Wednesday Wanderings - Sarah

Today is Sarah's birthday and it is the 7-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.  Thank goodness Sarah and 2 of her 3 kids were here the day that Katrina blew into New Orleans and inundated her home.  After all was said and done, the water covered all but the rooftop of her 3-story apartment.  Sarah's apartment was on the ground floor.  All of the official reports said that no one knew what was happening in Chalmette and that no one could have known.  Yet - we knew.  Sarah maintained cellphone contact with a neighbor who stayed.  Everything was intact with no flooding throughout the worst part of the hurricane.  The water started rising after they thought the worst was over.  The levees had failed allowing unbelievable amounts of water to fill her neighborhood and her home.  Try to imagine water to the rooftop of a 3-story building and hers was a ground floor apartment.  She didn't cry but began planning.  Her home was gone and her job was gone.  Her children and Mother were safe - 2 here and 1 with her Mother in central Louisiana.  The company Sarah worked for had locations elsewhere in Louisiana.  Within a couple of days, she had a job in a new location, had the boys enrolled in school here, knew where there was room in a shelter, and was headed south to start over.  Seven years later, her daughter is a sophomore in college, the boys are juniors in high school, and she owns her own home.  Sarah is in her final semester at a college in her new hometown and will complete her Associate's Degree in December.  The shelter was at a church and through all of the hard times and hard work, she found God.

Sarah - I am so proud of you.  I love you and hope you have a wonderful day.

Garden - Progress

When we started, the yard looked far worse than the picture on the left. The ENTIRE yard - or at least all of the beds - were full of weeds.  This is one small section that had already been treated 2 times with Round-Up.  For 4+ weeks, we pulled weeds, dug weeds, used the tiller on weeds, and chopped weeds with the hoe.  It felt like they would never be cleared.  Of course, in a 4-week span of time, the weeds that had been cleared began to grow back.  Slowly, but surely, we made progress.  The waste management people had to wonder where 4 straight weeks of huge piles of yard waste came from.

The weeds, trees and vines came out, timbers were replaced or new beds were built and bags and bags of mulch were put in place.  The results were amazing.  The yard has become a pleasant place to be.  The beds still have to be weeded frequently and watering is critical because it has been so hot and dry.  We have 1 small section left to clear to expand the brick patio on the far backside of the house. 
We have a gazebo cover on the patio that is providing a great place to sit. The fountain is working well and the birds are loving the access to fresh water. 

 The pictures above and to the left show the fruits of our labor.  It is well worth the pain and effort. 

Gardening......Again

I've written more than once about trying to reclaim my gardens that have gotten completely out of control.  The last 2 years we've made a stab at it by pulling some weeds out in the "middle of the yard" beds and replanting some herbs that had died out.  This morning I walked out in the backyard and "dared" to look down the beds along the back of the house.  There were TREES - 1" in diameter TREES - in my very neglected beds.  I turned and walked back into the house.  Several minutes later I regained my resolve - gathered BIG tools - and started right at the end of the patio.  Instantly a pair of Cardinals created a huge amount of noise and the Mourning Doves joined in.  A closer inspection of the huge Flowering Quince that needed to be tackled first revealed a nest.  So...I carefully pruned a little off of the backside - taking care not to move the bush too much and then quickly moved on.  There are no "before" pictures because that image just doesn't need to be preserved.  Before long John joined me in tackling the jungle.  Three hours later, a 6'x12' section had been completed cleared - all of the old timbers removed - debris moved to the front yard - and a trench dug with 2 timbers marking the new lines.  Over the next few weeks we plan to continue down and around, removing a jungle of old daylilies, blackberry vines, general weeds, and rotten landscape timbers.  Pictures will follow when enough is accomplished to share.  I felt my 57 years today.  20 years ago I could continue at the pace for 6-8 hours.  3 hours was my limit and I'm worn out.  I plan to start earlier in the morning.  It was hot when we stopped working at 12:30.  I am very pleased with the progress and so blessed that my hubby who really doesn't like gardening is hanging in there with me.

A Beautiful Day in March

Today is a beautiful day - sunny skies, a little wind, and 80 degrees. Spring is here - in all her glory. Our Redbud is in full bloom and the Dogwood is close behind. The Flowering Quince and Carolina Jasmine are ending what was a beautiful show. The roses have a lot of new growth, the Lilac and Japanese Maple are leafing out, and the perennials are in various stages of waking up.

Jenn and Michael finished up a trout fishing trip and came into town for lunch and to pickup their dogs. We had a great visit before they had to get on the road. My time at the office passed quickly and was very productive.

Today is one of those days where there is great clarity and you know that life is good because God is good. For years I prayed for peace and joy. God has blessed me with an amazing husband, a wonderful daughter and son-in-law, and a great family. I have peace and joy in abundance.

It is a beautiful day...

Re-Post from - My Scenic Life...Views from a Road Less Traveled: A Walk in the Park

This is a re-posting from Jenn's Blog. This is a beautiful place to visit and revisit. Her photographs are amazing and I need to post the Nature-Themed Quilt and flower photographs that John took too.

My Scenic Life...Views from a Road Less Traveled: A Walk in the Park: As many of you know, I recently moved north Georgia, and I've had a great time exploring different parts of Atlanta, Athens, and many place...

Random Thoughts on Being Retired...

Today is the 16th working day since I retired. That being said - I have learned some interesting things about me and had some big and small revelations. I'm sure there are more to come.

• I based my self-worth TOTALLY on who I was at work
  
• I don't know how to relax
• I don't know how to sit still
• I need to learn how to cook on a day-to-day basis instead of just special occasions
• Buying cookbooks and collecting recipes is easy for me - using them is harder
  
• I still try to do it ALL. I tried reorganizing all that needed to be done at the same time and my house is trashed (see #2 and #3)
• I eat healthier at home than at work and I've lost 8.5 lbs (no stress eating)
• I really like not setting an alarm
• I am REALLY enjoying figuring out how to do "retired" (except today because my house is trashed)
• I am out of the habit of cleaning the house because a dear friend has done that for me since September 1992 and I miss Connie-days
• I am not sorry that I did it, but the whole money-thing is scary sometimes.
  

I am very blessed to have a wonderful husband who is supporting me through the process of learning to be me as a retired person. My family has encouraged me along the way.

It is "Well With My Soul"