I wish...

Are we "too gay"? Our current selection of bulbs for the string of lights running from the tree in the front garden to the entry gate proudly boast the colors of the rainbow. The colors of the gay pride flag. With a rainbow windsock hanging next to the end of the string.

 Our whole neighborhood knows us. I am one of two of the only original people left in the neighborhood. We have made no effort to hide who we are from anyone. In 2005, when we got married in Toronto, we had a reception BBQ right here in our yard with the rainbow flag proudly flying.

Day 29 of the 30 day blog challenge ask me what my 3 wishes would be. First and foremost, I'd have to wish that discrimination of anyone based on something that they can not control would vanish. People like me would never have to wonder "Does this look too gay?" We would never have to worry if someone was going to get a crazy idea and decide to vandalize our home or hurt us or our dog.

The lot next door

 My second wish would be that dandelions grow on a dandelion farm and not in the vacant lot next to my house. They have a beautiful cushiony bloom that would rival any flower. However, what they do to your lawn when they are all said and done is a crime.

Our prize winning grass

My third wish would be that life was 10 % longer. I hear almost on a daily basis and now, I understand it more realisticly. There is always just one more thing that you wanted to say or to finish. Always something else, if there was a little more time.

Have a great day everyone. These wishes of mine are for you too.

Stress....

Stress. I avoid it at all cost. Day 28 of this 30 day blog challenge, ask of me to write about something that stresses me out. For the most part, I do a pretty good job of avoiding it. But every once in a while, I find myself on the road in the middle of the day in this metropolitan area of Detroit. The auto industry killed the public transportation system before I was even born. So what we have left is everyone driving their own  cars. They all want to be first to get to the next red light. If you leave more than  six feet of space between your car and the one in front of you, you'll have four people cut you off and then they all slam on their brakes as they approach the next signal light. It's a "Me first!" mentality around here. Other cars are treated like obstacles, not other people. No one smiles at you or says hello. Consider yourself lucky if someone acknowledges you by flipping you the bird. Mostly, they don't even realize that you are there. If you glance to the side of the road to perhaps find a business or read a street sign, you can rest assured that the person in front of you will find a need to slam on their brakes for no apparent reason.

I've spent a lot of time in larger cities where there is a public transport system and people seem to be friendlier, more aware of your existence and you might even get someone to talk to you. In small towns, most people will greet you in some fashion or another. But here, you better just get  out of the way. It's an economy built on building yourself up and knocking others down. A recipe for disaster. And on the rare occasion that I find myself out there in it, yes, it stresses me out.

The casket spray from Mom's funeral. Seven long stem red roses for her seven kids.
Six pink roses for her six grandkids and four yellow roses for her great grandkids. lying in a basket. She is also wearing a lovely corsage from her husband, my father.

Day 27 ( or so )

Originally published on  http://brightergrave.blogspot.com/

Well, I tried to do the 30 day blog challenge. I refuse to say that I failed. I just got a little derailed for a while. My mother has had her share of sickness over the years that I've been caring for her. But, we really didn't see this coming as fast as it did. We are certainly glad that she didn't suffer long. I have to admit that it was very strange to see such a strong willed woman just give up and quit trying. She was tired of fighting it. Once she couldn't eat anymore, it was just a matter of a few days.

I want to thank everyone for your kind words, well wishes and the prayers that you no-doubt had sent up. The out-pour of condolences was overwhelming. It was a little strange that many of them were also attached to a "Happy Birthday". I have to admit that this is going to be a birthday that I will always remember. Not only for the fact that my mother passed away the day before it. But also for the fact that by doing so, she gave me the family that I was always meant to have. Over the last week in my absence from the blog, and the weeks leading up to her death, I was able to reconnect with sisters and brothers like I never thought would be possible. And after her death, we have all pulled together to make sure that Dad is doing all right. We have all had our moments and it has been difficult. But we will be fine in the end.

Her service, as I posted here, was last Monday. Reverend Max gave a touching tribute to her. You would think that he had known her all his life. A point that Max brought up was that the game Monopoly came out the year that my mother was born (1933). A coincidence indeed that  in the photo tribute that we had playing, there was a picture of her playing Monopoly (Her favorite game). We started the service with this song and then as everyone passed by her casket to say their final goodbyes, we played one of her favorites with a modern twist.

Many people from long, long ago and far away, made their way to her service. It would seem that she was very well liked for many of years. We will miss her, but her work here was done.

