Sunday, February 14, 2016

Valentines Day - Why do we celebrate it ?

Today is Valentines Day 2016.

What did you get?
What did you get for others?
Why do we celebrate this day?

We know that it is a day of love, that we are to shower our loved ones in displays of affections,  shouldn't we be doing this daily?

We are to eat chocolate and receive roses? Couldn't we do this weekly - monthly?

Some revel in the glory of love while others curse the holiday to the depths of its existence, devaluing as a “Hallmark Holiday” constructed to simple push the sales of candy and cards.  Do you agree?

No matter how you feel about this holiday and it’s implications, the truth is that there is a ton of lore and history behind it. 

Interesting Facts - 

*Hallmark Holiday?
Though it is often claimed to be a holiday made up by the popular greeting card company, Hallmark didn’t produce its first Valentine’s Day card until 1913. This is literally centuries after the first declaration of the official holiday in 1537.

*The first phone??
If you’re missing your honey on Valentine’s Day and want to hi on the telephone, you can thank Alexander Graham Bell. It was on Valentine's Day in 1876, he applied for a patent for the telephone.

* Heart Shaped Box???
John Cadbury, a coffee and tea shop owner in Birmingham England discovered the profitability behind chocolate manufacturing in 1822. In 1822 his son Richard packaged Cadbury chocolates, known really for their Easter creme eggs, in the world’s first heart-shaped box.

When did we start receiving Jewelry?  Going away on a trip?  The day just keeps getting bigger and bigger.  How did you spend your day?  Who did you make smile today?  Did you make a difference in someones day?  This should be a goal on a daily basis and you will be all the better for it.  

Leave a bit of Sparkle every where you go. - I want some feedback on this !!!



 

Monday, February 8, 2016

Hungarian Beef Stew - random I know.

I bet you are wondering where this came from?  

Facebook actually.  Someone posted a picture of Hungarian Beef Stew and the memories came flooding in.

 See, this is the problem.  I LOVE Hungarian stew and you would think it would be easy to find in Hungry.  I, along with my mom, visited my sister and BIL in Romania where they lived in 1999.  We were there for a few weeks and traveled around Romania before embarking on our journey back to the USA.  This journey brought us through Hungry.  What a beautiful country and it's a good thing my sister and BIL knew where they were going as the street signs were about a mile long and I would be lost.  They had stayed at this cute motel and we went into the city of Budapest one of the days before flying out.  We were on a mission as I was craving authentic Hungarian beef stew.  We checked several menus along this main street and finally found what I was dreaming of for days.  Hungarian Stew.  It was so delicious I could not get enough.  I even bought some authentic spices so I was able to make this at home which I did on several occasions. 

Thanks Facebook and cooking light magazine for posting this wonderful picture and bringing me back to a wonder visit and my only visit abroad.

Leave me a comment if there is something this picture reminds you of.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Goofy Dog - I love you.

Where to start this - my goofy looking black lab named Cody.  We have several names for him as I think most people to.  Tom calls him Mr., Mr. Big, especially when he is riding in the truck doing errands.  When we are trail walking he is bullet and Mr., or speeding bullet when he is tearing down the path towards us.  We have learned to get out of the way or Cody will run us over.

We choose Cody in May when we were just back from Florida.  We had lost our Akita between Christmas and New Years 2013.  We had decided to wait a few months before getting another dog of any kind.  WELL, that changed when a girl we know posted a picture of a puppy she was fostering.  It was love at first sight or bite.

Who could resist this face... certainly not me.  That blue eye instantly pulled me in.  Tom was in love too.  His birth date was April 16, 2014.  He was mine for sure the date was the same date my mom died the previous year.  That too was a sign.  We had to wait 2 more weeks and he was not 8 weeks yet.  

PS I should have seen the stick and realized what that meant.  He was the most adorable monster I have ever known.  throwing balls under the couch and being able to get them.  Under the beds too.  I have some great pictures with him sneaking under the bed with socks and things we normally would not have - sticks that we let him in the house with not realizing he like to make kindling.  lol  the things we learn quickly or not too quickly in my case. 

Never before have I had a dog who loved to be on the couch or sleep in my bed.   

Someone is in the wrong bed...


This one is empty.
More on this later.

Monday, February 1, 2016

Do you ever wonder ??? I DO.

This was circling around on FB yesterday and I had already done my blog post for the day so as I sat here reading this it really made me THINK.  That is the point right.

At the moment, I'm not sure I really exist in many peoples lives.  I did a test for most of 2015 and it's exactly what I thought. If I don't call people including family, they don't call either.  I have a feeling this will make some people mad - oh well.

Do you think a text is the same thing as calling?
Do you wonder why I don't call?  
Do you wonder if I'm ok? 
Do you wonder if I am still alive?
Do you wonder anything about me.  
Do you think of me? 
Do I still exist? 
Do I have family?
Do I have siblings? 
Do I have friends? 

When I hear Songs I think of ....
1.) Why are there so many songs about rainbows - Kermit - DB
2.) Jump - VanHalen - TH
3.) Journey - any of them really - CL
4.) Private Dancer - Tina Turner - DU
5.) Yellow Submarine - DB
6.) Neil Young - Again any song - TS

I too wonder about the story part - Growing up I had what I considered a best friend.  We went to the same church and different schools.  But since I was active in our church and so was she we were able to spend time together.  As we grew up things changed when I move here to LP.  I did not have a phone so we wrote back and forthI 'm not sure why or what changed but we were not as close and that part makes sense. I would contact her when I was home and we would get together.  We sat together at church and talked like we had just seen each other.  One year it changed big time.  We had planned to get together and I had borrowed my moms car, I took her to work so I would have it for our meeting.  When I got back home there was a message from her ... I had forgotten I promised my SIL that we would get together and sew for the day. I was shocked!!!  That is your OUT.  You are sewing with your SIL.  I called her back and she would not budge.  I was so hurt and mad that she did this. She could sew any day.  I tried the next few times to get together and she either didn't answer the phone or didn't have time.  One time I saw her in my moms favorite restaurant.  She was behind us but I recognized her voice.  I turned and spoke to her.  She was quiet and I said a few things and we left.  I never saw her again.  Move forward to a few years ago.  My first friend here in Lake Placid was really sick and was dying from throat cancer.  We had a great chat and I brought up this event.  He said - you know, you should probably try to contact her and let her know you are thinking about her... Funny.  I did - I called her at the church she was working for and it was like pulling teeth.  I asked several questions and she gave 1 word answers and asked nothing in return.  Eventually I gave up and hung up the phone.  I still think of her today and wonder what I did...I sent several cards asking what I did, What Happened to us.. Today - I still don't know.  

I sent one final card 2 years ago at Christmas saying this was my final contact and have a great life.  Since you don't want to tell me what I did - I'm going to assume I did nothing and the problem is YOU!  Well I hope you are happy.  Merry Christmas and thanks for nothing.  I thought that I might get a response but again NOPE.  I really think about her and the funny part is - 
* She worked for a church
* She's a Christian
* She has a family and they don't really talk.
* Her parents think we still are in contact... um I left in 1981.

Gets funnier - she lives on the same street as my brother...  lol - I would so love to go back and maybe take a walk around the neighbor hood and wait to see if I see her.  The look would be worth what I have been thinking for years.  

So, if you are thinking of someone today as you read this - CONTACT them.  They might be dead the next time you think about them and you would have missed out. - That story for a different day.