Season Opener -driveway happy hour 2024 #vellumdays
one of our favorite ways to fellowship.. and say "Thank You Jesus!" -because we really do have some pretty awesome neighbor friends -these driveway happy hours always yield a great opportunity to relax and visit, catch up.. and such a wonderful variety of homemade dishes, desserts.. -this is the first of several we will host throughout the spring/summer. -five months of extra long days ahead
hallelujah & amen
Return to the scene of great times! 1st bike ride of 2024
one of our local favorites. it's the coyote creek trail segment of the longer bay area ridge trail. gorgeous for its wildflowers; delightful for it's blend of wide open & tree canopied stretches; grateful to God for the landscape; and the abundance of water in the creek this year
we start at coyote creek visitor center/anderson lake county park in morgan hill; 1/2 picnic...
ride to hellyer park, san jose, 2nd 1/2 of our picnic, rest, enjoy the lake, fresh air, trees.. wildlife..
and then ride back to morgan hill -approx 30 mile total.
1st of many bike rides this year; that's the prayer.. hallelujah & amen
"ENCORE! ENCORE!" nate bargatze @ SAP in San Jose
favorite experiences 2024.. and it is wonderful to laugh out loud! but to laugh at loud with friends, after a wonderful visit over a meal -san pedro square
thank my daughter for introducing us to this giant talent of a comedian
and thank our friends for extending the invite to his be funny tour
so HIGHLY RECOMMEND him to absolutely everybody -non-stop laughter, this live event
and i've watched every available special/show available on TV.. LOVE! his material and the master level comedic craft he employs to deliver it
-once again, feel so blessed to be audience to... "Thank You!" hallelujah & amen
#vellumdays in progress
what's growing on around here. spring 2024 -photo collage by (me!) ~topps
and i love it all! to be sure; but especially pleased to watch
our prayer plant grow and thrive
and this is the first time ever! i've kept an orchid after the initial blooms died and..
waited...
and waited...
and waited...
and re-potted.. and fertilized... (thank you here nice person with time lapse 2 min how-to video);
and waited...
and accidentally scorched a couple leaves in sun trying to force expedite the blooms..
relocated and waited...
back to original location of initial blooms..
and tell everyone, 'i think it is perfectly okay to toss an orchid and just buy a new one...'
and at looooong last!
this orchid was gifted to me by my dad/chris feb 2023; nurtured via advice from friends/neighbors karl/erika; a youtube video or two.. adjustments.. observations.. prayer... tlc.. time itself...
so, a high gratification factor here to watch it re-bloom; but..
i still think it is perfectly okay to toss or give away an orchid post blooms, and buy an already blooming orchid to enjoy each season
call it tithing. selah! & amen.
the more things change -thought files writeousmom.com
again, -nothing original in essence of content; just more validation
made me think of the french writer, jean-baptise alphonse karr
and a quote my dad repeated often in english
"plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose"
but mostly, i think of today's younger population; so savvy with social media; technology..
A.I. assistance at their fingertips; our ivy league graduates
what might you learn from the wisdom of your elders -about life itself; with or without technology
what might anyone learn from the Bible -whether of another faith; or agnostic or atheist'?
how wonderful if there was an appetite for wisdom; and not just knowledge; for truth and not just facts
Proverbs 2: 1-8
Proverbs 9:10-11
Introduced now to the astonishing John Lone by (me!) ~topps
utterly astonishing. the lion dance share of my attention went to charlie.. mesmerized by every scene; scene after scene after scene -the body language; lack of language; facial expression; vocal expression.. interaction with others; interaction with what his character would find novel.. the way charlie processed contact with unfamiliar objects; places; environments... people..
how did he do that? hope he won best actor oscar! every acting school should be using this performance as the example of a masterpiece.. can't get better.. could not be improved upon; perfect!
and the entire cast was quality; the story itself; quality; the cinematography/direction/editing/soundtrack; everything was quality for its time; seen in context.
and when you watch a movie which was released in April of 1984, from the vantage point of April 2024
well, you can see all the time stamps; how much more movie-makers have at their fingertips today, that was unimaginable in 1984 and anytime before
but its a truth about humans that remains true no matter what era: this instinct/need/desire to share a story and humans continue to use whatever is available to them at the given time to make manifest..
so, to see what was available to these movie makers at the time.. the graphics; the attire/costumes/uniforms/clothes -hairstyles.. settings.. special effects.. whatever cameras/technology..
