
Posted in baby boomers, children, culture, Descriptive Words, diet, Education, emotions, environment, exercise, Fall, flowers, Gardens, Green, health, home, joy, kids, Labor, life, mental and physical health, Mother's Day, observations, Passion, seasons, stress, tagged cold frame gardening, fall, food, gardening, health, herbs, meals, produce, seasons, spring, stress reducer, Summer, vegetables, Winter on February 9, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Business, comfort, finances, MONEY, safety, weather, tagged Business, finances, ice, Michigan, snow, states, storms, warmth, weather, Winter on December 19, 2008| Leave a Comment »
This is not going to be good. We are supposed to be getting a series of heavy winter storms. We are being told we are getting 6-12 inches of snow by friday evening…then another storm on saturday-sunday with snow-ice mix which could total up to 20 inches of snow…then on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday up to 80% chance of snow.
For many people on fixed income this kind of weather is devastating. One thing is staying warm. This is when we hear many stories of people who die in fires or of people who freeze to death. Another issue is heart attacks from people trying to remove snow by shoveling. Then there are all of the car accidents. Another issue is the extra expense of having to have the snow removed by snow plows & home heating costs.
It is a huge concern here in Michigan where people are struggling just to survive financially with all of the job cuts and job losses. You have to have heat…but, what do you do when you can’t afford to heat your home? The agencies that help those in trouble are overburdened and are turning people away. Businesses who supply the fuel for home heating need paid too…but, many can’t afford to pay.
I hear all of the time from people in other states who are feeling the financial pinch these days…but are truly surprised when they hear how “depressed and oppressed” Michigan residents are just in the quality of life. Keep everyone in prayer. The whole midsection of the US is going to have a very rough weekend of weather…let’s keep everyone prayed up for safety and warmth.
Posted in Baking Bread, Beauty, comfort, Descriptive Words, emotions, environment, Fall, joy, life, observations, seasons, surprise, weather, words, writing, tagged acceptance, bacon, Beauty, buttery, cabbage, cherished, chicken noodle, cold, comfort, comfort food, crystals, Descriptive Words, evergreen trees, fall, flakes, gifts, ham, homemade rolls, human spirit, joy, lazy day, life, meal, pea soup, potatoe, preview, rain, rolls, seasons, snow, soup, sparkle, sunlight, surprise, treat, warmth, weather, Winter on November 9, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Today has been one of those lazy, do nothing and enjoy it kind of days. Those are few and far between…but, so very necessary for the soul to rest and build up strength to do what must be done every other day of the week.
It has been cold and wet. We woke up this morning to a growing blanket of fluffy white snow…the first of the season, to lightly coat the ground. Of course, it did not stay there because the ground is not frozen yet…so, the warmth of the earth melted the brilliant, white snow early in the day. This is just a mini preview of what is to come in the next few weeks.
The snow brought joy to my child’s face…and, a look of acceptance to mine 🙂 Now is the time to contemplate making a nice homemade, chunky sort of comfort meal…like maybe a hot, hearty chicken noodle soup with homemade dumplings…or maybe a rich, smooth, smoky pea soup, or possibly a filling fall harvest kind of soup with some happy orange carrots, and some limey green cabbage surrounding floating chunks of the all american staple of potatoes in a nice rich broth of ham pieces or some pieces of bacon. However, this is work…and, cannot stand alone. One must complement the meal with some fresh- from- the- oven homemade doughy, buttery rolls. This is the treat that we offer ourselves when the reality of 6 months of cold, wet, dark and dreary winter comes sneaking upon us. Oh, if that sounds ominous…then you will have to come back on another day when the snow is cherished and given glory…just not today when i have to grow to appreciate it’s beauty.
Golly, you will just have to check back in a few weeks, when i paint the picture of a cheery morning; when the snow crystals sparkle in the sunlight and underscore the weight of the evergreen branches that bow under the weight of the heavy flakes of snow that have fallen overnight, much to our surprise. Then you will see that the human spirit is flexible and has the wisdom to recognize all of the gifts in life.
