THE SHORTEST DAY OF THE YEAR

Happy Anniversary to The Keppner’s ♥️

SOLID ADULTING

I ordered new flatware. Not an earth shattering event. But it was big for me. The utensils that have lived in my kitchen drawer were the same utensils I have had for just shy of thirty nine years. They were a gift. And a good set, still in great shape. I think all the pieces are still accounted for. One fork is a bit wonky, it took a trip through the garbage disposal once, and I’m not too sure just what happened to the sugar spoon… but it always was my favorite anyway. 

But today that well loved set got boxed up, and will go into storage until someone needs a set of flat wear. 

Tonight in my kitchen drawer is a freshly washed set of Henckel cutlery. I like them, and as my son said “it was a ‘solid adulting’ thing to do”.

LIVE TO LEARN

“I think that the reason to live is to learn.”

​

– ISABEL ALLENDE

WELCOME TO YOUR LIFE

Over forth years and they still make me smile, truly some of my all time favorite tunes are from these guys!

https://youtu.be/11o0db3MR9Q?si=Gk7W6SGxQvo3eTwX

HOLIDAY FEELING

I spent Saturday shopping with my daughter. Then playing with my granddaughter. Sunday I made floral arrangements for my front porch. (Now I understand why the premade ones are so expensive.) Then I wrapped all the gifts. All the gifts. 

It was a good weekend. But I still have lots to do before the family Christmas party next Sunday. So this morning I made Cranberry Sauce. And oh it smells so lovely!

 

HOLIDAY DATE NIGHT

FUN

Fun is taking time to celebrate being alive.

Melody Beattie

I Concur!!!

NINETY NINE

Happy Birthday Mr. Van Dyke

ARTSY

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Transitions are almost always signs of growth, but they can bring 

feelings of loss. 

To get somewhere new, 

we may have to leave somewhere else behind.”

Fred Rogers

BUCKET LIST ACHIEVEMENT

All Southern U.S. States have now been visited!✔️

DOOR SIGN

Last day of work 

before vacation!

AUTUMN ATTIRE

In the spring this Crape Myrtle bush is a beautiful green with an abundance of bright pink blossoms. But in the autumn it totally changes its attire to this sophisticated fashion and I love it!

USE THEM ALL

“Life is like a 

10-speed bicycle.

Most of us have gears 

we never use.”

Charles M. Schultz 

HAPPY 58

GOOD BYE 57

LAST DAY OF FIFTY SEVEN! Looking pretty good!

VALUES

There was a practice I was reading that said to choose your top three values… suddenly I questioned what my top three values are. Luckily there was a list of over 200 values. However I did not consider many of the options to be values. It’s all relative I’m sure.

I chose twenty some that seem to resonate with me: 

acceptance /equality, comfort, compassion, consistency, courage, courtesy, curiosity, devotion, empathy, enthusiasm, freedom, generosity, gratitude, kindness, loyalty, optimism, passion, poise, respect/trust, sensitivity and service. 

I’m sure there are probably more. But today those felt right. 

I also learned that I lack contentment.

And I am okay with that!

THAT MAN

A man came into the office yesterday. The type that has an agenda and wants everyone to know about it. 

He approached my desk and let me know what he was there for. I directed him to the correct agent. 

They hit it off smashingly. I was ready to find a shovel to start digging out the piles of BS their masculinity was tossing around. 

As the agent got up to get Mr. Smooth Joe a cup of coffee, the new comer sauntered over to my desk. 

I guess it was not obvious that I was up to my elbows in files. 

He proceeded to let me know that he found his girlfriend online. All he had to do was state the facts “TALL HANDSOME BASTARD”

I smiled….

One out of three was truly factual. 

IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A CHANGE

“You’ll never change your life 

until you change 

something you do daily.

 The secret of your successes 

is found in your daily routine.”

JC Maxwell

THANKS

I did a little act of kindness for a sweet friend. 

Funny how something small can make such a large impact on someone else. It did. It was not a big thing to me. But so very kind of them to send me some love!

I’ll save these for next weeks vacation!

FALL

From my back porch.

NOVEMBER 17

Ten years ago today it snowed. 

It was my first snow. 

It was amazing, truly magical,

for this Phoenician. 

I fell in love, just a little bit more, with the Midwest. 

That was just one piece of what the day would surprise me with. 

I also hit black ice on a two lane county road. 

I rolled my very large and sturdy vehicle into a ditch. 

I met new people.

I made new friends.

I learned lessons 

that day. 

I won’t ever forget November 17th

In retrospect, 

ten years later, 

it was a good day.

NOT THE HILL

Running up a hill is a bitch 

until you adapt to the hill. 

Then it’s not. 

The hill is the same but you

are different and as a result, 

so is your experience. 

Easy or hard is about you, 

not the hill.

Don’t wait for the hill to change.

-Craig Harper

LONELINESS

"Loneliness is a seductive trap, poison that, once tasted, turns into a habit." Your calmness and peace envelops you like a cloak, making you forget the tumult of human interactions. Over time, the desire to distance yourself from others increases as it drains your energies and exposes your fragility. Loneliness may seem like a refuge, but it's a mirage that isolates us from true connections"... Jim Carrey 

TODAYS INTERESTING FACT

This incredible natural phenomenon exists on Lake Superior, which is the largest freshwater lake in the world. Within this massive lake lies Isle Royale, a large island surrounded by the clear waters of Lake Superior. But the story doesn’t stop there. On Isle Royale, there is another smaller lake called Siskiwit Lake. Inside Siskiwit Lake, there is yet another island, known as Ryan Island, and on this island, there is a small pond that holds a little boulder.

