by jphilo | Sep 29, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
During a recent Joni & Friends Conference in beautiful Charlotte, North Carolina–where even the backdrop for a book table is gorgeous–I came up a whole bunch of reasons to make a return visit. Here are 10 of them.
10. White rocking chairs are placed in front of huge plate glass windows in the Charlotte airport. And people sit in the chairs and look out the windows instead of at their phones.
9. That panicky moment when you get off the airport and wonder if the conference is in South Carolina and not North Carolina passes quickly.
8. Legendary southern hospitality is not a legend. It is real, from riding from the airport to the motel in a VW convertible Bug to being called “honey” by the hotel clerk who sounds like Kevin Spacey to being treated to supper at the New South restaurant on Saturday night.
7. Collard greens, grits, okra, and Hoppin’ John are as much a part of the New South restaurant menu as they are a part of old southern cooking. The Hoppin’ John was yummy. On my next visit, I’m going for the collard greens.
6. Southerners are so hospitable, they will pretend they know where Iowa is and that they have heard of the Iowa State Cyclones. But when I told them about the Bacon Festival, it was obvious we were all kindred spirits.
5. September weather in Charlotte is 80 + degrees and sunnily gorgeous. Natives were amazed that I wasn’t shivering in a sleeveless dress and made sense of my odd behavior by saying, “Of course, you’re from up north.”
4. In Charlotte, my name is 3 absolutely musical syllables: Jo-la-ene.
3. Not just Jo-la-ene, but Miss Jo-la-ene.
2. Or even Miss Jo-la-ene, ma’am.
1. In Charlotte, the crepe myrtles are still blooming in September. Springtime for the soul while autumn’s knocking at the door.
Have you been to Charlotte? Do you want to go back for a visit? Why?
by jphilo | Sep 22, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
Fall is conference season, a busy time of year for speakers and workshop presenters. This list will help me–and other speakers–be ready for every possible speaking contingency.
10. Laptop. If you are a wimp, make it a MacBook Air.
9. Mac users, be sure to pack the little adapter thingie so you can hook up your laptop to the projector so people can see the Power Point.
8. Speaking notes. So even if, by some terrible turn of events, the laptop and little adapter thingie don’t get packed, the show will go on.
7. DeWalt wheeled 15 gallon contractor chest. Filled not with tools, but with books and everything necessary for a book table display.
6. Composition notebook. To pass around during workshop so people can sign up for a quarterly newsletter. The notebook’s less intimidating than an iPad. And a whole lot cheaper.
5. Earrings that won’t clink the headset microphone and drive people crazy. Don’t ask how I know this.
4. Clean underwear. Because nothing spells confidence like c-l-e-a-n u-n-d-e-r-w-e-a-r.
3. Sensible clothing. The kind that are impossible to accidentally tuck into clean underwear after a quick dash to the bathroom. Because if that happens, the confidence gained in #4 will be gone. Don’t ask how I know this.
2. Comfortable shoes. If the soles are too slick to stick to the toilet paper on a bathroom floor, that’s an added bonus.
1. Directions and phone numbers. Just in case there’s car trouble on the way or Garmon pitches a hissy fit. If a speaker can’t get where she’s going, all the clean underwear in the world will be useless.
What would you add to the list? Leave a comment.
by jphilo | Sep 15, 2015 | Family, Top Ten Tuesday
Last week’s post listed several lessons the Man of Steel and I learned during recent visits with our two youngest grandbabies, ages 5 months and 8 months. This week’s post is all about what we learned during those visits from our 2-year-old grandson who turns 3 in a few weeks.
10. Grandparents who want to buy a brand new car can rationalize the purchase because of the LATCH child seat feature. It’s all about keeping the little ones safe.
9. Ladders are the most important thing.
8. Grandparents can achieve rock star status by taking a 2-year-old to Home Depot and hanging out in the tool aisle.
7. While hanging out in the tool aisle, a 2-year-old can teach his grandmother to recognize ball peen, roofing, and tack hammers, as well as explain how they are used.
6. Every moment is a teachable moment.
5. The outdoors in an amazing classroom.
4. The sweetest thing in the world is holding a small child’s hand.
3. Intergenerational relationships are a precious treasure.
2. Each smile from a 2-year-old is a reason for celebration and great joy.
1. Saying good-bye to a 2-year-old grandchild is like resurrection. The next time you meet, the relationship you’ve developed will come alive again.
