DAY 84 Day of Rest & An Award

Hello Journal,

Ruby at A 252 Pound Journey To Being Free was so sweet to include me in her list for receiving this cute blogger award. Thank you Ruby! Since most everyone already has it, I will just say I would love to pass it on to anyone who would like it! 

The fun part is... it asks that I tell 6 things about myself that you probably don't know. I don't really have a very "exotic" life...sort of normal and boring actually, right now. But let me see....Hmmmm....

1.  Jim and I spent 6 years as live-in caretakers at a church camp up in the mountains above Ashland, Oregon. We had beautiful snow about 6 months out of every year, and lived in an A-frame cabin with a wood stove for heat. We loved it!

That is Jim on the deck of our cabin (click pic to enlarge)

2.  I spent one summer as a relief lookout at Robinson Butte Fire Tower Lookout, in the Rogue River National Forest, Oregon. I was almost 300 lbs at that time, and it was quite the struggle to go up and down those 53 foot tall rickety wooden stairs. And it was QUITE exciting during a lightening and thunderstorm up there in the sky!! The funniest thing that happened that summer was when I spotted some smoke, and reported a possible fire. It turned out to be... um... our BOSS at the camp where we worked, burning leaves without a permit!! Oops...

3. The only thing that I ever won was a free trip to Disneyland at about age 11. I filled out an entry form from the back of a Fritos bag. My Mom went with me, and we got to fly by helicopter from the airport to Disneyland... even got my picture taken with Mickey, a big deal to me then. :-)

4.  When I young and oblivious, my significant other and I made money repossessing cars... in the middle of the night. We would "snatch" the car, then call the police so we didn't get arrested as car thieves. It really was dangerous, but we were too young and "immortal" to worry about it.

5.  I have an over-developed sense of smell... really! Sometimes it's annoying, sometimes it saves the day. I have prevented at least SIX fires over the years by smelling hot wires, smoke, or other overheated items! The time I was most grateful for it was when I was a Medical Assistant to a General Practictioner, Dr Griffin, in Jacksonville Oregon. Jacksonville is an old historic town, with a lot of old wooden buildings. Our office was right downtown in the middle of the oldest part. As I was closing up the office late one evening, I smelled a "weird" smell... like hot metal. I hunted all over, but couldn't find a thing. I was soooo tired... yet I just couldn't leave. Finally I walked around the corner to the little fire station to report it. I was embarrassed as they sounded the loud alarm, calling all the volunteer firemen in the town. They came in full gear and fire engines... from a half a block away... it was kinda funny. But it turned out to be no laughing matter. As I waited, they discovered up in the old, dry wooden attic a smoldering hot wire that was about to burst into flames! If it had gone undiscovered, they told me we probably would have lost most of downtown to the fire!! Ever since, I NEVER questioned The Nose. ;-)

6.  My great-great grandmother was known as Grannie White. She was a Cherokee woman, blind, who married an Irishman. She would sit and rock my older brother, singing lullabys in her native language to him. She lived into her 90's, but died before I was born. This pic is of my Mom and Granny White:

(click pic to enlarge)

So that's it for today. Monday I plan to talk about the new Challenge I joined... it's going to be hard work, but a fun one. :-)

From Dr Phil's book: "You alone are responsible for what you put in your mouth, and what you do to get in shape."

My verse for today: "We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised."

My quote for today: "You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down."--Mary Pickford

Enjoy the Journey,

Loretta

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