Friday Finds & Random 5 Friday

 

I think I'm becoming addicted to vintage glass! I get so tired of everything packaged in throw away plastic. When is the last time you opened a jar of canned vegetables or homemade jelly or even drank a soft drink from a glass bottle?  I know, I know things are easier and cheaper to produce in plastic, but I do miss the feel and look of glass. This week when rummaging around a flea market I found these glass jars and bottles that just had to come home with me.

 

1) A milk bottle to hold lovely spring flowers.

2) Clear Mason jar  manufactured after 1942. In 1942 the war board required all glass manufacturers to adopt a rounded-square shape because they determined that it was the most efficient shape to contain a volume.

3) The blue Mason jar was manufactured somewhere between 1923 and 1933.

4) The red ink bottle is from between 1967 and 1974 manufactured by the Wheaton Glass Co. of Millville, N.J.

5) The clear ink bottle was manufactured by Parker around 1942,

 

Fun day...Fun finds!

Now on to Friday 5 Random Facts

 

Fact  #1

This is not my flower!

I have no flowers blooming right now! My mother has jonquils blooming, but although I live near her, mine are barely poking their heads out! This purple beauty was at Home Depot!

 

 

 

Fact  #2

If I had to pick a character from a children's book that is most like me...I'd pick the Poky Little Puppy who "keeps his nose to the ground," his "ears cocked up," and his "eyes looking hard at something on the ground in front of him." He loves to be outside, he gets beside himself with excitement when he goes exploring, he looses track of time; and he's often late for meals. I'm not late for meals since I fix them, but I have been late starting the meal. Oh, and the part where he lets his siblings take the blame for the hole...I'm sure there was more than one time that my siblings were blamed for something we all did! (quotes from The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey. 1942)

 

Fact  #3

I bought a new lap top. My old one was having some serious issues. Cool things about it:  it's pink, the keyboard is lit and it's a touchscreen! 

 

 

Fact  #4

Frosty, cold mornings are great when you're looking for abstract images filled with texture.

 

 

 

 

Fact  #5

I enjoy playing the piano. The only time I didn't enjoy the piano was when as a child taking lesson I had to perform at recitals.  I hated them!!  I especially remember one recital where I was to play the "Spinning Song" by Albert Elimenreich. I've never been able to memorize music, but my teacher insisted I play without my book. Play I did. I played the first section, completely forgot the entire second section, and just replayed the first section again. Needless to say, I wasn't her favorite pupil that night.

 

Additional random fact:  I still have my piano book that this song is in, John Thompson's Third Grade Piano Book. Yes, I can still play it and NO I have never memorized it!!!  Well, it is three pages long with two repeats!! Don't you think that's too much to ask a stubborn sweet little girl!

 

 

Have a special weekend!

 

Linking with Kim for Friday Finds and Nancy for Random 5 Friday.

Sunday Sundries ~ Edition 3

One more week of hearts! It's getting harder to come up with something new!  The picture on the bottom right is of a wall hanging that I made to hold a few of my grandmother's handkerchiefs. Each section looks like the front of a shirt complete with buttons and pocket.

Here's an extra image I took this week.

I "heart" Mason jars!

 

Have a great week!

 

I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet,

simple things of life which are the real ones after all.

― Laura Ingalls Wilder

 

Friday Finds & Random 5 Friday

 

There's no way to know everything about the area in which I live, since it's near a big city, so I follow a couple of Arkansas photographers, not just because I love their work, but because they can point me to interesting areas. That's exactly what happened this week. I follow Cormack Photography's blog where he recently posted a picture of this small covered bridge. I had to go find it!  Which I did!  It's not very far from my home at all. The bridge is near the end of a dead-end road in a neighborhood with the most gorgeous HUGE homes. There's a beautiful little creek that rushes under it. I wish I could have gotten a better side view, but the brush was two heavy on both sides. Even though it's not an old covered bridge it still has a quaint feel to it.

