The Little Red Shoes Under Glass...........by Diane Ogden

There have been times in my life when the spirit moves me to make a left turn "out of the blue," which I listen to most of the time.  And each time spirit takes me to an unusual set of circumstances I would have otherwise missed.   And so, this story is one of those left turns my brain wasn't too busy to listen to.
It was rush hour, well not like Los Angeles rush hour, but none the less it was our little rush hour.  I told myself to relax in it, the rush hour that is.   And that is when I heard the still small voice shout, TURN LEFT!  The voice was so from outer space that I did exactly that.  I turned left, that being the opposite direction as home, but I still did it. And there it was not far down the street. My favorite store.  A store I have been known to frequent on occasion and while frequenting take photos of all the things I want.  Then I go home and put the favorites on my dream board.  And this day I was led directly to it.    I walked around the store gazing for a LONG time at the big and small unique items that seemed to take me to new places, making me feel like I am in a wonderful dream, same as some movies do to our senses, they take us away....

I finally purchased something I have been searching for over a year. A glass stand with a glass cover. Picture a miniature cake dish on a pedestal with a cover. The purchase is for the little baby shoes Daniel made Danielle in "memory" of her baby. The spirit moved me to speak....at the counter....to two women who were so busy they didn't notice I was there for some time. When she, the owner, turned to me, I told her I found the perfect little "keeper" I had been looking for. The owner knew I had been searching for this piece for some time. I calmly said, "This is to display a pair of baby shoes for a baby that has passed on. The teenage Mother lost her baby before it was born and we as mother's know we, "never  forget." You could have heard a pin drop! I said, "Her Father is in prison unable to comfort her as he would like and need to, so he made her a pair of memory shoes out of red and silver candy wrappers." The two women were so touched it had to be God speaking from my spirit. Then the owner said, "Why don't you put a sprig of Christmas green in with the shoes and some snow flakes to give it life and keep its memory alive and for each season change something in or around it like in Autumn a colored leaf and in Spring a flower....and so on." I said, "That was a wonderful idea."

Then I told them someone on the Internet caught the photo of the artistic baby shoes made of paper candy wrappers I had posted and asked permission to use them in a magazine. These women were in total awe of my true story. Then they rang me up and as I left to walk away...I turned, looked back, and said, "The Young girl is my Granddaughter and the man is her Father,  my son." There was a spiritual moment in time that seemed like dreaming forever.....then.....

The one lady said, "Thank You for sharing."   And the shoes live on.  I wish the child had. 

So until next time.....  Be happy, Be Safe, and Be Well.....  And be WISE. Being Rich doesn't help with this one.

Captive Range......................by Diane Ogden

 

Have you ever noticed the various and many business's that have camera's installed. Banks where we keep our green paper that may end up worth little or nothing...yet no camera's at the Nursing Homes where our precious ones find themselves in their last days. Camera's in empty parking lots in case anyone is robbed... yet no camera's to view the living being robbed of their dignity and their will to live on. Camera's in office buildings to insure employee safety...yet none in nurse homes to ensure (discarded) humans safety. Am I being too harsh? Not a chance! I watch it every day when I visit Berdie. Some of the aides are very kind and a camera would show that kindness. Some are short tempered, impatient, loud, pointing of fingers at needy patients, self orientated and so on. Would it not be fun to have them all exchange places for even an hour. Let them sit on the toilet for 45 minutes because the aides are busy. I would like to see someone say: All the aides into wheel chairs! NOW! No you may not have more juice! Sorry your confused, sit there! Stay on that hard cold toilet until I get back! No I cant help you, I said No, I have to be somewhere else! And so on..in short loud curt voices....
If you take them, the aides and nurses that is, cookies and treats and kiss their naughty donkey's (ass's) maybe your auntie will get better care. But a camera would solve it all! And this is one of the Top Nurse Homes in our State. Its like I felt God told me a long time ago during a prayer time and while I was walking on a side walk avoiding stepping on ants. He said, "That is all you mean to the devil (and some people), in fact not even that much. He will step on you just to watch you suffer and make you think he is bigger than he is...so stay on the "right path" best you can and pray at all times for you and yours protection. You are the key to your own door."

p.s. This post is from two years ago.  My God Mother Berdus Knickmeier passed away alone in a tiny room at a nursing home the size of a walk in closet. (her $ ran out) Her bathroom door was a curtain and she had to have a roommate.  She helped people all her life and that is how her's ended. I call those places "dying Mills."    

