... May 2015

I have found out that since I speak English, I speak parts of more than a hundred languages.  Languages are a reflection of our interconnected history—they all borrow from each other.  New words are being added to American English every year, and other words are being dismissed in usage.  They’re not thrown away, they just become archaic.  Here is a website which will open your eyes and minds as to what languages we actually use in our language.  I was fascinated.

Where do nicknames come from?  Well, a lot of them come from the heart.  They are terms of endearment, I think.  Mother called me “Trudy Boo”; Daddy called me “Babe; my Beloved called me “Trute”; and my grandmother called me “Trudy Girl”.  I’ve had other nicknames, but I won’t say them here (J).  I call my son, Dane….”Buzz”, my daughter, Della….”Sweet Della”; my granddaughter, Tara…”Thelma Lou” and my grandson, Stephen…”Steffano”; my grandson, Will….”Will-I-Am”, and my granddaughter, CJ….”Muffin”.  I’ve referred to my two grandchildren, Tara and Stephen, as “The Terrorists” from time to time, and during the ages 13-19, The Two Teen Terrorists in Training” because they were.  My Grandmother Davis called my Granddaddy Davis, “Sam” although his name was not that at all.  I know you’re probably remembering the nicknames you have had.  Some are bringing a big smile, aren’t they?

I've been feeling a bit grumpy lately.  Happenings which irritated me, irresponsible people in a position of responsibility, the weather.....the general daily things I've had to deal with.  But, today while taking care of some business which was an irritation, I was asked by a complete stranger at the window of business, "How are you?"  I looked right into their eyes and said without thinking, "I'm living the blessings."  I have never said that before!  The hearing of myself saying this, and the look on their face told me a Higher Power was talking through me.  I felt so good after saying this.  So from now on, no matter how irritated or feeling of imposition I have, I'm going to say, "I'm living the blessings."  Now I'm passing it on to you....."HOW ARE YOU DOING?"

Brains of older people are slow because they know so much.  People do not decline mentally with age, it just takes them longer to recall facts because they have more information in their brains, scientists believe. Much like a computer struggles as the hard drive gets full, so, too, do humans.  We take longer to access information, it has been suggested.  Researchers say this slowing down is not the same as cognitive decline. The human brain works slower in old age, said Dr. Michael Ramscar, but only because we have stored more information over time. The brains of older people do not get weak. On the contrary, they simply know more.  Also, older people often go to another room to get something and when they get there, they stand there wondering what they came for.  It is NOT a memory problem; it is nature's way of making older people do more exercise.  SO THERE!!  
 

When I was a kid, I listened to THE LONE RANGER on the radio and watched it on television.  I have some of the programs on DVD and still enjoy them, even though they are rather schmaltzy.  Here are some things I didn’t know about the characters:  The Lone Ranger and sidekick Tonto often call each other "Kemosabe", which roughly translates as "faithful friend" in Potawatomi, a Central Algonquian language spoken by Native Americans around the Great Lakes in Michigan and Wisconsin.  A strict set of moral guidelines govern the Lone Ranger and Tonto's actions, ranging from philosophical musings ("all things must change but truth, and truth alone lives on forever") to more practical directions ("God put the firewood there, but every man must gather and light it himself"). Sage advice indeed! Only silver bullets will do for the Lone Ranger – supposedly because they remind him that life is precious and, like the bullets, shouldn't be wasted.  Whenever the Lone Ranger mounts his horse, Silver, he shouts the oft-imitated epithet "Hi Ho, Silver" (sometimes "Hi-yo, Silver"). He acquired Silver after saving the horse's life from an enraged buffalo; his original steed had a less dynamic name – Dusty.   

He that respects himself is safe from others; he wears a coat of mail that none can pierce. -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet (27 Feb 1807-1882) 

When I was teaching, I dealt with some students who were rather difficult and disrespectful (that’s putting it mildly!).  My thoughts were:  “How can one respect another when it is obvious they don’t respect themselves?  Respect has to be taught.  Someone at home is not doing their job, and someone right here has failed to learn.  Life will teach them respect; it will be a very difficult and hard lesson.”

My girlfriend, Brenduhh, was having some incontinence issues.  I told her to call the incontinence hotline for possible remedies to the problem.  She did.  They asked if she could hold.

A friend of mine came over and was talking about how she’s going to have to wear a sleeveless-strapless gown for a wedding she’s in.  She was grumbling about her upper arms’ size and being criticized by others.  Here is what I told her, “My thought on those who are critical of my arms---I have two; they both work; they give hugs to those who need a hug; I am thankful. I used to complain about my arms until I met someone who didn't have any.”