 

Fact  #1

For those of you who are tired of winter, spring might just be close!  With the warm, sunshiny days my Bradford Pear has started to bud.

 

 

 

Fact  #2

It rained on me one day as I was walking through the woods; a soft spattering of rain, not enough to soak me!

 

 

Fact  # 3

This contraption is known by many names: penny smasher, penny crank, penny press, coin smasher, penny pinchers, souvenir press and squished penny machine.  You get the idea? It smashes pennies into souvenirs known as elongated coins.   "The first elongated coins in the United States were created at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, held in 1893. Coins fall into a rolling mill consisting of two steel rollers pressed against each other with sufficient force to deform the coin. One of the rollers (called the "die") is engraved with a design that imprints a new image into the metal as the coin passes through it." (Thank you, Wikipedia for this great information.)  I remember these machines from early childhood. They used to have one at the Arkansas State Fair Hall of Industry. I don't know if we ever put our money into it...probably not!
 

 

Fact  #4

This machine was in a local museum. I put two quarters and one penny into the  machine. The cranks slowly turned, crushed, and imprinted the penny and out dropped the elongated coin. This one has a Purple Heart design.

 

 

Fact  #5

I adore glass doorknobs. They remind me of my grandparents' home.  These were on the front door of an old community center that I spotted on my way home from the covered bridge. There's just nothing any more beautiful than the way the glass catches the light.

 

 

I am enjoying linking with Kim for Friday Finds and Nancy for Random 5 Friday. I enjoy groups where prompts or themes are given, but these two links, they are just so much fun! I look back over my pictures and share just plain old ordinary random things from my week.

Sunday Sundries ~ Edition 2

 

 

"From the fullness of his grace

we have all received

one blessing after another."

John 1:16

Friday Finds and Random 5 Friday

I found Romance this week!

 

Not the

dreamy,

poetic,

enchanting,

mushy,

starry-eyed,

kind.

 

No, I found Romance, a little town nestled in the gently rolling hills near central Arkansas. Romance was first settled by Kentuckians and was supposed to be called Kentucky Valley, but the U. S. Postal service rejected that idea. According to some sources the  name Romance was suggested by local Schoolteacher, J. J. Walters,  who thought the view from the bluffs was particularly romantic. Others say it was named for a local spring that was a popular rendezvous place for couples.  Other towns nearby are named, Harmony, Joy, and Rose Bud. What else to you need for romance?

 

 

 

My facts are not all that random this week. They all center around this trip to Romance.

 

Fact #1

By now you must be wondering why I went to Romance since I wasn't looking for the "love" kind!  I wanted to mail my grandsons their Valentines from the post office in Romance. Each year a unique postmark is designed for use from Feb. 1-15.

 

 

 

Fact #2

The postmaster canceled the stamps as I watched. Before she started, she patiently waited till I ran out to the car to get my camera. I didn't hold up the line. I was the only person in line. They hand stamp thousands of Valentines each year.

 

 

 

Fact  #3

I mailed myself an envelope so I'd have the postmark, too.

 

 

 

Fact  #4

Right across the street from the Post Office is a cemetery established in 1880 and is on the registry of historic places in Arkansas. I took some time walking around looking at the very old and weathered markers. I had no idea I'd be out of the car any length of time so I hadn't taken my gloves or hat. I thought my hands were going to freeze off!  I kept taking just one more picture, until I had to get in the car! Note to self:  put extra pair of gloves and hat in the car!

 

Fact  #5

When you take a trip you get hungry. When you're hungry you start looking for a place to eat lunch. When you see the sign for The Original Fried Pie Shop in a town you're passing through,  you just have to stop!  Their chicken with vegetable fried pies are the ultimate chicken pot pie...true southern comfort food. If you have a fried pie for lunch you have to have a fried pie for dessert...coconut cream...oh, my!!!  Let's not talk about calories or fat!  This was a rare treat!

