It Appears Mr. Fern Has a Question!

And I think I know what it is, so I'll just answer and put his mind at ease ...

"Yes, it is supposed to rain today ... and yes, I will water you if it doesn't."

Trying to Tempt Me

Olivia, during a rare moment of sweetness and desiring affection, was trying to entice me to pet her. It didn't work. I just stared at her, but Thing 2 fell for it ... hook, line, and sinker.

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL CAPS LOCK DAY!

June 28th is INTERNATIONAL ALL CAPS DAY! Today we celebrate the ALL CAPS key, the day we can DIGITALLY SCREAM AT EVERYONE WITHOUT REPERCUSSION!!!

Every office has one (or two!). You know who I'm talking about ... the person WHO SENDS EVERY EMAIL IN ALL CAPS (and the (unrepentant) guilty know who you are!). Even after you tell them that "Typing in ALL CAPS is the equivalent of screaming and considered rude", many are unlikely to change. I've came up with a few ideas as to why. Feel free to peruse the list and leave a comment with your own thoughts as to why some people THINK IT'S OKAY TO SCREAM AT YOU ONLINE!

1. They accidentally hit the key and don't know how to turn it off.
2. They're too important to be bothered with the "hassle" of capitalizing only the first letter of every sentence and proper nouns.
3. They don't know what a proper noun is, so they err on the side of caution and just capitalize everything.
4. They actually ARE screaming at you!

Feel free to take the INTERNATIONAL ALL CAPS DAY CHALLENGE by turning on your CAPS LOCK key and LEAVING IT ON ALL DAY! I must warn you, however, that it may be difficult to login to your email or favorite websites until June 29th ... but if you think you're man enough to go one day without email or online shopping, give it a go!

Obviously, I'm not a religious follower of INTERNATIONAL ALL CAPS DAY or this entire blog post would be in ALL CAPS, but I hesitate to do that ... someone stumbling on this blog for the first time might think I'm full of rage ... or just plain stupid.

So, after you look under your keyboard to see if the Computer Fairy left you a gift, send a few emails in ALL CAPS and share the special kind of love that ONLY TYPING IN ALL CAPS CAN BRING!! And for those of you reading this post late and are heartbroken to discover you missed INTERNATIONAL ALL CAPS DAY, don't worry ... this is semi-annual holiday ... so mark your calendar for October 22nd ... which is also INTERNATIONAL ALL CAPS DAY!

Happy Birthday Thing 3!

Thing 2 (20 mos.), Thing 1 (3-1/2), and Thing 3 (1 day).

It seems like only yesterday that my little girls came to the hospital to see me and their brand new baby brother ... and now he's all grown up. It doesn't seem possible. Where did all the time go?

Happy birthday to my favorite son :)

What Does Lazy Look Like?

This...

Thing 2 and Roo

and this ...

Louie

and this ...

Thing 1

and this ...

Olivia

and this ...

Thing 3

Apparently, I'm the only one vertical!

She's Apparently Inspiring the Neighborhood!

He's waving "Hi" :)

My oldest daughter (yes, the oldest ... the one getting married this fall) has loved sidewalk chalk since she held that first piece of chalk as a pre-schooler. She drew the above penguin for me (I love penguins!). Since she has been back home, I am often greeted by her sweet (and silly) drawings when I pull into the drive after work at my little piece of the American pie.

Apparently, the neighbors approve ... and are following suit! While walking this evening, she came upon the following drawing on the sidewalk down the block ...

(It's cute ... but I like my daughter's penguin better)

I love beautiful monarch butterfly she drew ...

So far, the neighbors haven't copied her butterfly drawing ...
it would be really cool if they did!

And, of course, no chalking session would be complete without something silly ...

He seems quite happy, and shows no signs of distress,
despite being no where near any water!

Why is it ...

that so many people who solicit murder-for-hire offer money to an under cover police officer?

I realize that the people who seek out this type of "service" aren't rocket scientists (fortunately!) ... but geez ... these folks seem monumentally stupid! I'm not complaining though ... I think it's a good thing that the idiots of the world help write their own ticket!

A phrase I heard long ago seems appropriate here ...

Thinning the herd!

THIS is what I dreamed about all winter ...

The pool is spotless,

the water is pristine and clear ... 

and the absolute perfect temperature!

When the Cat's Away ...

