Tag Archives: daily prompt

Daily Prompt: Playlist of the Week

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Tell us how your week went by putting together a playlist of  five songs that represent it.

Playlist for the week of  March 4-8 for Barry and Jill Baynes

Monday: “Working 9-5”, by Dolly Parten, 1980

*Barry worked all day, I stayed home and did housework.

Tuesday: “On the Road Again”, by Willie Nelson, 1980

*We had several doctor’s appointments scheduled on and off all day. Felt like we had traveled the state before we got home.

Wednesday: “Lazy Hazy Crazy Days Of Summer” by Nat King Cole, 1963

*Not quite summer yet, Barry worked again and I played a lazy bum at home. Did absolutely nothing all day!

Thursday: “Horse with No Name”, America 1972

*We attended a brain tumor support group at Emory. Great group. Great people. Incredible presentation on radiation-oncology.

Friday: “Happy Birthday, to Jonny”, 1893

*Our nephew turned fifteen years old on this date. Big celebration. We can’t believe he’s getting a license. We feel so incredibly old.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_birthday_to_you

Daily Prompt: Buffalo Nickel

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Dig through your couch cushions, your purse, or the floor of your car and look at the year printed on the first coin you find. What were you doing that year?

With this prompt, it would be my luck for the first coin I come across be from the year I graduated from high school (1983). I searched the couch cushions due to the temperature outdoors. The car would have been more appropriate since I spent most of 1983 in a car, after graduation. I met my ex-husband in 1983, right after graduation. When he wasn’t at my house, I was in my car on the way to see him. It was kinda a close, long-distance romance.

I got sick my junior year in high school, so when graduation time was getting close, I had to go to summer school to have enough credits to walk with my class. To make sure I had enough credit, I took a night class at the local junior college, to pad my credits a bit. I’d been through too much with this class not to graduate with them. I worked my fanny off to get the credit, but I made it.

I spent the rest of the year finalizing my plans for nursing school, learning what it means to ‘shoot dove’, learned how important and fun it can be to try to be quiet while deer hunting, I learned how to catch and clean a crappie, and I learned how to drive a tractor to pick up a big roll of hay, to feed cows. Yes, I was turning into a country girl.

I learned many more fascinating things, these were just the first to come to my mind. 1983 was a year of many firsts.

There have been times I look back and say that if I could go back, I’d tell my ex ‘no’ when he asked me out. When I think a little harder about the subject, I’m the woman I am today, because of my ex-husband and it all started in 1983.

Daily Prompt: Cupid’s Arrow/My Wonderful Valentine, Barry Lamar Baynes……..

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It’s Valentine’s Day,  so write an ode to someone or something you love, Bonus Points for Poetry
graphics-valentine-053777                    Be my Forever Valentine.                                      graphics-valentine-266187                       

To my sweet, handsome husband!

My forever Valentine

Every year with a simple card, you bring  me to tears. Then you tell me not to do a thing for you, not fair by the way! You stand strong by my side through thick and thin. Lately, we have had more thick than thin, bit you are still by my side; being sweet, compassionate and understanding. I know this is not where we wanted to be when you retire, but here we are together, holding on. Together we can do anything!

The ‘new’ Barry and Jill Baynes are going strong! In our short eight years, we have accomplished more than I ever expected. There is so much out there to do and see, I’m looking forward to our next adventure together. If our health continues to get in the way, we’ll just find our way around it.

I love and admire you more everyday. You make me want to be a better person and I thank you for that. I’m not sure I would have the will to get through all of this without you. Everytime I check, you are still with me.

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You are my rock! You are part of me. You have permanent possession of my heart. I love you. I do not know what I did to deserve you, but it is not our place to question God‘s plan. I’m just glad he brought us together.

I’m looking forward to our road trip tomorrow, even if a doctor is involved. It will be us, together. Thank you for putting up with me when my brain takes over my body. I know it’s not easy. You never make me feel silly or poke fun of me when my left side is acting up. I’m glad I haven’t hurt you. I’ll stop babbling for the moment, honey. Always remember, I love you with all my heart. Please be my FOREVER VALENTINE! You will make my millennium!

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Daily Prompt: Childhood Revisited

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Sure, you turned out pretty good, but is there anything you wish had been different about your childhood? If you have kids, is there anything you wish were different for them?

I am doing my best to decide how to put this in writing. I thought about this all day and have narrowed it down to two things I wish would have been different in my childhood. I’ll do my best not to ramble, please be patient.

My sisters and I had a traditional southern upbringing, dysfunctional family and all. Our parents encouraged us to study, we knew right from wrong, and we loved each other. Mom and dad worked all the time. Mom stayed home until we were old enough to be left home alone and then she started working, She was home when we needed her, or at lease close-by.

Dad left in the mornings before we ever got up and was not home until we were in bed. On the weekends, he worked his secondary business and was home only at night. We had our family nights when dad was home. We actually had breakfast and supper around the dining room table several times a week.

