My Birthday Tree, One Year Old Now! (should I give it a name?)

Last year about this time, I went to North Carolina to visit my son, David and his wife Suzi and their kids, Abby and Tyler.  When I got there, Suzi and I decided to go on an impromptu trip to Charleston SC since neither of us had been there and we know/hoped that they would only be in North Carolina for another year. 

When we were in Charleston, we did a tour of the city and I found a tree there that was in bloom and I fell in love with it. 

Sweet Suzi and the kids in Charleston

Lunch at Bubba Gumps

  It is a flowering peppermint peach tree and it is GORGEOUS!!!  The blossoms were beautiful but they also had 4-5 different colors of blossoms on one tree!  I have never seen anything like it. 

My first glimpes of this AMAZING  tree- the flowering peppermint peach tree!

When we got back to our hotel, I did a search on the tree and found that it was “zoned” to grow in zones 6-10.  Well, fantastic, Arizona is Zone 9, so I knew I had to get one.  Well, I did.  I ordered one for my Birthday present from my husband and son.  They were relieved not to have to go shopping for me (hehehe).  I had to order one since there weren’t any in the Phoenix area.  I got it from Willis Orchards in Georgia.  It came, I planted it, and the wait began! (http://www.willisorchards.com/product/Peppermint+Flowering+Peach?category=280 )

Well, it has been almost a year and my first blossoms are out!  It was so exciting and beautiful.  I have literally been out talking to my tree for the entire year, coaxing it through the long hot AZ summer (I did put a shade clothe over it for some of the hottest months), kept it company throughout the COLD winter (yes it is cold for me!) and now I have my reward!  Just look at these “baby” blossoms! 

so precious!

the magenta blossom

all together

My tree just starting to get it's blossom and leaves! 

I hope everyone that comes by and sees it will want one and plant it so all of Mesa will have these beautiful trees everywhere! 

I do know that they are prone to fungus, at least that is what I have read, but I am willing to baby this tree because it is worth it for even 3-4 weeks of these beautiful blossoms! 

I found this picture on the internet and the tree is approximately 20 years old. 

Spread the word about this tree! 

The Perfect Journal Suggestion-easy and fun!

I love catalogs!  Well, not every catalog but there are a few that I love to get and look through.  I am basically a sucker when there is ANYTHING dealing with Shakespeare, Jane Austen, books, gardening supplies and grandkids stuff. 

One of my favorite catalogs is Bas Bleu (pronounced: bä blu͂ ).  I recently found something in there last catalog that I found very intriguing.  It is a 5 year journal.  Now you may ask, what is so different about this?  The difference is that this one has a different question on each day and all you have to do is answer the question.  In answering that question, you are able to record little snippets of your life that when finished with the 5 years, you will have recorded quite a bit of information about your life! 

Some of the questions are:  “When did you last hold a baby”, “describe the room you are in right now”, “where do you go for good ideas”, and “how could today have been better”.  Some of the questions are quite thought provoking that I have found it hard to fit the answers in the allotted room of the page. 

I have tried several types of methods of journaling before but without long-term success because I feel it is important for various reasons.  The first reason is that it is good for me to be able to look aback and remember things that happened to me in my life that may not have been “momentous”, but worth remembering, that I would have otherwise forgotten.  Another reason is that someday, some of my posterity may be interested in what I was like or did during my life.  Not that I have done anything wonderful, but I have loved ready stories left by my ancestors and wished there were more.  Just reading about their everyday life is interesting because it was so different from how I live. 

Click here to go to their web site if you think this is a product you may be interested in.

Let me know if you have found an easy way to journal that works for you also.  So far I have been doing this for 2 weeks and that is the longest I have kept a journal regularly since I started trying to keep a journal 36 years ago!  Happy journaling! 

The Hunger Games-May the odds be ever in your favor!

 

Three of my daughters (well, technically one is a daughter in-law but she is a daughter to me), had been after me for at least 2 years to read the book The Hunger Games. After hearing the premise of the story, I was surprised that they would think I would enjoy it. The thought of reading a book where, in a future world, in the country of Panem (formally the USA) and food is scarce, 12 districts (kind of like Provinces) were forced to enter 2 or their children between the ages of 12-18 years old in a competition the “Capitol” called the hunger games each year. In this competition the 24 kids would kill each other in a “themed” arena, in order to win the coveted price of extra food for their district for the next year and a few other perks and prizes. These hunger games had been going on for the past 73 years.
Now for someone who loves a happy ending and will READ the ending before starting a book to make sure it is happy, I just couldn’t see how it would be possible to have a happy ending in this book! I found out I was TOTALLY WRONG!!!!!