And with every death, there is a birth (or three). Last year, I wrote about the family of robins that had built the nest just outside our door. I'm happy to tell you that they have returned. The nest is built in the same place as last year and three lovely blue eggs have been deposited. Pugsley has sworn that he will stand guard and keep them safe, once again. The birds and Pugsley got along great last year. They never even minded when we would mow the grass next to the garden where the tree is located. They tend to be a little defensive with the other birds, but don't mind us at all. They are being nice to the finches though. Perhaps the little birds aren't much of a threat for them. The nest is in a small pine tree, about three feet off the ground, just above where my very first pet is now buried. His name was Dash. He was a cute little dutch dwarf rabbit that was about 6 months older than Pugsley. As Pugsley's older brother, he taught him everything that he knew...... How to chew on everything! Fortunately, Pugs listened to me when I told him not to listen to his brother. Pugs even would make sure that Dash didn't chew on things that weren't his. That brings me to Pugsley. My little buddy. He is so protective of not just myself, but any small creature that he thinks needs protecting. His fluffy coat and cute face makes everyone want to pet him. Well, that's where he draws the line..... "Don't mess up the hair!" he barks at them in a stern voice that would scare anyone with teeth glistening in the light of day. He really wouldn't hurt anyone unless they were trying to hurt something that he cared about. And that includes his favorite squeaky ball. He's the only dog that I've ever seen catch a mouse, only to have someone to play with. Unfortunately, the mouse didn't know what was going on.

Day 27 of the 30 day blog challenge brings me to write about my pets. I know the birds are not technically mine (I'm more thier's) . These have been the pets in my life. I'm sorry that my old desk-top computer won't cough up the pictures of Dash. He was named that for two reasons. First, he was all white except for some black ears, black guyliner and five black dashes  down the center of his back. Secondly, he loved to dash around the house as fast as he could. I remember fondly the first time we let him out to run freely. He had never been out before in his life. He was so excited that he kicked with his back legs and went flying heals over head, landing on his back. He scared himself so bad that he flipped back over and ran to the corner to hide in fear. He always wanted his own space but also wanted to be near me. It was entertaining one night when he decided that he wanted to be on the bed with us. He blindly jumped as high as he could and landed squarely between my husbands legs (if you know what I mean).

Pugsley was no bigger than Dash when he came to live with us. He got his name because he had the cutest little pug nose when he was a puppy. Well, that and he is an Adams. So Pugsley Adams it is. I've told this story before but it's touching enough for a recap. Last Wednesday was Pugsley's 10th birthday. I can't believe that it's been 10 years! He is my little angel. He was not the original however. Someone had given my brother-in-law a dog to replace his recently deceased dog. For whatever reason, he didn't make a connection with the little guy. But the little fir ball started following me, jumping over the blades of grass, desperately trying to keep up with me. How could I turn him away? So I took him with me on vacation to my cabin. I instantly fell in love with him. One week later, he wasn't feeling good and I had my husband take him to the animal hospital. One microscopic surgery later and many, many dollars, he didn't make it. But it was a wonderful week that I spent with him and after much deliberation, I decided that we should contact the people that gave him to us. That's when we found out that all the puppies were sold :(  It was a couple of weeks later when I returned home from work that I heard a sound that reminded me of the puppy. My husband turned off the hose and went to the van. As he pulled Pugsley from the van, I started to cry. It was love at first sight for us both. We've been inseparable ever since......   ( ten years!)

Last years family

And that is all my pets.

Book Ends

Today I am celebrating the completion of my forty-fifth trip around the sun. And I'd have to say that I am exhausted.

Yesterday morning, my mother gave me a present I'll never forget. At 10:04am on May 17th, 2011, her life here on earth came to an end. My friend Jack tells me that as you grow older, holidays become morbid. I just wish that people would choose a different one to pick on. You see, on May 19th, 2002, my husbands mother passed away. Yes, today, May 18th is my birthday. I have his mothers death the day after and my mothers death the day before. Bookends to hold my birthday up.

Maxine Ellen Shattuck Adams was born November 9th, 1933 in a small country town in Michigan. She lost her father at just 12 years of age to a factory explosion and her mother to cancer when she was 20. When she was 19 years old, she married the man that would become my father, Ralph "K" Adams Jr. In one month they would have been married for 58 years. She enjoyed raising her seven children and spoiling her six grandchildren and four great grandchildren. She was the matriarch of many families so that everyone that knew her called her Mom and brought their taxes to her each year as she was the owner, operator and chief cook and bottle washer of Max's Taxes.

