bright skies at night

it wasn't the end of the world but it looked like something out of "flash forward" or "lost". a brilliant flash of light exploded in the sky just after midnight.. i was sitting on the couch and watched it. i immediately went to the front door, opened it expecting to find ... i don't know what but something. instead the sky was clear and the stars were bright and all was at peace. sherry followed me to the door when i told her about the bright light flash. she said maybe it was a falling star. turns out it was a meteor http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=8714738 and/or http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13814412 .

happy birthday

you may have tangible wealth untold;

caskets of jewels and coffers of gold,

richer than i you can never be -

i had a mother who read to me.

strickland gillilan

in spite of failing eyesight, my mother still reads to me. it may just be the road sign or billboard we pass on our daily "outings" but mom is still the designated reader! she has a passion for good writing. she recalls her mother reciting poetry to her and she continued the tradition of reciting to her own children and grandchildren. all of my aunts have the gifted ability to quote prose and poetry befitting a particular situation we may find ourselves in. i went on my first "coon hunt" with old dan and little anne, (where the red fern grows), learned how to make acorn pancakes, (my side of the mountain) and cried when little carol bird drifted off with the angels, (the birds christmas carol) all while sitting comfortably at my mother's feet. she would sit in the old white rocker and we would gather round anxious to hear her expressive yet gentle voice. to this day i don't believe there is anything more comforting to me than the sound of my mother's voice. it can chase all demons away.

in the morning hours, when the grandkids would sleep over, she would greet their day with a "get in your place". they would crawl up in bed beside her. she would then instruct them to get the book out of the night stand and proceed to read or rather recite favorite poems from robert louis stevenson. (it is only fitting that they should share the same birthday). and when timo comes to visit he to remembers where "his place" is. $5.00 for every poem learned and a quarter each time it was recited. that's what she paid the kids. there is not one grandchild that cannot recite a poem and i dare say that each time they do, they think of their gram.

through the years she has answered to many names, teen, aunt teen, momma afton, momochaka, gram. i am lucky enough to call her mom.

and ...

just in case you were wondering.....this http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33225568/ns/us_news/ is why i don't sing in karaoke bars!

sold

curses - foiled again. lagoon bought three of the four lions for over $16,000. The first one sold for like $8000.00 to an independent bidder. i learned the lions names were patience, honor, integrity and fortitude. oh well. he would have looked nice in the yard but gram already has all those virtues anyway. we will just have to go to lagoon and see him. at least they will be in farmington.

things that make you go hmmmm.....

during the late 1930's and early 40's, a girl, living on a ranch outside of blackfoot idaho, didn't have much of a choice when it came to new fashions. but if she was creative and talented enough she could design and sew her own clothes. gram had what it took. she found some pretty red gingham material and designed a dress that fit tight on her slim torso, with a drop waist that then flared out into two ruffled layers. it had puff sleeves and was trimmed in white lace. her long black hair looked beautiful as it cascaded over her shoulders and the bright colored dress. red is best! she loved that dress and saved it through the years, even though her slim 27in waist grew larger with the birth of her 7 children. she let us play in it. we would pretend and dream that we were as pretty as she was. gram always smiles when that dress is mentioned. even to this day, nearly 70 years since she first made it.

cori has immortalized it in her song "the red gingham dress". and there is still a "lilt" in her sway, although these days it must be expressed in her hands as her legs will no longer carry her. and the "spark in her eye" still catches the glance of any passing guy!

a cherished family photo is of gram, wearing her beloved dress, sitting on top of a 6 ton concrete lion located on the northeast side of the utah state capitol building.(circa 1940.)

this week i learned that those lions are up for sale on ebay. the renovation of the state capitol called for new replacements and they are selling the old, worn out, broken concrete lions. they only weigh 6 tons and are about 6 ft by 6 ft by oh say 12 feet long. a nice addition to the backyard don't you think?!

jordon can get a truck that will move it. our neighbor has access to a crane. gram's birthday is in november. hmmm.........

ebay link to auction site: http://cgi.ebay.com/HISTORIC-CONCRETE-LION-FROM-UTAH-STATE-CAPITOL-NE_W0QQitemZ140348950269QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item20ad7306fd&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

ta da!

i've never had granite counter tops. i tell my clients that they are a good investment in most homes, but never got around to making that investment myself. when we first moved into this house...4 1/2 years ago...can you believe it...anyway....when we first moved into this house i got a bid for granite and it was mucho monzola! the white corian was in good shape, looked nice and was just fine. well this past birthday, my big one, my sisters decided i needed new counter tops. i must have been talking about them too much. so for my present they presented me with money for new granite. with the slow down in the economy the price dropped by nearly half and i got a better grade of granite besides. so.....drum roll please....here's how they look.

