😳 It’s August already.
Three of my people have birthdays this month.
Four if you count me.
Five if you count my former SS teacher. Dr. Jones is 95 tomorrow. He is ten years and 15 days older than I am. We’re going to a reception for him. .
🙂 Fiddle contest today. My husband will, reluctantly, compete. He isn’t happy with the turn towards classical the contest has taken. It will be good to see old acquaintances, at any rate. He already has a twin fiddling partner. A friend of our daughter’s moved back to town and asked him to be her partner. Fun to see her and her family.
🙂 I got a lovely phone call yesterday from the mother of my newest piano student, a 15-year-old transfer student. The mom sits in on her daughter’s lessons, which are a half-hour in length. I offer 30-minute and 45-minute lessons, and started this student last month on the shorter lesson length.
Wednesday evening when they were here (it was the student’s third lesson with me), I went well over the 30 minutes. (We are working on composing, which she loves to do, as well as music theory, traditional piano literature, and so on, so there is plenty to do in a 30-minute time slot.) Her lesson ended up being close to 45 minutes that night.
Thursday, I was thinking about how well the girl is doing, meeting the challenges I’m putting before her, but how hard it is to limit the instructional time to 30 minutes. I considered suggesting to them sometime in the near future (maybe before September lessons start, when she’ll begin working on a piano contest piece) that expanding to 45-minute lessons would probably be in her best interest. However, that represents a 50% increase in fees, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to pop that on them so soon after she started.
Anyway…on Friday morning, I got a call from the mom, and among many nice things she had to say to me and how thrilled she was to hear her daughter playing piano every day again, and doing so willingly (she had gotten very burned out this spring and quit playing entirely), she told me she noticed that Friday’s lesson went close to 45 minutes, and she wants to switch to the 45-minute time slot so I’m enabled to continue working with her daughter in the way I am and be financially compensated for the full length.
What a blessing! I just about cried. I am so thankful to God for the thoughtful people He puts into my life.
🙂 Karen O’s good news and the example of her faithfulness and trust in God’s provision, no matter what, through very uncertain times.
🙂 Full week, my first back at work after a week off. I slept until 10:30 a.m. today though! Been waiting to sleep in all week but I haven’t slept that late in ages.
🙂 A weekend story (we all are under huge pressure to turn in a decent “weekender” with art) literally fell into my lap, thankfully, after lunch on Friday. Whew. Love it when that happens on weeks when it’s been busy with stories every day.
😦 Another reporter is moving on to another non-journalism job — we’re supposed to fill the vacancy but they’ve said that before and then reneged according to our newsroom editors (who have gone through a lot of work to narrow down resumes and do interviews only to be told later, sorry, we can’t hire anyone right now, after all).
🙂 I’m visiting our sister church tomorrow morning. My former/retired pastor will be preaching (with a picnic scheduled by him and his wife for some of us former congregants who will be attending afterward).
😦 Had to turn Carol down for errands today — I just needed a day free for housework and maybe to get the dogs out for a walk along the beach. She wanted me to take her to Venice Beach to buy a backpack she’s been eyeing (today’s her government pay day). I think my Jeep also needed a “rest,” I did a lot of driving on my week off. Traffic in LA, even on weekends, is simply bad and going anywhere takes a long time as a result.
🙂 Carol is learning the bus system in her new neighborhood (she can ride for free) and is finding the closest locations for her needed errands. So her basic errands — cashing her check and renewing her phone at the MetroPCS store, maybe picking up things at CVS or the Dollar Tree — are now doable by bus.
🙂 Some really lovely wildlife viewings this week, lots and lots of turkeys (we had eight toms right behind our fence this morning, first time we’ve had toms in months and the closest they’ve ever been) and the fawns, and some nice butterflies (including one species that has been flying by without landing for three years, and finally decided to land and let me get some great photos).
🙂 We have some lovely sunflowers growing under our bird feeders. I’ve loved sunflowers since I was a little girl, even considered using them in my wedding. (I actually think I’m a bit allergic, as I sneeze if they’re indoors, which would have mattered on my wedding day, but it doesn’t matter when they’re outdoors.)
😦 I’m behind on the project I’m editing, and finding it a difficult one, though good.
