Showing posts with label sandy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sandy. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Take A Walk With Us: The Thing About The Rain


We All Need A Rainbow Now And Then

If it didn't rain, we'd never see a rainbow. It was a pretty much windy, rainy, raw miserable day yesterday.  Gman texted me at the end of the day and said 'double rainbow - do you see it?'. I of course jumped from my office chair and shot out the door. I did see it, but didn't have my camera in my hand. Bummer. By the time I did, the double rainbow had faded, but there was still one gorgeous one there lighting up the sky.

I stood in the side yard and took a few shots.






Then I turned in the opposite direction toward the southwest and saw the glow through Tom and Joan's pines.


I knew I had to see what the sky over the field looked like, but I had a hard time turning away from the rainbow.  I finally ran around the front of the house, but still had to look back at the rainbow.

{Honestly, I looked and looked.......


....all night long......


...but never found the pot of gold in our house.}



I did finally turn around to the field.

Do you think I could have ignored this?



Not.




A.


Chance.


That's the thing about the rain.



Once you get through it, things look so much better.


My Mistake & Another Rainbow

When I listed the Veterans in my life on Veterans Day, I forgot two.  My Uncle Whitey and my Uncle Bobby. I thought Uncle Whitey (my Mom's sister's husband) was, but wasn't sure. Uncle Bobby....I honestly had no idea. How sad is that? Not sure how I missed that info before, but I did.  My Mother's baby brother served in Korea according to my Dad. I thought he was too young (yes, Aunt Joan, you can tell him that I said 'too young' unless you don't want it to go to his head). Tip of the hat to the two I missed.

Speaking of Uncle Bobby and Aunt Joan, like many, they suffered great damage to their little cottage on the NJ shore thanks to Sandy. They've worked their butts off all their life and really cherish the time they get to spend at their cottage on the shore, so to know it now needs a gut job makes me sad for them.  The rainbow makes me think of what they've been through and my friends and their families who have suffered dearly because of the storm.  Many have lost just about everything, some have lost cars, some just lost power.  The good thing about a tragedy like Sandy is that it brings out the best in people. Sure, it can also bring out the worst in some, but I'd prefer to focus on the people who show their best side in hard times. While my aunt, uncle and cousin assessed the damage to the cottage (looked ok from outside, but the inside had 2.5 feet of water, sand and mud run through it) and began to start taking things outside, three men from Pennsylvania stopped by to offer help. They didn't know them. They just wanted to help. They wouldn't give them their names. They simply got busy helping them remove all the water damaged things from the cottage.  I know it meant a tremendous amount to my Aunt and Uncle and my cousin Suzanne, who said they were 'angels'.  These guys were the were the embodiment of a rainbow after the storm.  So are the attitudes and the fortitude of those who have lost so much.

Let's think good thoughts for all of the people dealing with so much in the aftermath of Sandy.  They can use 'em.

Ciao for now,




Wednesday, October 31, 2012

The Wrath of Sandy & What You've Been Waiting For


The Aftermath 

We were lucky. Really lucky. We got through Sandy, the mega Super Storm, relatively unscathed. We're having a little issue with the well pump (again) and we have some minor limbs down, but that's it. So many people have been affected in the worst possible ways. 

I was hoping and praying that all our family and friends in the NY and NJ areas were O.K.  Luckily they were.  Some of their homes were not as lucky.

I don't know if you saw the devastation to Breezy Point, NY - a little neighborhood in Queens, but it really broke my heart. You see, my college roommate's Uncle had a cottage in Breezy that we used to go to for some holidays and on weekends when we could get away from school.  Garrett and I have very fond memories of Breezy Point and I sat and cried yesterday morning as I viewed the pictures on TV and in this slideshow. It simply broke my heart to see a place that holds such wonderful, happy memories to be the picture of utter devastation. Fire took out close to 100 homes on Breezy Point. It's dessimated. It's unfathomable. I found out yesterday that the Fire Chief in Breezy is the Uncle of another college friend. I can only imagine how unbelievably helpless he and his force felt watching the destruction and not being able to save these homes because of the storm conditions.

