~Away for a last breath of Summer~

I'll be away until Monday. I'm just going away for a last bit of summer fun. Oh, it will be hot enough for several weeks to come, but according to the calendar, summer is scheduled to come to an end around September 21 and that is not far off.

We'll take the boat and skim blue warm waters

We'll walk along the beach and pick up seashells


We'll frolic in the surf


We'll just try to relax

Yes, it will be fun enjoying the last days of summer,
but what I'm really looking forward to is Fall!

See y'all Monday!

~A Swan Story~

Is there anything more beautiful, more gentle, more graceful than a swan? To me the swan has always been a symbol of love, family, loyalty. The swan has been the subject of poets and artists alike. This is the story of a swan that my brother, sister-in-law, husband and myself met personally and up close this summer. We were in my brother's new pickup truck travelling in and around Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We drove down to Pawley's Island to visit some gift shops and have some lunch. My brother was in a shop, my husband and I and our sister-in-law returned to the truck to wait for him.

This is the swan who lives at the pond at the gift shops in Pawley's Island, South Carolina.
We were told she ran her mate off because she is so tempermental
...and she bites!
We kept our distance and I begin snapping pictures.

As she had forced her mate to leave, actually two of them,
her only companions are ducks.

I got in the truck. Larry and Teresa were outside the truck looking at her.
She was about fed up with the picture taking and us looking at her.
She plodded toward Larry and Teresa with her big feet,
head down and determined.

Then she spread her wings and charged!

Larry and Teresa jumped in the truck as quickly as they could. The swan's head was in and out of the front window where Larry sat ducking..."ducking"...no pun intended.
He was really trying to dodge her attempts to bite him.
After she was through scaring the daylights out of Larry, she began munching on the side mirror. She was mad!

She was through with the mirror - we THOUGHT she was through with us.

When she was through with the side-view mirror, she walked away. Teresa got out of the truck...

Swan abruptly turned and marched toward Teresa - here she came again with that intent, determined look!
Good thing Teresa was fast on her feet!

THE END

So, if you ever have the opportunity to visit beautiful Pawley's Island, do so ... but be forwarned...

there is a swan...

~Moon Dreams - Marta Wiley~




Cast me to the wind
Let me dance upon a cloud
Tether me not
Nor keep me earthbound

For it is beyond the horizon
Where I most feel at home
Give me freedom to fly
Give me grant to roam

I want to leap from star to star
I want to swing on crescent moon
I want to sing sweet harmonies
Reflecting my heart’s tune

I will fall to earth as dawn breaks
Where my burdens wait for me
Let me envision my wish come true
Let me dream of what could be

Deborah Cashwell
© August 17, 2009



"If trouble ever troubles you, just dream your cares away"
~Unknown~

I've been away. Have you noticed? I haven't been physically away. I just haven't been blogging. As one of my best blogger girlfriends said, I've been on "hiatus". Well, my dear Claudie, that's a nice way to put it. Thank you! The truth is I haven't been inspired to blog for several weeks. I haven't had any brilliant ideas to share, not much exciting going on to tell you about. I would log in to create a new post and when I shut down, the page was just as I found it - blank, as was my mind.

Well, this evening, a small fire may have been rekindled within me. My husband took me to a movie - a movie that has inspired me in a way. We saw "Julie and Julia".

It's a story about blogging, cooking and food, determination and perseverance and love. Julie, a young lady who created a blog that covered a year of 'channeling' Julia Child and cooking over 500 of her recipes in 365 days, was played by Amy Adams. Julia Child's life was portrayed by Meryl Streep from her early days in France to the beginning of her success as a cookbook author. Both were writers, both cooks, both persevered and both loved. Meryl Streep was superb. You would think she was truly 'channeling' Julia Child.

If you get the opportunity to see "Julie and Julia", do so. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we did.