Death of a Senator....................

"If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee."
Senator John Mccain.

I am not a political person. I may every now an then take an interest but I don't get involved. My Kingdom is not of this world as Jesus said. I know that in the end man will have exhausted all possible excuses and may even come to the realization that God was right in the beginning. We have a limited time to discover that. God allows us to try our best to rule ourselves. We as a species have tried every form of self governing that we can possibly come up with. None has been a success so far. So I stand on the sidelines. I watch. I comment but I do not participate.
All well and good you may say, but is there ever a time to get involved? Maybe, so far it has not come up for me. I can not put a label on myself, if I had to say what I believe politically then I would say I am a moderate socialist. Now in America Socialism is a bad word. I was raised at a time that Socialists were in power in Britain and I saw what happened when they were in turn defeated. At one time the government ran all the "lifeblood" industry and communications. They gave us socialized medicine so everyone had the benefit of a free health care system that was at the time the best that could be had. Education free to all. The Gas, Electricity (The National Grid) I may be wrong here but I also thought coal was too, water and all that kept a country running smoothly. I also believe transport, trains etc was government run. Anyway, suffice it to say that in my eyes when it was all opened up to free enterprise and profit chaos reigned. People went on strike for more pay and we had to learn to survive with using candles because the Electric company was on strike and when they got what they wanted and returned to work then the Gas company followed suit. If we had gas stoves or fires then it was learning another set of survival tactics. Buses go on strike, people walk. Trains go on strike well then what? If you needed them to get to work tough. I guess that made me want the government back in the game. It influenced how I felt. Now here in America they think Socialism is Communism and could not be more wrong. Since I came here I have shied away from politics and have no interest. People here have a whole different way of thinking, it's all about individual rights rather than the good of the whole. I have to say they are selfish in many ways, "I got mine" attitude. That goes against the grain for me.

So Senator McCain. I often have not agreed with him, sometimes I have not liked him but...........I have always respected him. He is at heart a good man as any. He stands for what he believes in and his love of country is above else in his heart. He did what he believed best for this country. As I said I don't always agree but can not fault him for his love. He was able to deal with people from both sides, he said when his side was wrong in his mind. He was brave. I could pick him apart and say I am not for the warrior mentality but he served his country best he could in the military. That meant killing innocents while bombing over Vietnam and I am sure he will answer to God for that as we all will answer some day for our misdeeds. He was no saint and neither am I so no judgement here. I love how he has planned his own funeral and given the final finger up to Trump.

So I am sorry to see a good man gone, there are not many like him. Senator Ted Kennedy was the last man like him that I respected, although again he certainly had issues.
This man who is president now to me had no saving graces. No one is perfect. No one ever always does the right thing. We are manipulated by slogans and memes like the ones shown here that tell half truths.


I don't know why John McCain would not vote for a bill that helps veterans but I suspect there was a lot more attached to the bill and he could not in conscience send it through. I think that every bill should be for one thing and one thing only. Vote on that issue on its own merits. They say it would take too long, well tough that's their job. Just do it. Write the bill, send it around let everyone read it and tick a box yeah or nay and let the winner have the day. Why are things so complicated???? Anyway. I don't know. I am neither for or against this man. I just know we could use a few more like him with integrity. Anyway, just my thoughts for what they are worth and that's not much.
Goodbye sir and Bon Voyage.

Quick walk between the rain.....................................

We have Tristen for the day today. It rained all day yesterday and all morning today so far. When it stopped for a bit we went for a walk down by Kid's Creek. The rain had stopped for awhile and it seemed safe enough. Cooper wanted to come too so we set off.

I wanted pictures so even though it was humid, ugh!!! we endured. No chance of wildlife with Mr Cooper around although he was actually pretty quiet for him LOL. So off we went. The Fall flowers are definitely blooming. The Goldenrod awesome.

The water was flowing swiftly in the creek but we didn't linger



We could hear the thunder in the distance so no time to hang around.



Tristen did not want this picture put on Facebook. I asked why...........well here is the story. When Tristen was first born his mum bought two blankets, blue with spots. One to wash and one to use. Well Tristen had his blanket every day and took it (him) everywhere, slept with it and all the usual little boy things. As he got older I put one away to save. Well after he moved to Laura's house Blankie went with him. For some reason she has taken it away from him and he is no longer allowed to have it. I think that is cruel but have no say. I did ask if I could have it then and put it away with his mums things. No she said. That was that. Well in getting ready for my yard sale, guess what I found, Blankie #2. He will never lose that one and carried it with us on the walk. He didn't want his picture seen by Laura with his blankie. I said no one will take this one from you. Maybe Alex had foresight?



There are plenty of berries and apples for the animals down by the creek. Cooper deep in thought???

