Photos of Life Around Here

Here I am on my deck with Lexie who will not pose for a photo. Corie Pressley took some photos of me recently. My deck is so bare and I long to go to the plant nursery and buy flowers like I would normally do if it were a normal time. But I enjoyed Corie's visit anyway.

It was a beautiful day at my house, but it has turned cold again. Tipper says it is Blackberry Winter. Do you know what Blackberry Winter is?

This is mask I wear almost any time I go out in public. This is because I am  highly sensitive to perfume and chemicals in the air. Not so cute as Corie in her mask, but mine has a charcoal lining. In fact, I now have a pretty pink one that goes with many of my clothes. Like DJan, I might try to get more to match my outfits, but since I am home in the same old things almost every day, I guess it doesn't matter much what I look like.

Learn more about MCS at the link below.

https://www.abilitymaine.org/DisabilityResources/Multiple-Chemical-Sensitivity

Gay, my sister, in a hoodie with a mask to keep warm. She is not wearing it now, but it would be good for cold weather. Oh, I hope we won't need it by the time winter comes here.

Back home after Christmas

Lexie loves Christmas. We are in front of the tree at the Moring's.

I am back home after spending a wonderful week with my sister and brother-in-law, Gay and Stu. When I walked into their house, Christmas enveloped me. Their tree is always perfectly decorated. The mantel, table tops, buffet and dining table offer lovely Christmas themed arrangements.

They attended church two times while I was there. They sing in their choir and take their responsibility seriously. In spite of having been sick for over two weeks with a bad respiratory virus, they were able to attend rehearsals and sing the cantata as well as participate in the Candle Light Service at Alpharetta Presbyterian Church.

I felt sad as I left today, looking at the tree for the last time. Both Gay and Stu loaded my car for me and it was loaded! They are generous and very caring people. I will get out the things I need tonight, but the rest will wait until tomorrow when I have help.

We went out to eat several times and Gay and I went to see Mary Poppins Returns, a lovely musical with good acting. We did a little after Christmas shopping, as well.

I have been fighting a respiratory illness for the past few weeks and eventually was prescribed an antibiotic. I was doing much better until Christmas night. We had such fun at the home of my niece, Lee, and her family, eating and laughing so hard we could not stop. But later that night I developed something new or my original illness worsened. Now, I think I have bronchitis. I coughed so hard my chest hurts and my throat does, too. It was good that I came home. Now I can stay in bed or just do nothing until I get over this malady.

Any time I am out with people, it is easy for me to become ill. I can be exposed to a small amount of chemical such as perfume, cologne, candles or things I am not even aware of and in a short time I am sick. I believe that I react badly to live Christmas trees because they are treated with chemicals to keep them green and pesticides to kill insects you don’t want to bring into your home.

Today while reading about toxins in our home, I found some interesting facts that pertain to all of us.

Formaldehyde is in many of the products we use and have in our homes. Who would think our sofas or chairs could be hazardous to our health.  https://hpd.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/search?tbl=TblChemicals&queryx=50-00-0

Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen. Formaldehyde is in most manmade fragrances – perfumes, scented items people use on their bodies every day. Learn more on Toxnet.  https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search2/f?./temp/~3Tzcp3:3

An article in Readers Digest is very helpful for those of us who want to only use natural cleaning products in our homes. If everyone would use these kinds of products, people who have health issues with manmade chemicals could go almost anywhere and not become ill.

Great cleaning tips with natural products that do not contain dangerous chemicals. https://www.rd.com/home/cleaning-organizing/natural-cleaning-products/

I look forward to 2019 and am making plans now for good things to come. I hope you have stayed well during the holidays and that you will usher in a wonderful new year.

TALKING AROUND THE TABLE WITH MY SISTER

A visit with my sister, Gay, is the best tonic for what ails me. She has been with me this weekend and we had such a good time. 

We watched some interesting videos on You Tube about a product that she is using for her little dog, Sunny, who has been sick and limping badly this past week. We found videos on a product, protandim, which she has been giving Sunny on the advice of a lady who rescues and heals dogs and cats. Sunny was allergic to the medicine given by the veterinarian. 

I was glad to hear that when Gay arrived home, Sunny was walking better and happy to see her mama. If this product, which is said to erase the free radicals from our cells, reduce pain and inflammation, works to heal little Sunny, you can bet I am going to try it, too. 

