Monday, August 31, 2009
Animals are family members too!
Fourteen years ago when we were living in Athens, TN our two sons Tim and Todd were in the process of some changes in their lives and had moved in with us for a while. During that period I had to have surgery so it was helpful to have the guys there. In his spare time, Tim, was doing some carving in the garage. He is an excellent carver and makes beautiful items. Just outside the garage and off our driveway was a wooded lot. One day while Tim was sitting and carving, he heard and saw a young female cat who was aparently living in the woods. I told him she was wild and that he should just leave her alone BUT if you have ever read anything I have written about Tim you know he loves cats with all of his heart. The cat was dirty, skinny, scared to death of people and as I said before basically wild. Every day Tim would put out food for her, talk to her and slowly she came closer and closer. The wild cat befriended him but in a distant way......she was still unable to trust humans. I believe that there are some people who are blessed with the gift of befriending and loving animals in a special way and Tim is one of those people. Before long he was ready to move on to FL to persue a relationship with his present wife, Betsy.....who by the way tolerates his love for cats, allows him to adopt one after another of them and loves them herself. When Tim was getting ready to leave our home he told me he was going to take this wild cat with him and I told my husband, "He'll never be able to get her in the carrier and even if he does she will go crazy." However, he did get the cat in the carrier and off to FL they went. Tim and Betsy patiently cared for her, gave her a loving home and eventually she became a tame, loving pet who was able to trust humans. He named her Sensi. When they moved up to TN they brought her with them. When I saw her I could hardly believe it was the same cat. She was beautiful, healthy and so calm and tame. She was a member of the family for 14 years.....I even sent her and her siblings presents at Christmas. Today, sadly, we lost her. The relationship between Tim and Sensi is a lesson in patience and love. Goodbye beautiful girl.....thank you for being a part of our family and making Tim and Betsy so happy. I know that with every cat Tim loves and has to give up, a little piece of his heart goes with them. Thinking of you, Tim.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
What did he say????? or"Locally speaking"
I love Tennessee. I was born and raised here. When I first married forty years ago we moved to Atlanta, Ga. where a deep southern accent was the norm...... words are pronounced slow, long and are sweetly but exactly spoken. It is different than the TN southern accent. With the TN accent words are spoken more lazily, nasal and often with a muttered, samely tone.
In the mid eighties we moved to St. Augustine, FL and lived there for fifteen years. St. Augustine is made up of people from all over the country and the world....it is very hard to find people who were actually born and raised there. Therefore, there is a variety of accents that blend and become a sort of mixture of East and West coast over time.....people there also comes with a variety of temperments and attitudes. We found people there to be more hurried...... less patient and less courteous than the TN folks we had lived with most of our lives. Folks in TN are, for the most part, easy going, counteous, thoughtful, and helpful. AND, many of the locals speak a language all their own. When we first moved back five years ago, I found myself asking my husband, "What did he say?"because I had forgotten the local language. I do know that it is true that other areas of the country also have their own way of speaking. For instance..........while living in FL some of our neighbors were from Boston and if I had a nickle for everytime I heard, "I'm gonna pok the caa" for "park the car", we could retire tomorrow LOL. And, while in NYC I have actually heard, "How ya dooin?"with that deep, quick voice more than once. When we travel the Nebraska route to get out west we hear,"you bet ya"at every stop. AND, in Maine they actually do say,"yah" for yes.
I am now in therapy for a back problem and my therapist is from the Phillipines. She has a great grasp of the English language and speaks very good English, however, she does not understand local terms. The other day after she ask me what I wanted to do when my husband retired, I answered, " I'd like to get in my RV and have one last "Hurrah"....to which she frowned and said, what is this, "Hurrah" ? She had no idea what I meant. She shared with me that she did not understand why TN people say, "I reckon" or "over yonder". LOL.
