Say it, darn you!

I know someone who is at the end stages of a terrible cancer. he is a good man & my heart just breaks for him & his family.

No one handles the pending death of a friend /loved one well. While my heart is sore for the pain that this family must face as they prepare to say goodbye to their husband/father/brother/uncle/son, son-in/law/brother-in-arms, etc etc I've been thinking about my own life.

There is much I've left unsaid to those whom I love.

I'm not good with emotions, to me it is much easier for me to cope with the world with a Mr Spock-like logic{ Star Trek}. I can deal with facts, but emotions render me stupid. I'm bad with ALL human emotions , even such happy occasions such as weddings confuse me. Human emotions & responses to such emotions frustrate & mystify me.  Although I FEEL deeply I often either totally lack a response to said emotion or have a totally inappropriate response.

I say all this just to make a point. There is much I wish I could tell people that I just{ for one reason or another}cannot.

Reba McIntyre has a wonderful song that echos how I felt about my Pap. The lyrics that *almost* have me in tears every time go something like this " He never said 'I love you' / I guess he though I knew" .

One person who immediately comes to mind is a friend of many years from my time at First College. This individual has played a big part in my life , but due to circumstances I have never told this person how much they mean & have always meant to me. During the years, this friend & I have seen each other through some major life events. Illness, a divorce, my moving to Florida, the death of one of their parents & the death of my Pap,a publication of a book{clearly not my accomplishment} my brother's wedding, my finally finding happiness with Best Dude, travels. You get the idea: we've been through a lot.

But I never told them.

We live hundred s of miles apart now & all I want to do is tell this individual how blessed I am to have them in my life & that I've always treasured the somewhat unorthodox yet very deep friendship-in-Christ we share.

But how should I do this?

Facebook is totally inappropriate. Email isn't much better than Facebook, at least in my opinion. Should I write a 'snail mail' letter & send it via US Post? Maybe I should call & tell them?
I don't know.

Color me confused.

' Burghing....on a summer's afternoon.

Two of my aunts and I took a short road trip from Hometown into Pittsburgh one day . We met Urbanne Cousin for lunch in the part of the city that was previously known as East Liberty. { now I've learned it goes by the trendier moniker of "Eastside".

O City Of Pittsburgh, please just leave well-enough alone! Its hard enough for me to get accustomed to the Penguins' home as " Mellon Arena" when all my life it has gone by the simpler name of " Pittsburgh Civic Arena".

I'm just sayin'....

Anyhow, we met Urbanne at her place of employment  & took a brief city walk to a very chic gourmet hamburger place known as BRGR. { Yes, I spelled that correctly: it is really BRGR}

 See? I told you it is really BRGR! 

We ate some tasty albeit expensive hamburgers and enjoyed some good conversation with Urbanne, whom I had not seen in two summers. She is ten years younger than me, but in many ways I look to her for inspiration. I only wish I possessed some of the chutzpah that my younger cousin shows.

I love Pittsburgh!

My Hometown

I concluded my trip with a visit to  Hometown, { western} Pa.

Usually this part of my trip is pleasant, but not traditionally " fun". My father's family have been hear since the 1800-something & most of them still live in that very county where our ancestors came to from Ireland.

There is not a lot to to in Hometown, PA. One of the traditions that is the most meaningful to me is the Supper At Grandma's House. My grandmother is an excellent cook & she makes a weekly meal for  the children & grandchildren. { not all of them show up, but there is always a crowd at the table.

Here is the set table before the meal.

 There is nothing as tasty as Pennsylvania sweet corn.

 Family members visting in Grandma's living room.

I also visited the campus Of Small Pennsylvania Public College, where my uncle teaches.

 This pretty bloom caught my attention as I walked aroudn the main part of campus.

 I miss the gently rolling Appalachian hills of western Pennsylvania

More Lake 2013 Photo Memories

It is pouring down rain this morning here in Florida. Best Dude & I hoped to go walk on the beach this morning, but it looks like we'll be housebound again today. I am weary of this wet, humid summer weather here on the Gulf Coast.  One of the best aspects of summers at the lake is how I can walk in the mornings & evenings wearing jeans & a t-shirt.

This is a fine-looking vintage Airstream camper that I saw during one of my walks at the Lake.

This is the dock where G and I tanned ourselves. It floats , but is easily accessible from the bank of the lake. I love the nautical look of the lifesaver ring.

 I cooled my tired feet off in the creek The creek was high & gently babbling & the water felt so good on my feet. When I was younger I spent much time in the creeks.

This creek is the same creek that ran near the house in Ohio where I lived. There was an empty lot behind the house that was used as a hideout among the neighborhood young people.

  I've always liked this little red footbridge near my favorite wading place at the Lake.

Some campers decorated the site with painted rocks.

The sunsets over the Lake are amazing.

G & S's Great Glamping Adventure, 2013

My best gal pal and I went " Glamping" at the Lake over the Fourth Of July. She rented one of the cabins at the Lake & we stayed down there for two nights. It was fun , and I am glad we had this quality time together.

Here is the exterior of our little cabin. Isn't it pretty?

 I took some photos of the interior after we settled in. I apologize for the mess. The cabin has a set of bunk beds, one queen-sized lower bunk & one upper bunk { on which I slept} that is a twin bed. It also had a futon that can sleep two more people. We did not have a kitchen { nor plumbing} in this cabin, but we DID enjoy electricity.