Maxine is preceded in death by her parents, two infant sisters and her two long loved brothers. Also preceded by her step-son.

A gathering and viewing will be held on Sunday, May 22 at Smith Family Funeral Home in Port Huron, MI from 1pm to 8pm with a luncheon from 3 to 6pm at the Thomas Edison Inn. And a service in her honor will be held on Monday, May 23 at 10am. A private family burial will follow in the Shattuck plot, back home in Selkirk, MI where she will rest beside her parents, a brother and sisters.

Good bye Mom! You did good and deserve a rest. You will always live in our hearts.

A song to send Mom on her way

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The Adams family..

While it's been difficult doing this blog challenge while my mother's health has lead us to the end of her life. I have been able to find some pictures a little easier since we were already getting them out for a photo tribute to Mom. Day 26 is to post a photo of my family. The photo that I have was taken at my brother's wedding a couple of years ago. What a wedding it was. Instead of a limousine (my family used to own a limo service) we opted to use the hearse. (scroll to the bottom of the blog to see photos of that) We did behave ourselves long enough since we were all together and we managed to get a few shots of my parents and all of their kids that they had together. It doesn't include my brother that was from my father's previous marriage. But everyone else made it. Can you spot me?

http://www.brightergrave.blogspot.com/

10 songs

Day 25 of the 30 day blog challenge ask of me to put my ipod on shuffle and tell the first ten songs that come on.

The truth is that I'm too cheep to own an ipod. I do have an mp3 player though. However, it doesn't have an option of random or shuffle. So I have to pick out my own music. I guess the question is then; what do I pick?

As you can imagine, I don't usually get much time with my mp3 player. I'm most often trying to relax when I get it out. I've got a CD that I transferred on to it that I picked up when we were on Cape Cod two summers ago. It has soothing music mixed with sounds of the seashore. It reminds me of the trip and of relaxing in the hot tub at the Brass Key Inn, sipping on some red wine.
To get me moving, I love me some ABBA or a British band "Westlife".. A recent addition was Katy Perry and Adele and for a blast from the past, I like some BB Mak. I've also got the soundtrack from Priscilla Queen of the Desert- the movie and the Broadway play that we saw last summer in my favorite city, Toronto.

Like most people, songs remind me of certain times, places and people at the time I first heard them. I like to submerge myself in good memories and using this play-list, I come away from my player refreshed and ready to face the day.

Something I've learned

It's Day 24 of the 30 blog challenge. I'm to tell about something that I've learned. I've learned a lot quite frankly and much of it probably beyond my years. I could write about any number of things with this one. Considering the circumstances in my life right now, I will tell you about something that I learned just tonight. (It's now about 1am) After only a few hours of sleep, I went to work last night. When I got off work this morning, I went to the nursing home to visit with my mother. Her condition is deteriorating rapidly. She can no longer open her eyes or even speak. As we see it, she may be gone by morning. (We'll see) The papers that we received from hospice state that she can hear us, even if she can not respond. I've always felt that this was something they put in there for the grieving family more than the person that is dieing. I could tell that my father wasn't buying it either. To humor myself and to keep from having a breakdown, I kept talking to and joking with my mother all day. Yes, I was there from 8am to about 11:45pm. At one point, everyone else had left the room. I told Mom that I would be there for her no matter what. And that I would keep taking care of Dad. At that moment her face winced and whole body shook as a tear came from her left eye. She tried so hard to say something. Her frail body just couldn't do it. I know that she was telling me, as she often does, that she loves me and didn't know what she would do without me. And that she is scared. Fighting back the tears myself, I told her that it would be all right and that I know what she was trying to say. And that I love her too.

So what is it that I learned tonight? I learned that they can hear you. That is your opportunity to say what you need to say. And that in the end, Love is all that matters.

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Favorite Vacation(s)

Day 23 of the 30 day blog challenge calls for me to tell about my favorite vacation. Now that's a tough one. Do I pick one of my many trips to Toronto? Or perhaps Provincetown? The unforgettable cruise that I took my parents on last year? What an amazing camping trip last year too. Or was it driving across the country with my family to see my uncle. As a child my mother would throw us all in the car and we'd disappear to somewhere on the spur of the moment. Then there was my summers spent in Arkansas on my grandfathers farm. As a young adult, I would travel to visit my sister wherever she happened to be living at the time, like Williamsburg, Virginia or Los Angeles. Then there was the trip to Mackinac Island with my husband, good times indeed. It's tough to choose my favorite.

