A New Day

The shot heard around the world has become the vote heard around the world. Yesterday, Nov. 4, 2008, Election 2008, -- goes without saying -- is probably the most historic day I will ever witness in my life. Not to say that there haven't been historic events -- landing on the moon, the attack of America on our soil on Sept. 11, 2001, and other events. But this is one that is a long time coming, and one I'm happy to see for numerous reasons. Now we no longer have to say "if," but "when" for black Americans to be presidential candidates and presidents. I hope it is yet another step in the right direction for when blacks and whites can truly be friends, co-workers and a nation regardless of the color of their skin.

But much more than a race issue, I hope Obama will provide the leadership he's promised us and that his eloquent speech is backed up by substance. I have to have faith that it is. I don't expect him to be perfect in everything he does. I just expect him to try his best and use his best judgment based on the needs of the nation.

I don't really want to press my political views on those who might be reading this, but I do want to say that our wonderful Constitution compels us to support our new president. He may not have been your choice, but please try to give him a chance. If he doesn't do what we want him to, there's another election in four more years. That's what's great about this Great Nation of ours: our right to choose.

Now for something I think is funny. Last night, I watched the action unfolding, glued to my TV, which isn't like me for most political events. Mostly because I think it is a waste of my time. But last night was different. Anyway, living in the Southeast, our results were coming in first, and then there was a big lull waiting for time changes and polls to close across the nation.

Next thing I know, I wake up to see Obama and his family waving at the crowd. Biden and his family waving at the crowd. No one is saying anything. The announcers are quiet. I'm like "What is going on? Who won?" No one was talking. I couldn't tell who had won or lost. Then they all leave the stage, but Obama and his wife were the last to exit -- their heads coming together as they passed through the curtain. And I knew he had won. I stayed awake way too late hoping to see a replay of McCain's and Obama's speeches, but it never happened. I finally went to bed.

I felt like Cinderella who has not found her slipper: I missed the most important moment of the night. Thank goodness there's Internet.

On another note, this one sad: Bestselling author Michael Crichton died today of cancer. He's had a wonderful career entertaining lots of readers, movie goers and television viewers. Whether you like his work or not, this world has lost a great voice that won't be easily replaced. My thoughts and prayers are with his family.

The Crackle of an Open Fire....

As I sit here listening to the fire in my fire place crackle, I realize how lucky I am. I live in East Tennessee, and it is one of the most magnificent places in the fall, year round really, but I'm partial to the fall. Outside of my kitchen window, I can see a tree in the yard of a neighbor catty corner from me. It's a huge tree that looks as if someone has taken a paint brush and lightly colored the outer leaves in special spots with hints of orange and red.

Earlier in the evening, I walked my dog Nikki and relished in the changing colors of the trees in my neighborhood. Fall, as in the last few years, has come slowly. Cooler weather has only come to East Tennessee in this last week when it used to arrive in early September, and the colors are changing slowly. But the air was cool and crisp and not nearly as cold as last night. The smells of fireplaces already lit hang in my neighborhood like a long lost friend, nudging me to add mine to the bouquet.

A neighborhood boy of about 8 and his friend were looking for a lost puppy. I stopped and talked to them for a few minutes. He was sharing a review of a television show that I was not familiar with. He went on and on, and I really didn't know what he was talking about, but I tried to nod my head and make appropriate comments so as to not hurt his feelings and show interest. That's one of the reasons I love walking Nikki,\ -- I get to see who lives in my neighborhood and what their lives are like. As a "recovering journalist," I can't help but be curious.

During my walk, I thought about the elements that bring grace to my life, and I was grateful. My community, though hurting from the economic downward spiral, is not in as bad of shape as other communities. I have a job that I enjoy, and it seems stable. I have the companionship of my animals: two dogs, Nikki and Velvet, and two cats, Cody and Oop, and I am fortunate to live in a great neighborhood.

I'm not a Pollyanna; I face difficulties just as the next person. But there are times, when I need to feel grateful about my life, and this is one of them. It reminds me when I'm feeling down, that in spite of problems and difficulties, I have a good life.

What do you appreciate?

Typical Male

Okay, did I say Cody is full of himself?