I finally heard from other college friends I was concerned about at the end of the day yesterday....they were OK.  They live on the peninsula next to Breezy Point and lived through hell. My college pal Noreen could only say 'no words. there are no words. we are ok, but the house is devastated'  Her sister said, 'my car floated to the beach and the house is devastated'. I think they were both in shock, but that didn't stop them both from relying on their senses of humor and strength. 

It is them and others like them that inspired me today, to create a new typography illustration. I'm sure the quote was with regard to 'personal storms', but Sandy's aftermath is a personal type of storm in addition to a physical storm. She left more than just flotsam and jetsum in her wake. She left lives that will forever be changed.



I hope and pray for all those affected to have the strength they need to adjust sails, and find a kinder and gentler wind to cath their sails and move them forward toward recovery.

Keep them all in your thoughts.

Good News

We could all certainly use some good news after the witnessing the horribly images and hearing the heartwrenching stories of Sandy.  So here's my contribution to making one lucky person's day.

The October Giveaway ended and a winner has been chosen by Rafflecopter.

If you are Ashley Sackett from Boise, Idaho, it's your lucky day!  Thanks for following on Google Friend Connect and hanging at Mercantile Muse.  I'll be contacting you for your mailing info, which I will pass onto my sponsors. Lots of wonderful things will soon be coming your way. Congratulations! (on a side note, your facebook timeline cover gave me my laugh for the day...love those animals).

Hey, did you now my parents used to live in Boise? They lived in lots of places before I was born.  They drove all over these here United States and lived in just about every corner.  Of course, that doesn't really have to do with anything other than the fact that Boise also has some gal named Ashley doing the snoopy dance today.

Peace out,




Monday, October 29, 2012

Favorite Finds: Etsy Style

Rustic Stoneware Mug - Old Photo Cool Guy Mug - Deer Hunter Mug - Large Coffee Mug - Red Leaf Mug

Decisions, Decisions

Whenever I do a post on my favorite etsy finds, it's no easy task. There are just so many things that I find on etsy that I love. It hard to choose just a few to feature.  I love that about etsy....so much talent in one place....from artists and crafters, to sewers and knitters, jewelry makers to leather workers, the seekers of the best vintage to handcraft suppliers. There is a lot of good stuff going on.

Despite this fact, I whittled down some of my new favorites to those below.

1. head scarf, infinity cowl via ecoshag
2. labadorite necklace via manari design
3. wooden peace sign via woodenaht
4. rustic gray capelette via kate blossom
5. digital collage with well dressed bird via pikselmatic
6. handcrafted mug via farmhouse blues
7. charming vintage beveled mirror via luncheonette vintage
8. classic denim dress via sweet home boutique
9. sweet lace trim via yarn supplies

I hope you'll check out these talented people because they have much more to offer.

We're braced for Sandy here. In fact they moved Halloween Trick or Treating to last night because of it. Had a ton of fun seeing the kids all dressed up (more on 'playing dress up' in another post this week). Right now, it's raining and the wind is whipping. It took us all weekend, and more time this morning, to batten down the hatches. We may not get hit bad, but knowing from experience, it's better to be prepared for the worst.  So we've gathered candles and flashlights, the transistor radio ('holla' if you know what a transistor radio is peeps!), and bought gas for the generator.  I've filled all my big bowls and pots with water, filled buckets with water so we can flush should we loose power....these are the important things you learn from living through other storms. The worst thing about any power outtage in fact, (at last in my humble opinion as a homeowner with well water), is not the lack of lighting, but rather lack of electricity to get water from the well to the house. We've done all we can, now we just sit back and see what happens. To all of of you in Sandy's path, including my family and friends in NY and NJ, be safe.

I hope you'll be here tomorrow. Actually, I hope I'll be here tomorrow too because I want you to meet a few friends. I think you're going to like them. If by chance I'm not here, you know why.  I'll be sitting here in the dark.

One more thing..........time is running out to enter the giveaway. There is not time like the present. You do not want to miss out on this chance to win $175 in handmade.

Ciao for now,




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