Doberman Buster.............by Diane Ogden

I got bored today.  I was walking past Buster (this is a dog I bought for my 4th son Christopher when he was in high school....  not sure why...  When Christopher left for his world tour many years ago I got custody of Buster.  I tried to get Chris to put Buster on top of his car (like in VACATION with  Chevy Chase's Dead aunt or Romney's REAL dog OMG)  But he relingquished Buster to me...  So I move him around the house until such time as Christopher returns and reclaims him.   Back to my point.  I noticed Buster sitting there all alone and bored. That is when an idea raced into my mind.  They ususally do.  I ran to my jewel box. I chose three possible effects.  I then ran (well I actually walked) back to the l.r. and placed each effect on Buster..... I chose the right one then ran (well I actually walked) to my new camera and took a pic of the now happier Buster.( Actually I am the now happier.) If you have any ideas on how to keep him happy until his master returns I would be ever so grateful to hear such ideas. Until then.  Be safe, be happy, be well, and rich like me so you can take your Buster to doggie day care like I do.  He just sits there though!  I think he misses Chris. I do.

Happy Mother's Day to me....................by Diane Ogden

From Son #4: Christopher.  (The writing came to me framed. )

Though I have not told you enough, I am telling you now.  Through my eyes, this is the story of my love and appreciation thanking you for all you do and have done for me.  Your sacrifices to make me a better person and athlete have never gone unrecognized.  My remembrances of you: 

"I looked out the front window and saw you, alone, shopping bag cradles in your arms. In one hour, I will run out of the house to go to my game, and you will watch my departure as you always do, out the same front window.  But not before you hand warmed a plate for me, as I never left the house hungry.  Yet I always left the house hungry.  Hungry for the chance to compete another day. Hungry to be better than my opponent.  Hungry to win this game  It is because you watch me out that window, because you pray for me as I walk down the street, because your sideline seats are never empty, and because I know there is no real strength in this world save for that which is instilled or inspired by you. Were you not here, I would not be complete.  It is in these moments when I see you, Mother: When there is a home in this world I know, where the image of your beautiful smile in that window is once again etched in side ma memory that I will never forget.  When I look in your eyes, I see that you understand the spirit inside me that needs to compete.  So late at night when I lie awake in bed, realizing your unconditional love for me as I hear your footsteps walking away from my bedroom door, I know I am not the sole host to a fighting heart.  We fight together to survive, you and I, mother and child.  You are the cornerstone holding this family together."

Give me the ball!  This game is For My Mother.

This next card came to me from behind Prison Walls. It is handmade.  Drugs and Alchol can do terrible things to a Son.  But he is a wonderful person these days:   Daniel, Son #1

I haven't heard from the other two sons or daughter yet.  But hey, tomorrow is Mother's Day. I have time.

 

Son #3, Cody, doesn't send cards anymore...he calls.  The last one he sent will last forever!

I tried to scan it but the ink didn't show up so I will type it.

 

Mom - You know me, nothing fancy, nothing flowery. Just the pure and simple truth.

I love you with every cell in my body.  You have made an amazing man out of a crazy little boy rolling around on the kitchen floor with his pants down....wait....I still do that. So nevermind that part about rolling around with my pants down.  I wish I was there more but we all have our paths and we must stick to them if we really want to help the ones we love.  Soon there will be a check in here (card) for $1,000,000.00 big ones.  :)  Keep going Mom and stick to your guns 'cause you made it this far.  Love you and see you soon, Cody Ogden

 

 

 And this is Son #2:  Chad at the Kentucky Derby last weekend.  Chad used to send me a beautiful card every year until he had three children, two being a set of twins..... a big house, a big job, went back to college full time!!  So I feel very lucky to get the phone call!

 

The last born was a girl!  Lindsay (with her daughter Karli)

 

 

 

                                                  LATERS......and Happy Mother's Day

Pop Cans...................by Diane Ogden

This reminds me of my blog post where the guy stacked pallets this high holding them all on with one strap.  And I was behind that one too!  I did have a thought that somehow the back door would break and all those cans would be on top of the Buick. As I had the same fear or worse behind the pallot king.  The entire several miles I followed this fellow only one can came flying out and bounced around on the road. 

