Simple Saturday

Many things are swirling around in my head this morning. Lots has occurred in the last 24 hours. First thing I’m thinking of my cousin Mike and how grateful they must be to have pulled off two wedding receptions in August and early September now that COVID is peaking again in Nebraska. Rules for bars are again, mask to enter building and leave, and mask to walk around in building.No more standing room only events. Events must drop to below 50% capacity. I would not be surprised if the bars and schools be closed again before Thanksgiving to slow the spread again. Our hospitals are nearing a much higher capacity than they want. I just pray to God we can get the election done, in the books, and move on to whatever is next.

Photo by Annie D on Pexels.com

Second, I’m thinking about Estes Park. It is one of our favorite places to make a destination. We love the nature, beauty, scenery, and people. Always something interesting going on. Flood visited there a few years ago, and now a two month old wildfire is calling for evacuations. Prayers for those folks, their families, property, and the wildlife. It all suffers during events like this.

Third, we had a great Post and Auxiliary meeting last week. Ron Hernandez, the founder of Moving Veterans Forward in the Omaha/Papillion area spoke to us about the Victory Apartments, and the other opportunities that are available for the Post to help him get off the ground that will serve Veterans locally. I see a lot of opportunity here for us and I’m excited about it.

I have some things to update for our Post website, and need some lessons from our Web Host, Image Masters. Luckily, the host with the most is my brother in law, Brad Shuck, and he’s always willing to teach me more about how the website works and can work. Great guy. Great photographer, too. He’s in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Check out his work.

Today is the day to make good on my intentions to bring in any plant that will perish with a frost. We’re due anytime, and I have some succulents that will be great inside the house. I don’t want to lose them. That’s for a little later on, and I might let them sit after spraying them for bugs to see what comes out, if anything. Then the transplanting can happen.

Even if we’re quarantined again it won’t be so bad. I’m already looking at grocery delivery, that’s the one thing I’m no longer crazy about doing. It’s kind of a hassle, and hard for me to carry a lot in from the car, after picking it up to put it in the cart, unloading cart, reloading cart with bags, putting bags in the car, that’s a lot of lifting and moving the same stuff to get home. I need to consult with our daughter Tracy to see how we can get started. She’s on to all the shopping stuff. Bless her!

Gavin Has Been Such a Blessing For Our Pups. And Organic Bones.

I’m organizing all my social media marketing information today, too. Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook are both used by the Post and by me as an Author. I’m starting up on both of them, so I figure planning them side by side should work. They are both meant to give exposure to the target audience. The Facebook is pretty well established for the Post, and my author page could use some boosting. I still have some online training to review and add to the plans, so that will be some good stuff to sit by the fire and do while the Babe watches football. This is what life is meant for. Being together and getting things accomplished. I’m grateful.

The second chapter seems to be pretty good so far. It’s about 1900 words, which is pretty fair. I don’t want to get hung up on word count, so I’m planning a little ahead. I don’t want to go much further than Chapter 3 before next Sunday night when I send Sam Tyler, my Book Coach, the updated versions for her feedback. I’ve mentioned before, if I’m way off track, I’d rather have just a chapter or two to rewrite than the whole book. Makes sense.

The Babe made some stellar Beef Vegetable Soup late yesterday. It’s reheating now in a great big soup pan. Tis the season for good stuff like that. It’ll be ready after a bit, and will be a welcome break from the morning. Of course, now that it’s afternoon, it’s time to get those plants inside. Life can be mundane, yet accomplishing those tasks gets things done, and you can move on to other tasks and relax. Ahhh. Saturdays. Even retired Saturdays are good.

Thank you for reading, it’s something else I’m eternally grateful for. We’ll meet you again tomorrow, with more tales of marketing myself, the Post, and being an author. Be Safe. Be Courteous. Be Patient. I’ll try to be, too.

Moving on a Monday

No, Babe! Don’t panic. WE are not moving. I’m talking about moving and working on stuff and gettin’ it done. I always get up and am so thinking I’m still Wonder Woman, and then reality strikes a few hours later. Once the coffee kicks in. So I did an important thing. I went for a pedicure. Right after breakfast, and it felt so good They do all sorts of nice things I don’t do for myself normally. Why not? I guess I wasn’t in the age group that did stuff like that. Even doing one myself, I always ran out of time. Women older than my era rarely took time out to “relax.” My daughter was a champ at that. Sitting down to relax. When I was younger, under thirty, I would sit down after all the work was done, kids were bathed, in bed, and I’d collapse in the chair. That was the extent of my relaxation.

