😸 2024 June FROM MY PERSPECTIVE

I recently saw this essay account and wanted to share it with you.  It, also, spurred a visit from Aint Daisy, which is included.  Enjoy! Yesterday my daughter Grace was packing up to head back to her home after spending Christmas with me and she looked into my bedroom and said, "Do you do that everyday?" I replied, "Do what everyday?" She said, "Make your bed and put all those pillows on there?" I said, "Yes I do."  "Why, she responded, you are the only one who sees your bed?"  "Oh dear I make my bed every morning because it's a gift that I get to open at the end of everyday…a gift not everyone has. So while I'm wrapping my bed in the morning and I'm unwrapping it at night I'm reminded of what a great blessing my bed really is in my life."  When we stop viewing what we have as little, insignificant or not enough, then we get to see what we do have as gifts we get to enjoy great blessings in our lives and provision for our needs.  I'm thankful for my bed.

My visit to Aint Daisy-----Ain't Daisy called me one night and asked me to come to her house early in the morning, around 7:30, to share coffee and cinnamon buns she'd made. I hurriedly left my house about 7:15 arriving at the time she told me. She let me in and told me to go to the kitchen and wait. I noticed she was having a little trouble making the covers on her bed straight. I went in to help her. I asked, "Why don't you just leave it. You will be getting in the bed tonight, and besides, who is going to see an unmade bed?" She stopped, looked at me and said, "I realize no one but me will be a-seein' this bed. I make it every day a-cause it sets my discipline level for the day----it shows, t' me, I care about something not real important. It is, also a gift t' me from my Lord. He gave me a whole day and this bed is my reward at the end of that day. Sos, I take care of that gift by makin' it look nice. Makin' it look nice shows I'm grateful for the gift of another day. Those are the reasons I make my bed every day, sweet chile." Her words gave me something to think about. I had more wisdom given from the Lady of the Holler and went home to make my bed.

I’ve been the mother of two teen-aged boys; one during the years of 1987-1993, and the last one from 2006-2012.  If you have had boys, you know the insatiable hunger they possess.  In fact, one of my sons had such a high metabolism, it didn’t seem he could get full and wait four to six hours for another meal.  So, I bought pork and beans by the case.  He loved pork and beans and it was an inexpensive “snack” for him.  Here is what I dealt with on days where there was no school for either of them:  son had breakfast at 8, 9, 10:30, and 11. Lunch was at 12:30 and 1:30, then, a snack (2:45, 3:30, and 4:25).  Supper was at 5:30. They were 6'3" and 6’4” and weighed 160 and 175 pounds. We joined a bulk food club----Sam’s.  I called my broker asking about buying some Kroger stock!!!

It is important to know your blood type, especially if you have the rarest one-----AB-.  O negative blood is often called the 'universal blood type' because people of any blood type can receive it. This makes it vitally important in an emergency or when a patient's blood type is unknown.  Did you know that Greyhounds, Boxers, Irish Wolfhounds, German Shepherd Dogs, Dobermans, and Pit Bulls are breeds more likely to be universal donors of blood to other dogs?  Type A is most common (about 99% of cats in the United States are Type A). Certain breeds have a higher prevalence of Type B. Type AB is rare. There are no universal donors among cats, because they naturally have antibodies against the blood group antigen that they lack.  Breeds that have a rare occurrence of a blood type B allele are Siamese, Burmese, Russian Blue and Ocicat.

The word “PHONETICALLY” doesn’t even start with an “F”; neither does:  PHONE, PHOSPHOROUS, PHYSICIAN, PHASE, PHARMACY, PHOTOGRAPH and many more.  Then there is the “C”.  It doesn’t even have its own sound.  It borrows from the “K” and “S”.  No wonder aliens just fly on by our planet!!

