'Tis the Season

The Trees are all lit, Black Friday is over and let's begin to understand why we are celebrating at all.

There is nothing more exciting than the Christmas Season.  People are all a bustle trying to purchase gifts for loved ones and get the home decorated in anticipation of receiving the exciting guest, Santa! Music is blarring in every shopping mall and even on the streets in some areas. 

But no one will dare to mention the true meaning of the season, the celebration of the birth of Our Savior Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Why? Because some sad person who has no belief in anything and obviously is not a happy person, does not want anyone to have the joy of celebrating their religious beliefs.  Wasn't that why this country was founded? Thought so.    Are we offending anyone by saying Merry Christmas?  I do not think so.   Anyway, it is ok for  someone to throw a prayer rug on the street and face east and start rambling on some kind of prayer but if a Manger is put up once a year for a mere month, the world becomes chaotic with protesters chanting that we are shoving Jesus down their throughts. REALLY? Seriously, REALLY?  If we yank that prayer rug out from under that person praying, we are infringing on their rights.  But we cannot stand before a symbol of OUR Lord and heaven forbid, pray!!!! REALLY?  Yup, really. 

The children in schools can no longer sing Christmas carols. But they can sing about that new holiday called Kuanza ( do not know how to spell or care to know). And they can sing about a draddle but do not even thing about "Away in The Manger" or "Silent Night".  The world will go insane if they are sung.  REALLY? Yup, REALLY!!!!.  If we are looking for equality, then we should represent ALL religions, not just those that are UNChristian. 

I respect my neighbor's religious or non-religious beliefs and if they do not wish to discuss my beliefs, that is just fine and dandy.  But, to tell me I cannot say Merry Christmas and instead must say Happy Holidays, well, no, I am not happy about that and thus, Happy Holidays is a joke.  Why? Because it seems the Holidays do not include my Holiday, the one that started a very long time ago, Christmas. 

From my home, from my mouth, from my pen, will will only say MERRY CHRISTMAS!

'Tis the Season

The Trees are all lit, Black Friday is over and let's begin to understand why we are celebrating at all.

There is nothing more exciting than the Christmas Season.  People are all a bustle trying to purchase gifts for loved ones and get the home decorated in anticipation of receiving the exciting guest, Santa! Music is blarring in every shopping mall and even on the streets in some areas. 

But no one will dare to mention the true meaning of the season, the celebration of the birth of Our Savior Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Why? Because some sad person who has no belief in anything and obviously is not a happy person, does not want anyone to have the joy of celebrating their religious beliefs.  Wasn't that why this country was founded? Thought so.    Are we offending anyone by saying Merry Christmas?  I do not think so.   Anyway, it is ok for  someone to throw a prayer rug on the street and face east and start rambling on some kind of prayer but if a Manger is put up once a year for a mere month, the world becomes chaotic with protesters chanting that we are shoving Jesus down their throughts. REALLY? Seriously, REALLY?  If we yank that prayer rug out from under that person praying, we are infringing on their rights.  But we cannot stand before a symbol of OUR Lord and heaven forbid, pray!!!! REALLY?  Yup, really. 

The children in schools can no longer sing Christmas carols. But they can sing about that new holiday called Kuanza ( do not know how to spell or care to know). And they can sing about a draddle but do not even thing about "Away in The Manger" or "Silent Night".  The world will go insane if they are sung.  REALLY? Yup, REALLY!!!!.  If we are looking for equality, then we should represent ALL religions, not just those that are UNChristian. 

I respect my neighbor's religious or non-religious beliefs and if they do not wish to discuss my beliefs, that is just fine and dandy.  But, to tell me I cannot say Merry Christmas and instead must say Happy Holidays, well, no, I am not happy about that and thus, Happy Holidays is a joke.  Why? Because it seems the Holidays do not include my Holiday, the one that started a very long time ago, Christmas. 

From my home, from my mouth, from my pen, will will only say MERRY CHRISTMAS!

