I couldn’t help borrowing this title from a Dolly Parton song. It covers the way life’s been going here in our normally quiet country side. We have been under heavy construciton for more than two weeks. Our lawn is wrecked. They are digging to install the infrastructure for city sewer service. When its all over, we may be glad to have it. Right now it’s hard to get my head around that thought. And did I mention our high strung dog has started peeing in the house?? He barks all the time. He’s trying to protect me from the big bad noisy construction machines! Good grief…
Since my last blog posting, life has been even busier than usual. I’m wrapping up the end of my nonfiction class assignments. Class is going well. I will be glad to have it behind me soon.
While we were on the cruise last month I wrote a Chapter, per request of the editors, for a new Anthology, Writing After Retirement, to be released by Scarecrow Press in 2014. I signed the contract yesterday. Hurrah!
I recorded a BookMark review of The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein for NPRs WPSU of State College, PA. Click this link to listen to it: http://wpsu.org/radio/single_entry/LL-4607/bookmark Garth visited Bradford on April 17th. His presentation was hilarious and enjoyed by all, he could be a stand-up comic!
April 17 was a busy day for me. I spoke to the Warren Hospital Auxiliary Volunteer Luncheon and met so m many dedicated unselfish people who give tirelssly of their time and energy. Never too Old to Make a Difference was the name of my talk. I enjoyed my time with those lovely folks.
We’ve seen a couple movies, nothing worth mentioning. It seems it is either feast or famine in the movie world and the feast seems to be over!
Some of the recent books I’ve read and enjoyed are: True Colors by Kristin Hannah, a good read. The Orphan Sister by Cwendolen Gross, also an intersting read. Leaving Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns was a follow-up to her Cold Sassy Tree which was a wonderful. I read her first one years ago. Baker Towers by Jennifer Haigh, a gripping story about a coal mining company town. Killing Kennedy by Bill O’Reilly and his co-author. It was surprisingly good and was a must read for me since it was chosen by my book club. My favorite of all the books I read was Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. Magninficent! I highly recommend it. All of these books have been out for awhile except O’Reilly’s.
Till next time, keep reading my friends…
Later, Ann
It is a rainy spring day. And I’m feeling sentimental. Life truly is precious…sometimes I think we need to step back, take a deep breath and count our blessings. Maybe it’s just me but I’d wager most of you have noticed time seems to be flying faster than the speed of light. Days quickly blend into weeks which melt into months that soon slip into years. And it can all change in a second.
My ninety year old father insists everyone should learn something new everyday. I take it a step farther and believe we need to do something kind for someone everyday…and not just strangers. Haven’t we all known people who get so involved doing great things for others that they forget to show the same level of concern and kindness to those closest to them?
We arrived home last week from a cruise which included passing through the Panama Canal. Awesome! The lock systems handled the huge ships so deftly that it all seemed easy.Though, of course, it wasn’t. On one lock there were less than 6 inches to spare on either side of the ship! It took ten hours to cross due to some ship congestion. It still baffles my mind. We listened to lectures and watched documentaries on the ship about the building process of the canal on the days prior to the crossing. Building the canal was a huge endeavor for its time and took many years longer to complete than was originally anticipated. The French were forced to abandon their efforts. The U.S. eventually finished the project. Malaria was one of the biggest enemies of the project.
On Sunday we celebrated Easter a week late with our family, five were missing and we still had 20 for dinner. It was a nice day. The children had a fun finding eggs which were scattered all over the lawn and gardens. Today our daffodills are almost ready to bloom. Life is good.
I read seven books. I took my laptop and completed some writing while on the ship. We also watched a few good movies. We met interesting new people from all over the USA and several other countries. More about that next time.
Keep reading, my friends…
Later, Ann