Oops, in my second-to-last graph, I said “Friday’s lesson.” That should have been “Wednesday’s lesson.” If anyone was wondering why the girl would have two lessons, two days apart — she did not; only one. 🙂
🙂 A week that seemed filled with bad news ended with good news (bone scan was clear, another buyer interested in Lee’s route).
😦 Lee is still very concerned about the occasional blood in his urine.
😦 Forrest, who was overtired from being up too late last night & then awake too early this morning, had a meltdown when R came to pick him up, & he didn’t want to go with him. After a while of trying to coax him, R left him here to calm down, & told us to give him a call if Forrest changed his mind.
Forrest quickly calmed down & started playing, then said he was hungry. He ate a good-sized lunch. A little while after that, I asked him if he wanted to go with his dad, & he said yes.
🙂 He happily ran out the door to see his dad when R arrived to pick him up. We think he was probably hungry on top of being overtired, so the two together was not a good combination. With a full tummy, he was full of energy & happiness again.
🙂 Unless something comes up in the morning, Forrest will be going to church with us for the very first time. This is a miracle to me. (Hoping the two little boys, sons of a friend of Emily’s, who he likes to play with, will be in church tomorrow.)
Rebecca Ann is 33 today. I was on a trip to Melbourne, Fl. when she was born. So, on the way back, I took a day leave and stopped by Columbia. Then I flew on in to DCA.
Dumb thing to do. It cost me over $100 to change my ticket for the stop over. And all I got was to hold a tiny little baby.
But it’s a given, grandfathers do stupid things.
They just do.
I didn’t do any such thing for the other grandchildren.
Grandfathers can get wise if given the time.
Well, Chas, you can’t take it with you, but love lasts forever and you showed love to that little one and her parents. 🙂
🙂 Husband took a first in his category in the fiddle contest. He was the only one in the category. 😦
🙂 He and his twin fiddling partner got second. Only three groups played. Had to laugh when his partner said it was the most fun she had all day. They played, “Faded Love.”
My brother who lives near Chattanooga has three grandchildren now. He travels for business a good part of the year, and when his first grandchild was due, he had a couple of weeks at home and really hoped she would be born during that time. But you know how those things go. He was 2 1/2 or so hours from home, not far out of Nashville, when he got the call the baby was on her way. He called me and told me he was torn–he could turn back and be there when she was born (it was a home birth, so he’d get to hold her within a few minutes) or he could continue on, but if he continued he wouldn’t be able to see her for about two weeks. Now, he had one girl and two boys and always wanted another girl, and this grandchild was very significant.
He was leaning toward going on, because he would be short of sleep if he turned back, but his heart was torn. I told him he could turn back, leave his motor home with me (it was a gas hog) and I would then drive us both across to be there for the baby. He could nap while I drove, and thus get some of the sleep he would otherwise miss. He debated it, and was leaning toward rejecting the offer. I knew he’d regret it if he didn’t turn back (I know this brother), so I urged him but it was his decision. He said no, but within a few minutes he called back and said he was on his way back to Nashville.
They told me there was no guarantee I’d be allowed to see the baby, as it would be her mother’s decision, and I said I understood. (Of course, I was hoping to see my first grandniece as a newborn, especially after giving up quite a few hours of my day and night to driving both ways and sitting waiting for her to be born.) We went and we waited. Eventually the baby was born, and they had to wait quite a while (maybe as long as an hour) before the grandparents could go back–well, Grandma was back there sooner, I think, but not my brother. Eventually he got to go see the baby, and then finally they called me back. She was a dear, and I got some fine pictures of the baby and one of her with her grandparents that I love. Her grandmother was holding her, my brother standing next to his wife and looking at the baby, both of them clearly smitten. That grandmother already had cancer, and was fighting it, and lost her fight a couple of years later (before the birth of any other children), so it’s doubly precious that we all got to be there that night.
Wandering Views 
😳 It’s August already.
Three of my people have birthdays this month.
Four if you count me.
Five if you count my former SS teacher. Dr. Jones is 95 tomorrow. He is ten years and 15 days older than I am. We’re going to a reception for him. .
