Music Bling

What can I say about music? More scholarly people than I have written beautiful praises of the mysteries and powers of music. What could I possibly add?

I know first hand what music does for me. Excites me.Heals me.Comforts me.Brings me happiness and joy. Settles me into a spiritual place of peacefulness and contemplation. See the powers of music? Hear the powers of music?

I envy people with musical abilities. My ability is listening. I appreciate what I hear. I understand the meanings of the tones and feel the powerful emotions they invoke.

I remember a conversation with Dick one day as I was listening to classical music sung by Andrea Bocelli. Dick asked me why I listened to a language I couldn't understand? What could I get from the song, not knowing what was being said ? My only response was I felt the music. I could understand the joy and sorrow by the music. I felt the emotions inferred by the music. He could not understand what I was saying and I could not understand why he didn't hear what I could hear in the music.

Music speaks of faith, love, anger, power, greed, hatred, pain, joy, sorrow, hope, renewal, fear, courage,despair and on and on.  Music speaks to my heart. I listen with my heart.
I cannot imagine an existence without music. My world would be missing a major Sparkle.

Music creates a Sparkle in my life. My Bling today is my Ipod and the Sparkle it brings me.

We're not in Kansas Dorothy !

Tornadoes----what is that all about? Don't we already deal with enough stuff here? Dodging flying cows  and old ladies on bicycles. Houses that land on the witchy ones are okay. But all the drama that comes with that may not make it worth waiting to see the Ruby Slippers. We don't all get to click our heals and go back home. Some of us stay around to clean up the mess.

I have lived through way too many tornadoes and believe me they are no fun. Scary,scary,SCARY!

Lost many things in those tornadoes. Some of my favorite things. No -not the Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music favorite things. You know things that are not replaced easily things. Nerves, security, peace, and the thought that nature is all pretty pictures. Beautiful sunsets. Glorious skies. Grand mountains. Nature is  a powerful force at times and demands respect. Tornadoes deserve respect and every chance they pop their evil head up I am respectful.

I have been in basements,dirt holes called root cellars,ditches,closets,bathrooms, under beds,mattresses,sofas, carpet and each and every time I come out with even more respect than I had before.

I once walked out of my home-through a broken window-going for help for my two brothers still in the house.I crawled over furniture, out from under carpet to get to the window and walked on the broken glass to get help. Went to many doors before someone would open and help me go back for my brothers. So believe me I have repect for tornadoes.

I don't easily go into safety. I'm somewhat like a caged animal. Walking from door to door. Window to  window. Watching the skies. Feeling the air. Smelling the atmosphere for the respect factor. But when that noticeable trait becomes aware to me and I head for shelter. You better take heed. Because it is near and screaming for respect.

There aren't any cute Lilliputians that will come singing ,taking you to the Great Oz for directions home. No Glenda the Good Witch to remind you there's no place like home, because your home is in pieces all around you. You can see for yourself it is not as it was. All the King's horses can't put it back together again. You will.

You will learn the respect factor if ever you survive a tornado. You will see first hand there is no place like your home in ruins all around. You become aware of the signs of when to duck for cover.You will miss your sense of safety. You will learn to be respectful of Nature and it's force.

              Follow the warning advice and live to Sparkle another day.

       I survived another night of tornadoes. So tomorrow I Sparkle on.

