Today, I am thankful for...#2

Today, I am thankful for:

Ripe peaches

HD television

Spencer Tracy

Wow, where did those peaches come from? About $6#?

Thankful for the little bit of rain we're having today. So much in Dec and none since.

Today, I am thankful that I will be allowed to keep a few bee hives where I live and for the DG Beekeeping forum. ~Nadine~

Forecasters now saying its going to be even colder than they thought--lows at or below 10 degrees with wind chills below zero. High on Tuesday about 21. Not normal North Central Texas weather AT all. So much for La Nina. :-(

Given the anticipated extreme cold, I am soooooo thankful today:

That I was able to get home early enough to:
Get a load of laundry done
Get the container plants inside (a first for me)
Cover the outside faucets
Cover the inground annuals
Before dark and while it was still in the 60s

That my sister will get her central heat fixed tomorrow. Those space heaters ain't gonna be near enough to keep them all warm this week.

That the kitchen has enough supplies for me and the dogs to not have to wade through the weather-panic lines at Kroger. :-)

Okay, so it's all about the weather for me today, one-track minded. But that's okay, I'm good with it. LOL

I am thankful that the snow will pass north of us, we will get some rain , but that will be good for the pansies.

Debra, This winter mess is going to slam about half the country. So most of us are intrested.I'm all ready for it. We are predicted to get thunder storms,ice,sleet,and snow. If we get ice, We'll lose power.Ready for that too. Think I'll pretend i'm an eskamo and figure out how to teach my dogs and cats to pull a sleigh.LOL Miss Kitty would have to be the lead dog/cat. She don't take orders too well.
Do you all take Daves Letter. In todays is a great article about Katiebears Baja and cacti.(Not by Katie)
Nadine, You'll be doing a service to your country. Bees have really had a bad time lately.We need them.
I am thankful for candles,oil lamps,Propane,a full pantry,and warm house.

Debra, I though of your comment about the lines at the stores when you had snow/cold weather predicted a couple weeks ago when I saw this Facebook post from my sister in Dallas:
Went to Walmart at 8:15 tonight.
They were out of carts and each line about 10 person deep and everyone with full cart!
Did I miss something? How many days are we suppose to have bad weather? One maybe two not a week people!!!!!

Let me add: Stock up in October, people - there are a lot of supplies (de-icing salt, candles, batteries) and dry good foods that are not going to go bad. That is not directly said to DG folks, who seem to have more sense.

Glad you guys are all ready for cold, see tornado forecasts too for the south. I am watching the videos on the weather channel (weather.com). There is one with home videos from OK & TX showing the "thundersnow" storm from last night/this AM. Keep warm buddies. And the evil me just has to add this, our weather forecast is colder than normal and we have low 62 expected today. Bad me.

Warm slippers.

I am thankful to be getting my parking tag from the VA so I can use the parking spaces closer to the store. My wheelchair isn't motorized.
Prayers for everyone who is being hammered by this storm. I saw some inspiring footage on the weather channel of some people who were rescuing other people and animals that were in trouble because of the storm. The miniature pony making a snow angel was a treat, too. We are having tornado watches, off and on, meaning conditions are right for the formation of tornadoes, but I haven't heard any tornado WARNINGS so far which means a fully formed tornado has been spotted. Just heavy thunder storms for us. (Jim)

Quilty, you are so right. Stock up early.

Cool, Jim. :-)
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Today, I am thankful to have warm heat and hot soup.

I am thankful my sister and her grandlings are warm and safe.

I am thankful my staff heeded advice and stayed home today. Know it is hard with some of them with no more PTO and having a short check, but better than being out for days or weeks from injury. :-) The boss didn't pay attention, but he is from Chicago and thinks that experience applies down here. Have I said before he's pigheaded and arrogant? :-)

I'm thankful for Big income tax refunds .
We used AARP's free tax service yesterday and am delighted with the knowledge of the volunteers .No questions , just come in and we'll do them . No age limit,it's for Everyone .Thankful for the friend that had used them before and put me on them .Don't have to be a member either , no age limit and E-file too ! (They don't do state returns.) No limit on the difficulty of the return either .
Thankful for the big , nationwide tax preparer that will do my state file this morning for 39.00 . (can only E-file one time, that went for federal )
Thankful that I might save some of my D G friends some big money by passing this along .
Thankful that we're not in the worst of this cold chill that's got the nation in it's grip .
Hugs , Sally

Hold up Sally, wait a couple days and you too may join 'the Weather". At least that is what the Weather Channel showed this AM for as far south as Houston for Thur or Fri.

