Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater. ************ ~William Hazlitt

Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which, in prosperous circumstances, would have lain dormant. 

Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus), Satires

Day 1
Hi, ya'll.  I know it's been a bit since I last posted.  The brain frying Oklahoma weather seems to have already taken a toll on me and summer just began a week ago.  The animals are just trying to survive, too.  They are all mad cause I woke them up for a photo op.

Sophie was sleeping on a basket in the window.

Maggie woke up really grumpy!

Molly said "Will you just leave me alone and let me sleep?"

I have a rule of thumb for visiting doctors:  if I have less than three things wrong with me (or the problem has bothered me less than two years), I don't go.  Period.  End of statement.  Well, the count is well above three so I have a doctor's appointment today at 2:45 p.m.(all the morning appointments were taken so I have to venture out in the heat this afternoon, yuck). Think I'll treat myself to a milkshake after the trauma of a doctor's visit (any excuse will do when it comes to ice cream).  I know ya'll are tired of hearing me whine about being sick but it is what it is!

I just wanted to take a simple bathroom break.  How often does a catastrophe start with one simple task? One bathroom is flooded, the other has "stuff" backed up in the bathtub and my living room is flooded.  I'm sick ya'll!  I shouldn't have to deal with cleaning up recycled pooh!  Just shoot me now!  I want to curl up in the bed and be a sick person not the repair and maintenance crew today!  If we rented our residence, I could call the landlord but when you are a frugal homeowner you are the maintenance man and the cleaning crew and the do it yourself repair person.  Just shoot me now! However, adversity brings out the most creative in me.  Plus I can read instructions on how to repair most things.  Thank God for good language skills. 

One full bottle of Liquid Plumber later and  with one foot on the bathtub stopper, the other foot in front of the toilet bowl and stretched out like taffy (thanks to yoga I can do this) to reach the toilet bowl (this is not a technique I read about but I had to be creative since there is just one of me), I have plunged my brains out to no avail.  This issue is way above my skill level.  Guess I'll have to take a bath in the wadding pool in the front yard.  Just shoot me now!  Anything requiring water or drainage has come to a complete hault til I can meditate (changed to Pepsi and with Bronchitis, a cigarette is out of the question).

Day 2

It now takes me two days to do what I used to do in one hour.  I went to the doctor yesterday and found out I have sinusitis, bronchitis and two other itis's (no, I'm not going to tell you what the other two are.  it's personal).  Let's just say I don't feel so great.  The total cost was around $150.00.  Just shoot me now!

Now, back to my plumbing problems (not my personal plumbing problems but the whole house plumbing problems).    Need to call in a professional (me thinks I have tree roots in the lines and no clean out line). My plumber of many years had retired and the next one I called wouldn't even respond to the two desperate messages I left on his answering machine (probably thought I was a crazy lady).  In my next life, I'm coming back as a plumber.  Expensive, unavailable and sets their own hours.  Brother Danny (my, when I go to church, minister) gave me the name of a great plumber today.  When I called, they said they would be out first thing in the morning.  Thank You, Lord!  Finally, instead of unreturned phone messages, I talked to a real person (he understood my pain and was very nice on the phone).  Hold off on the shooting me to let me see how expensive this will be.

In the meantime, my friend Charlie the Barber left me cucumbers and squash at the little store.  The cucumbers are just crying out for home canning as pickles.  Country folk don't get sick days and one must seize the moment when it comes to fresh picked veggies. Simple Living is planning for the future.

I see pickles in my future!

O.K.  I hate to admit it but I have become fascinated by the complexity of the most talked about criminal trial in recent American history.  It is my humble opinion that we will never know the exact details of how Caylee Marie Anthony died because this mystery is surrounded by far too many lies, changing stories, and enough forensic testimony to sink a battleship. I am a reasonable person and I have drawn my own conclusions.  There is one fact that remains after all is said and done:  a beautiful, loving child is now in the presence of our Heavenly Father who knows all things.  This link is a live feed from the courtroom.  Perhaps you can figure it out.  The prosecution is presenting their rebuttal tomorrow. Orlando Sentinel

O.K. Blah, blah, blah.  I'm shutting up now.  I know you're tired of listening to me.  See you another day.

Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes, and adversity is not without comforts and hopes.

 ~Francis Bacon

Life In Tornado Alley........

If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm,

you’ll never enjoy the sunshine.

It was another gut-wrenching, heart-stopping, hand wringing night as deadly tornadoes tore through Oklahoma and our neighboring states.  This line of storms, containing numerous super-cells, extended across the entire state of Oklahoma with only a tiny gap in the monster. 

