Lily (120/365)

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“If you have two loaves of bread, sell one and buy a lily”
~ Chinese Proverb

TIME: 9:30 PM
PLACE: Neighbor's House
SUBJECT: Lily

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Therapy (119/365)

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“After a year in therapy my psychiatrist said to me, "Maybe life isn't for everyone"”
~ Larry Brown

TIME: 6:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Physical Therapy

We don't have a lot in Podunk, but we do have a Physical Therapist, and today was my first visit for the initial evaluation. Interesting little fact ... my flexibility is far greater in my "injured" leg than in my good leg. Odd ...

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Purple (118/365)

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“He sometimes ran a purple ribbon through his typewriter and gushed where he should have dammed.”
~ T. E. Kalem

TIME: 8:30 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Purple

This purple paisley lanyard holding a name tag is what gives me the authority to tell 300 middle schoolers what they can and cannot do. I sure wish it worked at home the way is does in church!

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Flowers (117/365)

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The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size.
~ Gertrude S. Wister

TIME: 12:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Flowers

And these little beauties occupied a HUGE place in my heart today!

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Cemetery (116/365)

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“Every man should keep a fair-sized cemetery in which to bury the faults of his friends.”
~ Henry Ward Beecher

TIME: 12:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Cemetery

I love cemeteries ... I just don't ever want to be put in a box and buried in one!

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Ignite (115/365)

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“There comes that mysterious meeting in life when someone acknowledges who we are and what we can be, igniting the circuits of our highest potential.”
~ Rusty Berkus

TIME: 6:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Ignite

I took Cam and his girlfriend, Heather, to a concert at the church tonight. Tickets were $5 (they had been free in the past) with all proceeds going to crisis pregnancy centers in the area. The event sold out, raising $10K in donations, and the music was outstanding!

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Fog (114/365)

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“The best ammunition against lies is the truth, there is no ammunition against gossip. It is like a fog and the clear wind blows it away and the sun burns it off.”
~ Ernest Hemingway

TIME: 9:00 AM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Fog

It's been foggy, drizzly and rainy here since Friday. Honestly? I kind of enjoy the mysterious haze that shrouds everything. In fact, it makes me a bit homesick!

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Patch (113/365)

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“The smallest patch of green to arrest the monotony of asphalt and concrete is as important to the value of real estate as streets, sewers and convenient shopping.”
~ James Felt

TIME: 1:00 PM
PLACE: Cubicle Hell Parking Lot
SUBJECT: Patch

We are now reaching the point where it's highly unlikely (although still possible) that we'll have another hard freeze. The grass takes quite a beating in Podunk. Between the frigid winter and the plow blades, there are quite a few spots needing a little patch. Reseeding is a beautiful thing!

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Dot (112/365)

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Ah! you are so great, and I am so small,
I tremble to think of you, World, at all;
And yet, when I said my prayers to-day,
A whisper inside me seemed to say,
"You are more than the earth, though you are such a dot;
You can love and think, and the earth cannot!"
~ William Brighty Rands

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Dot

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Friend (111/365)

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"Friends are the most important part of your life. Treasure the tears, treasure the laughter, but most importantly, treasure the memories."
~ Dave Brenner

TIME: 1:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Friend

For the first time in the almost three years since I've been blogging, a blogging friend came to Podunk to meet me! Unfortunately, blogger "We're Doomed" is a weee bit ... let's go with shy, shall we? So you get the hand.

The next time he heads this way he needs to bring "She who shall not be named" and the three Amigos! It was a short, but wonderful visit!

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Sunset (110/365)

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“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore

TIME: 7:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Sunset

I have no words ...

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Manure (109/365)

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“A good laugh is like manure to a farmer - it doesn't do any good until you spread it around”
~ Unknown

TIME: 1:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Manure

It's soil turning time here in Podunk and any time you turn soil you need to fertilize it. The fertilizer of choice here? Liquefied pig or horse manure, depending on what you'll be planting. Although this is a sure sign of spring, it's also the most smelly sign of spring!

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Utility (108/365)

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“We will have solar energy as soon as the utility companies solve one technical problem - how to run a sunbeam through a meter”
~ Unknown

TIME: 10:00 A
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Utility

I've heard the grass is always greener over the septic tank, but it appears it is quite green at the water utility cover too!

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Slipper (107/365)

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“Same old slippers, Same old rice, Same old glimpse of paradise.”
~ William James Lampton

TIME: 3:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Radar

Why yes! This is the same cat who lived under my bed for his first week here!

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Meadow (106/365)

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“It is the mind which creates the world around us, and even though we stand side by side in the same meadow, my eyes will never see what is beheld by yours, my heart will never stir to the emotions with which yours is touched.”
~ George Gissing

TIME: 12:30 PM
PLACE: Forest Preserve
SUBJECT: Meadow

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Inflamed (105/365)

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“Genius is nothing more than inflamed enthusiasm.”
~ Unknown

TIME: 3:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Inflamed

As if I didn't have enough going on this week, I finally decided I could no longer ignore the pain and swelling in my knee. I have an old war wound softball injury that required arthroscopic surgery about six years ago. It bothers me on occasion, but in a day or two is back to normal. Not this time.