Today I am thankful for my parents moving us to CA from WI some 50 years ago this month (wait, that make me....., oh, forget it). Do miss the green of the midwest, but not the white.

I am thankful for our heater, even here. And thankful my DG friends can stay comfy as I know there must be so many out there truly suffering in this cold.

Todaaaaaaay

I am sooooo verrrrrry thankful I remembered to pay the utility bills. :-)

I am thankful the rolling power outages at the office, my house, and my sister's house were brief (some homes have been with out power all day).

I am thankful for tomato soup and Cheez-Its.

Tomato soup sounds good. I am so thankful all my fiends are safe. Just talked to my Nephew in Arp Texas. He said they've (The powers that be) been turning the electricity off for 15 min at a time to keep from having a brown out. He is not a happy camper.
Am in the process of paying my February bills. I may even get to mail them in a day or two.Thankful I'm able to pay them. This weather is really going to hurt people,who're already hurt by the economy.
We've got ice on the trees but no limbs have broken. Our state highway is still icy in spots. Our road is a solid sheet of ice. My cats have cabin fever and are pestering me for attention.
Walking in the ice is out as my cane can't find a grip anywhere.
Everyone stay warm and safe.
Vickie

Q G , it's very cold here , wind off the water, lost tropicals ,but at least we don't have the white stuff . A few flurries maybe , that's all.
Thankful I sold the house in southern Ark .and could get this mobile home 13 hours further south

Cando, do they make a cane with a tripod type bottom that can have spikes added to the bottom for weather such as this? They make horse shoes (sorry, not comparing you to a horse, lol) that have spikes. They use those for winter trail rides at the Grand Canyon. My dad learned, long time ago, in Dallas to wear his golf cleats when there is light ice as it breaks it up to gain a more secure footing. But now, in his early 80's and having had a face first landing on his daily 3 mile walk last year (summer, no ice), he only takes his daily walks on the grass at the golf course.

Today I am thankful for Facebook and being able to keep up with my family in the freeze zone (Dallas, St Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati). The TX folks are talking about snow on Friday and again on Mon/Tues. Wonder what all this is doing to Super Bowl fans?

I am grateful that the plants that had brown dead leaves from our less than 30 degree nights in Nov & Dec are coming back. Pretty purple Petunia blooms and even a couple Gerbera Daisy blooms. It got down to 20's again last night, but we are not having a week of it like in Dec. Then, again, our days warm up to somewhere between high 50's (when everyone complains about how cold it is) to mid 80's (last week).

I am thankful for Facebook, too! I have family all over the country!!!

I am thankful that for some reason, DH took two days off from work. Still no shelves.

I am thankful my sister's central heat was replaced today. No more space heaters and open-door on the oven.

I am thankful for silk thermals.

I am thankful for mini bags of microwave popcorn.

I have a metal cane with the tripod bottom,but my favorite one is the wood cane.Don't even know where the metal one is.
The diehard football fans will go to Dallas if they have to go pony express.LOL I'll be watching on TV with hot chocolate,popcorn and peanutbutter cookies.
I could'nt find any maple syrup at Christmas so i wont have any maple syrup snow cream.
I am thankful for flannel gowns and marshmellows roasted over a candle.
Vickie

Happy New Year, Everyone! According to the Chinese lunar calendar, it is now the Year of the Metal Rabbit. I’ve made appropriate resolutions. I will eat a diet that includes lots of “rabbit food” and remember to take my iron :-)
Today I am grateful my godfather knows how to sew. I am attempting to make stuffed toys and he has been able to solve all my sewing machine problems so far. It’s a little embarrassing that a man can sew better than I can, but his mother was a professional seamstress who worked from home. I choose to believe it is his experience and not my lack of skill.
I am thankful for Facebook, as well. Visually impaired people find it hard to navigate with their adaptive computer equipment so I make a little extra money as their Facebook secretary. :-) I think Facebook is still easier to navigate than the others of its kind.
I'll have to check out mini bags of microwave popcorn. I'm not very happy with the taste of air popped. Portion control might work as well as reducing calories.
Vickie, I hope it is that you've just had a craving for roasted marshmellows and not that roasted marshmellows are a snack you can make when the power is out.
Hoping everyone stays warm and dry. (Excessive rain is becoming a problem in some places in the south.) ~Nadine~

I thankful that is only raigning, but it is getting cold, also thakful for lemon zinger tea, it shure taste good .