When the pond on Ryan Island floods, this boulder essentially becomes the smallest "island" on what could be considered the most layered island setting in the world. It’s an island within a lake, on an island within another lake, on the largest island in the largest freshwater lake on the planet. This layered structure is a fascinating example of how complex and unexpected nature can be. It’s like a natural nesting doll, showcasing the wonder of our world’s geography in a simple, yet mind-bending way.

DELIBERATE PRACTICE

HABITS + 

DELIBERATE   

PRACTICE 

= MASTERY

JAMES CLEAR

I listened to the book “Atomic Habits”

My hope is that by reading self help mixed with all the other genres I listen to, that I will continue to become well rounded.

SQUIRREL MORNINGS

I find that on the weekends if I don’t have solid plans, I tend to SQUIRREL around the house. I had to tinkle, so I got up from peddling, did my thing, then I noticed the small jar of baking soda, that I keep in the bathroom cabinet for late night heartburn was empty, so I picked it up and headed for the pantry, but wait, I should start the laundry, so I picked up our laundry basket and headed to the kitchen. Started the first load of laundry, remembering that John had mentioned that he sure could go for biscuits and gravy. So I took the frozen biscuits out of the freezer and placed a few in the oven. Then I gathered the things for gravy and mixed that up. Filled the baking soda jar, then thought I would like some warm tea. So I filled my tea strainer with my favor loose blend, but wait, the jar I keep Stevia packets in needs filled. So I filled it and made my tea. Then I got the ham, cheese, eggs and cream out and I noticed how nasty the refrigerator drawer was, so I emptied it and gave it a really good washing. And yes I kept stirring the gravy so it would burn or clump. 

Then I made the glorified scrambled eggs. Then I put the refrigerator drawer back in the fridge, resisting the internal battle to clean the entire fridge out. But I saw the milk had expired and tossed the end of that. I took the biscuits out of the oven, plated breakfast like a pro, and washed the cast iron skillet. Then I  realized that I had been in the kitchen so long that the first load of wash was finished. So I put it in the dryer and started load number two. I grabbed my breakfast bowl and my now tepid mug of tea and the jar of baking soda. I replaced the jar, reorganizing the bathroom cabinet and headed back to my chair, where I planned to keep peddling, but ended up writing all this and now my breakfast and tea are cold. 

TMI? Sorry!!! Just a hilarious glimpse of my morning!

JUST WATCH

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1023848776106788/?mibextid=wWUois

JIM

I spoke to Jim today, he said he needed my help. He said he was a 1949 model and he has come to know that women rule the world. 

I told him I would do my best.

He was charming!

I like Vintage!

TURN THE PAGE

Life is like a book

if you never turn the page,

you will never know 

what the next chapter holds. 

IT REALLY LOOKS LIKE THIS

Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park on the Utah/Arizona border.

NATURE

Sex is part of nature. 

And I have a wonderful time with nature. 

Miss Monroe 

ENJOY

Life is beautiful and shitty and strange 

and amazing and devastating 

and hard and easy 

and full of love and full of anger and…

just enjoy the ride. 

VOTED

SO AMAZING

The Trinity College library is over 300 years old, its located in Dublin Ireland.and houses 200,000 of the library's oldest books. I have been there, it is amazing!

WHAT I GREW UP ON

PLAN YOUR TRAVEL

TRAVEL

A person travels the world over

in search of what he needs 

and returns home to find it.

George Moore

BE YOU

“When you don’t dress like everyone else, 

you don’t have to think like everyone else.”

A VISITOR

At my front door!

DIA DE LOS MUERTOS

GENERATIONS

NOVEMBER 2024

MY HALLOWEEN PRINCESS

PONDER

“A goal without 

a plan is just 

a wish.”

Antoine de-Saint

“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll probably end up somewhere else.”

David Campbell

“Success in life can be defined as the continued expansion of 

happiness and the progressive realization of worthy goals”

Deepak Chopra

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Mahatma Gandhi

“The older I get, the more I understand that it’s okay 

to live a life 

that others don’t understand.”

END OF OCTOBER

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

PENGUIN INFO

You are welcome!

HISTORY RECORDED

SWEET TEA

I was always one to drink water. It’s the best beverage for your body and all that. Lemon water is my favorite. 

But several years ago I started drinking those sugar free flavored mixes that you can get everywhere. I was on an orange kick for quite a while and called it Tang. But then I branched out and ended up not caring so much for tang anymore. I did peach tea flavor for a while, and really liked that, and I’m currently on a pomegranate, blueberry binge! Yum!

But I have been trying to diversify and reduce my intake of artificial sweeteners. 

So I have been brewing tea. I grew up on sun tea, but back then you added so much sugar to it. Now I try to avoide t sugar most of the time. But, I have been adding a packet of Stevia in my big insulated cup… and I was finding hard to finish the whole thing. Until today, when I added three packets of Stevia… GAME CHANGER!!! 

Man oh man,  Sweet Tea is AWESOME! I guess I was denying the truth that I love the sweet in sweet tea. Long story short, do what ever it takes to up the water intake.

I’m a very happy, hydrated girl! 

JUST SOME COOL THINGS

GRAND KID SUNDAY

FOUR IN ONE WEEK

1. Eye exam ✔️

2. Dental exam ✔️

3. Mammogram ✔️

4. Flu & Covid shots ✔️

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less 

traveled by, and that has made 

all the differences.” 

-Robert Frost

I don’t think I will ever stop being amazed but the colors of fall. 

And there is nothing as magical as autumn’s confetti!

THE POWER OF FUN

Fun is always 

a priority for me.

Nothing is worth

the lack of fun.

AM

MY BABY

So long ago, I miss her with all my heart. ♥️