HAPPY THANKSGIVING

So I am not going to spend a lot of time today on a blog because I want you to be able to spend time with your family and friends, but I did want to share with you just a couple of thoughts. I recently was reading an article written by Chris Tiegreen. He makes a lot of valid points that ring true! This is what he said…

“ • It’s often said that whatever you focus on grows larger. That’s true for fears, hopes, dreams, offenses—and blessings. Gratitude focuses so closely on the good that the bad can become almost unnoticeable.

• Gratitude shifts your perspective. It makes you realize the glass isn’t half-empty. In most cases, it’s actually more than 90 percent full. If you don't think it is, you might need to focus more on what you're thankful for.

• Thankfulness is healthy. People who are continually grateful are generally in better health than those who aren’t. Conversely, complaining (the opposite of thankfulness) is at least as unhealthy as having a poor diet. The difference in physical symptoms between thankful people and bitter people is startling.

• Thankfulness is a strong anti-depressant. Sometimes simply stating your gratitude out loud—even just two or things you’re grateful for, no matter how small—can change your mood for the rest of the day.”

So be grateful…Be Thankful...Be HAPPY…it’s just that simple, isn’t it?

One last thought for today…”The turkey. The sweet potatoes. The stuffing. The pumpkin pie. Is there anything else we all can agree so vehemently about?” ~Nora Ephron....And of course be "THANKFUL" for?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING. I hope your day is filled with love and gratitude!

Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

May all the ghosts and ghouls in your life have fun on this day. Stay safe and "BOO!"

Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com

"I Knew You Were Waiting For Me!"...by Jim Terry

It is the eve of summer and as we are rapidly approaching the beginning of fall, I can’t help but think, “Where has the time gone?” Today is also another national holiday known to us as Labor day. Hopefully, you are lucky enough, as I am, to not have to work today and can enjoy your day. If you are working today, “THANK YOU” and know you are appreciated for your efforts.

As time appears to speed up as I age, I find myself ever so more conflicted in this ever progressively crazy world we live in trying to find a bit of peace and happiness. The world just seems to be falling apart, doesn't it? In times like this, I find myself relying on my thoughts and my memories to once again draw a smile. This particular memory is one that is dear to my heart and will coincide with our holiday today, which deals with “labor.”

Picture it…1987. It was a time of cropped tanks and tops, shoulder pads, aerobic gear, baggy sweatshirts over that aerobic gear, Nike, and, if you were really "rad," you owned a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses. It was also a time when I was a really young lad…Seventeen years old to be exact.

Ever since I was about 8 years old, I remember that my “job” during the summers was to help my grandmother, Hattie, by mowing her lawn weekly. Nineteen eighty-seven also ended up being the summer where my grandmother also needed her house repainted.

Stripping the paint from a house today is simple! You use a pressure washer or a variety of several other power tools to help you make the job easier. However, I was not that fortunate. Hand scraping the peeling paint from the home and re-nailing the siding that was pulling away from the side of the home proved to be an almost 2-week process if I remember correctly. There also was a lot of time listening to the “top 40” play the same songs again and again on the radio during that summer.

One song that I grew to love during that time, and still love today, which always reminds me of my grandmother while working at her home is a song sung by George Michael and Aretha Franklin, "I knew you were waiting for me." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDxzQJaA228

I can’t tell you the number of times I heard that song while working at her home, but those of us that had to listen to the radio back in the day, know they would relentlessly play the same songs over and over again until they fell from their top spots. This song was no different.

So each and every time I would show up at my grandmother’s home to either start painting or mow her yard over the years, there she would be. She would have already completed the edges of the yard by doing the trimming and had already completed one round of mowing around the perimeter of her yard to prove, “She could still do it.” While I was painting, she would have already put out the tarps, the ladders, and the paint to make sure, “I was ready” for my tasks ahead. I actually have to laugh at the vintage cartoon photo included with today's blog of a grandmother mowing the yard stating, "Why should the boys have all the fun?' This definitely reminds me of my grandmother.

And since my grandmother was also hip in keeping up with the fashion trends, she would also be sporting some very familiar attire for the time...a headband. The headband you ask? A dishtowel tied around her head to keep the sweat from running into her eyes. An Egley family trait, which I also inherited…sweating easily! I remember her saying as she worked, "Gad, it's hot!"

So as I reminisce and find hope and happiness in these memories, I want to thank my grandmother for allowing me to labor and provide her with the help she needed. These endeavors also taught me some valuable lessons concerning the value of a dollar, the value of work, allowed me to spend time with her, and unbeknownst to me at that time, has formed some of my most wonderful and cherished memories. The best part of that cherished memory that I hold close and dear to my heart and want to tell my grandmother is, "Each and every time I would pull up to your home or be dropped off by family, I KNEW YOU WERE WAITING FOR ME! Gad, I love and miss you, Grandma!"

HAPPY LABOR DAY!!!

♦ Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com.  

Happy 4th of July

"Where liberty dwells, there is my country!"

     ~Benjamin Franklin

We hope your day is "safe and sane" enjoying the freedom we all are lucky enough to experience and have. Happy 4th!!!

♦ Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com.  

Happy Father's Day

 We want to wish all the Dads out there a very HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! We hope your day is as great as you are. 

♦ Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com.  

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!!!

"Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it. It flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it."

– Unknown

We hope your holiday is filled with tears, fun, and laughs in remembering and celebrating those that have sacrificed for us. Happy Memorial Day!!!

♦ Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com.  

"I _________ you!"...by Jim Terry

I always feel a bit conflicted about whether or not I should write something for Mother’s Day. It’s a time of year where we celebrate that one person that bore us. The very same person that cuddled, nurtured, encouraged, and that one person that loved us unconditionally. But what does one do, if your mother is no longer here with you? I thought that as time passed that missing my mother, who died over seven years ago now, would become easier.  Alas, it has not happened. However, when I emerge from my room of self-pity, I realize that my ability to “cope” has been increased simply from remembering all of the wonderful memories I have of her. 

For all of the ball games you attended, come rain or shine, rooting on her “little blue-eyed boy,” I revere you. 

For all of the breakfasts cooked, lunches made and the dinners prepared, I cherish you.

For all of the bedtime stories and the homemade jammies, I value you. 

For all of the advice, guidance and lessons learned you gave to me, I respect you.

For all of the restless nights waiting for me to come home from a date or simply to visit, always welcoming me with a warm hug, I admire you.

For your commitment to others and to your family, I appreciate you. 

And for everything else you did for me or for others that may remain unmentioned or unthought-of...I MISS you and I LOVE YOU!

So on this day make sure to cherish and honor your mothers if they are here with you. And to those moms that may not be here, maybe think of this quote by Abraham Lincoln, “All That I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

P.S. Don't forget to fill in the "_____" in today's title for your mother!

♦ Hope you'll let us share your stories and photos here at our residence "In a Nutshell." Email us at nutshellstories@gmail.com.