sunshine on a rainy day

I ended this month with a visit to southern Georgia. I hadn't seen my cousin Lynn in ... well, quite a few years, it seems! She and I seemed to not be around Waycross at the same time. I had contacted her several times on my way back home from Florida, but she would be out of town.
Clearly, a better game plan was needed! So, I contacted her earlier this week: might she be available for lunch on Wednesday? Yes, she would, but she had a late shift on Tuesday, so could we make it later in the afternoon? Sure thing!
The time was set for 3 PM, or thereabouts. She would give me a call when she awakened. Yeah!
When she called, I was already on my way to Waycross, one-time home of my maternal grandparents and summertime destination for my family when we were kids. My cousin, now a grandmother herself, still lived there, though not where my mother's mom and dad once lived.
Okay, enough with the background info! Talk about y'all's lunch!
(smile)
She suggested Cavagnaros, an Italian place with lots of variety. Cool beans! A new place to add to my list of resolutions kept!
She arrived shortly after I did, with a bright smile to offset the gray skies and light drizzle. Yeah! I really think she smiled the entire time, and I did, too. Three hours we were there! The manager finally came over and asked if we would mind settling up, as our young waitress was due to leave and needed to close out our bill before she left. We did so, then probably still stayed another hour, with the manager as our tea-glass filler. Very nice!
I had the best steak tips with onions and peppers! Yum! And she had the steak salad, with the same tasty beef. We also had corn nuggets, meant as an appetizer, but there was a dinner plate full of them, served piping hot with a honey mustard sauce. I eventually took at least half that plateful home with me, as well as my untouched sweet potato (which was destined to become part of my breakfast the next day). I just finished off the corn nuggets as an accompaniment to ham and bean soup. Still tasty, still smiling!
Why? Well, lemme tell you this: wouldn't you still be smiling after a visit with someone who loves you so much? Of course you would!
It had nothing to do with our conversation. Well, no, let me amend that. Most of our conversation was catching up on the events relating to our siblings, some good, some not so good. Ah, well. You're going to have that, right? Bad choices lead to hard lives and drugs encourage bad choices.
But we also talked about her little granddaughter's first birthday and how wonderful it was to have her son and his lovely, loving wife living close to her again. And we talked about my first niece and her family and how wonderful it has been having them so close to me.
And we talked about men. We both need strong men who will love us as we are. Strong men looking for strong women. No, I'm not talking about physical strength, and neither is she. Strong in character, strong with passion, strong in acceptance and humor and love of this world. Strong like we strive to be.
Impossible things?
I hope not.
She also shared a story with me. She and another of my cousins (her little sister) had been reading one of my posts on the social media we all share. She said they were amazed by how involved i am with life in this city by the sea. So many films! Yet another new play! Dancing! Dining! Games nights with children!
Wow! I wasn't even aware they were following all of that. But it gladdened my heart to know they do. After all, that means I am loved!
That is always good to know.
I drove home with storm clouds chasing the sky alongside. Then, a break in the clouds, with sunbeams forcing their way forward! I thought I saw a smiling face and tried to capture it - drats! Missed!
Then, while watching the water paths meandering across my windshield (easily entertained am I), I took a picture of their wobbly paths.
It wasn't until I reached home that I saw it: the smiling face I had missed in the earlier shot. Woohoo!
i thank You, God! i thank the angel keeping me company as I ran back to Savannah! I would like to think my Uncle Jimmy was this funny, goofy, smiley face, thanking me for the visit to my Waycross cousin.
Then again, maybe it was Grandmama. She was always the one who traveled around from Tallahassee to Savannah and Augusta and Strong, Arkansas, keeping home fires burning.
Sometimes, she traveled with me.
Maybe this was one of those times.

seven up!

