Thought for the day

I ran across this in the May-June issue of UTNE. It spoke to me.

Late Fragment by Raymond Carver

And did you get what
you wanted from this life, even so?
I did.
And what did you want?
To call myself beloved, to feel myself
beloved on the earth.

On the Road - Tampa again

My project in Tampa is ramping up and I'll be spending a lot of time there. I promise to not post too much about Tampa ... but here are a couple of photos that I wanted to share. The first is a shot of the neat mosiacs on the floor of the airport.

The other is a sunset shot of a thunderhead that was building and eventually dropped a bucket load of rain on us.

On the Road - Midland

On the road again ... even though I just got back from vacation! This time, I am in the same time zone as my husband. What a treat! Midland is a really nice, clean town. I took this shot of a herd of bison at a local park.

Some airports keep the planes on the outside,

Midland brings 'em right in over the baggage claim area. Actually, Midland is home to the American Airpower Heritage Museum which houses and preserves authentic World War II artifacts and memorabilia, including uniforms of Allied and Axis countries, armament, photographs, weapons and equipment, and, you guessed it PLANES!

Memorial Day

Memorial Day has always held special meaning for me. As I was growing up, I helped members of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post decorate soldiers’ graves with small American Flags. Mimi, my grandmother, was a member of the VFW and often wrote the programs that were presented on Memorial Day. Memorial Day also meant selling Buddy Poppies to raise money to support veterans in the Big Spring VA hospital with necessities and other items. I remember the Gold Star mothers who we also honored each Memorial Day for the sacrifice they bore for our country. Mothers who had sons in the military hung a banner with a blue star on it. Gold Star mothers were mothers whose sons were killed in action. Their blue star banner was replaced with a gold star banner. Recollections, also, of old soldiers drinking their memories of war away in a dark, smoky bar at the VFW. I learned to do the Texas Two Step in the arm of one of those old soldiers. Yes, arm is correct, not a typo … he had left one on the battlefield in Europe.

This Memorial Day, I was moved to tears by articles in the Austin American Statesman. The companion articles, “Army of one: War calls soldier back” and “Back in military life, kinship is renewed” were about a local veteran who has served a tour in Afghanistan, returned home, started back to school and got on with his life only to have the Army call him back. Sgt. Johnny Meyer wants to be a journalist and the Statesman is giving him the opportunity to provide articles from his current tour in Iraq. The description of Sgt. Meyer getting notified and the acceptance he expressed were heart wrenching. His description of connecting with others who had been called back over drinks at a local bar made me sick to my stomach. We, as a nation, are creating veterans that will most likely also be alcoholics.

Also on my mind this Memorial Day is my niece. She is a beautiful blond girl with potential that she doesn’t even recognize. She is smart. She is funny. She is a wonderful and caring person. She is in the Navy. She is on her way to Bahrain.

It breaks my heart to think of the changes that war will make to our young citizens such as Sgt. Johnny Meyer and my niece. I pray that they will be kept safe knowing that they will be changed when they return home. Please let them return home alive.

Vacation - Day Seven

From Twin Falls, Idaho, we drove the Thousands Falls scenic loop, which took us by the Hagerman fossil beds, ruts from the Oregon Trail and a thousand falls!
Here is a picture of the ruts. It is amazing that they are still viewable. It really makes me ponder the "foot print" that I (and we as a society) are leaving. What ruts are we making that future generations will be able to see long after we are gone? Did the people on the wagon trains making those ruts know, wonder or even care about the evidence their passing was leaving?













This is a nice scenery shot from an Oregon Trail rut viewpoint.

And finally, the last photo of our vacation … another shot of a waterfall. This is one of the "thousand falls" that pour into the Snake River.

Vacation - Day Six

Day six had us leaving Jackson and on our way to Twin Falls, Idaho. Over a high pass in the mountain and through farmland. Once we got to Twin Falls, we took a detour to see the Shoshone Falls. Shoshone Falls have a longer drop than Niagara Falls. It was beautiful as this picture shows.

Vacation - Day Five

In Jackson, WY. We had planned this to be a rest and relax, down day. My husband had planned to play bridge at the Senior Center. I had planned to go horse back riding and then get a massage. Unfortunately, my husband woke up with a cold. So he stayed in the hotel, reading and generally being quiet while I went about my day. Here’s a picture of me on my rented horse Dolla at Eagle Rock.