Tag: Memories

Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave and that can be a good thing!

On By DGThomaIn Family, Friends, Humor/Light Hearted, WritingLeave a comment

The sky was dreary and hectic as I attempted to get into the car with my arms full.    I shoved my crochet bag into the seat and watched as it tumbled on its side, spilling the contents.  While I picked up scattered yarn and shoved everything back into the bag, a nice drizzle began to sprinkle the ground.

As we got under way, I reached for the bag to pull out a skein of yarn and discovered, the yarn I needed was missing!  I must have missed it when I picked everything else up.

When we arrived home 12 hours later, I found a rain soaked mass of yarn with the bent needle still attached.  We had run over the yarn as we left.

I decided to wash the yarn and see if it could be saved. I found a nylon laundry bag for washing dedicates and dropped the yarn inside. What came out of the dryer …… a tangled mess!

Still hoping I could save the skein, I spread the mass of yarn on the guest bed.

2015-02-01 12.12.04

I stared at the tangle of thread and smiled.  It reminded me of another web of string I had untangled as a young camp fire girl.

My mother was my Camp Fire leader and a quilter.    She had a wooden quilting rack suspended from the ceiling.  For a fun activity at one of our meetings she created a web of fun.   Twine was looped around the rack and left to hang a few feet off the floor.  At the end of each string, she tied a piece of candy or a pack of gum or some other small token.  It looked like a multitude of prizes hung from that rack.  In reality only 10-15 strands dangled.  The strings were then crisscrossed and woven through each other until she had created a web with treats suspended at varying levels across the network of twine.

To my eight year old self, it was a treasure hunt.  The idea was to pick a string  and work to the prize of choice.  It sounds easy now, but with 8-10 girls vying for a position and pulling on strings, it was near impossible to predict which prize dangled from which beginning.  I wish I had a picture to show you, but I don’t.   There is a lovely picture, but it only exists in my memory.  The package of Wrigley’s spearmint gum dangled at the end of my string.  At that moment the gum was a treasured prize. This has always been one of my favorite childhood memories.   As I sit in the floor and work on my tangle of yarn, my heart is happy.

2015-02-01 19.12.05

It took hours and tremendous patience to untangle this mess. I considered stopping and tossing the lot in the recycle bin several times.   Now I am glad I persevered!

The untangling is done and I will find something special to create from it. Maybe I will create a new memory that will give someone else a smile.

2015-02-11 00.02.14

 

Just A Bumming Around

On By DGThomaIn Family, Humor/Light Hearted, Writing2 Comments

My Dad is a character.  When I think about him from my childhood perspective, I visualize a smile on his face.  He has a guitar in his hand and he’s telling a joke.  That’s my Dad.

young-papa1

I can still hear him singing an old Perry Como Song.   It was my favorite.  At the time I knew nothing about Perry Como, this was my Dad’s song.

I got an old slouch hat
Got my roll on my shoulder
I’m as free as a breeze
And do as I please
Just to bumming around

Got a million friends
I don’t feel any older
I’ve got nothing to lose
Not even the blues
Just to bumming around

Whenever worries start
To bothering me
I grab my coat, my old slouch hat
Hit the trail again

You see, I ain’t got a dime
Don’t care where I’m going
I’m as free as a breeze
And do as I please
Just to bumming around

I hit the trail again

You see, I ain’t got a dime
Don’t care where I’m going
I’m as free as a breeze
And do as I please
Just to bumming around

Just to bumming around
Just to bumming around
Just to bumming around

He taught my nephew and my son to play.  It doesn’t happen often enough, but the few times they have all played together have been magical.

And what’s funny is my Dad never  bummed around.  He didn’t even sit down.  He always worked at a job that kept him traveling and he loved it.  When he was home he worked in our yard.  He was the first one to volunteer if anyone else needed a little help.3-11-2015 1-35-15 PM3-11-2015 1-34-37 PM

As he has grown older, he hasn’t traveled as much. For many years he cultivated a garden.  He seldom ate the vegetables he tended, but would give them away.  Family was first in line, then friends.