Gay and I come from a large family that sat around our big dining room table to discuss all the important issues that needed attention. We also sat around that table just to talk to each other after a meal, sometimes for hours. 

At one time the family business was discussed and plans were made around that table. C.L. Council and Sons met there, not at an office. 

This weekend, Gay and I spent time sitting around tables - at dinner on Friday night with a friend, lunch on Saturday at a restaurant, breakfast today. But we often sit around my dining room table just to catch up with each other. We both decided that the best talking is done while at a table.

My writing studio is called Writers Circle around the Table because the best connections come from sitting around a table. My students and I sit together at the table where we share our stories and help each other with writing them.

What do you think about sitting around a table? Does it help with conversation? 

My Stuff is Special to Me

Does anyone love Home Goods like I do? We don't have one in our rural area, but when I go to the city, I have to go in there. I try not to go. I can't help myself. I love the dishes and the lovely vases and glass pieces as well as all the gadgets and “put-abouts.” I am also a fool for kitchen items even though I don't cook so much anymore. 

I never go in one of their stores that I don't find something that speaks to me. Last week it was a white ceramic owl! I don't know why. I'm sure there was a reason and I'll understand it later. 

Don't you love those eyes?

There is no more space for stuff in my house. With all the books and magazines piled around, my place is somewhat cluttered.

I go into a friend’s house with only a few well-chosen pieces on her surfaces and the room appeals to me. It is clean and bare, and I like it. So why do I cover every spare inch of space in my living room, my bedroom and my office with stuff? 

Things are not important in my life. I am not and have never been a materialistic person. But at Home Goods, I turn into someone else. I get the idea that I can toss out all the old stuff in my house that I've kept for 45 years! But when I come home, I realize that I only have things in my house that have a special meaning to me. 

I have horses in all my rooms. I have framed photos of my family in every room. I have my husband’s cowboy hats on a rack in the hall. A large print of hunting dogs hangs on my wall. I would never have bought that for myself although it is by David Lanier, a well-known nature artist. It is not the kind of picture people hang in their living rooms, but in a den where men smoke cigars. 

For five years I worked for a good friend, part time, in her office where she was one of the first women to become a district manager for State Farm Insurance. About fifteen men - agents - answered to her. All those years the agents called the office to complain, to let out their frustrations, and most of the time my boss was not in. I listened to them and I empathized with them. 

To my surprise, when I resigned because we were moving to the mountains, those agents presented me with the large painting, framed with a small brass plate with an inscription to me. I admit it. I was moved to tears. It was to show their appreciation of me. I didn't feel that I had done anything special for them.

That is why I can't throw out things even though I've had them for many, many years. What I have on my walls and on my tables are not as gleaming or startling as what I see at Home Goods. But my stuff is special to me and I enjoy it, especially when it is made by the hands of someone I love like the sculpture by Gay Moring, my sister, the photographs taken by my husband, Barry Beall.

Barry called him "Billy Bob"

My house is probably a decorator’s nightmare, but my niece once told me that she always felt comfortable in my house no matter where I lived. She said my house is warm and it represents me and what I like.

So I guess I’ll never have one of those spare clean rooms that I admire so much. I will have to stay out of Home Goods unless I am buying for someone else. I’ll try to think about Christmas presents next time I go. Hope they don't have any more owls. 

What about you? Do you have space on your tables or do you keep collecting things you like?

A Story by Gay Moring

My sister, Gay Moring, lived in San Francisco years ago and recently wrote some stories about her life there. With her permission, I am posting this funny story she wrote while we were at Wild Acres last year.

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A favorite memory of my life in San Francisco was a day that Emily, my Chinese-American roommate from Augusta, Georgia, and her Japanese boyfriend Homer, and I decided to drive down the coast and go horseback riding. I’ll never know what possessed us since none of us were horse people. I don’t think Emily or Homer had ever been on a horse. I had ridden horses when I was in my teens, but I never considered myself much of a horseman. In fact, most of the horses I rode tried to either kick me or bite me, so riding wasn’t one of my favorite activities.

When we arrived, three horses had been saddled and were waiting for us. Bravely, we climbed aboard and started down the designated route. We had been told that the horses knew the trail, and we couldn’t go wrong. We hadn’t gone far before Homer’s horse, the leader, abruptly turned and headed back to the stable. Poor Homer didn’t have a clue how to stop him.