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Happy birthday month, Chas. 😀
🙂 Fiddle contest today. My husband will, reluctantly, compete. He isn’t happy with the turn towards classical the contest has taken. It will be good to see old acquaintances, at any rate. He already has a twin fiddling partner. A friend of our daughter’s moved back to town and asked him to be her partner. Fun to see her and her family.
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🙂 I got a lovely phone call yesterday from the mother of my newest piano student, a 15-year-old transfer student. The mom sits in on her daughter’s lessons, which are a half-hour in length. I offer 30-minute and 45-minute lessons, and started this student last month on the shorter lesson length.
Wednesday evening when they were here (it was the student’s third lesson with me), I went well over the 30 minutes. (We are working on composing, which she loves to do, as well as music theory, traditional piano literature, and so on, so there is plenty to do in a 30-minute time slot.) Her lesson ended up being close to 45 minutes that night.
Thursday, I was thinking about how well the girl is doing, meeting the challenges I’m putting before her, but how hard it is to limit the instructional time to 30 minutes. I considered suggesting to them sometime in the near future (maybe before September lessons start, when she’ll begin working on a piano contest piece) that expanding to 45-minute lessons would probably be in her best interest. However, that represents a 50% increase in fees, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to pop that on them so soon after she started.
Anyway…on Friday morning, I got a call from the mom, and among many nice things she had to say to me and how thrilled she was to hear her daughter playing piano every day again, and doing so willingly (she had gotten very burned out this spring and quit playing entirely), she told me she noticed that Friday’s lesson went close to 45 minutes, and she wants to switch to the 45-minute time slot so I’m enabled to continue working with her daughter in the way I am and be financially compensated for the full length.
What a blessing! I just about cried. I am so thankful to God for the thoughtful people He puts into my life.
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Go 6 arrows! 🙂
🙂 Karen O’s good news and the example of her faithfulness and trust in God’s provision, no matter what, through very uncertain times.
🙂 Full week, my first back at work after a week off. I slept until 10:30 a.m. today though! Been waiting to sleep in all week but I haven’t slept that late in ages.
🙂 A weekend story (we all are under huge pressure to turn in a decent “weekender” with art) literally fell into my lap, thankfully, after lunch on Friday. Whew. Love it when that happens on weeks when it’s been busy with stories every day.
😦 Another reporter is moving on to another non-journalism job — we’re supposed to fill the vacancy but they’ve said that before and then reneged according to our newsroom editors (who have gone through a lot of work to narrow down resumes and do interviews only to be told later, sorry, we can’t hire anyone right now, after all).
🙂 I’m visiting our sister church tomorrow morning. My former/retired pastor will be preaching (with a picnic scheduled by him and his wife for some of us former congregants who will be attending afterward).
😦 Had to turn Carol down for errands today — I just needed a day free for housework and maybe to get the dogs out for a walk along the beach. She wanted me to take her to Venice Beach to buy a backpack she’s been eyeing (today’s her government pay day). I think my Jeep also needed a “rest,” I did a lot of driving on my week off. Traffic in LA, even on weekends, is simply bad and going anywhere takes a long time as a result.
🙂 Carol is learning the bus system in her new neighborhood (she can ride for free) and is finding the closest locations for her needed errands. So her basic errands — cashing her check and renewing her phone at the MetroPCS store, maybe picking up things at CVS or the Dollar Tree — are now doable by bus.
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🙂 Some really lovely wildlife viewings this week, lots and lots of turkeys (we had eight toms right behind our fence this morning, first time we’ve had toms in months and the closest they’ve ever been) and the fawns, and some nice butterflies (including one species that has been flying by without landing for three years, and finally decided to land and let me get some great photos).
🙂 We have some lovely sunflowers growing under our bird feeders. I’ve loved sunflowers since I was a little girl, even considered using them in my wedding. (I actually think I’m a bit allergic, as I sneeze if they’re indoors, which would have mattered on my wedding day, but it doesn’t matter when they’re outdoors.)
😦 I’m behind on the project I’m editing, and finding it a difficult one, though good.
😦 Socially mandatory parties.