I have never read a more exciting book, but I will warn you, make sure you start it when you have a lot of free time because once you finish the first one you will HAVE to read the 2 sequels, Catching Fire and Mockingjay. I am glad I finally read them after all three books were out because I couldn’t have waited 1 ½ -2 years in between the books. They are insanely exciting!

To the book- As mentioned above, the 12 districts were ruled over with an iron fist by the “Capitol” with their peacekeepers. Each district specializes in producing something the Capitol needs to survive. For example, District 3 produce general electronics, Four-fishing, Seven-Lumber, Eleven-Agriculture, and Twelve-mining, just to name a few.

There had been 13 Districts at one time but District 13 rebelled and started a Civil war and after the Capitol beat them, they were destroyed and the Capitol initiated the hunger games as a reminder to all the other Districts that they, the Capitol, are in control.

That is all background information that you find out in the first 2-3 chapters while we are also introduced to Katniss Everdeen from District 12 on the day of the reaping, which is the name of the occasion when each year the districts pick out the next 2 kids that will play in the hunger games. This year will be the 74th hunger games. Katniss has snuck out of the electric fenced in district to go to the woods to hunt, (which is forbidden), to try to calm her thoughts before the reaping begins that afternoon. Once the District inhabitants are assembled in the square for the drawing, the action of the story never lets up until the last sentence of the book.

Please read these books! They are very well written and have a lot of great lessons in them for kids! I wish I could go into more of the story but I don’t want to ruin any of the excitement for you. There are many great characters, like, Gale Hawthorne, who is Katniss’ best friend and hunting partner, Peeta Mellark, Effie Trinket, Hamish Abernathy, and many, many more. The author even is able to fit in a sweet little romance if you can imagine that in this book! Read it before the movie comes out next spring. I can hardly wait for it! Luckily, I can re-read the books to tide me over until is does. Enjoy the 74th hunger games and “May the odds be ever in your favor!"

Can We Create a New Non-Offending Hand Gesture?!?!

Has this ever happened to you…you are driving along and someone does something that is stupid, dangerous or just rude to you?  What can you do to let them know when the usual hand signal is also offensive to you and you would NEVER consider using it?  What can a person do when they are extremely frustrated by the driving skills or behavior of another person and they want to let them know by making some sort of hand gesture, HOWEVER, the usual hand gesture that is used by the more crude and uneducated of our society is also the wrong thing to do? 

I think we need to come up with a new proper hand gesture or signal that will let idiots know that we all know they are idiots BUT is a cultured and proper way.  I have thought long and hard about this.  Some have been shown to me occasionally when I have been…let’s say, less than attentive when driving and they get the message across without being crude and offensive.  So I have been trying to decide what the best “polite” hand gesture should be and start teaching the world some new manners beginning with this. 

One option would be, elbows bent, both hands out to your sides, shoulders shrugged and a look of “what in the world do you think you are doing” type of expression on your face.  This however could be dangerous if you are driving since it is a 2 handed gesture.  This could work if you have a passenger that is the designated “signer” that would interpret what you are saying and then sign it to the perpetrator of the offense. 

Another option is to try to communicate to them as to what they should have done in order to help them in the future when faced with the same situation.  However, this may take longer than is necessary and if it is a person of a certain gender, they don’t take direction from ladies very well. 

The next one I thought of was trying to find out from someone who knows American Sign Language how to sign, “Where are your brains”?  Maybe this can be done with one hand, but usually, sign language is so beautiful when it is being done correctly that the person may think you are saying something nice, unless you are making a very angry face while signing.  Here again though, it may take too much effort when you are trying to still drive correctly and responsibly while trying to improve conditions in the world around you. 

The last idea I had which seems the most direct and efficient would be to do the old, twirling of the finger up by your temple, thus let them know you think they are crazy and shouldn’t be driving.  This would be effective if it wasn’t used so much already to signify stupidity is almost every other area of life.  No, we need something just for idiot drivers and I am still at a loss as to how best to let them know what I think of them.  Until I can come up with something, I will continue to yell at them in my car where they will never hear a thing I say, and maybe that is safer for all involved. 

I Now Know Who John Galt Is!!!

First, let me say, Atlas Shrugged  by Ayn Rand, was not a book that I would have read on my own accord.  I was stressed out enough in the sixth installment of the Harry Potter books, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, when Professor Umbridge took over the school and kept adding new policies and directives. 

So, a book about the Government usurping power from the people of America was just too frightening and in my opinion too relevant in today’s world.   