Our front porch boasted a rocking chair & a porch swing. Since the cabin has no water, I had to brush my teeth on the porch in the mornings & evenings. Thankfully the " facilities" were located within a very short walking distance from this cabin.

We ate a lot of traditional " camp food", but one lunch had us eating Ramen noodles out of microwavable pots ! {College flashback, anyone? }

 Although we tried to have a fire , the rain was a challenge. Our meager fire was fun, however & we burned several sheets of old newspapers in our fire-building attempt.

One the Fourth, G and I were treated to a motorboat ride around the Lake. We were fortunate enough to see a juvenile eagle{ no I could not get a photo of it--as it was too far in the sky}

It was a wonderful experience & one that I shall treasure forever.

One especially nice day at the Lake

My vacation to the mountains this year was GREAT!  { other than the hideous flight experience home, I have absolutely no complaints about my time up North.

One day in particular will stay with me for a long time. Best Dude & I hike out coastal paradise & it is wonderful in its own{ very flat} way. Since I grew up in the Appalachian woodlands, coastal hiking is inferior to hiking in the mountains.

My friend CK, who is a botanist & a professor at a midsized university in the Southeast, came to the Lake to spend the day with me. Now it isn't unusual for some of my good friends to come visit with me when I'm at the Lake, but CK and I had not seen each other in person for 16 years!

Yup, we hadn't seen each other in person for  16 year yet we maintained our friendship. That fact in itself is , in my opinion, pretty darn awesome.

Anyhow, we spent a lot of time walking. CK, being a botanist, examined & identified many different plants we saw on our hikes.

This is a " Shag Bark Hickory" tree. Note the unusual bark. Don't ask me to recall the scientific names of any of the flora we saw on our hikes: I'm not *that*much into plants!

This is the view of the path up the hillside that we took. the " head" of this particular trail is located right behind " Granny's" house. I've walked this trail several times before, but had not done so in YEARS until this summer. Last year I got hurt whilst hiking solo , so I shall ALWAYS take another hiker with me on my excursions.

 This is known as a  Resurrection Fern. I think it is pretty, growing out of a seemingly barren rocky hillside.

Here is the phoebe bird nest that we found above the front door on Granny's porch. We could not tell if the nest had eggs or not, so we did not touch it.

Later that day, we took a pontoon boat ride around to the other end of the Lake.  I LOVE the view of the mountains surrounding the lake valley & captured several images with my Nikon camera.

There is a huge maple tree towards which I have always felt an affinity located in the park. When I came early to work there during summers of high school and my First College, I would often bring a book & sit under this tree reading until my shift started.  I found out later that the tree is a Black Maple tree, identified by its seed pods.

It is true that I belong on the Northern Gulf Coast of Florida now, but a part of my essence shall remain Appalachian.

Heir Watch & other strange pop cultural fascinations by we Americans

I just do not understand the fascination that some Americans have with the British royalty.

After all, did we not declare our independence from the British throne back in 1776?

Now don't get me wrong, I am happy for Prince William and the duchess. I can also understand my British friends' fascination with Baby Royal. Yet as an American I am befuddled by my fellow & sister Americans' desire to follow the members of the House of Windsor.

Heir Watch is just one pop culture phenomena that confuses me.

Another pop culture sensation that I do not understand is the popularity of TLC's "reality TV show" _Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo" What is so special about this " beauty pageant" contestant & her parents that she's known now by her silly nickname?  Granted, I cop to watching some silly " reality TV" { for instance, I LOVE A&E's _Duck Dynasty_} But I fail to understand the appeal of a reality show starring a spoilt 7-year-old child & her parents.  But again, I still fail to comprehend the popularity of the Kardashians. Can someone please tell me why these women are famous? Thanks. :O)

While we are on the subject of strange social phenomena, can someone please explain why " Flash mobs" occur & why  so-called " spontaneous" dancing by large groups of people in a public place is done at all?

Maybe my autism prevents me from understanding why " pop culture" is so intriguing to many people?  Perhaps I will seek out some scholarly research on the sociological implications popular culture trends.  I find that I understand social & personal behavior of humans if I view it from a more scientific point of view.

One Bread, One Body

I've been on vacation for the past 11 days , and it has been wonderful.

The majority of my time here in Appalachia was spent at my godparents' campground in Ohio. I swam, boated, and hiked all over the place & visited with several friends from high school . One of the highlights of my time at the lake was a long-awaited { 16 years!!} reunion with a friend from First College.

Naturally I took many photos & eventually I will pare down the " best of the best" of the vacation photos for public viewing.

Today I will go to Roman Catholic mass at St Pauls' Roman Catholic Parish here in Steel Town, PA. While it is true that I am a proud Episcopalian, at heart I am a high-Church Anglo-Catholic. As a matter of fact, when I was in the middle of my faith-identity crisis---I {albeit briefly} considered officially returning to the Roman Church. There are a myriad of reasons why I felt led to Anglicanism, but the main reason is our style of worship & other Traditions mirror that of the Roman Church.

Some of my Roman Catholic friends will totally disagree with me, but I feel that Anglican & Roman Catholics ARE different branches of the same Body of Christ. My reasons for choosing the Anglican way over the Roman  had to do with human-made rules.

We are all part of One Bread & One Body.

Amen.