January 15, 2009: What beautiful summer weather here on the Gold Coast this week!! I know, I know it isn't summer! But when the offshore breezes come, summer-like weather comes to the coast. And I love it! The geraniums love it! They look so good, green and budding out! Soon an array of colorful-hued blossoms will dominate the terraces. And you can see some of them on the opening page of the site. Today I have posted Freestyle Pink and Americana Dark Red and they are so neon like in their beautiful tints. I hope you enjoy them and appreciate those neon shades of color!! We have the pair of Towhee birds still around the garden and you can hear their characteristic calls each day. They are such a calm and lovely bird. I like them very much. The new camera is wonderfully efficient and produces great photographs. I enjoy using it. The mockingbirds are with us again, and we always welcome them back. Each year they claim our yard as "theirs" and we welcome that. They are beautiful birds and very active, flitting from bush to tree and calling out with their screeches. The hawks are soaring on the warm thermals now these days, and you can see them all around the area. I like to hear their call as they soar over the area. They are beautful. I hope your week goes well. Enjoy it, and take care.--BT, January 15, 2009.

January 8, 2009: The fog was in heavily this a.m. Boy, how dense it was! This is my birthday week. I have had lots of birthdays before this one today, so I will enjoy it in kind of a "low key" situation, maybe a dinner out and a piece of cake and so on. The years roll on, don't they. I have been enjoying the new Canon G10 camera that I received for Christmas from my wife. What a fantastic cam it is!! It is 14.7 megapixels and all the settings anyone would ever want. And perfect size for the next trip to Ireland. It will be well used. Are you back in the regular schedule of life? We seem to be, and it is nice. It still is a bit cold for us here on the Gold Coast, but warmer weather is on the way, according to the weather people. That will be nice. The firewood pile is much smaller now, since we have been burning the fireplace almost every night. I hope you like the photos I have been posting on the opening page, taken with the G10 camera. It is a joy to use. Have a great rest of the week and a nice weekend. The birthday schedule calls; time to get ready for a dinner out. Take care! Enjoy!--BT, January 8, 2009.

"Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day.

January 2, 2009: Have you written 2009 yet on a check or letter or some document? Is it difficult to get used to that? It is for me. Especially on this web page. But 2009 is here with all its "newness" and new beginnings for all of us. I love the newness! The slate is clean and it is up to each of us to write on it whatever we may. What will you write? I hope to write in very large letters the word, "kindness" as that will be my theme I hope for the New Year. I have written about it before and think that each of us can sure improve our world by doing acts of kindness; and I know many of you do that already and I salute you!! The holidays have ended and l noticed it looked like lots of people out on the malls and highways today. I suppose many are back to work now. What a wonderful Christmas and New Years it was. And time moves on. I know I have said that before, but one should enjoy each day to the fullest---as time moves on. It is very cool today. I have brought wood into the fireplace and will soon light it for the evening. Cozy for sure!! I photographed a bit today on the back patio terrace with the Canon G10. What a fantastic camera! The photos are so clear, and there are many settings to assist you on the cam itself. I really like it. It came under the Christmas tree. I hope you are ready for January and the rest of the start of the New Year. I am. What fun to look forward to. Remember as one of the quotations says above at the top of this page: "There is always something to be thankful for."----Charles Dickens. Speaking of Charles Dickens, we once attended a wedding reception at a Castle in Ireland where Charles Dickens spent a winter writing one of his books. How cool is that!!!! It was right on a river bank and beautiful! Take care and enjoy!!--BT, January 2, 2009.

December 31, 2008: Well 2008, is just about history. I hope it was a good year for you! It was for us! We were in Ireland during 2008, and also our Daughter and Grandsons came to visit over the summer. Very nice! I hope you like the new photos on the opening page taken this a.m. December 31. I have a new camera that I am using alternately with the Digital Rebel. Both are excellent cameras! The weather is on the warm side with lots of sun. How nice for New Years Eve day. We like it. It is supposed to turn cool for the weekend so we shall see, and a hint of rain is on the horizon, so says the weatherman. We had a video chat with our Grandsons and Daughter this morning, how neat that is. I have told you about the video chats earlier, but they remain something we enjoy very, very much. Seeing your loveones in real, live time is wonderful, and being able to talk with them too is nice. What are you doing tonight to bring in the new year 2009?? We will have a fire in our fireplace, an early dinner, then a good movie on DVD for our"big time" on the Eve. That is fun for us. We like to safely be in our home welcoming in the New Year. Do take care and be safe! And look to the New Year as a new part of your life and celebrate your being! I will leave you with a couple of quotations to "set the tone." My best to all of you out there on "this great blue marble--earth--on which we reside." Happy 2009!--BT, December 31, 2008

December 27, 2008: We had a wonderful Christmas. The weatherman had predicted a huge rain coming in from the sea, and thank goodness it stayed out over the water and went south. How lucky can one get??!! We had Christmas music, wonderful gift exchanges, a warm fire in the fireplace and delicious homemade enchiladas for our dinner. Now that is great, isn't it!! It is cold here and windy during the day and evening. Too cold for us! Where is Spring? Quite a bit down the road, you say as you look at the calendar. I hope your Christmas was a wonderful one! Life moves on now, 2009 is on the horizon, and it is coming quick. Exciting and another birthday comes soon. As my Mom always said in later years, "I am not counting anymore." One can see time passing along thru life, but that is normal. I don't mind. I hope you like the new colors on the opening page and this minutia page. It is time to put Christmas behind us for another year and move ahead. We watched the horde of Christmas shoppers on the TV news as Christmas neared this year and were glad we were not out there with them in the crowds. A very strong gusty wind came up Christmas night and some of the geraniums on the back terrace lost some branches, but I have saved them in water and will repot them for new plants soon. I always think that is nature's way of pruning the plants. One of the big Christmas cactus blew over, but not a problem. They are strong plants and now are about through blooming for awhile. Do enjoy this time as we approach the new year. And value everyday. Each is a new world. Happy New Year soon!!--BT, December 27, 2008.