FIGHTING THE GREAT FIGHT

It seem that every time I turn around I am hearing about another dear friend starting the Great Fight.

The Great Fight is the battle of Cancer.

I capitolize the word Cancer because it is a very serious illness and you have to respect the severity of it's effects.

I call it the Great Fight because it is the biggst battle a person can do on their own.  I say on their own loosely because I am not taking into consideration that Jesus is with us all the way in this fight and our care givers are invaluable saints.  But, you, yourself are conducting the biggest battle of your life and that is what you are fighting for, your life.

How do I know?  Well, since 2006 I have been fighting various cancers! Yup, more that one and none which were minor.I have lost organs, almost lost my life serveral times and lost more blood that any body could make. But, here I am, yet still fighting the Great Fight, still and respecting the C word with intense fear.

BUT, NEVER give up the Great Fight. Why, because we may be fighting but we are not fighting alone.  We must trust that Jesus is with us, fighting the fight with us and listening to all the prayers sent up to Him on our behalf.  WE must fight for THEM. Jesus, our friends and family and even strangers that are looking on and wondering why you are fighting so hard. 

Let His light shine through you onto those watching.  Let them know you can do all things with Jesus Christ beside you, holding you and lifting you up, loving you, healing you.

God Bless You All!

Color My World Emerald Coast Blue

Color My World Emerald Coast Blue

                                                                                                                   

Color plays such a quiet, strong  influence on us that sometimes we do not even realize that our surrounding’s color actually can alter our mood. 

Needless to say, when you buy a home, whether a beach area property, a suburban neighborhood or country home,  the colors that you use to paint the walls and decorate with will have an influence on not only the theme of the home but the moods that may result from the color theme of the room.

I did a quick survey of some of my friends about what color they liked best for their bedroom. Here are a few remarks I received:

“Mauve with white trim...very calming”                        

                                                          

“Soft green, its soothing”                                                  

“Gray....think fog, not battleship”

“I painted my master bedroom 'green', I wanted to just stay in my room - very calming, felt very peaceful. I have white trim and love it.”

“A beautiful blue "contemplation" from home depot - the color evokes serenity and peace - it has an under tone of green”

“Sage green, is on my walls now... supposed to have a calming effect”.

I found it interesting to see that some of the colors are cool and some warmer, such as mauve.  Now, the Mauve person lives in the North so maybe there is a desire to feel warmth in the northern bedroom!  But then again, another northern said blue with green it so, that kicks the warm theory.

Anyway, A paint quality specialist, Debbie Zimmer , www.paintquality.com, of Paint Quality Institute in Philadelphia  suggests the following :

Purple:  Reserve for a daughter’s room, purple evoking the ability to stimulate brain activity;

Blue:  Great for bedrooms because it is known to slow the pulse rate and lover the body temperature.

Green:  Known for its soothing effect, represents renewal, youth and vigor and is another good choice for bedrooms.

Yellow:  A great decorating color, it imparts happiness and optimism.

Orange:  Flamboyant, it is an attention getter and gives warmth and energy.(  I think it sounds like a good gym color!)

Red:  Makes the heart beat faster, associated with desire and passion, it is perfect for dining rooms and adult bedrooms!

Now that you have read a paint specialist’s opinion, let me introduce more information I dug up on the internet about color and its influence.

Red:  A color of love, war, determination, danger, strength and power.

Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love.
Pink signifies romance, love, and friendship. It denotes feminine qualities and passiveness.
Dark red is associated with vigor, willpower, rage, anger, leadership, courage, longing, malice

Brown suggests stability and denotes masculine qualities.      
Reddish-brown is associated with harvest and fall.

Orange:  combines the energy of red and the happiness of yellow. It is associated with joy, sunshine, and the tropics. Orange represents enthusiasm, fascination, happiness, creativity, determination, attraction, success, encouragement, and stimulation.

