my Catholic school. My talent back then was being shy so I was musically inclined or able to sing or dance with a crowd looking at me.

11. When did you most recently strike out? Attempting for two days to make an annual mamogram appointment with my bone density appointment. I have already vented about this but it was incredibly frustrating as people often do not listen to what you say to them and then try to push you into taking an appointment time you already told them you could not do!

12. Where do you go to find yourself? On the floor putting puzzles together with our 2 and 4 year old grandsons. They bring out our inner child. Until it is time to get up off the floor. hahaha

13. What do you have mixed feelings about?  I love kindness and respectful people and I find there are many who do not agree with you on some subjects and therefore they feel they can be mean and hateful and bully you all the while saying I hope you have a beautiful day! I kid you not.  The world is a wacky place and I prefer seeking out goodness and people who can agree to disagree and be mature adults about matters of the world.

14. What did you mostly recently add to your collection of something? Shhh.....you can not tell on me. There are people who do not like or appreciate my collections! I love American Girl dolls and I bought one recently that had been previously loved, and I love to dress them them up and display them all around my house. It makes me very happy. My husband does not mind but it drives some of my adult kids crazy! They watched too many horror movies about dolls coming to life! hahaha

15. When did something most recently stir you to tears? A friend from blogging and social media, asked us to send her brother birthday wishes. He had a fall off his porch in 2020,  2 summers ago which caused him a life changing injury. He became a parapalegic. 200 cards were sent to him from 27 countries and he had an infection that moved into his blood and bone and ended his life. His wife and two teenage children cared for him. I was devastated for Beth and her loss of her big brother. But also grateful we were able to give him smiles for his birthday. Life is fragile. I handle it with prayer. We need to be more kind in this world. we never know when we will draw our final breathe. 

These questions were stolen from   Kwizgiver by Beth. Stealing Sunday has been a fun blog hop. Please join it whne you want to.

Happy Tuesday

  

Ain't love grand?

Uh oh Maxine is gearing up for the time change March 13th. Maxine, I would love to go back in time and freeze it! 

Have a wonderful Tuesday and enjoy yourself. Stay safe and warm or cool, depending where you are !