Never Say Never

The Great Awakening

It has been a long winters nap around here but, Spring has arrived and I am coming back. I guess that throughout all time us "mother bear" types just have to hibernate. Sometime last fall, after my last official post, I just crawled in my cave and that was that. But last week, despite all the snow still on the ground, I got that feeling that I get every year at this time, that rumbling in my stomach, that urge to stretch, that whiff of green grass, that told me it is time to get back to life. Hibernating is wonderful. I did it in a winged back chair in my bedroom with a stack of books, a cup of tea and a very soft blanket. Through the winter, I plowed through the Great Awakening, the Stamp Act, the Revolutionary War, and the Federalist Papers. I got to know Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, George Washington and Alexander Hamilton. And somewhere along the way I consumed the 1200 page Religious History of the American People. I also spent a great deal of time getting to know myself. I rarely came out of my room except for the obligatory mother bear carpooling. But all things must come to an end. I am moving on to my last two biographies--Abigail Adams and Mercy Otis Warren. They were women. They were mothers. I think they will understand if I have to read them between spring cleaning and weeding my strawberries and blogging occasionally. After all that's what us mother bear types do.

The Women in my Life...

Mother Nature and my sisters both have a slightly warped sense of humor.  Happy April Fools Day!

Thinking Out Loud

I love spring...a chance to get outside after a long, barren winter and work in my flowerbeds. I love the warmth of the sun and the promise of new life as I see my daffodils popping out of the ground. A person's life is often compared to the four seasons, but can one really have the promise of spring and the birth of new life after reaching the late summer or early fall of their own life? Jessica said she was going to serve John spaghetti and Prego sauce for a week until he figured out she was pregnant...would my family ever guess about me if I served that every day for a month? I always said I wanted seven children, just like "The Sound of Music". Maria wasn't very old when she married Captain Von Trapp...Do you think she had more children but they just didn't make a sequel? I worked with a girl in college who was expecting her first child, the first grandchild, at about the same time as her mom was expecting her 16th child. Has anyone ever had a baby after their SIXTH grandchild was born? Another Rodgers and Hammerstein musical was "Cinderella". She sings a song called "Impossible"... "But the world is full of zanies and fools who don't believe in sensible rules and won't believe what sensible people say...impossible things are happening every day!" I told my sisters that I thought blogging might be for the younger generation, I just couldn't keep up. Maybe I can keep up with them! One thing is for sure, if I am going to raise children in this blogging generation, I better learn how to do it myself!

Passing the Torch

It seems that whatever genes (or desires) I have to express myself on paper have filtered on to the next generation. Heather had her first article published at Segullah. You can read it here. (Please have a tissue close at hand). Trevor is the editor of his school newspaper and can make any subject interesting with his wit and wisdom.

AA (Amazon Anonymous)

My name is Colleen and I am an addict. After surfing the net and confronting my demons, I am ready to admit that the problem has become bigger than I am.

Signs of addiction:

1) A person has no control (especially since my credit card is on file and I am only one click away from anything I want).
2) A person needs larger and larger doses to get the same effect (I have a book in my car, ten by the bed, fifteen in the office).
3) A person may experience withdrawal symptoms of agitation and shaking (and inability to do laundry and dishes).
4) A person may experience sudden weight gain or weight loss (it is definitely “weight gain” which has not been helped by the two pound box of truffles hidden in my closet).
5) A person will show changes in clothing (Changes in clothing? I don’t even change my clothes anymore).
6) A person may become sneaky and evasive (and hide out at the cabin away from friends and family in order to finish Albion’s Seed)
7) A person "uses" in order to relieve stress and forget problems (and escape frigid January days).

And the most telling sign of all—collecting Librarian Action Figures.

God grant me the serenity 
to accept the things I cannot change; 
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference. (And the ability to pay my very large fine at the library)

Cabin Poetry

This is the house that Steve bought!
These are the men that chop the wood,
that warms the house that Steve bought!
These are the trucks that carry the men,
that chop the wood, that warms the house,
that Steve bought!
This is the river that runs by the house that Steve bought!


These are the fish, that were caught in the river that runs by the house that Steve bought!

This is the kitchen, where we cook the fish, that feed the boys, who chop the wood and drive the trucks, who come to the house that Steve bought!
This is the rat that lived in the kitchen that cooked the fish, that.....that Steve bought!This is the cat that is supposed to chase the rat, that lived in the kitchen, that ....!


This is the picture that Katelyn took, that ends this blog, that took much too long, but got me back online, and made me want to go back and sleep in the house that Steve bought!