IT'S COLD OUTSIDE, FEEDING BIRDS, & MY 103 YEAR OLD AUNT'S AMAZING MEMORY & MORE STUFF

By OLIVENE GODFREY

We are having very cold weather here in northwest Georgia now.
When I got up this morning, the temp on our patio was 15 degrees and yesterday, the temp remained in the 30s all day. The temp tonight is forecast for 24 degrees. Our electric heat pump is keeping the house toasty warm and I am hoping that the power doesn't go out this week. In cold weather, our thoughts turn to the many birds that make our yard their hang-out and the yard is a natural feeding ground for them. But, when the ground is frozen, we put feed out for the birds and hope the pesky squirrels will stay away.

I had a letter a few days ago from my cousin,Ernestine. She reads my columns to her 103 year old mother and my beloved Aunt Helen. Ernestine wrote that when she read the column about son Barry folding sheets so neatly, Aunt Helen smiled and was reminded of a day when she visited us and Barry took a bath when he came home from school. She said that when he finished his bath, the bathroom was wet all over with wet towels strewn around and she wondered how such a little boy could makes such a big mess. I read the letter to Barry while he unloaded groceries and he said that he still makes a mess in the bathroom but now he knows that he is the one who will clean it up. Ernestine wrote that Aunt Helen smiled when I wrote that Barry is ultra neat now.

Yesterday, Barry showed me the aerial view of our house on the
Google Earth Internet site. Our house is indeed set in the path of the wind tunnel that comes down from the mountain. Also, our house and the houses of our neighbors, is surrounded by forest land which pleases a tree lover like me. Barry was also able to locate on the map, the site of my childhood home in the Chattanooga area. At that time, the area was mostly farm land and it seemed like country to us.

I had an e-mail from my Florida, English born friend, Annie,
last Saturday night. She said they were having cold weather, at least cold to South Florida residents, she added.
That reminded me of the January Florida trip my late husband, Ralph, and I took when we were young. We went to Daytona Beach and the first night we were there, the temp dipped down to 20 degrees and the entire week was very cold. We have pictures of us bundled up in winter clothes, standing on the beach.

CORRECTION: In last week's column, I wrote about my favorite comic strips and I listed Family Circle as one of them. This should have been The Family Circus. Sorry about that.

The jonquils in our backyard are coming up which always gives me hope that spring in all it glory will arrive on schedule.

See you next time.

BEING IMPULSIVE RESULTS IN SPRAINED ARM

By OLIVENE GODFREY

I had a freakish accident with my left arm last Friday. Son Barry and I had gone to the mall on a business matter and then we stopped by the Chick-Fil-A for lunch. We took our food to a small table. I was in my wheelchair and Barry was starting to put the brakes on the wheelchair. But, impulsively, I tried to stand up before the brakes were locked. The chair started rolling backward, catching my left arm in a freakish way. Barry got the chair stopped but I couldn't enjoy my chicken sandwich as my arm was aching. It seemed to be sprained and I nursed it all weekend. But, when I got out of bed today, I saw a large bruise on my upper arm.

Coincidentally, I had a similar accident with my right arm a while back and it had a huge bruise. Just resting the arm as much as possible seems to be only thing, except ice packs,which help. Since I had an accident caused by my being too impulsive in 2005 and broke my right shoulder and arm, I have tried to be careful. I guess it's hard for me to accept that I'm not still young and spry.

Awhile back, I wrote about canned fruit being as nutritious as fresh fruit, according to a news item, I read. It has been difficult for me to eat as much fruit as the health experts say we need a day. We eat some fruit every week but Barry isn't a big fruit eater and I can't eat all of the fresh fruits myself. So, Barry and I were delighted to find a Dole product at the grocery store that has a variety of fruits packed in a transparent jar. You can take out a serving of fruit, and put the lid back on jar and keep in the fridge until it is all eaten.

I recently read that a person needs to walk 10,000 steps in a day to lose weight or maintain a perfect weight. Barry claims that he walks that much every day which may explain why he stays so slim and fit.

Do you read the newspaper comic strips? When I was a little girl, my daddy used to read the comics to me. And, I have never stopped reading them. My favorite strips now are For Better Or Worse and Family Circle. I feel as if I know these characters and they seem like real people to me.

See you next time.

IN PRAISE OF DEEP BREATHING & WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WORD, "FANCY"?

By OLIVENE GODFREY

For years I have read and heard that New Age practices such as Yoga, etc... are known to improve your health, and blood circulation and reduce stress. But, I was skeptical of those claims. It is true that I am aware that most of my aches and pains are stress-related and my doctor says I have anxiety syndrome.

So, when I read in the Jan.-Feb. issue of the AARP Bulletin that you can get some of the same benefits of New Age practices with just three to five minutes of deep breathing sessions twice a day or anytime you're feeling tense, I decided to try it.
It sounded easy and didn't take up much time. You just sit in a comfortable chair, feet flat on floor, and close your eyes and take five to seven seconds to inhale through your nose, hold for another five seconds, and then slowly release that air through your mouth.

I have experienced dramatic results, literally feeling the tension vanish from my body. I'm not throwing my medicine away but the deep breathing is an excellent supplement for me. The AARP Bulletin says and I quote, "Not only does deep breathing reduce muscle and emotional tension it can also temporarily lower blood pressure and heart rate and deliver a quick rush of additional oxygen to cells." If you suffer from stress, what do you have to lose if you give it a try?

