Wednesday, September 30, 2009

I must confess something...





















I have met the most beautiful woman, and she is living in Texas for now. If I was not already married, but totally gay, I would have asked her to marry me!

I met yet another blogger in person in my travels down south.

She is much younger than I am, as I am old enough to be her mother. I must also mention her father is a very handsome man, and it was very apparent where her outside beauty comes from. Yes, he dropped her off at the restaurant we agreed upon, Jasper's in Plano, and now that I think of it, we did have a date, but more of a girls night out kind of thing.





















Dirty martinis with extra olives turned out to be something we both loved. We talked about men, relationships, parallels of our own past lives, and losses. I laughed, and hung onto every word she spoke. Her inside beauty runs very deep as well.

Over the past year we have become acquainted with each other through our blog, and read about adventures we have both have had. We are also mothers of handsome sons. What a great opportunity to meet in person and really dig deep into what crazy antics we both have experienced.

She is a lovely person who has worked in the nursing field, and is toiling over what path in life may lay ahead. I wish for her a beautiful existence, and as much loving and fun she can handle in her future. Keep those Darn Men guessing Girl!

That Darn Girl was a fabulous dinner partner as we shared a small sausage pizza, sauteed spinach, and she enjoyed some chicken masa soup... but damn Girl, those blue cheese stuffed olives in our martinis were the bomb!





















Upon her fathers return to whisk her away from my clutches, we posed for a picture that came to my mind earlier in the trip. See she is known for her fabulous boobage, and relationship stories. I just could not resist this pose. Of course hers are much younger and perkier than mine, but hey I have already been where she is, and have enjoyed mine all the same!

Thanks Dad for taking the photo, and your a great sport. I felt only a little ashamed having him take the cleavage photo, but to those hidden cameras above the bushes...shame on you security guards for watching as we maneuvered our way into position!

DISCLAIMER: This was all in fun, and are sorry if you are offended by the content or the photo of our cleavage...but, we would do it all over again!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Friday Shoot Out- ?






















The topic for this week is 'My favorite place to ____' by Cindy...

I have been thinking about this, and it is fitting that stopping by my only son (22) in St. Louis has to be 'My favorite place to feel the love'. My son and I share a love for discovering music together. We enjoy eating out together, and I must say we laugh our rear ends off together. At first he tries to show me how mature he has gotten in eight months, since my last visit in December; then he begins to relax as I ease off about his house keeping. I only have a few days to spend with him this trip, and already I miss him terribly.

Aaron is a butcher's assistant at a local market, and has been for three years while attending a local college. Come over and see what I made him for dinner at Food~Wine~Fun!




















My friend Lisa and son at a new casino built near the St. Louis arch just off the river...



















His dog Logan shows off, or knows dinner is on its way to the table?




















He decided that my catering van needed another seat, as we had the three seats filled, so he grabbed his lawn chair and made himself comfortable...see he just keeps me smiling!

























I feel the love when we are together son, and anywhere you are is my favorite place to be...

Friday, September 18, 2009

Friday Shoot Out- Domestic Animals

This weeks topic has been chosen by Sandy, and it just so happens that a funny thing happened on the way to complete my assignment this week...

My friend Lisa and I have been friend hopping while in Texas, and it has been raining for a week. Well...she let the dogs out in the morning, and I let them out in the afternoon, but we both forgot to make sure they had come back in before we left for our friends sisters house...

















You can see here how Maxie the male silky terrier decided to make the most out of the weathered yard...


















Lisa's daughters pet goat decided to model for us during a 'Aged & Weathered' photo shoot while on their farm in Virginia last week...

...but back in Jersey...hubby and I had made a visit to a local farm, Cherry Grove Farm which provides fresh grass feed meats, and cheese to our community. On my way into the creamery some cute cats darted out from under a bench...





















Then I strolled into the creamery to look around, and hence the milking had begun...





















I did feel like maybe I should have given them a little privacy...rather than snapping away...




















...but I found it interesting to watch them get hooked up, and see the milk flow into the cheese making room.



















Now I found hubby gazing at the goats, and saying that he was seriously considering my desire to raise goats and make my own goat cheese...hmmm, now Lisa is considering my idea to haul a few back from Texas and raising them on her farm.


















Thanks for joining me for my journey through this assignment, but I cannot leave out a pic of some domestic animals that I have been having great fun with!

Lisa's daughters are nine, and sixteen...two beautiful girls that have made me wish I had a few more at home myself...(I know I have lost my mind right?)



















Go check out the other Friday Shoot Out assignments over at our main site, and you can grab this badge to place on your site to direct others as well...

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Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Endurance


















“A keen sense of humor helps us to overlook the unbecoming, understand the unconventional, tolerated the unpleasant, overcome the unexpected, and outlast the unbearable”

~ Billy Graham

My hand ('Aged & Weathered' photo) was on the right, and my friend Lisa's was on the left...We are only one month apart, me the oldest of all my friend in that way... That was our idea together since she always said her hands look older, but she runs a farm, and mine are always in food and water in a way...

I like the comment about our pinkies touching, and relates to the love the group of neighborhood girls have for each other after all these years. This group of friends above met on Sunday have discovered that we all felt the others household was better than our own, but after talking we realized we all suffered abuse in many ways. Now we are raising our own children with love and kindness in a way that empowers them to be better parents as well. How did we survive the alcoholism, physical and verbal abuse from them and men in our lives, and break the chains? Our sense of humor. Our drive to survive. Some of our sisters, children, nieces and nephew of those however did not make it as far as we have. We go on for them.

