Happy Thanksgiving

Posted on by Rebecca C.

Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.

If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.

Oprah Winfrey

 

From my house to yours, Happy Thanksgiving. If celebrating today, I hope it was filled with good food, family and friends. I will be celebrating tomorrow with my family. We had to delay a day to ensure everyone could be there.

I know I have been behind on my days of thanks challenge. I must confess, I have been ill with a cold and cough. But my days of counting my blessings were never gone. I have so much to be thankful for, life is pretty amazing right now.

Until next time….peace….

 

Here Comes the Snow Storm

Posted on by Rebecca C.

I was outdoors for a little while this evening.  Well, the time was before 5:30 pm because I was grumbling how dark everything was.

I could definitely feel the cold and dampness in the air. The snow storm is suppose to hit the mid-Michigan area around 5.a.m. Depending on the new report, we could get about 6-10 inches of snow. This snow storm is the first one for the season. I will just have to wait and see how much the system brings.

At least the snow makes the area look beautiful and new.

Until next time….peace

30 Days of Thanks- Days 19 & 20-History & Vintage Negatives

Posted on by Rebecca C.

For the last two days, I have been lost in old negatives.

So, today, I will play catch up on my days of thanks. I am thankful for my love of history and vintage photography. When I receive a box of new negatives, I tend to get lost in the faces and places which is why I am behind on my Days of Thanks challenge. I love the old photos; the small glimpses into the past. I wish I had more knowledge of places.  If I knew local geographically places better, I could possibly identify some of the photos.

I thought, I would share a couple of my recent finds. I cannot wait until I get through the entire box.

I do not know for sure if the photo is a father and daughter. But I like to guess.
I do not know for sure if the photo is a father and daughter. But I like to think, they were out enjoy the day together.

Have a great night.

Until next time…peace

 

30 Days of Thanks-Day 18- Rainy Days

Posted on by Rebecca C.

Today, November 18, 2015, I want to say I really thankful rainy days. Today was windy, cold and damp. I could complain but I actually enjoyed my entire day. The morning stated with hot cocoa and toast with my mom. There’s just some enjoyable about chatting over trivial matters and planning the Thanksgiving menu for next week.

My father loved the Indian pudding I made the other day. ( https://rebeccaswritingsandphotography.com/2015/11/13/national-indian-pudding-day/ ) He’s always ready to try any new recipe I attempt prepare or attempt to prepare. He said the pudding actually reminded him of his childhood. The old school use to have picnics especially toward the end of the year. Apparently, there was an elderly woman who always made the same dessert every time a picnic was held. The dessert was exactly like the Indian pudding, I made. The only difference was the topping. I used a frozen whipped topping; he remembers a heavier whipped cream. Of course, the cream was probably straight off the farm. Now, I need to come up with something new for Thanksgiving.

So, we sorted through various cookbooks. Some were really old. Despite my lack of cooking and baking skills, I actually own a lot of cookbooks. I still haven’t found anything exciting to try to make. Any suggestions?

After my mom left, I spent the rest of the day doing what I love- writing. And what I really dislike- laundry.

This later evening, the rain is still lightly coming down. The wind has picked up immensely which actually howls through this old house of mine. In fact a few of the stronger gusts actually made my upstairs windows rattle. The wind is slowly going to die down over the next two days. But then the snow storm will be ushered into Michigan. The first one on radar for the season could drop a fair amount on us.

First snow falls are always magical…….

Until next time….peace

Take a Hike Day

Posted on by Rebecca C.

“I believe that there is a subtle magnetism in Nature, which, if we unconsciously yield to it, will direct us aright.”

–Henry David Thoreau –

“In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows.”

–Ralph Waldo Emerson –

Today, November 17, 2015 is considered to be “Take a Hike Day”.

I love hiking. The trails I take are not long or hard. But I get to go out and enjoy nature. I always take photos along the way. For me, the time spent outdoors gives me a chance to unplug from my computer and just relax. I also find my imagination works over time when I am outdoors which always helps in my writing.

Until next time….peace

30 Days of Thanks-Day 17-Friends

Posted on by Rebecca C.

“There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.”

