On the Rocks

“On the Rocks” is an idiom that stands for a relationship that isn’t doing so well. At least that is one way to look at it.  I have to say that I’m lucky in that I don’t have relationship issues at the moment, however there is a relationship that has been on the rocks—so to speak—for quite a few months now.

The love relationship with my writing has not been what it should be. I love to write—I love to share my adventures with life and with wine. It is an outlet I need at times more than I need the air I breathe. Okay—maybe I’m not that needy when it comes to writing—but if you’re a writer—you’ll know where I’m coming from.   It is something I really need in my life.  And lately, aside from my bedside journal, I haven’t been very attentive to this particular love. Not only have I not given my writing the time and attention it needs, I have not wanted to write.  Honestly,  I have purposely been avoiding it as much as possible.

And an inner part of me is screaming “blasphemy!” and another part of me is totally tuning out those screams. Unfortunately, the latter part is winning and handily muffling the sounds from that inner being.  Sitting here, typing this now is almost painful as sanding a piece of wood across the grain instead of with the grain. I can’t explain it any better than that.  And sadly, I can’t tell you exactly why either.

Now—the one thing I’ve noticed about myself is that when I am not writing, I like to be out taking photographs.  And when I’m not wanting to be out with my camera—I prefer to be writing.  It is two loves that I go back and forth between.  Lately, the camera and I have been rendezvousing and my creativeness is being fulfilled in my photo adventures.  With summer upon us—I have been out enjoying the wonders of mother nature and all she has to offer. If I’m ever going to kick start my love of writing—I can think of no better place to start than with a bit of inspiration from this beautiful world we live in.  From the grand to the miniscule—there is wonder in everything I see.

And to share—just a bit of what I’ve been out doing—here are a few images so you can have a glimpse:

     

If you follow me on Facebook—these photos are all old news.  However—it will give you a sense of why I’m not writing right now—I just feel I need to be out there—in the middle of things experiencing them. There will come a day—real soon—when it will be a priority for me to write about them.  For now—I must follow where my heart leads and take in life—capture it in its truest form so that I can come back to the point where writing is center stage.

Do you have creative outlets besides writing?

Have you experienced “Being on the Rocks” with your writing endeavors?

Cheers,

This was written for The Writers’ Post Blog Hop #49 “On the Rocks”

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The Last Straw

I’ve lived in my home now for almost 14 years.  We started out living here with just four of us and our dog Sammy.  We’ve since grown to a family of 7 and two dogs.  To say we’ve outgrown our home—just a bit—is an understatement.  The decision whether to move or to stay has been debated over and over again, and here we are—still living in our little humble abode.

I don’t mind living here—we have decent enough neighbors for the most part.  There are the neighbors behind us that we don’t care for too much—simply because they’ve done nothing but try to cause us trouble since they moved in.   We long ago determined—they like to cause trouble with all of the neighbors, so it wasn’t just us they were stirring things up with. We get along well with the rest of our neighbors—and frequently chat with them across the fences or out front along the sidewalk. 

We also live in an “older” neighborhood.  Some of the houses have been here for 40+ years.  We pride ourselves on taking care of our lawns and keeping our yards attractive.  There are mature trees throughout the neighborhood and in most of our yards—adding to the character of our little neighborhood.  And thanks to the streamlined winds of Hurricane Ike that made their way up into Ohio about 5 years ago—most of us have new roofs and siding to boot—and we’re looking rather spiffy.

There is one drawback to our neighborhood; the road on which we live.  It is wide enough for people to park on both sides of the street and have two mobile cars pass each other at the same time.  From one end, the street is a 1.1 miles of a very straight road—and the posted speed limit is 25mph.  As you come to the end of that straight road—you curve into a bend and the street continues the other direction—in a less straight fashion—for another .75 miles. (Think of the letter J) We so happen to live on the inside of this bend—and luckily so—as most of the traffic is pulled away from us by centrifugal force.  The people living on the outside of the bend are not quite so lucky—although we’re not immune from the traffic being on the inside of the bend.