Uncle Horus came by for coffee.  He’s very wise and usually gives me something to think about and a lesson to learn.  I was telling him about a friend of mine who’d made a delicious cake and shared it with others.  She was very proud of the cake and had labored over it to make it look so pretty and taste so good.  Another friend was listening and told her, “Oh that’s nothing; I got a blue ribbon at the fair for the exact same cake.”  I asked him what he thought.  “Wahll,” he drawled, “That othern one ain’t a realizin’ that when yeh blow out anothern’s candle it ain’t a gonna make yers shine any brighter.” 

My autistic son is fascinated by the Southern/Western drawl and dialect.  He tries to mimic it and is rather convincing he could be from those areas, if you didn’t know it.  One of the people he deals with every day doesn’t like to hear it.  She tells him it sounds funny and he shouldn’t talk like that.  How interesting that she enjoys the movie ALADDIN with the voice over of Robin Williams and Looney Tune cartoons with the many voices of Mel Blanc.  I mentioned this to him knowing he’d tell her.  Then I got out my book which has the Uncle Remus TAR BABY story in it complete with the dialect of the Deep South.  I started to read it to him sounding just like it was written and pronounced (I used to live in Atlanta, GA where the author, Joel Chandler Harris, was born and raised and wrote the B’rer Rabbit stories, so I knew a little something about the pronunciations).  He was quite taken with the sounds of the words and asked how I learned to talk like that.  I told him, “It takes a lot of practice and enjoying what you’re doing.”  I heard him practicing his Southern/Western dialect.  I can only imagine what he’s going to say to the person who complains about his speech. 

Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You. -Dr. Seuss, author and illustrator (2 Mar 1904-1991)

I went to my hairdresser with a picture of a hairstyle I wanted.  She looked at it and made some suggestions of modifications.  I told her I wanted it just like the picture.  She squinted and said, “When you look exactly like the person wearing this hair style and when you ARE that person, I will give you that hairstyle.”  Her statement gave me something to consider. 

If you like someone set them free.  If they come back, it means nobody liked them.  Set them free, again!

I read where a glass of red wine is equivalent to an hour work out at the gym.  I drank a bottle-----I'm exhausted and can't get up from the floor exercise position.

“Confidence isn’t walking into a room thinking you’re better than everyone, it’s walking in not having to compare yourself to anyone at all.” 

Remember when your Mom called you by your full name?  You knew you were in trouble, for sure.  With mine, she’d go down the entire list of my names with strong emphasis on the one I didn’t like at all.

When I taught English at the high school level, I had one particular student who always complained about my corrections on his papers.  He, also, challenged my basic rules of the classroom and my authority.  One day after returning a stack of compositions to the class, he blurted out, “You are so picky on the compositions and always want everything exactly correct on them.  Your class rules are too strict and confining.  I hate this class and your it-has-to-be-this-way-and-correct attitude!”  The class was deathly quiet because of my demeanor past and present.  I calmly asked him what he planned to do after he graduated in 6 weeks.  He told me, “I’ve joined the Marines and will be working towards being a tower air traffic controller with technical writing.”  You know that look a mom gets when she’s thinking, “And, you think I’M difficult?”? I had that look.

I saw this sign:  “No, I’m not a smartass.  I’m a skilled, trained professional in pointing out the obvious, and I speak fluent sarcasm!” I am certified and have my Ph.D. in this. I've even taught it!  I am, also, NOT a nag.  I'm a motivational speaker with guidance counseling proficiency, suggestions, and applications.
 

Many of you know how much words and their origins fascinate me.  This quote was sent to me leading all of us to realize we are really walking, talking dictionaries.  “We open our mouths and out flow words whose ancestries we do not even know. We are walking lexicons. In a single sentence of idle chatter we preserve Latin, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse: we carry a museum inside our heads, each day we commemorate peoples of whom we have never heard.” -Penelope Lively, writer (b. 17 Mar 1933)

At a particular time in my life, I was seemingly besieged with sadness with one of my children’s behavior.  I cried, prayed, and talked with my minister.  During our conversation I told him I’d thought of looking for a saint to pray to hoping petitioning that particular saint would help my child and the circumstances.  Then it dawned on me, “Trudy, for crying out loud.  You’re Methodist, make a casserole, form a committee, and take the casserole to a potluck.”  It was then I found a bit of humor in my situation and chuckled.

Do you agree with this statement I told my 18 year old who became a catfish (all mouth and no brains) to me?  "Make your words sweet and your posturing flexible because you just may have to eat those words and bend over backwards to make amends."

If you don’t like me, but still watch everything I do and listen to my conversations, well……you’re still a fan.  Hahahaha

“Kraft is recalling a quarter of a million cases of macaroni and cheese that may contain small pieces of metal”; however, the real thing doesn’t, y’all.   

SMILES…..trudy :)