Today's Bling Sponsered by Keylime

Okay I know some may not be in the same mind set as I when it comes to today's topic but it is just in good fun. DRINKING !! You know sometimes you just need a stiff drink to get through the day. Some days are "I hate the World" days, some are" I have noone to Love me"days, some days say" Things Suck" and then there are those days when "A Drink Would Be Good".Haven"t had a buzz in a while so lets head to the bar for a good one. Some buzzes come from beer.Some buzzes come from Wild Turkey 101 and Coke.Rum and Cokes are good .Cabo Wabo is great but today's buzz was sponsered by a new friend --KEYLIME MARTINI....mmmmmmmmmmmm good. Like a dessert !!  I found this new drink in Royse City ,Texas at the Fish Camp restaurant . New food spot and will most likely be around for some time. Good food (although Rockwall's Zanata was number one for this trip) good atmosphere and a great drink. I'll be back---for sure. One thing you need to know is the Fish Camp isn't located in the city. You must drive into the country. Down two lane small country roads to this place,but worth the drive. Just remember you have to drive back out of the country after your Keylime martinis. Some days are worth the touble to find a new Bling and today's Bling was that Keylime Martini. It made me Sparkle-hehehe. So tip your glass and get your Sparkle on.

Cottage Conrad Bling

There is a cute liitle place I get to retreat to from time to time--Cottage Conrad. This is a place that brings me peace and comforts me like a pair of caring arms. This cottage is a major Sparkle in my life and I thank God for putting in my path. I have taken friends there that say sweet things about their stay . Just what I want to hear ! Hopefully this will be a treasure to pass on to family for their comfort and place of solace. Coming to terms with the changes in my life over the past two years, this is the spot that takes away from these changes and I just enjoy myself. It's no mansion but it feels like a palace to me. I'm not sure what it is about this place and I don't care --I 'm just grateful I have it. I hope you are blessed with a similar place of joy. Whether it is a cottage ,a room or a spot under a favorite tree. Some place that brings out your Sparkle.

Learning to See What I was Given

April 12,2010 will be our 41rst anniversary. The last three I have celebrated on my own. It is still difficult to see all I -we- were given and not ache for what is missing. Knowing each other for 40 years and married for 38 of those years. We had six great children. Dick knew 12 of the 13 grandchildren. We owned in our lives together two homes. The last one we shared is now on the market and waiting for another family. I know in my mind what blessings we shared but my heart still misses the things I lost. I say I lost because where Dick is today these things are of no matter to him. His heart is full of love and joy I could only imagine.My heart is full of the only love I have known. Dick and my family. As tomorrow's date approaches I fall closer to the ache of my heart and farther away from the Bling of my life. I am always amazed as to how two organs can live in one body and feel so seperate. My brain seems to have no connection to my heart. Rational thought does not tie into the feelings of my heart.You would think that after your brain has been told the information of your loved one's death and all the sentiments of him being in a better places and times heals all hurts that your heart would catch -on and stop pleading for your lost love.
I have been given many things of this world and oh so many blessings. One of my blessings is knowing and sharing my life with Dick. Knowing that he loved me almost from the moment we met. Knowing he loved his family and worked to provide for his family. I know he was a gift to me from God .He was made for me. And after knowing all of this I think that is what keeps my brain and heart seperate--- I had the perfect and complete love of my life . Yes - we were all too human in our treatment of each other. We had good and bad times but truly the feeling never changed. We were no different from many other couples=but the feelings never changed. How do you go from having that love to no love because you know it will never be the same? Everyone says some day things will be different and better, but what if you don't want different --you want what was ? What was the love you know you were meant to have. I want my children to know their parents loved each other. I want them to know we loved our children. I want our children to be blessed with the same deep love we had----and to see that love and appreciate it. I did not have grandparents most of my life. I did not have my parents in my life for most of it. I did not have a sense of home growing up.  The first and true constant in my life was Dick. For the most of my life, thus far ,Dick and our lives together was and still is the safest and truest place I ever felt that I belonged.

