Photo Wednesday

Photo taken in Rockport, Texas, March 2018

 Link up or visit image-in-ing or Wordless Wednesday for more photos.

Happy Random Tuesday

 Let's link up with Stacy and Sandee for some random happiness.

Although I'm not sure how happy my post will be today. My previous post on Thursday took a while due to having intermittent power and wifi, so that's not today's problem, but there are plenty of others.

But now, we've made it through the horrible ice storm.  We lost power a while, then it would come on, go off, come on, go off. Same with the water.  However, some people still do  not have any power or water.  And many of us were under boil notices for water, and some still are.  I am grateful things are getting back to normal now, though.

I finally get to take my mom to the vascular surgeon and the wound care doctor today.  The ice storm really interfered with that!  Two cancelled appointments. I hope we can get her some relief.

My daughter is dealing with a loss, a profound loss.  See... her best friend Jenny died at age 14 in a freak accident on a 4-wheeler, right about the time her parents were getting back together.  It's been ten years.  A few years later, Jenny's dad passed after a bout with cancer.  And just two days ago, Jenny's mom passed; we don't know how.  She had cancer, but she beat it.  We aren't sure why she passed so suddenly.  I just saw her 3 months a go at my daughter's wedding, and my daughter saw her last month.  The world is missing three beautiful souls.

And me?  Again, nothing too happy going on.  Dealing with a personal issues that may have repercussions on the entire rest of my life.  No big deal... right?  Not to mention that I started a new medication today for my allergies that comes with the possibility of side effects such as ...

Agitation, aggression, or hostility
Attention problems
Nightmares
Depression
Anxiousness
Hallucinations
Memory problems
Sleepwalking
Trouble sleeping
Suicidal thoughts or suicide

Let's just get to the funnies, shall we?

And last, but not least...

Friendship Friday

 I'm linking up with Create With Joy for today's blog hop, Friendship Friday.

I could use a friend right now.  See these beautiful flowers?

They are from Valentine's Day almost a week ago.  I put them in the trash tonight, and no, they weren't all dead.  I'll let you use your imagination if you're wondering why.

My mom is in poor health, and with the icy weather we've had, her appointments keep getting canceled.  It's very frustrating.  She has venous stasis and has developed a venous ulcer on her leg near her ankle.

  She's also at risk for a blood clot.  It's pretty bad!

If you believe in the power of prayer, I would appreciate some.  I'm not feeling very happy right now, so I will keep this short.  Have a great weekend!

Thursday Thirteen

 

Some of you Northerners would say, "Nineteen degrees?  That's not cold!"  But let me explain why Texans don't like or deal well with temps below 40.

1.  We are used to hot weather, particularly in the bottom half of the state.  Anytime it gets below 70, there's a little nip in the air.  And anything below 40?  That's just crazy!

2.  We are not properly prepared with the tools of winter weather:  snow blowers, shovels, ice scrapers.  Not even the fun tools of winter:  sleds, for example.  We don't have them.

3.  We do not know how to drive in ice and snow, not to mention that we don't have the proper vehicles or tires for it.

4. To a Texan, winter clothing is a sweater or hoodie.  We tend not to have much in the way of winter clothing.

Image Credit

5. We are used to picking out our Christmas trees while wearing shorts.  We aren't accustomed to cold.

6.  We are used to warm and humid air which keeps our skin looking nice.  This below-freezing weather we're having now dries out the skin and even causes it to crack in places.

7. We want to complain about our cold weather without hearing  from our Northern friends that it's 30 degrees colder there (wherever "there" may be). 

8.  Meteorologists get our hopes up by saying, "It might snow tomorrow."  It rarely does.  We're more likely to have ice or sleet, which is NO fun.

9. Grocery stores run out of everything quickly during a winter storm here, so unless you're the early bird, you're doing without for at least five days.

10. Freezing temperatures cause the power grid to surge and outages occur. A few minutes of a power outage usually turns into a few days.

Image Credit

11. Freezing temperatures cause pipes to burst which creates a huge headache for the building or home owner (water damage, sheetrock and painting damage).  We aren't prepared for this any better than we're prepared for shoveling snow or scraping off ice.

12. Water treatment plants can't keep up with the higher demand requiring a boil mandate for water.

13. Grocery stores, restaurants, doctor's offices, schools, and retail businesses cannot be open when there is no power or water meaning 1) people can't get necessary supplies, 2) patients can't get treatment, 3)people can't get food, 4) and lives are generally put on hold for a week or so. (source)

Link up with Thursday Thirteen for more fun!

Random and Happy Tuesday

 Time to link up with Stacy Uncorked and Comedy Plus!

We're having a BIG winter storm right now, along with most of the U.S., with record low temps!  As a result, streets are literally sheets of ice, and we can't go anywhere, not that there is anywhere to go. 

So many people are without power.   My mom, my sister, and my daughter have had no power for a day so far, which could last another day, two, or three, and it's 18 degrees outside and dropping!  They don't live close enough that I can help them, and they can't cook, have no heat and no lights.

It hasn't been this cold in February in our part of Texas since 1899 when it was 6 degrees.  The coldest it's ever been was 5 degrees in January of 1930.  Average temperatures for February here range from 52 to 64.  This is unlike anything we're used to!

Well, enough of that for now.

Let's do some funnies.

Bernie has taken over for ET

2020-2021 Travel Guides

I'm thinking 2021 is not much better so far!

I have felt this way pretty much since the pandemic started.

