2024 Christmas Party!

What a lot of folks were there, too, for this Asbury Memorial Church event!

And, if you look very closely, you can even see me!

See the dark-haired boy in the blue-patterned shirt, standing to the left of the man in the dark shirt and the tan hat?

That's me sitting at the boy's right elbow, wearing my faded fuchsia sweater!

Hey, like I said, you have to look very closely!

(smile!)

There were two tables of food running the length of the choir practice room that had been loaded with food.

I started off with two plates.

That's because I wanted to eat dessert with my meal, of course!

That's a Grinch-green Rice Krispies treat, as well as pumpkin pie!

Those didn't make it home with me.

(smile!) 

In fact, I have quite a bit that will feed me tomorrow morning, so I didn't need to go for seconds when the kitchen crew asked folks to "take a plate to go"!

There's always so very much to share!

And what party would be complete without a visit from Saint Nick and his Missus, giving out candy canes and warm wishes to the children?

Nice to have Reverend Billy and his Cheri up there posing with the Clauses, as they always do!

Yes, such a lovely party this was this evening!

(smile!)

bday10 of twins: Part 2

Here Leila and Alyssa are, preparing to open the "8" part of my two-part gift to them, as cousin Miyah looks on, dejectedly, even though she knows it isn't her birthday. 

Isn't she so funny?

Alyssa is even wearing the jacket she received from Nana, who wasn't able to make the party.

 

I prefaced the opening by telling them my gift could be used as a timed game, or as art for their walls, or for solving together.

 

Nice riddle for them to puzzle out! (smile!)

 

And here is the trio of girls again, with Alyssa ripping the wrapping paper off and excitedly showing the gift to her sister.

I was thrilled!!!

Winner, winner!!!

Now I know they love jigsaw puzzles!

 

I already knew they would love the ocean-life populating the eight different puzzles in the box.

 

Next up was the number "2" of the two-part gift from their crazy G'Aunt Tina, who makes them do math on their birthday - lol!

That salmon-colored item is "Ocean Duets", a 2007 winner of best books.

"Duets"... get the joke? For twins? (smile!)

The book is even autographed by the photographer, Michele Westmoreland, who is now in the Hall of Fame of Women Divers.

 

Poor Miyah papaya, she should look at this page by the diver as I know it would make her smile!

Where was Chloe in all this?

Oh, she was definitely there, to the other side of Alyssa and right beside me.

At 6, she is definitely the youngest, and had to resort to playing a cat when the foursome played a pretend game of 'family'.

Melinda and I were talking and agree: the twins, now in double digits, and moving away from their days of playing with Chloe, and will soon move beyond Miyah, too.

It's all just part of growing up!

How wonderful to have time to learn from Matt about his hunting license and the different types out there!

Maybe next time he'll have grilled venison for the ribs!

That's the reason these pictures seem a bit blurry: grease on my fingers.

Well worth it!!!

byop in the boondocks of central georgia!

That's right - time for the Jenkins' family gathering out in Ellabell!

 

As you can no doubt tell, this photograph, with me lounging between host Harry and brother Smitty, wasn't taken by me.

Hostess Robin took it!

I was so busy telling the two skeleton jokes that I didn't even know she was right there!

That's okay - turnabout is fair play!

Here she is, oblivious that I was snapping a pic of her with her older daughter, Brandi, and the twins.

Both of the six-year-olds had insisted on having the blue rubber gloves to keep their hands from touching the ooey, gooey, pumpkin innards.

For real!!!

Yes, even the boy wanted gloves!!!

We all thought it pretty funny!!!

Hahahaha! Hahaha!!

That was going on during a quiet lull about an hour before the party officially began.

Start time was 3:30 PM, but Tony wanted to be there early as he had been "volunteered" for the cooking duty this time.

Here he is later in the day, in a shot from Laura.

You know it was her who "volunteered" him!

Not that Dood minded in the least.

