I May Be Away for Awhile

 Dear warm, wonderful J-land friends.  I may be away for some time.  Hubby wants us to take a hiatus from the internet.  I don't completely understand his reasons, but will go along with them if that is what he chooses.

I will miss you all terribly.  Your names will remain in my prayers.

Here's hoping it is not for too long! 

May the Lord stand between me and thee while we are apart one from another.

Barbara

                     

P.S.  If you haven't read the entry about Daddy, please do.

 

 

Daddy on My Mind

Several different journal entries I have been to lately have brought back vivid memories of my Daddy.  So, I decided that I'd like to reminisce about him a little.

He was one of fourteen children.  Dirt poor cotton farmers.  His own father died when he was in High School, so Daddy had to drop out and work as one of the oldest sons.  He went into the army for WWII.  Never spoke much of those days.  Except when the movie the Battle of the Bulge would come on TV.  Then he'd be agreeing and disagreeing with its accuracy, as he fought there.  I overheard him sharing with a nephew who was having nightmares after Vietnam how the infantry lined up and marched across the fields, ahead of the tanks and artillery.  Seems to lose one man (maybe two) on foot was more efficient than to lose 5 men in a tank along with the support it provided should a land mine be in the path.

Daddy came back to the states and got into heavy duty equipment operating.  He was union and proud of it.  He worked in and visited every state except for Alaska and Hawaii.  His sisters used to tell me how he'd be home and have a little money, he'd take them to the picture show.....he sat outside on the sidewalk and talked with passersby.

Daddy loved good conversation and playing straight dominoes.  He was very good.  I played him many times, but never beat him.  After two or three plays he could tell you every domino in your hand!

He married, but never had a child.  They ended up divorced.  I don't know why really.  Then he met Mama, who had more or less been abandoned with two little girls by her first husband.  He married her for her homemade buttermilk biscuits.  Daddy bought Mama's wedding ring, a pearl necklace for her, and her dress, shoes, purse for the wedding.

Eleven months later they had me!  Head full of hair that stood straight up.  But Daddy thought  I was something else.  Mama always said that Daddy thought the sun rose in my head and set in my feet.  He carried me all over the place, lying on a pillow in the front seat of the car, showing me off. 

He taught me to ride my bike.  Expected me to always do my best.  Showed me by example that all people were people and should be treated as such.  Loved to watch a good "shoot'em up."  Had me watching pro football with him when I was about 7 years old on until he died.  I remember when Johnny Unitas was the hottest quarterback going.  Daddy always acted silly for my friends when they would come over.  Would tell fairy tells all mixed up together, while making the biggest funniest faces.

Daddy bought an old jenny when I was young and started to raise a garden every year.  Jenny outlived him.  They would plow a round or two, stop and Daddy would smoke a Marlboro while Jenny had a bite or two of grass.  He could grow the sweetest watermelons you ever tasted.  And get more potatoes per hill than anyone I've seen since. 

He taught me to believe I could do or be anything I wanted to be.  But cut me short for any thing that sounded like "Well, I'd never!"  He'd shake his head and very seriously say, "Never say never.....you have no idea what life might give you."

One of the last things he ever taught me to do, before he became sick with cancer, was to drive.  He wasn't satisfied that I could take a car down the road.  Oh, no.  I had to take it half way up the steepest hill he could find, come to a complete stop, and then start off again without jerking, dying or spinning a tire.  (This was a standard transmission, mind you.)  And then there was the narrow little lane he had me go down.  Just wide enough for one car.  Steep ditches on either side.  Said "Stop."  a piece down it.  Then, "Okay, turn around."  I just looked at him like he was crazy at first.  Then I realized by the look on his face, we were going to do it.  Back and forth, forwards and backwards, inch by inch (no power steering, mind you.)  But I did it!  And have had to use that skill many times in my life.  I think he knew even then he wouldn't be around to bail me out of a tight fix.

But the lessons kept coming, even a year or more after he passed away.  Every so often there would be a knock on our front door.  Some ordinary working man standing on the porch.  "Just got back in the area."  Or, "I know it's been longer than I said."  But the reason was always the same.  To pay back the money that Daddy had lent to them.
 
I am proud to be my Daddy's daughter.  And I am proud my husband chose to name our son after him.  And  he is the spitting image of my Daddy at his age.  I think he may just measure up to be somewhere near the man he was, too.

I, Too, Was Tagged!!

I've been tagged by Theresa!!  And maybe by others....I've been too busy this week to read journals.  :(

There were rules....but I'm so late till we'll do this...If you wanted to play, but weren't tagged, send me an email saying you want to play, and I'll add a link to you in this entry.

Five thing that drive me CRAZY:

Only five things?!  That seems very unfair, as there are so many.  

 Here's a few off the top of my head:

1.  People, be they company or family, that don't want to eat the food you prepared for them.

2.  Socks!  Because they multiply on the floor and disappear in the dryer.

3.  Children who keep on talking and asking after you have given them your FINAL answer!

4.  Dogs that bark for no apparent reason.

5.  Co-workers who bring you their work late, so that now your work is late.

Five already???  Gee, I was just getting warmed up. 

If you have already played this game and come to this entry, be sure to leave a comment with a link to your own list. 

P.S.  Are we ALL now using the newjournal format? 

P.S.S.  Spell check said I had perfect spelling!  Hey, there is a first time for everything!!

P.S.S.S.  Don't you just love the little dance the running man does in the new version of AOL Spyware Protection?!?

Hey!  We have a late player entering the game!  A new kid in J-land.  Give her a warm J-land welcome and and check out her answers at All About Me.