He is also a collector.   To my Dad everything is a diamond in the rough.  That’s a pretty awesome perspective.  When my goddaughter first met him, he asked if she wanted the “nickel tour”.  Of course she said yes!  The “nickel tour” is a meander through his treasures with a humorous story or an anecdote about each piece.  She still talks about it today.

Years ago, he built a tractor from miscellaneous parts.  Not tractor parts, but just miscellaneous things he had on hand.  Yes it worked quite well.  He is the reason I think I can do anything if I just try hard enough.

2015-03-11 17.23.06

I love you Dad. (or Papa as he is known by most everyone.)

 

Nature, miles and friends

On By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Food, Friends, Writing4 Comments

While much of the country has been dealing with extreme weather,  in my area we’ve been more fortunate.  Austin, TX residents woke Saturday morning to a mild 64 degrees.  It was a perfect day for a long training run. If you have to run long, you may as well run for fun! Bastrop State Park is a short 15 miles from my home.  Running in nature while I train is a great distraction.2015-02-22 15.34.35 (1)

A fire devastated Bastrop State Park in September 2011 along with many other areas of Bastrop County.  The fire destroyed many of the ancient pine trees.  It affected 96 percent of the park.  The fire was a tragedy, but it has been wonderful watching the rebirth of the park, aided by many volunteer organizations and their members.

Dez, Ron, and myself arrived at the park with two expectations; to complete an 11 mile training run and to enjoy ourselves.  We put no constraints on time or speed.  Dez and I kept to the trails as much as possible while Ron opted for the park roads.

The trails range from sand, gravel, or packed dirt and is easier on your body than pounding on pavement.  The steep inclines and declines work muscles not used in street running and compel careful navigation to prevent falls.  The combination is a great workout.

2015-02-22 15.30.03

We quickly realized that it was going to be a silly, fun day when we started laughing at everything.  We stopped along the way to take pictures, to view the blackened, fallen trees and to enjoy the newly planted baby pines.

Throughout the morning, park guests greeted us and we shared waves and greetings in return.  At mile 6 we found a restroom, which had been recently renovated and was sparkling clean.  While we were stopped, we visited with Ranger Carpenter and learned a few facts about the park rehabilitation.

We stopped at mile 9.25 to enjoy a bit of solitude at a pond hidden among the trees.  I had spent the day in search of the elusive Houston Toad.  We were pretty sure we heard one in the distance while we were at the pond.

The Pond!

The park ranger we spoke with encouraged us to find a tree and claim it.  He suggested we take our picture with the tree and return annually to document the growth.  So we each picked one and began a tradition.

Our final mile tally of 11.5 miles was full of fun.  After surviving  our trek through nature, we ate lunch and stopped by Austin City Wide Garage Sale.  This weekend the sale was being held in Bastop, Texas.  After an hour and a half of wandering through the maze of exhibits we were a few dollars poorer and a few items richer, and our energies had been fully expended.

We ended our day with sweets from  the Sugar Shack in Bastrop.  We each had two scoops of ice cream and I brought home treats for later.  It was a lovely day and the best one I’ve had in a while.  A special thanks to my cohorts today for helping me make wonderful memories!

How Could I Resist “He’s the One”

On By DGThomaIn Family, Humor/Light Hearted, Musings, Travel, Writing6 Comments

I recently resurrected crocheting as a hobby.  It’s been years since I created anything with yarn and a crochet needle.  Crochet patterns and yarn have changed significantly.  I practiced on some old yarn I found stored in my sewing supplies and contemplated what I should create.

When my daughter was scheduled for surgery on her broken ankle, I knew I would have some down time while I waited.  I decided it was time to start a project.  I intended to pass time during her surgery by crocheting.  A great idea, but I didn’t get to the store before the surgery.

Because I would stay with my daughter in Tulsa while she recuperated, I picked up yarn the following evening.  Although I had crochet needles at home, I picked up a new set along with a two skeins of yarn, (Yarn Bee, First Love, he’s the one) a beginner refresher book and a basket to hold the yarn.  The baskets were half price so I couldn’t resist.