At least something is enjoying all the rain.

We do not have a storm shelter so many of our family, friends and neighbors called urging us to join them in theirs.  After seeing the devastating damage in Joplin and viewing the radar images, I was inclined to agree with them.  I am like a cat on a hot tin roof when storms approach.  My terror knows no limits. Such is my life in tornado alley.  I have gathered pillows, battery operated radio, charged up the phones and placed the flash light where I can find it.  The bathtub awaits our arrival.

A number of years ago, our home was hit by what the insurance appraiser called "straight winds".  The barn was destroyed, shingles torn off the roof and huge trees brought down in the blink of an eye (even though it seems like an eternity when you are huddled in the bathroom). Becky was in the bathtub with one of the dogs and I was sitting in the floor with my back against the wall (I could feel the wall shuddering under the pressure of the storm).  Scary stuff!

Becky, however; reacts in a logical (smarty pants), informed manner.  I'm walking the floor, looking outside, wringing my hands and worrying myself sick.  She, on the other hand, is doing laundry and reading a book.  What! What! Apparently, I see danger and she sees a storm miles away.  It makes for an interesting situation.  I want to wring her neck (she needs to show some concern) and she just wants me to chill out (I need to show less concern, I'm sure she would like to wring my neck).  When the storms finally arrived, it was as though the hand of God reached down and cradled our community (again).  The line of storms split, going on each side of us.  Giving profound thanks to God, I went to bed.

O.K. I've told you all this to get to my point (bet you thought I'd never get there, didn't you?).  Got up this morning, grabbed my coffee and cigarette (mediation, you know) and stepped out to the front porch.  At first, everything seems fine.  Lawn statutes still standing, tomato plants still in pots on bench, all outside animals just fine. 

And then:  Holy Cow!! Holy Cow!!  I rub my eyes to be sure I see what I see!  Our huge, long standing, much beloved willow tree is laying on the ground!  I yell for Becky (I'm highly excitable, so she does not become alarmed when I yell).  We both stand in stunned silence!  I really wanted to say "I told you to be scared. I told you so. Mother knows best" but I controlled the urge. 

Too much rain, shallow root system and wind equals disaster for our willow tree.

The remnants of Becky's meditation garden.

A little further over and it would have taken out the electric pole and transformer!

 We were fortunate to just lose one tree.  There are many others who lost so much more, including their lives in the deadly storm outbreak this week.  Our thoughts and prayers are with all those who are suffering.  Simple Living is about caring more for others than yourself and times of trouble can bring out the very best in some of us.  We can't give or help those in need enough.  God be with you.

"The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18 (NLT)

From The Heart Of Suffering..........

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

My beloved Harmony Acres is saturated but it will survive.  We are all O.K.  Today, God is smiling down upon us with wonderful, glorious sunshine (for one more day and then more rained predicted). We are in that yucky drying out stage. The ground is mushy and muddy; oozing between my toes in my crocs (hurt my ankle again and can't wear rubber boots because of swelling). We were lucky! It could have been much worse!

Brother Dave cut this rose bush back to a nub so he
could replace the porch post.  It's never bloomed so beautifully.
I guess everything needs a little pruning sometimes.

Why is it that the light of day always brings renewed hope?  And an opportunity to give Thanks?  The list of things to be grateful for is far longer than any list of complaints I have ever compiled.  Gratitude.....hm mm....I like the feel of that word. 

Definition:   Gratitude, thankfulness, gratefulness, or appreciation is a positive emotion or attitude in acknowledgment of a benefit that one has received or will receive.

Yeah! Attitude! Got plenty of that! Emotion! I'm a woman for heaven's sake, no shortage of emotion here.  It's the positive part that sometimes hangs me up.  On many occasions, I have been Positive of something only to have it bite me in the rear.  O.K. that's enough about my mental and emotional shortcomings; let's talk about me and my day (narcissistic, too? had to use spellcheck.  if I can't spell it then I must not be it. right?).  There is much to be done today.  No matter what, the animals (dogs, cats, bird, fish) still have to be taken care of.

Even if I didn't want to get up, the unrelenting howling and whining
coming from these two would force me out of bed to feed
them just so there would be no mad neighbors!

After many fruitless attempts (bath in dawn, herbal spray, benadryl, neosporin) to calm Maggies' allergies, the time has come for a trip to see Stacey (Hubler Vet Service)  for a shot.  The shots make Maggie go wee-wee frequently with no control, which upsets her to no end.  No rug (and we have a ton of them) is safe (she especially likes the bathroom rug.  Becky says she goes to the right room that ought to count for something).  Usually this is not a problem but at the moment I can't do laundry because........it's rained so much the lateral lines aren't draining. 