Minors Castle before the 2006 collapse

For some reason though one comes to mind that stands out. That was the week that I spent with my niece, Tammy. We climbed in my two seat convertible and took off. We took the ferry across Lake Michigan to Wisconsin and headed North from Green Bay. We stopped at so many waterfalls along the way that we lost count. We traveled up into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and toured old copper mines. Our travels took us to the very tip-top of the state to Copper Harbor and across the U.P. stopping at Minors Castle in the Pictured Rocks National Shoreline of Lake Superior. And eventually to Tahquamenon Falls near Paradise, Michigan and Sault Ste. Marie ( or "the Soo" for short ).

Tehquamenon Falls

Then it was across the Mackinac Bridge to the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and eventually back home to where I was living in Battle Creek at the time.


We had a little pop-up tent and a small convertible as our only protection from the elements and would camp wherever we could find. Sometimes right on the beach and other times in the woods. It was an amazing trip that we both still talk about. One of those trips when you really start to discover yourself. I think that's why it stands out as my favorite.

But I've enjoyed all of my travels. I really love to discover new things and experience all that life has to offer.

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My Favorite City

 I like where I live. I have everything that I need within just a few miles. As long as I have a car and can drive, I'll be just fine here. But, as I am reminded everyday with my mother's condition, I won't always have those luxuries. I hope to be in a different place by the time I reach that point myself. If I had to pick a place to retire to and live out my days, I'd pick Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Yup!
I love the city life. The country is great to unwind in but there's nothing like a city. There is always something to do. Transportation is plentiful. For the most part, people are friendly in Toronto.

For me there's a sense of belonging when I am there. I like the fact that everyone works together to get things done. It seems in the suburbs and even small towns that everyone is out there for themselves and no one else. But when you get on that subway or even take a cab, you know that everyone is trying to go somewhere and we'll all get there just fine if we don't push and shove. At times driving around here, I feel that I am in the way of all the other people. No matter how fast you go, someone is always pushing you faster. I've never gotten that feeling in T.O.

 Their acceptance of gay marriage in 2005 prompted us to get married and send a message back to the States that it is something that we want and deserve and we are willing to go out of the country to do it. We were married at the city hall pictured here. Then had a reception dinner at the top of the CN Tower overlooking the city and Lake Ontario.
The following day was the diversity parade (gay pride parade). I like to say that over a million people came to my wedding.

Church Street in Toronto has a nice village feel to it where there are several gay owned and operated businesses. But you can feel safe anywhere in the city holding the hand of your husband without feeling like you will be beat up.

For now, I have to be content with my visits to the city. But someday, I'd love to live there.


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Morning storm and favorite photo

Sorry about the quality of these shots from my cell phone. They barely show what was happening here this morning as the sun started to peek over the horizon. It was a clear night and a storm started to move in right at sun up. So the Eastern sky was all aglow from the rising sun and the Western sky was black from the night and the impending storm. Lightning was flashing everywhere and thunder could be heard rolling all around me for miles.

The sky was darker than it appears here

Then as I drove the half a mile home from work, I noticed something strange in the southwest night sky. As I wrote, the sky was dark. But there was a glowing column arching  from the ground and rising into the dark of night. My first thought was that it was a tornado being side lit from the rising sun. Then as I was parking my car, I noticed a second one in the northwest sky.
What was it? The sun was throwing a rainbow and as the sun rose and the rain got harder, the rainbow first began to fill in across the entire sky. Then as the clouds moved to cover the rising sun, it disappeared. The whole thing lasted about 2 minutes.



An update for everyone about my mother.... She is not doing well at all. It is difficult for her to even stay awake very long. It's all she can do to eat some days. Over the last four days, she's had four cardiac arrest. She has asked not to be resuscitated so they have not done that. She seems to bring herself out of it. However each time, her condition worsens. I am meeting with hospice today and we are moving her to a private room where she can die in peace. As of today, we are stopping her maintenance medications and no longer checking her blood sugar levels. It's all about making her happy and comfortable right now. We don't know how long she has left. So we want to make it as nice as we can. I am there everyday to sit with her and talk about anything and everything that she wants to. Or just watch her sleep. Obviously when her heart stops, there is pain involved. But the good thing is that she does not remember any of it. She just feels tired.


On a lighter note. The thirty day blog challenge continues as does life. So today I am to show you my favorite picture of me and tell you why. This picture was taken last year on our camping trip around the state of Michigan. By my side during the trip was my husband and my dog. What could be better than that? I really was in a happy place. It is difficult to catch me in a photo with a natural smile and rare that my husband has the camera. So for those two things to come together at a time in my life that I was completely happy, makes this my favorite picture of me, of all time.

