Ronda, Spain

As I mentioned yesterday, my niece, Lindsey, is on her way to Spain today. She will be spending this semester in Ronda, Spain at a university there as a student studying the Spanish language. She will be living with a local family and be submersed in the culture. I am so proud of her! So today I thought I would tell you a little bit about Ronda and share some photos with you. Located in the south of Spain in what is known as the Andalusia region is the town of Ronda. It is the area of the white villages. The land of olive trees and the oldest bull ring in Spain. The town is built high upon a rock mountain with breathtaking views. This is a wonderful opportunity for Lindsey to improve her Spanish and learn about the Spanish culture. She is one lucky girl!

Ordinary Stuff

It must be that time of year when nothing exciting is going on because I have not been able to think of anything interesting to blog about lately. I have been staying plenty busy but it just seems to be the ho-hum stuff that no one would be the least bit interested in hearing about. How interesting can laundry, meal planning and grocery shopping be anyway? Unless something out of the ordinary happens while doing those things they are pretty boring. Oh well. Over the weekend we did manage to go to Chesnee not once but twice! We drove over there on Saturday so I could get my formal gown for the cruise as they always have a formal dinner one night. I only own one formal gown since I almost never have need for one. I bought this one a few years ago when we were living in Atlanta and David's company had a formal Chrismas party. We got to the house on Saturday afternoon and I searched high and low and the gown could not be found. I decided it must be in my closet in the RV although I had briefly looked in there and didn't see it. Needless to say when we got back to the RV I searched thoroughly and it was not there either. So yesterday we made another trip to Chesnee and I managed to find it there. The good part is it still fits! Now I am looking forward to the formal dinner night on the cruise. On Saturday night we met up with my cousin, David and his girlfriend Donna and we had a 3 hour dinner. We had a lot of fun visiting. Last night we went to my mothers house in NC for a little visit. My sister and her family were there too. My niece, Lindsey, is leaving tomorrow to spend the semester in Spain. We wanted to say our good byes to her before she left. I will write about her and where she is going tomorrow.

Yucatan

So what does one do to beat the winter doldrums? Well for me the best medicine is a cruise to some warm tropical place and that is just what Jamie and I are going to be doing in less than a month. I had been planing a trip to Spain in May along with my sister and brother-in-law, but with the dollar being worth nothing in Europe right now it just didn't seem to make sense. Since our last cruise a few years ago Jamie and I have often talked of taking another one. We found one at a good price and we'll be soaking up the sites and sun in the Yucatan for 5 days. I'm flying out to Austin and we'll be leaving from Galveston. After the cruise I have another full week visiting with Jamie. Can't wait! This is just what I need to get thru the winter. Today is very cold, dreary, dark, drizzly and on the verge of freezing.

Desperate Houseflies

Last night David and I joined four other couples for a night out. We went to a place in downtown Greenville called Cafe and Then Some for dinner and a show. It was hilarious! The food was delicious and we had so much fun during the course of the evening. The show, called Desperate Houseflies, was 3 female actresses who portrayed what happens to women from all walks of life as they approach middle age, sail through it, and come out fatter on the other side. Oh the joys of menopause! They sang several song parodies and kept us laughing ourselves silly all night. What a fun evening!

A New Jacket

Our kids will certainly be happy when they hear that their father now has a new lightweight black jacket. To back up a little, back in circa 1980 David bought a lightweight black jacket. Let's just say he more than got his money's worth out of it. He has faithfully worn that jacket all these years until recently when it found its way to the trash can! (shhhhh...). The thing is the jacket was no longer even black but had turned a grayish color and looked pretty bad. David couldn't bear to part with it saying it was still fine. No, it was not! Today I surprised him with a new jacket. The kids and I have begged him over the years to get a new one but he just never did. He's not much of a shopper and would only think of needing a new one when he pulled out old trusty and put it on. Now doesn't he look handsome? I hope this one doesn't last quite as long as the last one did. Oh and perhaps I should tell you about the pair of cordoroy pants he had ions ago. He kept them so long they no longer had cord on them! I'm not kidding!

David modeling his new black jacket

Blustery and Frigid

I know some of you will laugh at our "little" snow but it is very cold and windy here today and this is pretty significant for South Carolina. I had hoped the little dusting of snow we had a few weeks ago was it for the winter but unfortunately i was wrong. It started snowing around 7pm last night and snowed throughout the night. It is a very wet snow and we only got what amounts to about 2 inches. By the time I went out to take pictures this morning a lot of it had melted already. The temperature is hoovering right there at the freezing mark, going back and forth a degree or two. Sleet is falling but it occassionally turns to rain or freezing rain. Our satellite TV is not working but at least we have power. You never know with wind and ice how long you will have power. I think the temp is supposed to reach 50 degrees tomorrow so all of this should be gone quickly. I did brave the cold and wind this morning to take a few photos to share with you. Enjoy! I do hope this is the last of winter weather for us.

a neighbors flower basket

ice forming on tree limbs

snow on an evergreen

a snowy view of the woods

Land of the Sky

Last Friday on ABC's news show, 20/20 there was a segment on the happiest places in the world. I found it interesting. Much was discussed on the program and apparently after a lot of research the happiest place in the world is Denmark. I had heard this before. They presented a lot of info on Denmark and now it is on my list of places I would love to someday visit. The big shock came at the end of the program when they talked about the happiest place in the USA. I was thinking hard trying to choose the place when they announced Asheville, North Carolina! What? Asheville? WOW! I could hardly believe what I heard. Asheville, Land of the Sky, is the happiest place in the entire USA. For those reading this blog, I grew up just outside of Asheville. And anyone who knows me at all knows I always talk about what a happy childhood I had. Maybe there is something to this. Asheville is a delightful city. Each summer they have the Bele Cher festival which is a lot of fun. For anyone interested in reading more about why Asheville was chosen as the happiest place in the USA you can click here .