Grilling and smoking meats are almost second-nature to him now, as often as he does it!

 

Tasty!!!

Here's another photo that I took, when folks were gathered to get seconds, or thirds.

That's Tony, far left, then Noah and Noah's gaming buddy from Statesboro, Griffin.

Noah had stayed in Savannah after the cruise, just so he could come out to this party... and see his mostly-online friend in person!!! 

They really loved the pulled-chicken bbq that Tony and Laura brought, as well as the chili Robin made, the grilled wings from Smitty, and all the rest, too.

Betsy and Jimmy Kameron are in this shot as well, while Becca was at a table with her mom (Patti) and a friend, Abby.

So, where was Laura in all this?

 

Well, first she was helping Robin get chairs and tables out on the lawn for all the pumpkin-carvers.

 

She was also helping set up food and decorations.

 

Plus, she was visiting with her son as much as possible, as he flies back to Missouri in the morning.

 

I was quite fortunate to catch my two brothers and their wives in this single shot!

 

Tony, Smitty, Mary, and Laura, all together!

 

Yes, a good time today... with hopefully more to come with Harry and Robin.

(smile!)

thursday with zoom and the gals of ethel

Ethel who?

 

Ethel Percy Andrus, PhD in philosophy, was the founder of AARP, the American Association of Retired Persons.

 

Note that forward-thinking word: "persons".

 

She started that organization in 1958, when she was 74 years old, making sure its membership was open to all, regardless of gender, race, or anything else.

 

In 1958...

wow.

 

Before that, in 1947, she founded the NRTA, the National Retired Teachers Association.

It took seven years, but she finally located an insurance company that would provide health insurance at a reasonable rate to that group.

 

Knowing all retired people needed that, two years later she started AARP, and now that organization has celebrated its Route 66 birthday...

just like me.

 

So, when asked to supply one word in the ZOOM chat to describe Ethel, I knew what to write:

Pioneer.

 

After all, I know a bit about that.

 

That's when I knew I was right place, right time.

 

In fact, when we broke into ZOOM rooms to get to know some of the other attendees, I told them that I'd never heard of Ethel Andrus.

 

I'd seen "Cheers To Ethel: A Virtual Birthday Bash" on the AARP website a few days ago and signed up, as it would be "something different".

I swear I heard Mary K, the moderator, gasp from her home in Michigan.

 

That's me, in the upper right, with women from Charleston and from somewhere in Virginia.

The other two were from Colorado.

 

We were all asked where we were and to give two words to describe why we were there tonight.

 

Then, Mary asked us to describe a moment when we knew we were truly noticed by others...

and this is the first thing that came to mind.

 

That's the Wall Of Women notice, posted originally at the Health Professions building on campus at Armstrong Atlantic State University in March 2013.

 

The nursing students had been asked to nominate a professor that made them feel empowered...

and three of them named me, a chemistry professor, someone decidedly not in their major field.

 

I was the only one on that Wall of Women who was not a Health Professions teacher.

 

Wow.

 

Tonight, I told the five other women in that ZOOM Room about that, about how touched I was that the students had chosen to honor me in that way, as a woman who would "inspire, innovate, imagine, empower".

 

I also made sure to tell those in the Zoom room that I taught chemistry and always endeavored to make it personal and approachable for my students.

 

Then I added that the Wall of Women notice is still in view in my dining room.

 

Very nice.

 

"Flexible office hours, emails back in time, helps you understand the material in class, will take time and talk to you, and she learns your name, and is hands on in lab (Organic Chemistry Class)."

 

"This is my first year here at AASU and this semester I knew would prove to be a challenge for me but Dr. Smith made it so comfortable and fun in her organic chemistry class that I don't fear it anymore. She's always willing to help us anyway she can, but still pushes us. She feels like a mom away from home since I'm so far away from my mom. She's just a sweet person and I just love her. :)"

 

"She has inspired me to work harder and push myself more than I have. She is teaching me that no matter how difficult the problem may look, it's not really that difficult if you just break it down. :)"

 

Wow.