Mags wore her sailor outfit to visit Stacey.
Duke (Indy) came in to say hello.

We made our usual stop at McDonald's for Maggie's chicken.

Becky's plane lands in Tulsa at 4:30 p.m. today. It was a difficult trip to Denver for her (nose bleed, fatigue, headache; she is not accustomed to the altitude).  She has requested her favorite meal (not cold cereal again)--Spaghetti with vegetarian meat substitute.  Not a seven course meal: just spaghetti.  No problem. In the meantime, Maggie is taking a little nap so she can play with Becky when she gets home.

It's been a long week for a little girl.

It's been a long week for all of us and we still have another day left. Perhaps a tiny reprieve from the rain and a little sunshine will revive our souls.  Oklahomans are not strangers to disaster.  Natural or man-made.  We live in tornado alley, we suffer drought and flooding (all of Mother Natures extremes), poverty (At the end of 2010, more than 779,000 Oklahomans were on food stamps according to Janet Pearson's article in the Tulsa World) and the riches (all of the financial extremes) that the oil and gas business brings.

If one of us is hurt, we all bleed. Life can beat us to the ground but we will still stand and meet the challenge. Just heard Reba McIntire and Blake Shelton are doing a benefit concert for the Atoka County, Oklahoma victims of the tornadoes.  Okies helping Okies.  That's what I'm talking about! 

We are survivors!  We are Oklahomans!

We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival. 

Winston Churchill

Please......Send Me A Rainbow!

Memo From God

And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and   all  living  creatures  of every kind.  Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. ¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

Dear Lord:

I know your busy but could we have a little chat. I am not writing to complain (much) but could you please turn the spigot off.  We were in a drought and desperately needed rain but.......a flood?  Whomever you made director of cloud control is not doing their job.  Did they go to sleep and forget to turn off the faucet?  Did they not get the memo (see blue area above)? 

Oklahoma has gone from fighting raging wildfires to flood control. In less than a week!  Please send me a rainbow!  There is water, water everywhere!  More rain in the forcast and I really need a sign from you.

And it rained...............................

and it rained.......................

I always wanted a property with a little creek running through it. 
Now I have it!

Front yard creek ........more rain pouring down.

Back yard creek......... more rain pouring down.
Pic is not blurry, it is rain wrapped!

My new favorite T.V. show is "Breaking Weather" because that's what's on every channel. I've learned a new phrase "rain wrapped" (translation:  you can't see nothin). This is today's latest warning from the National Weather Service in Tulsa:

* widespread heavy rain has occurred across much of eastern
Oklahoma... and northwest Arkansas. Rainfall amounts of 4 to 8
inches have been common across this area over the past 48 to 72
hours... with local amounts exceeding 10 inches. Additional
rounds of heavy rains will spread across the watch area
today... before ending by early evening. Additional rainfall
amounts of 1 to 4 inches is expected through today. The rainfall
totals over the past three days could easily top 12 inches
across portions of northwest Arkansas and adjacent areas of far
eastern Oklahoma.

Becky snapped this pic between cloud burst yesterday.

This morning Becky had to find an alternate route to work because the roads were flooded on two of the other routes.  It's hard enough getting from here to there without road closings!  She is leaving for a business trip to Denver today and I'm sure she will be glad to leave all this flooding behind.

Pushka seeking higher ground from the flood waters.

The barn is flooded and the pups are getting web-footed!  The garden room tried to flood (stemmed the flow with lots of towels) and I'm getting web-footed!  It's so wet, even the ducks have left.  Simple Living at it's most challenging!  So, back to my original request:  please send me a rainbow. 

Thank you for your time Lord.

Sincerely,
It's Me Again

  

A little Creedence Clearwater Revival to help me through the day (Who'll Stop The Rain).  No matter what difficulties you may face, there is always a rainbow just around the corner. 

Noon:30 Update:    Still raining and raining and raining................

You Can't Eat Money

Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find money cannot be eaten.
~ Cree Prophecy



This is more my country style for a salad garden with instructions at Real Simple.