Sometimes when I hear locals speak I wonder if anyone was listening in English class. I can take the accent, heck, I have one....I can even take the twang but some of my pet peeves are:
Saying "chim- bu-lee" for chimney. Saying "lie-berry" instead of library. OR....."I brung it" instead of I brought it. OR...."them trees" instead of those trees. OR...."he come over here" instead of he came over here. And, who in TN has not heard the word, "Youins" for you or you people. Don't expect most locals to be able to pronounce the word insurance or nuclear.....you'll get, "in-chur-ns" and "nu-ca-lur". Don't get me wrong, I am not making fun of these good people because I am one of them, but, I wonder why they just keep misusing the English language generation after generation. It is possible that something I read years ago might help explain it.......I read that the mountains of eastern TN were mostly settled by Irish and Scottish imagrants and that some of the mountian verbage can be traced back to the Irish and Scottish languages. WHO KNOWS! I just find it all interesting and it has been brought to my attention lately by listening to the people around me on the ETHRA bus on the way to therapy.
"Y'all take cere now".
In the mid eighties we moved to St. Augustine, FL and lived there for fifteen years. St. Augustine is made up of people from all over the country and the world....it is very hard to find people who were actually born and raised there. Therefore, there is a variety of accents that blend and become a sort of mixture of East and West coast over time.....people there also comes with a variety of temperments and attitudes. We found people there to be more hurried...... less patient and less courteous than the TN folks we had lived with most of our lives. Folks in TN are, for the most part, easy going, counteous, thoughtful, and helpful. AND, many of the locals speak a language all their own. When we first moved back five years ago, I found myself asking my husband, "What did he say?"because I had forgotten the local language. I do know that it is true that other areas of the country also have their own way of speaking. For instance..........while living in FL some of our neighbors were from Boston and if I had a nickle for everytime I heard, "I'm gonna pok the caa" for "park the car", we could retire tomorrow LOL. And, while in NYC I have actually heard, "How ya dooin?"with that deep, quick voice more than once. When we travel the Nebraska route to get out west we hear,"you bet ya"at every stop. AND, in Maine they actually do say,"yah" for yes.
I am now in therapy for a back problem and my therapist is from the Phillipines. She has a great grasp of the English language and speaks very good English, however, she does not understand local terms. The other day after she ask me what I wanted to do when my husband retired, I answered, " I'd like to get in my RV and have one last "Hurrah"....to which she frowned and said, what is this, "Hurrah" ? She had no idea what I meant. She shared with me that she did not understand why TN people say, "I reckon" or "over yonder". LOL.
Sometimes when I hear locals speak I wonder if anyone was listening in English class. I can take the accent, heck, I have one....I can even take the twang but some of my pet peeves are:
Saying "chim- bu-lee" for chimney. Saying "lie-berry" instead of library. OR....."I brung it" instead of I brought it. OR...."them trees" instead of those trees. OR...."he come over here" instead of he came over here. And, who in TN has not heard the word, "Youins" for you or you people. Don't expect most locals to be able to pronounce the word insurance or nuclear.....you'll get, "in-chur-ns" and "nu-ca-lur". Don't get me wrong, I am not making fun of these good people because I am one of them, but, I wonder why they just keep misusing the English language generation after generation. It is possible that something I read years ago might help explain it.......I read that the mountains of eastern TN were mostly settled by Irish and Scottish imagrants and that some of the mountian verbage can be traced back to the Irish and Scottish languages. WHO KNOWS! I just find it all interesting and it has been brought to my attention lately by listening to the people around me on the ETHRA bus on the way to therapy.
"Y'all take cere now".
Saturday, August 22, 2009
WORDS
The most powerful thing on earth might just be a single WORD. To someone who needs incouragement the right word can lift a spirit. An angry or hurtful word can crush a spirit. You have heard the statement: "Sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me".....well, the person who wrote that has never been the receipant of hurful words. The words we use should be careful selected....BUT.....we usually, quickly and with little thought, spew them as freely as breathing in air....they just pop out of our mouths like kernals of corn in a popcorn popper over heat.
