ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL...

As I sit in my office car,

 looking out over snow capped mountains

against a soft blue sky

 with ribbons of clouds

 and a spring flowering bush

 in the foreground, 

the happiness of spring 

doesn't seem 

too far away...

...I open an old, thick decorating book

 that I use as my desk,

 and I see a small note 

that states, 

quite simply, 

that happiness is a journey,

 not a destination.

I think I must have this premise 

ingrained in my soul,

 as I have always been happier 

looking forward to what is to come 

than the actual event.

 That is not to say 

that I don't always enjoy 

the event itself, 

I do.

I just think

 the possibilities 

of what is to happen

seems to take longer 

than the end result

 takes to

play out 

and it seems to be over 

before it begins.

For example, 

the Captain's birthday 

was last week

 and the kids planned a surprise visit

 to celebrate.

 I almost gave it away

 a few times 

but was able to recover 

before I let anything slip

 and it was a

total success.

They brought home-made tamales,

 rice, broccoli casserole,

 green salad fixins 

and all the condiments,

 along with that wonderful 

carrot cake

 you see above.

(Tami was a little miffed 

at Tim for not ordering 

'Dad' on the cake

 instead of Jerry, 

but in Tim's defense

 it was a natural mistake 

as this is how 

he refers to him.)

 They even did 

all the set up 

and the clean up and 

Jake got in 

and washed the dishes.

 It was such fun 

and I forgot

 to take pictures 

and we were left with

 a few nights worth 

of delicious left-overs.

 We are so fortunate 

that our kids are so loving

 and take such 

good care of us.

 The weekend passed too quickly

 but it was a very 

special time.

Another happiness journey 

is the reason 

for all of the camellia pictures

 I am featuring today.

 The buds have been showing 

for some time now 

and finally have blossomed out 

into the best crop of flowers

 we have had

 for sometime.

I guess

 the lack of water 

didn't hurt them 

nor the downpour 

we had 

a few days ago.

For as long as

 you might have been reading my blog, 

you have seen my picture.

 I started writing in 

February, 2012

 and the particular picture 

I used

 was already 4 years old

 at that time.

 It was taken 

on an Alaskan cruise 

we took in 2008.

I have shown 

a couple of others 

such as the one on Face Book 

which was taken at 

Jake's high school graduation 

and he is now 22.

 Since then,

 I let my hair go gray 

and was never satisfied,

 but it was so much easier. 

 I have seen women 

who have gray hair

 that are much younger that I,

 and have admired it,

 but for some reason

 I could not reconcile myself

 to it

 for me.

 I always felt so old

 and it didn't match what

 I felt like inside,

 so I took the plunge

 and decided to go blonde.

 After I made the appointment,

 I could hardly wait. 

 I was so sure 

there was going to be a drastic change

 in how I looked and felt.

 There is that

 happiness is a journey

 thing again!..

Long story short,

 it wasn't as drastic

 as I had hoped for,

 but I am going to live with it awhile

 and see if I want 

to go lighter.

 The Captain, Tami and my sister

 all love it 

and I guess I'm getting more used to it.

  Thoughts on the subject

 would be greatly appreciated...

Please!

...as you can see,

 there has been a little bit 

of a journey 

between the time we first met 

and now.

The happiness

 is to grow old gracefully

 and the destination is 

still looking bright.

Picture courtesy of Victoria magazine

One journey 

that has not been as happy 

involves Downton Abbey.

  

We knew 

this was the last season and, 

that in itself, 

is an unhappy occasion,

 but our satellite dish went out 

earlier last week

 and we lost a lot of programs 

that we had taped 

and it didn't record some. 

 Dish Network 

sent out a technician 

who had to replace

 the old dish and the DVR receiver

 with new ones,

at no charge to us.

 I do say 

that Dish Network

 takes care of their customers,

 but in the meantime

 as I am setting up the new system, 

I notice that this coming Sunday

 there is a "Tribute to Downton Abbey".

 Did I miss the ending?

 After waiting six seasons,

 I can't believe that is the case! 