The mild weather (after what winter has put us through I consider anything above freezing "mild") this morning intensifies my Spring Fever.  Is Mother Nature playing a trick on me?  We still have a full month of winter left and anything can happen.  I am a get er done kind of gal so the Patience is a Virtue concept is something for me to contend with. What the heck....I still want to start my preparations for my container garden today.  Really, I just want to feel the sunshine bathe my face and feel close to Nature and God.  No high dollar fragrance ever created by mankind can beat the smell of fresh-turned earth or donkey pooh. 

First thing I need to do is round up all my containers.  This requires a trip to my scary barn (boots required. no telling what's living in there besides two cats).

I think  a couple of "Lost Cities" may be in there.

Finding containers to plant my vegetable garden won't be a problem because I see a number of them oozing out of the barn.  Told you it was scary.  Organizing the containers is my project of the day in addition to my other daily chores.  My soul is singing "I want to plant, I want to plant, I want to plant". but the mundane things must be done before I can travel that path. But first here is my other passion..........

History has become my Muse (in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature are the goddesses or spirits who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. ...).
I am fascinated by the Native Americans that lived here before us.  They were true survivors.
A brief history lesson: 

In the 1830’s, gold was discovered in Georgia. The settlers began to covet the Cherokee homelands, and a period of Indian Removals began to make way for more white settlement. In 1838, thousands of Cherokee men, women and children were rounded up and marched 1,000 miles to Indian Territory, known today as the state of Oklahoma. Thousands died in the internment camps, on the trail, and after arrival (due to the effects of the journey.)

Becky is a card carrying  CDIB (Certified Degree of Indian Blood) Cherokee.  We can learn much about living off the land from the Ancient Ones. Bet they never went hungry until the White Man came. For those of you wanting to learn more, I have provided a link to the official Cherokee Nation website.   

When the white man discovered this country Indians were running it.

No taxes no debt, women did all the work

White man thought he could improve on a system like this.
~ Old Cherokee Saying

 

Oklahoma Blizzard 2011

 What the caterpillar calls the end of the world,

the master calls a butterfly.

 Richard Bach

We survived the history making 2011 blizzard here in Oklahoma.  Now it is just snowing and snowing and snowing!  Our driveway has been graded twice by really good neighbors and we still can't get out!  It has disappeared under the frozen tundra that defies explanation even for Oklahoma weather patterns.
Note to self:  Before next winter arrives, buy a four wheel drive pick up truck.  All the cool people have one.

The power stayed on, Thank You Jesus.  Our neighbors and family have  been calling to check on us to see if we need anything.  I love living in the country in Oklahoma (except when we can't escape).  The  simple truth is: people really care about each other. 

Here are a few pics I took this morning when the snow started to fall again:

Southwest View from front porch.

Northwest view from back porch.



Doggie runway .



Looking East from front porch.

This afternoon Becky made snow ice cream so we snapped a few more pics when she went out:

Becky gathers clean snow for ice cream.

Sophie is planning an escape if it ever stops snowing.

Won't be needing these lawn chairs anytime soon.

I know the snow will stop sooner or later because the world doesn't end in a snow-ma-geddon.  This is just a wake up call to let us know we are living in strange times.  The weather man says more stuff falling from the sky on Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Note to self:  Read Matthew 24 again to make sure world doesn't end in ice and refresh my memory on signs of the end times.

Simple Living is all about making do with  what you have.  So, I must pose a question here.  Does anyone have a homemade recipe for toilet paper?  We had a case ordered to be delivered on Wednesday to our home.  Guess what?  It didn't make it.

My sister, Joyce, tells me that we must look on the positive side of things.  The groundhog did not see it's shadow so we are going to have an early spring.  I was feeling a little grumpy so I replied, "yeah, but he doesn't live in Oklahoma."
P.S. I wrote this Friday but the Internet connection was so slow that I fell asleep before I could post it.

Small Town, U.S.A.

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful.  ~Buddha

My Deep Thought For The Day:

I view each day of my life as a mystery, a secret if you will, waiting to be revealed.  Some days the answers reveal themselves and some days I have to search to make sense of it all.  But no matter what the day brings, it is a precious day of my life to be spent wisely.

This afternoon, I have to go into town.  Not Muskogee town but Warner town.  Huge difference!  Instead of being filled with dread (because it always takes me at least four hours to get all my stuff done in Muskogee), I can anticipate an enjoyable trip to Warner.  A quaint small town atmosphere permeates every inch of this lovely community.  There are no stop lights in town, everyone knows everyone and friendliness is the key ingredient in everyday life.  It is the home of Connors State College (a two year college full of eager and not so eager students). 