Typically, as people approach the curve from either end—they tend to speed down that straight pathway toward the bend.  I guess they see that long straight road ahead of them and can’t wait to reach the end—usually speeding well beyond the posted limits.  I’m not sure—but most cars do not proceed down our road at 25mph.  More like 50mph sometimes even higher.  The problem is—if you are accustomed to our road—then you know what to anticipate—especially with the parked cars on either side of the street near the bend.  Unfortunately, drivers can not predict people and pets trying to cross the street—or even people backing out of their driveways, as they come around the curve—and this makes for a terribly dangerous situation at the posted speed limits.  And of course, speeding around our bend increases the likelihood of disaster, exponentially!  

In 2001—a drunk driver raced down our road at 131 miles per hour—didn’t anticipate the curve and ended up crashing into our neighbors house.  In 2002, another driver coming from the other direction—whizzed around our curve—plunging into a car parked in its driveway and moving it laterally 30 feet into a tree.  In 2003, our car was parked on the street and some guy—in broad daylight—sailed around the curve and smashed directly into the back of our parked car at 50 miles per hours—hurling pieces of our car onto the roof of our house.  In 2006, someone drove over several lawns on the outside of our bend taking out 2 mailboxes before plowing into a big old boulder (put there so that cars didn’t sail into their house).   In 2008, a parked car on our street was obliterated.  In 2011, another mailbox was taken out.  Just this year we’ve had two accidents in one night on our street—one hit a car and ran—the other hit the street sign and ran, just a few short hours apart.  And then last Friday morning, it happened again.  A car racing down our road took out 2 trashcans, a bookshelf put out for trash collection, plowed into a mailbox and hurled it onto another neighbors property.  They fled the scene before anyone could catch their plate numbers.

And that was the last straw. 

I propelled myself into action against these speeding, drunken, and all around irresponsible drivers.  I’ve conferred with 4 of my neighbors and we are going to all write to the mayor.  We need speed bumps on our road.  I’m sure it won’t stop every accident—but it will maybe deter people from racing down our street.  With all the kids and animals we have –we can’t risk a person getting hurt or killed because someone isn’t smart enough to slow down and follow the residential speed limits. It will eventually cost someone their life—and who knows if that driver will stick around to face the consequences.  But more importantly, we don’t want anyone to get hurt—especially our children.

I’m not sure what will come of our letters.  I’m not sure if I will have to attend a city council meeting—but I’m willing to do what it takes.  We need to take back our street—and bring safety to our neighborhood.  All of my neighbors agree—something has to be done—and sooner rather than later.

What would you do—faced with a similar problem?

Have you ever dealt with change at the municipal, township or city level?

Cheers,

 

This was written for The Writers’ Post Weekly Blog Hop #48.  This week’s theme:  The Last Straw

Want to join in on the fun??  Consider joining our group so you can share your blog links and participate in the weekly blog hops.

 

 

“Hoping” to “Stir the Pot”…Just a little :)

What would you do to follow a dream?  If you knew it was something you should do—something you could do—would you do what you needed to do to make it happen?   If it was something you’ve dreamt of doing for a long time—and the opportunity presented itself, would you chase that dream—even it it caused some changes in your life?  Would you stir the pot to live the dream—or would you choose to sit and dream some more of what should be and could be and never allowing the dream to meet reality?

I’ve been making plans to become a foster mom for dogs in need.  I’ve wanted to do this since I was in my early 20’s, but haven’t seriously considered doing so until about 4 weeks ago.  The breeds I am most familiar with is the Miniature and Standard Schnauzers and I have devised a few plans to get things in order, so that I can apply to a rescue organization that helps find homes for these particular breeds.  I’m not sure I’ll be approved to be a foster mom—but I know I would make a great foster-mom and I have a lot to offer in the way of love, patience, kindness, not to mention the space and the time required to do this.