 

 

 

The day has arrived.

The day of love and kisses and hugs and romance.

I'm wishing you a wonderful Valentine's Day!

 

 

Linking with Kim for Friday Finds 

Linking with Nancy for Random 5 Friday

Sunday Sundries ~ Edition 1

For a while I've been wanting to post a little something on Sunday, but couldn't come up with just the right thing. Somewhere in all this thinking I realized that although I've been working on a 365 for several months now, I don't share many of those pictures here. I put them on my flickr photostream in a couple of groups I belong to. For those of you who are not photographers, a 365 is taking a picture every day for a year. Anyway, I'm thinking that's what I'll do here, share my photos of the week before. I'll try it for a while and see if it fits. I thought of several names to call this Sunday post:  Sunday Best,  Sunday Set,  Sunday Gathering,  Sunday Café,  Sunday Respite,  Sunday Treasures. It's not easy coming up with a post title, but Sunday Sundries just struck a chord with me. I've always liked the word "sundry." Don't ask me why, I couldn't explain it. I still remember the first time I heard the expression "various and sundry things." It just sounds cool!

 

Looking at the meaning of these two words explains my choice.

Sunday:  the day of the week before Monday and following Saturday, observed by Christians as a day of rest and religious worship

Sundries: miscellaneous small articles, details, or items

 

This pretty much says what these posts will be. Small things or moments that lead me to count my blessings.

This weeks photos are all hearts. In fact, they'll be hearts all month. You know, you just can't get enough hearts in February.

 

"From the fullness of his grace

we have all received

one blessing after another."

John 1:16

For Gramma's Guys and anyone else who loves snow!

Gramma finally got some snow! Not much, but it did finally cover the ground in white. The one thing I don't like about going out in the snow is having to get dressed warmly...two pair of socks, insulated underwear, jeans, sweatshirt, scarf, and toboggan. Then, I must put on my boots, my coat and gloves!   I'm burning up before I ever get out the door.  Does that happen to you?

 

As soon as I got outside I headed for the potting shed to get some seeds for the birds. They were chattering away. I guess they like the cold or they were telling me to hurry and get that seed!

 

After that I headed down to the pasture.

I wanted to take a picture of the old railroad trestle for you.

 

There wasn't anyone out there but me and the rabbits. Do you see where the blue arrow is pointing on my shoe?  I discovered that my shoe had cracked open, so I put some Duck tape on it!  I didn't want my toes to get wet!  It's a shame I don't have any pretty Duck tape! Mine is just plain old grey!

 

 

I headed up to the trail where we ride four-wheelers.

 

 

I walked over the trestle. First I looked toward the corner of the pasture.

 

Then I turned and looked toward the creek. It's pretty out there isn't it?

 

I walked back down the trail and down to the creek. We had lots of rain last week, so the creek has quite a bit of water in it. First I looked to the right.

 

Then, I looked to the left.

 

 

Jake, this is the big hill that you like to ride up on your four-wheeler. What do you think? Can you make it up in the snow?  Yeah, I'm pretty sure you could!  It doesn't look too steep, but we know it's pretty tough to walk up!

 

 

I walked around a while until my nose got cold and then headed back to the house.

 

As I came back into the pasture I noticed these bunny tracks. Can you see where they're headed.  Yep, right into the barn. I'll bet he's glad he has somewhere to stay that's dry!

 

I wish you were here! I'd throw a snowball at you! I threw one at Gramps, but he was on the inside looking out the door. Now, I have a round circle of snow frozen on the glass door!

 

I had fun in the snow! I hope you enjoyed seeing it!

 

 

Friday Finds & Random 5 Friday

As I wandered around in the woods this week I spotted this old dead tree with the bark pealing away. When I walked around the tree my heart almost stopped because there on the back side was a  perfect heart shape. An upside down perfect heart shape! You can see where a piece of the bark is still hanging on. THIS is why I love nature! The surprises are innumerable!

