A few more Florida photos

We flew from Knoxville to the Orlando/Sanford Airport this past weekend. Can you tell which photos were taken where?

During our visit, we had a chance to see my nephew and niece, Daniel and Cameron. Daniel turns three in October, and Cameron was born in January. Cameron let everyone hold her and is a very happy baby.

They are cuties and love their Grandpa Jean-Paul.

Grandma's 80th Birthday Celebration

We traveled to Florida for a quick visit this past weekend to celebrate David's Grandma's 80th birthday. It was a surprise party, and all of her children and grandchildren were able to be there.

We waited as a group until Grandma arrived.

Aunt Sue said, "You have something on your shirt Uncle Rick," and we all had a good laugh!

Grandma has six children, five girls and one boy and 16 grandchildren ranging in age from 18 to 31.

Her birthday is actually Sept. 27, but our party was the day before, and she thought she was going shopping and to dinner with a couple of her children and grandchildren. She had no idea what was about to happen.

We're all hiding outside in the backyard waiting for her to make her way to the back door.

She's starting to notice all of us as we're saying, "Surprise!"

She had no idea we were all there waiting to wish her a Happy Birthday!

David and his Grandma Jo (Josephine)

We had some delicious food, including yummy appetizers, ribs, beef brisket, homemade potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, and collard greens.

Before we left, Cash was curious about our suitcase.

We had two smooth flights, only one hour and ten minutes each. It was a great Florida visit, but we're happy to be home with our highs in the 70s (not the 90s) and lows in the 40s later this week.

Happy 80th Birthday Grandma! We love you!

For the love of grading

While grading papers Monday, the right arrow key on my keyboard popped off. I couldn't pop it back in, so I made an appointment with the Genius Bar at the Apple Store in Knoxville, hoping one of the geniuses could repair it...no such luck.

The key is cracked, and the keyboard is the most intricate part of the computer according to Preston, the genius who assisted me. They've ordered a replacement keyboard and will repair my computer when it arrives. Preston said this was the first time he's seen this happen, so of course it would happen to me.

Hopefully, this repair will only separate me from my dear Mac for just a day or so. I can still use it, but I have to rely on the mouse more, and things take a little longer when I'm maneuvering around a document. I love my Mac, but at times like this, I am a bit annoyed and frustrated. Ah, the things we do for love.

First fall visit to the Smokies

We traveled to the Great Smoky Mountains recently on a rainy afternoon. Fall technically doesn't start until Tuesday afternoon, but the autumn season was already in the air in the Smokies.

They were decorating the day we were there in Gatlinburg. All the pumpkins and gourds are from a farmer in Cosby, a neighboring town where one of my dad's army buddies has lived for years.







After a delicious lunch at the Pancake Pantry, we drove up into the "smoky" mountains.







As we were driving home, the sun decided to appear through the clouds.

The light goes out

The longest running drama in television and radio history is now silent. The final episode of Guiding Light aired Friday, Sept. 18 after 72 years on the air. News of the show's departure was announced on April 1, and I honestly thought it was an April Fool's joke. Sadly, it wasn't. (If you don't want to know what happens during the final episode, then stop reading now!)

I grew up watching CBS soap operas thanks to my mother and grandmother, and even though years went by when I didn't watch them, I still found myself wondering what was happening with various characters such as Alan Spaulding, Josh Lewis, and of course Reva Shane Lewis Spaulding O'Neill (who has driven off a bridge, joined the Amish, was cloned, became a princess of an island nation, and recently gave birth to a son who is younger than her grandchildren.)

I started watching the show again a few years ago since we have a DVR, and it's easy to record the episodes and watch them later as a guilty pleasure. I noticed changes in how the show was filmed due to budget cuts. A lot of the scenes looked like I could have shot them with my camera, and many were shot outside instead of an indoor studio. I also could miss an entire week, watch one episode and be completely caught up, but that's how all soap operas work.

Despite the changes, I was sad to see the show go off the air, not only because it's the longest running show on television, but because a part of me will miss some of the crazy story lines. The last few weeks of the show, however, was a time to tie up loose ends and make amends. There were two weddings, a funeral, a life-saving medical procedure, several pregnancies and the happy homecomings of several former main characters. The show also introduced several gay characters recently.

In the final episode, the Spaulding family mourns the death of Alan Spaulding, who recently had saved his son Phillip's life during a risky medical procedure. He died peacefully of a heart attack, and his villain character became a hero. Josh professed his love for Reva and tells her they both need time to find themselves, and he'll return in a year and wait for her at the lighthouse if she decides she wants to be with him.

Fast forward a year into the future—babies are now born, a son has returned from war, and another wedding of two longtime lovers is taking place. Josh waits for Reva, and of course she shows up, and they drive away, starting a new life together...this time forever or at least until there's a reunion show.

99 years and counting

My parents recently reunited two women who've known each other for almost all of their 99 years. Millia was born on July 8, 1910, and here is what my mother wrote about her. "We have known Millia for years. I can remember her when I was a child as well as her mother and father, Uncle Joe and Aunt Carrie. She is distantly related somehow, but I don't really understand how. She spells her name with an "a" instead of an "e," but we call her Millie. Their farm is down the road from Louise and Millie still owns part of it."