He's the one!
He’s the one!

I found a basic afghan pattern and realized I would need a lot more yarn.  The yarn I purchased was variegated so I decided not to worry about the lot#.

I headed back to the original Hobby Lobby and discovered I had bought the last two skeins.   I did find and purchase 4 small skeins of a nice cotton blend.  After all they were on clearance. How could I resist?  En route to the second Tulsa location of Hobby Lobby on East 71st, I spotted a Barnes and Nobles and decided I would duck in for just a minute.  An hour later I realized I had no idea what time the second Hobby Lobby closed.  I paid  for my books and rushed off in search of ‘he’s the one’.

As we pulled into the parking lot of the Hobby Lobby on 71st, I could see people milling about as I hurried toward the entrance.  No luck.  A store employee  waved me away and mouthed, “We are closed”.

I searched for the yarn online and discovered it appeared to be sold exclusively at Hobby Lobby.  The yarn was out of stock for on-line purchasing.  The next morning, I called the store on 71st and found out they were also out.  Apparently, ‘he’s the one!’ was a big seller.  And so began the quest for ‘he’s the one’.  An internet search identified Hobby Lobby stores in two nearby towns.  A phone call to Owasso confirmed they were out of the yarn but the Broken Arrow store had 4 skeins in stock.

My husband set off  to Broken Arrow to pick the up the yarn. He returned triumphant with the four skeins.  That was great but I still needed more yarn.

We would drive home through the Dallas area the next day, so my husband called the Dallas Hobby Lobby on Preston.  As I was making lunch, I could hear him on the phone.  “Yes, I need to see if you have a specific yarn.”  (pause) “Yarn Bee, First Love, he’s the one!”   He had to keep repeating, “First Love, he’s the one!”  as he was disconnected twice and transferred between departments.   I believe he just demonstrated, he is definitely the one!  Finally he was told that yes they did have 5 skeins. The sales clerk said no they could not hold them until tomorrow and no he couldn’t purchase them over the phone.

20150105_181341

Still searching for yarn, I made an afternoon trip to Tuesday Morning and found 4 skeins of cashmere yarn and 2 of a lovely wool blend on the clearance aisle.  Of course I had to buy them!

When we left Tulsa, OK for Austin, TX,  I used Google maps to locate a Hobby Lobby in Sherman, TX where we found 4 more skeins of ‘he’s the one!’  on the shelf.  Score!  Stopping by the clearance section, I found several more skeins of yarn which found their way into my cart.

Work In Progress
Work In Progress

I now have 10 skeins of ‘he’s the one’, and about the same number of skeins of miscellaneous clearance yarn.  Doing the math I realized I could use a few more of ‘he’s the one!  We set off to find the Dallas store to determine if they had any of the five skeins left.  Upon arriving, I rushed to the yarn department to grab all five skeins which were still on the shelf!  I completed the quest!  This will be a lovely and fun project!

Now I just have to buy a bigger basket for all the yarn and figure out a few more projects.  Aren’t clearance sales wonderful?

Christmas 2014

On By DGThomaIn Family, Humor/Light Hearted, Writing2 Comments

Christmas 2014…. What a crazy and wonderful time we had.  Previously I nicknamed 2014 as the year of the broken bones.  I suffered through a broken toe and my husband Ron is sporting a trendy black cast while he recovers from a break in his wrist.

As we sprinted to the finish line to usher in 2015, I was a bit relieved to see 2014 come to an end.  We are normally very healthy.  We exercise and try to eat right so it is outside of the norm for us to have issues.

