Miss Ann Says

Tag: little things

• Christmas – packed up and put away!

  Posted at 12:44 pm by missannsays, on January 13, 2015

  There are still a few signs of Christmas hanging in my home. My gifts haven’t been put away in their proper spots, photo cards from family and friends are still displayed and the bin of wrapping paper is readily available even though no longer needed.  Slowly the everyday items are replacing the Christmas items.Traditionally I would take down my Christmas decorations and put away my Christmas dishes around January 6 – Epiphany or the twelve day of Christmas. This year my daughter and son-in-law were arriving for “Christmas” on January 10 so everything stayed in place awaiting their arrival.

  To be honest with the busyness of buying a house in December I didn’t decorate as much as usual. There was even a moment I thought I won’t decorate at all but I love Christmas so I decided to “do a little” decorating. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving I pulled out a couple of items. At first I didn’t put any Christmas dishes out but for some reason hot chocolate didn’t taste as good in an everyday mug so I pulled out a few Christmas mugs. As the days passed I pulled out a thing or two this day and then a thing or two the next day. My Christmas decorations didn’t seem complete  without Nana’s tissue box cover, or the ceramic Santa, or the Nativity snow globe. Slowly the decorations found their usual spots or a new spot and I was pleased.

  And now it is time to put it all away. Unfortunately since I pulled a little from this box and little from that box finding where I pulled items from is slightly challenging.  I had a wonderful Christmas season. It was different from past years and that is okay. I was perplexed by one thing over this holiday season though. Do people really give cars as gifts? And why were children asking for cars? I couldn’t believe how many automobile commercials there were. I found it totally bizarre even stranger than chia pets!! 🙂

  I will leave you with this thought:

  “When the song of the angels is stilled,
  when the star in the sky is gone,
  when the kings and princes are home,
  when the shepherds are back with the flocks,
  then the work of Christmas begins:…
  to find the lost,
  to heal those broken in spirit,
  to feed the hungry,
  to release the oppressed,
  to rebuild the nations,
  to bring peace among all peoples,
  to make a little music with the heart…
  And to radiate the Light of Christ,
  every day, in every way, in all that we do and in all that we say.
  Then the work of Christmas begins.” Howard Thurman

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged Christmas, family, little things, randomness

• My year in review. The ABCs of 2014.

  Posted at 11:01 am by missannsays, on December 31, 2014

  A is for arabesque. I taught one ballet class a week.

  B is for book clubs. I belonged to two.

  C is for children’s camp. I directed with the best team ever.

  D is for Dunkin Donuts. I drank a lot of coffee.

  E is for East of Eden. I enjoyed reading this John Steinbeck classic.

  F is for family and friends. Fun, food and fantastic stories.❤

  G is God. He is good.

  H is for home. I accomplished a few items on the “to do list”.

  I is for ice cream. Always a yummy treat.😋

  J is for Japan. Amazing second visit.

  K is for Kansas. Time spent with family.

  L is for library. My daughter completed her masters in library information science.

  M is for Minnesota. I spent ten days caring for my grand-nieces and nephews.

  N is for National September 11 Museum. It opened in May.

  O is for opportunities. I am blessed with many.

  P is for PA. My new secondary residence.

  Q is for quizzing. I teach in my local church and direct on the district.

  S is for speaking. I spoke at 4 events including one all-day conference with my daughter.

  T is for tea with Miss Carol. Always a treat.

  U is for United. The airline I usually use. Flew to San Antonio, Seattle and Minneapolis.

  V is for volunteering at Tribute Center. Lead and supported tours, spoke to school groups.

  W is for writing. I took a writing course and now I need to get busy!

  X is for eXcerise. I need to be more disciplined.😐

  Y is for year. Hard to believe another year has come and gone.

  Z is for zero. The number of regrets I have.

  In 2015- my goals are to read and write more, watch television less, enjoy simple times with family and friends and relish in being a grandma in the near future.😊

  Posted in books, daily life, memories | 2 Comments | Tagged Dunkin Donuts, family, friendship, little things, randomness, September 11, television, travel

• snowy with a chance of frozen meatballs

  Posted at 7:43 pm by missannsays, on November 26, 2014

  With the weather forecast for a snow storm, I decided to travel to the Barn (my secondary residence) a little earlier than originally planned. As I loaded the car this morning the rain started to include a few frozen droplets. The roads were clear and travel was uneventful. I drove through Dunkin Donuts purchased a cup of coffee and continued traveling west thinking I am going to beat this storm. I still had grocery shopping to accomplish so I stopped in Shop Rite. Wow, when I came out of Shop Rite there was snow everywhere. Oh, no that is what I forgot a snowbrush. wait, CD case is a good substitute. Car cleared off and as I pulled out of the parking lot I realized I forgot two items my daughter had asked me to pick up. How did I do that? Duh!! Should I go back in Shop Rite or wait and go in the little grocery store in town? Ugh, I don’t want to get out of the car maybe I will call my daughter and tell her to pick it up herself.