I grew up wanting for nothing.  If we ever wanted anything extravagant, we had to save our money up or wait for a sale. I believe that is where my frugal attitude comes from today!

During the summer months, mom and dad always made sure we stayed busy. I know my way around the Bible, a softball field, a basketball court, and a swimming pool. Mom and dad made it to the important events, but there were times we were on our own.

One of the things I wish could were different from my childhood is going to church as a family, instead of being dropped off at the door to attend services with my sisters. Don’t get me wrong, my sisters and I are close, due to the time we spent together. It would have been nice having mom and dad with us at church. I truly believe that they both believe the Jesus died to save us from our sins, but I cannot help feeling unsure of their salvation.

Mom lives with me now, and attends everything Barry and I attend at church. Dad is a different story. I do not remember the last time I saw him in church for something other than a funeral. His health is declining and he does not get out like he used to, but I know he grew-up in the church. It would have been joyous to have all five of us in church at the same time. Well, the past is the past. All we can do now is look forward.

My second thing I wish could have been different during my childhood is medical technology. From the time I entered kindergarten through high school, I was always sick.

Mom spoiled me rotten and my sisters still pick on me today, because of that.

I was part guinea pig when they thought they had figured out a treatment for allergies. They did all the testing and I suffered through the intramuscular injections for years, before they figured out it could be done with a subcutaneous needle, just under the skin. The nurse’s from the seventies, learned to give an intramuscular injection into the shoulder. There were several times I actually felt the needle hitting the bone. It was so painful. I took the injections without success for years and then refused to go.

In my teenage years I developed female troubles. We let the doctor do the known treatment for my problem at the time and it rendered me unable to have children.

If today’s medical technology had been around in the seventies, maybe I could have had a normal childhood and been able to have kids today. In my world, Claritin is the best invention of the twentieth century. When I was younger, Dristan was it. With today’s medical technology in the past, maybe brain tumor research would be further along today and I wouldn’t need a wheelchair when my legs do not work.

My life has been God‘s plan and it is not my place to question it. I read my Bible and try to stay upbeat and focused. I pray daily and ask for grace and wisdom to help me make it through the day. I exercise to stay strong and keep busy. My blog is my refuge for my feelings and such. It helps me not to hold things in. I write them down. It is very therapeutic to me. My counselor advised me to either do a journal or start a blog.

To summarize, my parents being more involved with my sisters and I at church; as well as, today’s medical technology being available in the seventies, would have made my childhood a better place to be. Honestly, I wouldn’t interfere with God’s plan for my life. I grew up loved and happy. Everything else is all good!

If, if, if, maybe, maybe, maybe…….

Daily Prompt: Call Me, Maybe

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Describe your relationship with your phone. Is it your lifeline, a buzzing nuisance, or something in between?

When cell phones first came out, I hated the things. They were big, clunky and more expensive than they were worth.

Next, I landed a job that required I be on-call 24/7. To start they provided pagers (some of you younger people may not know what that is). They were a bigger nuisance, because of stopping at pay phones and keeping up with change. I hate change!

Cell phones were still toooooooo expensive. 

Over the years, as technology improved cell phones became less expensive and so much smaller! But, they were still expensive. One month, my stepson’s bill alone was over $1000. He’s lucky to still be with us.

Now that prices have stabilized and phones are more convenient. I  believe I only like my phone because it is a necessity. Being disabled, I feel more comfortable, being out alone. If my car breaks down, I can call for help. There’s a GPS on it, if I get lost and tons of games to keep me busy if any of the above happens.

I guess I will go with something in-between. I’d rather not have to keep up with it, but there are times when I would totally consider the thing a buzzing nuisance.

I never want to be put in the class of people who considers a cell-phone a life line. Will our future generations be able to talk to one another? Or write a letter, note or list if they need to? Consider me old-school or just plain old! I do not care, the convenience aspect of a cell-phone is marvelous. Everything else can be considered a buzzing nuisance!

Daily Prompt: Writing Room

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My writing room would have three main  components, that I refuse to do without. Apparently in my old age, I’m becoming a creature of comfort.

Number one: according to the time of year, it has to be air-conditioned or heated. My old age doesn’t tolerate heat or cold like it used to. I’d love to sit outside during the spring, but my health doesn’t allow it, so I stay in my gorgeous house and keep myself busy.

Number two: I need the softest, pillow type chair on the face of this earth. I want to sit down and be cushioned in comfort. My body hurts head-to-toe all day, every day. I deserve a comfy chair to write in.

Number Three: I need a window behind me while in the chair. With enough sunlight to brighten the room up and help me see the paper, but not so bright that it is glaring on the paper or computer screen. It the sun coming in doesn’t need to heat the room up in the humid times of the year, here in the south.

I’m an oddball over a few things I need for my room.Since brain surgery, I can focus better with something noisy in the back ground, so I guess this would be a fourth part for my room: a stereo or television set. My seven-year old nephew or my mother would do to, since neither one knows how to be quiet. Barry would do too, cuz he picks the moment I start writing to talk. So I have tons of choices there!