However, the book was recommended to me by my friend Kim, as a gift idea for my husband, who is impossible to buy gifts for, but he is a news junkie. 

Kim, on our trip in Belgium

He is one of these people that if he wants something, he buys it(if we have the money), and so there is never a “wish list” for me when it comes to birthdays, and Christmas.  It is very frustrating but…that is a topic for another blog. 

Anyway, Bruce, my husband, commutes between 80-90 miles a day to work so he listens to many podcasts while in the car.  So a book on CD was really a perfect gift idea.  It would take weeks to listen to all 50 CD’s!  Well, he still hasn’t listened to it; another gift bites the dust… (again, rants for that other blog post). 

To justify the money spent on yet another ignored gift (can you tell I am bitter?), I adopted the cd’s and began listening to it.  I was immediately hooked into the story of Dagny Taggart, the strong but still feminine businesswoman, and the Taggart Transcontinental Railroad Company. 

The characters were very 3 dimensional for me also. Actually, the one character that was the LEAST 3 dimensional was John Galt.   Maybe it was because he was in the shadows for most of the book so he wasn’t as developed as the other characters were, like, the ingenious Hank Reardon, pathetic Jim Taggart, devoted Eddie Willers, and the nauseating Wesley Mouch, and the others that we interacted with regularly.  But despite that, it was the characters that got me emotionally involved in their lives.  

Again, I wonder if this is because of the political climate of today and you could put real faces to the fictional names in the story, but it made the story very engrossing and I looked for opportunities to get in my car just so I could listen to it.  Luckily it was before the awful jump in the gas prices. 

I marveled at how, no matter what the government threw at businesses to take more power and initiative away from them, Dagny was able to find a way to work around it.  I also found it ironic that it was a woman who didn’t give up when all the businessmen did. 

Ayn Rand

I wonder if Ayn Rand felt she was being a bit sexist in making Dagny the last holdout in fighting against the government, or maybe just giving women more of the power she felt they deserved in the ‘50s when this was published. 

SPOILER ALERT!!!  I did have to borrow the book from Kim so I could read the ending a few times to reassure myself that the “people” would prevail over the government because I got very discouraged at times by all the power that the government was able to usurp from the businesses and the individuals that created and ran them. 

There were a couple of points in the book that seemed a bit implausible to me, the first was the "refractor waves".  I am not a scientist so I don’t know if “refractor waves” really do what the book says they do, but either way, it was still very entertaining.  The other point was who Dagny ended up “being with” in the end.  I won’t name names but she had much more passion for the first two men in her life, than the one she decided to stay with at the conclusion, but at least it was a happy ending. 

I highly recommend this book to EVERYONE, no matter what side of the political fence you are on.  I don’t know if it would change anyone’s mind in what policies they think are right or wrong but, it did really made me think about the world we live in today and what could possibly happen in the future if we stay on the same path we are on now. 

"What is that you read, my Lord? Words, words, word. (Hamlet a2s2)

A word can hold so many pictures for the imagination.

I love reading books that use words so well that I can see a picture in my mind just from the descriptive words I read. A few months ago I signed up with the web-site, dictionary.com, to get a new “word a day” sent to me by email. I love learning new words, especially if they are interesting. I have started saving some of my favorite words, hopefully, for someday when I write a book and I can use them. Here are a few of the words that I have really liked:


Acedia: laziness or indifference in religious matters

Nitid: bright, lustrous

Kenspeckle: easily seen or recognized

And there are many more. However, one of my favorite words that I have learned is “evanescence” and it means; a gradual disappearance, or the state of becoming imperceptible. Isn’t that a beautiful word?

I can see using it in some type of fairy story, or a mystery maybe.

Another of my favorite words comes from one of my favorite Shakespeare plays.

In Henry V, act 4 scene 4, the King is praying the night before the battle of Agincourt with the French. In this prayer, he says this:

…But, like a lackey, from the rise to set

Sweats in the eye of Phoebus and all night

Sleeps in Elysium;…

It is the word “Elysium”. I wondered what it meant to “sleep in Elysium”. It sounds wonderful. Just from the context of the word, it sounds like a deep, peaceful, and restful sleep. So I looked it up and it means: A place or condition of ideal happiness. Now, knowing the definition, it makes being able to “sleep in Elysium” sound even more wonderful.

Even now, I find myself, after a rare night of solid sleep without my crazy dreams that I have regularly, waking up to the thought of this night I slept in Elysium. Doesn’t that sound so much more beautiful than to say you had a good night’s sleep?

So my challenge to all of you is to start using more frabjous words to describe our lives!