  The highway now snow-covered resembled a slip and slide. A big truck stopped right in the middle of a lane. Not good! Praying “Lord, please keep the idiot drivers away from me.” Oops! “Forgive me, Lord for calling them idiots but please keep them away” Felt bad for the truck drivers – “Lord, help them to get their destination and home to their families”.  Safely in town, I decided to run in Pecks and get the two missing items – frozen meatballs and grape jelly. “Hi, Ann. You made it.” It was my across the street neighbors. Greetings are exchanged and I left the store.

  It is 3 miles from the start of my road to the Barn and most of it is up hill. It is truly uphill both ways. This isn’t the city or the burbs. This is wide open spaces, trees, a few houses and very little traffic unless you count the wildlife – deer and bears. I stay in the middle of the road and proceed very slowly.  And then it happens, the tires are spinning and the car isn’t traveling forward. It is sliding backwards. Car stops. Not sure what to do. I turn on the flashers and sit a moment. A car coming the other way slows down, rolls down their windows and ask if I need help. “I can’t make it up the hill and I don’t know what to do?” the older gentlemen suggests backing down the road and pulling off by the power line gate until the snow plow comes down. “we are going into town. We will tell them to send the plow truck.”  I make it safely to the side of the road remembering that my neighbor will be coming by at some point. I sip my coffee and decide to check my email  and settle in to wait for my neighbor or the plow truck. Within five minutes there are my neighbors. They gave me a ride. A few hours later, my neighbor and I ventured back to the car and I was able to get further up the road but still can’t get up the last big hill. I gathered more items from my car and came back to the Barn. Car is safely in a driveway of a house that is empty and for sale. Tomorrow is another day. And I can’t complain I am inside, warm, have food, water and I was truly blessed today. Not just by the kindness of my neighbors but by the timing of seeing them in the grocery store. That was a God moment. To think God used frozen meatballs and grape jelly. 🙂

  Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment | Tagged Dunkin Donuts, friendship, frozen meatballs, little things, randomness, Shop Rite, travel

• Travel Tuesdays – S2E4 – USA

  Posted at 1:30 am by missannsays, on November 18, 2014

  

   

  One of the current quizzes on Facebook is “which states have you visited?” I have visited 44 states. It is easier to list those I haven’t visited opposed to listing those I have. I haven’t visited Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, North Dakota, Idaho or Hawaii. So a visit to the Deep South, the far North and Hawaii are in order to be able to say I have visited all 50 states.

  Each area of the USA has amazing sights to see, regional food to taste and interesting people to meet. Many times while traveling I have marveled at the very size of the USA. Let alone the diversity. To me it is amazing the concept of the United States of America works at all. Some would argue it doesn’t work but it does work on some level.

  Some of my favorite spots are:

  Grand Tetons

  Black Hills

  Outer Banks

  New York City

  Washington DC

  Seattle*

  San Diego

  Lancaster County, PA*

  Alaska

  *where my girls and their guys live 🙂

  Personally I think the best:

  1. way to see the USA is by car or train (on my bucket list)
  2. places to eat are where the locals eat and the local cuisine (within reason)
  3. places to stay are with family or friends

   

   

   

   

   

   

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged Facebook, little things, travel, travel thoughts

• Oh, this is random but…

  Posted at 8:07 pm by missannsays, on November 3, 2014

  

   

  1. The other day was my mum’s quarterly care meeting. She resides in an excellent long-term care facility near my sister. Last Tuesday wasn’t a day that I could travel in that direction, so I was conferenced called in on the meeting. Everything is status quo – mum’s health is stable, she is participating in some activities, she is a delight, so cooperative. All I could think of was the Bill Crosby skit about “this is not the woman I grew up with”. Towards the end of the meeting a staff member mentioned there was a little confusion recently. Oh! It seems that they kept trying to get my mum to fill out the absentee ballot to vote. She kept insisting she couldn’t vote.  She finally informed them she isn’t a citizen. Or as my brother always said “she is an alien.” If you are a citizen, please don’t forget to vote tomorrow.

   

  2. Today I spoke to a group of high school juniors and seniors from Connecticut at the Tribute Center. I actually spoke to two groups because it was 56 students and their chaperones so the group was divided in two.  The interesting thing that happens when I or any of the docents speak to groups in gallery 5 is that other visitors to the Tribute Center stand around and listen. After my first presentation as we were switching groups and I was instructing the students to sit on the floor (I was already sitting on the floor), something fell on the ground in front of me. It was a little pin that said Danish Firefighter. I glanced up and a man said “for you”.  I said to him “thank you for what you do everyday.” He nodded and left.

