One bright summer day we leave our tiny three room house in the Saw Mill Quarters walking the short distance from our backyard up the narrow dirt road toward the school. We round the slight curve past the church. Stop. Look both ways then, carefully cross the paved highway.

Happy for the play break, we hop skip and jump our way down the hill past Mr. Sam Gilmore’s big white house with the hurricane fence. Before long we reach the top of the hill singing and skipping past Mr. Hank & Mrs. Hannah Davis’ little green house. Or was it blue? Green, blue it doesn’t matter, we are glad as can be on our way to Mama Leona’s.

With tons of energy left to burn we pass the yellow and white "section-houses" where families that work for the railroad live. I wonder why they are called "section-houses". Is it because there are only three or four of them and they are located along a section of the railroad tracks for their employees to live in? Ummm...

We run lickety-split across the railroad-tracks and don’t stop until we reach the bottom of the steep little hill that runs along side the track, all the way across the huge open field toward Miss Lorene’s.

We’re now in Palmetto– Palmetto Quarters.

A short distance down the path Grandpa & Grandma Bluitt sit on the porch, rocking rhythmically in squeaky rocking chairs. Mr. Earl sits perched on the edge of the porch digging in the dirt with a stick. We are not really related to Grandpa and Grandma, that’s just what everybody calls them.

“Good evening, Grandpa,” we call out in unison. Grandpa nods with a grunt swaying steadily back and forth.

“Good evening, Grandma,” we shout. Grandma speaks back, interrupting her rocking long enough to spit a mouthful of snuff over the end of the porch.

A mere hop, skip and jump away, close enough to throw a rock, lives Mr. Henry (Grandpa and Grandma’s son) and his wife, Mrs. Bertha. No sign of them today, so we don’t have to dilly-dally around speaking politely and making nice. There’s one last hill to climb to Mama Leona’s.

We scurry quickly up the final winding hill, through the tree-lined rut-filled trail to Aunt Mary Jane & Mr. Clyde Addison’s. With Aunt Mary Jane being a whopper of a mouthful to say, we chop it down to a manageable bite-sized “Ant-Mae-Jane.”

Around the bend and finally, we arrive at Mama Leona’s.

“Hey, Mama Leona, we’re here,” we shout, loud enough for her to hear from her seat in the living room. Before we reach the first step, she’s out the door, standing on the porch with her hands planted firmly on her hips.

“You mean y’all passed by Grandpa and Grandma’s and didn’t speak to Mr. Earl? Just get your little behinds right on back down that hill and speak to Mr. Earl like you’re supposed to. And, don’t ever do that again or you’re all going to get it! Now go!” She demanded in her no-non-sense, not-to-be-questioned voice.

 

 

Being Depressed, Stressed, or Alone

Doing Drugs or Drinking

Watch a sunset ~ Watch a happy video ~ Smell a flower ~ Draw a picture ~ Take a bubble bath ~ Look at old photos ~ Listen to music ~ Create something new ~ Go to the zoo ~ Learn something new ~ Read a good book ~ Collect something, rocks, seashells, stamps ~ Learn the names of the stars and planets ~ Get together with friends ~ Play games ~ Enjoy a hobby ~ Play a sport ~ Smile ~ Make someone else smile ~ Finish what you start ~ Solve a riddle ~ Jump rope ~ Gather seashells ~ Whistle a tune ~ Feed old bread crumbs to birds ~ Read a poem ~ Fly a kite ~ Do a favor ~ Surprise someone ~ Play catch ~ Join a club ~ Sing ~ Give a hug ~ Get a hug ~ Talk to friends ~ Wish on a star ~ Run through a sprinkler ~ Go camping ~ Do a jigsaw puzzle ~ Memorize a song ~ Help a friend in need ~ Build a sand castle ~ Find a home for a stray animal ~ Do good deeds ~ Have lemonade on a hot day ~ Blow bubbles ~ Dance ~ Exercise ~ Climb a tree ~ Run through a field of wild flowers ~ Volunteer ~ Tickle a baby's tummy ~ Play with your pet ~ Cheer someone up ~ Roll in the grass ~ Snuggle a stuffed animal ~ Swing on a swing ~ Eat ice cream ~ Walk barefoot in the sand ~ Play with a little kid ~ Do Cartwheels ~ Go bird watching ~ Give a gift ~ Play some hoops ~ Kiss a parent ~ Learn how to juggle ~ Watch the clouds ~ Start a garden ~ Learn a language ~ Play an instrument ~ Go fishing ~ Make a gift ~ Hike ~ Set your goals ~ Phone a friend ~ Have a picnic ~ Think happy thoughts ~ Ride a bike ~ Watch the ocean ~ Write to friends ~ Do your best ~ Count your blessings ~ Make a poster ~ Make someone laugh ~ Improve your score ~ Listen to birds ~ Learn to cook ~ Skip rocks into a lake ~ Play in the park ~ Go swimming ~ Window shop ~ Care for plants ~ Keep a promise ~ Trade cards ~ Do magic tricks ~ Make a model ~ Go Bowling ~ Keep a journal ~