i find myself keeping the kitchen just a little cleaner and often sit at the island bar area and just gaze at the beautiful stone. there is good energy from the rock and it is pretty besides.

i have the very best, most generous family in the world! thanks!!!!!!

out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.--- kahlil gibran

i am surrounded by people who's scars are beautiful!

hot summer's eve

gram, sherry and i are sitting on the front porch looking for meteors. clouds have moved in however and i believe will block our view. it's a bit early still, only 11pm. i think it would be best if we came back out around 3. i was going to do that last night, but somehow got caught up watching reruns of "cold case". i "googled", that the moon will be in waning gibbous phase anyway, which means that with luck we will only be able to see about 30 an hour instead of the usually 60. next year is suppose to be a banner year though. the moon will be dark all night. something to look forward to.

sherry wants me to stop typing now and visit with her. i told her i was busy blogging. rude huh! oh well. guess i'll quit typing. it's hot out here any way. maybe i'll just go inside and watch "ice road truckers" and cool down.

delicious peaches

pretty peaches. delicious peaches. it was quality not quantity this year but they were wonderful. johnny pruned our tree, thanks johnny, and told us we might not get as many peaches this year because of the pruning. but as a result we had peaches the size of softballs! ummmm they were good. we are lucky because we have early peaches. it is a hint of things to come later in the harvest. i love the summer fruits and veggies. cinny got the first tomato from our garden because she planted it. we have tons of zucchini and summer squash and the cukes are almost ready. we got a taste beets and carrots from johnny's and also jeff's gardens. yippee. i love good food!

let the sunshine in

it only took over 4 years, but i finally had all my windows cleaned. my goodness, i knew they were dirty, but i didn't realize they were that dirty!!!! well ok, maybe i did know they were that dirty, but i didn't realize how much better i would like my windows when they were clean. hmm, can you like a window? i think so. windows let you see out into the world. windows let the light, both day and night light, in. windows keep the bugs out. windows are good. clean windows are better!

goin' home

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEZp_vvZyKE

dvorak visited america from 1892-1895. in 1893 he wrote his symphony no. 9. the second movement "largo" is among a family favorite. i have numerous renditions of it. all lovely. johnny sent me this link after my last post. i can't wait to show it to gram. it encompasses many things she loves. dvorak, andre rieu, sheep and johnny! she remembers that a version of this music was played at her mother's funeral. gram was but 15 years old. for all those who will still be alive - i want this played at my funeral too!

ps - watch the movie "paradise road". it's a tear jerker but has an inspiring rendition of the "largo". auntie mae first told me about it. if you can't find it, borrow mine.

50 is the new 30...

... at least that's what johnny says. i like it. i think i will adopt the saying. oh well, enough on that subject!

last night gram, sherry, annie and i went to the andre rieu concert. the mullens bought tickets for us. it was a combination birthday for me and treat for mom. we were the ones that were treated! mom/gram had been so excited to go to the concert. she enjoys wathing his dvd's until the wee hours of the morning. when we loaded up in the car to leave for the concert she said - "i hope i'm not disappointed." she wasn't.

how i wish all those who love gram could have been there to see her eyes light up. she smiled, she sang along, she clapped. it was an absolutely delightful evening spent under the stars at the usana amphitheatre, being entertained by a talented and beautiful orchestra, and gram! (in the picture below gram is holding what has become her signature sees lollipop. she tells me i give the to her just to keep her quiet! :) )

annie took a great little video of gram. i'll get a copy if i can and post it. she was listening to the music and then turned to annie, nodded her head and said in her very own gram style, "it's good".

thanks am and mike!

chuck e cheese

a good place to party. not a good place to eat!

happy bday anna and timo - what a night.

cindy gardner updates

for those who want to follow progress updates on cindy and what's happening to her will be posted on her blog http://gardnerscompost.blogspot.com/.

thanks for the care and concern.

thoughts

If children have the ability to ignore all odds and percentages, then maybe we can all learn from them. When you think about it, what other choice is there but to hope? We have two options, medically and emotionally: give up, or fight like hell. ~Lance Armstrong If you're going through hell, keep going. Never, never, never give up ~Winston Churchill Cancer is a word, not a sentence. ~John Diamond