Posted in anger, Business, economy, elderly, emotions, family, finances, future, Impact, life, MONEY, news, tagged agreement, anger, budget plan, Business, costs, dangerous, Difficulties, fall, financial crisis, fixed incomes, future, gamble, gasoline, home heating, locked in, news, oil, predictions, propane, suffering, Summer, Winter on October 16, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Here is something to think about with all of the financial crisis making the daily news. Have you signed anything legal agreeing to rip yourself off financially? Many people probably haven’t realized this aspect of the times yet…but, a normally smart thing to do each summer is to sign up for a budget plan with your winter heating fuel supplier…agreeing to “lock in” a price when the prices are low during the summer…just in case the price of heating oil/gas goes up, like it normally does in the fall and winter months.
This year…against any predictable reasoning…gas prices have fallen, sharply. Still, once people sign on the dotted line to lock in a heating source price…they truly are locked in at that price. I think as people discover this situation for themselves…there is going to be alot of anger of being caught in this situation. Some say, that most years it makes sense to lock in and it works out to their advantage…but, this year has really challenged that theory.
Locking in makes sense usually; the agreement is usually accomplished in mid summer. Well….if you remember correctly, in July…gas prices were sky high. In my neck of the woods…gasoline prices have dropped from an all time high of approximately $4.25 down to now a $2.88 cents a gallon. If you apply that thought process to home heating oil/propane….you can just imagine how much money that people are loosing.
With the rising cost of food, rent/mortgage payments, health insurance, and other necessities…people can ill afford to pay extra when they don’t have to. I, for one, am glad that i didn’t lock in my propane prices; like i was advised to!
Did you get ripped off by signing an agreement to lock in your heating costs this year? If you did…you are not alone…and personally i don’t think anyone expected such a situation…but, it really is a gamble trying to predict the future with heating costs. I am pretty sure that, next year, companies will have a hard time getting people who were burned this year, to sign on the dotted line. Just stop and think about how many people are living on fixed incomes…i almost hate to see winter arrive because…we will see more people suffering and living in dangerous conditions, in colder climates, because of this.
Posted in Campfires and tubing, Descriptive Words, emotions, hot cider, joy, life, tagged apple cider, Beauty, campfire, Descriptive Words, diamond dust, fall, flaming red, glittering, leaves, remember, season, September, sparkling, Winter on October 1, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Bye Bye September…tomorrow is October…Fall is truly here and making it’s presence know. That only leaves one more season left this year…and it isn’t going to be pretty what with the rising cost of living… I hate to see winter come. With any luck, winter will be mild.
With all of the financial uncertainty hanging over the United States…thinking about heating homes is the last thing anyone wants to do. Yet, i can’t help but admire the beauty that is Fall. The golden yellow, the burnt oranges, the flaming reds and the burnished brown of the leaves as they glisten in the mellow fall temperatures. The evenings are pleasantly cool enough to be enjoyed and yet not bothersome enough to turn on the furnace. This is the beauty of fall. Reaping the bounty of the earth’s growing season and preparing it for the winter. It is all a gift.
Even the beauty of the first heavy snow fall as it coats the trees and the ground with it’s sparkling diamond dust is a work of art. It is knowing that it wont be the last snowfall that wears on the novelty of it all…calculating the financial cost of removing all of that frosty diamond dust! OH well, it is time to enjoy the moment.
Time to walk in the leaves, smell the warm earth, gaze upon the fall flowers in a final burst of color…stand around a roaring campfire…heat up some tarty spiced apple cider…roast a few dogs over the open flame and stare at the glittering silver white stars as they twinkle in the deep blue black of the night sky. This is a moment to remember and to treasure. Bye Bye September!