December 21, 2008: According to the weatherman the rain is coming tonight, late, and will last on and off for several days, maybe including Christmas Day. Amazing! I remember some Christmas Days when it was summer-hot here on the Gold Coast. I don't think that will happen this year! We just went to the grocery store to stock up our pantry for the good holidays ahead. It was very crowded with people rushing about with their grocery carts picking up the food items they need for the week. One could tell something BIG was on the schedule!! Of course, CHRISTMAS DAY! I saw a truck load of Christmas trees rushing north along the highway on the way to the store. Wonder where they have been? Maybe stuck in the snow somewhere or delayed due to some unforeseen event. We enjoy our Christmas tree. It is wonderful, and what an amazing tradition, having a tree in the house. Our daughter's family in Ireland sent a photo of our two beloved Grandsons standing in front of the Christmas tree there in the country in that amazing and lovely country: Ireland. How beautiful they look! I am putting to/from tags on some gifts today, and that is fun. I remember Christmases way back in the past when we were at Grandpa's cattle ranch out in that wild and arid desert, and it was so cold we dressed in the mornings around the old iron wood stove in the living room. I can see it now!! Boy, that was cold. I remember the butter churn in the kitchen, and the food being cooked on the gigantic word burning cooking stove in the kitchen. Boy, it was huge, and watching Grandpa light the papers and wood in the stove and put the round, dark iron lids back on the stove to become burners for the pots and pans. Christmas time is a time of remembering and memories. Our minds are so keen and the memories flow! How nice that is! Have a great weekend, it is almost over, and this is the first day of winter, so it should be a short day. Enjoy it! Remember and Keep Warm!--BT, December 21, 2009.

December 20, 2008: Gosh only 5 more days until Christmas! Can you feel it in your heart and mind? I can! And of course I go back in my mind to all those wonderful family times of Christmas past. Remember old Scrooge from Dickens, "A Christmas Carol"? He was a cranky old man with not a wrinkle in his mind or heart of kindness. He found though, that he could change and he did. I love that film, and at this time of year there are various versions on television. If you get a chance, watch one of the films. The story will bring a tear to your eyes as you see him transform himself into a good and very kind person. All the years he had been missing the kindness and love of Christmas!! Wow, does that really happen? Maybe. I must say I have known a few people who kind of were cranky and not too nice in their daily interaction with their fellow man. But I have also know the opposite who are warm and wonderful! More rain is predicted for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I don't mind. The rain is superb and I love it when it rains. It not only waters the earth and fills the reservoirs, but also fills the soul with freshness. Anyway that is the way I look at it. Is your Christmas shopping finished? Mine is not quite done, but soon will be. I called our bakery the other day and ordered a Pecan Pie!! Yes, that is what I said!! A Pecan Pie for Christmas Day. And we are on diets!! Can't you just taste it!! And with a mountain of whipped cream on top!! Wow, that is my "way to go"!! And of course my Good Wife will also cook something homemade for dessert for our company in case they do not care to imbibe in the delicious pie. What a wonderful time, and of course there will be a warming fire in the fireplace on Christmas Day. I always wonder how people in the early days of our country kept warm during the winters. Wow, it must have been difficult. I have a Mother Teresa quotation for you today. I saw a book about her quotations the other day at the book store. She was a magnificent person who dedicated her life to others. Can we all do that, in our own place and way? Get ready, Christmas Day is near. At church our Advent Wreath has 4 candles burning, and that means soon we are there!! Merry Christmas! Have a great one, and do remember Ebenezer Scrooge!! What a transformation! Kindness is the way, for sure. Enjoy your Pre-Christmas time! Time flows forward, and soon the New Year. Am I going too fast here? Some might say yes, but the future is where the action lies. Do you have an Aunt or a Cousin or a Son or daughter or a Grandparent or a Parent that you need to call and wish a very Merry Christmas?? If so -- do it! Do it now! This is the time to share that love and affection. Enjoy your day and week.--BT, December 20, 2008.

December 16, 2008: The rain came in off the sea yesterday and was wonderful! The country was so very arid and dry after months without rain. And today, rain showers were here this morning. How nice! We were at a mall today, and there were lots of people shopping. I guess maybe they counted the days(8 days now!!!) until Christmas and decided now was the time to get moving on the Christmas shopping. Boy it was busy. I remember a Christmas some years ago when we were in Ireland for our daughter's wedding. It was very cold and stormy, and I remember hearing the wind gusting around the corner of the guest house there in Co. Cork at night. The Gales as they call them in Ireland came in, I suppose, direct from Iceland! The news reported they were at least 90 miles per hour. Wow, that was a wonderful Christmas with the wedding and all. My mind is working overtime with memories now that Christmas is closing in. We will get our tree this week. I remember my Mother telling the story of when she and her brothers and sister were children, there would be no sign of a Christmas tree in their house until Christmas morning, then when the children got up in the morning all was there in all its glory, the tree and gifts and the family. How fun that must have been for all of them! I am listening to Christmas music now at this moment as I write this Minutia on Pandora on the internet. How neat that is! If you like music go to the Pandora web page and check it out. It is wonderful! Our Pastor at church last week told us that he nor his wife had been out shopping for one single gift yet. I don't know if he plans to shop or not. But I thought that was interesting. How about you? Where are you on the shopping? Mine is finished. I have one more package to be delivered and then I will wrap that one and I am ready and waiting for that wonderful Christmas Day. The rain is life giving! I have always loved rain, and will leave you a few good quotations spoken by others about rain and also Christmas. I wonder what you are planning for Christmas: gifts? a delicious meal? or what? Whatever it is I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas!! and all the trimmings. Enjoy the week!!-BT, December 16, 2008

December 11, 2008: Can you feel it in the air and in your every minute? I certainly can. Christmas is coming, and it is coming soon! How wonderful it is! I often think of one of my favorite movies about Mr. Scrooge and Tiny Tim: "A Christmas Carol". Scrooge was a rascal, without a thought for his fellow-man and the world. It was money, money, money with him! What a story and what it took to straighten him out. I like it a lot and the lessons it teaches us. Have you seen it?? If not do so. Cool weather has come to the Gold Coast, and I called my wood-man and ordered up another half cord of firewood. We will definitely need it, and there is nothing more warming and relaxing that a nice evening fire in the fireplace! I love it! I have been working a bit on the Digital Flowers page this a.m. I am so pleased with the photo of the Anna's Hummingbird. I like it a lot, and I hope you do too. He was just at the feeder a few minutes ago this a.m. Do you see some Christmas colors in the little bird?--the red/scarlet on the neck and the green on the back? Yes, I do. I hope you are having a good week. Is your Christmas shopping finished yet? I thought mine was, but no, there are still some people to get a gift for, and I am happy to do so. My mind and heart goes back to past Christmases! Isn't the memory wonderful! As Wendy Hiller said in a recent movie, "All Passion Spent" that we watched: "Remembering: Life becomes a landscape you've already crossed." or something close to that! I like the quote a lot, and it sure stirs your thoughts.

