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Ten Things of Thankful: Seven Years Plus One Week


John and I hold up cupcakes in celebration of the TToT's 7th birthday last weekend

It was so good to read all your posts last weekend, as the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop celebrated its 7th birthday. Thanks to all who joined! 

As dependable as the US Postal Service --"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds"--the TToT is here, week after week, to provide a place for bloggers all over the world to gather together and express thanks. We don't have to have a celebration, or even a good day/week, to have a reason to type out things that we are thankful for; the benefit of the exercise works no matter what is going on around us. So, even though the birthday party is over, feel free to continue coming here! 

I'm thankful:
1. for the TToT community. (That means YOU!)
2. that the garden survived the 40+ degree weather swing (from near 100 to the 50's and back to the 90's) and the accompanying hail.
3. we ate a salad made from home-grown lettuce, our first harvest of the season.
4. I noticed cute baby quail in our yard!
5. the local thrift store has started accepting donations again since closing in March, I was able to book an appointment, and I was able to clear out the big pile of donations that has been taking up space in the basement.
6. for family history research that gives a glimpse into what life was like in the past. Nowadays, if a form has a line with the word "telephone" by it, it is assumed that the correct answer will be a series of numbers. On this WWII draft registration form I found, the answer was "yes," followed by the name of the town. As long as you connected to the operator of that exchange, she could direct the call to the right line--which, most likely, was a party line. (Likewise, in this small town, there wasn't a street name or number listed for place of residence.)

A WWII draft registration card

7. I learned a new tip for texting, thanks to the Reader's Digest. If you want to put a period at the end of a sentence, double-tap on the space bar, and it will automatically put in a period, a space, and capitalize the next word. 
8. for whimsical things that make me smile. Today, I had to take a detour, which made me drive by a house I'd never been by before. I saw a topiary in the shape of a cactus. It even has eyes stuck in it. It made me laugh! 

A plant (maybe arbovitae?) has been formed into the shape of a big saguaro cactus

9. for the safety of family members, some of whom live in cities where rioting is happening. 
10. for John. 

What are you thankful for this week? Have any interesting topiaries in your area?

Joining me this week:




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Comments

  1. I love that topiary with eyes! I was aware of the double tap on the space bar causing a period. In my case I often accidentally tap the space bar twice and don't realize that I did until I see the capitalized word following an incomplete sentence. Kind of annoying. We have been having weather extremes too, but not nearly as extreme as in your area. Totally agree about #9.

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    Replies
    1. I took John on the same detour yesterday, so I could show him the "cactus." It cracks me up!
      I guess I should ask you if you have other technology tips I don't know about. :-)

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  2. May we all be safe in these perilous times.

    Excellent list, fun topiary, and reading that Registration Card makes me realize how small the world was, quite literally, for many people back then.

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    Replies
    1. I love glimpses into the past! The other day, I was doing volunteer indexing for WWI military surveys. It was so fascinating to read the questions that were asked, such as "Can you ride a horse? Drive a team? Drive an automobile? Do you have experience with electric machinery?" My, how times have changed!

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  3. Hmm I should get some cupcakes too.

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  4. Excellent on the topiary... have thought at various times how much fun it would be to have shaped plants.. we do not have the type of evergreen that seems to be the plant of choice for topiarists.
    Swings in temperature out here, not as extreme, but 80s one day, 60s the next kind of weather.
    Interesting about the draft card and olden days. Reminded me of when I was a kid, the phone number consisted of letters/words and numbers. (For god knows what reason), I still remember the number Turner 4-2126 (the word was a mnemonic but I would have said the 'Turner' but dial 884-2126

    Thanks for all the work bringing together last week's Anniversary.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't it funny how childhood phone numbers stick in the memory? That is interesting that you had letters/words and numbers. I do remember a lesson in grade school on how to dial a phone (which I self-righteously thought was rather stupid, because who doesn't know how to use a phone?!), but it obviously was a memorable lesson--and fun, because the teacher brought in two real phones!

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  5. Oh, cute topiary! Thrift stores are getting tons of donations from all the quarantine cleaning! Haha

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    Replies
    1. It's true! I had to make an appointment to donate.

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