Make a Smilebox greeting

The season and the spirit

Thanksgiving is over and Christmas will soon be here. The lights are on the tree and outside around the door. Christmas music plays on some of the radio stations, displays are in the stores.
There was much to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving. Most of the family was together and that's what made me most thankful. My grand-daughter was home from India, safe and sound one month before that terrible event. We have much to be thankful for in this country.
Christmas was always my favorite time of year. The good wishes around the town, the cheerfulness of friends and family. The spirit of giving and wondering just what would be the right gift for someone and giving to your favorite charity. This year I sent for the DVD of the Christmas show at Rockefeller Center. I was fortunate enough to go there many years ago and see the Christmas show. I'll never forget it or the rockettes. It truly is spectacular. I wish everyone would have an opportunity to go there someday.
Yesterday the writing group I belong to had its Christmas/Holiday party. It was so nice to be together with them. They are a great group of people and we all had a wonderful time. The people in charge worked very hard to have things perfect.
I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. Ann

Halloween 2008

It's Halloween and soon the little goblins will be coming to the door asking for treats. Thankfully, people don't seem to mess up things as much as they did years ago by soaping windows, cars, wrapping trees in toilet paper, etc. Halloween parties are the way to go.
The little ones look cute and enjoy the thought they are scaring someone. Don't forget to tell them not to eat anything from their bag of treats until they get it home to the adults in the family so they can check it out to make sure it's safe.
I've noticed there are so many people walking on the sides of the road lately in dark colored clothes. Please tell them to carry a light and try to find some article of clothing that is light in color or have a fluorescent patch, or something that will show up easily with the headlights of oncoming cars.
Above all, have fun. Life is to be lived.

Cookie anyone?

I've been spending the morning making cookies. That seems like a strange thing to do as a nurse, but that's what's happening. We have an organization here, in Williamsburg, called The Nightengale's. Appropriate for a bunch of retired nurses, and there are quite a few. Once a year we make cookies for the student nurses at the local hospital. I remember when I was a student nurse how some homemade food was so tasty and hope the students, here, like the ones I made.
Student nurses are a blessing. They are so caring and comforting. They want to do everything perfectly. What would we do without them? I remember when my mother was a patient in the hospital. She was in a coma for three months. Those were the days when the hospitals sometimes kept patients for long periods of time. The students would come in and care for my mother and they were so gentle and nice to her. I loved the students.
I have written a story about student nurses, which takes place in the 1950s. It took me a year to complete this story and that was in 1995. It is around 90,000 words long. I was going to try to publish it myself, but the cost is very high. Now I've decided to try to get it published. I know that will be difficult, but I have a reason to want it published. There were certain differences between the 50s and now and I wanted people to be able to see some of this in the context of a fiction story.
Well, got to go check on the brownies that are in the oven. Decided to add them to the bunch of cookies. Just about everyone I know likes brownies.
Bye for now.

The Joy of Writing

The kids are all home and so are the adults so it's too noisy to think straight. The world was on the brink of disaster it seems, a bill was passed and everyone is holding their breath. Not many people are looking to see how much money they have lost, but optimistically are counting on it coming back.
So, what do you do when things seem to be beyond your control?
I began to think of what, besides publication, is good about writing?
The old saying, "it keeps you out of trouble" would be one thing.
Preventing early Alzheimers would be another. Flexibility of the hands and fingers. I've been fortunate not to have arthritis, but know people who are plagued by this unfortunate condition and it's not pleasant. It gives you a space in the house you can call your own. It's that little cave you can crawl into when you feel the need. It's a great outlet for your creativity. One thing I think is great about writing is that it gives you a very good excuse to travel. It gives you mail if you get the submission back. You might have friends or organizations of other writers. Most of all, though, it gives you hope and joy. You're doing what you love most.
And that's the joy of writing.

Strength

When I heard that a woman was chosen to be the Republican running mate and that she hunted moose I knew someone with a great deal of guts had been chosen. Moose are very big and if provoked I believe they can do a lot of damage. See the picture of the moose in a previous blog. Three cheers for women.
Another group of people with a great deal of strength are writers. It takes guts to tell the world what you think and to send in stories and have them rejected. And even more strength to send them in again.
Three cheers for writers.

There's something about palm trees that puts you into an island mood. It makes you want to lie in the sun, shade your eyes and listen to the ocean. It's a good time to take along a book, preferably written by a romance writer. To get back to the medical reference, there were two doctors aboard our ship. We didn't meet them since we stayed healthy, thankfully. One or two people were sick when we first left and they were using alcohol wipes and telling everyone to wash their hands. Apparenly they were just sea sick because no one else was sick during the trip to my knowledge. In the story I'm editing now there is a scene that takes place at Busch Gardens, Williamsburg and I thought it was interesting to find out that they do have two nurses there at the First Aid Station. I imagine they keep busy since there are so many people who go through Busch each year.