Have a healthy and good Pre-Christmas. My wife reminded me that Christmas is 2 weeks from today. Merry Christmas, or as they say in Ireland, "Happy Christmas!" Enjoy the day.--BT, December, 2008.

December 1, 2008: Well, here it is---December 1! Did you think it would arrive so quickly? The big push for sales in all the stores continues, but there is more to think about than those sales. I love Christmas and all that goes with it. It is a special and very warm time for us here on this great blue marble called Earth. And we should pay homage to the season! We were talking about 2 of my Grandfathers at lunch today. It is funny how memories slip into our daily activities. One of them owned a Stagecoach in the early days in a Western State and made a living that way for awhile! I used to read about such Stagecoaches in books when I was in elementary school a long time ago. Another was a cattleman, and as a teen drove a herd of cattle with his Father from Kansas to Arizona. What a long and very tough cattle drive that must have been. And I am the luckiest person, as I knew them both and have fond memories of times spent with them. The memories will never leave me. How nice those memories. It is cool now in the mornings and the evenings. We have enjoyed the fireplace very much in the evenings. We will again tonight. I hope you like the new Christmas theme of the Digital Flowers web page. I do that every year, and it is much fun for me. It will be time soon to put up the Christmas lights on the house, and one of my daughters is going to help me this year. That will be nice! There are Christmas lights showing now around the neighborhoods as people dust them off and install them in their yards and homes. How colorful! If a person from another planet saw them, they would surely wonder what the colored lights are all about, and why these earthlings are putting them up on their houses, shrubs and in their yards!! 8-)) I photographed today and was thrilled to photo Tango Light Orchid and Mandarin. How beautiful they are and yes they are Christmas colors I believe! I hope your Thanksgiving weekend went well. Ours did. Each day comes as a new day with wonderful activities and mysteries! As my poem says, "Untie the ribbons..................." and enjoy each day.---BT, December 1, 2008.

November 27 Thanksgiving Day, 2008: The smell of the turkey cooking is wafting through the house now. Wow, it smells good! Can you smell it at your house? The rain came in the past 2 days and left us with 1 inch of moisture. That is great, as we get very little rain, and I think the geraniums and other plants have breathed a sigh of relief to have survived the long, long dry spell. The plants all looks perky and very healthy. Well I did it! I started the Christmas theme on the opening page of the web site. I know, I know, but you might think or say, "We are not even out of November!!" But we will be soon, and look at your calendar. Christmas Day is 4 weeks from today---that's right, I said, "4 weeks from today!!" Will you be ready? We have our Grandson's gifts and will soon get them ready to mail to Ireland. We had a video chat this a.m. with them, and enjoyed seeing and talking to them and their Mom (our daughter)! I have raved about the miracles of computers and so on, but the video chat is fantastic. Seeing them live via the cam on the computer is wonderful! How blessed we are! This is always a nice time of year for me. I like the holidays and home. We used to travel to spend holidays with our parents, but now that most of them are gone, we stay home in our nice little house and enjoy the days. We did spend one Christmas in Ireland when my daughter got married, and man was it ever cold!! And I mean cold!! But it was so fun being there for that nice occasion. I hope your Thanksgiving Day goes well. Ponder the memories of times gone now. There are always sweet memories in those thoughts. I have been remembering days of old this week. I was telling my wife about how my Sister and I would toast my Dad with cola in the World War 2 days when we lived far across the country with Dad at Naval School before he shipped out. He and his friends would be in their uniforms, looking handsome and brave, and my Sis and I would be in the living room with our colas, and we would toast Dad with, "Here's to Daddy!"--raise our glasses and clink them and drink the bubbly cola. Well today, I would like to toast you, the readers of this web site, wherever you may be! "Here's to you!!" Happy Thanksgiving!! Enjoy the day!--BT, Thanksgiving Day, 2008.

November 24, 2008: You can feel it in the air this p.m. All you have to do is look out at the clouds coming in. The rain.................is near, just out there over the sea, and the weatherman says it will come in and we will have some rain this week. We need it so much. I checked the garden this a.m., and it looks good. Of course the resident gopher that Enrique is trying to capture for us was back! He has a nice mound near the back escallonia plants again. The persistence of the gopher puts us humans to shame sometimes. 8-)))))))))))))))) At the market this morning, there were many people shopping for Thanksgiving. The place was quite crowded, and we saw some people we knew there. It is always nice to see acquaintenances at places in town. It makes one feel you definitely belong here. My Icelandic friend sent some photos of snow in his yard and told of the slippery ice! How different is weather in different parts of the earth. Here we are in a balmy part of the earth and our friends and family live in the cold! Memories are fun! My wife and I were talking about how memories from our childhood come back. I supposed some of the memories are forever in some part of our mind. We often dream of our work experiences that we both had during our working years. We laugh about those and have fun with them. Does that happen to you? I posted a new photo of the American Dark Red Zonal geranium today on the opening page. Indeed it is one of my favorites. I have nursed that plant back to health as it was being eaten by a horde of caterpillars earlier in the year. I am happy it is back! Its beauty is incomparable. And I love to see the geranium blossoms developing in my garden. It is a gardener's dream to have such! I am thankful. Not long until turkey day. Are you ready? My wife is wrapping Christmas gifts today. Fun. That says it all. Christmas is coming!!! Do enjoy your day!--BT, November 24, 2008

