September and the sun sets here around 8PM

Another blog with my random thoughts.
1. do I have fleas? The cat is gone; the strange flying things remain.
2. am I disgruntled or just too sensitive? A grown, supposedly educated, woman (in a supervisory position) sends mass e-mail reminding employees that light bulbs which work in the Smart Boards are expensive. So, 'take care of these bulbs' by turning off the machine between uses. Umm.

I probably missed the earlier memo that said "We are financially unable to support the technology that we have forced upon you. Use magical thinking to get the technology repaired if you want to use said technology in the future." or maybe it said, "Don't let students use the overhead projector for a basketball hoop mini-me." [I hope I am using that word correctly. The language of the 21st century sometimes eludes me.]
I do have middle school boys who must touch the highest part of the ceiling whenever possible... and I encourage them to "reach for the sky" every once in a while. Maybe I need that email reminder. Save that lady a trip from the office to meet with the lowly workers whose lives, success, and discontent depend on having [or not] equipment that works ALL THE TIME. Sorry this is negative; I tried to stay away from the drama...

Another beautiful weekend in the Valley of the Sun, West Virginia

Greetings familia, I found these family photos on my computer and thought I'd share. Leah sent them. I haven't explored the vast number of photos I have discovered here in the basement and here in the closets. I hope you enjoy them. We have lived an eclectic life and we are from hardy stock.

The lady in this photo is Amanda Olive Wright Snodgrass, my paternal grandmother.

The couple pictured here are my paternal grandparents: Clem Joseph Snodgrass and Amanda Olive Wright Snodgrass.

Granddad Clem Snodgrass and Cousin Leah Lucille Snodgrass about 1955...

Me and Aunt Audry Snodgrass 'making applebutter' Leah is taking the picture. Maybe in 1990?

Too bad we can't read the calendar...

Saturday and Sunday were just beautiful here in West Virginia - cool nights and warm sunny days, lots to do and much to think about.

The very special First Day of August 2013

The end of summer is right around the corner.  But it's not here yet ;-)

This week has been full of actions that should be endings, but, in reality, are just other events that stretch the activities of life and no closure ever arrives.  It's like I'm 'Waiting for G'do" (I never can remember how to spell that play...)

Monday (Mamo-Monday) come back in 6 months.  Wonderful lunch at Atomic Grill. All the kids had a great meal and we even got some great photos. (Send me some photos family!) And a trip to the big junk shop.

Tuesday (Telephone Tag- Tuesday)  see you tomorrow said the EPA.  Got $park plugs replaced in the car. Washed the car - it's so nice when it's clean!


And saw a purty  "metallic purple/black cherry?" 300 for sticker 38K and a 2013. But-I can't find the color anywhere on the internet, can't figure out why it's so cheap - AWD ? engine? It does have a sun/moon roof and leather seats - but the passenger seat is not  power so what else is missing???



and so it goes...  I'm just not ready for that big move.

Wednesday -(WOW-EPA-Wednesday)
 
Lew, Bekka and Dave came from Elkview and the behest of Rusty and began to explain how this 'pick up' of materials works.


 They go to the basement and bring out 200 big zip lock bags worth of stuff, manifest each, toss into the appropriate bin.  They know their jobs; they recognize my problems; and by 5 o'clock they are on their way back home - had to unload the truck this morning. (I was so tired watching them work, I went to bed early!) not finished...

Thursday (WOW-EPA-Through Thursday) Neighbors stopped by to see what the heck the EPA was doing in their neighborhood yesterday. they even chatted up the guys.


Jeff came to help clear out the greenhouse so they could get to the material. He also loaded the tools into the truck when everyone was gone.


The crew walked through the basement, finished up, tackled the garage and greenhouse - result: they got the NiC and took it along with some other stuff. We passed the mercury sniffing test. And we are clear to finish cleaning out the basement, garage and greenhouse, the work is far from over.



I am really tired.
Tomorrow is Friday.
I'm tired, just thinking about it.

What a beautiful 'Last' Sunday in July 2013

What a beautiful Sunday Morning! the cool air has arrived (from somewhere) and the temperatures have dropped from the very hot and very muggy lower/or occasionally higher 90's of two weeks ago, to the mildly cooler 80's of last week to the predicted 70's of today.

The following photos are the people and things that bring joy to my life: 

The Legacy!

The 5th birthday

The girls are coming late this afternoon for a mini sleepover; tomorrow they will go to Morgantown to bond some more in that cultural event 'back to school shopping' or some such excuse. We are really having a mid-birthday party (not a late celebration not an early one). This year the magic numbers are 35 and 39 and, of course, 66. [also 5 and 13 parties already over and yet to be held] I'm planning watermelon, ice cream sundaes, and maybe cup cakes - something to set the flames upon.