My plans have consisted of getting my house in order; asking my veterinarian for a recommendation; talking to my children about their role in this upcoming venture and making sure this is something they would be comfortable with; and speaking with all of my neighbors about my upcoming plans.  I’ve taken precautions in my fenced area of the yard to make sure there are no further escape routes, and I bought a wireless containment system for our front yard—incase I should take in any pets that might bolt.  My goal is to help these fosters have a great home experience until their forever home can be found and hopefully make a difference in their lives.

One of the things I did was visit a rescue farm about 85 miles south of me—and I tried to get a sense of what it is like.  First of all, this was a farm—which rescued cats, dogs, birds and horses.  For her rescue dogs, she had a huge building and one side, it had all the kennel runs for the females and the other side had all the kennel runs for the male dogs.  I won’t be doing anything on this grand of a scale—but I at least got to see first hand what it was like and I took note of some of the things she was doing that might be beneficial. 

What I really liked is that most of her dogs were sociable to people and other animals.   And I think the experience of visiting the rescue farm solidified for me what my dream is all about.  While I really commend her for taking in all those animals—when no one else wanted them—I realize that each one of those animals only wants one thing—to find a permanent home.  Until then, they need somewhere safe and loving to stay.  I am hoping, really hoping, that I will find the right rescue organization to work with so I can one day soon call myself a “foster-mom” to these incredible creatures that give us so much.

What dreams have you chased lately?
Have you ever given up hope on a dream?

Cheers,

This post was written for The Writers’ Post weekly blog hop with the theme “Stirring the Pot” and for the BFF theme “Hope”  Consider joining both of these groups for blogging fun!!

 

Weird Al—King of Parody

When I saw this week’s topic for the GBE2 challenge, “Parody” my mind went one direction, toward the king of parodies himself, Weird Al Yankovic.

Like him, love him, or hate him—he knows how to sing a great parody.  I first heard his “Eat It” song—a spoof of Michael Jackson’s, “Beat It”, I was forever a fan.  I actually got to the point, when I heard “Beat It” being played on the radio—I’d want to hear “Eat It” to erase the former’s lyrics from my brain.  Yes—at one time I preferred the parody to the original. I think it was because the lyrics fit the song so well…and let’s face it they were more fun!!

 

 

And if it wasn’t enough for someone to come along and parody the revered King of Pop—Weird Al made sure to parody the Queen of Pop as well when he released “Like a Surgeon” which was sung to the familiar tune of “Like a Virgin” by Madonna.

Weird Al hasn’t stopped entertaining us with his parodies either—he has a whole slew of songs he’s parodied over the years.  Here are some of my favorites:

“Amish Paradise” parodies “Gangsta’s Paradise”

“Smells Like Nirvana” parodies “Smells Like Teen Spirit”

“The Saga Begins” parodies “American Pie”

 

“Gump” parodies “Lump”  (this is really hillarious)

“Do I Creep You Out” parodies “Do I Make You Proud” (great animation!)

“A Complicated Song” parodies “Complicated” by Avril (I have to include the video).

 

There are so many more great parodies by Weird Al.  Go to You Tube and type in Weird Al Yankovic and start watching—you’ll be sure to find a familiar tune!!

Do you have a favorite parody?

What is your favorite parody by Weird Al?

Cheers,

Opportunity

Given the opportunity for a better life, he took it.  The year was 1909, perhaps he was scared or excited,  when he boarded the USS Amerika and headed from Hamburg to New York. It was early spring when he arrived, April 1st to be exact, rather fitting as he looked forward to his new life in this new land.

As the ship reached the shore and he went through immigration, he soon learned he wouldn’t get to stay.  With all the opportunities right here at his fingertips, with “The Dream” of a lifetime in front of him, he would hear the heart breaking news that he would have to return.

I can’t imagine what it must have been like for my Great-Grandfather, I never heard him speak of it.  Mostly because by the time I knew him, he was very old and had reverted to speaking his native language for the most part. What I know are stories that have been told by his daughter (my grandmother) and his granddaughter (my mother) and passed down to me as his experience of coming to America.  And while I’ve actually heard this story from numerous family members, it would have been wonderful to ask him the questions I have as an adult and learn some of the more intrinsic feelings of his experience.