I didn't mean it, really

I'm not sure if I've said it before, but I'm an animal lover and have had animals all of my adult life. Calli (Oop) and Cody are my two latest additions. As young kittens, they were found on a farm in middle Tennessee and ended up in Chattanooga with an animal lover. Via another animal lover and my good friend, Jeanne, they came to live with me. This is like six degrees of separation because it took those two animal lovers to hook up and rope me in to taking the cats, which I'm so grateful I did get them almost four years ago. I was visiting my friend in Chattanooga and instead of taking them with me, I ended up driving back down there to pick them up.

Oop, as I've nicknamed her, and Cody were close as kittens and always snuggled together. They don't do it as much now, but they always snuggled as youngsters.

I think Cody probably saved Oop's life by making sure she had food and protecting her. He is the outgoing cat, and she is more reserved. However, she has really come out of her shell in the last couple of years. And she is definitely a Mama's girl. I have a children's book in my head about their early days and loyalty, family and friendship. Maybe some day I'll get it written.

I say all this to share a photo from the other morning. I always bring my cats into the bathroom when I take a shower because Velvet, my chow, lays outside the door, and she doesn't like to be bothered. At 80 pounds, I don't want her to have any reasons to be aggravated. She has a lot of pain issues with arthritis in her back and has to take medications for that. So I don't want to add to her stress. Besides, the cats love drinking the water as it comes out the faucet and later lands on the walls and knobs.

Anyway, this one morning, Cody was in a particularly aggravating mood. I call him my little "agitator and aggravator" because he likes to pester everyone. So in my tiny bathroom, I was having to serve as referee while trying to shower and get ready for work.

Later that morning before I left for work, I found the two of them had kissed and made up. They snuggled like they had as kittens. It was an "Ahhh" moment. I know I'm ridiculous, but it was so sweet I took the photo.

People who don't have animals don't understand that they all have their own personalities. I hope to share more about my cats and dogs and they wonderful elements they add to my life. Cody is the one in the photo who is looking at the camera.

Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player

Okay so I haven't gotten any better.

I promise to get better

Okay, I'm a slacker. I don't know where the month of July has gone, but it vanished into thin air. I haven't posted since the beginning of the month. A lot has been happening, some good, some not so good, but I'm pressing on.

A Good Read

I've added links to some blogs that I enjoy and want to share with you. Plus, it'll make it easier for me to get there! These are all unique blogs and have different types of stories to share. I've found them through various means and have gotten so I need my daily fix. Who'd thunk? Since I've just started my blogging habits, I haven't been putting mine out there so much but maybe I'll get the nerve to send them a link. Hell I haven't even sent it to most of my friends.

One blog is a new blog created by my former writing group in Columbia, SC. I participated in that group for several years before I moved back home to East Tennessee. They were a great group of people. Most are no longer there, I'm sure for various reasons, like myself. But the new members are carrying on the tradition, and I look forward to seeing what they are writing. They have graciously agreed to put a link to my blog on their site. So go check 'em out and cheer 'em on, cause writing is a lonely business and we all need encouragement.

Happy reading!

He won't have to hire a hit man

I think my neighbor tried to kill me tonight. Oh, he was very clever about it, and offered up the most innocent proposal. I was walking without my dog, Nikki, as she is on bed rest until I can take her to the vet tomorrow. I think she's having hip issues. My neighbor came riding by on his bike, and we started talking about trying to keep in shape. I told him I'd thought about getting one but it had been so long since I had riden a bike. Last time, I bought a bike about 20 years ago, I rode it a couple of times then didn't ride it again. I didn't have a safe place to ride it so I ended up selling it. But since my house is in a better location, except for all the hills, I've thought about it again as way to get in better shape and lose weight. I just don't want to buy another bike only to sell it again. I mentioned this to him, and he said, "Oh, why don't you take my wife's bike for a few days. She won't use it."

Against my better judgement, I said okay. I stopped down at his house on the way back from my walk and picked it up. I rode it, shakily at first, for a couple of blocks and thought I was going to die. My legs were so shaky after just a couple of blocks. What an embarassment to see how out of shape I am. Now with a couple of hours between me and my bike ride, I do feel better. We'll see how it goes this week.

Okay, did I mention my back porch is out in the open? Before I could finish this post, it starts sprinkling with no warning. They've been calling for rain for days, and here it just appears out of the blue. I'm under my towel to finish this. I'll keep you posted about the biking adventures, if I don't kill myself that is.