No, I’m not complaining. It’s just that things have changed so much for the good, it’s great. Women are no longer destined to a life in the kitchen, ironing, cleaning, doing laundry, scrubbing toilets. Although I spent a good deal of my adult life doing that while still married to my first husband, and spending the first years of my kids’ lives home with them. In no way was that something I regret doing. That was where I belonged during that time of my life. I miss parts of it.

I’m working on my scenes again today. It will probably take up most of the day, and I can take my time with them, since the Babe will be gone most of the day. That is, after the fireplace maintenance guy leaves. I like to have him home to deal with service people. He has a lot of questions I don’t like to relay and he’s more chatty than I am about that stuff. I handled my own household, service men, roofers, plumbers, carpet layers, etc., etc., etc. I don’t mind sharing the load of this. Traditional role for a man? Maybe, but he also knows so much more about block, brick, fireplaces, pouring concrete, building walls, curbing, gravel vs. decorative rock, I learn something about construction every time we do a new project. This man, the Babe. He’s priceless, and I don’t mind saying so. Out loud.

This, my friends, was heavenly.

In my excitement to talk about the show we saw Saturday night, I forgot to mention we also late-celebrated our anniversary with dinner before the show. We went to Longhorn’s in Omaha. They are a pretty consistent with their fare, except in these times, they no longer have Prime Rib. If you’ve ever met a South Dakota or Nebraska boy, you know they love their prime rib. And then, no NA Beer. That lessened our experience, but it was still good. The dessert was incredible. So light, you didn’t feel you were eating anything. What a great night it was.

My scenes are going to be crafted to tell the backstory through dialogue among the main characters. That is much harder to do than what you may think. Whomever is the narrator, they cannot intrude on a character point of view. I have done that more than I’d care to admit. The right amount of backstory helps make sense of the conflicts the main character has with others. My story has one main character, two less main but important characters. Katie is the main character, her mother Evelyn is a lesser main character, and her husband John is the second lesser main character.

Through backstory, you will discover how Katie’s Mom treated her, how it formed her character, timid, bashful, extremely codependent and naive. As it turns out, empaths like Katie seem to be drawn to people who need help, who need her strengths, and who take from her without giving. Not knowing any better, she complies gladly. Until she can’t.

It always feels like it’s a good idea at the time.

It’s so good to be free from all of that. It’s a full time job to keep working on staying free. That’s what happens when we break tradition, break fallacies, break away from “we’ve always done it that way.” Honoring a way that no longer works is a call for change. “But, how about if we do it this way,” is usually met with negativity. A new idea, a new way is hard, because it can be very lonely. My character Katie feels every bit of that loneliness. Being the black sheep is just as lonely. Finding one person who says, “Gosh, I admire your moxie,” propels you into a whole other world.

I’m off to write scenes for a few hours. I love the time spent, I know it will be worth it. Thank you for stopping by today, I appreciate it and hope to see you tomorrow. Blessings, and be safe out there.

Wednesday

Wednesday again already! This is an absolutely perfect day outside. Enjoy it, won’t you? I just walked through the house, thinking how beautiful it looks with the sun streaming in. It makes me smile and feel good. I’m so grateful for what the Babe and I have.

It was an early start to the day, Addison needed a ride to school. The Babe goes and then gets the bookwork for the day done at the Post. And as it’s Wednesday, they have “Hamburger Night” from 5 – 7 p.m. We love seeing our friends and getting out for a bit. We’ve been members for probably seven years, and have met many wonderful people there.

When the Babe and I went to drop off donations at Moving Veterans Forward, we were fortunate to have a grand tour of their facility and a brief summary of all the things they offer. It’s phenomenal. We will have him come talk to the Post and Auxiliary in the near future. What a worthy organization. If you’re in the Omaha, Nebraska area and want to help, or if you know a Veteran in need to help, send me a message via my Facebook page, Kathy Raabe, Author.

Speaking of loving sunny days, I remember a time when I couldn’t tell you how my house looked in daylight. When I was working two jobs, I left home in the dark and came home in the dark. It seems that period of time had overcast, dark skies. I appreciate it very much. That’s what a person needs to do if they’re not having a good day, is concentrate on the good things. The sunny days. The fact you are warm, clothed, and fed. So many people don’t have enough to survive, through no fault of their own. Some folks expect they’re entitled to everything free, and I disagree with that. I have no problem with assistance, but it needs a beginning and ending date. Generations on assistance doesn’t make sense to me.