My boyfriend was out of town this weekend, so I was left to my own devices. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, but in my case, that's not true ... there is no way I could be any fonder of him than I already am!! (I know ... gag!)

Anyway, Friday night came and the evening was wide open before me. The world was my oyster. I could do anything I wanted. Anything at all! So what did I do? I went to his house and painted a door for him. (To say I'm wild is an understatement ... is it not?!)

Outside (left) after I began painting),
and inside (right) after the first coat.
It took a REALLY long time to tape both sides!

Saturday I faced another day without my sweetie, so I got up, did my chores, then lazed around the pool. After sunning in the pool like a turtle on a log, I cleaned up and ran some errands. With my chores and errands out of the way, I was once again free to do anything ... so I headed back over to my boyfriend's to put a second coat of paint on his door. After removing the tape, I realized I'd made a classic rookie mistake.

Note to self: Scrape old paint off glass before painting a door!

All four sides of every lite panel is like this ... all fifteen lites ... on both sides of the door!

Whoever painted this door white should not be allowed to paint ... and I suspect I know who that was. When he bought the house, he had a window removed and this door installed. I asked his daughter if she knew who painted the door. She said she didn't know, but it wasn't her or her sister. That really only leaves one suspect ... the sweet, sexy man that sets my heart a flutter.

He is, without a doubt, the smartest, most capable, talented man I know. He can do, fix, or build pretty much anything. Anything, that is, except paint! (Can I get an "Amen"?)

I told his daughter that in the six and a half years we've been together, that I've never had to put my foot down with him, but if I ever see him with a paint brush in his hand, I will have no choice but to issue an ultimatum ... it's either me or the paintbrush! She nodded knowingly and confided that she's on my side ... and that she and her sister have already issued that exact same ultimatum to him! I worked as long as I could on the door, but I was starting to go cross-eyed and nod off, so I called it a day (night) and went home. (It was really tedious and boring!) 

I'm going back over this afternoon to work on scraping paint off the glass. The problem is that it sometimes pulls off the new paint ... so I will have to take a teeny-tiny craft detail brush to carefully re-paint where the new paint as been pulled off. (Ugg!) I'll post a picture of the finished door ... providing I get it done before dementia sets in.

In case you're feeling sorry for him because I have so much fun when he's gone, just know that whenever I'm out of town, he gets just as crazy. The last time I went to Ocracoke, he built (another) deck in his yard ...

The "Ocracoke Deck" ... as seen from the "Upper Deck"

As seen from the "Treehouse Deck"

I think it's safe to say that when the cat's away and the mouse is playing, the only thing either of us worry about is that the other one drinks enough water, doesn't throw their back out, and doesn't get a sunburn!

Olivia Will Never Win "Most Likely to Succeed"

But I don't think that bothers her ...

this trampy feline appears to be going for Miss Congeniality!

Someone at Google does NOT like Union, SC!

If you enter a city and state name into Google, you are rewarded with a picture of something that represents the area and a map. Clicking on the picture takes you to the image, with a link to the cities website or something related to the city. Take a look at a some examples from cities I chose at random. Pay close attention to Union, South Carolina at the bottom ...

Blue Ridge, Georgia ...

Paducah, Kentucky ...

Boulder, Colorado ...

Evansville, Indiana ...

Savannah, Georiga ...

Ocracoke, North Carolina

And ... (tada!) ... Union, South Carolina ...

And when you click on the picture,

it takes you to the Deadbeat Parents website!!!

So what I want to know is ... who in Union, SC tee'd off the people at Google?!!

Acro-Yoga Was Going So Well ...

until it wasn't ...

My Girls Are Sprouting!

I took this picture one day last week, so they've grown since this photo. There are definitely some over-achievers ... and slackers ... among the ranks. In no time at all, though, they will all be draping with deep, rich, green foilage, with pretty purple flowers in their hair!

Remember, three weeks ago, they looked like this ...

http://jackiecolemanblog.blogspot.com/2014/05/they-dont-look-like-much-now_21.html

Because the birds and squirrels and bugs aren't going to watch themselves!

ShrinersFest: D-Day at the River

Rosie the Riveter ain't got nothin' on these two beauties!