what might this movie look like if it was made today?!? but, i cant imagine, in my wildest imagination, and i do have a pretty solidly wild imagination
that any actor; from any generation; back or forth
could even come close to the astonishing performance of john lone as charlie. if we isolate just his performance -there is no time stamp- when it comes to the level of acting
his master level craft!
he is absolutely... convincing and
mesmerizing as a neanderthal discovered by scientists after being cryogenically suspended for 40,000 years
the opportunities for 'charlie' to be a caricature of... million to one
and so, in my humble opinion, john lone is one in a million and i'm giving him my imaginary oscar for best actor in iceman, 1984 movie
then of course, i had to research and learn more..
and, next rainy day, we will be watching the last emperor
"selah!" what a blessing to be audience to the greats in any field..
Philippians 4:8
Thank You Jesus, amen
Christian Cross Bliss 2024 April Yard Art by (sexy! & topps!) #bliss
what we did was remove the elements that made our march/st patricks cross 'celtic' -then repainted a fresh 'groovy' design using primarily pastel colors; overlaid with daisies. our awesome neighbor jerry heinrichs re-painted the clover & gnome squares to say happy easter & he is risen -our young neighbor friend painted the brick at the bottom with tulips.. and we rearranged the clovers we used last month, by separating them and scattering the individual heart shapes which were freshly painted in pastels (thank you!) -we have plastic eggs from years past at the bottom, along the sidewalk, that are labeled with the fruits of the spirit, and framed the cross with white lights for magical beauty at night.
and even though Easter has come and gone.. extra early this year, March 31st, we are leaving this fresh yard art & poem from the archives up through the month of April. Has been wonderful fun! creating it.. a joyful collaboration! Praise God! Glory to glory to glory #bliss
March 2024 Yard Art (Pre-transition/before pix)
Q & (no) A -for (me!) sandra, topps, writeousmom.com
-decades ago now.. i repeated the question so often; 'how do i hear my internal thoughts? and why can't i adjust the volume?' i never really have come across an answer that is satisfactory; it remains a bit of a mystery to me to this very day
as does this: in order to see color, we need light/wavelengths.. we need light... and yet, in the dark of night, with my eyes closed, i can see vivid color in my imagination; so -obviously it is a form of memory
we remember color as we imagine and/or dream -we do not do this consciously; [i.e., i need to remember and memorize what blue looks like] it just takes place for us; on our behalf,
-or! do we each have a 'light' inside that allows us to see color against the dark backdrop of our imagination?
whatever the case, i am very grateful because i have such a love for! appreciation of! - in fact, with our current yard art, every time i use and/or blend and create a new color to apply
oh, this is my favorite... look how beautiful this is... and i end up repeating that with every new color i use...
#bliss selah!
eventually true -quote reflections by (me!) sandra, topps, writeousmom.com
where this quote came from? who said it originally? but, decades ago, i appreciated it enough to type it out, use a pretty font on quality paper; trim it with fancy scrapbook scissors and thumb-tack it on the bulletin board of my then office [magtimeframes era, lets call it]
and despite many moves; and storage time, etc.; i still have it.
what i reflect on when i come across it... is just how long it takes before it's true:
that what you find in your mind is what YOU put there..
because books, tv/pharmaceutical commercials, mass media.. social media.. 'influencers' magazines.. billboards.. salespeople.. news programs... cartoons...
movie-makers, teachers, parents, siblings, podcasts.. on and on..
a lot of what is initially in our minds is intentionally placed there by others
but what progress we each make! when we start to exercise self- control; self-governing; what we do allow and don't allow in our minds
becoming conscious of.. recognizing and managing.. and honoring...
i am ever aware now; avoiding bad and putting good; weeding out bad; planting good..
romans 12:2 selah! /this is my new favorite word!
worth repeating by (me!)
i know this idea is not original -it has been said by countless others with different words, different ways, in different languages for as far back as inspirational quotes go. i validate them all and again; they are write.
progress report by (me!) sandra, topps, ~writeousmom.com
Joyce Meyer's TV program, enjoying everyday life, starts out with her saying this:
"My name is Joyce Meyer and i do, what i do, because i've seen God's power transform my own life and he will do it for YOU. The key to everything is found in God's Word. I'm Joyce Meyer and I BELIEVE God can heal you everywhere you hurt"
*****
and i can also be a witness; i can validate that what she says -about God's Word- is true.
I am healed everywhere i once hurt. "Thank You Joyce!" and Praise be to God! still living in due season with my sexy husband Galatians 6:9
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