 If true,

 this is one instance 

that happiness certainly isn't

 the destination...

...but thanks to Netflix,

 there will most likely be

 another happiness journey.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I would like to thank 

Bernideen's

 for including my post from last week 

as one of the features on her BttCG party.

 I appreciate so much 

all the work and time 

that goes into providing a place 

where we all can display

 our particular talents 

and I feel so honored 

to be a part of

 any one of them.

...Judy...

Sharing today at:

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Feathered Nest Fridays at French Country Cottage

A BEDTIME STORY...

Once Upon A Time...

...long, long ago,

 before we had our Cottage

 and before we had moved to the Gold Country,

we owned this house. 

 We knew

 it was not going to be

 our forever home,

 only a stepping stone to take us 

to our place of retirement, 

our foot in the door, so to speak. 

 We owned it for about two years,

 rented it out, 

and then sold it.

During the time 

we had the house,

 we would come up every weekend, 

spending the time to drive around,

 looking for just 

that special place...

...and we did find it,

 but before that,

 we began noticing a couple 

that we would see 

almost everyplace we went.

 They were elderly, 

he very petite,

 always wearing a wide brimmed hat 

and suspenders;

 she was definitely 

of larger porportions,

 in a brightly flowered dress

 with her gray hair

 done up in a bun. 

 They drove a long, vintage Cadillac

 with big fins.

 They were a sight 

you don't readily forget 

and we often

wondered

 about their story.

One Saturday,

 we happened upon a yard sale 

in an old house.

  The house was desperately 

in need of repairs. 

 The rooms were littered

 with papers, books and all things 

unimaginable. 

 It was very smelly,

 to put it mildly, 

and after seeing a number of cats,

 alive and dead, 

we knew why.

You might imagine

 most people would hold their breath 

and run away,

 but if you are a "junker at heart"

 and are always expecting 

to find that "pot of gold",

 you know the answer to that

  As we made our way 

through the rooms

 you might take a guess 

as to who the owners

 of the house were!

 The "odd couple",

as we had come to call them, 

that we had been seeing around town,

 dressed as usual,

 and holding court 

among the remnants 

of their life.

We made our way

 up a very narrow, 

steep and twisting stairway 

and it was in one of the bedrooms 

that we found our treasure.

  We had been looking for

 an iron bed for our guest room

 and this one was perfect. 

 After settling on price

 and figuring how to untangle the frame

 from the old mattress

 and all the newspapers, magazines, etc. 

that were holding it down, 

our biggest dilemma became apparent; 

how to get the bed down 

the narrow staircase.

The only way

 was to walk out the window,

 onto the roof of the floor below,

 and lower the bed to the ground 

two stories down. 

 It was a very "iffy" solution, 

considering the shape of the roof, 

but it was our only option

 if we wanted the bed. 

 At this point 

I was down below 

and I do remember taking pictures 

of the procedure

 but can't find them anywhere.

  You will just

 have to take my word for it. 

 It was a scary sight to see.

As you can see,

 we were successful 

in getting the bed out

 and it has been enjoying 

a better life 

ever since.

As most good 

bedtime stories go,

 there is a beginning and an end, 

and this one 

is no exception...

...as I said 

in the beginning, 

we sold this house 

and the new owners 

took it to another level...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I often wonder

 what happened to the "odd couple". 

 I would imagine

 they have passed by now

 but their old homestead lives on

 as a bed and breakfast

 known as the Emma Nevada House. 

 We have taken a tour through it 

and it is a far cry 

from when we first saw it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As I mentioned, 

we did find our Forever Cottage 

and after many years 

the changing and the fixing 

is still ongoing and, 

I imagine,

 will continue 

for time to come...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As for the bed, 

it has been a place of rest 

for many important and beloved guests 

in its time here,

 but none more loved 

than the current occupant...

"Bless'd be the spot, where cheerful guests retire."

Oliver Goldsmith

And They Lived Happily Ever After...

The End  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Progress Report:

...Judy...

Sharing today with:

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