Trailer Park Snooze

When I was a baby, we lived in a trailer park. My dad was working at General Motors and my mom was a housewife, which was a pretty typical setup for the time period. I don’t remember much about the trailer park, but I do remember an elderly couple who lived there who took a liking to me. The wife had lost one of her legs to gangrene and was in a wheelchair. I don’t know anything about them other than that, but I like to think they were a good influence on my parents, who were young and just starting out. 

During this time, my parents started taking me on car rides in the afternoon to put me to sleep. This resulted in me not learning how to put myself to sleep. I’m not sure how long this lasted, but on the night my mother decided to put a stop to it, I rebelled. Well, I’m not sure if I was old enough to know that I was rebelling, but in any event, I caused a fuss. I mean a real fuss. So loud in fact that the neighbors in the surrounding trailers began knocking on my parents' door, asking if I was okay. Some wanted to know if I was teething. Others, I’m sure, thought something dreadful must be going on inside our home.

Despite all of the neighborly concern, however, no one called Child Protective Services and after a few nights of constant crying, I learned to put myself to sleep. Still, to this day, a good car ride still makes me nod off. 

 

The E.K. Rogers Family

Image taken from the Heritage and History Calendar, 2013, which is sponsored by the Veteran's Museum, Hinton, WV.

All That Glitters

The ad tagline that popped up in my email read "Make sure your yard SHINES!" Caught somewhere between "it's the end-of-summer and I miss my garden" pangs and the "I can't wait for spring" blues, I took the bait, hovered, and clicked the button on my mouse.

Instantly, my computer screen came alive with colorful pictures of Christmas inflatables and glittery yard ornaments, all set against a backdrop of fluffy snow. Well, not real snow but the fake stuff, all white and clean, not dirty, dense, and clumpy like we get around here.

Realizing this wasn't an advertisement for anything gardening related, I sighed and exited the screen. Then, somewhat reluctantly, I resigned myself to the idea that in order for my yard to be shiny this winter, I may have to plant a few reindeer, and possibly a gingerbread man or two. Oh well, at least I won't have to water and weed!  

Me standing in front of a shiny Christmas tree.

Intentions

When you are young, you search for things to do with all of your free time. However, as you get older, you search for time to do all of the things you want to do with the life you have left. Thus is born the aptly titled "fully intend to do list."

My fully intend to do list, like most, is comprised of things I want to do before I depart this life. But, based on the day of the week, the weather, my health, my finances, excuses, and variable circumstances beyond my control, some items appear to be within reach and others, not so much. Nonetheless, all things written on said list are achievable, once I make up my mind to do them. For at the end of the day, it's what I actually do, not what I intend to do, that makes the difference.

A Poke of Tomatoes

I ventured out to the grocery store the other day to pick up a few items. As I pushed the wobbly shopping cart through the produce section, my eyes landed on a display of tomatoes, ripe and ready for purchase. For a second, I hesitated as I thought about placing a couple of them in a plastic grocery bag to buy. Then I remembered how great it felt this summer to walk out to my garden, and load up a paper poke* with tomatoes. No traffic, no fighting for a parking space, no long lines, and no exaggerated prices. Just fresh tomatoes at a moments notice.

Thus, with a small smile and a defiant stride, I swung the buggy around and headed over to the bread isle, determined to plant more tomatoes next year, and to start saving paper pokes.

*Where I'm from, a poke is a sack or a bag.

The Academic Gardener

When I was in graduate school, one of the books I was required to read was Gregory Colòn Semenza's Graduate Study for the 21st Century: How to Build an Academic Career in the Humanities.

In this text, Semenza provides a thorough discussion of time management as it relates to graduate study. In order to maximize time and produce successful results, Semenza encourages students to prioritize their academic activities, such as research, writing, and teaching.  He also suggests that time be set aside for personal interests, such as spending time with family, exercising, and pursuing hobbies.

According to Semenza, hobbies such as gardening or listening to music should not be viewed as pointless, but rather necessary to those seeking a well-balanced academic experience. The takeaway? Gardening and other hobbies provide relaxation and stability, even in the most hectic lives!

Works Cited


Semenza, Gregory Colòn. Graduate Study for the 21st Century: How to Build an Academic Career in the Humanities. Palgrave MacMillan, 2005. Second edition, 2010.

Tree Gazing

For as long as I can remember, I've been enamored with trees. When I was a kid, I stared at the big trees in our yard, climbed the medium-sized ones, and cut butt-whacking switches from the saplings when instructed by my Dad to do so.

As an adult, I still gaze at trees. Oftentimes, I marvel at their stateliness and dignity. Regardless of the season or meteorological conditions, whether standing upright or lying in a prone position, trees make their presence known. And although my climbing days are over, and I haven't cut a switch in years, I will always be fascinated by trees.
 

  

What's in a Color?

If you subscribe to the notion that certain colors can impact your mood, you're probably more in-tune with your inner self than I am (my father-in-law, for example, refuses to sleep on red sheets because he believes they will elevate his blood pressure). That being said, my favorite color is blue, and while I don't put much stock in colorology, I do feel a certain sense of calmness when looking up at an azure sky or gazing intently at a blueberry muffin.

Nevertheless, this Summer, I started to notice the color green and all its varying shades. In fact, I spent many an afternoon atop my riding mower (which is yellow, and named after Bumblebee from the Transformers movies), studying my lawn and trees from different angles, marveling at how their unique hues emphasized my colorful gardens and flowerbeds.

Now that Autumn is here and my trees, shrubs, and grass are turning caramel in color, I'll pull on my blue jeans and matching sweater, and attempt to appreciate all things orange, brown, and gold. Perhaps I'll find inspiration while eating a pecan pie, or strolling through a pumpkin patch. Who knows? Something might hit me, out of the blue.