Thankful the snow was dry powder.

Thankful for that big ol' gas-sucking 6,000 pound empty weight 2003 Ford Expedition. It got me safely to work and back like a champ (Not only is the Prius too low to the ground for this much snow, but the braking system is squirrely on wet pavement).

Thankful we had enough food in the office kitchen to cobble together a lunch for everyone who showed up.

Hah, silk thermals? I am thankful for washable smartwool long underwear. It costs a fortune, the moths love it too, but it's the only thing keeping me warm these days.

I'm thankful for my education, for all the useless crap I know, like the little bit of HTML code to make italics.

Thankful my DIL spoils my son and he is a devoted family man . Thankful my grandkids are responsible , professionals. So thankful spouses are close to their families and my own family are close and loving to each other .
Thankful for leftovers , to save me cooking tonight.
Thankful that Linny trusted me to be her beloved Rustys new mom .
Thankful that taxes are filed.Decent health,My bestest friend and I met, my DG friend in Scotland, I met on D G. So many blessings !A DH that doesn't question how I spend his money.Edit that , OUR money .lol

Carrie, we are so rarely really cold that the only wool I have is one cashmere scarf and one wool blend cardigan. Remind me of this week if I start complaining of heat long 'bout the end of July. :-)
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Thankful to live in this country. Had opportunities for several trips outside the US. Ireland, Sydney, Wales, London. All were great fun, all were comfortable and familiar feeling (language)--and all reinforced how lucky I am to have been born American.

Thankful to have slept under a dogpile the last few nights. Guess they were cold, too. :-)

Thankful to have so many people willing to share their reasons to be thankful. :-D

I just love roasting marshmellows over a candle. Must be that march to a different drummer thing.
We are still snowed in. The temp is getting up in the upper 30,s tomorrow so DD and i are going to make a try to town. There is only one part of our road still iced and that is our part. So there should be no problems and we'll be careful. I've run out of piezza,the only comfort food i want now. I wake up in the mornings with 3 cats and a little dog on top of me.
This morning i also had bird feathers everywhere. I hate it but cats are cats.
I'm thankful for the spring around the corner thoughts. And the book by Jean Aual,The Valley of the Horses. and unshelled pecans my neighbor gave me. We're getting more snow and ice also. Looking forward to the football game tomorrow.
Vickie

Thankful that the super glue tube I accidentally superglued to my finger only took off a few layers of skin. LOL

Thankful that the sun was shining all day today. I missed it. (Might need someone to remind of that when it is 105 degrees in mid-August. :-)

Thankful that I have sufficient clean clothes to wait one more day for the pipes to thaw enough to do laundry.

Thankful that Debra got her fingers unstuck. Really! People have ended up in hospital emergency rooms with body parts stuck together by super glue. I am thankful I manage to use the hot glue gun without burning myself even a little. I think that is a first for me.
I'm thankful that I found out that azaleas and oleanders aren't good for bees before it became a problem. And, that no one around here is particularly attached to either so I will be able to dig them up and find new homes for them. ~N~

Thankful for the PACKERS WIN!!!!

Debra, do you have to keep the water at a drip to keep pipes from bursting? When my family moved to Dallas, my Dad was surprised that new home builders did not put the pipes deeper. He leaves them at a drip and leaves the cabinet doors open to help against them freezing. With so many days recently of icy cold, don't know if that is enough.

Sansai - if they are not good for bees, are you saying they are bad for bees? To hot, sunny and dry here for azaelas, but oleanders can run rampant. Mine must be the only ones in So California that are not thriving.