In December, we traveled to New York City for a bit of relaxation and rejuvenation before heading to Texas on Christmas Eve for our extended family Christmas celebration.  We were scheduled to fly out of JFK on the 23rd.   After a long busy day of activities on the 22nd, we received a text from my daughter which read “On my way to hospital, probably broken ankle, I’m okay.”  Followed shortly by “Broken on both sides, trying to determine if they will transport to surgery tonight.”20141224_155936

Oh, boy!  We were unable to change our flights due to the Christmas travel, so we headed to the airport to standby for any earlier flights.  No earlier flights materialized.  All things considered, the airport and subsequent travel went relatively smoothly.  We flew into Austin, TX, arriving at 9:30 PM where we grabbed our bags, retrieved our car and set off for Tulsa, OK.  We stopped about half way to Tulsa for the night.  Early the next morning on Christmas Eve we set off again.

While we were trying to get home, my son and daughter had coordinated and moved our Christmas celebration to Tulsa.  My son transported gifts, food and family and himself to Tulsa in support of his sister.  On Christmas Eve the two of them were sitting in the orthopedic surgeon’s office having her ankle reset, surgery scheduled and making everyone laugh.

By the time I arrived, dinner was being prepared, the house had been spruced and gifts were under the tree.  Everyone was smiling, my son-in-law’s parents were dropping by and one of his co-workers was on the way to share in the celebration.

As we gathered around the dinner table, we were all grateful to share a meal and celebrate being together.  So while I may have been pre-emptive to declare this the year of the broken bone ended, this is it!  No more broken bones allowed!

We had a wonderful new celebration of memories to add to our holiday traditions.  Today Christmas is over and we are sitting sipping our coffee and watching the snow fall outside while we were warm and comfortable inside.

Let it Snow
Let it Snow

 

 

Pretending

On By DGThomaIn Family, Humor/Light Hearted, Musings, Travel, WritingLeave a comment

When my children were young, we would often launch into spontaneous nonsensical conversations.  It might be a perfectly innocent comment that became a springboard.  A wondrous adventure would unfold as we each added our own spin. We would slip into role play effortlessly, becoming princesses, elves or ogres depending upon the trigger.

We had fun pretending our way through a diversity of situations without the benefit of any props other than our imagination.

Often, I still go off of imaginative tangents.  When I’m on a road trip anything can become fodder for a rambling conversation that the casual observer would find perplexing.  Recently, heading toward the town of Stephenville I forgot the name of the next town we would pass through.  I asked my husband “Are we almost to Benjamin?”

And my husband replied no, Benjamin is the town we go through on our way to Lubbock.  Undeterred, I replied, “Well if we get to Benjamin we’ve gone too far!”  Considering Benjamin was about 6 hours beyond where we were headed, that may have been a slight understatement.

A few days later we were driving toward the airport after a long weekend and my husband said something about Timbuktu and I said or Kalamazoo, which made no sense at all.  After all Timbuktu is a city in the West African nation of Mali and Kalamazoo is a city in the state of Michigan and there was no reason to discuss either of them.  But for no reason at all it made us laugh and laughter is a wonderful thing.

Our car talk is not always so off the wall, but every road trip is an opportunity for slipping into inane conversations and we rarely pass up the opportunity.

Growing up in a small town…..

On By DGThomaIn Friends, Musings, WritingLeave a comment

Growing up in a small town, I knew everyone and everyone knew me.  There were approximately 3500 people in our town.  As soon as I could, I left in search of excitement and opportunity.  I rarely look back with any regret and have enjoyed my life immensely.  I have come to value my privacy and enjoy living in a bigger city even though “Nobody knows your Name.”

However, occasionally I am reminded that there are trade-offs.  If you stand in the center of my hometown you could walk a mile in any direction and likely be on the edge of town.  Getting anywhere is a matter of minutes not hours.

Photo Courtesy of Barclay Gibson Photography

Photo Courtesy of Barclay Gibson Photography

Currently, I commute an hour to an hour and a half to get work each day.  I am grateful that my husband and I work in close proximity and are able to ride in one car.  That’s great until something happens.

