S. C. Weekend

I had a double-fun weekend recently. My good friend, Mona, and I traveled to Charleston, S. C. to visit my one and only daughter, Jill. Jill and her husband, Brian, are in Charleston because Brian is in the Air Force. They love it there, and I am lucky that I get to visit and don't have to find a hotel room:) Brian was ready and waiting, having prepared a cooking lesson for us. He had ingredients for home-made fresh pasta and put Mona and I straight to work. This is the gist of it:
a) dump about a cup of semolina pasta flour on a clean surface
b) make a well in the center
c) break an egg into the well
d)begin mixing the flour into the egg, continuing until you have eventually created a moist ball of dough
e)knead and work, knead and work, knead and work for about a day:)
f) when the ball of dough is very soft and pliable, it is ready to be put through the pasta machine.
g) Brian takes over because we know nothing about how to work that machine.
Brian and Jill then used the prepared fresh pasta to make a delicious lasagne fit for two visiting queens, except Mona only eats from a basic food list so she had a boring hamburger instead. The lasagne was wonderful.
Not only is Brian a wonderful cook and dedicated military man, he is hooked on gold prospecting. Hooked so much that he put together a website that is devoted to gold prospectors and the site has drawn a huge following: www.goldgrubbin.com
Jill is a photographer (www.jillhiggins.com), so she was busy on Saturday, meeting a potential client in the morning and shooting a wedding at Alhambra Hall in the afternoon. Before going to her wedding, Jill took us over to Ulta, introducing us to Bare Minerals make-up products, and Mona and I both got a new face:) We both looked so beautiful that we purchased the products.
After we dropped Jill off at the wedding location, Mona and I did the typical girlfriend thing----shopped away the afternoon. This was Mona's first trip to Charleston so we drove downtown, cruised the Battery area, admiring the historic waterfront homes. We then parked and strolled through the old city market and the shops on Market Street where we found a combination of new and handcrafted items for sale, including the handmade sweetgrass baskets that the area is famous for. One of my favorite stalls was Tanner Bananer, personal and household items made from vintage inspired oilcloth(www.tannerbananer.com). Mona fell for a silver bracelet with interchangeable, fixed charms. She will put that on her Christmas wish list. We walked on over to King Street and admired the high-end, upscale shops located there (no, we did not cave in and buy anything). However, we needed an afternoon munchie and discovered some great little cheese biscuits at a BBQ restaurant that I've forgotten the name of. By that time we needed to leave to pick Jill up from the wedding, and we drove back to old Mt. Pleasant.
We had a great day Sunday too. Terry, one of Jill's friends, invited us over for a very tasty lunch and a tour of her new home on Daniel Island----gorgeous! Terry has done a beautiful job decorating her home, and I learned she is a very talented seamstress and quilt designer as well. Then we all went over to the Southern Living Idea Home, also on Daniel Island. Very, very nice and priced at $2 mil! Since I live in the country, it's interesting to me that folks invest that kind of money in a house that is spitting distance from the neighbor.
Monday morning we left for home, hugging our good-byes and hoping to see each other again soon. I always feel very blessed and lucky to have Jill as my daughter and Mona as my friend.

Cleve's Heavenly Home

Jenny, a woman who loves her children with that "deep-soul love" only a mama knows, very recently experienced the death of her son, Cleve. All parents recognize this as the absolute most dreaded, most horrible nightmare we could possibly go through. In talking with mutual friends who have been close to Jenny and her family, I've learned of quite touching and surreal happenings, events, that, when looking back to the day of the tragic death, seem to have been a part of a bigger scene than one could possibly realize at the time. At the death, especially of a young person, we pause, listen, and think deeply, thoughtfully, prayerfully.
It should not take a death, a tragedy to make us pause...but many times that's just what it takes. This world we live in of "fast and furious" is wearing us thin, making us weak. Our pursuit of success, happiness, and fulfillment is draining us of the very thing we crave. We are all guilty as charged.
Why did Cleve die? What, if anything, did his death prepare his friends and family to handle, to face? Cleve was a handsome, charming, very sweet and caring young man. Still in college, his entire future waiting before him. A beautiful life just around the bend. His parents would have chosen to die first. "Please take me instead," would have been their plea if they had had that opportunity. That choice was not theirs to make.
I'm not an expert in "why bad things happen to good people". But, I know what I believe. No doubt many questions have been asked since Cleve's death. Some may ask, "Why would God allow this to happen?" I don't believe God wanted Cleve to die, and I surely don't believe God wanted Cleve to die in the way he died because the pain of it stretched far and wide. God is not about pain and suffering. The devil is about pain and suffering, and there is tremendous evil working in this world today. Although God could not stop what happened, he made sequential, uplifting, surprising events and revelations happen surrounding that fateful moment that will be forever burned in the minds of those who knew Cleve. God does not cause evil and pain, but God can use events to bring about enlightenment and good in the world. God can create "Cleve moments" for the believer who will have absolutely no doubt that Cleve's presence is there and will always be there.
Cleve is in heaven. He has a warm, comforting, sweet, gospel-filled, joyful home in God's heavenly mansion. To all mama's out there---Jenny needs our prayers. Let not let time or fast and furious days lead us to forget Cleve's mama---not for a very long time. Pray for Jenny. Pray for peace and love to radiate in a million shining lights from Cleve's life lived on earth.

Road trip to N.C.

