SPRING WEATHER EVOKES MEMORIES OF THE PAST

By OLIVENE GODFREY

Here in Northwest Georgia, we are having our usual spring time pattern of a few days of warm and sunny days with "cold snaps" which have names like, Dogwood Winter, Blackberry winter, and so forth. We seem to be back in our old pattern of this being our rainy season. Since April is almost here some people may think the "cold snaps" are over. Not likely. Somewhere in one of our many photograph albums there is a picture I made around April 4 a number of years ago. The picture shows my red tulips heads sticking up in the snowfall.

And, I remember back in 1947 a lovely, warm, sunny day in late April. My late husband, Ralph, and I were engaged and our wedding date was set for May 1 of that year. Ralph and I and his sister, Agnes, and her boyfriend, drove from Dalton to a mountain creek not far from where son Barry and I live now.
We had planned to roast hot dogs in the picnic area until we discovered we had forgotten to bring the hot dogs. (Hey, it was spring and we were young and had other things on our minds.)
I have some pictures that were made that day and one of them shows Ralph and I walking across the river on huge rocks.
I was wearing a summer dress with a bare midriff and my long hair was in two braids.(That dress must have seemed daring back in 1947.) It was a nice day to remember.

Now, the scene changes and Ralph and I were married in a Dalton church which was packed with relatives and friends. We borrowed Ralph's dad's new Chevy and we drove to Atlanta where we had reservations at the old Henry Grady Hotel. The weather was warm and nice when we arrived at the hotel. The next day, a "cold snap" moved in. We hadn't brought coats with us and when we went out to eat at restaurants and one day went to the elegant Fox Theater we nearly froze. When we returned to Dalton, the weather had changed back to warm and sunny spring weather and stayed that way until fall of that year .

So that is how the weather goes. The pear trees this year have been so pretty with their snow white blooms Our pear tree bears fruit and sits atop our foothill in a little clearing. The tree was so small when we moved here 30 years ago that Ralph covered it with a plastic garbage bag when a frost was predicted. The tree has never been pruned and grows ever which way and I think it's crooked limbs give it character and I love the tree just as it is.

Our Incredible Poinsettia is still pretty with its scarlet leaves and tiny yellow blooms defying the odds that it would bloom again. And, the pink geranium knows it's spring even though it sits beside the poinsettia on the den floor inside the house as it blooms it's heart out. The two new shrubs which the landscapers planted to replace old ones killed during last summer's drought conditions are looking good with nourishment of the recent heavy rains here.

See you next time.

EATING HIGH ON THE HOG PLAYED HAVOC WITH MY GUT

By OLIVENE GODFREY

First, I've been taking iron pills for my anemia and I have more energy than I have had in a long time. But, the iron has also given me a hearty appetite, to put it mildly, and I want to eat all food in my sight.

About a week ago, son Barry and I ate lunch at Western Sizzlin's buffet in Dalton, GA. The food was especially delicious and we both had a "food binge". Barry inherited his late dad's "cast iron stomach" and he was already hungry again at supper time. I was having gut problems and didn't think I would ever be hungry again. I was determined not to over-eat again. ( I haven't gained any weight which is remarkable.)

A few days before Good Friday, Barry asked if I would like to eat lunch at Edna's Restaurant on the holiday. Edna's is a popular Chatsworth,GA restaurant which serves superb Southern cooked food. Edna's is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and we have dined there for over 40 years. Since the restaurant closes on Sunday, we don't eat there as often as we would like to though. If you're lucky, your waitress will be 82-year-old, Bessie,. Not only is Bessie an excellent server, her friendly, down home conversation is a delight. So, I told Barry I would love to eat lunch at Edna's on Good Friday.

I thought of the meal until Good Friday arrived and we ate an early lunch at Edna's. When we entered the restaurant, the manager greeted us and commented on how long it had been since we had eaten there. As soon as we were seated, a waitress, not Bessie but who was an excellent server, brought us menus, which never change, thank goodness. The food was delectable
and again, my taste buds savored the food and I wanted to eat every bite on my plate, especially the candied yams which were the best I have ever eaten. Barry who inherited his dad's appetite , too, ate every morsel of food on his plate. I stopped eating before my plate was empty by mustering up all my will power. I might have escaped another bad gut problem if I hadn't stupidly eaten part of a Subway sandwich that Barry brought in that night. And, again I started having gut problems and I have eaten lightly since then and feel better. But, I won't promise not to eat too much again as long as I am taking the iron pills.

See you next time.

WRITING & DUSTING SIMILAR, LOCKED DOORS, LOUD TV & SUNRISES & SUNSETS

By OLIVENE GODFREY

While I dusted furniture and my bric-a-brac one recent day, I thought that dusting and writing were similar for me. It's been said often that it is great to HAVE written but the act of writing is hard work and requires self-discipline. The results of writing are rewarding and for some of us it is a compulsion to express our thoughts in print. When I write, I lose all sense of time and often don't stop until I'm exhausted. Then, I have to call upon my self-discipline to dust. But, once I start, I become absorbed in dusting my bric-a-brac pieces, remembering the people who have given me some of them and some I bought while on vacations. And I admire the beauty of the pieces. Afterward,I love the look of the shiny wood and the pretty pieces and I am glad I HAVE dusted.

