http://greasy.com/elderjane/index.html elderjane's Blog en-us © 2008 Greasy.com All rights reserved. Sat, 19 Jul 2008 10:38:26 GMT 30 http://greasy.com/elderjane/great_thursday.html My cousin came for lunch today and we had a lovely visit. She brought some old pictures and a newspaper clipping about my Uncle Bob's death 67 years ago. It was a suicide, but the paper called it self inflicted strangulation and only mentioned it once. The media today would have had a field day and interviewed his widow and son. I fixed a big salad and chicken enchilada soup and cherry pie. We laughed about the old pictures and the fact that we looked like babies from Poland or Russia all ... Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:55:04 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/perfection.html We all know that perfection can never be attained. Nothing is perfect in nature and there are no perfect people. I have been mulling this over in the labryinthine corners of my mind because of the perfectionists in my family. They put such pressure on themselves. I am reminded of a few words from one of my favorites: "Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There's a crack in everything That's how the light gets in" Leonard Cohen Nuff said. Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:48:36 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/hero_not.html I am a big fan of Texas history. I was brought up on it since my great grandfather started his career as one of the early Texas Rangers, signed on to fight Santa Ana and the Commanches. Today, while watching the History Channel, I was surprised to hear a different account of the Alamo from a document left by one of Santa Ana's officers. They are still struggling with the authenticity of the document and feel that the University of Texas is not being objective when they say it is fraudulent ... Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:05:21 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/dishpan_hands_housemaids_knee.html I have both since I have been scrubbing and staining and painting for the last two days. I took a few hours out this morning to go shopping with my friend Betty and have lunch at the Chinese buffet where we both overate shamefully. It is hot as all get out here. Last night it was so hot and humid we could hardly bear to walk and Rex went swimming three times in 40 minutes. Have a lovely weekend and keep your fingers crossed that the couple from California who is coming to look at the Farm ... Sat, 12 Jul 2008 00:02:40 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/compromise_clutter.html Ted and I both have the pack rat gene and I am thinking of all the things I want to get rid of and all the things he is desperately clinging to. He gets indignant when I wish to get rid of his Samauria Swords or other junk he lovingly holds on to and I am ruthless about some of the things that I want to auction off. To top it all off there is a garage full of stuff that didn't sell at an estate sale in the house we have bid on and he wants all that too. If we get it, we will pick through i ... Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:52:19 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/events.html Ted and I found a house four blocks from the kids that had a lot of features we wanted and we signed a contingency contract that hasn't been accepted yet. The yard could be lovely with a little tlc. It has a magnolia tree, a papershell pecan tree and a mimosa tree and perenial flower beds and nice plantings but it is very overgrown. The house itself is brick, with a front porch and has a large tree shading the porch. There is a formal living room, a large family room with a fireplace and a ... Tue, 8 Jul 2008 13:19:20 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/little_things_mean_lot.html I have been thinking about the simple pleasures of life since I read several blogs entitled Five Pleasures. The ones that matter most to me are: l. Ted or my grandchildren saying a simple "I love You " 2. My First cup of coffee in the morning. 3. Sitting on the deck at night with friends. 4. My evening walk. 5. Clean sheets. 6. A shower after getting hot outside. 7. My pets and their unconditional love. 8. My Friends. 9. The library. These are not in order except for the first one. They co ... Sun, 6 Jul 2008 16:24:55 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/laziness_virtue.html When the temperature is 95 outside, a nap sure sounds good. The breeze is hot, hot hot. I have no intention of doing any serious work today. I painted the front door blue. It was formerly pink with blue roses on it and I intend to do some preparation for dinner tomorrow. If we don't get a rain, my Shasta Daisies are going to be toast. It is really dry, and we need rain badly. Rex is my constant companion. I don't know whether it is true love or the air conditioning. I suspect the latter al ... Thu, 3 Jul 2008 18:56:51 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/controversial_post.html I know what I am getting myself into but I believe with all of the anti abortion posts going around that I need to say why I am for pro choice. It is foolish to say that anyone would use abortion as a form of birth control. There is a lot of emotional pain connected with an abortion and no one would willingly inflict that on themselves. The reasons are: l. To save the Mother's life. 2. When circumstances, either financial or due to a failing marriage dictate that abortion is the practical ... Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:04:42 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/getting_organized.html I have been reading a book on getting organized on this lazy Sunday morning. The author suggests wheeling a cart room to room, laden with cleaning supplies and bags for trash and out of place items. The whole idea exhausts me. Some of her other ideas are good, such as cleaning the kitchen at night so you won't get up and face it in the morning. Also a trip through the house at night to restore misplaced objects to their rightful place. Another good tip for someone who regularly uses a dini ... Sun, 29 Jun 2008 16:53:44 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/elfies_words.html 1. Where is your cell phone?........in the car 2. Your significant other?...........Watching tv. 3. Your hair?........................a mess. 4. Your mother? ......................is dead. 5. Your father?.......................is dead. 6. Your favorite thing?...............can't choose. 7. Your dream last night..............cats, dogs 8. Your favorite drink................Strawberry Margerita 9. Your Dream goal?...................Med. Cruise l0. The room your in?..................home offi ... Sat, 28 Jun 2008 19:54:10 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/unanimous.html Remember how Mrs. Slocum on "Are You Being Served" always said, "And I am unanimous on that." Well, we got a low offer on the house and land and Ted and I talked it over and we are unanimously turning it down. It isn't a necessity that we move and being here in the summer is the best part of the year. The flowers are blooming and it cools off at night and makes sitting outside delightful. My friend, Celeste and I have cut our walks to 45 minutes and may have to walk later in the evening. R ... Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:31:53 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/groan_2.html Yet another person to look at our place with l5 minutes notice! To say that I am hating the process would be an understatement. I don't dare refuse in case that person will be the ONE. Sometimes I wish that we had never started this. I just bought a Magic Jack to plug in to the computer to make my long distance calls on. I really hope it works, we haven't hooked it up yet. We are in a dead zone and our cell phone doesn't work here. We have one in the car that will work anywhere but I pay t ... Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:47:40 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/serenity_path.html I watched my daughter in law make herself ill yesterday because she is dreading an interview with the Oklahoma City school system. Ellie's neck was so tight and miserable that she had to go to bed with hot packs. Granted, the schools that she would have to go to are dreadful and in the inner city and on the Southside. Most of the misery stems from knowing if she is offered a job, she needs to take it. She has to get her foot in the door. Ellie has always strived for perfection in everythin ... Sun, 22 Jun 2008 17:07:46 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/age_american_unreason_susan_jacoby_2.html This is a must read for us all. I am appalled by the sheer ignorance of young adults who do not know about the three branches of Government, How many Senators we have, what the purpose of the Supreme Court is and other basic knowledge. She blames the we are all"just folks" mentality in politics, the media and the lack of reading for information and pleasure for a dumbed down America. It is great food for thought. I looked at her picture and thought she was about 3o. Actually, she is in her ... Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:39:01 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/melts_butter.html We all have our opinion about beauty and the arts. Language turns me on and I am talking about old English like th at used by Geoffrey Chaucer and later by Shakespeare and the King James Bible. I am fond of archaic words. I like nearly all kinds of music but do not have a discriminating ear and can't talk intelligently about it. However, my heart beats faster and I get excited when I enter an art gallery. I had the good fortune to visit the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. It gave me such a s ... Thu, 19 Jun 2008 12:37:09 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/sewing_movies_books.html I have been hemming and ironing since noon. I watched Great Balls of Fire while I sewed. The music made me want to get up and dance but it made my hateful chore go swiftly. Laura left Eat Love Pray by Elizabeth Gilbert and I am really enjoying it. I had read Stern Men and thought it to be wonderful but I didn't realize she was the author. We went to town this morning and went by the library. I got a book called, "The Age of American Unreason" by Susan Jacoby, "Almost Noon" by Alice Seebold ... Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:51:55 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/mixed_emotions.html We both feel so sad that Laura is almost ready right now to fly back to Denver but so happy that we have a beloved face to go with our friend. I will miss sitting out side and holding our marathon talks. Who knew that we would have so much to talk about? It has been like we have known each other forever. We antiqued and shopped for clothes and ate Mexican food and Quiche and cooked and lazed around and talked and talked and talked. In other words, it was heaven. Bye for now...Jeri. Sun, 15 Jun 2008 00:23:47 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/ha_hah_photo_rex.html This is our Rex getting a hug. He has an unlimited capacity for love and kind words. Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:45:49 GMT http://greasy.com/elderjane/ms_troutbend_arrives_tomorrow.html Laura will fly into Oklahoma City at l2:23 tomorrow. We can hardly wait. Sadly, she will only stay four days but we plan to have fun. We are going to meet Joan, aka red impala, for lunch one day. We will be blogging and posting a lot of pictures. Shopping for quilts and antiques and just eating and lazing around. Rex almost had an unfortunate encounter with a skunk tonight and got it all stirred up but it missed him and just stunk up the air. See you later. Jeri Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:55:33 GMT