I guess I should have said oleander isn't good for beekeepers. Bees that forage on oleander can produce a honey that is toxic to humans. I didn't read anything about adverse effects on the bees themselves, however. There is no part of oleander that isn't poisonous to us. It is such a pretty and easy care plant, that is a shame. I'm going to miss ours.
I’m a newbeee :-) so I'm still doing a lot of research. There are some plants that ARE actually toxic to the bees. There is a list of some of the worst offenders on The Back Forty Blog:
http://homesteadingthebackforty.blogspot.com/2008/06/bee-garden-plant-list-good-and-toxic.html
I am thankful Mama Kay is willing to give up the Yellow Jessamine. It is one of her favorite fragrant plants. I will have to find something equally fragrant that blooms early in spring that doesn't badly affect the honey. My godfather is willing to give up his mountain laurel. (It makes bitter honey that is toxic in large amounts. I am thankful bees don’t have a problem with Rose of Sharon. Those are his absolute favorite flower. I don’t know if I could have talked him into giving up those. No matter how much honey I promised him. ~N~

Vickie,
I open the cabinets. The house is 70 years old and, so far, seems to do okay if I'm careful. Along with shallow pipes, we don't have basements, either. Just storm cellars. Maybe because of the soil? Dunno.

Nadine,
aren't you glad there are manymanymany more plants that good for bees than the other? :-) I'm trying to only get plants that attract butterflies, bees, or hummingbirds. And don't need a lot of water. Surprising amount of pretty stuff fits those parameters.

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Today, thanks are given because:

My laundry pipes are thawed--just in time for Round 2 of ice and snow come Wednesday.

Watched one whole entire hour of "Unwrapped" episodes on chocolattttttteeee tonight and I have NOT run right down to the store to get a whole entire box of chocolate cupcakes to devour immediately--now that is some serious restraint.

There is a strong vacuum at the office--Sweet Pea is in an all-out, face-mask needed, coat blowing stage. If I could catch it and weave it, I could wear it myself!

Debra, Want some catnip starts, If i ever see bare ground again. Bees love it.Hummers love morning glorys,Butterflys seem to love everything,at least at my house.
I need to go back to town tomorrow before the storm hits tomorrow night. Forgot to get my meds and have a doctors appontment.
Still have snow cover. Just discovered ,Living on a mountain top can have drawbacks.Would'nt live anywhere else tho. Am still thankful i live on top of a mountain. Also thankful for the snow break tomorrow to be able to go into town.
Thankful Greenbay won. Am thankful i live now and not 10,000 years ago. Thankful i can simply push a button and light comes on.

I'm thankful for your catnip, Vickie. (I'm almost sure it was you who sent DW the seeds. They've done better than the plant we bought from the nursery.
I am thankful for SUNSHINE!!! I was beginning to wonder if the sun still existed. I haven’t seen it in so long.
I am thankful for a wife who can be made happy easily and affordably. I can buy her a few plants on sale or a package of seeds and she thinks I’m a sweetheart.
I am especially grateful for a productive work day that was relatively pain free. (Jim)

Thankful for warm cotton towels

Thankful for sensitive teeth toothpaste

Thankful for the sunshine break between snowstorms. Another one coming overnight.

Today, I'm thankful for 3 cats who like to sleep near me.

I'm thankful that the bad stuff is staying up your way Debra, Sorry your not down here with us tho it's going to be cold the next two nights. It's already gotten most of my tropicals , sooo, I'm not going to replant any of them . Too expensive and traumatic .

Thankful that there is such a thing as COGNITIVE RETRAINING - I have to do a lot more investigating, though.

Thankful that I found the one remaining box of missing wool sweaters, or did I already say that? Boy, Debra, without wool, the wool moths and I couldn't make it through winter. It's always a race to see who benefits more.

Today, I'm thankful for the good laughs I got here. ^_^

Hey, who turned down the thermostat again in "the big blue room" and painted it gray?
I'm thankful to share a space with people who aren't too fussy or who, at least, can take the long view of things. I've been painting and doing little household improvements since I can't do much outside. This means the house is chaotic. Stove pulled out into the middle of the kitchen and stuff like that. It will be nicer eventually. Right now the house looks like a construction site just when everyone is wanting to stay inside. But, everyone is weaving and ducking through the house good naturedly. (Jim)