Recently I was working a little late and waiting for my husband to pick me up.  He had called to say he would be there in about 10 minutes, so I was surprised when he called back within a couple of minutes.  Assuming he was warning me he was stuck in traffic, I grabbed the phone.  Nope, he was stuck but not due to traffic.  His car was dead in the middle of a fairly heavily trafficked street.  We decided to call our roadside service and began to reach out to friends for a ride to pick up my car.

After several phone calls, we determined that it was just too complicated to find someone to pick each of us up and drive an hour to get us to my car and then spend another hour returning back to their homes. We also had to find a way to get to our car and talk to the service department where it had been towed.   I have great friends and they would have been willing, but it was too much to ask.  Instead, several kind strangers helped push the car off the road and the tow truck dropped my husband near a rental car agency.  Half an hour later, he was at my office to pick me up and we were able to head to the dealer.

It reminded me that in my home town, I could have walked to my house to get my car, someone I knew well or was related to would have given me a ride and if someone I barely knew happened by, it would have been safe to accept a ride.

It’s a good reminder that living in a community of any size, you still need to have strong relationships and that commuting is not much fun.  I do love my life and wouldn’t change it but maybe I’m a little more grateful for growing up  with a wonderfully established community and I remember that sometimes it’s good to go where “Everybody Knows Your Name!”

Rocking the Streets of San Antonio Texas

On By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Friends, Travel, Writing2 Comments

The Humana Rock and Roll Marathon was the weekend of December 6th through December 7th in San Antonio, Texas.  This is the 7th year l  have participated in the San Antonio Rock and Roll marathon. I signed up months ago before this became the year of broken bones.  In August, I broke my toe and the healing outlasted my patience!    Not to be left out, my husband Ron fell and broke his wrist a few weeks ago.  And then, just because we are a little insane we signed up for the Remix challenge which means we ran a 10K on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday.

San Antonio is a beautiful, magical city and one of my favorite places to visit.  The expo in the downtown convention center was as entertaining and chaotic as always.  I never seem to leave without purchasing something.  This time it was new socks and some GU gel blocks.  Leaving the expo, we stopped to enjoy the twinkling Christmas lights along the Riverwalk and the Tower of the Americas.  It was lovely in the soft evening light.

San Antonio Christmas LIghts

We didn’t stay in a downtown hotel for this trip, so we had to get up a little earlier to ensure we could find parking.  On Saturday, the 10K didn’t start until 9:00 AM and there were only 2500 or so competitors.  The parking was easier to find and it turns out it was considerably cheaper.  Sunday morning, the official start was 7:30 AM, so we left the comfort of our warm beds a bit early to head back to our parking garage from the previous day.  Supply and demand was definitely in play as we had to pay double the fee we had paid on Saturday.

I should clarify that I am not an elite athlete and I enjoy the fun and camaraderie found by those of us crossing the start line 30 minutes after the sprinters in the first corral.  When you run slower you can see all sorts of sights along the course.

Sunday morning, we all lined up; the elves, the tutu wearing competitors, the old, the young, and all other 12,000 plus runners, walkers and wheel chair participants.  The music was pounding and the weather was just a little chilly.

As expected, I crossed the starting line about 30 minutes after the gun sounded.  The course was a bit downhill in the beginning, heading from the Alamodome toward downtown.  As we passed the Alamo, many runners, stopped for selfies with the façade and spirits of the Alamo.  Leaving downtown took us through Trinity University and hills.  The spectators lined the road through Trinity, cheering us up the hills.  The enthusiasm was wonderful, but it didn’t really make up for all those hills.

The course in a Rock and Roll marathon is always alive with music and excitement.  It is also lined with coaches, family members and complete strangers.  Sunday was no exception.  Signs along the course proclaimed, “Worst parade ever”; “Run like a Zombie is chasing you” and my favorite, “I’m proud of you complete stranger.”

I think my favorite coach along the course was the gladiator wielding his sword, his face encased in a metal helmet in the parking lot of a Cross fit gym shouting encouragement as we passed.  My most memorable athlete was the young man I passed at mile 12, limping to the finish line, carrying his shoes and socks because of blisters on his feet.  Dedicated or stubborn I’m not sure but he finished!