I’m sure the horse was thinking, Why should I work carrying this guy? I can just go back to the stable and rest.
I rode after my Japanese friend and his horse and turned them around. The horse did okay for another ten minutes or so. Then, once more, that stubborn horse turned back and headed for the stable. By this time I was laughing so I could hardly stay in the saddle myself. I rescued Homer once again.

The third time Homer lost control of his stead, Emily’s horse decided he didn’t want to work either. Both riders perched on top of the horses, held on helplessly with no control as they headed toward the barn. At this point, the situation had me in stitches. I gave up and rode back beside them. The horseback ride was over.

The best part of this outing, for me, had been Homer’s big frightened eyes in his round, chubby face as he bobbed up and down while the horse trotted back to his stall.

After all these years, the image of that helpless look on Homer’s face still makes me laugh.

By Gay C. Moring

Sister, Gay, is back from Hawaii

My sister, Gay, has been gone to Hawaii and I really missed her. She is my rock along with my sister, June, my nieces, Lee and Lyn, and their mates. June's husband, Charlie is a generous and kind man who I also love dearly. Gay and Stu flew over and took the Hawaiian cruise around all the islands. Gay, Lee and I had lunch today and I heard a little about the trip.
Although they had a wonderful time, Gay said she couldn't help but feel sad when she remembered all the trips Barry and I made with them and how much fun we had. She said she kept thinking of Barry and how he would have loved going on this vacation. Stu said they visited a little town and he thought of me. He said it was a place he knew I'd enjoy.
Family - there is nothing like family when we have troubles. I was at Wildacres while they were on vacation in Hawaii. We were all where we should have been, dealing with grief in our own way.
But one day, I hope to go over to Hawaii, myself, and maybe Gay and Stu will want to go back. I can't imagine going on vacation without them.
Because I asked, Gay kept a journal while on the trip so she brought a little of the islands  back with her. She always brings me a gift, and this time was no exception. A tag-a-long bag with the islands, in bright colors, on the side and a new journal I can fill up with thoughts I'll look back on in ten years, I hope, and see how far I've come.

Stu Moring, family, friend, and fun

Who is the CAT IN THE HAT? No, it isn't Dr. Zeus. It is the Public Works Director of Roswell, Georgia. Most importantly, to me, he is husband to my sister, Gay. Stu is a part of a project of the Kiwanis club called "Roswell Read-In" where members and city officials read to kids in the library at the schools. This program is sponsored by Kiwanis.

I adore the above photo of this man who manages large projects and leads many employees who respect and enjoy working for him. He has won numerous awards. We attended a special ceremony last year. Stu was selected from candidates all over the United States as one of the top ten public works directors in the country. What an honor!

But what I love best about him is his joyous attitude, his enthusiasm, his genuine caring for those near him. His tender heart is as big as the circle of people who know and appreciate him. That is a big heart!

And he is fun. At Christmas, Stu is the official Santa. That has been a long, long tradition in our family. Some years ago when we lived in the same city, I enjoyed watching him in community stage plays. He sings, acts, and tells funny stories. He and Gay are big fans of live theatre. Thanks to those two, BB and I have seen some excellent productions in Atlanta.

His sport is running. He ran a marathon just a few years ago and he runs in the Peachtree Road Race almost every year. Running helps relieve stress, he says, and his job is packed with it.

I wasn't surprised to see Stu Moring sitting with kids and reading Dr. Zeus. When he is not working for the city, he is often working for Fulton County Charities, his church or another organization that helps the people in his community. He used to read for the blind. Maybe he still does that. I can't keep up and he seldom talks about his volunteer work.

While the country is trembling in fear of what will happen to us with the bad economy, Stu and Gay will hold out a helping hand. They believe in paying it forward.

In 2006 Gay met a woman who struck her as a person who could get back on her feet with some help. She wanted to help this Katrina victim who was losing her flooded home in New Orleans.

Gay and Stu put together a list of everyone they knew, wrote letters and asked everyone they knew to donate a small amount each month. People responded just like the Morings did, with generous hearts. That fund helped save this family from homelessness. Gay kept donors informed of the family's progress for over a year.

Good people seldom make the news these days. Bad people are on our TV screens, front page of magazines and newspapers, and bad news permeates our media. We all know of people like Stu and Gay who reach out to help others.

Wouldn't it be great if we had a page in each newspaper headed: Good News and Good People? If we did, I am sure the Morings would make the news.