 

Proof positive that they listened to me, that they heard me and saw me.

 

Tonight, these five women heard me and saw me, too.

 

Most definitely right place, right time.

I think I'll sign up for The Ethel newsletter and see what this group is all about.

partyin' like a parrot-head!

Here are the glorious hosts of this outside party: 

my youngest brother, Dood, and his lovely wife, Laura!

 

I just love that purple Hawaiian shirt he's wearing!

 

I love that metal art on the wall, too, of sailing ships!

 

Very nice!

 

Here's my other brother, Smitty, and his lovely wife, Mary!

 

I know they were thrilled to not be in charge of a cookout!

 

This party was completely outdoors, though, so no need to have folks traipsing in and out here!

 

In fact, knowing it was to be outside, I helped.

 

See that huge blue cooler on wheels?

 

See that mesh food umbrella over the fruit tray?

 

See that Sunbasket ice bag under the fruit tray?

 

I'm so glad those items were put to good use here!

Now, back to the party guests, shall we?

These folks are the Tatums!

 

Terri and Laura have been best buds since they were 5 years old!

 

Hobie is Terri's hubby and is a really nice guy.

 

Then there's the regular Friday Fiesta folks!

 

Betsy was sporting a flowered dress for the occasion.

 

Jimmy's shirt had a print on the back, I think.

 

But it was Mark Kameron that had the party spirit, wearing his red Hawaiian shirt!

 

He and I shared a table apart from the others, just by happenstance.

 

Although it wasn't in this photo, there was a bubble machine going, and the bubbles kept following Mark wherever he moved his chair!

Hahahaha!

And where's a shot of me?

 

Right here, I am, and I'm even wearing one of the parrot-head headbands that Laura had for the party!

 

Plus, I have on my spring dress, as I did last year!

 

Trust me, Laura has a photo of me with her at that shindig.

 

They took it up a few notches this time, though.

Just look at the size of that cheeseburger!!!

 

I had been forewarned that it would be a monster...

so I brought Muenster to go on it!

 

Hahahaha!

 

Definitely a cheeseburger in paradise, with french fried potatoes, and kosher dill pickle, too!

 

Laura had a game for us to play, calling us to look around and write down all the items that are in Jimmy Buffett songs.

 

Somehow, I won first place!

 

I think it's because I added song lyrics to my sheet.

 

Smitty came in second, and Mark had third place.

 

He'd grown up with an older brother that had all those albums, so he knew a lot more of the songs than I did.

 

Nice to have these key lime cuties for dessert on this relatively cool summer evening!

Seriously, it was a nice day!

 

The party started around 3 PM, with a sweet breeze lifting the heat of the day away from their back yard.

 

Between that and the fans strewn around, and the shade of the canopies as well as the trees, it truly was a fabulous day for a cookout!

 

i thank You, God!

marshmallows + fire = yummy!

See what I mean?

That's Jason Arons in the chair, munching on a freshly-made s'more.

How wonderful to see him again in person before he jets off on another jaunt!

Yes, busy bee, as I was at his age!

(smile!)

He's in this photo, too.

See him in the lower right corner?

Focus on the hosts of this Marshmallow Roasting party, Bonnie Blue and her hubby, Don Jarvis.

I've known Bonnie so long that when her neighbor, Susan, asked how we'd met, I could not recall.

Jim Reed's Wednesday night films? Drinking Liberally's everything-except-politics meetings? No Kidding's events around Savannah?

But I certainly know how I met Genie Brazzeal, owner of that elbow on the left - we were in high school together!

Speaking of Drinking Liberally, here are two faces I haven't seen anywhere except on fb in years.

That's Brenda sitting and John in the shorts, with Josh, the husband of Susan, standing in between the Mattingly's.