November 21, 2008: The turkey is in the freezer, and is harder than a rock. My wife says we will take it out and put it in the refrigerator tonight, to begin the long thaw process to prepare for the big cooking day on Thusday of next week! We always look forward to Thanksgiving. It is such a warm and family-oriented holiday. I love it. Of course it is the preceder to Christmas. Let's see, it must be 4 or 5 weeks until Christmas! We did a video chat today with our Irish daughter and Grandsons. They had been to a pre-Christmas affair at a nearby garden center gift shop. The report from the boys is Santa Claus was there and they had both received a gift from him! How exciting for them! It is so wonderful seeing their beautiful faces and hearing their words, spanning across the sea and the North American continent to our house and our computers. We marvel at the process! Love those video chats with them! It is warm and balmy today. Did you see and read my free-verse poem on the opening page about Spring in the Fall?? I hope you did, and I hope you enjoyed it. I was out earlier gardening and watering and grooming the geraniums. They are doing so well. And I enjoy them so much! As I have told you earlier, my Dad years ago grew and propagated geraniums---maybe I have some of his interest in gardening in my system. I imagine I do. My Dad always had a backyard garden: tomatoes, stringbeans, squash and the like, and he produced lots of good food for us to eat. And my ancestors who came to what is now our country in the 1600's also mainly farmed. I have that in my system I suppose. Anyway I like to think so. 8-))))) I hope your Thanksgiving goes well. Tell your family members, those that might spend time with you on Thanksgiving, how much they mean to you and how much you appreciate them. I remember one Thanksgiving when the Turkey was in our electric oven and the igniter in the oven went out. No, it was not done yet! Thanks to our kind-hearted neighbor we were able to take it over to her oven and finish it. Thank Goodness!! Time moves on doesn't it! The Fall, Thanksgiving, Christmas, the New Year and into Spring and Summer. That is the way life moves it seems! Prepare for Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The Christmas Cactus still cover the corner of the patio with their fantastic hues!!! They are so beautiful!! I have the moon photo which I earlier described to post today for you, just below. It was fun photographing it and seeing how the picture came out. Enjoy your weekend, and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you!! ---BT-November 21, 2008.

November 13, 2008: Today it is quite warm here on the Gold Coast! The NE winds have come in and warmed up the area. The wind last night broke off part of one of my Christmas Cactus(Thor Olga)--the beautiful white one with lavender streaks on the flower. It is my oldest Schlumbergera, but not to be lost. I will replant several of the clippings and generate new plants. Christmas Cactus are easy to start from the clippings. I have several of the other colors growing now from starts. We had a very beautiful full moon last night, and I photographed it from the back garden. In a day or two when I have edited the photos I will post one for you. What a beautiful "silver coin" in the sky it was! I used my Canon Digital Rebel XT with the telephoto and set the cam at 250 at f11. It was a hand-held shot and I think came out well. Someone reminded me that two weeks from today is Thanksgiving Day! When is the cold weather coming? This is a bit unusual having balmy Caribbean type of weather. I can remember being on ships in the southern Caribbean and feeling the balmy air and the warmth! Very nice! We are already talking about our next trip to Ireland in a few months. The winter is not the time for us to go. We are not cold weather people. We like our summer like weather here too much. By the time we go, the weather will be nice and much warmer there. Have you discovered the new button that will "short-cut" you to the links list? I hope so. It did take me a long time to realize that it was a long scroll down to the links list at the bottom of the web page. I hope you like the convenience of that. Thanksgiving is near. Count the days. Enjoy!--BT, November 13, 2008.

November 9, 2008: Today I posted a new geranium to the web page from the back garden: the Burgundy Ice! Is it ever beautiful! It kind of reminds me of Picasso with its vibrant and very lovely hues. It is a healthy plant and I can hardly wait for it to grow bigger and put out more beautiful blossoms. The cold north wind has come in today, and it is rather cold for us here on the Gold Coast. Some of the Christmas cactus have blown over, but that is very typical of them in their pots sitting in their corner of the back patio. They grow such a fan-shapped top that the wind catches them quite easily. None are broken and I usually leave them over on their sides until the wind ceases. They do very well in that way. The garden looks very nice. The new Lavender and Mexican Sage are growing very well, and appear to be strong plants. We like them very much. We noted that there are turkeys in the super-market now for the Thanksgiving shoppers, and a nearby farm that we often pass by has a very large flock of turkeys, preparing for the Thanksgiving Holiday. It is coming very soon. Are you thinking perhaps what you are thankful for as this Thanksgiving season nears? One should be doing that thinking, I believe. We all have so many things to be thankful for. I spent much of my childhood being ill. Pneumonia seemed to stalk me throughout my childhood. It was a terrible illness in those days. I remember how long I would have a fever and how my lungs would hurt. It was not a good time. On my list of things and those I am thankful for are: my wonderful wife who gets me through the day with her pleasantness, support, and love, our daughters of whom we are most proud and love very much, our Grandsons who are great little ones who we love immeasurably, good health, our home in which we have lived for 38 years, our trips to Ireland to see the Grandsons, the memories of my Mom, Dad, and Sister and our times together, our Faith, and this beautiful Gold Coast where we live, and last but not least the wonderful America in which we live. How lucky we are!!! I suppose that is not all I am thankful for, the list probably goes on and on. Of men on earth, I am most blessed. I read that somewhere and I feel it is for me. Do have a good last day of the weekend. Are you thinking of what you are thankful for? I encourage you to do so. And be thankful. We only pass this way once, you know. But I bet you have heard that before! 8-)))) Enjoy. --BT November 9, 2008

November 6, 2008: Can you feel it?..................the season of November? I sure can with the brisk and cool mornings and evenings. Now it is dark by 5:00 p.m. Today the NE winds have come into the area and the weather is very summerlike and warmish. It feels like summer! I just said that this morning to one of the men who works the yard. He agreed! Three weeks from today is Thanksgiving and we have so much to be thankful for! Anyway I sure do! I grew up in that small town I previously told you about, and loved animals, model airplanes, fishing and those kinds of things that a boy loves in the early years of his youth. Thanks to Mom and Dad I was able to get a college education and spent over 40 years in teaching. It was a wonderful career and so interesting! Now in retirement, things are great. I have time to read, garden and the like. It is a new adventure. I saw a friend yesterday at the market, and he was talking about the glories of retirement! I feel that way too. We are so fortunate to have aged to retirement, and as my friend said, "Not all have the opportunity to do that!" At last we have the TV back! 8-)))))))))))))))) Could we stand a national election more than every 4 years???!! 8-))))))))))))) I am not sure about that! 8-))) Are you counting the weeks until Christmas. Here I go again!! 8-))) I hope you are thinking about what you will get for your loved ones for Christmas. I am right on track to complete my shopping by the end of November. Then you might say, "Well what are you going to do then?" Well my answer is, "Get ready for Christmas in all its glory and fun!" And we will have a fresh cut tree too! I hope you read of my wife's and my adventure with the artificial tree that came in the box from the local store, and how we finally gave up and returned it for a fresh cut one!!! That was in a previous segment of the minutia!! My mind goes back a long time to Christmases of old. Even the ones at Grandpa's cattle ranch out there in the middle of nowhere. The mind is a wonderful thing as memories remain for a long, long time. I even remember the time I was on the back of a horse with my Aunt Dorothy in front of me in the saddle, and off I went--to the ground. We used to laugh about that a long time ago. That was at the cattle ranch also. Fun! Time moves on. I want to encourage you to enjoy every minute and every day. We know not how many minutes and days we have here, so make the most of them. Do enjoy your week. And remember "Christmas is coming! The Christmas cactus are blooming."--BT, November 6, 2008