   

  3. After the second group, a woman came over to me and said “may I give you a hug”. She hugged me and then she said “I lost my son this year. Thank you for your words.” I looked at her and said “can I give you a hug.” We hugged. 🙂

   

  4. As far as fall television – I like “Madam Secretary” and “The Mysteries of Laura”.  Scandal is getting on my nerves and I gave up on “How To Get Away With Murder”. I may subscribe to HBO for the month of November to watch “The Newsroom.”

   

   

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged little things, random thoughts, randomness, television, telling the next generation

• the love of wonder

  Posted at 2:37 pm by missannsays, on November 1, 2014

  Recently, I read this poem by Samuel Ullman. May you also have “the love of wonder”.
  

  “Youth is not a time of life – it is a state of mind, it is a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over love of ease. Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years. People grow old only by deserting their ideals. Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, doubt, self-distrust, fear and despair – these are the long, long years that bow the head and turn the growing spirit back to dust. Whether they are sixteen or seventy, there is in every being’s heart the love of wonder, the sweet amazement at the stars and starlike things and thoughts, the undaunted challenge of events, the unfailing childlike appetite for what is to come next, and the joy and the game of life. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear, as young as your hope, as old as your despair. When the wires are all down and all the innermost core of your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then you are grown old indeed. But so long as your heart receives messages of beauty, cheer, courage, grandeur and power from the earth, from man and from the Infinite, so long you are young.

   

  

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged kid stuff, little things, randomness

• Oops! I picked the wrong battle.

  Posted at 1:46 pm by missannsays, on October 17, 2014

  

  This week after reviewing the lesson during children’s Bible quizzing, a student commented ” Well, Moses left and went back to Egypt but he killed his son.” I was totally confused and replied “what are you talking about? Moses didn’t kill his son. Moses killed an Egyptian” Child proceeded to inform me that in her Dad’s Bible it says Moses killed his son. I am totally confused so I ask “where did you read this?” Child reiterates with great authority that in her Dad’s Bible that she read in the car on the way to quizzing it said “Moses killed his son or wait maybe it was Zipporah who killed the son. Anyway someone killed the son”

  Now I was on a mission to prove to this child that her information was wrong. I checked the scripture references from our lesson – Exodus 4:1-21,27-31. As I glanced down the page I saw the verses that weren’t included in the lesson and began to read them aloud:

  Exodus 4:22-26 New International Version (NIV)

  ^22″ Then say to Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son, ²³ and I told you, “Let my son go, so he may worship me.” But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.’” – “This is talking about the plagues, remember the plagues.”

  ^24″ At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses^[a] and was about to kill him.” – “You know how sometimes, a friend or whoever pushes us to the limit. Well maybe that is how God felt.” To be honest this verse has always confused me.

  And then I started to read aloud the last verse and I realized where this is going. “Oh, my!! Maybe I should have let her believe that Moses killed his son. “

  ^25″ But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it.^[b] “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said. ²⁶ So the Lord let him alone.” 

  🙂

   

  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged following Jesus, kid stuff, little things, telling the next generation

• random use of imagination

  Posted at 6:13 pm by missannsays, on October 8, 2014

  As I headed into Manhattan yesterday, I heard on the radio the dreaded words “the President is in town”. Not something I wanted to hear when I was planning on quickly driving in, speaking to a school group, leading a tour for friends, having lunch and getting back in time to teach ballet at 4pm. All was going very well until after lunch. As I drove out of the parking garage, I realized there was an added police presence. I looked around to make sure if everything seemed okay. At first it wasn’t “clicking” but then oh, right! the president is in Tribeca. I could tell the NYPD were starting to get ready for the commander-in-chief to be moving around every intersection had police vehicles, uniformed officers and blue barricades.

  As I drove a little further north, the police were directing all south bound traffic off of West Street/12th Ave. They were definitely preparing for something. Then there were no more south bound traffic and motorcycles or random cars drove past me on the “other side going the same direction as me.” The police then started making every vehicle on my side turn right and off of West St/12th Ave but by the time I got to the front of the line they just made us stay where we were. The three blocks ahead of me were void of traffic and there were police vehicles across the road. The traffic lights kept cycling through green, yellow and red but we were not allowed to go. A few cars back, a few “clueless” people kept honking I wanted to jump out of my car and say “really”.

  The police “boss” person stationed officers on each corner because even with the barricades New Yorkers still squeezed through and crossed the street. I put my car in park, rolled down the windows and waited. I heard a helicopter overhead, saw a few more motorcycles, I glanced in my side mirror to catch a glimpse of the motorcade but nothing was coming.