Taxes That We Can Be Happy With!!!

So I think I have a solution to how much we as Americans should pay in taxes that seems fair to me. Let me clarify, I think taxes are WAY too high as it is and that the Government WASTES a lot of our tax dollars but I don’t think they can come up with a solution so I have come to their rescue.

The Democrats want to tax more, and the Republicans want to cut spending but can’t decide where to cut, so here is my plan.


Step 1: I think we, the TAX PAYING people should get a form with all the Government programs listed on it that our tax dollars go to as of 2010. NO NEW PROGRAMS CAN BE ADDED for the time being!!!

Step 2-We have to pay the SAME amount that we paid the year before in taxes, but we go down the list of programs and agencies and we divide OUR tax dollars up and commit it to where we feel they, or tax dollars, should go.

Step 3: At the end of the year, each agency and program would have their “budget” as assigned to them by the American people, and, like the people, they can’t spend more than they take in.

Now I realize this is an oversimplified process and there are some exceptions but really, EVERY government agency has a lot of waste and that can be cut back on significantly with this type of system. If no one wants to give $$$ to  a certain program of agency, it can be done away with!

I also realize that our elected officials are suppose to be doing this, but they have proven that they can’t make hard decisions when it comes to cutting Government spending, so we need to take that job away from them!

If they were serious about cutting the out of control spending in Washington DC they would immediately cut every agencies budget by at least 10% or more(preferably more)! But they haven’t done that, even though I have heard it suggested by numerous economists as the fairest way to cut the waste.

"From the Files of Vish Puri, Most Private Investigator"

I probably will never get to visit India.

So I guess some might say I am visiting vicariously through my Bollywood movies, and now through a new mystery series of books (2 so far) by the Author Tarquin Hall.

Now you may ask; how could an English author know enough about India, the culture, and the people to write a book about solving mysteries in India? Well, he knows quite a lot, since he is married to an Indian journalist and they divide their time between living in London and Delhi.

The Vish Puri mystery series is about a 51 year old, chubby, Indian private investigator that started Delhi's Most Private Investigators Ltd. He takes on variety of cases and is proud of the fact that he is the best PI in India! The style of the mysteries, kind of reminded me of “The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency” books since he is tackling a few investigations at the same time but since the culture is different it doesn’t feel like it is the same kind of story.

The first book is entitled, “The Case of the Missing Servant”. The main case of the book is about Ajay Kasliwal who is a powerful lawyer and has a record of prosecuting corrupt government leaders. Puri is hired to find Mary, a missing maid from Kasliwal home where she worked. A rumor is started that she may have been pregnant and so she was killed by Kasliwal. When her dead body turns up, Puri must find a way to clear his client. I was caught up in the mystery within the first few pages. I felt I could envision the type of man Vish Puri may look and act like. I also could feel and see the sights and sounds of India due to the great descriptions while reading the book.

The most helpful part of the book was a glossary at the back of the book that has the definitions and explanations of many Indian words and customs that make you feel almost bi-lingual by the end of the book, well not quite bi-lingual, but you at least know a few new words and customs.

I highly recommend this book if you love a great mystery! I am very excited to read the second one in the series entitled “The Case of the Man Who Died Laughing.”

NOOOO! It Is Too Soon For That!

I love any holiday and I especially love to decorate for holidays.  I do have one complaint for those of you out there that try to “overlap” holidays. 

The one holiday that gets overlooked or overlapped on the most is Thanksgiving.  Now I know that many don’t really think too much about the celebration of Thanksgiving, but it still deserves not to have Christmas started before it is over. 

 This is a real pet peeve of mine.  I HATE seeing Christmas lights before Thanksgiving is over.  I don’t mean in the stores.  I love the decorations up in the Malls and stores, but I mean on homes!

I feel that whenever I see Christmas lights on before Thanksgiving, someone must be having an “Auntie Mame” moment.  You know what I mean right?

In the movie “Auntie Mame” staring Rosalind Russell, things are going so bad for Mame Dennis that she decides to pull out the Christmas decorations in July, put them up and celebrate, to try to cheer herself up.

CAUTION!!! 

You want to watch the 1958 version with Rosalind Russell, NOT the 1974 version with Lucille Ball. 

It is much better, even though I LOVE Lucille Ball.  Watch her in “Yours, Mine and Ours” instead.  It so funny and it is a classic! 

 Anyway….getting back to Christmas lights.