Dark orange can mean deceit and distrust.
Red-orange corresponds to desire, sexual passion, pleasure, domination, aggression, and thirst for action.
Gold evokes the feeling of prestige. The meaning of gold is illumination, wisdom, and wealth. Gold often symbolizes high quality.

Yellow:  is the color of sunshine. It's associated with joy, happiness, intellect, and energy.

Dull (dingy yellow) represents caution, decay, sickness, and jealousy.    
Light yellow is associated with intellect, freshness, and joy.               

Green:  the color of nature. It symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness, and fertility. Green has strong emotional correspondence with safety. Dark green is also commonly associated with money.

Dark green is associated with ambition, greed, and jealousy.
Yellow-green can indicate sickness, cowardice, discord, and jealousy.
Aqua is associated with emotional healing and protection.
Olive green is the traditional color of peace.

Blue:  is the color of the sky and sea. It is often associated with depth and stability. It symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth, and heaven.

Light blue is associated with health, healing, tranquility, understanding, and softness.
Dark blue represents knowledge, power, integrity, and seriousness

Purple:   combines the stability of blue and the energy of red. Purple is associated with royalty. It symbolizes power, nobility, luxury, and ambition. It conveys wealth and extravagance. Purple is associated with wisdom, dignity, independence, creativity, mystery, and magic.

Light Purple evokes romantic and nostalgic feelings.

Dark Purple causes gloom and sad feelings, sometimes frustration.

White:  is associated with cleanliness, purity, goodness.  Angels wear white.  White is used in hospitals.

Black: is associated with power, elegance, formality, death, evil, and mystery. However, is can denote strength and power along with giving a formal air.  Black is used in galleries to make the colors of art pieces pop.  Black may be mysterious but has a multitude of connotations.

Color used on homes plays a huge part in the sensation of an area, revealing the architect and attitude of the neighbor.

Along 30A of South Walton County and the beaches of Destin, the homes’ color palette varies tremendously.  There are wonderful vibrate pastels used on the homes in Seaside, FL that simply make you feel “ beachy”, frivolous and carefree.  More formal approaches are taken in the color schemes used in Destiny- by- the- Sea in Destin, using terra cottas and deep beige tones.  The soft beiges, whites and creams are popular in the Moorish influenced areas of Rosemary Beach and Seacrest Beach areas.  These quiet colors allow the intricate architect of the buildings and homes to stand out along the crystal, clear waters of the Emerald Coast.

Drive down Scenic 98 in Destin and along 30A in South Walton and feast your eyes on a color palette that will please all your senses.

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Fall Cleaning

Fall Cleaning

I know this is not a favorite subject for most of us but the reality of it is that Fall Cleaning is something we really need to do.

One way to approach the major chore of tackling the entire house, closets especially, is to sit down and figure out a “game” plan.  Shall you start in the closets?  Will you weed out the clothes you haven’t worn in a long while and maybe donate them to your local charity? Or maybe you wish to start in the kitchen and clean out the cupboards, eliminating dishes you do not use; toss the mugs from everywhere which have accumulated to way more than you need; or maybe just going through your canned goods to see what will be expiring soon and either use the product or donate it to your local food back.  The cupboards need cleaning themselves and that Murphy’s Soap is calling your name! UGH!

And don’t forget to put on your list…….

Ah yes, the windows?  Who’s volunteering to do the outside and who is volunteering to do the inside? Never a favorite of anyone’s.

The garage has become a collection point for odds and ends for a great deal of us.  Time to sift through the items and get rid of the unusable ones and hazardous chemicals that may be left over. This usually makes the end of the list, right next to the windows!

Raking leaves can be fun and pulling the straggling summer annual flowers to replace with the winter fare is a job for the list but at least it will keep you out in the fresh air. 

Whatever you need to do this fall, instead of fretting about the tasks, decide to have fun while doing them.  If music brings you pleasure, play your favorite tunes while working.  If you enjoy working with your children, get them involved and make a fun day of it, with rewards of pizza or ice cream at the end of the day. 

