Wrapping Up Loose Threads

Let's see...where were we? Oh yes, there were a couple of threads I should really wrap up.

The secret I mentioned a post or two back? Ah well, time to share! You may remember that Missy M made a job change (and move) in May. She was recruited rather enthusiastically by a couple of companies, and she accepted the offer from Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen's corporate office in the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody. From everything she had learned during the interviewing process, she thought her best chances for advancement might be in the Peach State.

She was right. After seven weeks with PLK, she was promoted to manager! Her new official title is Learning Development and Innovation Manager. Yes indeedy, proud as punch! On LinkedIn? Check it out: her profile. Anyway, she has hit the ground running...well, when she has actually been on the ground, that is. She's not really sure which time zone she's in most days. Atlanta to New Orleans to Atlanta to Chicago to Atlanta to Salt Lake City to...

In between her travels, she was home long enough for Mr. T to travel to Lawrenceville (at least for a few more days, I have to be specific with my L'ville references; when her house closes in Louisville next week, we can return to using the apostrophe) last weekend to install a doggie door in her new storm door. Getting ready for her babies to move in, don't you know? (But until her schedule can settle a bit, Dixie and ER will remain with us in NC.)

Funny aside...this funny picture (above) reminds us of a Nana/Momma/Edith memory. Once when we lived in Pickerington, OH, Momma returned home with a friend and realized she'd forgotten her house keys. Not wanting to "disturb us" at work, she decided the easiest way for her to get inside was to crawl through the doggie door. Remarkably, she made it! Never underestimate the power of determination, right?

And now, on to that other hanging thread. This one is going to be a rewind rather than a wrap. Remember my bike ride across the USA to Disneyland? It got stalled in March 526.4 miles from home, near Elkton, Todd County, KY.  Well, I realized in a brief moment of panic recently that I'm running out of year! I'd better get back in the saddle-seat again posthaste. 

And so I have. I rode 11.1 miles today, taking me from Elkton (Todd County) to the west side of Fairview (Christian County), KY. Was it easy to get started again? Actually, I was surprised at how easy it was...kinda like riding a bike...hahahahahaha. No really...it was easy. But I do not remember sweating as much in March as I did today! Whew! I have a long way to go and a short time to get there...but there's no time like the present to get (re-) started.

I did a bit of research and learned that I am riding in a region of Kentucky called the Pennyroyal area. Or, as some are known to say, the Pennyrile. As settlers moved through this area, they noticed an abundance of the herb pennyroyal (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mentha_pulegium), a member of the mint family which is touted to be a good mosquito and tick repellant. I don't have any pennyroyal but have heard the same about lemon balm, which I do have. I hope it served them better than my lemon balm serves me. Ahem. 

Fairview, the town where my ride ended today, is described as a census-designated location (no longer a real town?), known as the birthplace of Jefferson Davis. There is a "351-foot obelisk (which) marks the birth place of...the elected president of the Confederate States of America, the group of 11 southern states that seceded from the Union at the start of the Civil War." There are 19 acres, a museum, a gift shop, picnic shelters, playground, and an elevator to top of obelisk. I have arrived too late for the annual Jefferson Davis Birthday (June 3, 1808) Celebration. 

I'm not the first to remark on the fact that two of the major players in the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, were born in the same state: Lincoln in Hodgenville and Davis in Fairview, Christian (now Todd) County, Kentucky. Lincoln eventually settled in Illinois, becoming more connected with the Prairie state than the Bluegrass state. Likewise, Davis moved early in life to the Mississippi Delta, becoming thereafter linked to the Magnolia State. Still, they began their lives just 155 miles apart. Plus, a third member of the two couples at the head of states, Mary Todd...who would become Mrs. A. Lincoln...was born in Lexington, KY. (Varina Howell Davis was born in Natchez, MS.) Interesting, don't you think?

So, to wrap up this wrap up, as we head into the last full month of the Summer, Missy M is off and running. And I am off and riding. It's all good!

Cheers!