I need a blanket for my legs and my neck supporter to keep my neck happy while I write.

The only chair currently in my home to qualify, has an ottoman. I enjoy propping my legs up. They hurt so bad at times, it just feels good to prop them up.

Now, all I need is something to drink and a bathroom closeby and I’ll be set. A small room like a half bath, with a window and all my stuff in the room, would be perfect.

I do need room for my dog to sit with me as I write. She doesn’t like to leave my side when I’m home alone. That keeps me safely in the house, so not to worry Barry. I’m actually sitting in my perfect reading/writing room now. I have everything I need right here.

I guess the purpose of this prompt is to visualize a space you would like to have. If not at home, I’d like a quiet corner in a butterfly garden. Some form of cushy chair (we could just bring my chair out of the living room), a light breeze and birds singing in the background.

I’d need a platform built to make a stable area for me to walk on. I’d like a cute little fence with a gate.I can lock the world out and keep the dog in. I’d need some form of communication device out there in case I fall. I don’t like it, but it does happen.

If it’s hot out, I’ll just write inside.

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Daily Prompt: Through the Window

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Go to the nearest window. Look out for a full minute. Write about what you saw.

Gazing through the window, I stand as still as possible, not wanting to scare the chickadees and nuthatches as they battle over the fresh bird seed.

A mockingbird sits patiently on the air conditioner as if he were hailing a cab. There is a huge gray squirrel perched on the rail by the steps. Past the steps, the ‘Corkscrew Willow‘ tree, crowded with a multitude of different birds all waiting to get to the feeders.

The little guys continue to devour the fresh bird seed. It is like an open sign has been hung on the door of a new market.

Oops…here come the turtle doves, being their usual intrusive selves. They run the little guys off, break in line and make the rest of the crowd angry. A few of the purple finches try to join the Doves at the feeder, only to be run off by the biggest Dove. Turtle Doves are messy birds. They knock seeds all over the porch and ground, enabling a few of the braver birds to fly in to sneak a little bite.

 

Daily Prompt: Sliced Bread

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Most of us have heard the saying, “That’s the best thing since sliced bread!”What do you think is actually the best thing since sliced bread?

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At first, I was going to say the Bible. It is one of two things that I can count on using daily. I realized more than likely,  the Bible has been around longer than sliced bread, so that kinda put it out of the running.

Of course, I’m not sure whether anyone sliced bread in the Bible or they just broke pieces off. I’m a constant student of the Bible, but I am afraid this is one thing I cannot quote book and verse on. 

According to Wikipedia: 

Sliced bread is a loaf of bread which has been pre-sliced with a machine and packaged for convenience. It was first sold in 1928, advertised as “the greatest forward step in the baking industry since bread was wrapped”.[1] This led to the popular phrase, “the greatest thing since sliced bread“.

I refuse to say that the cell phone was my second choice and they, in my opinion,  are definitely not the “best thing since sliced bread”. Although, they are handy. We would all live without them! Yes, kids, you can live without your cell phone. Believe it are not, you can actually have a conversation with another human being. 

My personal opinion is that current medical technology qualifies as ” The best thing since sliced bread“. New innovations in every field of medicine improves the life of numerous people daily!

Barry and I are both still alive today, by the Grace of God and modern medical technology. I would have lost Barry twice  if someone hadn’t figured out how to replace the aortic valve and how to go into an artery of a patient, actively having a stroke, to manually remove the clot and stop progression of the damage that a stroke causes. 

The brain tumor I have was only diagnosed at autopsy before 1985. I thank God for giving someone the knowledge to invent the CAT Scan. I’m ready to take my place in heaven when the time is right, but for now I plan to enjoy every moment of life. Good or bad…..

Daily Prompt: Apply Yourself

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Describe your last attempt to learn something that did not come easily to you.

My mother makes the lightest, fluffiest biscuits I have ever had. She makes them like her mom did and she made them like her mom. I don’t eat bread these days, but I recently asked her to show me how she makes them one more time. If I cannot get it right this time, I’ll probably give up.

√ Preheat the oven to 350°.

√ We started with a large bowl with a mountain of flour in the center, I do not remember how much.

√ I put my fist in the top of the mountain to make a hole.

√ In the hole, you pour your buttermilk and oil.

√ With clean hands, you slowly start to fold the flour into the hole with your fingers. You continue this process until you have a big ball of dough sitting in your bowl.

√ Next you pinch off pieces of dough and roll them into the shape of a biscuit. Do this until your dough is gone or your pan is full. 

√ Bake at 350° until golden brown.

Over the years, mom has taken me through these steps time after time. I make a killer pan of cornbread, but every attempt I have made at biscuits, has been a useless waste of time. They come out of the oven looking like biscuits, but……

It is pretty bad when your dog will not eat them. The truly sad thing is, that they are always so hard, that you could play softball with them, break a few windows, knock someone out cold. The army could probably use them for some sort of new weapon.

Whenever I need to take biscuits somewhere, I have to sweet talk mom into the job or by the frozen ones at the store.