A Jiggly Remembrance

I was preparing a package of Jell-O (TM) this morning, and it reminded me, as preparing it always does, of a tale from my childhood.

Both Mama and Daddy were gainfully employed, and after my brother, the baby, became old enough not to require a hired babysitter, I, as the eldest, was the chief sibling-looker-after. During the summer school breaks, this meant that I had a full time job, from the time our parents left home in the morning until their return in the evening. As you might expect, the four of us got into a lot of mischief, several episodes of which involved Jell-O.

Mama kept a modest supply of Jell-O on hand, five or six boxes, stored in the kitchen cupboard. We children loved Jell-O, and could hardly wait for her to fix it for our dessert, which usually occured on a weekend, as Jell-O takes several hours to go from liquid to the jelled state. Although I had watched the process many times, Mama didn't think I was old enough to mess around with a saucepan of boiling water when she was not there to supervise so, although I did prepare the food we ate during the day, I was not allowed to make Jell-O.

Hmmm... The boxes of Jell-O were just sitting there, enticing us with the sweet-tart taste we knew was lurking behind the cardboard box and waxed paper inner container.

While we didn't dare open the box (a missing box would have been too easily discovered) I learned that if I took the ice-pick and drilled a small hole at one of the back corners of the box, through the cardboard and into the waxed paper, the dry granules would easily pour from the hole into our waiting (and no doubt grubby) open hands. Yum! Granulated Jell-O tasted even better than the prepared stuff.

The now empty box could be returned to the shelf, pristine in appearance except for a tiny, almost invisible, hole on the back side.

The Jell-O raiding parties continued sporadically until Mama decided to make a batch of Jell-O for a Sunday dessert and found all the boxes empty. I can't remember what punishment she meted, but whatever it was, I somehow had no further desire to raid the Jell-O stash.

I still like "dry" Jell-O, though.

ABC Wednesday - "O"

"O" is for Optical Assistance

I have worn "optical assistance," otherwise known as glasses, eyeglasses or spectacles, since I was in my mid-2o's, almost 50 years. My mother told me I wore out my eyes by reading so much, but that diagnosis was not confirmed by the optician. My first glasses were "single vision" lenses, meant only to sharpen and enlarge figures and print, and I did not have to wear them except when doing close work. My eyes were otherwise fine; I could spot a hair on a fly at 100 paces!

As I grew older, that changed, and by the time I was in my late 30's I required bi-focals; optical assistance for both close work and distance clarity. Flies at 100 paces were now completely safe; not only could I not see the hairs on them, I couldn't even see the post they were sitting on. Sigh!

Getting used to wearing bi-focals took some time. For a few days, my eye-brain connection thought that I was walking on a surface that had a lot of holes in it. I did a lot of high-stepping and swerving; I'm sure I must have been comical to observe, and probably was thought to be under the influence of an intoxicant. Those feelings passed, and I happily wore my bifocals for several years. Then...

... "Tri-focals? What do you mean, I need tri-focals? Just because I can't read your silly chart, nor see the speedometer clearly, I need tri-focals?"

And, so it was, in my 50's (entirely too young) that my eyeglasses were ground with corrections for close, mid-range and distance vision.

Over the intervening years, the corrections have become stronger and stronger. I now have not only pretty strong tri-focal lenses, but also a pair of glasses especially ground for viewing the computer screen, and some cute (hah!) little reading glasses. The prescription for all of these changes (gets stronger) about every two years, and I am temporarily financially distressed when I have to get new glasses, because I generally have to replace all three.

Did I already say that I am very, very thankful to be able to see to drive, and read, and blog? No? Well... I am!

ABC Wednesday was created by Mrs. Nesbitt. Please visit the ABC Wednesday site to view others' interpretations of this week's letter, "O."