After looking at my knee and doing a quick examination, my family doctor prescribed a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and referred me to an orthopedic surgeon. I'll know if this is minor or my body rebelling - again - on the 26th. Unfortunately that was the first available appointment.

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Criss Cross (104/365)

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Criss Cross Apple Sauce
Spiders crawling up your back
Spiders here, Spiders there
Spiders even in your hair
Cool breeze, tight squeeze
Now you've got the shiveries

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Criss Cross

I usually take my picture with the flash set to auto and then again with no flash. Sometimes the difference is surprising. This was one of those times.

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Pod (103/365)

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“DETACHMENT is a plant of slow growth; if you pluck the tender plant to look for the pods, you will be disappointed.”
~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba

TIME: 11:00 AM
PLACE: Forest Preserve
SUBJECT: Pod

I had one of those days yesterday and actually had to leave the office for a bit to regroup so that I could be productive. The Forest Preserve is just 5 minutes away and offered a place or serenity and a place to take a photo!

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Dusk (102/365)

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“Change, like sunshine, can be a friend or a foe, a blessing or a curse, a dawn or a dusk.”
~ William Arthur Ward

TIME: 7:30 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Dusk

I am not a pink girl, but who doesn't love the way the clouds turn a subtle pink at dusk?

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Bark (101/365)

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“As the poet said, "Only God can make a tree" - probably because it's so hard to figure out how to get the bark on”
~ Woody Allen

TIME: 6:30 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Bark

There is a pine tree outside of my apartment that appears to have some friends who find his bark quite tasty. Not sure if it is the woodpeckers (I see them frequently) or some other buggy/wormy thing, but I hope it doesn't get too carried away!!

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Food (100/365)

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“Teach this triple truth to all: A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.”
~ Buddha

TIME: 11:30 AM
PLACE: Northern Illinois Food Bank
SUBJECT: Service

Cam and I volunteered at the food bank this morning. There was a group of about 20 of us from the church and in three hours, we sorted, labeled and re-boxed over 3 tons of food - enough to feed 315 families of 4 for an entire week.

In a proud mom moment, I learned that Cam was recommended for supervisory training at the food bank. His dedication, work ethic and loving heart were recognized by one of the food bank employees that we have been working with for the past 18 months. I don't know if Cam will decide this is something he wants to do, but the recognition was a wonderful moment for the both of us!

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Marsh (99/365)

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“One hour of life, crowded to the full with glorious action, and filled with noble risks, is worth whole years of those mean observances of paltry decorum, in which men steal through existence, like sluggish waters through a marsh, without either honor or observation.”
~ Sir Walter Scott

TIME: 1:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Marsh

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Fence (98/365)

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“The enemies you make by taking a decided stand generally have more respect for you
than the friends you make by being on the fence”
~ Unknown

TIME: 5:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Fence

It was a very cold, spring day today. The temp never hit 40 degrees and there were snow *gasp* flurries throughout the day. But the grass is green ... and growing!

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Hook (97/365)

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“I see the devil's hook, and yet cannot help nibbling at his bait”
~ Moses Adams

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Hook

In the winter, none of these are visible, but in the spring? Seldom do they hold a single jacket.

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Ray (96/365)

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“Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray.”
~ Lord Byron

TIME: 5:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Ray

It's not just the flowers that are blooming in Podunk ...

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Magnolia (95/365)

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Truvy: Honey, time marches on and eventually you realize it is marchin' across your face.
From Steel Magnolias (1989)

TIME: 1:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Magnolia

We've had a string of days with temps above "normal" and all of Podunk is beginning to bloom!

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Resurrection (94/365)

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“Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.”
~ Martin Luther

TIME: 8:00 AM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Resurrection

My church is what might be called a multi-media church. Displays in the atrium are often graphic and meaningful. This cross, bearing the nails that held the written sins of Good Friday service attendees, was raised to the top of the atrium today - the sins taken away.

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Tulip (93/365)

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“New rule: Tulips aren't flowers. They're some kind of gay onion.”
~ Bill Maher

TIME: 9:30 AM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Tulip

Today started early for me. I went to the church to help out with the Easter display in our atrium. It included TONS of spring flowers, including these beautiful tulips. I'll admit, my volunteering was somewhat selfish. I wanted to be one of the first to enjoy these flowers.

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Shadow (92/365)

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“Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see.”
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

TIME: 6:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Shadow

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Envy (91/365)

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“Who among us hasn't envied a cat's ability to ignore the cares of daily life and to relax completely?”
~ Karen Brademeyer

TIME: 1:30 PM
PLACE: Cubicle Hell
SUBJECT: Envy

The cat? Noooo ... I don't envy the cat ... I envy my coworker who rode this Harley into work today!
SHE is my kind of woman!

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