Photo Journal of the Past Week

The Azalea bushes are competing with each other this month for the most vibrant and voluminous of blooms. This rosy pink planting beside our driveway is the winner in our yard. Gary says he's never seen this one do as well as it is this year. It's a welcome sight every time we pull up to our home in our bikes or cars.

With that said, my photo journal of the days since my last post begins. I say, "photo journal" because over the 16 years that I've been blogging, it has come about that I post just about as many snapshots (and other illustrations) as the number of words actually written. 

I'm looking at the pictures I've taken in recent days, comparing them with my desk calendar. The first thing I'm sharing is my version of Mari's Granola Bars:

Those of you who follow Mari's blog, Mari's Little Corner, know she posts the most wonderful recipes every Thursday. As it turns out, my pantry provisions did not allow me to follow her recipe exactly, so I made comparable substitutions and the end result was still very good.

One of the most notable replacements I made was to use Cheerios to supplement the small amount of oatmeal. The end result was more crunchy, which made up for my lack of sunflower seed kernels. The 8-inch square pan did not last more than 24 hours ..... (thanks, Mari!)

By the way, go visit Mari at the link below. It's a good segue into the subject of my next paragraph.  http://marislittlecorner.blogspot.com/2025/03/friday-funny.html

3 quarters of a dollar century

Well, my birthday is this month (a "big one"), so the celebrations have begun. Thus far I've received some cards, a couple of gifts, and Jersey Girl treated me to a fun afternoon with lunch and a visit to a historical site here in town.

Mojo's is painted a bright blue on the outside, making it easy to spy from the road -- and our area has at least 3 of them. All locations are fun, loud, serve good food and are decorated such that there is plenty to see while waiting. 

The ceiling decor is made up of wood posters painted with jokes and advice.

Jersey Girl and I both had the grilled chicken tenders and a side of veggies accompanied with some sauces to spice it all up. Very good!

A famous personality allowed me to snap his picture but he was too busy to give me an autograph. I think the Blues Brothers were in the crowd, too.

After a satisfying lunch, we drove out to Fort King National Historic Landmark which, for this weekend, is featuring a tribute to women in history.

Much of what was to be seen was outside under the huge Oak trees. A large garden made up of many raised beds was impressive. Most of the crops have been harvested (keeping in mind that we're in Florida) and new plantings will go in soon. 

Handmade crafts were prominent. In this snapshot Jersey Girl is playing with a cute boy puppet.

Under a grass-roofed shelter were quilts, weavings, and other craft examples from a bygone era. A demonstration for brewing whiskey was interesting (no samples were given).

There is a small museum packed with history. We missed the lecture but I came away with an interesting printed hand-out about women who managed light houses in the early days. During our visit a tea party was just beginning. We were invited to sit at the table for an assortment of teas, small pastries, and a big fat juicy strawberry.

Before getting back to the car we stepped inside the old fort. There was no activity going on at the time but just standing there, gazing inside the wood fort, I could imagine scenes like what we see on the TV westerns.  Jersey Girl and I had a good time with all we saw and did, enjoyed the food, and definitely benefitted from edifying conversation. 

The next day was Saturday and the long-anticipated "Junk in the Trunk" event here in our +55 community. HOA rules do not allow residents to have garage sales, so once or twice a year parking spaces at the community center can be rented for a few hours on a Saturday to sell our stuff, or to shop the stuff of others. The latter was our activity. We go to see what's there and to socialize. 

However, this time we did manage to leave some cash in four different places. Gary saw a tool set at an exceptionally good price, and an LED lantern, never used, that is good to have on hand if/when there's a big storm. I got a shower chair that is the perfect size for the vanity counter in the master bathroom and a really nice metal lantern to set on the bistro table on our front porch. I've wanted a centerpiece of some kind for that table for a long time. This was perfect!

That afternoon a put-together-yourself kit was waiting for our attention. By then the weather had turned cooler with some rain, so the project was assembled on the lanai.

During our bicycle rides in the neighborhood I've seen a small Asian foot bridge that was very attractive and would compliment the stone pagodas in our back yard. I ordered one and Gary put it together. 

We need to put a coat of clear urethane (or whatever it's called) on the stained wood before we subject it to the outside sunshine, rain, heat, cold and sprinklers, so I can't show it to you yet in its final resting place. 

Reminiscent of Gary's military service in Japan in the 60's, the bridge adds a touch of charming romance to what we already have outside.  This bridge should complete our oriental garden theme.

Right now we are thinking the stepping stones in this picture above will be re-arranged to accommodate the bridge. 

Speaking of romance, this afternoon while Gary was putting the finishing touches on the bridge, I put his favorite song on the record player. Would you believe this man put down his tools and slow-danced me around the lanai to Percy Faith's "Theme From A Summer Place"?  Those of you who have observed our relationship from the first blush three years ago can be assured that the light of love ignited back then still glows strong. 

Never in my wildest imaginations did I ever think my life would take the turns it has, that I would be where I am today with who I am today -- and in spite of terrible loss, joy could be felt again.

I Corinthians 2:9 in the King James version of the Bible comes to mind:

But as it is written,

Eye hath not seen,

nor ear heard,

neither have entered into the heart of man,

the things which God 

hath prepared for them that love Him.

God loves every single one of us. When we trust His Son, Jesus Christ as our Savior, He has an eternal future for us that is far beyond anything we can conjure in our imagination. 

My current season of the amazing joy God has given to me after deep loss illustrates the Lord's love for me and helps me to trust Him with whatever comes next. I hope my readers are trusting Him, too.

Until next time, grace and peace.