November 1, 2008: Wow, November 1 is here already, where did the summer and the fall go? Time moves on, doesn't it! The life giving rain came in--in the nighttime and gave us a shower or two. This is the first rain we have had since May, and then it was a paltry .2 of an inch. The country is dry. Hopefully we will get more rain tonight and tomorrow, I sure hope so! I have started my Christmas shopping and will finish up by the end of November. I like to do that early and finish early. What fun it is! We worked in the garden putting in loads of bark ground cover yesterday, and it smells like the forest and looks so fresh. I like the ground cover bark--gives a natural feel to the garden. The Christmas cactus are blooming fantastically. I have the perfect spot for them under the patio roof, and they do so well there. If you want to know more about Christmas cactus, do a web search for them. There is an abundant amount of material and information about them on the web. We have a pair of Towhees who have taken up residence in our back garden and they are so gentle and peaceful. They usually are described as a "plain brown bird" but we like seeing them in our garden. It is theirs as long as they wish to stay. I photographed one of them the other day foraging for seed in the front garden area. Go to this web page if you would like to view this very nice, low key garden bird. I have always found rainy days to be great days to sit in a comfy chair and read poetry. When I used to teach students of age 10 or 11, on rainy days I would get out my favorite poetry books and read rain poems to them. One I always read was "April Rain Song"--by Langston Hughes. I hope you are thinking about Thanksgiving too at this time of year. My earliest ancestor John came to the east coast in the 1600's, and I wonder what he and his family did on Thanksgiving? They settled in New England and helped to settle the area. And I always wonder how did he get from England then, across the stormy Atlantic Ocean? There are many questions one has when you do genealogy. I believe we will have turkey and all that goes with it this year. My wife is an expert turkey cooker, and does a spectacular job on the Thanksgiving dinner. I wish you a wonderful weekend, and a restful and enjoyable day! BT, November 1, 2008

October 23, 2008: I have just come in from the garden where I was photographing a very small butterfly. It was about the size of my thumbnail and marked with a silver-gray pattern. I hope I got a good photo so I can share it with you. It is very warm today, a real summer like day here on the Gold Coast in October. The NE winds have come into the area, and when this occurs it turns warm. I watered the geraniums and some of the other plants as well. Our new Sage and Lavender plants are doing well and looking good. That is nice. We love the purple of the Sage blossoms and the Lavender, with its warm, fragrant and romantic bouquet. They make nice additions to the garden. Our painter was here and did a great job on our 10 year old kitchen. It looks so clean and new. The painter is an old friend and we enjoy having him around. We have many things we discuss while he paints! The Christmas cactus continue their "out of control" blooming. When they bloom they bloom with, it seems, thousands of blossoms. They are beautiful and neon in their hue. The genealogy studies continue for both my wife and myself. We are making good progress. I am working on a branch of the family that long ago came from Scotland into Ireland, then to the U.S. It must have been hard times living in those climates during the winters. How did they keep warm? I know they say in Ireland the trees were mostly all cut down for warming wood and cooking wood. Ireland today is replanting the trees all over the country, and when you drive along in Ireland, you see wonderful forests of new trees growing everywhere. I like to see that. I have some new quotations for you to read and consider above. I hope you like them. How is your week going? Ours is great. Evening comes earlier each day it seems at this time of year. Darkness is early every evening. Enjoy your week.-BT, October 23, 2008.

October 19, 2008: It was a small town, the town I was born and raised in. I doubt it even had 10, 000 people in those days. My Dad always said you could walk downtown and you would always pass by people that you knew their name and who they were. It was true! We did lots of walking in those days. When my Aunt would come over for a visit, she would take my Sister and me down to J. C. Penneys and buy us some clothes. She liked to do that, and we would walk, and she knew many people in the little town. There was 1 motion picture theater in town in those days, and we would go on Saturday and see Red Ryder or Hopalong Cassidy or the like. There were just 2 banks in town and they were near one another in the downtown area. There were just 3 or 4 small food markets in the whole town! They were nothing like the supermarkets of today. I worked at one of them when in junior high school. That one was called the Red & White Grocery. It was owned and operated by old C.J. and his son-in-law S. Hart. They were good people and gave me a chance to work for them, and I learned a lot. I rode my bicycle to the market downtown and back home after work. It was a good job for me. I stocked shelves with canned goods, sacked up potatoes in brown bags in 5 and 10 pound amounts and marked the price on them with a black marker. I put eggs in dozen egg cartons and marked them too. I boxed and sacked groceries for customers and helped them to their car if they needed such. And the last thing I did every night was spread the sweeping compound on the floor and sweep the entire market clean. Later I was taught how to check customers out with their groceries. As I said it was a wonderful learning experience. I can just see C. J. slowly climbing the old wooden stairs in the back room to his office. He looked so old to me then, and S. Hart would be working on the vegetables or something else. I will never forget them. The town had one fire station and everyone knew the firechief named George. The firestation was downtown and it had a loud horn on the top of the building that blew twice everyday at noon. When there was a fire it blew a series of blasts to indicate the location of the alarm box that had been pulled to turn in the reported fire. The town was mostly agricultural in those days. Today there is no trace of its agricultural history. The town has grown immensely and is connected to all the surrounding cities now, and freeways bisect all regions around it.

I always thought as I got older that the town must be like small town America in the midwest. Yes, we knew everyone it seems. I bought one of my first bicycles at the Western Auto Store with some of the earnings I had from the grocery store. You knew most of the people working in the stores also. There were 2 barber shops one on the north side of town and one on the south side of town. I got a job before the grocery store work at one of them, the south side one operated by Charlie. We knew Charlie and the other barbers as my Dad and I had our hair cut there. There was a vacant shoeshine stand outside the shop, and one day I asked Charlie if I could be the shoeshine boy for his shop. He agreed and even loaned me money to stock up the stand with polishes, brushes and the like. It was interesting and quite a few people came for shoeshines from my little shop. I can just see those barbers, all fine and very nice men, Charlie, Van, Roy and Ray. They had great senses of humor and I enjoyed working with them. I would also sweep up the hair on the floor when it needed to be done, dump trash, refill each barber's towel cabinet with clean white towels and refill their shaving soap dispenser. Small town America gave me so many opportunities! How fortunate and blessed I have been. There were 4 elementary schools in the little town, 1 junior high, and 1 high school. You attended the elementary school nearest to where you lived. We all went to the 1 junior high and the 1 high school. I have many memories of the small town and experiences I had there. Of course, it is gone, the small town. I am reminded of a "Twilight Zone" episode called something like "Next Stop Willoughby", wherein a man revisits the small town of his youth as an adult. It is a magical story! I revisit my small town in my memories. They shall be with me forever. I hope your weekend has been a good one. I hope you don't mind the reminiscences of mine today. My wife and I had been talking a bit recently about our small town beginnings, and it got me to thinking about those days there walking down the street with my Aunt and Sister heading downtown for J. C. Penney----in my mind forever.--BT, October, 2008