Fall cleaning really isn’t so bad. Have some fun with it and just think, you only have to do it once a year.  Oh yea, spring cleaning……but that isn’t until next year!

Facing My Weakness

Today I had to face the truth about myself.  

Admitting one's weaknesses is probably the hardest thing I have ever encountered and for the first time I was absolutely honest with myself in a long time and I sure did not like what I told myself. UGH! Sure isn't pretty to be real. Sure isn't pretty to be true. Sure isn't pretty to be weak. But, yes, we all have a weakness whether we want to admit it or not. 

And today I admitted my weakness to myself  and faced it head on and you know what?  I am exhausted.  It took the wind out of my sails and the zip out of my "zipper".  It made me feel sad. It made me feel so down right less. Not less a person, Just less. 

But, that is okay to be less.  They say less is more.  I am going to ride on that for a while.  I have no choice.  Less can be more, if you let it.  So, I will go on.  I will take my weakness, my less and make it a MORE in my life and you know what? 

I WILL BE MORE!

Blessings of Summer Traffic

Ok. Many of us have lived here way before the tourists discovered us and jammed up our highways and back roads. Some call it progress. Some call it keeping Destin alive. Whatever you may call it, IT IS SO DEAL WITH IT and Be THANKFUL you live in one of the most beautiful places in the United States, maybe even in the world! So it takes a few minutes longer to get somewhere because now we are sharing our Paradise with others. How nice, we are now sharing. God Bless you for sharing! Smile, you are Blessed!

The Gifts of the Emerald Coast

Sometimes those of us, who live along the Emerald Coast, whether full or part time, take the plethora of joy of this area for granted.  Well, it is time to become a tourist in your own “backyard”.

Have you noticed the most magnificent sunsets that we have in this area?  It is as though the sun slowly falls into the water, seeping its orange and yellow hues into the emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico. And during the summer months, it is fun to watch the sun rise also.  It appears as if  the sun is rising out of the water, drawing the yellow and orange water into itself to fulfill its glorious glow until it has risen well above the Gulf.

Take a look at the sand dunes and grasses.  Have you ever just sat on the sand and watched the summer breezes blow though the tall grasses?  They look like hula dancers on the beach.

Or take a walk in one of our many seaside towns.  There is eye candy for all walks of life.  From art galleries to clothiers to cafes to Silver-streams selling yummy bites to eat to hand made jewelry to hand blown glass art.  Oh, there is so much to take in.  All while strolling in the clean, salty air of our beautiful coast.

The children and children at heart love to build sandcastles out of our quartz sand because it just lends itself to being molded with a little water.  Take a walk along the water’s edge to find what treasures the Gulf has brought forth that day and imagine where that shell or urchin was a year ago, or maybe just a few minutes ago.

Grab a canoe or Yolo board and experience one of the tranquil lakes along Scenic 98 or 30A.  Or take a bicycle ride with family or friends and pack a snack to stop at one of the rest areas along the beach.

Walk across the Destin Bridge and look down at the boats in the gorgeous turquoise water with the white sand glistening along its coast.  It is truly breathtaking and almost surreal.

Or seize that book you have been meaning to read and sit on the beach and enjoy the background sounds of the surf while you fall into the depths of the story being told.

Sure is fun and relaxing being a tourist in your own backyard, isn’t it?

Give a Hand

Don't ever be afraid to reach out and give someone, a stranger maybe, your hand.  Helping our fellow man is the rule of love thy neighbor as thyself.  If you were in need of a helping hand, would you not want even a stranger to help you if that is what it would take?

Well, don't be afraid to give of yourself and you will see the joy you receive in your heart.  It is like no other joy in the world. 

God's Little Creations

Someone posted a picture of a child with a disability and said that this child may not have been born.
How dare we even think to interfer with God's work.  A child is a blessing without words; without description, without a reason other than God wants that child to be His.  How dare we ever think of taking God's child from Him?  Never-ever shall we interfere with God's plans, His work, His love. 
Instead, receive His love, His forgiveness, His sacrafice for our sins and BE THANKFUL- ALWAYS.