My long-time friend Barbara and I recently traveled to Gastonia, N.C. to visit her sister, Marjorie, who is also my long-time friend. "Long-time" translates to eons. We have known each other since high school and we are all in our fabulous 50's now. So, we've got memories together that go back almost 40 years. Heck, our memories are antiques!
Barbara and I live about 200 miles apart, and Marjorie lives about a million miles from us (at least it seems like it).
Marjorie's husband Loring was there, so he had to put up with us for three days. We talked about everything, discussed how to decorate some rooms, ate some wonderful food, shopped, ate some wonderful food again and laughed a lot. I was reminded how precious old friends are. We share history. We understand what the other means when we roll our eyes at the mention of someone from the past; we know who the bona fide idiots are--a couple of them are ex-husbands. ha! We can share notes from 40 years of life. A lot happens in 40 years.:)
We girls drank a little wine, a little this, a little that and worked out a few life issues over three days before saying good-bye. We both wish Marjorie wasn't so far away. Barbara and I had a long drive home, but it didn't seem long at all because we talked all the way. We understand each other ...our lives, our children, our husbands, our families.
Thanks, Barbara & Marjorie--it was fun! See you again real soon.

Don't call Mr. Fix It

I sometimes need to hire someone to do carpentry, plumbing, electrical or painting either at my own home or rental property. Here is a big clue for you if you are looking for those services: Forget it. Just forget it. Or, at least forget getting good customer service and respect.
Five weeks ago a carpenter promised to begin repairs the following day. He showed up yesterday---only 5 weeks late. Not a phone call to let me know he was delayed.... nothing. I had finally located someone else to do the job (after calling the first guy once to ask when he might start and being very patient for four weeks and 5 days) then they both showed up on the same morning! No problem. I have plenty of work to be done so I put them both to work. No....wait a minute....I put me "to wait" again. Wait on one to go check another job, wait on the other one to find materials, wait, wait.
I hired a painter several months ago. He disappears for weeks at a time. You might say, "you should just hire someone else". Well, you believe they will show up when they say they will. Then, when they don't, you call and they tell you they "will be there Thursday", so you wait til Thursday when they also don't show up. The painter already has the paint you paid for, so you if you hired someone else you may be buying paint again. On and on and on.
One week ago I entered into a signed contract with someone to do some brick work. The contract specifically stated the work and payment terms. Three days later, he's calling me asking for $150. "Not in the contract, sorry," I told him. He wasn't too happy, but I was not handing over any money.
My husband and I have one very solid, very wonderful carpenter who is brilliant. He shows up when he says he will. He charges a fair price. He cleans up after the job. He can do anything. There's only one problem: he is so busy we have to wait in line. And, no, I will not give you his name and number:)
If you call Mr. Fix It, here's my advice: enter into a signed contract no matter how simple the job; don't part with a dime until a satisfactory phase of the job is completed; include a timeframe on completion of the work and make payment dependent on meeting that timeframe; if timeframe is not met, include a penalty fee; and if the timeframe is met and the work is satisfactory, provide a bonus.
"Good work ethic" has gone to hell in a hand basket.

Boston, Georgia

Welcome to my blog. Are you a blog browser? If so, you are way ahead of me. I think I will have fun with this and attempt to share a little light hearted information that may be interesting or helpful.. So..with this blog I'm actually writing a note to the world....possibly.
I just got back from Boston...., GA. Surprised, aren't you? I bet you didn't know there was a Boston, GA. If you love visiting small towns that are resurrecting business vitality and drawing folks in you should come to Boston. It's just a few miles north of the FL line and Tallahassee. Here's a sampling of what you will find:

• Boston Cafe---yum, yum. Busy every day for breakfast and lunch. Hometown, home-cooked, and home buzzing. Specials, desserts, sweet tea...you name it, you can have it here.
• Hollaway Hill, the kitchen ++++ store. Name it, Lynn has it. You will not find a better stocked kitchen store even in the big city. And while you are there, sample the fudge, coffees, smoothies (I just had a peach smoothie today). Lynn always has something new going on. She just got back from a visit with Paula Deen in Savannah and she brought back some special Paula Deen treats to share with you.
• Dragonfly has just opened and has whimsical, sweet gifts for mama's, teens, and babies. You will love being inside this restored building with it's original brick walls and beautiful pine floors. Tina is going to work hard to make sure you have fun in this store.
• Turtles has pizza, sandwiches, and other delectables for your palate. Open day and evening, Turtles will make your palate sing!
• Boston Hardware is a great place to browse for your everyday items for farm, home, and garden. Be sure to make some time for this down home store.
• Reflections on Main Street rivals any well-stocked and junk lover's paradise that you've ever traipsed into. From cherished framed oils and prints to vintage dressers, chests and bric n brac. Two floors of unique items you won't likely find anywhere else. Stop by and visit Ann for a chat, a tour, and extra special attention.
• Two more antique stores are filled to the brim with junker's dreams. You may find a treasure here that exists nowhere else. Don't take the chance of missing out!
• Boston Pharmacy is open and ready to fill your prescription, provide soothing balm, and ointment-ize your world. This small town drug store carries a variety of items to suit your personal and home needs.
• Need to promote your business or your fantastic self? Go by Marketing Communications and talk to Amanda. She can fix you up with promotional items that will tell the world who you are and how to find you. You gotta have buzzzzzzzz.

Front porch swings and caladiums. The perfect picture of a southern summer. All this and more in picture perfect downtown Boston, Georgia. For info on events, festivals, and goings on, go to www.bostonga.com