Bought the skeleton for Halloween, and decided he could wear a Santa Cap, and be Achmed Santa. He sits on my front porch greeting any and all who come to the house.
For those of you not familiar with Jeff Dunham's Achmed, The Dead Terrorist, please get a cuppa and enjoy at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uwOL4rB-go
Woke this morning to about 3 inches of the white stuff on the ground, and more coming down. It appears to have stopped for the moment. However, I won't bore you with more snow pictures. At least not right now.
Since my last post I've read several books (see below), received word a good friend died - Rebecca Neason was not only a good friend, but one of my favorite authors. Even though we were not in constant communication, I admit I miss her, terribly. I've lost too many friends this year, and have news more are not expected to see Christmas of 2011. So, I make the best of the ones I have left, and hope I can cheer them as much as they cheer me. Death happens. Grief hurts. Life goes on, albeit at a lonelier pace.
Luke, my grandson not only enlisted in the Army National Guard, he now has an official ship date for Basic - 19 Apr 11. He is going to try to slide that date to February! They sure do things differently than when I enlisted. Back then, we'd enlist, and be on an early flight to Basic the next day. Now they have lots of time to think about it - but no opportunity to back out;-)
I am, at long last, ready for Christmas - packages wrapped, mailed, etc. And hope all of you are likewise ready and can now enjoy the season. Unless, of course, you enjoy the last minute panic ;-)
My Gratefuls:
* Warm critters to snuggle with at night!
* That I was born in a time and place that education for girls was not only available, but the law.
* That I had the opportunity to work hard, and now can enjoy my retirement.
* That some wonderful goat herder in Arabia figured out how to make coffee
* That some enterprising monk figured out how to smuggle unroasted coffee beans out of Arabia ;-)
What I'm Reading:
Finished:
* An Echo in the Bone --by Diana Gabaldon. Per usual, a real page burner. And, of course, she ended it in a manner that leaves the reader KNOWING #8 is coming. I just hope I live long enough for her to finish, and me to read, all of the books in the series!
* The Story of My Life - by Farah Ahmedi, Tamim Ansary. I enjoyed this read tremendously. A bit hard in parts to read about what this young woman went through to get to the States (from Afghanistan) so she, too, could get an education. Wonder what the war over there is like from an Afghani perspective? Read this book!
*Time Master Trilogy -by Louise Cooper. I read this trilogy when it first came out in the mid 80s (I think) and enjoyed it immensely. And, I enjoyed it as much the second time through. A great story of Chaos v. Order.
Reading:
* Over the Edge of the World - still. I admit, the nook is too much fun at the moment;-)
* Bright-Sided -by Barbara Ehrenreich. A look at the downside of Positive Thinking. I'm having a hard time putting this one down, too. And, yes, there IS a downside to Positive Thinking.
* The Flag of Childhood - ed. by Naomi Shihab Nye. This is a collection of poetry from the Middle East, some of which are translated by her father, Azziz. I am truly enjoying the poems; however, I think the formatting was lost when it translated to nook. I suggest you buy the hard copy - it should be much easier to read. (There are no page breaks, one poem leads right into the next poem)
* The Butterfly's Burden -Darwish -- it will be a while before this one is finished. Beautiful poetry, to be savored, not devoured.
Quote for this Post:
"If you can survive Basic Training, you can survive anything--war, pestilence, childbirth...." -- SFC Annie B. Hawkins, USWAC
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