October 12, 2008: The winds are light now this afternoon, but they may come up from the mountains this evening. Often we have the strong westerly and north-westerly winds in the evening at this time of year. It was cool this a.m. and one could feel the Fall in the crisp morning air. It was nice. I worked a bit in the garden, pruned some spent iceberg rose blossoms and tended to the Christmas Cactus. The Christmas Cactus are doing so well, the terrace is aglow in the wonderful neon hues that are the blossoms. I won't say it again, but get your shopping lists ready!! 8-)))))))))))))))))) My mind always starts to move back in my thoughts to past Christmases at this time of year. Memories are wonderful! I remember my electric train that I received from Mom and Dad a long time ago when I was a boy. It was used as that was about what they could afford in those days, but it was not a used one to me. I had so much fun with it over the years. It had belonged to a family we knew in our small home town, and their boys had grown up. And I remember when my wife and I tried to move our custom of a Christmas tree selection to an artificial one!!!!Oh that was a great laugh for both of us. We should have known better!!! It was so complicated for us that we took it back to the store, and went to our usual real Christmas tree sales lot and bought a beautiful tree for our house that Christmas! What fun we had!! Yes, I am thinking of Christmas, and please---I don't want to hear that I am rushing it or that it is too early or the like!!! Remember somewhere I have a quotation(and you know I dwell on quotations!!!) that asks something like, "Why can't the spirit of Christmas be everyday?" And I like that. I am getting ready to shop for gifts. I just emailed one of my daughters and told her I would finish my Christmas shopping by the end of November, and to send her list. We usually make lists for gifts, but maybe this year I won't. If someone wants to get me a Christmas gift, I may just let them decide what it might be. How would that be??? 8-)))))))))) I know, I know, you might say, "Oh gosh he is taking a real chance on that!" 8-))))))))))))Well I will think that one over. I found the most beautiful small white garden spider on an iceberg rose blossom today. I was lucky enought to get a photo of him/her. The spider was about the size of your pinkie fingernail, minus the long crab like legs. The spider had black stripes also and was a garden crab spider. We find beauty everywhere. Now I know everyone is not a fan of spiders. My oldest daughter in Ireland would not like to see the garden spider or any others. She says they have "giant" like spiders in their house occasionally, and she and her husband have quite a time getting them removed, so you don't have to look at my spider photo if you do not wish to do so. I find it a beautiful aspect of nature in my garden. Click here to view the photo. I hope your weekend is a good one. Ours is! Enjoy the day!--BT,October 12, 2008.

October 8 and 10, 2008: Well it has been a few days since I have written in Minutia. Just been busy I think with lots of little minute things that one has to do. The hot weather has returned to our Gold Coast, and wow is it hot. We don't like the hot weather at all! The weatherman says this will be the last day of the heat, as the wind is coming in tomorrow and we will have wind advisories, and we can really get the strong winds. I watered the garden today to prepare it for the warm day. This feels like the middle of summer, but November is only about 3 weeks away, and then we think of Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving. Time really moves, doesn't it!? The Christmas Cactus continue to bloom prolifically! Did you see the new photograph I posted today of Thor Nille? Gosh, its color is fantastic! And the flower the same! When Christmas Cactus bloom, the colors flood the garden!! The winds are supposed to come tomorrow, so it's batten down the hatches for that. We get pretty strong winds sometimes, and I have actually tied down some of the geranium pots on the terraces. They have taken some falls in the windy past! Enjoy the fall, and think about Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving. They will be here soon. Enjoy!--BT, October 8, 2008.

Well here I am back again after a 2 day recess(that is the teacher in me talking 8-))))))))))))))))))))). We have been busy and I never got the October 8 minutia posted. So here is a combo bit of writing. I had a computer catastrophe!!! And it was a trip to the south to the computer tech store where they helped put my life back in order! Well at least my computer's life!! 8-)))) I have been busy reinstalling so many files from my backups. Oh my, the brain is tired and needs a long rest. But things appear to be in order now, thank goodness. The N and NW wind have come up this afternoon and it is quite strong. I was out checking the geraniums on the back terrace and wired a few more pots to the terrace. The wind is relentless and quite powerful. We have been expecting it as the weatherman has been predicting it for a few days. I hope you have had a good week. We have. Am looking forward to a good nights sleep as I was up in the wee late hours of the night reinstalling software on the iMac. What a great computer, it has recovered well and I love it. My Daughter is the one who really got me into computers. She is so knowledgeable of computers and I am thankful for her getting me into them! I am always amazed by the possibilities of the personal computer. We shall never be without out computers. My wife uses hers for many things, but has really made strides in her genealogy studies of her family. She has done a wonderful job. Our photographs arrived yesterday of our Church Directory photos, and do I look that old in person??? Oh, my, I know I am a Grandpa, but that is really too much. 8-))))))))))))))))I think I look a lot like my Dad at that age, and when I was small and would go places with him people would say how much I looked like him. I loved that compliment. My Dad and Mom were fantastic people and I have many memories of our times together. Ok, enough of that. I wish you a great and relaxing and enjoyable weekend. ---BT, October 10, 2008