My first stop will be Cross Telephone Company.  Before online bill paying came along, it could be a little confusing to pay utility bills in my neck of the woods.  The water comes from Muskogee, the electric from Okmulgee, Oklahoma Natural Gas from who knows where and, as I said, the telephone from Warner (I have no choice here).  When I want to dig in the yard, I have to call OKIE first to mark any existing lines.  It can get complicated.

These are some of the places I stop when I go to Warner, Oklahoma:

This is a real hot spot in town.



This is the only grocery store in town.

The local hardware store is the real heart of the community.  If you need anything and can't find it, the great people who work there can take you to it and tell you how to use it.  Many times when I go into the store, they will ask, "What are you trying to do?' (most of the time I don't really know) and then offer great advice on how to do it.  They are #1 in my book for customer service.




They have just about anything you would need.



 Now it's time to visit my favorite place in any community.  If the hardware store is the heart of this community, then the library is the soul.  The wonderful people who work there are so friendly and helpful.  I just heave a big sigh of contentment when I walk into this oasis in the middle of the chaos of the world.

Love, love, love the library.  The small size of this building belies the content.

And last but not least is the Warner Post Office.  I still have a P.O. box there because I haven't had time to change my address with all the junk mail companies (killers of trees).

The Warner, Oklahoma Post Office is located next door to the library.

And so my day went much too quickly.  I am now home with my reusable Eco bag full of books from the library.  I am one happy girl.  Living Simply is just my style and small town (eight miles away) living suits me just fine, thank you very much!

A Day of Pure Bliss

Secret #1
We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.

                                                                                                                           Joseph Campbell

Our day started at 5:30 a.m. this morning.  A rogue cell phone alarm clock screamed a snappy tune while I was still deep in my dream state. And joy of all joy, it has an automatic snooze button so there is no escape except to physically go to the living room and shut the darn thing off.  Good thing Becky got there first or the offensive smart phone could have found itself damaged beyond repair. If the dog gone thing was so smart (smart phone my foot) it would have known it was a holiday and we get to sleep in. Half a pot of coffee later, I'm finally coming back to the land of the living.  Becky prepared us a lovely energy shake for breakfast.  Due to the holidays, she has a few days off work.

A couple of months ago, Becky decided to learn to cook and blog about it (Becky Cooks Lightly).  Having a second cook in the house is the best thing ever.  I am eating healthier than any other time in my life not to mention how great the food is. 

For Christmas, Becky gave me a cleaver little solar powered rainbow maker from Amazon.com. The small device is attached to a window by a simple suction cup. Why didn't I think of that? Anyway, we lounged in the converted garage/garden room enjoying the play of colors all around the room and reading real books made of real paper.  Of course Maggie Mae (d.o.g.) and Molly (c.a.t.) joined us.  Sophie (c.a.t. #2) was banished to the back half of the house because she has developed a nasty attitude toward her adopted sisters.  She seems to have forgotten that she too was someones'  throw away before she landed in the lap of luxury at our home. Izzie (c.a.t.#1), Grabby Britches (c.a.t. last but not least) and the two wieners (d.o.g.s.) just hung out doing whatever happy pets do.

Maggie Mae and Molly

We share our home with three dogs, four cats, a fish and a lovebird that has outlived several of our other pets who all died from natural causes (doesn't make it any less traumatizing). I will share their individual rescue stories with you a little at a time.  Don't want to sound like one of those crazed people who go on and on about their animals, but I am.

Lunch was unbelievable!  The salad Becky prepared was so delicious and absolutely beautiful to behold. We reheated the spiral cut ham that guardian angel Gene gave Becky for Christmas.

 The weather is unusually warm and sunny for a winter's day in Oklahoma.  Even the bees have come out of their hive which is located in the hollow limb of a huge silver leaf maple tree ten feet from the front door. We all live in harmony having agreed "do no harm" works both ways. Heaven on earth. Pure bliss.

After lunch, Maggie Mae was repeatedly going to the front door.  Oh yeah, time to drive up to the road to check the mailbox.  Yes, we drive to the mailbox, it's not like it's 15 feet away!  There is a five acre track of land that separates us from the rest of humanity.  Mags lives for this part of the day.  Sometimes we take a drive around our neighborhood singing "driving around Maggie's neighborhood, oh what a beautiful day it is."  Yeah, I am more than a  little eccentric but that's o.k. because I want to be a whole lot eccentric.  While Mags and I are out touring the sites of Keefeton, America, Becky is once again in the kitchen.  This time she is baking chocolate zucchini bread.  What a blessing to have a daughter that loves to cook!  Joy! Joy! Joy!

Life in the country is grand