  So, I started people watching. There was a person with what looked like a camp chair slung over his shoulder and suddenly I thought I hope that is really a chair as he started pulling out black pieces of piping. Looking in my rearview mirror, I realize there is a big white truck with three guys sitting in the front seat. As I am looking one guy jumps out. And then my imagination goes wild. I start thinking about recent headlines and the secret service not doing a perfect job but then I think don’t worry the NYPD will have it under control. I start thinking of every movie or television show where there has been an attempt on the President’s life. Now I am hyper vigilant and ready to throw myself under my dash-board if it goes bad. I am sure at any moment there are going to be explosions and gun fire. I am ready to put my hands up in the air and say I didn’t do anything. I am not even worried about being late to teach ballet. After about 5 minutes of a crazy imagined scene playing out in my head, the President’s motorcade finally goes wheezing by, little flags on front of the car waving, security people in vehicles looking scary but all is good and it was actually pretty cool.

  I told my daughter how I was getting all “nuts” and she commented “Mom, you watch too much Scandal!”

  Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments | Tagged little things, randomness

• How was your weekend?

  Posted at 4:42 pm by missannsays, on October 6, 2014

  My intention on Saturday morning was to leave the house a little earlier than I needed so I could get cash at the bank and then get gas. My car usually has at least a half a tank of gasoline in it. Mostly because whenever I drive to or through NJ I fill up the tank. Fuel in NJ is cheaper than NY and “they” pump it which is a major selling point for me. I hadn’t driven to or through NJ in the last few days so my gas gauge was registering at less than a quarter tank. I definitely didn’t want to purchase gas in my little hometown. It is too expensive typically gas is at least 50 cents a gallon more than anywhere else. Anyway I left the house a little later than planned and my gas tank was a little emptier than original thought but I realized I had $40 in cash so I could get “some” gas. The part you need to know is unless I get gas in town there won’t be another gas station for at least 10 miles in any direction. Nervously watching the gas gauge and hoping the “you need fuel” idiot light won’t blink on I headed out. No worries, it will be fine! Please, please may that be true. I pulled into the first station in NJ I came upon on my journey. I said “$40 cash, fill it regular.” I hadn’t looked how much it was a gallon so I glanced at the sign and was pleasantly surprised to see it was $2.95/gallon. Wow, I hadn’t seen that price in a long time. Guess what? at that price my tank was filled. The funny thing as I drove rest of the way to my destination and then home every other station’s prices were over $3.03. It was like a secret little Saturday morning surprise for me. 🙂

  On Sunday I posted it on Facebook ”

  “Apple picking, pumpkin picking and fall foliage bring many people to my area this time of year. Plus the first Sunday in October in Warwick, NY is Applefest. If you don’t know what Applefest is, think Time Square meets lovely quaint village for just one day as the Thanksgiving Day Parade is also happening. I am at the iPray/iThrist booth this morning.”

  Applefest is a craft fair, farmer’s market, art show, music event that brings lots and lots of people to Warwick, NY. It is a little difficult to be excited about Applefest due to traffic being horrific mostly because the roads are not equipped to handle the volume of traffic that descent on the area. Actually the streets are wide enough for the number of people walking around. My local church sponsors a booth that has a two-fold purpose. It is called iPray where we take prayer requests and/or prayer with you and we also have iThrist where we sell bottled water for $1 to raise money for building clean water wells around the world. I volunteered to help set up and “man” the booth for a few hours. My goal was get in and out before it got too crazy in Warwick but really two people I met were worth all the traffic and all the crazy.

  As a woman was writing her prayer request I asked “is there something I could pray for right now?” She responded “yes” and proceeded to tell me her request and then she said “the only reason I come to Applefest is you are here to take my prayer requests and pray with me.” Wow!! A little later another woman came over and wrote her request and I asked if I could pray with her. She has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. I briefly shared with her my breast cancer story and in further conversation realized we have the same doctor. We hugged as she left and I will be praying for her. All that said to say I helped at Applefest yesterday and missed church or did I?

  How was your weekend? Mine was good! 🙂

  Posted in daily life, faith | 0 Comments | Tagged cancer, little things, prayer, randomness

• The Star Spangled Banner

  Posted at 4:23 pm by missannsays, on September 14, 2014

  Today is the 200th birthday of the Star Spangled Banner. There is very interesting information to be found at http://amhistory.si.edu/starspangledbanner/. Whether I hear the Star Spangled Banner sung live at an event or on television, I always cry. It doesn’t have to be sung well. From the first notes my eyes are welling up then the goose bumps start and by the time the words “the land of the free and home of the brave” are sung I am “done.” I have the privilege of living in the “land of the free” but that freedom cost many men and women their lives. “Home of the brave” carries a new meaning for me because my hubby was one of New York “bravest”. Well done, Francis Scott Key!

   

   

  

  Posted in daily life, respect in the real world, September 11 | 0 Comments | Tagged little things, random thoughts, respect, September 11

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