September 29, 2008: If you haven't seen my photo of the Grasshopper from earlier, go here to view him. How dignified and upright he is!! 8-))) He patiently waited while I photographed him and then flew away. What a beautiful specimen! I really enjoyed observing him and having him visit the geraniums, even though he is a leaf chewer! You know, that is one of the benefits of having a garden---many kinds of animals visit your plants, and I have had many "garden visitors" come into mine. If you haven't discovered it, at the bottom of the opening page of the web site is a list of my links, and one of them is "Garden Visitors." Take a look if you haven't noted it. You will get an idea of the variety that I have seen and photographed! The chimney sweep came today and cleaned my chimney. I have known him for many years, and he has done uncountable cleanings on my chimney over the past years. Now when it gets cold, the fire will safely blaze and warm us. How nice. There is nothing nicer than a fire in the fireplace on a cool evening or a rainy evening. I noted today in the grocery store in the plant section, Christmas cactus for sale, and the plants were blooming beautifully. How nice they looked there among the other plants! No, I didn't buy one! I have so many now, and I just planted a "cutting" off one of my cactus plants this afternoon. The buds are continuing to grow, and slowly the blossoms are coming out. They are beautiful!! There were clouds in the sky today, and that is unusual for us now at this time of year. I like them. Maybe the rain is just over the horizon aiming to come in one of these days. Am I an optimist??!! Yes, for sure I would have to say I am. I have my rain gauges out, and they indeed do look a bit forlorn and lonely. But they are ready for the first drops of rain, whenever that might arrive. Bob Hope, the comedian said it, and I believe it-------read his quotation below. I hope your week started out in a good way. Enjoy!--BT, September 29, 2008

September 28, 2008: The fog has been around the coast now for a week or so. The fog horn over on the ancient old wooden pier on the coast sings its mournful song every night, and it has done that since we have lived here for many, many year. We like the sound. It is a nightsong that can sing one to sleep. And it does. The tomato garden is ready to mulch over this winter to prepare for next spring's planting. I wonder how many years we will continue to plant tomatoes? They are so good being home grown! We love them! It is cool today, the Fall air having a bit of a brisk bite to it. But that is nice. The changing of the seasons tells us that life goes on............and when is the first of our rains to come? I don't think any rain is on the horizon yet. The Christmas Cactui are really preparing to bloom in a big way! I photographed some of the early blossoms today, and the colors remain among my favorite garden color. My Christmas Cactus are outdoors under our patio roof. When lots are blooming I will take a group photo and post it on the web page for you to see. They really are not cactus like in the desert regions but a tropical type of plant. They easily root from branches that one breaks off the mother plant. I have several I have started myself and they are doing well. You will see some of them in nurseries and even in plant departments in super-markets. I wonder if you have any Christmas Cactus? Perhaps you would like to get one someday and try your gardening skills. You will love the results. The Orange cactus opened its bloom today, and I photographed it and posted it on the opening page. Have you seen it? The color is wonderful and very orange-ish for sure. It is one of my favorites. September is about gone for this year. We have been looking at old photographs and remembering those family members that we knew and loved. They all look so young and energetic in the photographs. Genealogy is a long trail backward to trace from whence you came. I think everyone sometime in their life should do some genealogy. I hope your forthcoming week is a good one. ---BT, September 28, 2008

September 22, 2008: We had both entered the shop at the same time with our wives. He was maybe 10 years older than I. He was graying, like me, or maybe just gray. We both headed for the back of the shop near the fireplace and sofa where the business had set up a "husband waiting area". There was a newspaper on the table, and as we both sat down on the couch we greeted one another, and I offered him part of the newspaper to read. "I have macular degeneration, and cannot read anymore," he said. He continued to tell me of the eye condition that did not allow him to drive anymore and about his Dr. who treated him, and he said that the Doctors had told him they could do no more for him. Wow! What to say??!! This was a devastating condition, and he could talk about it to me, a stranger. We talked about his son, their recent trip east and just regular plain things people talk about when they visit. He liked to talk for sure, and I enjoyed listening and trying to encourage him. On his cap was the patch indicating military service. It was an enjoyable few minutes we had talking, and when my wife came back and said we were ready to leave, he said, "Nice talking to you." And I said something like, "Take care and nice talking to you too."

This encounter brought again to mind the past when as a young teacher I was asked by a Curriculum Director at a school district to accompany and assist the speaker of the conference, who would be talking to teachers about school and curriculum matters, through the day as the gentleman had lost his sight due to diabetes! What a humbling experience and what a fine experience getting to know the Professor as I guided him down sidewalks, into conference rooms and the like and we had an opportunity to visit and talk. These experiences remind me that life is full of challenges for all of us, and helping our fellow-inhabitants of this "great blue marble" called Earth is important and required! And maybe that help is just talking to someone that you meet by chance, like my encounter today with the man in the shop; sitting and waiting for our wives to finish their browsing. Kindness is important in this technological world where financial problems embrace many people and health problems are rampant. Just read a newspaper for the flavor of our times. It can be disconcerting. Inserting kindness into your day can help the feelings of many who are "down" in this life. Some quotations follow to tickle your minds a bit today about just that topic. Enjoy the day, BT, September 22, 2008

September 18, 2008: Today was dental day! Yep, time for cleaning the teeth and so on. All went well, and it was nice chatting with the hygenist. I know, I know.........you are probably saying, "How does one chat with a dental hygeniest when they have all those picks and brushes in your mouth?" Well the answer is, "Very carefully!!!" It is humid today, but sunny. Today is Paris day for our daughter and her better half. They have a night flight, so we will take them to the air bus to connect to the airport. They will have a great time! I posted an Alstromeria today from the east garden. How beautiful it looks in the garden. I used my moisture meter today to check all the terrace geraniums to see if they needed water. Only a few did. The meter is great! All tomato vines are cleared from the garden, and I am getting ready to start composting for next spring when I will plant the new crop. Fun!! The week went fast it seems. We were looking at some videos of our Grandsons, at a very young age, that our daughter in Ireland sent us some time ago. It is amazing how they have changed as they grow. Amazing!! Time moves on, doesn't it. But remember as stated earlier, "You are the pilot!" That is very gratifying and it is true. Are you a reader? I have a quotation for you if you are. Read below. We read always, it is so entertaining. I hope the week has been a good one for you. Enjoy. ---BT, September 18, 2008

"The wonderful thing about books is that they allow us to enter imaginatively into someone else's life. And when we do that, we learn to sympathize with other people. But the real surprise is that we also learn truths about ourselves, about our own lives that somehow we hadn't been able to see before."~ Katherine Patterson

September 17, 2008: Today is the birthday of our oldest Grandson in Ireland. He is 8 years old. We did a video chat with them this a.m., and of course we sang Happy Birthday to him over the vast spaces of the earth via the internet. How neat it was!! I am continually amazed by computer technology and its developments. The video chat is a miracle as far as I am concerned. To see your loved ones live and speak to them (and of course sing Happy Birthday to them) is wonderful! It is sunny and nice today here on the Gold Coast with a hint of Fall in the air. Whiskers the cat has already been over to check in with us this morning on the patio, and my wife was out on the patio talking to her. Very cute! Here is a photo I took yesteday of Whiskers. Click here to see a beautiful cat!