Millie now lives in Jacksonville, Florida, and this is where my parents drove Irene Hunter to last weekend for the reunion. Known as Mrs. Hunter to me, she was born barely a month after Millie on August 7, 1910. She was a great friend to my grandmother before she died, and they often attended church dinners and events together. They talked on the phone almost every day.

Somehow my mom realized these two ladies had grown up together and hadn't seen each other in more than 20 years, so she worked on getting the two together again. Both women are in good health for their age. They've slowed down a bit, but they are still enjoying life.



I can only imagine what rich conversations and memories they shared during their visit. Thanks to my dad for taking and sending these great photos to me!

Tailgating at home

I don't envy folks who braved the weather and attended the UF and UT games today. It was raining in Gainesville, and it's warm up here in Knoxville. I love the energy of attending games, but I hate the heat and humidity.

Today, we've sat inside our comfortable home and watched both games. We also decided to boil some peanuts...a food I could live off of if necessary. They are so good! My dad boils them in a pressure cooker, which takes a lot less time. It took us almost six hours before they were done, but they are delicious. I like to eat them when they're fairly hot, and I have fond memories of my dad and I eating them just after he'd boiled them. They're also good once they've cooled.

In keeping with the tradition of football Saturdays and tailgating, we're grilling some hot dogs tonight, and I made some homemade potato salad. This recipe calls for peas, which is different than what I've made before, but we're always up for trying something new.



Hope you're having a great weekend! Next weekend will be interesting when the Gators play the Vols in Gainesville!

Get your flu shot!

Flu vaccines should be available in your area now, and I got mine yesterday at a clinic at Kroger. Most pharmacies now have walk-in clinics where you can get them as well, but sometimes you have to wait since people are also there to see a medical professional if they are sick. You might recall my experience last year at the "Minute Clinic."

However, waiting for a shot hopefully won't be your excuse not to get one. I've gotten a flu shot every year since I was a freshmen in college in 1995, and I've never had the flu. Yes, I've succumbed to colds and sinus infections but not the flu.

These vaccines arrived earlier this year since the H1N1 vaccine should be available in October. According to the University of Tennessee's Web page, the vaccine will be given in two doses over several weeks and will be free to the UT community.

I know some people don't like getting shots, but this one is over before you know it and barely hurts. I do miss getting a character-themed bandage though. :)

It's Football Time!

College football has started again, and while I don't attend the games in Knoxville, I enjoy watching them on television. We also were able to watch the Gator game last night on television. Both teams scored more than 60 points and defeated their opponents.

UT recently completed a stadium expansion, and I snapped the photo above last week. It's not the greatest angle, but it shows the new expanded front.

Some much better photos are from our very talented UT students who covered the game against Western Kentucky yesterday. Ben has great shots of the players, fans, cheerleaders, the band and more. Visit the Tennessee Journalist at tnjn.com/2009/sep/06/ut-vs-wku-photo-galleries/ to view them. Great job!

Go Vols! Go Gators! (In two weeks, they play each other, so I'll just make sure I'm wearing orange!)

Celebrating 75 Years of the Great Smoky Mountains

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is celebrating its 75th anniversary. President Franklin D. Roosevelt presided over the opening ceremony at Newfound Gap on Sept. 2, 1934, so earlier this week, there was a rededication ceremony at the same spot. Only 2,000 people were able to attend, but there was live coverage to watch online. Of course Dolly Parton was there and sang a song she'd written about the mountains, where she grew up.

The Knoxville News Sentinel asked readers to share their favorite memories of the park, and I submitted my thoughts below. (The edited version that is linked above has some minor errors in it that must have happened when they transferred the text from my e-mail to their layout, so my original version is below).

"I've only lived in Knoxville for about three years, but my family has vacationed in the Great Smoky Mountains every year since I was 18 months old. I'm now 32. We usually made the trip during October to see the fall leaves and sometimes also visited during June.

One fall it was rather cold and there was snow and ice on Newfound Gap Road. The road was open, and there wasn't a lot of snow, but since we are from Florida, it was quite exciting. My dad wanted a photo of me near the snow, so we pulled off and got out of the car to snap a shot. My mom was afraid I was going to slide off the mountain, but I obviously didn't.

My husband and I moved to Knoxville in July 2006 so I could enter a Ph.D. program in communication and information at UT. His parents visited for his birthday in early December. It had snowed the night before, and late on a Friday afternoon, they reopened Newfound Gap Road, and we were able to drive a ways and take some gorgeous photographs and play in the snow. It was the first time I had seen that much snow in the U.S. I'm attaching a few photos I took.

I had only seen the Smoky Mountains during the fall and summer seasons, so the first glance at winter is one I'll always remember. We went at the perfect time too since I'm sure it started melting the next day."

Here are some of the gorgeous photos I took during that December visit.






Ironically, I don't have any recent photos of the Smokies during the summer. We usually don't visit as much since it's hot and crowded. I have some previous posts though about visiting Cades Cove and Clingman's Dome during the fall. We've also traveled to the mountains during the spring, and there was even snow up near Newfound Gap.

It's a great place to visit, and I'm thankful we've lived close enough to see the changing seasons of the Great Smoky Mountains.