At the end, I was so relieved it was over!   It was the slowest I’ve ever finished a half marathon, but I felt quite proud to have survived. Heavy Medals

We ended our San Antonio trip with a wonderful meal at Canyon Café, a southwestern grill in the Quarry Market.  I am never disappointed with the food or service.  It was a great meal to end a great trip.

Crab legs, Lobster and Family Traditions

On By DGThomaIn Family, Food, Humor/Light Hearted, Writing1 Comment

My father’s birthday is October 31st.  This year he is 81 years young.  In spite of typical aging issues, he is remarkably healthy and fit. He has avoided most chronic health conditions.  He still drives well, mows his lawn and manages his daily activities with little assistance.

My grandson, Alex’s birthday is October 5th.  This year he is 13 years old.  They both live in the same town about 5 hours from where I live.

My husband and I drove down to take them out to dinner to celebrate their respective birthdays.  We picked up my Dad first and then drove over to pick up my two grandsons, Alex and James.

Finding ourselves at a chain seafood restaurant, a lively discussion regarding what food to order ensued.  Neither my grandson, Alex nor my father (Papa) had ever eaten crab legs or lobster.  They both share a love of shrimp.Alex

Debating the merits of al a carte vs platters, Alex and my dad ended up with a plate of food that would have been three meals for me.   They had crab legs, lobster tail, fried shrimp, shrimp scampi and rice.  My grandson James opted for a traditional steak meal.

Watching my dad and his 13 year old great grandson side by side, cracking the hard shell of the crab was priceless.  They each experimented with different techniques to get to the delicious pieces of crab inside.  Butter dripped, shells cracked and tall tales flowed.  Everyone was smiling!

The lobster dripping in butter was no match for Alex.  It was one of his favorite things on the plate.  My dad didn’t enjoy the flavor nearly as much, but Alex helped him out and finished his lobster as well his own.  Neither my dad nor Alex took home a significant amount of leftovers.Crab

The service wasn’t great.  No one served us for quite some time and when everyone else’s food was coming out, the server let me know they were out of what I had ordered.  The sides we received were not what we ordered.  Even with the issues of service, the memories were priceless.

 

The Healing Power of Texas Tamales

On By DGThomaIn Family, Food, Humor/Light Hearted, WritingLeave a comment

Thanksgiving 2007 is now a wonderful memory.  However, at the time my daughter was struggling with life a bit, something she rarely does.  As a single mom she was attending law school and had moved many miles and hours away from her support system.  Law school is grueling at best but for just that moment in time, I think she was trying to stay afloat and hanging on by a thread.

She was home for Thanksgiving and the kitchen was alive with the sound of laughter, spoons scraping pans and stories of past escapades.  My children had taken over my kitchen and I was standing outside the door, loving the scene in front of me.

Kat had asked for tamales to round out our normal Thanksgiving fare and we had not been able to find any.  Although tamales are a staple over the holidays in much of Texas, we had waited too late to order them.Texas Tamales

My son, Rich proclaimed we would just make our own tamales.  In our family, we tend to think we can tackle anything, even though none of us had ever attempted to make homemade tamales.  So after a trip to the grocery store we were ready to get started.  The plan was to get things ready the night before Thanksgiving and then assemble them on Thanksgiving Day.  Making tamales is a lot of work! While we didn’t follow a recipe for making the tamales, we did look up how long they should be cooked.

Up at 6:00 AM on Thanksgiving morning, we set up an assembly line.  Richie made all the fillings and was in charge of preparing the husks and spreading them with masa.  The rest of us assisted with the actual assembly.  We made traditional pork tamales for the kids and black bean for me.

We had a wonderful time stirring, mixing, rolling and wrapping tamales, but most of all, we laughed and talked and made unforgettable memories.  All because a sister wanted tamales and a brother was determined she would have them.   We haven’t had a Thanksgiving without tamales since that year.

We skipped the Black Friday sales and opted for family time all weekend.   That is a tradition, I hope we can continue always and forever.