When I taught speech, it was part of my plan to instill in the students that asking people questions that give them an opportunity to talk about themselves, helps with being a good conversationalist.  I used that little morsel when I was talking with someone who was disgruntled and I didn’t know very well.  I asked them, “What is wrong with you?”  Thinking I’d get a few sentences of reasons, how surprised I was when I got a filibuster!!

I recently saw a cartoon about a funeral home which does cremations.  The director was talking with a client’s wife on the telephone.  He said, “Mrs. Adams, I know everyone grieves in their own special way.  But, putting fireworks in your late husband’s pockets was not appreciated by our crematorium staff.” I guess my sense of humor is really warped because I could not stop laughing at the mental visual I had of the moment the fireworks went off and the staff was present.

I know a person who thinks they are “big sh** on a board, but really nothing but a fart on a splinter”.  They asked me to go to lunch with them on a particular day.   I told my dear friend, who also knows this person,  about the tentative lunch date.  She teasingly said, “Oh Trudy, are you sure you don’t want to spend time with her?  You’d have so much fun.”  I chuckled and informed her, “Yep, I’m positive.  I don’t relish spending time with farts and splinters.”  My friend cracked up.

I recently learned a new term. It is "GLIMMER". It is essentially the opposite of a "TRIGGER".  Glimmers are those micro moments in your day which make you feel joy, happiness, peace, or gratitude. Once you train your brain to be on the lookout for "glimmers", the more these moments will appear.  May you have many glimmers today---so many you just sparkle and shine.

I believe in asking questions.  Sometimes I ask rather difficult ones, but I do ask questions.  I find if I ask questions, someone will know the answer, they will feel important, and I’ll have more knowledge.  Do you see the domino effect?  You’re welcome.

A motorist was mailed a picture of his car speeding through an automated radar post in Plano, Texas.  A $40 speeding ticket was included.  Being cute, he sent the police dept. a picture of $40.  The police responded with another mailed photo of handcuffs.  This handcuff thing has always made me wonder:  how do you handcuff a one armed person?

While scrolling thorough a social media website, someone asked if the usage of the words “can” and “their” being used were correct.  I commented, “No, the ‘their’ isn’t.  It should be ‘THEY’RE’ which is a contraction for ‘THEY ARE’.   The word “CAN” could be correct if asking about ability; if asking permission, “MAY” would be correct.”  I supported my statements with my credentials of being a retired English teacher with a master’s degree who focused on grammar, spelling, and sentence structure; and also, a writer. Another reader stated to me, “Good grief.  Why don’t you lighten up?  Not everyone has your so called credentials!”  My reply to her was, “It’s never wrong to be right.  I realize not everyone has the credentials I do, but a lot can try to learn correct spelling and grammar. Perhaps you are not among them and choose to stay incorrect.”  I really wanted to say “stupid”, but I knew that would open a new can of verbiage which she just might not understand.  (I'm sorry about the change in font and size.  I don't know what happened, nor how to fix it.  My OCD is critical at this point!!  Yeesh!)

My friend, who has a lot of chickens, mentioned she had too many eggs and wanted to know if I wanted any.  I told her I’d like to have three dozen.  She told me that would be fine, but I needed to know they were green in color.  I told her, “Oh, good.  I’ll get some ham to go with them.”  She smiled and asked what I was going to do with so many green eggs and the ham.  I told her, “I’m going to make a Suess-flay.”

 Symbols like: !#%@, which used to indicate swearing or cursing in comic strips, are called GRAWLIX.  It looks to have been coined by Beetle Bailey cartoonist Mort Walker around 1964.  Though it’ yet to gain admission to the Oxford English Dictionary, OED editor-at-large  Jesse Sheidlower describes it as “undeniably useful, certainly a word, and one that I’d love to see used more.”

Mapmakers will often insert a tiny piece of incorrect information in their maps to prevent the illegal reproduction of their work.  Call a “copyright trap”, fake text might be a bogus street name or even the mapmakers’ initials hidden in the corner of a park.

What fills the heart is reflected on the face.

As always, Trudy