Tag Archives: Memorial Day

Writing Prompts

The Most Important Thing

Without knowing what I was even about to see, I think I just did the most important thing I could have done today.

Image from the movie.

I was looking for something to watch while Dave was watching other things on Tv. I had no idea what the significance was, or the emotional trip I was about to take. If you have served in the military, no matter the branch, or have had family members give their lives for our country, you owe it to yourself to see this important movie. It is a Golden Globe Award winning movie. They could not have cast it better. If you don’t, or didn’t respect the Marines before you see it, you will. I promise. If you have not served, I’m not sure you will feel the same impact, but it is important for you to learn about nonetheless. I really can’t say much more without crying again, and don’t let that stop you. It is not a new movie, I had never heard of it. But now, I will never forget. It was the ultimate Memorial Day activity in my situation that I could have done.

On a lighter note, you all know (that follow me or read my posts) that my brother, Kevin, visited this weekend. We got to enjoy time together, even an hour or two at the beach before the hordes arrived on Saturday and there was absolutely no room on the beach for two solid days. We dined out a few times, and also had a home cooked meal. We didn’t not do any of the typical Memorial Day things like BBQ or parades, and it was like pulling teeth to get him to tell me anything he wanted to do. He kept saying, “I came to visit y’all, not for you to keep me entertained.o Here is a great pic I took of him at the beach.

My bro, Kevin.

After he left, I mean, he just missed it, some nice folks here in the park that we talk to every time we walk our dogs, came over and gave us some delicious, homemade cookies her husband Denny made. Was that not the sweetest thing? I will have to repay her kindness at some point.

Near Virginia’s by the marina.

This afternoon, Dave and I took quite the walk, to view the boats in the marina behind the fancy restaurants and then across the street to the famous Tarpon Inn. In the lobby of that establishment, there are hundreds of tarpon scales, signed by everyone who’s ever caught a tarpon, complete with the size of the fish, the date, and their name and where they came from. It was funny, but the first one I happened to look at was by a man named Claude Allen. That could have been a relative of David’s, Allen is his family name. One of the most famous of the tarpon shells though, was Franklin Roosevelt. The Inn sustained damage in Hurricane Harvey, but the scales and the records of everyone that has a scale up there are still there. Also recovered was the last tarpon ever mounted, it not allowed anymore, is on the wall. It’s very expensive to stay there, especially if you stay in the Roosevelt suite, but what a cool place to visit. We had been there before, many years ago. It was warm, and I was quite sweaty when we returned from the rest of the walk, but I’m glad we went.

Now, Dave and I are watching the Stars play the first game of the playoff series against Vegas.
Also, the NASCAR race from Charlotte, NC. The Coca Cola 600. I don’t have a favorite anymore since Jeff Gordon retired, so I’m rooting for Byron, the guy who drives his number 24. ☺️


I hope you’ve all had a happy, safe, Memorial Day and please, don’t ever forget the ones who gave their lives for our great nation.

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Writing Prompts

A New Cover

Happy Wednesday everyone, I hope it’s a beautiful day where you are and you’re gearing up for a long holiday weekend!

Yesterday, we did some shopping in the morning and after lunch, decided to go to the beach 🏖️ while it’s easy to find a spot, before the hordes get here for the Memorial Day festivities.

It was again, calm, clear, and beautiful. One of the things we bought while shopping was a small cover to give us protection from the sun, so we could stay longer. After the puzzle of setting it up, it was just enough room to put our chairs under.

Not a bad deal for thirty bucks!

The new thing here is very expensive and looks like a piece of parachute material that blows out behind your support poles. I think it’s called a Shibumi, or something like that. Anyway, it’s over $200! Somehow, they are very popular now, despite the price. Well, we have a tent cover that my brother is either going to bring when he visits or send it with our friends when they visit. So we didn’t want to spend a lot for a temporary fix. We were in the IGA and I spied this little cover and said, “ I’m getting this!” I tried to buy it with my gift card, but the lady waiting on me tried to say I didn’t have any money left on it, which is a lie. She just didn’t want to be bothered. Still, I’m going to call the number on the card and make sure. I should have around $30 left.

Dave brought a small pole and some gulp bait and he enjoyed fishing out in the calmer ocean while I floated, yes floated, on my boogie board. I wish I’d have had a blow up float, but you work with what you got, right? I have good balance, so I just slide it under my back and float on it when the waves are super calm, like yesterday.

While back at our spot, I took a selfie in my new hat and bathing suit.

You can see some guys behind me playing washers.

I actually got the hat a couple of weeks ago at Ace hardware of all places! Here on the island, Ace is a different place than just hardware. They have a whole section with candles, gifts, tableware and more. It’s like a hardware/gift shop.