Full circle of gold. In Spring the flowers are yellow and in Fall they are yellow as well




I don't mean to be negative about Laura H, she has at least stuck up for Tristen recently. Dan (Grandpa Dan) was partly responsible for taking Tristen from us. Well he married for the 3rd time to Deidre and Tristen came to love her. Dan has now left and is divorcing her and is back with Caroline, a married woman. He subsequently told Deidre that he is still 1/2 guardian of Tristen and she would no longer be allowed to see him. Well, that did not go over well with the girls (Danielle and Gabby) they got on to him about that and Danielle told Laura H. She then told Dan that was just NOT going to be how it went down. So Tristen gets to see Deidre. I told Deidre to stick to her guns and Tristen has lost enough in his short life. Dan's selfish behaviour was just not going to win this time. We support her.

Tristen's rock.

The thunder got closer and so we cut short the walk. The heavens opened and it was a downpour. We headed over to Meijers where we did a bit of shopping and the boys got to choose a toy and book each.........after that we went to Pet smart for some dog things and on to BAM (Books a Million) I managed to get out of there unscathed. (didn't buy anything) and after picking up milk shakes we headed home


So now back at home. Tristen put his new Lego's together and took a bath. He usually does when he comes here because at Laura's he has to take showers. I am grateful we got him for the day and I think he has enjoyed it. He saw Cooper over the weekend as they were camping and Cooper got to spend a couple of days with them.
The rain has stopped for now but my poor yard sale is rather wet...........

The Times They are a-changing .........................

At my yard sale the other day I met a beautiful little girl. If you know me, well, I am just not impressed or drawn to kids. Oh I love my family most of the time haha, but I am not a warm huggy kissy person. I eschew physical embraces if possible. Not that I don't like it, I do. My personality though is to be withdrawn, shy? Not sure of the correct words but, well kids do not just rush to me for hugs. I think maybe I am wrong on that count, I can draw them in and enjoy but my tolerance is very low. So............with that in mind, this lovely little girl, really pretty little girl comes right up to me for a hug. She must have been about 5. She walks over to me, I am sitting at my sale, and put out her arms to be hugged and she sat on my lap, where she leaned against me and snuggled. Hmmmmmmm so we chatted for a few minutes as her Grandmother (I assume) looked around. The girl wanted to buy a couple of wicker chairs that came from my Mum's home long ago. Child size. She couldn't decide between the two and so Grandma bought both. She saw a couple of toys she liked and I gave those to her and because they were free I was awarded with another hug. They looked at the jewelry and the girl saw a necklace with a bird she liked but Grandma decided she did not need it, so I popped that in Grandma's bag with some other bits that she bought. The girl skipped off and Grandma thanked me. I said to her "She is a beautiful child, keep her safe."

(pinterest image)
It made me think what a harsh world is out there now. It made me think about the way the world has changed since I was a child.
When my Dad grew up in our little village in England there was total freedom for him as a child. He wandered the same paths as I did growing up, the fields were our world. We had no fear. No one ever interfered with us, I can never remember being afraid. I wandered alone most of the time miles from home with no one ever knowing where I was on any given day. Same back in my Dad's day. Goodness we could have been killed in a fall playing in the chalk pits. No one would have known or drowned in the pits for that matter. However, it was never people who were the danger.

Sylvia and Me
I remember walking far over towards Tebworth a very small village about 6 miles away. I was picking blackberries and had my Poodle pal with me, well I got stung by a Yellow Jacket and my finger started to swell. It hurt. I stopped at a farm and knocked on the door. A lady with an apron on opened the door. I stood there and said "I just got stung" or something like that. She took me inside and put a "blue bag" on the sting to take the swelling down. Blue bags were put in when you boiled up the "whites" on the stove while doing laundry. It never crossed my mind that it could be dangerous to go into a strangers house, I just knew I needed help and at that time one went to an adult when you needed help, so that is what I did.
On another occasion a friend and my self, and I think it may have been Sylvia Miller, while walking over the fields on a summer day. We got thirsty so we knocked on someone's door and asked "Please can we have a drink of water?" we were never turned down. It was what one did. Now I think about it and it must be very strange to open your door to two little kids asking for a drink. It's what we did when there was not a stream close by. Yes we drank from streams back then, crystal clear water. What could be wrong with that??? In any case most of those farms had wells so it was the same water.

So what happened? Have people changed? Or is it because this is America and not England? All I know is that parents get into trouble these days for leaving a kid in a car even if it's locked. I just read an article. A mother left her 4 year old in a locked car for less than 5 minutes playing a game while she popped in to get some candy or something like that. Someone, videoed it and the licence and handed it over to the police. I was reported for allowing Tristen to go over the back ally to a friends house where I could hear the children playing.