The Hadi Shriner's "ShrinersFest" was this past weekend. D-Day, or Operation Overlord as it was called in military circles, was re-enacted along the plaza, complete with the LST 325, who was there in 1944 for the battle on the shores of France. It wasn't the most realistic re-enactment, but it was still interesting ... and moving ... if you let yourself think of the men who were actually there that day in 1944. I couldn't help but think that the men who stormed the beaches that day literally saved the world. But I was also thinking of the struggle in the Pacific Theater, and about my father, who crossed the equator that day, part of MacAurthor's forces to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese. You can read about that here.

We spent the day watching the re-enactment, looking at the old military vehicles, watching the aerial show and a little of the hydroplane races, visiting the craft booths ... and, of course, hitting up a few of the food vendors. While there, we ran into my brother and sister-in-law. They both LOVE to take pictures, so I knew their pictures would be, without question, better than mine. My sister-in-law didn't have her camera with her, but my brother did.  He sent me several pictures ... (actually, he had his wife send them for him!) ... and here are a few of my favorites ...

The men re-enacting D-Day, heading for the shore from their landing boat.
During Operation Overlord, the LST's would launch these boats, loaded with soldiers.
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

The LST 325, which took part in the real D-Day invasion on the beaches of Normandy.
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

Team Aero
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

Team Aero
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

The hydroplane races.
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

One of the hydroplanes.
(Photo courtesy of Joe Coleman)

If You Still Have Your Father, Treasure Him

My dad (left) and a friend I can't identify ...
drinking (what else) rot-gut Sterling beer (yuk!).

It's hard to believe my father has been gone for over 27 years now. Daddy was closing in on 46 when I was born, so I didn't get to keep him as long as most. One of my high school teachers recently retired, and his mother and father was at his retirement party! My parents have both been gone so long I am always taken aback a little when I realize other people still have their parents ... especially when they themselves reach retirement age! I barely even remember what it's like to have a mom and a dad to turn to, to visit, and to spend the holidays with.

My father worked hard to provide for all of us, and we had a nice, comfortable life. We always had everything we needed and a lot of what we wanted. All in all, I had a pretty good childhood.

Daddy wasn't perfect, but what parent is? Kids don't come with manuals, so you do the best you can and pray your kids will grow up happy, healthy, and full of confidence. All of us "kids" turned out pretty good, so my parents should give each other a pat on the back for a job well done. We're all successful and happy. My brother married a woman who has been his best friend for decades, and my sisters all married wonderful men who make them very happy. But I really hit the jackpot ... I've got the most amazing man God ever put on this good, green Earth! My parents would definitely approve of him:)

Mama and Daddy did a good job raising us, and I think they would both be proud of us and all their grandkids. I think I'll sprinkle bird seed on my parent's graves today so the birds will come and sing to them.

Happy Father's Day, Daddy. I miss you every day, but I miss you most on Father's Day.

If You Cook It, They Will Come

What's better than a free lunch at work on Monday? 

Monday

A free lunch Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, too!

Every summer in early June, the Sheriff's Department hosts a four day seminar. The handful of us working in the building make sure everything is in order for them (which is very little). My contribution is technical help if there is an issue with technology. They are polite and gracious, so it's always a pleasure to lend them a hand.

As a thank you for our assistance, everyone in the building is invited to help themselves to the lunches they have catered in each day. When the aroma of food fills the halls, and after those attending the seminar have eaten their fill, we descend like a horde of hungry locusts. 

I always make sure to thank them ... because food you don't have to fix yourself always tastes better ... and food you don't have to cook or pay for tastes better still!

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

My New Favorite Breakfast

One of my sisters recently discovered how much I love yogurt. I told her I buy a Greek yogurt because it has more protein. She suggested I add cottage cheese to my morning yogurt. I've never eaten anything sweet in cottage cheese and it sounded atrocious, but I gave it a shot, and ... yum!

As you can tell, I don't eat small, lady-like portions of yogurt ... I eat portions fit for a farm-hand or teenage boy!

A Strange Place for a Nap

I walked down the hall and saw Louie taking a nap. It looks like this picture is on it's side, and that he's walking, but this picture is not on it's side. 

When I think of places to nap, laying up against the floorboards in the hallway is not the first place that comes to mind. But, cats are masters of napping, so maybe I shouldn't be so quick to judge!

When You See It

Olivia, the creepy-stalker cat strikes again.

What Kind of Bug is This?

I don't recall seeing one of these before, but they are swarming my backyard. What are they?