STORMY WEATHER

August 22, 2014

By Olivene Godfrey

A few days ago, we had a scary wind storm here in Northwest Georgia.  It seemed to hit our area suddenly.  The wall of tall trees at the edge of our front yard were swaying in the strong wind, bringing a flash back to me of two tall palm trees in the front yard of our Florida home bending to the ground during a hurricane.  We had five or six huge avocado trees in the back yard and the strong gusts of wind sent the fruit to the rear of our house, causing a frightening noise.  We also had several pink grapefruit trees which also were damaged.  Barry was a toddler at the time and didn't seem to be as upset as my late husband, Ralph, and I were during the storm.

During our latest storm here, some of the pear trees fruit blew to the ground.  Barry says that since we haven't had enough rain, the pears this year are small and not like the bumper crop we had last year.

Back to our Florida years.  We were living on the beach at Treasure Island, when a hurricane struck the area.  During the hours before the hurricane struck, a truck with a loud speaker informed residents that we were being evacuated to the mainland. We had friends that called and asked us to come to their house in St. Petersburg which we did, after I packed a bag.  Later that night I opened the bag and all I had packed were tiny baby clothes that I had been given and bought for Barry.  So much for my mental state.

See you next time.  Comments welcome.  (As told to Tam)

LATEST NOVEL ON SALE NOW

August 15, 2014

By Olivene Godfrey

CATCH THE BRASS RING
On one level, Catch The Brass Ring, is a story of love and marriage.  On another, it symbolizes the struggles of Americans, mostly Southerners, during World War II and the post war years as they broke out of roles that had been assigned them by time, place and social class.
The novel centers on Nickie, a young romantic girl and Chris, an older Navy man, who fall in love during World War II.  Interwoven in the novel are scenes that depict the World War II home-front in the Unites States, the rapid development of plastics in industry and medicine in the 1940's and 1950's, the alcohol addiction of Chris, a brilliant scientist, the southern culture of the era and portraits of the professions of the major characters.
The novel is set in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and North Georgia, with portions set in New York City, San Francisco, and Treasure Island, Florida.
If anyone is interested in my latest novel, it can be purchased through Amazon, Kindle.  See you next time.  Comments welcome.  (As told to Tam)

OUR FIRST REFRIGERATOR

August 11, 2014

By Olivene Godfrey

When I was a child in the 1930's, my folks bought a Frigidaire refrigerator.  It was small and had a little freezer that held two or three ice cube trays.  My parents used the same refrigerator until after I married in 1947.

Our garage refrigerator is a Frigidaire and when I see it, I remember the one I grew up with.  In the summer months my mother would make an ice cream mix and freeze it in the ice cube trays.  She would serve the frozen ice cream cubes with a dollop of whipped cream for dessert.

We only had iced tea in the summer months (Barry and I have iced tea year round).  In cold weather my mother would serve our meals with a glass of milk (sometimes she and my daddy would drink coffee which they loved).

My mother used to say she wished we were rich and could have so much milk we could give some away.  She bought quarts of milk in glass bottles and dairy products from the milk man who delivered to the door.

I used to love to drink milk.  My daddy had a stomach ulcer and his doctor told him to drink milk and eat saltine crackers.  I would join him and loved the milk and crackers so well, I still drank milk with crackers after I married.

I have two medical appointments this week.  The first is a dental appointment.  Then, I have an appointment on Thursday in Calhoun, a 45 mile drive from our house to see my blood doctor.  I am praying that I'll be eligible to have a much needed booster shot.  Then, next week, I see my primary care doctor.  So, I'll be busy and hope I have enough energy to keep the appointments.

See you next time.  Comments welcome.  (As told to Tam)

REFLECTIONS OF TUNNEL HILL SCHOOL DAYS

August 6, 2014

By Olivene Godfrey

Since I've grown old, my mind often drifts back to my early years.  Each August as students and their parents prepare for a new school year, I recall the two years I attended a school in what was then, a tiny Georgia town named Tunnel Hill.  The name of the town comes from the historic tunnel where the train passed through, throwing off a bag of  mail twice a day.  My daddy was a pastor at the local Methodist Church.  This was in the early 1940's.  My school friends families were cotton farmers.  School started early, so the students could be dismissed 6 weeks in the fall to help pick the cotton.  Since my sisters and I didn't have cotton to pick, we had a 6 week vacation.  I rode my bicycle all over the small community.  I made several good friends in those years at Tunnel Hill.

I finally learned to work my new Rollator's hand brakes.  So, I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks.  Sometimes it just takes a while.

I haven't seen Tam in 4 days and am looking forward to seeing her this morning (Wednesday).  She took some time off to have an outing with her two beautiful granddaughters before their school classes began.

Our friend, Genevelyn, stayed with me a few hours Monday and Tuesday.  She helped me a lot and I enjoyed talking to her.  Since she gets around a lot, she always has news to share with me.

See you next time.  Comments welcome.  (As told to Tam)