I'll Call It Like I See It

by sheila morris

Category: Life

  • Texas Spike, Carolina Charly and the new pool liner

    Texas Spike, Carolina Charly and the new pool liner


    Spike came to us on Worsham Street in Texas courtesy of neighbors Dana, Carol, Becky and Lisa who found him cowering in the street, managed to get him into our front yard with an original plan to find his owner, and luckily for us became a part of our family since that rescue in 2012. We had four other dogs back then, but Spike settled into the pack without struggles or discord. Pretty and I wonder together sometimes how in the world we had five dogs at once, but usually three of them stayed with me in Texas and two stayed with Pretty in South Carolina until we sold the Worsham Street home in 2014. Everyone hunkered down together then at Casa de Canterbury, selected their own best buddies in the pack, and mourned later losses as they went down the valley one by one.

    Old Man Spike slower but maintains patrol duties

    Charly was saved from a kill shelter in Columbia by Pawmetto Lifeline in the spring of 2016, turned in by owners not interested in trying to take care of her and her seven puppies. When we decided we needed another dog to keep Spike company (he was the last survivor of our five and did not like being the only dog), we went to Pawmetto Lifeline and were told all of her puppies had been adopted but she wasn’t. We took her home that day – I wouldn’t know how to act without her staying stuck to my side like glue 24/7. We think she’s probably 10 years old, still feisty, still barking at anyone who dares to come for a visit.

    Finally, for everyone who asked about our new swimming pool liner (fewer than I can count on two hands), we are pleased to announce the pool has been restored, renewed and ready for swims in two days.

    where did summer go?

    *************

    Two students and two teachers were killed yesterday in a high school in Winder, Georgia with eight more students hospitalized. Words like senseless, tragic, mind-numbing pain, sorrow mix with anger, futility, anger, frustration, anger, and fear in a battle of jumbled thoughts in my mind. None of the words adequately describe my feelings when I saw the 14-year-old alleged killer and his father this morning in court. A child who studied mass school shootings? Neither do I have adequate words for the families and friends of the deceased who sat in the courtroom to confront them. The unimaginable became the unthinkable.

  • Hallelujah, Hope is Making a Comeback!

    Hallelujah, Hope is Making a Comeback!


    Thanks to former First Lady Michelle Obama for reminding me at the Democratic National Convention this week of our mutual feelings sixteen years ago when a young Senator from Illinois, her husband Barack Obama, was nominated to become President of the United States. President Obama became the champion of “hope” in my mind forever because he believed in the possibility of positive change in a nation I sensed we both loved. I’ve missed them both.

    We choose hope over fear. We see the future not as something out of our control, but as something we can shape for the better through concerted and collective effort. We reject fatalism or cynicism when it comes to human affairs; we choose to work for the world as it should be, as our children deserve it to be. (President Obama to the United Nations General Assembly, September 24, 2014)

    four-year-old Ella on board the Harris/Walz JOY Campaign Train in playhouse at the zoo yesterday while two-year-old Molly hoped for height

    My hope is we will choose to work together for the world as it should be, as all children deserve it to be.

    Onward.

  • Happy Birthday to our own Millenials

    Happy Birthday to our own Millenials


    Last night we celebrated our son Drew’s birthday with dinner at Dee’s Wings for his favorite ribs in town (mine, too) plus another all-time favorite of his (and everyone else at the table): the brownie sundae dessert. I asked Drew at dinner what words of wisdom he had when he considered his life on his thirty-ninth birthday. He looked thoughtful and said I’ve learned family is the most important thing in life. I believe he’s right.

    This morning I searched my archives and found we celebrated another birthday dinner five years ago in 2019 with our own favorite Millenials. Enjoy!

    Number One Son and Pretty Too

    This week Pretty and I had dinner with our Number One Son (Drew) and his wife Pretty Too (Caroline) to begin the celebration of their August birthdays. They are our very own Millenials and we love them dearly.

    This picture was taken recently by a friend of theirs – they are all smiles because next year they hope to be holding one Ella Elisabeth James, their daughter who is expected in October.

    Pretty and I are all smiles, too! Our children and grandchildren are our hope for not only our family but also for our country. May the promises of America become a reality in their lifetimes.

    ***************

    Two new little girls have been added to the family courtesy of our two Millenials since that birthday celebration in 2019, and last night after dessert we walked outside to visit a local street fair where a woman brought smiles to all by making balloon art and princess headbands. 

    Ella Elisabeth James was, indeed, born October 01, 2019, and younger sister Molly followed on January 26, 2022. Pretty happily morphed into Nana when Ella started talking, and I became Naynay. We’ve never looked back.

    Molly looking for Birthday Daddy

    (who was resting in the car to let brownie sundae settle)

    Stay tuned.

  • laundry, laundry, everywhere – and not a Cat to see

    laundry, laundry, everywhere – and not a Cat to see


    Today was house cleaning day at our place, and I made a poor decision by choosing to do laundry for one of my chores plus cleaning two bathrooms for the other one while Pretty wisely opted for changing sheets on our bed and vacuum duties. I had forgotten how many piles of laundry were scattered around the house, but I got an early start to tackle the job, took breaks whenever I needed to walk Carl outside to make sure he stayed away from the empty chasm that was our pool a mere two days ago. We needed a new pool liner which is not accomplished by waving a magic wand.

    Pretty still smiling, thank goodness, in the midst of pool chaos

    (must be her new hairdo!)

    I miss the little Cat that kept me company, made me laugh

    laundry, laundry, everywhere – and not a Cat to see

  • what a difference a month makes

    what a difference a month makes


    The Presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President DonOLD Trump on June 27th. sparked a cataclysmic chain reaction that saw eighty-one-year-old President Biden change his mind about continuing his re-election campaign on July 21st., endorsing the candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris instead. And the race was on with the Dems suddenly energized, emptying their pocketbooks with support for Harris.

    Meanwhile, the games of the XXXIII Olympiad began three days later on July 24th. with more than 10,000 athletes competing in Paris, France across so many events Pretty and I couldn’t possibly keep up with them for the next seventeen days of nonstop coverage streaming on a gazillion TV channels from five o’clock in the morning until way too late at night. But we tried our best. Tennis in week one, basketball in week two with track and field, swimming, diving, equestrian, fencing, even surfing in Tahiti in French Polynesia which is a long, long way from Paris. We did draw the line at break dancing which was new to the Olympics in 2024 and a bridge too far for us to cross. Maybe in 2028.

    I took a break from live streaming sports Tuesday in the midst of Hurricane Debby to tune in for the excitement of VP Harris’s running mate selection. Governor Tim Walz, or as I have dubbed him Coach Happy Tim, was announced on August 6th.; his choice has been a popular one so far with the Harris/Walz ticket drawing extraordinary support in their rallies across the country this week.

    The Olympics ended today which left me feeling at a loss over my prospects for next week’s streaming opportunities, particularly in those early morning hours when Carl’s wakeup call sounds at 5:30 a.m.

    What a difference a month makes. Life seems to be speeding past this year with record winds blowing change in every direction, or maybe hurricane season is beginning.

    Hang on. Stay tuned.

    Our Cat after Hurricane Idalia one year ago

    (missing since July 3rd.)