What I do know is that he made it to America, then he learned he had to go back.  It so happens that he didn’t come here with proper documentation.  Going back would mean that he would have to serve at least one year in the Hungarian Army before he could return again.  I think this might have been something he wasn’t looking forward to or maybe trying to avoid altogether.  The fact is he had to go back and he did go back.  He had to do his duty to his mother country and if he was lucky—he’d have another opportunity to get his affairs in order and come back legally.  So he did the right thing—and sailed back across the Atlantic.

I do not know many details of his service to the Hungarian Army, other than I was told he served his one year and got out.  Then he went to work, saving so he could return to America.  This time, he would make sure he had the right documentation so he could stay.  It was a little less than three years until he could make that second voyage.  Maybe the time back home seemed like an eternity to him…but he never lost site of the dream to return to America.  He returned on 28 February 1912, via USS Amerika, once again arriving in New York, only this time he was able to stay.

The story from there is that he settled in Connecticut.  He met my Great-Grandmother and they married.  Soon after, they moved to the Detroit area and had a family, living in several homes, before eventually buying a farm.  He never thought of going back, not even to visit.  His one sister made it to Connecticut and another sister settled in Ontario, Canada, not far from where he lived in Detroit.  He became an American citizen in April of 1925 and lived out the rest of his days in Michigan, where he eventually passed away in 1986 at the age of 99.

When I think of my Great-Grandfather’s story, I think of how he never lost sight of his dream to come to the land of opportunity.  I think of how close he came to attaining it the first time, only to have to go back, serve his country and then make his way back to America legally.  I think of how when faced with adversity, he still found a way to propel his dream into reality.

In comparison, when I think of my own life and the opportunities I’ve had,  I don’t think I’ve ever faced anything so monumental—nor have I desired something with that great of passion to make it happen.   Sure, I’ve owned my own business and I’ve been successful in smaller ways. I have a wonderful life with my husband, children, friends, and family and I do chase some of my smaller dreams. Yet, I’ve never desired to really change my life on such a grand scale and take all the risks involved, as my Great-Grandfather did.  I have to admire those who are willing to do it, because I believe it takes a lot of courage and the desire to make the dream a reality and see it to fruition.

What opportunities have you taken?  Where have they gotten you?

Ever lose out on a great opportunity?

Cheers,

This is part of The Writers’ Post Thursday Blog Hop—Theme is Opportunity.  Come join us on Facebook—share your blogging weeks and participate in the weekly blog hop!!  Click HERE to join us, everyone is welcome!!

 

A Special Thank You

I figured a great way to start off the month of May—besides ringing it in with a couple of bottles of wine (ahem—we’ll discuss that later…) would be to ring in the month with a bit of appreciation!!  I am writing this for the BFF theme, Thank You!

To all of the people who visited Wine-n-Chat during the A to Z Challenge in the month of April—thank you from the bottom of my heart, for gracing me with your wonderful comments, and for taking time out of your day to make mine a little brighter. I hope you will decide to visit again.  Leave me a link to your blog, I’ll be happy to come by and visit you.

To all of my blogging friends in the GBE2, BFF, and The Writers’ Post groups—you all are like family to me. I am honored to be a member of two of these groups—and to run the third. It is always a delight when you stop by and leave me comments!!  I hope you know how much I value your input and the time you take out of your busy day to read something I’ve written here on cyberspace and the effort you make to let me know that it may or may not have resonated with you.  I love feedback—and you all are the best at putting that big ole smile on my face when I read your responses!

To all of my friends and family that love me anyway—even though you may never come and read this… I’m okay with that.  Just the same, thanks for being there and supporting me in my writing endeavors.  Your love and dedication in my life means the world to me.

And if by chance you just happened to stop by today and read this appreciation post—thank you!!  I love having new visitors. 

So this is my thank you to you—my audience—for making this one of the greatest online experiences!!

Love ♥