 

The Bliss of Marriage

Okay, I owe you all a serious, reflective piece.  But you're not getting it tonight.  Tonight I feel silly.  Tonight I want a good laugh and a little fun.  Those who have been with me from the beginning know that I ran a Devotional Series on Marriage not long after I started my journal.  Tonight, well......we look at some of the blissful moments of matrimony.  Enjoy!

            (Please, tell me you remember watching Red Skelton on TV!!  I don't want to be old alone.)

  Red Skelton's tips for a Happy Marriage:

1. Two times a week, we go to a nice restaurant, have a little beverage, then comes good food and companionship. She goes on Tuesdays, I go on Fridays.

2. We also sleep in separate beds. Hers is in Ontario and mine is in Tucson.

3. I take my wife everywhere, but she keeps finding her way back.

4. I asked my wife where she wanted to go for our anniversary. "Somewhere I haven't been in a long time!" she said. So I suggested the kitchen.

5. We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.

6. She has an electric blender, electric toaster and electric bread maker. Then she said "There are too many gadgets and no place to sit down!" So I bought her an electric chair.

7. My wife told me the car wasn't running well because there was water in the carburetor. I asked where the car was, she told me "In the Lake."

8. She got a mudpack and looked great for two days. Then the mud fell off.

9. She ran after the garbage truck, yelling "Am I too late for the garbage?" The driver said "No, jump in!"

10. Remember. Marriage is the number one cause of divorce.

11. I married Miss Right. I just didn't know her first name was Always.

12. I haven't spoken to my wife in 18 months. I don't like to interrupt her.

13. The last fight was my fault. My wife asked "What's on the TV?" I said "Dust!"  

  The 10 Commandments of Marriage  

Commandment 1.

Marriages are made in heaven. But so again, are thunder and lightning.

Commandment 2.

If you want your spouse to listen and pay strict attention to every word you say, talk in your sleep.

Commandment 3.

Marriage is grand -- and divorce is at least 100 grand!

Commandment 4.

Married life is very frustrating. In the first year of marriage, the man speaks and the woman listens. In the second year, the woman speaks and the man listens. In the third year, they both speak and the neighbors listen.

Commandment 5.

When a man opens the door of his car for his wife, you can be sure of one thing: Either the car is new or the wife is.

Commandment 6.

Marriage is when a man and woman become as one; the trouble starts when they try to decide which one.

Commandment 7.

Before marriage, a man will lie awake all night thinking about something you said. After marriage, he will fall asleep before you finish talking.

Commandment 8.

Every man wants a wife who is beautiful, understanding, economical, and a good cook. But the law allows only one wife.

Commandment 9.

Every woman wants a man who is handsome, understanding, economical and a considerate lover, but again, the law allows only one husband.

Commandment 10.

Man is incomplete until he marries. After that, he is finished.  

                  A Woman's Prayer                                                Dear Lord,

                              I pray for:  

                             Wisdom, To understand a man.

                             Love, To forgive him and;

                             Patience, For his moods.

                             Because, Lord, if I pray for Strength

                              I'll just beat him to death.

 

      *Public notice:  No husbands were harmed during the posting of this entry. 

Five Weird Things... Getting Tagged is Weird! (My first actual visit to a Beta journal!!)

I just had to do this!  I just visited the Wanderer and had my very first encounter with a Beta journal!!  Personally, I like it.  I think it will be easier to do many things and fun.  Don't see what all the hoopla was over.

You click on bgilmore725's screen name and you go to the AOL member page.  Same info as before.  (The little running man shows by the screen name in the journal, but you cannot tell if she is away or not from there.)

Link to this entry is the same.

I'm posting this using "blog about this entry".  Kept me from pulling up my page and doing a bunch of copy and paste.

Then there is "Incoming Links", which showed nothing about this particular entry.....but it is my understanding that it will link you back to articles and information on the web about the subject posted.  There are many journal entries I have read that have had me digging and searching for more info.

Last, and I think least "Notify AOL" is at the bottom of each entry, not just at the top of the page.  I think this would help the AOL powers that be determine exactly what someone was trying to report, better investigate and be more fair.

Anyway, I am off to the camp.  May rain today.  But I want a little more  time out of doors. 

 

What Makes Me Wierd....Or I was Tagged!

What I want to know is who told Linda there was anything weird about me??!!  It wasn't easy, but I managed to come up with a few things you might consider weird.  (I invited some canine friends to play along with me.)

1.  I go barefoot at the house almost all year round.  'Cept when it's cold, then I wear my bootie houseshoes.  Inside and out.  Sometimes even to the feed store, or a neighbors!

 

2.  I prefer to eat my mashed potatoes lightly salted....no gravy.  No matter what kind it is or how good. 

 

3.  I often answer the phone with a company name I worked for years ago.  Sometimes I have to go through a whole list to get it right!

 

4.  I don't like to sleep on Pete's shoulder unless he has on a tee shirt.  (I tend to sweat on him, no matter what the temperature is.  Plus, I love the scent of a clean tee shirt.)

 

5.  I teach Children's Church...although I never liked kids much.  (Notice passed tense.)  This is a testimony to what Jesus can do.  I tend to treat them as little adults...and find myself acting like a child!! LOL

 

NOW.....I get to make someone else confess their 5 weirdest traits.  Let's see.  I choose:

Angela,  Melodie,  Darlene,  Bea, & Jackie

I'll be checking up on you gals to see if you do it!  ;0)

God bless everyone abundantly in 2006!