Posted in accomplishments, commitment, Fall, family, goals, life, pain and misery, patience, seasons, tagged accomplishments, canning, fall, food preperation, God, harvest, homemade, impatience, preserves, process, provisions, salsa, season, tomatoes, Winter on September 22, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Today was one of those days where…i felt..i had little to contribute in my normal sphere of interaction. Others relieved me of my duties out of a regular shifting of schedules and it was an opportunity to rest and relax. It was nice…but…feeling a little lost as i was out of my normal comfort zone. It didn’t help that i have been fighting sinus pain and pressure, off and on, for a month or so…today, it was right there…my constant companion.
However, when i got home…i had an agenda. I “needed” to clean, process, and can some tomatoes that have been sitting in a box…silently taunting me with their presence. I was procrastinating for the last couple of days…because i hadn’t been feeling well.
Since the sinus pressure was not going away…i had strengthened my resolve to get those babies canned; and, to do the same with the salsa that i had prepared days ago and was letting “marinate” in my fridge waiting for the primo opportunity to put them up! I had made a committment to myself.
I dug in and got to work. I feel good because i actually like canning once I get it started. It is getting prepared and getting started that annoys me. I just want to see progress…my impatience is showing i guess.
When my hubby gets home from his business trip tomorrow…he will find the table littered with my accomplishments. The jars have to sit undisturbed for 24 hours before they can be moved. But that is fine with me…it is the “proof” of what setting your mind to accomplishing your goals can achieve. Now, i have a bit of tomato juice prepared for the winter as well as some wonderful, homemade salsa, all ready to go! Tomorrow is the first day of fall…that means that winter is right around the corner. Time to get prepared for it…by being a good steward of the harvest season.
Ahh…now on to the preserving of the squash! Oh my…we are blessed…thank you God for providing for us!
Posted in humor, tagged compared, ex, Germany, lacking, paddleboat, Petra, petulant, size matters, swan, Winter, zoo on March 29, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Poor, Petulant Petra is a black swan who lives in Germany. She made news headlines last year by forming a romantic interest in a large, wooden, swan- shaped paddleboat. Side- by- side they stayed together; Petra and the large paddleboat. She refused to leave the boat’s side. So, a zoo accomodated Petra and the paddleboat for the winter.
Petra developed a relationship with a real live white swan recently. So the swan paddleboat was returned to its owner. This past week, the real live (small) swan left Petra.
Now, whether the small, white swan had size related self- esteem issues; or, whether Petra is incapable of forming a healthy relationship within her species…she is once again reunited with her beloved large white wooden swan. Hmmmm…maybe size really does matter…or …maybe Petra needs to enter into some sort of therapy. She may be experiencing an attachment disorder :).
Then again, who knows…maybe the small white swan got tired of being compared to her larger than life “ex”; and therefore, decided to move on.
After all…there is nothing worse than being compared to an “ex” who is incapable of giving in a relationship; and, STILL COME OUT LACKING IN THE COMPARISON! LOL
Posted in birthday, Winter, tagged birthday, denial, General B. Lee, Ground Hog's Day, punk, six more weeks, spring, Winter on February 2, 2008| Leave a Comment »
It is official, the punk (Punxsutawney Phil) says six more weeks of winter. Now Phil, the groundhog from Punxsutawney, Pa about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, Pa; he says he is never wrong. Many believe him.
He does have nay sayers though….General B. Lee, Phil’s competition from Georgia did not see his shadow. I don’t know about you…but, this girl is sick of winter…so i choose to go with General Lee.
It may be denial and all…but if so, i happily choose to believe that spring will come early. Denial may be the only way i happen to get through what’s left of winter this year. It is cold, costly and downright annoying to be stuck in a world of perpetual white for 6 months out of the year, i say!
By the by, it is also my sister in law’s birthday….have to remember to call her and say…do you know what day this is? No matter whether she says it is her birthday or whether she says it is ground hog’s day…i can say why NO, it is the opposite of which ever one she chooses. What fun! Happy Birthday…or Happy Ground Hog’s Day…which ever you choose to celebrate.