"1776"

I attended the first-ever performance of the North Country Players. They chose the musical play "1776" as their initial event, and it was well worth the price. Seeing so many men on stage was a blessing, since musical theatre seems to be more interesting to women for some reason. The actors and singers presented their historical characters well, showing foibles and frustrations as well as high moments in their lives. John Adams appeared to be a definite "A-Personality", as he tried to convince his peers of the importance of complete independence from Great Britain. The doubts and fears of the colonists were portrayed most clearly in the person of the South Carolina representative. The argument about slavery was the climax of the show, and Ben Franklin's diplomacy was seen as a necessary foil to the actual agreement. Thomas Jefferson's writing was impeded until he had opportunity to reunite with his lovely wife. A friend who attended with me was upset with the use of God's name in vain and said, "I don't think the fathers of our country talked like that." I'm not sure if they did or not, but as I told her, it was a men's group and tensions were running high. It was an educational and enjoyable evening.

beautiful

Beautiful evening.
Great music.
Energetic NNY912 introduction.
Entertaining and knowledgeable NYS presentation.
No mosquitoes.
Lots of hot dogs.
Excess lemonade.
Oddles of cupcakes.
Interested audience.
Friendly atmosphere.
Light all turned off in the hall.
Day is done.

annual?

Well, ya see, the party is the second annual lawn party featuring my friends Howie and Debbie Campbell.
They are "musicianaries" who have been around the country again this summer, singing and relating to those they meet about the King of Kings.
They entertained and inspired my friends, neighbors, and I last summer.
I baked a couple pans of lasagna and the rest is history.
When they told me July 29 was the date they had planned for us this summer, I began looking forward to it.
Then I read that the only Christian lobbyist in our state capital was making himself available to educate the Christian populace, and the wheels started turning.
It turned out that July 29 was a date he also had available.
BINGO!
Added to that, our local 912 organization is looking to put out the word about its organization and about its next patriotic project.
So....we have a star-studded evening planned!
I'm not sure how many will come, but it has been advertised in the local papers and on facebook and by word-of-mouth.

If you can't come, I hope you'll at least be thinking of us.

...dogs...

Well, I picked up the hot dogs for Thursday's party today.
As expected, they are Hebrew National, reduced fat.
Two cases. 12 packages in a case; 7 hot dogs in a package.
I don't expect to need 168 hot dogs, but I have them if I need them!
I also got hot dog buns, wheat version.
And I have 2 gigantic canisters of Country Time lemonade mix.
Yeah, I know.
Not much natural stuff there.
This is a low-maintenance party.
I also have Veggie Sticks.
Real potato, spinach, and tomato powders formed into crunchy sticks.
They may be habit forming.
I like them a lot.
Some of my friends are bringing homemade cupcakes for the sweet-of-tooth.
So hopefully we'll have a good time and not go away hungry.
You're invited, if you can be in the area at 6pm on July 29th.

Need Amway?

My youngest nephew will be in the area this Friday morning at 10am.
He is wanting to demonstrate cleaning products, face cream (especially the vanishing wrinkle type) and any other product Amway sells.
So, let me know if you'd like to learn about/see anything in particular.
My place, 10am.
Contact me in "comments" if you have further questions.
He's a college student.
You know the spiel.
But he really does need help working his way through, so any orders you can give him would be much appreciated.

Comments

OK, I went to my account settings and changed the "comment" section.
Now anyone can add comments, even if they are not registered on this site.
I hope that will help all those millions of "viewers" who silently read and then fade away into the night.
Feel free to add your comments.
We'll see if this adds any excitement or enthusiasm to the blog.
Of course, I should attempt to say something worthy of comment.

I think Hebrew National hotdogs are the best ever.
They have no artificial color added, no fillers, no artificial flavors and they are made of premium cuts of 100% kosher beef.
And they offer regular, reduced fat, or 97% fat-free options!

TV

Hey...I have a friend who will be appearing on Glenn Beck this afternoon!
According to her, it will be a 45-second spot concerning ReValue America NY.
If you have Fox News, you might want to give the program a look-see.
It's at 5pm eastern standard time.

And, she will be at BEDROCK next Thursday.
That's the event focused on foundational values and principles.
I'm hoping it will be a lot of fun and education for us voters.

How far?

How far should we go to "protect" children?
I'm talking here about those from ages 10-17.
Do we continue to drive them to school, because of possible kidnappers?
Do we allow them to ride their bicycles just on our street?
Do we let them attend "R" rated movies?
Do we give them a curfew, or keep them with us 24/7?

Each parent has to make these and many other decisions.
It "depends".
On the kid, on the situation, on the parent, on the activity.

If your child were in a group that would be helping with a function at a local meeting hall, would you expect that he could participate in the function?
If the "function" involved listening to guitar music, listening to a speaker from the state congressional offices, listening to someone telling about the founding principles of America?
Which part of this does the child need protection from, assuming that his physical safety were guaranteed?

I guess, again, it depends on the kid, the situation, the activity.
Personally, I would think since the youth are the voters of tomorrow, any contact they could have with first-hand information on their state's leaders would be worth the whole evening.

Parents will have to make this a possibility, since the group the kids belong to will not.

Complain....