My kids rode their bikes around the whole town, together to be sure and maybe 6 or 7 upwards. We lived out of town for several years and they did the same as I did they would be gone all day, eating apples and wild fruits getting to know the woods and fields around us. I was never concerned, I knew they would be back for supper. If they didn't show up I suppose it would be a guessing game as to where they were, although you could usually hear them haha. I on the other hand was a very quiet child. I could walk all the way to my grandparents house and then over the hills to my aunts house in Dunstable. They would usually give me bus fare so I didn't have to walk home. I loved my childhood. I was content to be alone.
Then there were days when we went shopping and would leave our prams with babies outside the store. Now I am sure that's not allowed. What changed?

So I think of that lovely child and what have we done to the world that it is the way it is now? She is so outgoing and physical that I worry about her and that is very sad.

Cloudy day............................

We were sort of sick of just sitting around but didn't want to go far. What to do. Well we took a country route with nothing in mind. The skys were grey and cloudy. I went just with ideas of taking pictures and to see what was new on some of the roads. It's amazing how many houses have gone up and even more coming. It is also good to see that there is still plenty of farm land left. So we just chose country roads and had a look around to see what changed.
We took the turn to Cedar Lake because we have not been there in a long time.



Really not a lot to see there. This was not a new lake to us but they have put in some trails that we had not seen before. It was too hot to walk far. We decided to take a quick look though. As we approached the boardwalk I saw a large turtle take a dive so missed that. Then Gerry spotted this guy who posed for a short time. A cute little water snake.


Look at the tiny fish


It was dark and humid, not too pleasant. I do think we would like to go back in the Fall to see what the trails are like.
We continued on with no destination in mind. Stopped at another small lake, Striker Lake, the sky was a bit brighter but nothing much to see. More houses on that lake


I really didn't get many good pictures this time out. It was rather boring.
Gerry said "Did I just see an Eagle?" we backed up.............sure did

Apparently there are 8 miles of trails at the first site. I found someone who had done the hike via Google. She had walked the trail and it looks like it will be worth exploring when it cools down. She found a small log cabin in the woods back in on the trails. It looks like it may be worth the hike but not sure I want to go 8 miles haha. The creek also looks worth checking out. So we have a goal for another day. When it cools down that is.........

Old Mission.........................August

Tristen came for the day so we decided to go for a drive. There was a lavender farm that I wanted to see out on the Peninsula so seemed like a plan to go that direction. I honestly could not take any more crowded beaches and roads. I asked Gabby if she and Cooper would like to come with us. She had tried without success to show Tony Old Mission Store. Now I think she may find it Maybe!
We started out going straight out to the Lighthouse. The boys brought swim trunks. Actually they wore them and brought a change of clothes. Cooper unfortunately chose a pair of swim trunks a bit too loose for him haha. Got some good shots haha......





I keep driving by the road signs that tell us we are half way between the North Pole and Equator but never get a shot, so here is one.

The Old Mission Peninsula Lighthouse.

The Beach was pretty clear woo hoo. At least we got a section to ourselves. The water was warm and calm. Nice to walk in but still wished I had put on beach shoes. I remember when I could run anywhere bare foot, not anymore though.


It has been so hot we have stayed inside. It was good to get out. The sky was overcast again, so no pretty skys. Kids enjoyed the water but was not long before Gabby and I were ready to get into some shade. Cooper had a few problems with his suit haha





We went into the woods to get out of the sun after a bit and headed back to the car. Someone had been very nice and this year had installed an area to hose off the sand, so Gabby hosed off the boys before they got in the car and got dressed. My Van always has beach towels and stuff so drying off is easy.



Next stop lunch. We made our way to Old Mission, and the store. They have wonderful Reuben sandwiches. The boys wanted hot dogs and they were big, plump and looked good. It was a half hour wait but is worth it food made from scratch. The boys played Checkers while we waited. I hope they stay friends all their lives and when they are old they can sit together and play checkers and remember..........



Look at the reubens

Gabby and I shared one even though I could have eaten the whole thing, yum! Even Gerry brought 1/2 home for supper.

After we had full tummies we went looking for the Lavender farm with the Secret Garden. Found it.............Secret Garden at Bry's Estate



Lovely gardens and even though the Lavender had finished it still smelled beautiful, especially when I tripped over a bush. I wanted to get some Lavender soap. We didn't have much to spare (money) but I did get some soap.They have a lovely little store with hand crafted recycled materials made into cute things. Some great ideas.


Gabby saw a few things and wants to learn to sew. Well it doesn't look as though they will be moving out any time soon, so that's a project for this winter. Teach Gabby to sew. You never know she may enjoy it.






I love gardens and flowers. I love taking pictures of pretty things. I hope it will cool down soon, not in the immediate future as far as the weatherman says. Next week I must have my sale, I put it off this week so don't want to do that again. So after the Lavender farm we headed home. The boys got along well all day. That is always nice. We took Tristen home by 6.30 and we were few minutes early so he had us drive by his school to use his extra minutes up haha.