I was able to spend some time early on with Brenda, sitting on the swing, as others came over.

That was very nice!

In fact, everything about this low-key evening was very nice.

Catching up in person with old friends, meeting new people, and, in between and during all the socializing, eating marshmallows!

Those big, creamy, puffs of sugar and air, whether toasted or straight out of the bag - yum!

I've recently rediscovered my enjoyment of those confections.

Admittedly, part of the draw is the low calorie count.

Less than 100 Calories for 9 of the really big ones that are perfect for toasting!

Some folks made s'mores with the marshmallows, but, as I told Brenda, I like the white blobs all by themselves!

What a delightful evening!

Thanks, y'all!

Mama would have loved those shoes!

My mother had a fondness for snazzy shoes.

Perhaps it was because Daddy was a salesman at Globe Shoe Company, so he was always able to bring her the top-of-the-line picks.

Perhaps it was due to her unerring sense of style and chicness, coordinating her clothes with her shoes and purses and jewelry (a trait that skipped a generation to my first niece).

Whatever the reason, I remember Mama having an abundance of very nice shoes.

She would have adored those strappy sherbet-green and black heels, I know.

Right place, right time.

Those were worn by the director of the Spectra Choir.

The group was back at Asbury Memorial Church for another concert (and more! But I'll get to that in a few minutes!).

This year, they gave us "A Love Letter To Our Future Selves", with a collection chosen to support women at various stages in life.

As much as I had wanted to be there, I very nearly didn't come, as the weather cooled a bit after the thunderstorm we had on Thursday... but I finally did throw myself out of the house, and arrived, incredibly, fifteen minutes late, with the first song - "Stand Up", a favorite, by Cynthia Erivo and Joshua Campbell - still ringing in the sanctuary.

Right place, right time.

 

That meant I was in a seat for the World Premiere of "I Have Been A Thousand Different Women", composed by Marybeth Kurnat... who sat just a few rows from me!

How amazing was that!!!

That's her, in the photo above, on stage in Holliday Hall for a Q & A with the director.

I'm glad I was there still.

I had taken a plate out to the car, on my way to Greenwich, when I realized I needed to take a pee break first.

When I came back in, I heard the conversation between the two women and stayed.

That's why I was there when Marybeth spoke of getting her lyrics from poems posted on social media, in particular on Instagram.

That made me think about some of the poems I've written here, in particular "Full Moon".

I'd love for someone - country, rap, hiphop - to set it to music!

Time wouldn't allow a visit to the cemetery after all, but I was where I needed to be.

Right place, right time.

Besides, I had already spent time with thoughts of Mama before the reception and party for the women's chorus.

"The kiss of the sun for pardon, the song of the birds for mirth..."

I had stopped in the garden to sit and warm up after the chill of the sanctuary.

That's when I noticed the caladium bicolor and the salvia, staples in Mama's garden.

I wasn't there long, though, as Janice Gantt's marble bench was very hot!

So I went to meet and greet with some of the choir members... and talk to them about "Breathe", the Anna Nalick song they did midway through their program.

I told each one of them how much that song meant to me, and the story of how it became so important to me. 

I still believe someone requested the song be played for me over the phone, that long-ago day at work, when I was post-divorce and needed strength.

When I heard it today at this concert, that memory flooded back, reassuring me.

Right place, right time.

i thank You, God.

miyah and the shark!

My, oh, my, Miyah, 

what a huge pinata that shark is!!!

Pop Pop is over six feet tall 

and the beast looks 

almost as big as him!

Two party attendees, both older girls, 

take their turn swatting at it, 

but could not tame the giant beast.

C J comes up next, the tallest and last to go 

before the line starts over.

Miyah watches her Bubba intently.

Whack! goes the PVC pipe!

The shark swims around overhead,

on the leash held by Christina.

Whack!! is the sound of repeated contact!