 

 

 

 

Random Fact  #1

I still have my very first Teddy Bear. He's quite an old fellow. He came into my life in the early 50's!  He’s a Gund bear with soft fur, googly eyes, a vinyl nose, and a wind up music box. One day the music box quit working. As I child I took the music box out and sewed him back together. I did a horrible job using great big stitches with embroidery floss of all things. I have since added a new music box that plays “The Teddy Bear’s Picnic” and sewed him up properly!
 

 

 

 

Random Fact  #2

If I opened my own business it would be a one person business; just me. I rather like being alone! Anyway, I would be a clock maker.  I would enjoy putting all those small pieces together to create something that everyone needs. I would sit and work quietly listening to the ticking of clocks and the chimes as they rang in the hour.  Just so you know, I know nothing about making clocks, but since I read the book Timepiece by Richard Paul Evans and saw the movie based on the book, I've always thought clock making would be so enjoyable. I would make beautiful clocks with motion and chimes.
 

Random Fact  #3

My favorite place to walk is along this deserted railroad bed that runs behind our property. You've probably heard that before, but you haven't heard this. There's a proposal for this track to be made into a paved bicycle and pedestrian trail. It will roughly be 67 miles longs. I don't think I'll be walking from end to end!! I'm pretty happy about that. Right now the path is gravel covered with fallen trees, limbs, and  gumballs (seedpods from the gum tree).   You can't walk too fast or you'll twist an ankle and wind up face down!

 

Random Fact  #4

In 1939 the pine tree was designated as the official state tree of Arkansas. Pine trees are beautiful trees, but they're not very sturdy. Several years ago we removed the pine trees that were next to our house. You can see what happens when they get iced over and since they don't have a very good root system they topple very easily in storms. I'm sorry Arkansas, but there's a few less pine trees in our area, my house is safer!
 

Random Fact  #5

I know, I know you're tired of posts about the weather, but it snowed yesterday. If you look real close...see that white stuff in the bottom of this camellia bloom...that's snow!  We didn't even get enough to cover the ground, but it was beautiful watching it fall!
 

 

Have a blessed weekend!

 

"From the fullness of his grace

we have all received one blessing after another."

John 1:16

 

Linking with Kim for Friday Finds 

Linking with Nancy for Random 5 Friday

Photo-Heart Connection ~ January 2014

The old building was quiet, reverently quiet. What once was an arsenal built in 1840 is now a military museum. I was the only one in the building except the curator. I slowly wandered around looking at the displays from the various wars and the interior of this historic building. I started up one of the back staircases and was delighted to find that it squeaked. I have this thing for squeaky floors and staircases. The more they squeak, the better they are. Now, these stairs just didn’t squeak in a couple of places, each step squeaked…loudly. I loved it. No one would be able to sneak up these stairs…totally impossible. I wondered about the people who climbed these stairs. How many soldier’s boots had trod up and down the stairs as they went about the business of storing weapons, munitions, cannons, canon balls and gunpowder. Later, military families lived here. How many children ran up and down these stairs.

 

As I stood at the top of the stairs I had the thought that the curator in this quiet building has heard the sounds of this building many, many times. He knows where the squeaks are and most likely he knew exactly where I was. This was a little disturbing to me. You see I don’t like to be noticed. I’m one of those who’d rather slip in, slip out and no one the wiser. I’m working on that this year. I’m stretching out of my comfort zone and trying to be brave. I have this goal to at least do something brave once a month. So far, I’ve done three brave things...things I had trouble with, but I overcame the fear and just did it! Maybe being noticed isn’t quite so bad!

I'm linking today with Kat's Photo-Heart Connection at Kat Eye Studio. I just realized that I've doing this link up for two years this month. I did miss a few months last year, but I'm looking forward to getting back in the practice of looking at each month's images and seeing which one engages my heart. You should join us. There's still a couple of days left in this link up!