Beautiful day for a funeral

Tuesday, it was cold. It was raining, sometimes very heavily. For some strange reason, I didn't take a coat with me. I guess I was thinking that it's May, how bad could it be. There was no line up of cars, so I didn't have to stand outside. We were to meet the family at the cemetery for the burial service. Well, the service at the funeral home ran long and then they went for lunch. They were nearly an hour late for the burial. So I got to enjoy the weather way out in the country where evidently they don't even grow trees to stop the wind, while I waited for them to get there.

Not to freeze myself twice in a week, Thursday I took a sweater and my coat. Wouldn't you know, it was in the high 60's and sun as far as you could see.


If all the days were like that, I'd work every day.

I was supposed to write about nicknames today. But the truth is I never really had one that stuck. Various people would try to give me one but they never really caught on. I'm sure there was something from my baby days, but it was never really relevant. Often teachers in school would get confused by the fact that I only answer to my middle name. But after a day or two, they really wouldn't care. So then I thought I'd do something clever like write about other peoples nicknames, but found that a little corny. So I'll respect your intelligence and let this one slide.

On a different note, I received a phone call last night at 8:30pm. My mother was having what they called a stroke. It turns out that it wasn't a stroke at all but instead, a heart attack. She was stabilized rather quickly but since she has asked not to be resuscitated, there wasn't much anyone could do. I left her side at about 1:30am and she was resting. It was very nice to see that the entire family reacted and showed up to be by her side. We have called and even met with hospice and will follow up this morning with what the plan of action will be. What's funny about the whole thing is that the nursing home called me yesterday afternoon to tell me that they plan on releasing her to go home on the 18th. She has been doing well with her therapy and they felt that she was almost ready. I'm going to try and keep this challenge going. But I'm sure that you will all understand if there is a gap.



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Something that I miss

Today I am to reveal something that I miss. Well, I miss a lot of things. I miss my convertible, I miss my jet ski, and I miss having the time to enjoy those things. But on a daily basis, I am reminded of something that is gone and I just haven't gotten used to it being gone yet. Sixteen years ago, I never thought that I'd still be in this same house all these years later. At that time, I planted twelve shrubs around my newly constructed house. The poor little things were nothing but twigs with a little root hanging off the bottom. But I pulled back the sod and stuck them into the freshly turn soil. I have to admit that I didn't know what I was doing. Some of them got stepped on by people that thought that they were just weeds. And others grew, but way to close to the house. That was the case with this one outside my office window. After sixteen summers of growth, it was taller than the house and took up a huge footprint in the yard. It leaned out away from the house partly because of the prevailing winds that are always blowing in that direction. Partly because one side of it didn't get the much needed sun light to grow and partly because I kept trimming the house side to keep it from scraping the side of the house constantly.



The view from my office window last summer



Being a Rose of Sharron, it always got a slow start to bud it's leaves. Everyone thought it was dead every spring. But when it did start to go, go it did. It's double blooms would weigh down the branches and bend them to the ground causing the tree to take up even more of the yard. It constantly was a buzz with every kind of bee that can be found in Michigan. That made cutting the grass around it very interesting sometimes. It was increasingly more difficult to get to the garden hose on the side of the house. Finally last fall after I had complained about the tree one time too many, Ed went outside, fired up the saw and the tree came down. We are left now with the stump and we are not sure yet if it will try to make a comeback or not. If it does, it will be kept trimmed to a manageable size this time.

Fear not my tree hugging friends. We have two other Rose of Sharron trees in the yard in more appropriate locations. And I'm sure that we will enjoy their beauty all summer. But for now, I miss the tree outside my office window.



Fire on the Eastside, it's a good thing

I love Mexican Food. If you were to ask me on any given night where I'd like to eat, I'd always pick a Mexican restaurant. Unless I'm in Toronto.

Day eighteen of the 30 Day Blog Challenge ask me; Where's my favorite place to eat. My Dad comes from Arkansas and owned a couple of Chiropractic Practices in Louisiana a long time ago. But even when we moved from there to Michigan, we brought a little of the south with us to every dinner served in our house as I was growing up. It's a wonder that I am not 300  pounds.