OK....so I haven't written anything that "floats your boat" lately.
It's my blog, after all. And I write what I'm thinking.
So, my thoughts haven't moved you in any way.
Oh, well.
I should think more worthy thoughts.
But then, would it be my blog? Or yours?
I live a quiet and basically happy life.
So, complaining doesn't become me.
I like what I see when I look out my window.
I like what I do with my 24 hours of the day.
I'm pleased with the people who surround me.
I enjoy my comfortable home.
I even appreciate the books I've been reading and the activities in which I've engaged.
The only problem, from my point of view, is all the "I's" in this entry.
But, this is where it is....Me Land.

Something About....

Oyr family/friend get-to-gethers generally have at least one or two moments of silliness and unbridled guffaws. It's usually at night, when our inhibitions, such as they are, have been dulled by tiredness.
Last night it had to do with a "joke" someone told. I'll try to repeat it here, and you can decide if it's funny.
Two muffins were baking in the oven. One says, "It's getting really hot in here." The other one says, "Wow! A talking muffin." (This later evolved to "Crap, a talking muffin".)
ha. ha.
Well, then there is the torque wrench and the fact that sil needed to borrow one. Seems the husband gave sil an extra one, so now sil can torque whenever he want to. And whatever he wants to.
To add to the mix, the friend brought radishes and proceeded to induct us all in the glories of COOKED radishes. Hey, if you haven't tried them, don't knock them. They're really tasty, especially with a little brown sugar and butter.
By the time bedtime came around, the catch phrase was "Holy muffin! A talking crap!"
"Have you torqued your radish today?"
And such blather.

92%

Humidity!
Don't you just love it?
Of course, it IS raining.
Maybe when it stops, we'll be back to 79%?
At least I don't have to water my garden this morning.
The corn needs to be fertilized, according to my experts.
There is some question as to whether it needs "10-10-10" or "urea".
I'd like to try some of both on different rows, just to see who was more right.
Of course, if it doesn't grow anyway, I guess it will be a draw.
Big weekend, with church homecoming and relatives and friends here.
Then H&H concert Sunday evening.
Hope the humidity has receded by then...it's a very small venue!

Green

Porch steps,
grass,
corn,
butternut squash leaves,
carrot tops,
chives,
peony plants,
clover,
wild geranium,
sunflower stems,
house roof,
dandelions,
milk weed,
blueberry bushes---
how many shades of green can you see in your mind's eye?

The Family

Remember our eggs of a few weeks/months back?
Well, I think the family has stayed in the area.
Several times recently I've seen four killdeer birds in the same general vicinity.
I never knew that they might do that.
When I talk to them, they seem to listen and then dip their heads in acknowledgement.
Of course, I may be hallucinating.
But it's kind of neat.

sshhhh....

Today he buried the "dead man".
I had nothing to do with it, except for providing a little liquid refreshment.
So my hands are clean...and blisterless.
But the pole that holds the wires will stand better because of the new burial spot.
At least, that's what I've been told.
It certainly took a long time to dig in the old spot and exhume and then make a new hole...manual labor.
It's a very deep hole...made with post-hole digger.
Glad I'm not a man!

Helper

So, now I'm an electrician's helper.
I helped pull the string that the vacuum sucked through the underground pipe to the place where we want the new wiring to be, on the other side of the driveway.
I know this is very important stuff, because I was given a special invitation to be of assistance.
The string was made out of some sort of poly-something, so it was very strong.
I was glad the Chief Electrician was on the other end, feeding the three-ply wire into the tube.
I was Very Glad when friend Henry stopped by, with his 70+ year-old-hands, which were still stronger than mine.
I got only one blister, so I guess that's a good thing.
And....the wire is where it's supposed to be.
Thomas Edison never knew what he was getting us into!

Breeze

It's a perfect July 5, for those who are at the beach.
Here inland, it's just plain HOT.
But, there is a breeze.
What a wonderful invention to help cool us from the summer heat.
It helps to evaporate the perspiration from our bodies and it cools our brows.
My husband has been working outside all day.
He is a glutton for punishment...."but there's a breeze".
I thought when people retired, they just got to sit around in the air conditioning.
Apparently different people have different ideas.
I'm glad for all the work he gets done, but I feel guilty for not helping.
Oh, well.
"That's man's work."
SWEAT!

Grand Old

"She's a grand old flag
A high-flyin' flag
And forever in peace may she wave
She's the emblem of
the land I love
The home of the free and the brave
Every heart beats true
for the red, white, and blue
- - - - - - - - - -
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
Keep your eye on the Grand Old Flag!

F-L-A-G

"F" is for the Freedoms that we cherish;
"L" is for the Land we stand upon;
"A" is All the patriots who perished;
"G" is Government 'of the people, by the people, for the people'.

Yes, I made that up;
No, I am not claiming any poetic talent.

But let us cherish ("hold dear, treat with tenderness and affection, nurture with care) our freedoms of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Let us boldly proclaim our affinity to the land, ground, dirt we call home.
Let us never forget the price that was paid for us to have these blessings.
And let us be continually involved in educating ourselves and all those we care for about the wonderful governmental processes that our founding fathers crafted for us and all future generations...and let us be aware when false prophets try to change this model for something more akin to anarchy or despotism. Being aware, let us reject that type of change with all that we have, including the time, money, and intelligence that we have accrued in this great land.