Time Line

I sometimes sit and wonder what I have done with my life? Do you ever do that and think -what have I accomplished? I've been blessed in so many areas but -still-what is my "Thing" to leave the world that says I was here? Something to add to life that I did? Hopefully my life is for the betterment of humankind? I always "TRIED" to be a good person. I admit I ,at times, fell short of the good part.I would then make an effort to correct the not so good . I don't attempt to cheat or abuse anyone. (My children may argue that.) Fair treatment for myself is what I wanted and would do the same for others. Charitable and not only when I was "flush" with income. Perhaps what I could offer was me and time--you can imagine with 6 children--but I made the offer.Tried to teach these traits to my children and show them we were fortunate in many aspects of our lives. These are treatments in which all peoples are entitled. I will never be a great artist ,literary scholar nor cure any diseases but I have done these following ....... 
Marry@ 16, Mother@ 17 , Homeowner @ 22 ,  Mother of 6@ 34 ,  Montessori teacher@ 36 , Grandmother@ 37, Orphaned @ 41, Married 25 years@ 42, Owned first Business@ 43 ,Widowed@ 55, Grandmother to 13@ 55, and Would have been married for 41years@ 58.

Are These Sparkles !?!?!?

Can one say one's taxman is a Sparkle???? I'm a little confused on that. I like my accountant and he does many wonderful things for me but he also comes with a bill. I was just able, Monday, to leave all of my tax "stuff" with him and am expecting an extention filed on my taxes for 2009. How much fun is that--to wait even longer to hear the bad (hopefully good) news on my taxes? Did I have enough deductions and/or any credits? It's enough to make a crazy person sane ! Who was in charge of this financial time of year? Don't THEY know we just had Christmas and other holidays--our pockets are empty and credit cards maxed! On top of Uncle Sam's hand always open now we deal with insurance. Vehicle , property and the even forced upon us HEALTH insurance. The trouble is we need all of these! Who will fix the brokeness of all our treasures if we didn't have insurance ? Who would help care for us more SEASONED beings if not for insurance-goodness knows there will be no governmental help. They don't have any money either. I think I will go on the search for a witch doctor. At least I can expect a cure or my head shrunk enough my headache will be gone. So I guess what I want out of this deal with insurance and taxes is to not have to pay(unlikely) or maybe a refund that could help with the insurance. What else is there to do but fret over insurance and taxes?Another thing I would like is for any of you Sparkles reading this to say it will be Okay. We are not alone at this time of year. I think Noah's boat was smaller than the one we are all in now. Everyone grab your oars and let's row the *#^#@* out of here.  Sparkle on my over taxed fellow Blingers.

Catch 22 Sparkles

Isn't life full of Catch 22 situations? I wonder if we ever notice all of those times we are in the proverbial "crack" between a "rock and a hard place"? Today I'm in the "crack". My dilemma is our usual Easter traditions -egg hunt ,big meal, friends and The Picture on the Front Porch. Everything is great and wonderful but the situation is bittersweet. Easter was always a very big gathering of all the children and grandchildren,friends and DOZENS of eggs. Hundreds and hundreds of eggs that took an hour to hide. The scavenger hunt eggs that required prizes at the end of the hunt. BIG-BIG traditions to deal with here.Part of the dilemma is the picture -for me-on the front porch. We are missing a very significant part of this picture--Grandpa,PaPa and the many other names given to him. NO one could start hunting until the picture was taken and then we started with the babies. After the babies was the next appropriate age group until all were eventually allowed to hunt. Everyone needed a fair start at the hunt so all had somewhat of an equal amount or at least everyone was content with their portion. We then gathered in the main room to check the "booty". Candy,bunnies,prizes--all the catch of the day. Of course noone escaped grandpa raiding their stash of goodies. He would try to tell all the "GOLDEN EGG" they found with the money inside was also his to claim---someone had to reimburse the Easter Bunny? I had figured over the last two years since loosing PaPa everyone had adjusted to not doing the holidays as we had celebrated before--you know change things up alittle. WRONG-WRONG on my figuring. I was shown that today by a very upset child of mine. I made a promise today to "do better next Easter". I was shown as the surviving parent that sometimes the Catch 22 is to choose between getting past my pain and seeing my child's pain. Pain is pain and the pain caused by a death is everyday and relived in many memories. Today -this Easter- I put down my pain and pick up the pain of my child. I will put on my Bling and Sparkle for that child. Let the hunt begin........ after the picture on the front porch.  Have a Blessed Easter and shine on.