CRACK!!! C J has started a break on his last swing

and Miyah cheers!

Now it's her turn to swing away!

Fearlessly, she steps into the ring,

undaunted by the shark's size,

pipe in hand as she tracks its path.

Whack! goes the PVC pipe!

She keeps her eyes on the prize,

not once letting the shark

out of her line of sight.

WHACK!! as she strikes it again,

and again, and once more

as it whirls over her!

Then, one last mighty swing...

CRACK!!!

Off flies the tail!

The shark has broken in two,

vanquished by the 7-year-old girl!!!

Time for the victor, 

and all her friends and family,

to feast on the goodies 

from that great pinata!!!

Woohoo!!!

under the sea, miyah and me...

That was the theme of her birthday party at Hilary Park: Under The Sea.

As soon as I arrived, Miss Chlo was sure to point out the snack treats her Mommy had prepared so prettily: 

'seaweed' veggie straws - 

fish of many colors - 

pointy shark teeth - 

pickled 'sea cucumbers' - 

a sweet lollipop 'coral reef'!

Yummy!

Each table had fanciful sea creatures, too.

But, the biggest decor was over by the gift table.

Gift table?

Is that like the gift closet in my living room?

Actually, it's much better!

These gifts are wrapped and waiting to be enjoyed!

LOL!

Here, we have Miyah beside her Mommy, across from her Grammy, and surrounded by cousins, classmates, and friends!

Her Aunt Chelsea is over by the lovely algae curtain.

Speaking of cousins, that's Alyssa at this table in the foreground, with her back to the camera.

Not that she was trying to hide from me -

she'd given me a big hug when I came and I had admired her new haircut!

More sea theme was at the cake table.

That's a giant blue lantern fish blocking the view of the "cake", which consisted of cupcakes - in both chocolate and vanilla - which each had a sea character decorating the top.

Pop Pop supplied the lighter for the candles in seven of said little cakes, with the birthday girl patiently waiting for all seven to be lit.

The boy across from her is Zander.

The boy beside her is Daniel.

The two blondes in the foreground are Leila and Alyssa.

All were trying to wait patiently...

but the cupcakes were calling!

And Miyah had to use three breaths to blow them out!

LOL!

The cupcakes were even calling me...

as I had expected they would.

I made sure to have a vanilla one, thanks,

with a starfish on top!

Then, I was calling the ice cream!!!

"Ice cream! Oh, ice cream!

I brought Lactaid so I can eat you up!"

And there was ice cream just for me -

no vanilla and strawberry, or chocolate and strawberry, just good ol' vanilla with chocolate ribbons.

Thank you, my dearest Christina, for always looking out for me!

I'm so glad Chris and C J and Karen were there to celebrate Miyah's birthday, too!

They were in several of the fifty or so photos this shutterbug snapped, as was Michael when he came.

What a lovely party for us all!

12th annual dawn of soup!

And guess how many wonderful women had turned out for it?

Go ahead, take a wild chance at the number...

never mind, I can't take the suspense!

There were twelve of us!!!

That's Dawn at the head of the table, naturally.

Then, going clockwise, that's Elaine (down from Chicago, as usual!); Jennifer; a space for her daughter, Dora, who took the photo; Cindy, a newbie with cool glasses; me; Arlet, who came from Tybee; Sheryl, one of the chef-testants tonight; Susan, a familiar friend; Lisa, a new friend and a chef-testant; then Debbie, the mother of Cara, who is Dawn's niece and a chef-testant tonight.

Woohoo!!!

Right place, right time!!!

I had missed the party last year because of the weather.

Not this time!

The weather was so nice we even opened up the dining room windows!

 

That means I was right there for the game of making soup by using chopsticks to pick up the ingredients.

That was so much fun!

I was on the 'blue' team and was tasked with picking up 33 pieces of digitali pasta.

I ended up with 75 of those teensy bits!

(smile!)