Today's Flowers

"Joseph's Coat" Rose

This beautiful rose was blooming in the garden of a friend I visited last week. The petals are multi-colored, thus the name "Joseph's Coat." I caught this one in fully opened form. The major down-side to this rose variety is that the stems, both main and small leaf-bearing, are thickly populated with very sharp thorns. I'd hate to be caught in a thicket of Joseph Coat roses. I understand that this variety is recommended for creating boundry line hedges.

For more information on this rose variety, you may click the link above.


Today's Flowers is a weekly Meme created by Luiz Santilli, Jr. and may be found here. Please visit to see others' lovely flower photos. If you have a flower photo of your own to share, please join us.

Camera Critters

"Sterling Darling"

Sterling Darling is my daughter Jean's Chocolate Siamese male cat. He first came into the family at the age of only a few days, having just opened his eyes. He was found on a Friday afternoon by a construction worker under a house in western Little Rock, occupying a 'nest' with an already deceased kitten of the same age, with no mama cat in evidence. He could tell the kitten was in critical condition, and took him to the closest veterinary clinic, where my son's wife worked as a groomer. There was no way this baby could survive without constant attention, so leaving him at the clinic over the weekend with only occasional feeding visits by the vet techs was not an option, so daughter-in-law brought him home with her, "home" being at that particular moment a family gathering in celebration of my 70th birthday. The tiny kitten, which fit into the palm of her hand, would require 'round the clock care which, as an employed person, she was not able to give.

Present at the gathering was my daughter Jean's husband, himself of a very tender nature. He decided that his family, with a stay- at- home mom, would take the kitten, and he put it under his shirt next to his heart, where he carried it almost constantly, taking his turn at feeding the baby, and reluctantly leaving the kitten to the care of my daughter when he was not available.

I'm as sure as I can be that it was the loving and dedicated attention to a tiny creature that allowed Sterling Darling to survive and grow into a beautiful cat. He is devoted to my son-in-law and still rides around on his shoulders for extended periods. Sterling Darling rewards his family by catching small (and, so far, non-poisonous) snakes and lizards he finds crawling about in the wood pile and brushy areas of the property. He brings them to the back door and waits patiently for someone to praise him for his hunting prowess.

How Sterling Darling got his name, I'm not exactly sure, but he is always referred to using both names.

Camera Critters is the creation of Misty Dawn. Check out this week's other critters here.

Looking at the Sky on Friday

It's been beautiful weather here for the last few days, a very welcome change from the several downpours we've had since Easter Day. On my way home from church Wednesday evening, the western sky caught my eye. Ahhh! I drove to my favorite viewing spot (overhead power lines are at a minimum there) to catch a shot of the lovely color in the sky.

Looking at the Sky on Friday is sponsored by Crazy Working Mom.

Where Did Spring Go?

I spent the first part of this week working inside, in the church office on Monday, then keeping an eagle eye on my 4 year old granddaughter at her home on Tuesday and Wednesday while her mother was elsewhere. I had hoped to work in my trashy uh, beginning-to-be-overgrown, abandoned-looking must-soon-be-mowed-and-edged yard today and tomorrow, but...

...good grief! Where did Spring go? It's after 7 p.m. as I write this, and it's 86 degrees outside -- in the shade! When I engage in physical exertion, which working in the yard certainly entails, I tend to melt into a puddle, i.e., sweat like a horse! My northern European genes don't like the heat -- not one bit!

I can see right now that I'll have to be in the yard at first light tomorrow or I'm going to have to rent some goats!

Image: Wikipedia

ABC Wednesday - "N"

"N" is for Nest

While visiting a friend a few days ago, I noticed that a mama Blue Jay had built a nest on top of the security light in her carport. I don't think I've ever seen a jay's nest before, and I was amazed at the size of the sticks and twigs she used. There's a plastic bag in there, too; for cushioning, perhaps? When I inquired, I learned that the light had been turned off when they discovered the nest building going on. That is a good thing; I imagine that a halogen light would put out enough heat to bake the eggs.


ABC Wednesday was created by Mrs. Nesbitt. Please visit the ABC Wednesday site to view others' interpretations of this week's letter, "N."