Words (and the acceptance of them) have vastly changed over the years. Years ago filthy words were rarely used by "run of the mill, normal folk"because people cared how the world perceived them and filthy words usually meant a person with little morals or one who often lived a rough and rowdy lifestyle. BUT today too many of our youngsters and young adults finds the "F" word perfectly acceptable and they use it so freely you'd think they were void of the knowledge that there are adjetives, adverbs and verbs to fit every occasion. They are not even aware that the "F" word is not an adjetive. They are not aware that it makes them sound cheap and low life. They don't even care. They think it makes them "fit in" or modern or cool ....and that is the tradegy of it all. AND have you noticed how many misspelllled words there are here in this blog LOL. See, we just don't pay much attontion these days to words.....and that is a shame because the words we use so often define us. Have you ever been listening to someone talk ..... you stand there enjoying the conversation thinking what a nice person they are AND THEN they come out with a less than acceptable word.....and, by just the use of that word, your whole impression of them changes. I just hope that I live long enough to see the "F" word fade away like mini skirts and leisure suits. My children have said to me before..."Mom, it's just a word" and I say,"Yes, it is JUST A WORD" but we should stop and think about the power...good or bad....of that single word, Okay?
Words (and the acceptance of them) have vastly changed over the years. Years ago filthy words were rarely used by "run of the mill, normal folk"because people cared how the world perceived them and filthy words usually meant a person with little morals or one who often lived a rough and rowdy lifestyle. BUT today too many of our youngsters and young adults finds the "F" word perfectly acceptable and they use it so freely you'd think they were void of the knowledge that there are adjetives, adverbs and verbs to fit every occasion. They are not even aware that the "F" word is not an adjetive. They are not aware that it makes them sound cheap and low life. They don't even care. They think it makes them "fit in" or modern or cool ....and that is the tradegy of it all. AND have you noticed how many misspelllled words there are here in this blog LOL. See, we just don't pay much attontion these days to words.....and that is a shame because the words we use so often define us. Have you ever been listening to someone talk ..... you stand there enjoying the conversation thinking what a nice person they are AND THEN they come out with a less than acceptable word.....and, by just the use of that word, your whole impression of them changes. I just hope that I live long enough to see the "F" word fade away like mini skirts and leisure suits. My children have said to me before..."Mom, it's just a word" and I say,"Yes, it is JUST A WORD" but we should stop and think about the power...good or bad....of that single word, Okay?
Thursday, August 20, 2009
What kind of world do we live in..........
This evening as we were getting ready for dinner the television was on in the background and from it I heard this: "Today Cindy Crawford admited to reports that she has cellulite". This just stopped me in my tracks and I thought...people are starving, suffering, captive, and dealing with problems like how to feed their children another day and THIS is what we hear on the news! I got a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. What have we come to as a nation. Why do we put up with such......we have power as "the people". We could write to members of the press, the major televisions stations.....we could do something, couldn't we? BUT do we? NO, we just do what I did.....nod our heads in discust and continue on with our day. Could we change things if we tried harder? Shouldn't we try to do something? I know we do not need to hear only gloom and doom from the press but some of the things we hear like the above news that started me writing this is just plain stupid.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
COMPLAINTS
So often we complain at the least little thing......a nail breaking, not enough money, gained wt., a bad hair day, etc., etc., etc. Some of you know that several weeks ago I found out that I have three bulging discs, spine damage, an inflamed sciatic nerve and a few more little problems. Just this week I started riding the ETHRA bus service which is available to the general public but is most often used by people on Tenncare or welfare, people who have serious body traumas and can not drive or the elderly who have nobody in their lives. If you think you have something to complain about......call ETHRA and take a ride on one of their buses. Until you have reached into your designer handbag to pull out your $12. cash to pay for your ride and see after you a woman dressed in rags pull her welfare card from an old brown paper bag.......until you sit rubbing you slightly sore leg thinking you are in pain and turn to see the driver loading a younger man who is missing a leg.....until you have felt sorry for yourself for having to get up, get dressed and ride a bus to therapy three days a week and then ride with several people of all ages who have to go five days a week for three hours or more to have dialysis..........until you have felt sorry for yourself for being lonely (even though you have family who call you and e mail you every day) and then you find yourself sitting beside a truly lonely old lady who has nobody...NOBODY in her life and has such a sad little wrinkled face..........until you have experienced that, you won't realize that you have NOTHING to complain about at all and you will thank GOD that you are so blessed. It can ALWAYS be worse, I tell you.
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