I am writing more scenes this morning, and I’m really enjoying the process. Next week is another session via Zoom with Sam Tyler, my Book Coach. I feel like I’m improving a lot, and it’s hard for me to say that. I was raised during a time when women were not supposed to be egotistical. And you were egotistical if you bragged about what you do. Today, they call it self-love. No, I didn’t have much of that. Mom was pretty clear, don’t spend all day primping, looking in the mirror, don’t be a braggart. Be compliant. Go along to get along. Don’t make waves. Girls don’t sweat. I wanted to play baseball with Johnny Bauer, but wasn’t allowed to. Girls don’t do that. He always talked about the Yankees, Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, and Roger Maris. So here I am, not being egotistical, just telling the truth.

In case you’re wondering, this is a no-politics zone. I will vote. It’s my personal business who that is for, and in making that decision, I’ll look closely at the VP’s. Succession is a very real possibility given the ages of both Presidential candidates. Enough said.

Let’s get along in the next however many days we have until the election. Let’s start practicing our manners again. Everyone. Republicans and Democrats. We need to be civil, and we need to do it now. We can change how we behave. Let’s do it for our great country, who could use a break from all of the fighting. I’m sure by January, 2021 there will be talk about the 2024 election and so it will go. Frankly, I’m just so tired of negativity.

The quilt in the upper left pictures is finally pinned and prepped for quilting. It’s so pretty, it has Swarovski crystals with embellishments on the embroidered Hibiscus flowers. It took quite a while, it’s a good size, and I’m keeping this one. I love the backing fabric.

The front door wreath I made last week. So glad to have painted the door, it’s much brighter than the dark navy blue it was. Just a couple of dollars worth of paint makes a world of difference, doesn’t it?

And then the perennial at lower left keeps growing. I don’t get to that side of the house often, so it surprises me when I do. I used to love gardening, and now, with the arthritis in my spine, knees, and feet makes it very hard to get down and do it. It could be worse, my dad would always say. Yes, it could, Dad. Twenty-five years ago, I had a tumor that impacted my spinal cord. It wasn’t cancerous, but I nearly ended up paralyzed from it. I thank God every day for my mobility, such as it is. God is very good. After going through all that, I met the Babe. What great timing God has!

Be Kind, Be Civil, Be Courteous to everyone you meet today. I plan to, even if someone riles me up. Thanks for reading, I’ll see you tomorrow! Be Safe out there.

Sunny Saturday

Despite lingering smoke from the wildfires, it is a pretty day outside. It will get hot today and tomorrow, then be more fall-like. I’m ready. So is the Babe. I do like to get the windows and screens cleaned before winter. Maybe in the next couple days. We’ll see. It’s pretty easy with the product from Windex, attach it to the garden hose, then rinse the soap off. I do like clean windows.

The VFW Post 2503 new website is up and working well. I have some new updates for it and hope I can get the hang of how to do everything. If you’d like to see, here is where you need to go. The Babe’s brother-in-law, Brad did the heavy lifting, and I get to learn maintenance. It’s WordPress, just like my blog, so some things will be new to me, some things won’t. I believe it’s a good site with lots of info to be added. Baby Steps!

I wish my daughter and son and law would let us post photos of our beautiful grandkids. I ordered Canvas prints to hang in the living room. Little Cody is such a little man! His reddish blonde hair is finally starting to lay down, up until now, it would stick straight up. He’s trying to walk and has two teeth at the age of 9 months. He is so cute. Miss Kayla Jolee does funny face poses for all of her pics. Her picture is of her standing in her mama’s hiking boots, bent at the knees, hands on thighs, with a toothy grin, eyes scrunched closed, hair messed up. How about that? I think she plays a lot with funny faces, running, and being generally goofy. I cannot wait to see them again!

We have some more pictures to hang, and today we may also hang my Kimonos. They are beautiful. I can’t wait to share them with you. I’m picturing my dad, a young soldier, buying one for my mom when he was on the way home from Korea. It was still in the paper sack it came in, with tissue paper that disintegrated when I picked it up. It’s probably close to 70 years old. Wow. A good example of holding on to something and never using it. That sort of thing has always made me kind of sad. Finally, it will be hung to be enjoyed and admired.

Use the good dishes. Wear perfume every day. Eat the Pie/Cake/Donut/Dessert. I really believe God intended us to enjoy the things He’s given us. Denial is good for times of penance, but not every day for the rest of your life. No, I’ve not lived through a depression, but I’ve seen some recessions and bad economic times. I’m not a tightwad, but I’m not a big spender, either. I have no problem saying how happy seeing certain things makes me. Little babies, toddlers, old people, newlyweds, The Babe, The grandkids, our kids, my brother, grown up cousins, their kids, God’s been so good to me.

Words to apply every day.