We all got a can of soup as a participation prize.

Mine is cream of potato!

And I was right there for the game of "What would you do?"

The question for me was "the bread is down to only one roll. You want it. Do you ask the others first if they want it or just take it?"

I answered that I'd take it!!!

Hahahaha!

Like there would ever be a dearth of bread or salad at these events...

never hap'nin', captain!

Then I was right there for the "what's under your dining room chair?" game...

and fortunate enough to have an orange card!!!

That made me the winner of this book by Kevin Hart!

"I Can't Make This Up: Life Lessons" may even be part of the birthday16 package for one of my Alabama nephews in March.

Shhhh... don't tell him yet...

'cause I just may have to read it first...

you know, to make sure it's appropriate...

so it will be a "used" book (inside joke for stepdad Frank!)!

(smile!)

Plus, I was right there to sample those four delectable creations and serve as a tasting judge.

This was my favorite: Lasagna Soup, served with the tiny pasta bowties and the spritz of parmesan added right before serving.

This was my favorite soup!!!

It was also the only one cooked by someone there!

Lisa's "Sausage and Lentil" was prepared by her husband, as was Cara's "Herira Moroccan".

Sheryl, herself, cooked this entry.

Her daughter, Briana, also made a soup - 

"Green Chile Chicken Enchilada" - 

but she wasn't there.

So, in my book, the only true winner had to be Sheryl, and that's how I voted.

The others made the daughter's soup the big winner.

(smile!)

Not that it truly mattered who won, right?

All four took home goody bags.

Heck, we all did!

It was just nice that this time I was right there to receive it in person!

I'm not sure what to do with the mermaid facial mask, but I bet my first niece would like to have it!

Those packages of flower seeds?

Those will be fun for the four little blondes, methinks!

Maybe I'll separate them into little jars for each girl, so they can be surprised when the plants grow and bloom... yes, that sounds like a very nice spring project!

I'll let Dawn know...

she loves those kinds of kid things!

What a wonderful night it's been!

Thanks, Dawn...

and i thank You, God, for the lovely weather!

open house with theatre folk!

Not at my house, but at the one with Barbara and Chris Gooby!

When I saw the invite on fb, I had expected it would be mostly church members.

After all, that's primarily how I know them: we attend Asbury Memorial Church.

I also see them at plays and Savannah Music Festival concerts; rather, I did pre-pandemic.

That curtailed a lot of our bumping into each other.

However, I resolved to try to become more involved with others at Asbury, and how better to do so than at a holiday gathering?

When I arrived, the house was already rather full, with folks coming and going and staying and talking.

I spoke to the Prokops as they were getting into their car and we all wished each other a "happy new year" and pat told me to enjoy myself.

(smile!)

Genie and Danny Lewis and Hai were all clustered in the front foyer, so I scooted past them and wandered toward the living room.

That's when I spotted those Dia De Los Muertos nutcrackers - fabulous!!!

Mike Metheny - who always calls me his karaoke buddy - came up and talked as he refreshed his drink, then he returned to the group he and his wife were chatting with.

I noticed the Gooby refrigerator was slathered with magnets - like mine! - so I popped into the kitchen and perused the cartoons held captive there.

Very nice!

They like a lot of the same ones I do, including "Calvin And Hobbes"!!!

Going around the corner led into the dining room, and Genie was there, without her entourage - so I grabbed the chance to talk to her about the barefoot hobo's rudeness.

Next thing I know, he's talking around me, for the first time in at least seven years!

By that time, Danielle had arrived, so she and I immediately hung together!

Then Monica McDermott, the birthday girl, showed up, so we all chatted!

That's when I realized that a lot of these folk had been in plays together.

Small world!

And before I knew it, I'd been there almost three hours, noshing and gabbing!

I do hope it's warm enough for me to go to church tomorrow...

Danielle may start coming there and I'd like to be part of the welcoming committee.

(smile!)