There is a song in the show called “We Need a Little Christmas” that is now a famous Christmas song. Long story short, that is what I mean by having an “Auntie Mame” moment when I see Christmas lights on before Thanksgiving is over. When I do see them on, I wonder if something is wrong and you turned them on just to cheer yourself up. Maybe that is a little crazy for me to assume this but… Even if you don’t really think Thanksgiving is a “big” holiday, I just don’t think you should start Christmas too early or you will burn out of the Spirit of the Season before it ever gets here.



I would really like to hear if I am the only one that feels this way! 

Akbar The Great-Another Great Leader from History

Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar (1543-1605)

I know it has been too long since I posted but things are a bit busy here. I have started what I call a new hobby, but my some consider it a business (see link in side bar for more info on “Charmed by Shakespeare”) that has taken up all my spare time lately but that is now running smoothly but slowly. I will consider it a business when we break even with the investments into it. ANYWAY…. Enough excuses.

One of my first charms-Henry VI

Our next Great Leader in History is about the Mughal Emperor Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar (1543-1605), who reigned in the regions of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Northern India. He came to the throne at the young age of 13 after the sudden death of his father, Humayan due to a fall.

The court of young Akbar, age 13, showing his first imperial act: the arrest of an unruly courtier, who was once a favorite of Akbar's father. Illustration from a manuscript of the Akbarnama

He was the third Emperor of the Mughal Empire and the first to truly be an Indian as he was born in a Rajput fort in what is now part of Pakistan. He was under the tutelage of the Regent, Ayram Khan during those early years and thanks to Khan, the empire was protected from 1556-1560. Shortly after the death of his father he faced his first challenge to his throne from a man named Hemu. Hemu was able to drive the Mughals out of Delhi. Hemu was defeated in a second battle at Panipat where he was hit in the eye with an arrow, piercing into his head while riding his elephant. His soldiers ran in confusion after seeing their leader hit. Hemu was captured and beheaded in front of the young Akbar. After this victory, Delhi stayed in the control of the Mughals for another three centuries.

Barely out of his teens Akbar began to quickly consolidate his kingdom and to centralize the administration of the Empire. Although a Muslim by birth he took a keen interest in all the faiths that his subjects practiced and never allowed persecutions based on faith. He never discriminated between the Hindus or Muslims.

His first wife (he had 33 wives), and some say his most beloved wife, was a Hindu princess by the name of Hira Kunwar (some call her Jodhabai), was the daughter of Bharmal Raja of Amber. They were married in February of 1562 in Sambhar and their son was the next Mughal emperor Jahangir. Some of the details of this marriage are still disputed today but it did create an alliance that caused a major shift in the balance of power within the Indian subcontinent. It also began a period of peace between the Mughals and the Rajputs.

Akbar had to deal with the usual intrigue in his court but you can read about that elsewhere. I wanted to go on and tell you of the things he accomplished during his reign.

Religion

As I already mentioned, he was interested in the religions of all of his subjects and tried to learn about them. He was taught about Jain, and Sikh followers and in his mind, he eventually formed an amalgam of the various religions like, Islam, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. He even at one time had Portuguese fathers visit his court and teach him about Christianity. He tried to form a new religion based on the best in all these religions but it never gained popularity.

Politics

Akbar was able to centralize his government and unlike his predecessors did not exact a large tribute of the territories he conquered. Instead of forcing the rulers of the defeated territories to step down, he integrated them into the administration of that region and provided for them to become military leaders.

He abolished all the taxes that were levied on all non-Muslims. These taxes had been in place since the Muslims gained power.

Education

Although some historians believe Akbar suffered from learning disabilities, he was a leader that loved to learn. He collected thousands of beautifully written manuscripts during his lifetime. He also surrounded himself with writers, scholars, translators, painters and musicians.

Some call this period the Persian Renaissance of literature. He also was a great patron of the arts, architecture. Many magnificent buildings and palaces were built under his reign, many of which are still standing.

Summary

As a contemporary of Queen Elizabeth I of England, he ruled over 140 million subject compared to her 5 million.

Akbar the Great's Tomb

Like Alfred the Great of England that I posted about a few weeks ago, Akbar the Great was great because of his great leadership of his people, not because of his strength in defeating so many territories.

He was indeed a great leader for his time, and I feel many leaders today would benefit by following his example as a leader.

Additional Information:

There is a FANTASTIC movie based on the life of Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar entitled “Jodhaa Akbar”. It is beautiful! Check it out! The music in the background is from the movie. 

Also, PBS had a great series on the history of India and they talked about Akbar quite a bit. You can find the entire series through Netflix but here is a small piece of that footage about Akbar:  http://www.pbs.org/thestoryofindia/timeline/5/  (click on the timeline that mentions Akbar the Great for the video to start).