And as a result of my cooking...

HAHAHA!

And last, but not least... 

Have a great week!

Sunday Synopsis

 

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was pleasantly surprising. I've read and heard quite a few books and stories, and even an eyewitness account, about the atrocities that occurred in the concentration camps, but this story was riveting. And the fact that a first-time author wrote this book is quite impressive.

Heather Morris interviewed the two main characters for years, gathered tons of information, and curated the events to be put into story form. It was first written as a screenplay, then the novel. I don't think the screenplay was ever published or utilized.

This is the story of Lale Eisenberg, a Slovak Jew from Bratislavia, whose heritage causes him to be deported to a concentration camp, namely, Birkenau. When the SS realize Lale speaks many languages and can converse with many nationalities, he is assigned the job of tattooist at Birkenau and Auschwitz. This role comes with privileges which make him uneasy. He doesn't want to be seen as a traitor, but he was given no choice to tattoo people, who, like himself, are prisoners.

One day at the camp he is ordered to tattoo numbers on female prisoners. This is when he meets Gita Furman, another Jew from Slovakia, although he doesn't know her name at that point. Lale and Gita fall in love. Through their eyes, particularly Lale's, we get a glimpse into daily life at the camps from the time they are first being built all the way until the prisoners were disbursed. I don't want to spoil anything for you, so no more plot details will be included here.

Lale later changed his name to Sokolov, his sister's married name. The afterword of the book is written by Gary Sokolov, Lale and Gita's son. And while some of the details may be inaccurate, it is Lale and Gita's love story that is the focus of the novel. The author used dramatic license when describing some events and situations, but it shows how a person can not only survive a horrible event, but thrive in spite of it.

View all my reviews

Friendship Friday

 Hi!  How is everyone today?  This week, I wrote a synopsis of the new Grisham book, The Guardians, a happy Tuesday and random Tuesday post, some images of Hermann Park, and a list of songs with days of the weeks in the title.  

What's weighing heavy on my mind right now is my mom's health.  I'm taking her to a vascular surgeon today. Wish us luck.

I used to host numerous give-aways but I think the two groups I used are now defunct.  Any suggestions on how to get items to review and give-away or just donated products to give away?  Let me know in comments.

I have been using Rakuten for the last five months or so when I shop online.  I get cash back from shopping at some of my favorite stores, and I've earned about $100.00 getting products I would have needed even without the cash back.  They also have hotels that will issue cash back now.  So, I joined Rakuten, and when I'm on a site that offers cash back, it asks me to activate the cash back.  Then I shop and get a percentage of my purchase back in cold, hard cash! (Not cash, check, but you get the idea.)  Check it out! Rakuten.

Have a great weekend!  And thanks, Create with Joy!

Thursday Thirteen

 I'm thinking music today.  Here are some songs with a day of the week in the title.

1.  Tuesday's Gone - Lynyrd Skynyrd

2.  Monday, Monday - The Mamas and the Papas

3.  Rainy Days and Mondays - The Carpenters

4.  Saturday in the Park - Chicago

5.  Saturday Night Special - Lynyrd Skynyrd

6.  New Moon on Monday - Duran Duran

7.  Sunday, Bloody Sunday - U2

8.  Louisiana Saturday Night - Mel McDaniel

9.  One More Saturday Night - The Grateful Dead

10. Sunday Afternoon in the Park - Van Halen

11. Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting - Elton John

12. Friday - Rebecca Black

13. Manic Monday - The Bangles

Obviously, I have heard all of these songs, but if I were to choose the ones I like the most it would be numbers 4 and 11, I can't decide which.  What about you?  Are any of these your fave or can you think of more?

Join Thursday Thirteen for more fun!

Photo Wednesday

 These photos were taken February 7, 2021 at Hermann Park in Houston.

I love trees!

Zoom in on those beautiful markings on this goose.

Another well-fed goose.

It was such a beautiful day! Check out that blue sky!

I'm linking up with image-in-ing and Wordless Wednesday.  Come join the fun!

Happy Random Day

 Time to link up for Random Tuesday Thoughts and Happy Tuesday!

I'm happy to say my mom and my father-in-law got their second COVID vaccines!  Yippeeeee!

On a completely different note (pun intended)... have you seen the new Rooms-to-Go commercial?  They're trying to get you to buy a room and get a free TV.  The one where they use the tune from "Play that Funky Music White Boy?"  My son and I can't stand it when TV commercials take old songs, especially ones we like, and put stupid new words to it.  It ruins the song.  They want me to think of furniture when I hear that song, but their ad won't work on me. My husband and I decided their furniture doesn't last long enough. Or maybe we're just too hard on our furniture?  Either way, we'll be shopping elsewhere, so take THAT Rooms-to-Go!

Valentine's Day is coming up.  Will your sweetie get you something or take you to a nice dinner?  Both?  My sweetie and I will most likely get Whataburger.  
We aren't doing sit-down-inside dinners right now.  Several years ago, he would take me somewhere extra nice the week before V-day to avoid the crowds then we'd do Whataburger on the actual day.  I liked it that way. We've missed a year here and there, but it's a good system.  As for cards, flowers, or gifts?  Who knows. We've done gifts sometimes and no gifts other times.

And now for funnies...

One of my former assistant principals used to refer to V-day

as Single Awareness Day.

I could go for this!

HAHAHAHA!

Too true!

My husband and I often say, "People suck."

This could be our card!

Awwwwwwwww.

Peanuts was my childhood favorite.