Last night at karaoke, I sang seven songs!!!
And I sand them all over a three-hour span of time!!!
Zoom zoom!!!
No, really! Usually, the biggest problem with doing karaoke is having to wait about an hour between singing the songs you gave the KJ (karaoke jock).
Seriously. Enough people want to sing that you have to wait your turn and that wait is, typically, at least 45 minutes, but more often an hour. I've sometimes had to wait even longer than that.
I know, it sounds like a really long time. But, let's do the math, shall we?
I insist.
Okay. Let's consider that most songs are about five minutes long. That should mean that you could get twelve singers per hour.
But that isn't correct. That doesn't include the time it takes for folks to come when called, to get to the stage, to get off the stage. So, in all honesty, about ten singers per hour is as much as is optimally possible.
If you're not dealing with sauntering drunks.
Which you usually are.
So... the actual number of singers in any sixty-minute period is eight. Usually.
Last night, I was able to get in a song about every twenty-five minutes... YES!
I truly enjoy singing! And here at Club One on Mondays and Tuesdays, the KJ was usually the partner of my retired swimmer friend, making it a friendly environment. On this particular Monday, however, I showed up with the peace Guy after he got off work and found that another KJ was standing in for her. But he was the very talented Stanley and he flat-out ruled at getting songs done!
I started my set with some German rock, "The Zoo." I was introduced to the Scorpions' music by my boyfriend, Mikey. He had come to Okinawa from Germany and had lots of new albums to broaden my horizons. This song was an easy way to start - and fun!
Then I sang "China Girl" for the effervescent JinHi. Yeah, i didn't do so well on the Bowie tune. Maybe I should have done "We Can Be Heroes" instead? Ah, well, spilled milk now.
Then more not-quite-right from me with "Bring Me To Life". Evanescence is awesome with this heartfelt song! I keep trying to do it, as it has meaning for me in my AD world. Notice that word: trying.
Better to go with a song I sometimes whistle in the university halls: Ozzy's (Flying High Again"! Lots of energy, fun lyrics! Nailed it!
Yeah! Love that rock and roll! Keep it comin'!
So I did. My fifth offering was some Led Zeppelin. Mind you, most of their songs have titles that hardly relate to the lyrics and the one I did, "Black Dog", is certainly one of those. But it's a classic and you'd recognize it instantly if you heard it!
By this time, I was ready to have a little fun, do something for the show-tunes crowd. A little "Hair", anyone? No, not really. That title track is a bit off-kilter to sing. Fine! So I did "Good Morning Starshine" - dooby ooby walla, dooby abba dabba, y'all!
By this time, it was almost closing time. Time for a duet with a sweet young man I'd been doing a little dancing with! Nothing like Sinatra's "New York, New York" to shake loose those last vocal chords!
What a fine evening!

And whaddaya know?
The peace Guy has even caught the karaoke flu!
He's been singing for about a month now, maybe a little longer.
My job here is done!
(smile!)

You-a very punny!

I do so wish I could claim that I devised the following bits of tongue-in-cheek-iness, but, alas, I cannot.
That credit goes to Matt Jones, creator of the weekly crossword puzzle in Connect Savannah.
This particular puzzle was titled "That's the Thinga" - Gotta it?
The puzzle appeared in the issue for 10-17 July. I didn't even pick up a copy of that one until late last night, while waiting for the peace Guy to wrap up his farewells. For whatever reason, Club One had three different issues of that entertainment paper on display.
But I digress.
As I am wont to do.
At times.
(smile)
Just a little earlier today, I was working the puzzle. I like to do those on Sundays, I don't really know why.
I just do.
And I found myself trying to rush through it, just to solve the puns!
Hahaha! Haha!
Now, time to share them with you!
(Remember to read aloud for maximum enjoyment!)

A creature that fire roasts its own pies is Pizza Dragon.

The end of a deep sleep is coma over.

The Dalai Lama is a Lhasa leader.

Jabba interviews are talks that may ask "What's it like having a palace on Tatooine?"

Xhalanque, for instance, is Maya word.
(Yeah, I had to get help for that one about the Mayan Hero Twins.)

insider information

"Dinner! Here, dinner!"
When I wrote that particular line in February, I should have added a sidebar for its origin. You see, that line - or its kin, "Supper! Here, supper! - has been part of my repertoire for many years. In fact, so much time has elapsed since it first came into being that I cannot recall even an approximation of its birth.
At this point in the game, it simply is.
My ex and I coined it and used it frequently.
Neither of us wanting to cook? "The Line" to the rescue! Out we would go in search of meals prepared by others.
Hungry and can't wait for food to be cooked? "The Line" would point us in the direction of the closest Mexican restaurant (where they feed you chips and salsa NOW) or Chinese buffet (where they allow you immediate access to ready and waiting food).
The food is on the stove and almost done? "The Line" would be trotted out to indicate that something sure was smelling good around here! How much longer until it was done?

The peace Guy and I have our own little insider joke.
We're the "dessert first" people.
Back a while ago, he and I had gone to Fiddler's Seafood with a Valpak coupon. I can't recall the specifics of the coupon, but I think it was a buy-one-entree, get-a-discount-on-another type of deal.
That evening, they were featuring peach cobbler.
Nice! Next to bread pudding, that's my dessert of choice!
One problem: it was served a la mode.
So a lactase would have to be sacrificed... or would it?
Heck no! I could get the ice cream on the side and give it to the peace Guy! Right?
Yeah! Sounded good to him!
Oh, and could we go ahead and start with dessert, instead of getting a more traditional appetizer?
Um, sure, the waiter said. We can do that.
Coolness!
And so it was done.
We had our dessert first, him eating the ice cream, me sharing some of the cobbler with him. And it was good: the food, the company, and life itself.
Later that evening, the peace Guy was at one of the hot spots on River Street with a friend who has some resemblance to me. Suddenly he hears "Hey, there are the dessert first people!" And it's the waiter from Fiddler's!
He had recognized the peace Guy, of course.
Coolness!
And so was born that tale, a tale which resurfaces from time to time, as it did today.
The peace Guy shared it at a going-away luncheon at a restaurant new to both of us. Three friends had joined us there and, as I was perusing the dessert listings, he regaled them with the tale.
Very nice!
I'm so glad we have that special shared memory!
It's so very important to have people who know me.