Thomas Aquinas
Today, I want to say I am thankful for my friends.
  • I have friends who encourage my writing career. Even when I am contemplating throwing the entire book out the window. Or late to showing up for a girls night due to trying to write one more paragraph.
  • They understand my need to write down a thought before it escapes me.
  • I have friends who have been there every step of the way through out my life from switching careers to lows in my personal life.
  • Some of my friends have become my family.

I think life is a lot easier when you have friends to laugh and cry with at various points in your life.

Until next time…peace….

Have a Party With Your Bear Day

Posted on by Rebecca C.

Today, November 16, 2015 is “Have a Party with Your Bear Day.” I love these unofficial holidays. I use love sitting up my bears to have a party inside a homemade tent. Spending time outdoors in the tent was the best part of lazy days of summer. My mom would help me construct the tent over the clothes line with three old blankets- two for the side and one for the floor. I would stay out there for hours.

I had tree bears that were my favorite toys. Let me tell you, these bears were well-loved. Two of the bears- a fuzzy brown bear and a Polar Bear were gifts from my grandparents when I was just born. The other brown bear was actually something I won. (Honestly, I think the stuffed bear is the only thing I have ever won).

The local bank was having a contest where you could get a key to try and unlock a small treasure chest. There was no age limit to participate. Can you imagine my excitement when my key unlocked the chest? Inside the chest were a variety of little white envelopes. I can imagine trying to figure out which one to pick. But I finally decided to pick out the one in the middle. I remember, everyone telling me the other envelopes were probably cash prizes. But I didn’t care; I had the best prize, a new brown bear. My best friend from childhood, JJ was with me at the time which makes the memory even better. (He died of cancer when we were 14). On the way home, we placed the bear between us in the backseat of the old van. We thought we were the greatest.

I was so excited to get the bear to go with my other two; the brown bear was their new friend. I remember, spending the entire next day outdoors in my tent. I mean, my bears and I were having a party. My peanut butter and jelly sandwich and Kool-Aid was a fancy party meal.

I still have all three bears. They are sitting on my dresser still watching over me after all these years.

 

30 Days of Thanks-Days 15 & 16- Photography & Software

Posted on by Rebecca C.

I am going to combine days 15 and 16 in the 30 Days of Thanks Challenge. For the last two days I have been working on photos for clients. Honestly, I am still in the process of finishing a project which is due tomorrow morning. I just needed to take a break from editing for a minute.

Day 15

First I would like to say I am thankful for digital photography. I mean, I started working with film. I was recently at a workshop and one of the young attendees did not know what the black 35mm film canister was. Yup, I felt really….old.

To add to the feeling of being old, I tried to explain the first camera I received. The first camera I ever used in a creative manner was given to me by my grandfather. The camera took 126 film cartridges. At the time, the camera was considered to be an older model. I was twelve; I thought I had everything with that old camera. Needless to say, digital photography is better in so many ways. However, I do still miss the film process.

Day 16

Along with digital photography, I love my photo software. Actually if you would have been in my house today, you would have caught me telling the program “That is not what I wanted to do”. Because, the program has a clear vision of what is in my mind. (Ha! Ha!). But at least with the program, I can save pictures that are not exactly the image I had wanted for my client.

Until next time…peace

Operating Room Nurse Day

Posted on by Rebecca C.

Today, November 14, 2015, is Operating Room Nurse Day. I give all nurses in the world my highest regard. I know I could never perform the job in a satisfactory manner. I am just too nervous of a person.

My great aunt, Flossie was a surgical nurse for part of her career. Her nursing career was inspired by my grandfather. When he was younger, his fingers were taking off in an accident. My aunt Flossie accompanied him to the doctor. She was curious not squeamish during the care of my grandpa’s injured hand. She was able to watch the entire procedure. The doctor told her; she should become a nurse.

Flossie working in Detroit
Flossie working in Detroit

And that is exactly what she did. She said, “The experience was the best time of her life”. She received her nurses training, than started out in Detroit. Where she worked for about four years until she came back to Clinton Memorial Hospital in St. Johns, Michigan, the hospital is where she would work until retirement.

Flossie with one of her smallest patients.
Flossie with one of her smallest patients.

The nurses lived together, traveled together and worked together. They were her second family throughout her career and after retirement.

Flossie with her fellow nurses
Flossie with her fellow nurses

I always admired her occupation. I admire anyone who does the job today.

Until next time…..peace