I tried to pass so I could get a photo  of how humongous this trus was but realized how dangerous that would be trying to get beside him to get  a photo of the whole real deal so I held back from that deep desire.  This is not a truck by the way.  It is a very large screened in trailer the size of a motor home with a pick up truck pulling it.  Seriously.  I just wonder how many cans were in that trailer and where it was going and how much $ the fellow was going to make AND who picked up all those cans.   Isn't that the "sighting of the day?"  I was like a kid in a candy store when I spotted this one.  I said to myself,  "OMG a blog post for me friends."

What I have to say is:  Stay safe in case you follow the kind of trucks I do!    Laters
p.s. It used to be "South of the Border fellows that drove these crazy carriers, but now it seems to be Americans."  Things are s-l-o-w-l-y turning backwards.  I read once that the devil works ever so slowly so that we don't notice the change until it's too late.  Nite.

Treasure Jar....................by Diane Ogden

I saw this at a clients home today.

  I stood there turning the jar around and around trying to find more hidden treasures buried within its glass walls.  It appeared to contain items from around 1949-1950s.
One half of an old set of dice.  Don't you just wonder where that came from?  Did they sit on a bar for years doing dice games. (obviously I don't know the names of those games)  Did they belong to a teeneagers old Monopoly game?  Were they stolen from a gambling table in Vegas or maybe Europe! An old matchbox car, marbles, an old wooden NOT PLASTIC empty spool that used to hold thread.  Poker Chips, a wooden airplane, and much more.  In fact as I was walking around the kitchen I noticed three little critters sitting on the window sill.  Those critters, A cow, a pig, and a red chicken brought back some serious memories.  Back in the early early 50's my brother and I would take his huge farm set out to our back yard.  We would put the farm on one side of our river, dug out dirt with aluminum foil in the base to hold our river water.  On the other side of the aluminum river we had a war happening.  All of his little plastic army men hiding behind branches we plucked off bushes along with army tanks and the like.  Not sure why. Guess because its all we had.

 Army men laying on the ground with guns pointed at the cows and chickens and such.  That jar certainly did hold a treasure of memories for me today.
And notice the price!  $8.50 wow.  That is a jar that should just sit on a shelf for viewing for another sixty years.
Well, until I run into something interesting, funny, or happy,  Be well, Be safe, Be happy and get rich like me so you can buy jars full of treasures to do nothing special with but to look at. 

Fridgidare Dishwasher..........by Diane Ogden

It came to my attention I was eating the tiny
particles of garbage dried on my plates and glasses after they were supposed to be cleaned in my dishwasher. So I did what Google said as I always do. One would think Google was kin to me..... Google said to wash the empty dishwasher with bleach and or other such toxic chemicals so I did. Glasses still had dried grunge on them. Had to soak them for two days in the sink to loosen the rock hardened particles. At this point I took the bottom filter, and three other pieces out of the carriage area. I laid them out so I would remember how they went back in and of course during the whole transaction I forgot. I thought I got it back together but maybe    notsomuch.  Finally I called maintenance.  I didn't want to call them because I didn't want them to find Bob Ogden.  If they found Bob Ogden or he heard them come in he might start meowing loudly thinking it was his mama me!  He does that when he hears me come home.  I think he must be one of my reincarnated dogs or relatives maybe.  Bob seems to have supernatural talents like me.  And I really didn't want maintenance to see all my signs everywhere saying, "I HAVE ONE MILLION DOLLARS THANK YOU."  Okay back to my point. Maintenance came.....  left a note saying I needed parts as the dishwasher  is old.  I was fairly offended thinking he was making reference to me!  Sure I am old and sure I could use some new parts but come on that isn't nice.  I let it go.  Next day he came back without warning and left the old sprayer arm on the counter so I could see the damage. 

Dang thing was burned! That looked dangerous to myself and my little farmette. There were times I could smell burning plastic which I know causes cancer so I would check to see if anything fell into the bottom of the dishwasher. Nope never found anything yet still smelled it. Notsogood.  Oh, lest I forget the maintenance guy told me not to put knifes in the utensil holder as it probably stopped the arm from moving.  Really?  No.... The sprayer arm was broken and laid directly on the heating element. I am not a dummie. Probably protecting the complex from a possible law suit. But it all ended well....   The dishwasher is repaired and the glasses are clean. No inferred notes were left behind saying anything or anyone needed new parts and I never got sick from eating clean garbage grunge.  And ALSWELL as my license plate says.   So until tomorrow, be safe, be well, be happy, and get rich like me cause its easier.  You could buy a condo with a Bosch Dishwasher!   Laters