More scene-writing today. I’ve always got writing to do. I feel I had a good, productive session yesterday, and hope to duplicate it today. Some things are finally clicking. Yay!

I love how this turned out – finally!

When I finish quilting a couple more quilts, it’ll be time to piece some more. I like to keep ahead of them, right now I have four more to quilt. One to go above our bed, two for the stairwell, one when winter comes, another for spring. One for my chair or the family room in the spring or summer. By then, there should be another king sized quilt made. I’m still cutting one for winter, a snowflake quilt. I think that’ll be my December piecing project, as I’m taking the month off from coaching with Sam.

What might be your plan for the fall? I have some in the house stuff to do and maybe some transplanting in the yard. We always have longer lists than what we can accomplish, don’t we? Part of becoming older, our brains still thing we’re young and capable, our bodies tell us otherwise!

Thank you for reading today, I appreciate it. Dream big! Use the good china, ok? You’re certainly worth it. Be kind to yourself, and to others. Give a kid a chance. Give yourself a break. Let’s cooperate and be courteous. Wash up, Show up, and Mask up. We’re not through this yet. And, get a flu shot. It could save your life.

Sunny Saturday

Despite lingering smoke from the wildfires, it is a pretty day outside. It will get hot today and tomorrow, then be more fall-like. I’m ready. So is the Babe. I do like to get the windows and screens cleaned before winter. Maybe in the next couple days. We’ll see. It’s pretty easy with the product from Windex, attach it to the garden hose, then rinse the soap off. I do like clean windows.

The VFW Post 2503 new website is up and working well. I have some new updates for it and hope I can get the hang of how to do everything. If you’d like to see, here is where you need to go. The Babe’s brother-in-law, Brad did the heavy lifting, and I get to learn maintenance. It’s WordPress, just like my blog, so some things will be new to me, some things won’t. I believe it’s a good site with lots of info to be added. Baby Steps!

I wish my daughter and son and law would let us post photos of our beautiful grandkids. I ordered Canvas prints to hang in the living room. Little Cody is such a little man! His reddish blonde hair is finally starting to lay down, up until now, it would stick straight up. He’s trying to walk and has two teeth at the age of 9 months. He is so cute. Miss Kayla Jolee does funny face poses for all of her pics. Her picture is of her standing in her mama’s hiking boots, bent at the knees, hands on thighs, with a toothy grin, eyes scrunched closed, hair messed up. How about that? I think she plays a lot with funny faces, running, and being generally goofy. I cannot wait to see them again!

We have some more pictures to hang, and today we may also hang my Kimonos. They are beautiful. I can’t wait to share them with you. I’m picturing my dad, a young soldier, buying one for my mom when he was on the way home from Korea. It was still in the paper sack it came in, with tissue paper that disintegrated when I picked it up. It’s probably close to 70 years old. Wow. A good example of holding on to something and never using it. That sort of thing has always made me kind of sad. Finally, it will be hung to be enjoyed and admired.

Use the good dishes. Wear perfume every day. Eat the Pie/Cake/Donut/Dessert. I really believe God intended us to enjoy the things He’s given us. Denial is good for times of penance, but not every day for the rest of your life. No, I’ve not lived through a depression, but I’ve seen some recessions and bad economic times. I’m not a tightwad, but I’m not a big spender, either. I have no problem saying how happy seeing certain things makes me. Little babies, toddlers, old people, newlyweds, The Babe, The grandkids, our kids, my brother, grown up cousins, their kids, God’s been so good to me.

Words to apply every day.

More scene-writing today. I’ve always got writing to do. I feel I had a good, productive session yesterday, and hope to duplicate it today. Some things are finally clicking. Yay!

I love how this turned out – finally!

When I finish quilting a couple more quilts, it’ll be time to piece some more. I like to keep ahead of them, right now I have four more to quilt. One to go above our bed, two for the stairwell, one when winter comes, another for spring. One for my chair or the family room in the spring or summer. By then, there should be another king sized quilt made. I’m still cutting one for winter, a snowflake quilt. I think that’ll be my December piecing project, as I’m taking the month off from coaching with Sam.

What might be your plan for the fall? I have some in the house stuff to do and maybe some transplanting in the yard. We always have longer lists than what we can accomplish, don’t we? Part of becoming older, our brains still thing we’re young and capable, our bodies tell us otherwise!

Thank you for reading today, I appreciate it. Dream big! Use the good china, ok? You’re certainly worth it. Be kind to yourself, and to others. Give a kid a chance. Give yourself a break. Let’s cooperate and be courteous. Wash up, Show up, and Mask up. We’re not through this yet. And, get a flu shot. It could save your life.