What have you learned from your grandchildren? Leave a comment.
by jphilo | Sep 8, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
In the past 2 weeks, the Man of Steel and I enjoyed the company of our two youngest grandbabies, ages 5 months and 8 months. They taught us several important lessons, which we want to pass along to you. Next week I’ll be back with what our almost 3-year-old grandchild taught us, too.
10. Grandparents who want to buy a brand new car can rationalize the purchase because of the LATCH child seat feature. It’s all about keeping the little ones safe.
9. Getting things into the mouth is the most important thing.
8. Cloth diapers are a good choice.
7. The outdoors is an amazing classroom.
6. Every moment is a teachable moment.
5. Intergenerational relationships are a precious treasure worth cultivating.
4. Bouncing up and down on Grammy’s legs must be done even when it leaves bruises. On Grammy. Not the baby.
3. When babies fuss, hand them back.
2. Each smile from a grandbaby is a reason for celebration and great joy.
1. Saying good-bye to a grandbaby is like attending the funeral of a loved one. The next time you meet, the baby will be a whole, new person.
What have you learned from your grandbabies? Leave a comment.
by jphilo | Sep 1, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
Last week’s top ten list took a look at what was great about growing up in the 1960s. Today’s look checks out the flip side about what wasn’t so great about being a kid back then.
10. Year after year, food manufacturers created amazing, space-age convenience foods like Tang, Pringles, Tab, and Dream Whip. Turns out, the preservatives and additives that made those foods convenient weren’t very good for us.
9. Female students and teachers had to wear dresses to school even in the winter. Trying to stuff your skirt discreetly into your snow pants for recess so boys didn’t get a peek at your panties was exhausting.
8. Women who wanted to attend college were limited to three career paths: nursing, teaching, and secretarial work.
7. Without air conditioning in homes, stores, and cars, Iowa summers were long, hot and humid, m-i-s-e-r-a-b-l-e affairs.
6. Fifth and sixth grade boys were allowed to go to the gym to watch daytime World Series games on the television. Fifth and sixth grade girls got to do extra worksheets while the boys watched the World Series.
5. The coffee was terrible.
4. Public buildings and private homes were inaccessible to people in wheelchairs.
3. The nightly news featured stories about the assassinations of JFK, Bobby Kennedy, Malcom X, and Martin Luther King.
2. Walter Cronkite and other national news anchors regularly reported inflated numbers of Viet Cong casualties and deflated numbers of American soldiers killed in Viet Nam.
1. Parents in the neighborhood watched out for all the kids in the neighborhood, so if you did something stupid, your parents found out about it and you usually got in trouble.
What didn’t you like about growing up in the 1960s? Leave a comment.
by jphilo | Aug 25, 2015 | Top Ten Tuesday
I am a child of the 1960s. Not the hippie, flowerchild variety. But an actual my-elementary-school-years-spanned-the-decade variety. Thinking back on those years, here are 10 things that made those great years to be a kid.
10. Year after year, food manufacturers created amazing, space-age convenience foods like Tang, Pringles, Tab, and Dream Whip.
9. Walt Disney on Sunday nights. American kids were sure Uncle Walt was talking directly to them when he introduced The Walt Disney Show every Sunday evening.
8. NASA’s space program was a wonder to behold. I was in kindergarten or first grade when John Glenn orbited. By junior high, men were walking on the moon.
7. In the 1960s, the whole town showed up for high school basketball and football games, music concerts, and school plays. Without the distraction of cell phones, iPods, and tablets, the audience’s entire attention was focused on the kids.
6. A nickel bought a big candy bar. A quarter bought a bagful.
5. All the kids in the neighborhood gathered on summer evenings to pay Kick the Can until porch lights came on–the signal that it was time to go home.
4. Summer slumber parties in the backyard. The thought of child abductions or other dangers never crossed our minds. Or our parents’.
3. Weddings. The most glamorous wedding was my ballet teacher’s because her bridesmaids wore gold lame gowns. But the most fun weddings were when my older cousins got married and our parents were so busy talking that we younger cousins could gorge on cake, mints, and nuts to our hearts’ content.
2. Real letters from friends and family in the mail. Long ones. Several times a week.
1. Living within 90 miles of all of Mom’s family and within 150 miles of Dad’s and knowing I belonged to something bigger than me, bigger than the people who lived in our house, something big enough to keep all of us safe.
Did you grow up in the 1960s? What did you love about being a kid in that decade? And be sure to stop by next week for a look at what wasn’t so great about growing up during those years.
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