I have so many photos of flowers, I was trying to sort a few and afraid it is almost an impossible task. I will keep working on it though, and one of these days may have them sorted. My wife has been sorting the "paper" photos that we have from past trips and times in our family's life, before digital photography. And we have huge amounts of those for sure. Is so fun to look back at some of the photos and see our daughters when they were small, and the rest of us minus the gray hair! 8-)))))))))))))))))))))) and I have plenty of that! 8-))) The tomato garden is through for the year, and I have been removing the old plants and getting ready for composting for next year's planting. I will be done soon with that. Where are the rains? I know it is early here for rain, but we need it badly as the country here is extremely dry. Hopefully it will come soon. Hope the day is going well. Our daughter heads for Paris tomorrow for her vacation. I know she will have a great time with her new camera and iPod Touch to email us. There is another amazing tech miracle--emailing halfway across the world!!! Take care and enjoy the day!!--BT, Sept. 17, 2008

September 11, 2008: I had gone out to the garden this afternoon to check on plants and again noted the activity around the Christmas Cactus. The buds are forming rapidly, and the Nicolas Christmas Cactus especially seems a bit ahead of the others in blooming. Did you notice the new photograph of Nicolas Cactus that I posted this evening on the opening page? I hope you did. I photographed it, a bit in the shade and a bit in the afternoon light, using my Canon EF75-300mm 4-5.6 IS Lens from about 10 feet away. I like the way the photo came out. Good contrast in my opinion. It was cool last night and early this morning. We are in double numbers now as far as the date is concerned in September and October is out there--soon to come rolling in. On our drive south today we noticed fields of pumpkins in large number, the orange appropriate for the time of Halloween soon to be here.

Whiskers, the neighbor's cat was over for a visit, and I actually was able to briefly pet her. What a beautiful cat! We enjoy seeing her in our garden. In the next few days, I will be photographing lots of Christmas Cactus. They are ready to burst into bright neon hues! I love the colors. My Christmas Cactus get little care. They get a monthly does of liquid fertilizer and adequate water. They occupy a SW corner of the patio, partly in sun and partly in shade. It seems to be a perfect location for them to grow. I hope your week goes well. Annie Lennox has a good idea below. Take care and enjoy!-BT, September 11, 2008.

September 9, 2008: Today, I trimmed back some of the tomato plants that are finished for this season, and made some room in the garden for 2 more plants. We want another Lavender and another Purple Sage. I find both of them to be wonderful and they both attract the hummingbirds and bees. I like that. I like to share our garden with those of nature. I also found Whiskers Cat, belonging to the neighbor under one of the Iceberg Rose bushes. She is starting to get used to us and stayed around a bit while we were out working in the garden. What a beautiful cat! We had another precious video chat with our Grandsons just the other day. How great is that!! To see them in live time and talk and visit is fabulous. I applaud the tech world for inventing and developing the video chat process. It works so well! The boys enjoyed seeing us and talking to us as did our Daughter, their Mom. Fun. How great is that!!! It is cool tonight, but the weatherman says warm weather is on the way for the weekend. Not time for a fire in the fireplace yet. But it will come. I heard on the radio that the Farmers Almanac is predicting a cooler winter than normal for our country. Wow, I wonder if that will happen. They usually are pretty accurate with their predictions. I continue to photograph almost daily. The Christmas Cactus are continuing to bud out and soon I will have very colorful photos for you to see of the plants. They are wonderful, and I have told you why I feel that way. I love them!! The sycamore trees are dropping their leaves now as Fall pushes its way into the realm of summer. No jackets or sweaters yet for me. But the cool weather will come. I hope your day went well. Ours did. I love to work in the garden. Yes, I had my iPod on listening to music while working: Phantom of the Opera, Evita, Willie Nelson and miscellaneous music. That is what I like -- a real mixture of musical style. I even find myself singing along sometimes while in the garden. I wonder what the neighbors think?? 8-)))))))))))))))))))))))))) I could imagine! 8-))))))) Do take care and enjoy the week. And if you are so inclined, sing a bit in your garden. It is a fun thing to do! Have you had an opportunity to be kind to someone this week? I hope so. I am always looking for such, as I think it makes life much nicer for everyone. Keep your eyes open for that opportunity. Take care --BT, September 9, 2008.

September 4, 2008: Someone said to my wife yesterday, "It is going to be Christmas soon!" Wow, isn't that true, and I especially appreciate those words because I believe that time moves quickly most of the time in our lives. Some of you regular readers may say, "Oh no, there he goes again!" Well if so, that is ok. I have several themes to my life, and Christmas is one of them. I have a great Charles Dickens quotation for you at the bottom of this day's writing. It says it all for me, for sure. See what you think. School is in session, and I don't miss it at all. As you know I taught a lot of years in elementary schools, and I really enjoyed it. But enough is enough!! When I retired it was time for someone else to take responsibility for getting the students ready to assume their place in society some day. I have been out this morning grooming the geraniums. They are coming along well. There is new growth and buds forming on the plants. That makes a "geranium farmer" happy. I have a dandy new moisture meter that seems to work great in determining whether the plants need watering or not. In our climate, not too often. You just insert a probe into the soil of the potted geranium and the meter tells you. I like it! It is a simple way to avoid overwatering. Wow, this tech age is amazing........!!!!! I want to remind you that you can go back to the archives of earlier Minutia writings by going to the links at the bottom of this page. I asked my daughter if I should maybe delete the previous pages, and she said no. She told me she might want to go back and read earlier versions so, I left them on the web site for her and for you, if you ever want to read them. The weather is nice today. But in the evenings you can feel the coolness of Fall out there on the horizon. It is a good feeling, the coolness. I like it. A Grandson has a birthday soon, and we are readying a package to be sent across the earth to him in Ireland. Speaking of time flying, I have a quotation for you. I know, I know...................you were about to say or think: "I knew he would!!" Well here it is. See if it applies to you.

I find the above quotation to be very true for me. I hope you read it and think about it. The Christmas Cactus are starting to bud out. They will be beautiful. I will post photos as they bloom this fall in all their special beauty. And do remember as this Fall opens up the cool and crisp season that, yes, Christmas is coming. Read my poem below and see what you think. Enjoy the day and the week. Remember you are the Pilot!!!!--BT, September, 2008.