There's COLD in Indiana

I'm just throwing this up for all you warm weather folks. This is where we live. I have a bike in the shed that I bought with my paper route money before I could drive a car. I don't think I want a paper route, OR a bike at the moment. :)

Friend Balloon

Katie’s friend came over yesterday evening, following our conversation about Friend Balloon. I peeked out into the living room, asking Katie “Have you seen the balloon?” “Yea”, Katie said. “Where is it?” "I just saw it when "A" walked in, it’s in the dining room somewhere." (The dining room and living room is actually a great-room divided by a sunken living room and a wrought iron railing.) As we relay the story of the balloon to her friend, we spy it coming up from behind the dining room table.

It floats up vertically from behind a chair, then crosses the room slowly in the direction of the couple on the far corner of the sectional. “That’s creepy!” is "A's" quick declaration, echoing Katie's words earlier in the evening. As we watch the balloon, it slowly crosses toward them, up to the ceiling, then floats effortlessly back and down to hover silently over the other side of the sectional as if contemplating the couple on the couch. "A" states matter-of-factly, “If it comes near me, I’m punching it!”. Katie giggles nervously and adds “If I’m left alone with it, I’m taking a knife to it.” The balloon lifts and drifts back up to the rafter, high into the cathedral ceiling separating the living room from the dining room. “I’m going back to the office”, I told them. It begins to sink down, Katie cries “Take it with you” As I reach for the balloon it drifts slightly and Katie adds “If it’ll let you catch it.”

Tooooooo much! LOL

Creepy

Preparing supper tonight, Tim is sitting at the kitchen table working on his laptop. I notice it hanging around directly behind him, just over his left shoulder. “Look at that”, I said. It was a strange sight, that lavender and pink balloon hovering within viewing sight of the laptop screen, yet behind and out of his line of vision. As I moved to take a picture, the balloon drifted up and out into the dining room.

After supper, I began cleaning up the kitchen, I hear Katie exclaim “Look at that! That’s just creepy!” She was half-laughing at the balloon drifting casually in the dining room, midway between floor and ceiling. I laughed as Katie declared, “It wasn’t so creepy when it was up at the ceiling. Now that’s just creepy!” As if hearing Katie’s proclamation, the balloon drifted slowly toward the ceiling. Now Katie was on a roll. “That’s not funny! That really creeps me out! That’s the creepiest balloon ever!!”

I located my camera to take a picture as the balloon drifted slowly toward the door leading out to the garage. It hung suspended, moving vertically down, slowly passing the doorknob and down to the floor, then nonchalantly drifting back up to the ceiling and back toward the chandelier over the dining room table.

I’ve noticed it before. It first appeared at Toni’s baby shower on October 14 as part of the decorations. Since then I’ve noticed it floating on occasion, but mostly it gravitates above our line of vision. Now, three months later, it seems to desire a more substantial family position.

Later, peeking out at Katie in the living room, she asks “Where’s that balloon?” We spot it hanging out against the vertical blinds, snugged up against the chain of the swag light over the table.

Three months… It’s almost become a part of the family. And I think I’ll just let Friend Balloon hang around awhile longer…unless Katie loses her cool and takes a kitchen knife to it in a fit of creepiness.

There must really be some hot air floating around this house, or that balloon is just plain creepy.

Life begins at 50

The mundane can take on a magical beauty when God is in it.

I love being 50. But I have decided I'm a slow learner, very methodical, things take time to really soak in. When I was ready to hit the "big 4-0" people (well, at least one person multiple times) would tell me that it's "all downhill". Apparently, once you hit 40 things start falling apart, the mind grows dim, the body develops aches and pains and begins to break down in all kinds of ways.

Be that as it may, and I'm not sure I agree with that, I LOVE being 50. That's probably because it took me 40 years to grow up. (Well, "grow up" is a relative term after all.) Until I turned 40, life just went along pretty much as planned. There were few mysteries or surprises. I knew about God, I wanted to know Him better, but it seemed mostly one-sided to me. God was pretty silent. Maybe because I was trying to get Him to follow me on the path I was choosing, maybe because I hadn't learned how to listen at all.

But sometime after 40 I guess God figured there was enough foundation to start messing with me without me totally falling apart. Sometime around 40 I told Him that I'd done a pretty poor job running my life, and He was welcome to step in and take over any time, and I meant it. And for the past 10 years He's been doing just that.

He teaches me over and over (and over...and over....and...) to let go. That is such a difficult thing to do. Often He has to bring me to the point where I have no other choice. But that is when the most incredible things happen.

So why do I love being 50? It's because I can now look back and see so many amazing things that God has done. Miracles! Not just in my life, but in the lives of those around me.

Can you relate?

Changing Seasons

I sit in our home office gazing over my desk through the curtainless window. The bright golden yellow of the fall leaves outside practically glow against the clear blue winter sky as they fall gently to the ground. one by one, shimmering with the icy white snow that glitters amidst the gold. It makes me remember how happy I am to live where I do.

It also makes me remember I need to get my day-dreaming butt in gear and get the cold weather plastic kits on the windows before we get our next heating bill!

Aaaaack!!!!!!!

My Grandpa, isn't he the cutest!

I have been trying in vain to find a reasonable solution to our "dial-up only" dilemma. Surely there is a cost-effective answer out there somewhere! I have found two possibilities. Broadband would not be an unreasonable cost, but as we run two different operating systems on our laptop and desktop we would have to times that by two $$. (As in too, too expensive.) Satellite is our only other option. Maybe in January.

Meanwhile, we continue to travel at the speed of a buckboard crossing the prairie. *sigh* Meanwhile, life continues at the speed of, well, high speed.

Thank goodness (well, actually, thank God) I have a wonderful boss. I have a very busy agenda for tomorrow, made manageable only by the fact that she suggested I take the extra day off this week when I didn't have enough sense to request it myself.

Life is busy. Life is good. I have been greatly blessed.

Vicky