Squirrels make their own roller coasters

As the name of my blog says, I'm out here on my back porch. That's the great thing, I can come out here in the evenings and write my blog. I enjoy being outside here on my patio so much. A small fan and tiki torches help keep the bugs away. Sunday morning I was sitting out here and three squirrels were chasing each other. Two of the squirrels jumped at least 10 feet from one tree to a neighboring tree, grabbing onto to the branch for dear life. The branch bounced up and down about four or five feet, and I thought to myself that must be one hell of a thrill ride. The third squirrel, however, cautiously waiting on the tree he was on. I just imagined that conversation.

"I ain't going across that chasm. Not only no, but hell no," the third squirrel said to himself as he lay flat on the branch waiting for the other two to come back, which they eventually did.

On the other tree, the two sat there cackling like hens, "Chipper, you big pus, sitting there on the end of the branch. Get your ass on over here." They continued to play squirrel games until they tired of waiting on Chipper. Soon they were back on his tree and the chase continue.

Charaters in Motion

I've discovered a new tool on this blog: Lists, but it doesn't let you say why you included something in particular. So I guess I'll just have to write a post about it. If you have not seen, To Live and Die in LA, you really need to take an opportunity to watch it. It's a great movie on several levels, but a dark one. As a writer, I enjoyed seeing how the characters changed through the course of the movie. I don't want to write a spoiler so you'll just have to check it out yourself. It had some actors that I have come to appreciate over the years. William Petersen, Willem Dafoe, and John Pankow, starred in it, kinda before they were stars as I recall. This movie is about 20 years old but still has a modern day feel minus the overuse of cell phones these days. I just checked, and it came out in 1985, God it seems like yesterday. Like I said, don't let this deter you from watching this crime drama involving a counterfeiter. Be warned, it's a dark movie, showing what can happen to the human spirit, which is why I liked it so much. In addition, it has a great soundtrack featuring Wang Chung. A song of the same name has a pulsing, driving beat that is slowed down and then sped up to match the action of the film. In my humble opinion, this song and its use made the movie. It would have been a good movie anyway, but the song just helped define it. Why am I bringing up this 23-year-old movie? Well, thanks to my wonderful DirecTV (again this is not an ad), I caught the last hour of it on the T101 channel last night, when absolutely nothing was on. It's the same channel that I saw Simply Red on and posted about recently. Now when I figure out this embedding thing, I'll post a video clip of Wang Chung's song for you to hear. For now, you'll just have to follow my link. I tried to find a link to the movie itself but couldn't find one. Don't check out Wikipedia, because even though its good, it contains early spoilers. The movie is one thrill ride after another. Watch it first, if you like crime dramas, and then go read about it.

Respect for Russert, saddness at his sudden death

Tim Russert died today. It's such a shame because he was really at the top of the game. As a former journalist, or one who just leaves the business because I can't afford to live on what it wants to pay, I have a lot of respect for him and his work. Not being a political reporter, I didn't always follow his stories, but when I did see his work, I appreciated the way he approached his stories with integrity and honesty. I loved his sense of laughter and always a ready smile. When I saw it on the Internet, I just couldn't believe it. I turned on MSNBC live and couldn't turn it off. I was mesmerized. It was like 9/11 in that I couldn't turn from the TV. I'm not equating the two events, just my inability to stop watching the breaking news. As I learned more about him as a man and an American, I came to understand what a loss we have all suffered. I think about his family: his wife, son, father and sister, and hope that they are surrounded by love, friends and family members during this difficult time. God speed Tim Russert.

Making the Music

I told you about the 17-year cicadas and showed you a picture of one. Well the common-garden variety are out singing tonight as I sit on my back porch. It is such a welcoming noise for me. You see, I grew up in East Tennessee, and when I was growing up, kids used to play outside until it was dark. (It's almost dark now.) The what I call the "common-garden variety cicadas" would muscle up their legs and make the most wonderful buzzing noise you have ever heard. It just permeated everything. Almost to the point where you didn't pay much attention to it after awhile. Particularly if you were a kid. In my grown up years, I lived in Knoxville and Bristol, Tn., and then moved to Columbia, SC, where the mosquitoes grew so big and hairy they could just about carry you away. The heat was unbearable. The first summer I moved there I thought I had moved to hell. No disrespect meant for Columbia, I loved it down there, but it was hot as hell. So needless to say I never spent much time outside. I never heard the cicadas. I don't even know if they live down there. Anyway, when I moved back to my East Tennessee community, and I bought my house, I would sit out here on the back porch (see the name of my blog). I heard the cicadas again for the first time in many years. It was a sweet, sweet sound to my ears. It took me a while to figure out what was making the music. But then I figured it out, and I've loved it ever since. Playing kick the can and hide and seek in the dark with friends was one of the fun parts of growing up -- that and Halloween. Listening to the cicadas was icing on the cake. Now it gives me comfort and reminds me that all is right with the world.