you just might find you get what you need

Sometimes, you think you know how things are going to go. I mean, you are sure that this particular action will produce this result.
Not necessarily so, you know.
That doesn't negate the result, though.
This gift from a loving student is a perfect example. She had been to my office several times over the past two years and knew I fancied mortar and pestle sets. I wouldn't say I collect them, but I certainly like the two I had displayed on a top shelf.
This past spring, she was taking a pottery class. She had spoken of it several times to me, so I was aware she was working with clay, making some items for family and friends.
She had asked me about my favorite colors and I had responded, as I often do, with "hot pink and dark purple." Why? Well, it goes back to commercials with the furry Pepto-Bismol monster, but I may well be the only person who recals that creature.
She made that mental note of my colors and said no more about it.
Fast-forward to the end of the semester. Final exams are done and my grades are in.
She comes to my office with this mortar and pestle. Made just for me.
She had painted the mortar a lush dark purple, the pestle a hot and loud pink.
Then she had placed the items in the kiln and the colors had transformed.
The results were not what she had envisioned for me, but she knew I would be appreciative of her efforts.
She knew I would value it because she had put a part of herself into this gift for me.
She knew how sentimental I am.
Thank you, LaNesa.
I'm going to miss you.
I do hope you will still come by to visit, wherever my new space may be.

ATL-bound, man

Every time I leave
You say you won't be there.
And you're always there.
Every time I cry your name at night,
you pull close and say it's alright.
I look in your eyes, just like the rain.
Washing me, rain wash over me.
Touching your face, I feel the heat
of your heartbeat echo in my head like a scream.
What you do to me!
Waited so long I can't wait another day without you.
Jet City Woman.
It's a long way, home to my
Jet City Woman.
I see her face everywhere, can't get her out of my mind.
Whenever I'm alone I'm thinking,
there's a part missing from my life.
Wonder where I'd be without your love
holding me together now I'm
watching the time tick, tick away.
Face grows longer every day.
Fortunes are lost on the women I've seen
but without you I can't breathe.
You're the air to me!
Waited so long, I'm all alone thinking about you.
Jet City Woman.
Got to find my way home to her.
Jet City Woman.
I see her face everywhere I look!
Jet City Woman.
Just a thousand miles and I'll be there
Jet City Woman, to make the clouds go away.
Time for some blue sky!
Waited so long now the plane's delayed
and hour, reminds me of all our days apart.
Hold on, just a little longer.
Jet City Woman.
Wonder where I'd be, you're the air to me.
Jet City Woman.
Eyes like the rain, rain down on me
Jet City, Woman.
No more nights alone I'm almost home now.
Jet City Woman.
Close my eyes, I'm there in my Jet City.
--- written by Chris DeGarmo and Geoff Tate of Queensryche

I sang this at karaoke tonight. I and the peace Guy didn't actually make it home until the place closed, so the time is not quite true on this post, but that's okay.
We had both been at a going-away party for him earlier today. The party was a wonderful gathering of friends at a lovely condo overlooking the Bull River. Spectacular view! Excellent food! Lively conversation!
We even had a nice long dip in the saltwater pool to round out the evening, followed with more conversation and the opening of gifts and the reading of jokes on popsicle sticks.
It was quite a bittersweet time for both of us. Sweet to be with others who know and love him. So very sad that he is having to go away for his job.
We hardly got home before he was wanting to go for a nightcap.
I was ahead of him on that one, so he drove to the karaoke joint where The Lady sometimes struts her stuff.
I sang this song tonight. I needed to loose some intensity and "Jet City Woman" seemed entirely appropriate.
After all, he's moving to jet city.
I am so going to miss him.

a few of my favorite things

The orchid was a gift from my Hawaiian student this past spring. I told her I hope I don't kill it, as I have a bit of a brown thumb. Don't get me wrong, I greatly enjoy plants, especially flowers. I just don't do very well at keeping them alive. This orchid was given to me the first week of May and still had blooms at the beginning of this month. Yeah!!!
The pinwheel is from Jekyll Island and has already received its fair share of space on my beach.
The view is from my office window. Oops, let me rephrase that! From my former office window. I guess I'll be holding office hours in the department's conference room this semester. Oh, well, that's not how I would have planned it, but that is how it's going to be.
The lower printout on the cabinet door is of the animated character created for the chemical element, Tungsten. The chemical symbol is derived from the name of the source of the element, a mineral known as Wolfram. That, alone, makes it one of my favorite elements. Wolfram. Nice!
The other printout is the schedule at the Fine Arts center on campus. Gotta get your cultural fix, you know? Balance is one of the keys to life. Work hard, play hard, rest hard.
Balance.