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* Bike Ride Footnote: To bring you up-to-date, in case you are just joining me...

My plan to get/keep in shape for gardening this year is to ride my stationary bike. Because I always need a reason to do something...or at least to continue doing something, I have decided on a program based on a distance of 2600 miles...which is the distance from our house to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, as Google-mapped using the (beta) Bike function. I started 1/3/2014...stopped for a 4-month extended break...and am continuing the saga today. 

BTW, I am tagging all the posts about my ride "Where in the USA is Patricia" on my blog, and #WhereintheUSAisPatricia on Twitter. While I won't be blogging about my ride on a daily basis, you can check my Twitter Feed over there in the right column for daily updates on my ride and location.

Happy pedaling!

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Let Me Eat Cake

Every year on your birthday, you get a chance to start new.

– Sammy Hagar

For several years now, I have started each birthday off right by getting up to see the sun rise. Mr. T has also made my 'day special by taking a vacation day...no calls, no email, no texts. Today, the traditions continued. 

We had registered an inch of rain in the gauge overnight, and the lingering, low-hanging clouds threatened to put a stop to my new start. Still, we got up at 5:00, brewed a pot of coffee, and headed to the park on Oak Hollow Lake near our house. Sunrise was posted as 6:16, and even if the sun was a bit tardy in breaking through the clouds, we were there on time. Here's what we saw when we arrived:

Oh my goodness! It was a gorgeous beginning for my "new" year. Fresh, clean, and even a tad on the cool side...well, as cool as one could hope for in mid-July. I probably took 50 or more photos. Gotta love digital photography, right? Here are just a few more for you:

The pic (above) is probably my favorite...even if I have to give credit to Bell's Palsy for that left eye wink...;-)

We followed up our early beginning with an early breakfast. This year, we chose the Moose Cafe at the Farmers Market. And, yes, before you ask, I most certainly did have country ham. The slab they served me was so huge that I brought half of it home...along with two of the bodacious biscuits they serve. I'll enjoy my birthday breakfast...again...in a couple of days.

Then, we dashed back home to feed the pups and get ready to head off in opposite directions for a bit: he had some errands to run, and I had a date with the DMV. My license that I got when we moved back to NC in 2009 was expiring...today. I needed to pass the road signs test as well as the eye exam. The first was a piece of cake (no pun intended); the second, a little more taxing. The signs are the same as they were five years ago; my eyesight? Hardly. The good news? I was able to pass with my glasses (although I had passed last time without the specs). So, yea! The temporary certificate (below) will hold me until my new license arrives in the mail.

I think I have shared this story in the past, so forgive me if I'm repeating myself. Know where I was exactly 45 years ago today? At the DMV! Actually, it was the Highway Patrol office (not the DMV), and it was in Tennessee (not NC). But it was my birthday, and it was a Wednesday. How could I possibly remember what day it was?! Well, I got my license on the first possible moment I could (16 was the age then), and the THP office in Lauderdale County was only open on Wednesdays. So, as I reported on Facebook, "the more things change, the more they stay the same."

Anyway...

After a nice meal out at the Liberty Tavern near High Point University, we had one more birthday tradition to uphold: cake! One of Mr. T's errands had been to make sure a chocolate cake with white icing followed him home, as you can see in the picture. Unfortunately, the candles failed to make an appearance. Not to worry! We checked a kitchen drawer and found a suitable substitute. Hiding in the back was the chunky pair we used on Mom's 91st. Turn the 9 upside down, and what do you get? Why, a 6 of course!  Perfect...if you don't try to actually light the "wrong" end!

Light the fire! Sing the song! Blow out the candle! Pour the milk! Cut the cake! I don't care how old I get, I will NEVER tire of the traditions.

Nor of the cake, when you get right down to it. I will never tire of the cake.

Celebrate! Celebrate! Dance to the Music!

Yes, Three Dog Night had it right. Today is a day to celebrate! Here's a snap of the wallpaper border I am looking at while writing this post...and celebrating The Free Life! The flag is out on the pole on the porch, and I've got my red, white, and blue on...and my star-spangled earrings in. It's that kind of day.