My cat ate my homework

I can't believe it's been more than two weeks since I wrote anything. It's not that I haven't had things to write, it's just that I've been busy about every night. Then by the time I get home, after I've had night meetings, I'm too tired to work on my blog. Now you see what the problem with getting my novel finished. I've written two, which I haven't been able to find an agent for yet. And now I'm working on my third. I was reading an article on a web site the other day about setting goals. It had some different ideas than I've read in other places, and I'm going to work on those this weekend. I might even share them here, which might actually make me heed them. I'm determined to make some definite progress on the novel this summer.

Anyway, I'm going to try to be more dedicated to posting at least three to four weeks.

Flying lessons

This Saturday evening I sat out on my back porch after planting some flowers. I had brought something out to read but got a show instead. A daddy cardinal -- the beautiful red bird -- was teaching his son (I think) to fly. The birds go from babies to flying in short order, and the parents had built a nest in a large bush next to my backdoor for the second year.
The first year had disastrous results while the babies were learning to fly due to my stupidity and one of my dogs. Without going into details, I did not realize the babies were out and about and ready to fly. It upset me tremendously, and I was determined this would not happen again. This year, I've kept a vigilant watch over my backyard and a careful eye on one of my dogs, who likes to play too much. Saturday night I had to put her back inside. I was determined to make this outcome different and was rewarded when I realized the babies were flying.
I saw the cardinal flying around my backyard and using my binoculars was able to determine that it was one of the babies. He looked to be a male, even though his feathers were still brown, but he had a red crest on his head. I just can't believe how fast they grow within about a week's time, it seems like. It's probably longer, but the time sure does go by fast. This year, I never actually saw the babies in the nest, just heard their plaintiff peeps for food.
Anyway, the daddy was flying around, I presume, to supervise his youngster in the proper flying techniques. The younger bird flew down into the yard, up onto several branches of nearby tree and on the top of the wooden fence. Because of his landing sites, I was able to get several good looks at him. And by all observations, he's well on his way to being an ace flier. I just hope he'll continue to make my backyard his home, and I'll continue to keep an eye on Nikki.

DirecTV Rocks!

Okay, I'm sorry.... this is probably the closest I'll come to an advertisement. But tonight I'm watching Simply Red on DirecTV free channel. I love Simply Red and haven't listened to them in awhile. This hour-long conference is great. What a voice he (Mick Hucknall) has. If you've never checked him out, you should. It's hard to describe, but it has a definite jazz influence and his voice lends to that sound. I'm wondering if he had a new album, okay, CD out. He did a Bob Dylan tune, "Positively 4th Street," that he said is on his new release. Great cover! His own songs are wonderful too. This concert just really serves to remind me that somehow I've let music slip from my life, and I need to add it back.

"My guys"

Here are "my guys," the World War II veterans I met and escorted on the Washington DC trip. I'll share their stories in subsequent posts, but I just wanted to introduce you to them first. Clayton I knew before the trip but the others I had the good fortunate to meet as a result of my trip. These are all top of the line guys and have my upmost respect. They served their country and served it well.

In the top photo are (left to right) Clayton Narveson, US Marines, John Steiner, US Navy, and Clarence Lawson, US Navy and below is Clem Willocks, US Army Air Corps. As the week progesses, I will share their stories with you. But after meeting these guys, I can tell you that they served their country with dedication, loyalty and selflessly, and I am honored to call them friends.

"Squished"

Here is the car I told you about in my early posts. As of today, they have finally cleaned up the area, and except for hay, you'd never know anything had happened.

Happy Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day to you and yours. Let's not forget the men and women who died to keep our freedoms safe, nor let us forget those who are still serving around the world. Regardless of what your politics are, we need to think about the people who put themselves in harms way, heeding their country's call.

In some perverse way, I almost hate having "extra" days off. Only because I get lazy and don't do the things I plan to do. Take this blog for instance. I had planned to update it because I have a lot of things to write about, but it's 7:23 p.m. Eastern time, and I haven't done a thing. I want to write more about my Tremont experience, but I have something more pressing to share.