When my late husband, Ralph, and I were newly weds in the late 1940s we lived in several small apartments in Dalton, GA before building a house. And we never locked out doors. I don't remember if we even had keys to the doors. I never knew anyone whose apartment or home was burglarized. Dalton was a very small town then. But, even in the 1970s when we lived in Chatsworth, GA, I would often drive alone to Dalton to attend night meetings and I never felt any fear. Now, we have dead bolt locks on all of our doors which are kept locked at all times. Since I spend most of my days alone in my house in a rural area now, I never answer the door if I don't recognize the person outside.
That, and keeping doors locked, just makes sense to me in today's world. Better safe than sorry, I think.

Since I'm hard of hearing, I keep my TV volume turned up pretty loud and my TV sound was often distorted to my ears then. So, son Barry recently bought me two compact stereo speakers for my TV and now I have better sound even when the volume is turned up loud and the music on programs sounds great.

I've written often of the gorgeous sunrises that come up over the mountain range which we watch from the front of our house.
Since I am usually busy after supper, I miss the spectacular sunsets. But,last night, I happened to be in the back of the house and looked out of a window and saw the orange-red sun was setting. Barry came in the room and we watched the sun as it disappeared. And, I thanked God for giving me the vision to see such beauty.

See you next time.

PREPARING FOR SPRING

By OLIVENE GODFREY

Lately, we have been having spring-like weather alternating with cold, frigid days and we have also had much needed rain.
Last Saturday, we had snow showers for several hours, a rare event for northwest Georgia and it was very cold all day
On Sunday, we had bright sunshine but with cold temps. Son Barry was nursing a pulled muscle in his right shoulder and I was having allergy problems so we had a lazy Sunday. Spring is definitely in the air but I'm still wearing my granny gowns at night and think I will be needing them for a while.

Recently, I wrote in this space of a "fish dream" I had about catching a fresh water bass, my favorite food fish. I wrote also that Barry hasn't been able to go fishing because of his responsibilities, and we haven't eaten any bass in about 10 years.
The next day, I received an e-mail from my wonderful neighbor and friend, Genevelyn, who has a fish pond on her property.
She said anytime Barry wanted to fish to send him over. She also said that the pond is clear and clean and stocked with several species of fish, including bass. So, Barry is looking forward to going fishing nearby and maybe he will bring us some bass home for dinner.

The landscapers we use this time of year came out a couple of weeks ago. During the past two months or so, we have had storms with high winds and our lawn was littered with small tree limbs and other debris. Also, last summer's heatwave and drought killed a couple of our shrubs in the front yard. The crew went to work and pruned the shrubbery and cleaning the yard. Arrangements were made to remove the dead shrubs and replace them soon. When Barry came home from work, he inspected the lawn and declared the crew's work "flawless". He had been afraid that he would have to do the work. I had arranged for the crew to come out without telling him. Now all he has to do is mow the yard with his riding lawnmower which he enjoys doing.

See you next time.

LET"S VISIT AWHILE....

By OLIVENE GODFREY

Son Barry discovered last week, by accident, that two of radio and television's most loved and recognizable personalities are back on the air again with a brand new Crook & Chase talk/variety on RFD-TV, starring Lorianne Crook and Charlie Chase. The pair are celebrating 25 years in the business, making them the longest running broadcast male/female team currently on the air, according to RFDTV magazine. I watched the Crook & Chase show regularly on the old Nashville network until CBS for some unknown reason bought the network about ten years ago and canceled all of the popular country music shows. Now RFD-TV has brought back most of the old shows, including Ralph Emery's new "live" show. The weekly Crook & Chase show is produced by Jim Owens Entertainment and taped in front of a live studio audience on Wednesdays at Nashville Opry House in Studio A. I watched the show last week and enjoyed it. Lorianne and Charlie look great and I look forward to watching future shows.

I also watched the Jimmy Sturr Show which features polka music last week. The young woman who played an accordion brought back memories of when I played that instrument as a young girl.
I had played the piano for years and my daddy bought the accordion for me and arranged for lessons. Soon I was "performing" in front of audiences at church, school and community events. My teacher had a weekly radio show at a Chattanooga radio station and I played my accordion on the show. I had a nervous stomach even back then so my mother had to give me a dose of Pepto Bismol before the radio show each week. The master of ceremony introduced me as, "The little girl with the big accordion". on the radio shows. Performing was fun but I had no desire to pursue a musical career. I knew when I learn to read that I was a writer. But, I had a heap of living to do before I became a published writer.

About half of our Incredible Poinsettia's green leaves have turned scarlet. We have had the plant over two years now. Barry has given it tender, loving care and regular doses of Miracle Grow. The plant is located in front of the big window on the sunken floor in the den and gets the afternoon sun. The den is cool and pitch dark at night which is a requirement for the plant's leaves to change to scarlet. Barry has pruned the plant several times but it is still large and pretty and we are enjoying looking at it.

My late husband's widowed sister, Agnes, called me last week.
She had been in the hospital several days with pneumonia and says she is recovering nicely now. Since I had a couple of serious bouts with pneumonia in the past, I could feel empathy for her.
We had an enjoyable chat as always.

See you next time.