a patchwork quilt of content blanketing Hollywood with the warmth of the deep South
Not to downplay the importance of the demise of Osama Bin Laden, but….WE MUST NOT FORGET OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN NEED IN ALABAMA. The following is a comprehensive list of the hardest hit areas and information on how to help each community specifically. Please share the information in any way you can, as these small rural towns are not receiving media attention, and therefore the supplies they need. I beg you, please get the word out!!!!!!
As you all have probably seen on the news, Alabama, my home state, suffered devastating damage on April 27, 2011, due to a wave of tornados. The carnage…yes, that’s the right word….is simply beyond comprehension. Entire communities have been obliterated. Families have been left with nothing but their lives and the clothes they were wearing when disaster struck. Among the hardest hit areas is Tuscaloosa, which is home to my alma mater, The University of Alabama. It’s no longer the city I once lived in, and will never be again. So heartbreaking. And beyond that, other areas hit equally hard are Pleasant Grove, Cordova, East Limestone, Pratt City, Alberta City, Rosedale and Forest Lake. People in these communities are in dire need of basic necessities, including blankets, pillows, baby formula, diapers, wipes, towels, batteries, flashlights, feminine hygiene products, deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, non-perishable food items, and bottled drinking water. If you can help with any of these items, please contact me at calibamanancy@me.com for information on where to send the donations.
Or, if you want to help, but can’t donate tangible goods, what about buying a t-shirt whose proceeds benefit the cause? I have posted the link in a separate blog post on here.
Thanks in advance, and God Bless You all 🙂
I found FOURTEEN FOUR-LEAFED CLOVERS today. One might believe this a lucky day, right? Well, to be honest, the last month has been rather lucky. Some things have sorted themselves out, and we are on the road to a brand new string of adventures as a family. It seems that “living right”… as my Mama called it… is finally showing a few benefits. Just had to share this with y’all. Oh, and just so you know… the whole finding 4-leafed clovers thing…it’s not new…been doing it since I was six. But it was new for E and T. Must be in the genes….Enjoy 🙂
….and into the new!
Yes folks, we are FINALLY relocating. Just “up the road a piece”, mind you, but to a great area and into an amazing house, where my girls will be able to attend public school without having to pass through a metal detector as they enter. (Can you tell I am not a fan of LAUSD for the most part?) Moving into a house that is much smaller, thank goodness, because let me be honest…as much as I TRY to be Wonder Woman, attempting to maintain 4514 square feet of house for the last 4 years has nearly put me in the dirt. But I digress, of course.
The point of this post is not to gloat about the rewards of downsizing, but to ask a simple question: When is it time to throw out your pom poms? I mean literally, not symbolically. Anyone who knows me will agree that I have cheerleader optimism running through my veins. Can’t get rid of that! Speaking in the tangible sense though, in the process of cleaning out in preparation for the imminent move, I ran across my pom poms stored in the garage. The trusty, black and gold, shredded plastic, symbols of spirit long ago ceased to be the extensions of my arms they once were, and yet, I’ve hung on to them for 20+ years. As embarrassing as it is to admit, the number of storage spaces they have lived in through the years far outnumbers the years they have been retired. I’ve lugged them, and their partners….the megaphones….from Athens to T-Town to California, but for the life of me I don’t know why! Maybe it’s an underlying, subconscious need to remain attached in the most minuscule way to the icon of high school royalty I embodied as a teen. Or maybe it’s because my parents have passed, and they hold memories of when they were alive. On the other hand, I might just be a pack rat….lol. At any rate, they are hanging out once again waiting to hitch a ride in the moving truck in hopes of a cushy spot in the new garage!! I welcome the comments of those who believe they have am explanation (or even share the attachment themselves) :-)))