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Oops, in my second-to-last graph, I said “Friday’s lesson.” That should have been “Wednesday’s lesson.” If anyone was wondering why the girl would have two lessons, two days apart — she did not; only one. 🙂
😦 Rant: my first mistake ever! 😛
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🙂 A week that seemed filled with bad news ended with good news (bone scan was clear, another buyer interested in Lee’s route).
😦 Lee is still very concerned about the occasional blood in his urine.
😦 Forrest, who was overtired from being up too late last night & then awake too early this morning, had a meltdown when R came to pick him up, & he didn’t want to go with him. After a while of trying to coax him, R left him here to calm down, & told us to give him a call if Forrest changed his mind.
Forrest quickly calmed down & started playing, then said he was hungry. He ate a good-sized lunch. A little while after that, I asked him if he wanted to go with his dad, & he said yes.
🙂 He happily ran out the door to see his dad when R arrived to pick him up. We think he was probably hungry on top of being overtired, so the two together was not a good combination. With a full tummy, he was full of energy & happiness again.
🙂 Unless something comes up in the morning, Forrest will be going to church with us for the very first time. This is a miracle to me. (Hoping the two little boys, sons of a friend of Emily’s, who he likes to play with, will be in church tomorrow.)
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Rebecca Ann is 33 today. I was on a trip to Melbourne, Fl. when she was born. So, on the way back, I took a day leave and stopped by Columbia. Then I flew on in to DCA.
Dumb thing to do. It cost me over $100 to change my ticket for the stop over. And all I got was to hold a tiny little baby.
But it’s a given, grandfathers do stupid things.
They just do.
I didn’t do any such thing for the other grandchildren.
Grandfathers can get wise if given the time.
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Not stupid at all. 🙂
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We went to Dr. Jones (former SS teacher) BD reception at the “historic Court House” this afternoon. Dr. Jones is 95 today.
Linda (Chuck’s wife) is sending pictures of The Beck’s BD party. I’m printing them for Elvera.
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Well, Chas, you can’t take it with you, but love lasts forever and you showed love to that little one and her parents. 🙂
🙂 Husband took a first in his category in the fiddle contest. He was the only one in the category. 😦
🙂 He and his twin fiddling partner got second. Only three groups played. Had to laugh when his partner said it was the most fun she had all day. They played, “Faded Love.”
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Chas, that isn’t a stupid thing to do.
My brother who lives near Chattanooga has three grandchildren now. He travels for business a good part of the year, and when his first grandchild was due, he had a couple of weeks at home and really hoped she would be born during that time. But you know how those things go. He was 2 1/2 or so hours from home, not far out of Nashville, when he got the call the baby was on her way. He called me and told me he was torn–he could turn back and be there when she was born (it was a home birth, so he’d get to hold her within a few minutes) or he could continue on, but if he continued he wouldn’t be able to see her for about two weeks. Now, he had one girl and two boys and always wanted another girl, and this grandchild was very significant.
He was leaning toward going on, because he would be short of sleep if he turned back, but his heart was torn. I told him he could turn back, leave his motor home with me (it was a gas hog) and I would then drive us both across to be there for the baby. He could nap while I drove, and thus get some of the sleep he would otherwise miss. He debated it, and was leaning toward rejecting the offer. I knew he’d regret it if he didn’t turn back (I know this brother), so I urged him but it was his decision. He said no, but within a few minutes he called back and said he was on his way back to Nashville.
They told me there was no guarantee I’d be allowed to see the baby, as it would be her mother’s decision, and I said I understood. (Of course, I was hoping to see my first grandniece as a newborn, especially after giving up quite a few hours of my day and night to driving both ways and sitting waiting for her to be born.) We went and we waited. Eventually the baby was born, and they had to wait quite a while (maybe as long as an hour) before the grandparents could go back–well, Grandma was back there sooner, I think, but not my brother. Eventually he got to go see the baby, and then finally they called me back. She was a dear, and I got some fine pictures of the baby and one of her with her grandparents that I love. Her grandmother was holding her, my brother standing next to his wife and looking at the baby, both of them clearly smitten. That grandmother already had cancer, and was fighting it, and lost her fight a couple of years later (before the birth of any other children), so it’s doubly precious that we all got to be there that night.
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Anything a grandparent does is filled with love.
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