The Summer of 2013 has gone quickly. School was not over for me until mid June. By then we had had a plethora of events: Tracy and Keith's anniversary (over the Memorial Day Weekend)

Zoey turned 5 in June.  See those photos of her Miss Kitty BD?

Delia spent a night over here - we went to see Despicable Me2...

It's been a rainy summer in WV. Some weeks the rains came every day.  It was even difficult to find a day to cut the grass.  'Indecisive me' let several opportunities to empty the house fly by - so I still own it and have to pay the taxes and deal with registering it as 'vacant' with the assessor's office. Bummer.

Through f/b and Tracy, I found an artisan, Sarah H., who offered to look at the stained glass windows in the garage with the intent on appraising them for sale. She brought a friend to the garage to help move the windows to photograph them and he wore flip flops. After he stepped on a board with a nail sticking out, we quit looking at the windows and took him to the hospital ER for a tetanus shoot and an x-ray. (I called Jeff to put the widows back.)  She's been busy since then. I have tried to track down the original prices of the windows and some of their history. That's a story for another paragraph.

Brenda and Sonja have helped me clean out some of the stuff in 'the house' - Brenda is a friend from my days teaching at Flemington and my friendship with Jean Burton. She does the hard work of dragging stuff to me and moving it downs stairways; Sonja is Jeff's wife and she carries stuff to the car and truck and helps box up - we were on a roll until we went to the basement. Brenda boxed up all the fluorescent light bulbs; Sonja got her son to drive the trash of the ceiling tiles to the dump - things were coming together. Brenda swept a path; Sonja started her plan to clear the shelves - then we opened a cabinet door and realized we had a problem.  The solution had to wait until after the Boy Scout Jamboree, and that ended this past week, but the guys have not called me to set up a visit at this time... and Sonja went home to can beans; Brenda lets me cancel every Tuesday...

I used the 'free time' to get the oil changed in the LHS - and the garage said I had a problem with an oil plug so I spent a couple days at the garage waiting for a solution there... I have an appointment for Tuesday this coming  week.

The 15th  anniversary party at Coopers Rocks ROCKS!!!!

Last Fall - my family together at Timberline- November 2012

Summer Fun 2013

Checking up on my health. Until I shake this depression, and this medicine I'll just say Ouch.

NO, I didn't win the power ball.

Happy Sunday after Mother's Day.

Big storms and tornadoes are all over the west (in Kansas)
John and Trent are on their way to Denver. They left Columbus around 3 and I hope they are on the ground by now. Trisha, Zoey and I ate at Cheddars for our late Mother's Day lunch.

What Inspires me!

The movie "Dave" inspires me. 
And that's not all ;-) Having time to reflect and write about what I'm thinking 'inspires me'.
Knowing - if I die tomorrow - I've had a pretty good life; not fabulously famous, but happy times.
Now, it's time to change some of the photos on this blog.

It's April and that means Spring!

Always finding things that inspire me; not always sharing them in time to inspire anyone else.

Zoey cut out this egg all by herself.

We love to party!

And, we love to decorate!

And we love to eat!

Tracy and family had deviled eggs and this cake.

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RANDOM food photos

Trisha's quiche

and

then

sushi from linner on Tuesday ;-)

It's FebRUary in the 21st century

Hey Everyone,
I'm back - blogging again.

Watching a rerun of National Treasure TWO.
What's on my mind?
Here are some random shots I found while looking around. Maybe you remember some of them.

Everyone loves hugs!

First day of school for Delia.

Dad at Yellowstone (2006) after I talked him into buying the hat.

That magic turns this sideways - a scrabble win for Keith.

An old acquaintance of mine died this week- John Fuscaldo - He graduated from Victory in 1965; he died suddenly at 65 and he was best known as a cop in the area. Once he was a substitute teacher in my classroom at Flemington. He got so mad at one of my classes, he threw a book down hard on my huge desk. My wooden desk had a glass covering it (I inherited that from the last teacher who taught English there); but the glass was sitting on a paper with a paperclip on the corner. And the corner of the glass top broke. He walked out, walked down three flights of stairs, got in his car and drove off.  I think he came back when he cooled down. I wasn't there and can only recount what I was told. John was a good man; he just had a hot temper. School teaching wasn't his 'thing' but he worked in law enforcement until he died.  I hope he was happy and this death wasn't too much of a surprise....

Time flys, especially when I'm not paying attention.

 I am well into 2013 - This will be the first full week of school since only God knows when. (Shows how stressed I have become getting ready for semester grades.)  The fiscal cliff seems to be at bay for another month or so. At least my income tax won't go up, just my deductions for social security from 4% to 6(point)something%... Oh well....[heavy sigh]

I have looked over that calendar from 2012 to see what good things stick out in my view:  this is one of them. I haven't looked for pictures of all the stuff that went on. I'm lucky to get this finished before bedtime.