Asheville, NC... Land of the Sky

Smiles

I took a ton of pictures at the reunion over the weekend. I often tried to zoom in on faces when the person was unaware they were being photographed. I had a good laugh when I ran across the two photos below. It seems my sister and my mother both have the same thin, tight-lipped smile. How cute!

A Funny Calendar

At the reunion this weekend my uncle Dee was presented with a calendar. This was not just any calendar but a "special" calendar. My cousin Chuck had come up with some photos of his dad and had passed them along my way so I could make a calendar by putting Dee’s face on some, well some rather odd bodies. Some of the photos were along the lines of the Long Tom Grange calendars where the men appear nude with something hiding their private areas. Other photos were of, well let’s just say very strange looking (and funny) bodies. It was a riot to see. Back a couple of years ago I made one for my mother’s birthday along the lines of the Krispy Kreme calendar girls. It was hilarious and she loved it. You have to be careful making such a gift, the person you are giving it to has to be someone who sees the humor in it and is not hurt. My mother and my uncle were perfect candidates. We all had a great laugh. My mother even brought her calendar to the reunion to show it off. Guess she wasn’t about to be outdone by my uncle’s calendar.

Banks Family Reunion 2008

It seems we hardly ever get together with my Dad's side of the family... at least not as a group. Since Dad died in 1996 it seems we all sort of went our separate ways. Recently my cousin Chuck got together with my sister Debbie and they planned a reunion for the Banks family. There were about 30 of us in attendance. We had a fun time and it was great to see everyone again and all the new additions to the family. We ate, visited, watched an old video from 1990 when some of us were together, surprised Uncle Dee with a funny home made calendar with some rather entertaining pictures, were entertained with song and just overall had a fantastic time together. Below are a few of the group photos from the day.

the entire gang

the Banks first cousins... Jeff, Debbie, Chuck, Me and David

the Banks brothers, DB and Dee (Jack was sick and not able to attend the reunion)

For anyone interested in seeing all the photos from the reunion you can click the links below:

FACES

HANDS

PAIRS

GROUPS

First Anniversary

It was one year ago that I started this blog, actually January 27, 2007. During the course of the year I blogged 214 times and posted many photos along with stories. Hopefully you have enjoyed them. I plan to continue this year and hope I can be inspired enough to write often. Some days I just draw a blank and can't think of anything interesting enough to share. It's been a fun adventure for me. Check back often for the latest!

Another Bald Eagle

Yesterday afternoon I walked into the kitchen and glanced out the window. There flying above the lake was a large bird that immediately caught my attention. At first I thought it was a heron. I could tell it was big so I stood there watching as it got closer to the RV. It turned and I could see it was a bald eagle. How majestic! I reached over to grab my camera but by the time I got it turned on the eagle was flying past the tall trees around the lake and was out of sight. Now I will be keeping my eyes open for it to return and hopefully will be able to get a photo next time.

A New Neighbor

For the past few days this little guy has been showing up on a tree in front of our RV. He's so cute and spends most of the day pecking away on this tree. If you look closely you can see the holes he is leaving in the tree trunk.

Light Trespass

Recently David and I were out driving around and came upon a sign in a yard that caught our eye. We took a couple of photos to share here. We have been involved with educating the public about light pollution for several years now so naturally this sign grabbed our attention. The owner of the home was out in his yard so we pulled over and talked to him. He had bought this house and property out in the country and someone else had bought the property across the road from him and put up a Dollar General store. That was fine except for the fact they also installed bright lights that point directly into this man's house all night long! He complained to the company with no results so he then went to his county commissioners and a lighting ordinance is being drawn up. In the meantime he had this sign put up! Since then the store cut back on some of its lighting but the man says the lights are still shining directly into his home. David told him that there are ways to retro fit the existing lights with shields so the light is not trespassing onto his property. The store claims there is nothing that can be done. David left his business card and said the store can contact him to find out what shielding can be done. We both thought this man had a great sense of humor and had definitely made a statement with his sign. The store has to look at the sign all day and any and all customers going in and out of the store see it.

The "S" Word

That dirty, ugly, four-letter "S" word showed up for us this morning. Yes, I am talking about snow! We woke up to a dusting on the ground. Although it is not much, it is more than I care to see. To make matters even worse it is very cold and windy too. What a way to start the new year. Give me hot summer temps anytime. Below is a photo I took this morning as the sun was coming up. BRRRR...

New Year Foods

Tonight we were invited to a neighbors house for a traditional New Year's Day dinner. It got me to thinking and wondering if everyone in the country had the same traditional foods for this day or if it was more regional. So, I got online and did a little research and it seems it is more regional that I knew. Living most of my life in the south I guess I just assumed that everyone ate the same traditional foods on this day. Here in the southeast the traditional foods include black-eyed peas, collard greens and ham (or a corned beef brisket). Much to my surprise I discovered that across the country the traditional foods are about as varied as the people. Some of the things I read included: cabbage, rice, fish, spinach, gumbo, sauerkraut and even donuts. I have never been one to cook the traditional foods for the New Year but this year we ate a big dinner with our neighbors that consisted of ham, black-eyed peas, mashed potatoes, collards, corn bread, and macaroni and cheese. I wonder if it will make any difference in how 2008 turns out for us? Now I am wondering what those of you who are reading this typically eat on New Year's Day? Please feel free to comment and share.