 While in Toronto one day, I stumbled across this little place just off of Yonge St. on Gloucester St.. "Fire On The Eastside." They serve southern American cuisine with a Cajun flare, right there in the heart of Toronto Canada. Every meal that I've been fortunate to experience there is ecstasy in your mouth. My first experience was a banana bread french toast with peach yogurt on it with maple glazed sausage. I thought I'd died and gone right to heaven.

It's an easy place to miss. I actually walked right past it the first time. But if you ever find yourself hungry in Toronto, it's worth the search and the price. Be warned that on the weekends, you may need a reservation. It's that good.

Some list that I've seen for this challenge put number 18 as "something you regret" Since I tend to live my life with no regrets, I chose to keep this one in the mix instead.

What gets your mouth watering?

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Big Reveal

I was saving this big announcement for later. But today's topic on the 30 day blog challenge is: Something you're looking forward to.

So here it is........

Just before Halloween this year, we will be heading out for a little drive together with a very good friend of ours to New Orleans. We've wanted to see some of those cemeteries there for a long time. And  we find the history and spirit of that city to be intriguing. We are planning on catching a ghost tour while we are there just for a little fun. If that were not enough, we will then be boarding a ship for a week long cruise that will take us to two places on the Mexican coast as well as Belize and Honduras. We will be traveling with a group and have some private parties on board as well as a private beach party in Mexico. The two singers that I wrote about before, Jason and DeMarco will be headlining the entertainment.

After getting a taste of what cruising could be last year with our parents, we are really looking forward to this one. My only job on this cruise will be to have fun. One of our best friends is coming along and we'll be free to enjoy any of the festivities going on. Which includes a Halloween costume party. It is a regular cruise, but we will be joined by other gay and lesbian people for private shows, games and parties along the way.

Many people that cruise, cruise often. I'm not so sure that is something that I want to do. But since we did not get to enjoy ourselves much last year, it's left us wanting for something more. And if nothing else, getting to spend time with our friend Jamie as well as Jason and DeMarco will be worth it.

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To come home to

Like all Americans, I was excited to hear that BinLadin had been captured. And my husband was quick to hoist the flag this morning. It's a whole new world today and we are proud to be Americans. So if someone wants to be a flag wavin' maniac today, then I say go for it.

I had to make a run to Ikea for some items that were out of stock when we were there on Saturday. We are redoing our kitchen in the house here and found exactly what we were looking for there. So even though it's an hour drive to the store, it will be worth it in the end when we get our new kitchen finished. I was returning home at around 6:30pm this evening on the cross-town freeway doing the posted 70mph when suddenly the traffic came to a dead stop. After creeping along for about 10 minutes, I decided to check in with my gps device to see what the traffic issue was. All it said was that there was traffic congestion for the next 1.8 miles. Knowing that it was less than 2 miles and it would open up again, I sat there with everyone else waiting. When I finally reached the front of the congestion, I didn't see an accident or traffic entering from another overcrowded freeway. What was it? It was a flag waving maniac on an overpass. Everyone was slowing down to take a gander or a picture or maybe even a video of the crazy lady on the bridge. Horns were blowing and chants could be heard; U!S!A! I have to say, that was a first. And it almost made the traffic back-up worth it.

So today I was supposed to write about my dream house. And to be honest, I've had a vacation home on the lake and an old fixer-upper and everything in between. My husband would love an old Victorian and I love the arts and craft styling of the 30's and 40's. But, I've had that old fixer-upper with no insulation and dust as far as you can smell, with things falling apart all around you. Currently, I live in a small single story 1000 square foot home that I had built 17 years ago. And while it's had it's problems and we replaced the bathroom 3 years ago and now we are replacing the kitchen, I love my home. Being a designer, I'm sure that you could figure out that every inch of the place has my touch on it. I've let my husband have his way with the yard and he helps me out with all the contractor type stuff. I'd have to say that this is my dream house. For now. And I'd add that any place where I can live with my two guys (husband and dog), is my dream house to come home to.

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A Verse

I found this one difficult to choose just one. You see, todays challenge is to share a Bible verse. Growing up in the Pentecostal Church, I am very familiar with the Bible. And having lived my life thus far, I know that the Bible can be twisted to fit almost any cause that you might want to effect. They say that even the devil can quote the Bible to justify his cause.

I found myself leaning toward this one because I believe that it reflects mostly how I try to live my life each and every day. I'm not sure if that is because we use it so much in funeral services or if it's because I heard it so much growing up. Or if it just is the best way that I have found to live.

The verse that I've chosen is Psalm 23;

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.

He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death (or through the darkest valley),

I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

-- Life Application Bible - NIV

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