Happy 238th birthday, USA! Even with all our issues, I wish only the best for this wonderful country of ours. Looking good, Lady Liberty! At a mere 138 years old, you are still a beautiful symbol of this experiment in "a democracy in a republic."

Years ago, when we moved to HPNC for the first time (1994-1997), we spent one of my favorite Fourth's at the National Park that commemorates the revolutionary battle fought at Guilford Courthouse, located in Greensboro, the city that was named for the hero of that battle, Nathaeniel  Greene. The Park Ranger read the entire Declaration of Independence, not just the part we typically memorized in civics class (you know..."We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.") Want to hear a moving version of the reading of the Declaration? Follow this link to NPR's traditional recording of a multitude of voices, reading one of our country's freedom documents in its entirety: http://www.npr.org/2014/07/04/328204572/reading-the-declaration-of-independence-a-tradition-continues

All those voices...all those accents! Only in America, right? Only in America. And whatever you feel about the man, I happen to agree with President Clinton: “There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.”

And what is currently right in my own, personal America, you ask? Well, the weather for one thing. It took a hurricane named Arthur to blow through the Outer Banks to bring our Piedmont some gorgeous weather in his wake. Mid-80's, low humidity, Carolina blue skies. Couldn't script a better day for the local festivities called The Uncle Sam Jam. Bands, food, and fireworks at Festival Park on Oak Hollow Lake. Sounds great! Wish we were there...

Actually, there is no "we" here in HPNC. Only a "me." The Mr. T part of our "we" is spending this Holiday weekend in Louisville with Missy M, doing the few repairs required by her buyer's inspector; she's hoping to close on the KY house in three weeks. He planned his work-week to be in Roanoke, which is his closest dealership...still 7 hours away. He got there the day before M (who couldn't leave GA until Thursday...more on that in a sec) and was able to check-off all the indoor tasks while she was driving her own version of the day-long trip. They are spending their Independence Day cleaning up the yard and gardens, dividing some irises and daylilies (hey, it's genetic, right?), and packing up the remaining "stuff" (a friend of hers took most of the staging furniture, which leaves some pantry items, towels and linens, a blow-up bed or two, and the porch and patio furniture.) They are determined to get all the stuff in two cars...and have drafted Lillie Pearl PTC, who can be transformed into a cargo wagon by removing her back seats, to help accomplish their goal. We shall see...

They will head on down to Georgia tomorrow to unload at M's new house in Lawrenceville...from one L'ville to another L'ville. She closed on it last Monday and has been getting utils hooked up, garage door installed, shades put up on the windows, etc., in the few hours she has available in the evenings after work. Her furniture arrives on the fourteenth. Speaking of work...apparently, things have gotten interesting for her at Popeyes. Oops, I will have to save that until another post. I know a secret...I know a secret...

Meanwhile...

I'm here in HPNC, dog-sitting the Drool Gang. That means, among other things, Fourth of July or not, NO FIREWORKS! Dixie and Ella Rae are both terrified of loud noises, and the absolute LAST thing I need is for either (or both!) of them to make a mad dash down Wesseck. So, while my neighbors gather at the park on this side of the lake, I'll have "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "Sergeant York" playing on TV (it's my Joan Leslie celebration, I suppose...since she is in both of these patriotic golden-oldies), probably way too loud, to cover any external noises. Not really a hardship...I would be watching regardless. And I can always turn on the Capitol Fourth...and mute the fireworks portion, I guess.

But, it is a birthday, after all. And I do love my traditions. Our traditional fare on the Fourth includes ribs, corn-on-the-cob, baked beans, potato salad, and usually watermelon. Just because it is a party of one, well...it's still the Fourth! So here's what was served (replacing the watermelon with blackberries, and adding some grilled zucchini...because that was what the garden was giving...:-)

Happy Independence Day, my fellow Americans. Celebrate!

[...and to my UK friends...we will now return to our regular posting...;-)]