Hotel Shopping on the Web

Sometimes I am surprised how hard it is to trust some websites.  For instance.  I booked a hotel in Houston which I thought looked fairly nice on their website.  Yes, I realize their best rooms will be present on the site but heavens, you should have seen the dump this place turned out to be.  As only God would have it, I was able to book into the hotel we normally stay in but was previuosly known to be booked for the term we needed, hence why I had looked for another hotel. 

Anyway, even after reading reviews, try to contact someone, whom you trust, before you stay at a hotel.  If that is not possible, then stick to a reputable chain that is always rated with 5 stars.  It just is not worth the savings to end up in a dive, for a fair amount of money, and not even want to put your suitcase on the filthy rug let alone sleep in the questionable bed!   UGH!!!

Marriott Courtyard is fairly rated and safe to say a clean, nice enviroment.  Hampton Inns are fairly nice for a quick stay.  Usually clean and accomodating for a shorter stay,  for a longer stay ,I recommend a suite. 

If you are looking for more posh accomodations, there is always the Hilton.  Except I personally think the Hilton in Houston Medical Center Area has become a bit seedy for the price. Of course there other wonderful, extravagent type hotels but when traveling, I personally don't need that for the 8-10 hours I will be there for.

My little two cents on hotels on the web.

Flip Flops in the Sand

Have you ever noticed that when someone wears their Flip Flop sandals on the beach they cause the sand to flip into the air like a small geyser?  Have you ever wondered just where this crazy footwear came from and where they got the silly name of Flip Flops?

Well, I did a little digging and found some interesting facts about those things we wear so much along the Emerald Coast.

• The Flip Flop Sandal has been around for some 6,000 years.  No kidding!
• The oldest surviving Flip Flop is made of papyrus and is displayed in the

British Museum and the circa is 1500 BC.

• The Ancient Egyptians made their Flip Flops out of papyrus and palm leaves
• The African Misai used rawhide for their Flip Flops
• In India, wood was used to make the sandal
• Both China and Japan utilized their rice straw for theirs
•  Sisal leaves were used in South America for their Flip Flops
• And Mexico used the Yucca plant to make their Flip Flops.
•  The Japanese Zori (Flip Flop) became popular in the 30’s

The Flip Flops became the most popular in America during the 50’s when soldiers fighting the Korean War brought home rubber Flip Flops  as souvenirs.  Those were made poorly, causing blisters and fell apart easily.  When the American began wearing the Flip Flops, they were brightly colored, reflecting the 50’s era.  The Flip Flop became indigenous to the causal lifestyle known in California, especially with the surfers.

Did you know that the Flip Flop is also called other names throughout the world?

• In Japan, they are called the Zori
• In New Zealand they are called the Jandal which is short for Japanese Sandal
•  And they are known as Thongs in Australia.
• In India and Pakisatn they are popular;y known as Hawaii Chappal.

So when you are walking  down the Emerald Coast Beaches made of Appalachian quarts and watching the Flip Flops whip up that pristine white sand remember, those sandals have been around almost as long as the beach they are treading on!

                                                            Just a tid bit!

Restaurant Reviews

I used to review restaurants and night spots in the greater New York and New Jersey area a while back and have been ghos twriting reviews for others.  I will, on occassion, blog about restaurants that I have visited to giveyou a heads up on the local cuisine and the approximate price range.

Stroke of His Brush

The most beautiful rainbow hovered over Destin this evening, during a rain shower while the sun was peeking through the dark, illuminated clouds.  It was breathtaking and then, all of a sudden, a second arch appeared above the first rainbow and more magnificent hues of all the colors of the rainbow revealed itself to the world. Just another stroke of Our Lord's artisit paintbrush gifting us with previews of the beauty he has instore for us.