 When we took our "traditional Walls family fall vacation" this year, we went to the HIGH country: Canaan Valley-Timberline and environs... And it was fun, even though I was afraid of the travel (snow possible and all) But somehow, we managed not to alienate each other and we had a good time. Even saying that, we did not plan a fall vacation for 2013. Maybe we can get together for Disney in the spring of 2014 or in the fall of 2014.  

 Amanda and Todd tied the knot in May. What a wonderful time we had celebrating with them in Arizona! Trisha and I have some "firsts" - 1st time she was away from Zoey; 1st time we were 'rooming together' (I use that term loosely); 1st airplane ride since 911; 1st destination wedding  - and it was HEAVENLY - good food, lots of family (Joey, Uncle Johnny and Pam, not to mention new family- Todd's Mom n Dad, Mary and Eric; and, of course, Aunt Barbara and Uncle Eddie!)

Uncle Timbuck died over the Memorial Day Weekend. Aunt Joy is still working and looks younger than ever. She has a new cat - a snowshoe Siamese called Jazzie. He's ADHA, but he's just a kitten.

In June, Leah, Jay, Cassie and I drove to Virginia to see Rob and Jenny (and Alana, the grandchild.) We saw Monticello and the winery. I got a speeding ticket on the way back in Virginia. Or rather a failure to heed a speed sign ticket. No matter, it was a ticket!!!

I worked on finishing up some financial things- starting in July, continuing into the late summer and fall. Maybe in January the process can finally end.

 

Cousin Susie had her heart operated on in late August or September and she spend quite a while in a Good Samaritan rehab in Florida. She's back home on Timber Lane now and she writes often (She told me she had Thanksgiving dinner with Gene and his wife.)

Delia turned 12 this year. She got some medical attention for her migraine headache-seems to run in the family.

Cousin Malissa and Darrin tied the knot in October, in Dorsey Park in Morgantown. She is now Mrs. Baker. Tracy and Delia were in the wedding, as well as Mindy, Naomi, Billie, Audry and Cassie. Leah and Mindy made the chocolate leaf favors and Leah saved me several ;-) Yummy.

I went to the Millers in Marietta for Thanksgiving. John made a fabulous turkey (in the oven, not in the 'shoot the turkey into the sky outside oil' tank) Trisha made her famous mashed potatoes (with some lumps, just so you know they were hand made fresh!)

 

The World did not End on December 21st.

I spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with the Millers. Festivities never end there! Zoey had her 'Barbie Christmas' and at 4 and 1/2 this was THE time to have it... All smiles and sparkles from that little girl!! 

We had another Christmas last Sunday when the families could get together here. Delia spent the next two nights here and we celebrated New Years by staying up and watching the ball drop - exploding confetti grenades, sitting on balloons and popping them, making igloos outside - (she did, I didn't) and wearing paper hats!

We all seem to have good health. And our bucket lists seem to stretch out forever, despite the health problems we see in our nearby family... Aunt Norma has been in Cleveland Clinic since before Christmas, and was operated on a few days ago. We are awaiting her full recovery.

I found this prediction somewhere on the net earlier this fall. We do not seem to be following this map. Even though I wish we would (snow days and all that go along with them)...But change is in the air!!! Even so, here's to another year of living. [clink!]

happy New Year 2013

Delia's giant snowball-snow cone

It's the new year.

2013

WOW - so many things have changed in the past decade 2002 -2012. 
I hope this year is a year of living to the max.

 Strange, too, that the calendar turns to the new year in January - mid-winter. I like new beginnings to be green, fresh, warming slightly and moving into the peak of comfort. 

Not so in our world right now - it's cold, of course, and damp. Even Gibbs is wearing a tweedy wool jacket on  my new NCIS calendar for 2013, preparing for a long, cold dark winter...
 

But the end of the traditional year can be blah, colder, wet and dark (unless it's been a good year - then we will all be on vacation in a warm climate with lengthening days..)  So - to fight off the misty memories of past years... 

Delia and I spent this New Year's Eve Together. 
  
We got a late start on searching for appropriate New Year accessories. 
First to Kroger - no party hats there.  Then to CVS, where we found the hats and balloons. On to the next best  store, RiteAid, where the silly string, popping confetti and those little noisemakers with the roll-out paper on the ends. And don't forget the candles, lighters, and lanterns to be used for an outside purpose...

Delia built an igloo outside while we waited for the new year to appear on the east coast. We watched ROKU reruns of Monk and we ate chocolate by the tons in various forms - true confession time. 

Zoey in her flower girl dress for Bill and Sarah's wedding (last year at this time) does a retake like the Royal family when she wears it for the Christmas program this year 2012 at Marietta High School

Then we got pictures from our far away family via the photos that take pictures other people think we must see. (And mostly that's true. ;-)

And so, you see - there were celebrations on the farm this new year's eve and we bask in the glow of the ball being dropped in various cities around the world - soberly.  And so, we begin another year of living (dangerously).