The other day, Barry was about to leave to do our weekly grocery shopping and he asked me what I wanted from the store's deli.
I replied, "Whatever takes your fancy." And, then I said, "What happened to the word, fancy? I like the word but don't ever hear it used anymore." Barry said, " It is a word of your generation. People don't use it now." And I remember when "fancy" meant, "taking a liking, such as, "She took a fancy to him." Or, if a person is dressed in an elaborate style you might say, "My! you look fancy today." Or, if you are conceited and admire your self, some might say you "fancy yourself"?
There are a lot of times when "fancy" is just the right word. It's a shame that it's not used often now.

It's been said that cleaning bathrooms keeps you humble. And, to that I say, I can think of more pleasant ways to feel humble.

Barry and I went to Dalton this past Sunday for an early lunch and stopped in at the Sears store in the mall and used our gift cards we received Christmas from my sister, Jeanette. Barry only used a portion of his card to buy a good looking sweater shirt at a good sale price. I found a pretty black turtle neck top I have been wanting at a good sales price and didn't use all of the value of my card either. So, we will be returning soon to do more shopping.

The weather has been unseasonably warm recently and as I write this, rain is expected, and then very cold temps are forecast for northwest Georgia the remainder of the week.

See you next time.

ON MY MIND....

By OLIVENE GODFREY

How often do you wash your bed sheets? A Good housekeeping
magazine cleaning timetable (Nov. 2006)says you should wash your sheets every two weeks if you want to avoid dust mites.
I have washed my sheets once a week since I married in 1947.
I don't know how often my mother washed sheets and I am a bit ashamed to confess I had other things on my mind back then.
But, I just assumed that washing sheets once a week was normal.

And on the subject of sheets, my sister, Jeanette, and I discussed folding sheets and towels one recent day. We both admitted that we don't do a neat job of it. Since I had a bad fall,son Barry has washed and dried the laundry and I have folded it and put it up. The reason for this is that our washer and dryer and laundry supplies are located in a corner of our garage. We haven't wanted me to risk falling on the hard concrete floor, and possibly breaking a bone. Barry has been washing his own sheets and folding them since he was a teenager. Watching him fold sheets neatly one day I asked how he learned to do that so neatly and he replied, "Just my nature I guess." And, that seems to sum it up perfectly.

I love this quote by the U.S. speaker of the house, Nancy Pelosi, "Having five children in six years is the best training for speaker of the house." This is from the AARP Bulletin, (Jan, 2007.)There is an interesting article in this issue about the new speaker.

I have broken several china pieces of my bric-a-brac lately.
Each piece is of sentimental value to me and I hate it when I break a piece. Barry has been able to repair with glue all of the broken pieces except one. I put the broken pieces in a plastic bag as it was very special to me. I don't know how I am going to avoid this in the future as my arthritic hands are clumsy and awkward which makes dusting a hard chore.
I will try to be more careful.

After I was diagnosed with diabetes in 2004, I started buying sugar free desserts which are delicious. But, most of them contain the ingredient, "sugar alcohol", which upsets my gut so I have stopped eating the desserts. Sometimes I crave a little something sweet after supper. So, Barry started buying bite size miniature candy bars and sometimes I eat one of them after supper and they haven't raised my blood sugar. I am allowed one favorite sugar dessert a week which I usually have on Sundays.

This past Sunday was a rainy day but Barry and I went over to a Shoney's in Dalton for an early lunch. We had some light rain during our trip but managed to return home before the heavy rains arrived. I had a delicious lunch of salad and two small grilled catfish fillets with rice. The lunch was satisfying without feeling too full and I enjoyed it.

See you next time.

OBSERVING 40th ANNIVERSARY AS A COLUMNIST & SISTER, JEANETTE, HAD BAD FALL ON HER CARPORT LAST WEEKEND

By OLIVENE GODFREY

This year marks the anniversary of the first column I had published in a newspaper. Looking back over the years, I have had some glorious moments and some great sorrows and my share of regrets. I wrote a daily editorial newspaper column for ten years and also covered news and wrote articles for other publications. The following ten years, I worked free lance
and wrote fiction. I still wrote an occasional column for the local newspaper and several regional magazines. I had three novels published in Germany and then my late husband, Ralph,
became ill and I was his caregiver with son Barry's help.
I exchanged e-mail letters with my late sister, Joan,who lived in Florida. And then we lost Ralph to Parkingsons and about a year later, Barry suggested that I write a blog column.
He added, "You are writing Joan letters every day that are like columns." So, I have been writing in this space for three and a half years and it gives me an outlet for my writing ideas.

Here's to a few more writing years!

My sister, Jeanette, fell from the kitchen door onto the hard carport floor last weekend. She fell face down which is so scary it's hard to think about. She broke her nose and had a gash on her forehead, near an eye, that required 12 stitches at the Dalton hospital ER. She has two black eyes and bruises and as bad as it was, it could have been a lot worse. She has always been a human dynamo and has tried to keep up her pace as she has grown older. But, she says now that she has learned her lesson and will slow down and be more careful in the future.
Jeanette says she knew she was falling but couldn't stop herself as she hit the floor hard. That's how I felt when I had a bad fall in2005 Since then, I have tried to pace myself and slow down and to be more careful to avoid another fall. I know it is hard to do but is better than the consequences.

Our pink geranium almost didn't snap back after being left on the patio during a heavy frost. Barry trimmed the plant and nourished it and moved it next to the Incredible Poinsettia in the den by the big window. Barry has been feeding the indoor plants with a little Miracle Grow and they are all thriving.
Alas, the poinsettia didn't have any red leaves Christmas as we had hoped it would. It is large and healthy but mo red
leaves. If it lives another year, we will try again.

I am pleased to report that I didn't gain an ounce over the holidays but I didn't lose any either. I will work on that this year.


See you next time.