While standing in the clear water, I spotted a pretty striped fish swim but, but I didn’t chase it. We were doing that one year when our friends Kerry and Michelle were down and that’s when Kerry was stung by a stingray. I guess he stepped on the thing and the animal fought back. Poor Kerry, Michelle didn’t believe him at first, but he definitely was stung. Anyway, I was leery to go running after the fish after remembering that.

The water was so clear!

Also, the blue water was so close, it felt like you could walk right to it! Yet again, having a healthy respect for the sea, I don’t dare get too far out, fearing sharks will be between the cuts. I’m not as brave as I was when I was younger. 🤣

Here’s a pic of Dave fishing.

You can see the line where the blue water starts.

We had such a nice afternoon out there without a bunch of people around and their conflicting music, and crazy antics. I know, I’m starting to sound like an old lady, but there’s something to be said for peace and personal space and the ability to enjoy it once in a while. Same with the RV parks. We prefer peace and quiet at night, not a bunch of loud, banging music and people screaming and laughing all night long. Yes, we’ve been those people before, but we were in a cottage or condo and never bothered anyone (at least no one ever complained).

Say a prayer that my brother finds a way to come visit us this weekend. Besides bringing items we need, it will be fun to have him here to share our space and get him some much-needed vacation time. Maybe we can go fishing or to the beach and I can show him my progress on the rock tumbling process. Speaking of that, I checked them this morning and I think I’m going to let them spin until Saturday before I move on to Step 3.:

I suppose the hordes will start arriving tomorrow for the long weekend. This park is about 60% full right now, but I bet it fills up by Saturday! We have to make the most of our time before we can’t even move around on the island for all the people! Everyone have a great Memorial Day weekend!

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Writing Prompts

WOD Challenge 5-30-22 A Perfect Start

Dave put our flag out this morning which was the perfect start to Memorial Day.

It’s very windy!

I’ve made the dog’s food, and the egg cups are baking in the oven for Dave. He takes them to work for his breakfast. I think he will grill some chicken later for dinner but I don’t know if the kids are coming back or not. I went and delivered my friend Stephanie her birthday gift. She liked it and we visited for a little bit.


Stephanie’s birthday gifts

We are watching some old war movie, and then we are off to run around for a bit. I don’t know what the rest of the day holds, but it has started out pretty nice!

I hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day! Don’t forget to take a moment and remember all those brave men and women who died protecting our freedom!

Word of the Day Challenge
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Writing, Writing Prompts

WOD Challenge 05-31-21 The Gush Moments?

First off, Happy Memorial Day! Let us never forget those who died defending our country!

Now for the word of the day which only brings to mind immediately that new stupid commercial about the “gush” moments. How disgusting are commercials getting these days?? Do we really need to hear about women and their period problems, especially at dinner time? Or what about “Down there care”??? I’m appalled that the state of things has gotten this bad. We all know these things without having some advertiser pimping his products shoving it in our faces! And then there’s one with women shaving their bikini area, like that’s something we all need to watch. Ok, rant over.

I’m a little grumpy this weekend, folks. Sorry about that. It’s been a difficult and scary weekend with my dad, and I’m afraid we may have to make some hard decisions very soon. We had entertained the idea of going out of town and now I’m so glad we didn’t. Dad was put on a new medication to try to tame his tremors. What it did was cause him to become a zombie. Then, Friday, he fell again. That hasn’t happened for a couple or three years. I’m torn between being angry at the doctor for prescribing it, and myself for letting it happen. We were doing just fine on the CBD, yet the doctor claimed this worked like a miracle for some other guy. Well, not my dad. it has taken all weekend to get it out of his system, thank God he didn’t suffer any broken bones, but he did hit his head and scratched up his right arm. We have been watching him like a hawk (some of us anyway) and that brings me to another difficult decision. If someone doesn’t start helping carry the load, he may soon find himself on the street looking for alternate housing!! Someone nearing forty but acting 16 is not what I need right now. Anyway, the medication that almost did Dad in was called Clonazepam or Klonopin. Dad never should have been on something like that. Stopping the tremor is not worth turning my dad into a non-functional human being. On top of all that, the drug is highly addictive, but thank goodness he only had a full dose one day and half a dose the next. I yanked him off immediately after the fall and took it away, out of the house. I told him three times, no more of those pills! And at 1:30am on Saturday morning he was slapping the counter (asking in his way) where’s my pills? I had to tell him again, “Dad. We are not taking those anymore, they made you fall.” He is still angry because I think he knows things are about to change. I don’t know if it means I hire a part-time caregiver, look for one through his healthcare options, or have him move in with me. There is much I’m not saying because it’s private, but just to be clear, he needs more help than we all can give him right now. Say a prayer for us that we find a peaceful resolution that works for all of us as we enter a new phase in his care.

I think today we will chill out and make some sausage, maybe Dad would enjoy coming over and watching the process. 🙂

I’ll keep you posted. Have a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend everyone!

Word of the Day Challenge
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