Photograph things you love ~ Do better than the last time ~ Brighten someone's day ~

What is your favorite thing to do instead of...?

I will add them to the next list.

For weeks now the front yard and especially the driveway has been a solid mess. Pinecone pieces cover almost every inch of space, like brown snow. In a way, it doesn't make sense to clean it up because it will be right back within a matter of hours. But then, can't just leave it. It looks awful and it gets tracked into the house, which is another mess altogether.

More...

I firmly believe that all children should have the best education possible. That means teaching the basics - from the beginning. In my opinion, the most disturbing and destructive problem facing today's children is this new fangled idea of "teaching-to-state-mandated-tests". It has been from its inception and will continue to be detrimental to children's academic success. Call me crazy if you want, but I know that if children are taught the basics early and correctly they will be able to pass any test thrown at them.

Before I get too far off on a tangent, let me jump down from my self-righteous "high-horse" and get to the point. This Newsweek article lists our nation's top schools and provides supporting evidence of their status as quality schools.

The Article lists this year's top 100 high schools today, it shows that those with fewer students are flourishing. It also states that fifty years ago, they were the latest thing in educational reform: big, modern, suburban high schools with students counted in the thousands. As baby boomers came of high-school age, big schools promised economic efficiency, a greater choice of courses, and, of course, better football teams. Only years later did we understand the trade-offs this involved: the creation of lumbering bureaucracies, the difficulty of forging personal connections between teachers and students. SAT scores began dropping in 1963; today, on average, 30 percent of students do not complete high school in four years, a figure that rises to 50 percent in poor urban neighborhoods. While the emphasis on teaching to higher, test-driven standards embodied . . . Read more

According to the article, Public schools are ranked according to a ratio devised by Jay Mathews: the number of Advanced Placement, Intl. Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school in 2007 divided by the number of graduating seniors. Read more

Too many links? Oops, sorry. This is important.

Hi to all of you and how are you today? I'm getting a late late start here and in the time it will take me to come visit you all and comment, it will be even later. I wanted you all to know I'm thinking of you. I will come by your place as soon as my fingers can click and my sometimes blurry 4-eyes can manage.

 

Hi and happy Friday to, JoAnn, Caroldee, RamblingOn, Cindy, Sarita, Life Cruiser, Queen of the Castle, Rissa, Patricia, Patche, Teresa, Sherri Cov., and Burrwood. Hi to Writers Ink and Phyllis Turner also. Hi to my new friend Flo. I will see you all later.

 

And, hi to you, Jordyn and Shortie2tall. Hope things are going well.

 

Hi and happy Friday to Kay, Lin, Jo, Mare, Petula W., and Mom/Caryn, my blogging friends at blogger. I'll see you all later.

 

Happy Friday and have a good and fun weekend.

 

dellgirl

1. The bandage was wound around the wound.

2. The farm was used to produce produce.

3. The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse

4. We must polish the Polish furniture.

5. He could lead if he would get the lead out.

6. The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.

7. Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.

8. A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

9. When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

10. I did not object to the object.

11. The insurance was invalid for the invalid.

12. There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.

13. They were too close to the door to close it.

14. The buck does funny things when the does are present.

15. A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.

16. To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.

17. The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18. After a number of injections my jaw got number.

19. Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.

Tonight: Partly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms until late night...then cloudy with showers and thunderstorms likely late. Some thunderstorms may be severe early in the evening. Some thunderstorms may produce heavy rainfall late. Lows in the upper 70s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph in the evening becoming north 10 to 15 mph with gusts to around 30 mph after midnight. Chance of rain 30 percent in the evening increasing to 60 percent after midnight.