Quiet

Happy Birthday America, see you next year!!

I have heard of lightening strikes but this is the first time I have ever seen an actual picture of a bolt of lighting starting a forest fire up in the Truckee area.    Angie had this picture on her Facebook.    Pretty scary although the firemen were able to get this one put out quickly so no homes were lost.

Family Reunions.     Here is our Jo chatting with her brother Randy.    They keep in touch all year, but it is so great to have a face to face conversation about life in general.   

Jennifer grows beautiful cactus in her garden up there in the high desert country of Nevada.   She called these 'hens and chickens' but it looks a bit different than the 'hens and chickens' I had in my garden.   There has to be many varieties.   Wonder what this one is.   whatever it is, I'd say it sure is a beauty.

And the 'heat goes on' even our Christine said she felt crabby, and that is strange as she never gets crabby.   We met at a waterfront restaurant where they turned it into a pizza parlor and a huge barroom with tall glasses of brew to your liking.    There was to be an outside barbeque but it turned out to be hamburgers and links so we decided on Chinese.   We found two Chinese restaurants closed but finally found one open and sat by a window overlooking the water.   We could see the barge out in the middle of the sound preparing and practicing for the evening fireworks.   What we did see was a lot of folks coming in from town getting a spot so they could see the fireworks.  I haven't heard if Chris and Mike went to Bec's for her Fourth of July party, but Pat stayed in the cool of her house with Emma who was very unhappy with all that booming going on.   As for me I stood on my balcony and I could see a few of the high ones.  There were folks in this area that shot of a lot of fire crackers and made a lot of noise for hours.    It was a fitting end of the holiday and the colors filtering through the tree tops wasn't hard to take.    I was glad when all the noise settled down and quiet prevailed.  

I am still table hopping at lunch time trying to keep names in mind and personalities.    I sat with Jan and Vera yesterday and listened to them talk about what real pork chops were like in their day.  Both come from farm folks, one from Nebraska, the other from this area.   Vera was a butcher in her heyday and knows her meat.   She said that she never had a pork chop she couldn't cut with a fork and the one she had on her plate needed something sharper than the table knife she was trying to saw through a very thin hard pork chop.   I had chosen the hamburger mix and have no idea what it is called but it wasn't all bad and didn't require any cutting.    The food menu is beginning to be familiar so are the dishes so I am beginning to know what to say yes or no to.    Jan was as she said, 'bummed out' as her daughter-in-law was suppose to call her and take her out for a treat.  Her son is in Hawaii on business so she was looking forward to her daughter-in-law and a day away.    She never called.  She didn't answer any calls.    So it made it a long unsettled day for Jan.    So....if you have someone to 'take care of' for a day away, don't not call......call and say you cannot make it;  call and say you love them but have to postpone the day trip;   call and make a date for another time  but don't not call as you have no idea what it is like to be away from those you love and wait, not for the outing, but the hug and the love and attention.

So today say a prayer for me if you go to church.  Say a prayer for me if you don't....Keep cool and stay out of the hot sun if that is what you have in your area.    John and Jo have rain, wonder if they'd like company...smile!!!   I miss the fog.....fog is good, fog is eerie and fog keeps one cool.  Don't forget to be thoughtful, that really is important.    Share YOU with those you like and love.    Hugs to all.