We sat in the restaurant for five hours laughing non stop. As each story surfaced of our antics as children...the healing became even more apparent...like mist rising off of water, and evaporating into the air...

Life- You just keep throwing the curve balls, because I will never drop my bat. You may not like the way I swing or even play ball, but you will not have the last laugh! It's all about having fun, and not about winning anyway...

[Friday night's reunion meet-up, and my little sister in the green shirt up front]

Saturday, September 12, 2009

FSO- Aged & Weathered






















No its not going to be picks of me, but a Friday Shoot Out topic chosen by Pauline!

Having arrived in Texas at 2 AM last Friday morning I needed some time to upload my pic(s), and just have little time to do more than what I have. My 30th year high school reunion is September 12th, so it has been crazy driving down from New Jersey to Virginia and then to Texas. With friends are pulling me ever which way this entire weekend I do not have much time to sort through all of the ones I have taken like I usually do.




















Around New Jersey you will see farms, and old fences like this...the pile of old cars in the top photo remind us of how we let things sit, and need to learn how to recycle our waste...




















They say that you can tell a woman's true age by her hands as we are weathered by life...who do you think of these two hands are older? I will reveal the answer in a few days...





















Thank you for coming over, and I will be over to your sites in a day or so...you know I always enjoy all of the Friday Shoot Out posts!


If you would like to take the camera from my side bar to add to your site for Friday Shoot Out...please do!

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Nicklesville, VA




















Tobacco Road in Nicklesville, VA...many farmers still grow tobacco, but only because it is what there fathers did, and then there fathers. There is no profit in these small fields. Only the cattle that grazes on the many acres you see up and down the winding roads that lead over the border and in to Tennessee.


When I was a young girl there was nothing better than a road trip! My parents said that I was the only one of their seven kids that did not ask, "Are we there yet"! I would lay my head against the window, and take in every site that passed us by. Old and new. Today, I still would rather drive somewhere than take a plane. The trip down to see my childhood friend Lisa took me longer than I had originally thought.

Once my van pulled into my friends driveway...well the real adventure had begun!


















I have to leave New Jersey to get my Tex-Mex taco fix now and then. Not to mention hanging out with her two crazy, funny, and wild daughters! I even let Alissa, the oldest, drive my van down to the river when we went camping...
























See I can fit into my environment...you can buy teeth out of a quarter machine...too funny, but I look more like a beaver...




















Willing creatures model for my camera lens...


























My friend, her husband, and youngest...



















Alivia (correct spelling blog police) wants me to title this pic as 'Ready for the feast'...we went to the fields and picked fresh vegetables for our dinner...



















Green acres is the life for me...nah, still a city girl!





















What a beautiful place Virginia, and Tennessee is, and my brother and his family live just two hours away from here...



















I also visited a blogger and his family, Chris, who live just two hours away in Knoxville. He cooked up some great BBQ for Lisa and I.



















Thanks for coming along with me on my journey. Lisa and I are traveling down to Texas (yes again) in a few days to attend our 30th High School reunion. We grew up one block over from each other, and lost contact after high school. After talking, her and I realized we hung out at the same haunts until we married and had kids, but just did not realize it until now...life has a funny way of bringing people together at the right moments...

Friday, September 4, 2009

Friday Shoot Out- Windows & Doors

This weeks theme is 'Windows and Doors' chosen by Kerri in Canada...


























When I first moved to New Jersey and everyone found out that I was working at Nassau Inn, an old famous pub in Princeton; they automatically would tell me about this magical 'Ryland Inn' that once was a glorious five star eatery in Jersey. So, I took a trip out to the once horse ranch turned Inn and restaurant...sad, but its windows and doors still call out for a little attention; it is just an overgrown, deserted building with acres of history...





















Inside the main door is another door, that seems to be ajar...if I could only become Alice and find a key hole to slip through...
























I thought this was funny when I came upon it once looking for gardens. Do you think the windows are probably 'used' too?




















Here is a perspective of our window and door frame, and a birds doorway into its abode...





















My whole life I have loved going out for a drive and looking at most anything that passes my way...and especially the historical, or 'old' relics that dot our beautiful country. There windows and doors have a way of letting us glimpse into what might have happened once...























Stone and wood are two of my favorite building materials in these old farms...




















This is one of the photos I was shooting for my poetry book I am publishing...such a rustic door don't you think?




















This is one of the many homes that people live in around the area, and it is also like a step into the past...
























Don't you just love the colors...




















Awww hubby is checking out these little guys doors...does "Goat Cheese" come to your mind like it does mine?


















Whats behind this 'Parlor' door?


















OOOPS! It's milking time...lets give them some privacy here....



















Well here is a peek out of my car window...I drove down past Bristol, Virginia to visit a childhood friend I have not seen in over thirty years. It is out high school reunion this coming week, and we are going to drive down to Texas together and attend. Lisa is one of only two I have not seen this year on my visit to Texas, (Tony another one of our friends lives just over the state line in Knoxville, TN, so we will see him as well)...I am having a lovely time on their 100 acre cattle farm... I will be posting some of that on here this coming week...

Can you see the Appalachian mountains?


















Thanks for joining me on my New Jersey assignment, and if you want to take the camera badge below to post on your site to share the other Friday Shoot Out Town Bloggers...well, help yourself!

FridayShootOuts