Last Wednesday, I flew to Washington D.C. with 110 World War II veterans and a very lovely lady, who was a performer in the USO. We toured several military memorials, kept a busy schedule throughout the day and then flew back to East Tennessee greeted by family members of the veterans. I have many pictures and stories to tell and will be posting them as I can this week. (I also have to update my Tremont trip; it was fabulous too!)

When I returned, I wrote a story for The Daily Times about the experience. I used to be a reporter for them but now I work for an Education Initiative. Anyway, I still do a little freelance for the DT from time to time. You can check out my story there, if you want.

It's getting dark, and I think another storm is coming. Since I'm out on my back porch, I think I'd better close and go inside. Oh, and I have pictures of the squished car as promised.

I am now at Tremont (Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont), spending the weekend in a naturalist program. This is one course of several for naturalist certification. I started back in February, which I will talk about in a subsequent post. Today we hiked along the Ace Gap Trail, named so because loggers used to play cards here rather than in their logging camps, on Rich Mountain. We could hear the birds all around, but we didn't have an opportunity to see many today. Amber, the education director at Tremont, led our group, explaining the different types of songs the birds do and pointing out when we heard them. Unfortunately, we didn't see many birds. However, the trail offered many other delights along the way. The 17-year cicadas were out in force and as their bodies warmed up during the day, their constant hum grew louder. They've just recently come out of the ground and were easy to inspect due to being sluggish from the cold. Unfortunately, this is the clearest photo I have of this little critter. I have a crappy camera. I am tired now, but I plan to post more about our adventures with additional photos. Tomorrow we head to Cades Cove where we should see many birds. We did see a turkey vulture that circled a couple of times when we were eating lunch on Lumber Ridge Trail that runs behind our dorm. All day long we heard red-eyed vireos, whose song is short staccato bursts. Finally, we were finished for the day, three of us saw one in a tree not far from where we stood talking!

Stately trees disappearing

Shortly after I wrote that last post, I was sitting in my office at home, and I heard a crunchy sound outside. I went out into the front yard and saw a large limb from my neighbor's tree had blown down, taking several wires with it. Fortunately, my house is on a different power grid. I decided that it was best to quit writing about falling trees until after the winds were gone. Tonight as I walked Nikki on my usual route -- the first time since the storms -- I saw a tree had been ripped up by its roots a couple of streets over. I was saddened to see it because I love trees, and this was a large one. I had to go closer to inspect it and noticed lines, cable or something, still down. I thought to myself that's where they normally park their cars and thankfully, they must not have been there. But....as I got closer and moved on the other side of a large bush....I saw it, a car flatten like a pancake. I'm serious. I've never seen a car more squished by a tree before. If I can get a photo of it, I'll add it to my blog. As I came down the street further, the previously mentioned large branch turned out to be a huge tree. The home owner was outside, and I talked to her for a few minutes. She said the tree split in two: one side landing in the street and the other side almost on her roof. She'd had to have the rest cut down and was sick about it. The tree was probably about four foot in diameter. I hate we're losing our stately old trees. They won't be replaced in my lifetime. As I said earlier, you never know what life brings, and I guess that's a good thing.

A limb is down

As if my thoughts foreshadowed events to come, a large tree limb was blown down on my street. After making my debut post this afternoon, I left to run an errand and discovered that a large branch was blocking the road way. The city had a crew out, cutting the limb to clear the street. Kind of strange.

Strong winds offer insight

This morning, I took the opportunity to sit out on my patio and enjoy my coffee. Strong winds rustled through the leaves, creating a sea of green. The winds and subsequent rains are left over from last night's thunder storms that passed through. The leaves swayed in the wind like a dancer building to a crescendo. My bambo wind chimes, normally silent, clacked together while a cardinal chirped his daily ritual despite sitting on a branch that moved to the time. Drops of water hit the paper I was writing on, making me wonder whether it was raining or the wind was knocking raindrops off of the leaves above me. Velvet, my chow, didn't seem to notice the approaching storm, but my husky-mix, Nikki, paced back and forth wondering when we were going to go inside. The area I live in is known for trees being blown over quickly, regardless of the strength of the wind. As I listened to the leaves and watched the trees dance, it occurred to me that this is much like life: I enjoyed the excitement of the show knowing that the danger or pitfalls lie ahead. You have to take the good with the bad.