Finally, I have some flowers on the porch. When we renovated our house several years ago, like many people do, we had trouble with our contractor. He would not listen to me.

Our house was transformed from a New Orleans style with balcony to a wide front porch with columns and six new rooms. I loved the basic structure and the change to a front porch that we could actually enjoy but the contractor chose many of the materials and gave us a hassle on every choice we insisted on making.

Then came the driveway.

I wanted a simple sidewalk leading from the driveway to the steps. My husband wanted a parking lot. I regretted it from the moment the driveway was expanded. I at least wanted a circular drive but no one listened to me.

It didn’t take long for my husband to regret not listening to me. It would have saved money too.

Not being at all possessed of a green thumb I was at a loss when envisioning how we could make lemonade out of the lemon but my sister, who never met a plant she couldn’t nurture and grow came to my rescue. The day we picked blueberries we went to a nursery and bought flowers.

Then Lucy showed me how to pot them and I water the flowers twice a day. The porch faces the west so the flowers are exposed to direct sunlight. Most of them are making it.

We don’t have shade on the porch until the afternoon. But the afternoon and evening are the best time anyway.

Real landscaping wil happen one of these days but until then at least, I have pots on the porch.

My niece, Maine has been a busy girl this year. She just completed her first year of her Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Texas in Austin and has been in Provincetown, MA acting in a play this summer. The name of the play is The Wild Party and Maine plays a flapper. A review is here.

In June she completed a role as a “featured extra” in Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life.

Here is a trailer for Artois the Goat, an independent feature. Maine plays the role of the sister of the female lead. Four of the actors in the movie are her classmates. It’s quite a fetching trailer as far as trailers go, kind of like A Room with a View in Texas.

Artois the goat seems to be the star, or at least an important player.

Then there is the cheese.

Last weekend I was in Bentonville, Arkansas to attend my nephew, Kevin’s baseball tournament. In between games my sister and I took in the sights, shopped a little, found my great great grandparent’s gravesite in the Bentonville Cemetery and went to Crystal Bridges at the Massey, the fore-runner to Crystal Bridges, a museum of American Art which will open in 2010. The museum is the brain child of Alice Walton, daughter of Sam Walton and will be an amazing and wonderful repository of American art.

Sam and Helen Walton are buried in the same cemetery as were my great great grandparents in a small plot with simple headstones. Sam Walton created massive wealth through his capitalistic endeavors and according to my anecdotal evidence, Wal-Mart doesn’t seem to be suffering from the economic woes of this present day.

My husband and I were at Wal-Mart just last evening to buy a new microwave oven. The store was packed with people. Every cash register was open and there were lines at each one.

Bentonville, Arkansas was once just a little town, the entry to Arkansas from the north but now, it’s the center of the booming northwest area of Arkansas.

All of this growth came from the innovative mind of Sam Walton. Now that his daughter is endeavoring to create a cultural hub in small but wakeful Bentonville, big city art snobs are appalled, calling Alice Walton a hovering culture vulture.

As if great art was only meant to be viewed by urbanites.

I find it appropriate and wonderful news that our little corner of the world will be blessed with an art museum of such significance. My late great Aunt Imy, a wonderful artist, was instrumental along with her husband, my Uncle Eddie in establishing the War Eagle Art Fair and the Bella Vista Art and Crafts Festival as well as the clothesline art fair in Pea Ridge, Arkansas.

Naomi Ruth Ivy Mackey taught art in Rogers, Arkansas and was an inspiration and art mentor to me. The first time I ever had artwork in an exhibition I was fifteen and my art was exhibited in Bella Vista, thanks to my Aunt Imy. I’ve written about my aunt before in this post. If she were with us today she would definitely be involved in the development of Crystal Bridges. Crystal Bridges is named for the small lake that is nearby.

Bentonville and the northwest area of Arkansas have always been a bastion of art and artists. The entire town of Eureka Springs (not far from Bentonville) is on the National Register of Historic Places and is an active artist colony. Yes, there is a lot of country crafts and hillbilly art in Northwest Arkansas but there are also some excellent fine artists. I haven’t yet discovered any artist in Northwest Arkansas who has created a Madonna and Child out of elephant dung however. (Of course, there could be some in Little Rock.)

I will admit there are a lot of great artists in Little Rock. Check out Charlie Palmer.

Come to think of it, the urbanite snobs of New York and Philadelphia might want to get out of the gritty cities and come see the wealth of art that already exists in Northwest Arkansas and Bentonville in particular.

I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce, and agriculture, in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.
John Adams

I do.

I love baseball season. I love major league baseball, especially when you can cheer on good guys, not the Alex Rodrigues types (that the New York Yankees might want to consider dumping) but the Derek Jeters and the guys who are always cheering on their fellow players and providing leadership to the teams.

But the best kind of baseball I have found in my life is the hometown kind, the Babe Ruth and American Legion Leagues. One thing I have really appreciated about President Bush was his promotion of baseball for kids.

This past weekend I had the privilege of going to the Northwest Arkansas Babe Ruth State Championship tournament in Bentonville, Arkansas. My nephew, Kevin played for our own Fort Smith Boys Club’s All Star team. He has made the All Stars for the past several years.

The tournament started last Friday and continued until this past Tuesday. Fort Smith made it to Sunday but then were beat out. Mountain Home won the tournament. But the loss wasn’t what mattered to me, it was the good sportsmanship the kids displayed and the fun they had throughout the weekend. It was fun hanging out with my sister and the parents of the kids. The parents were good sports and enjoyed watching the kids play.

Yes, there were some bad calls by the ump in the last game. He called a ball that had bounced in the dirt a strike but that’s life. Sometimes the umpires will make bad calls. That is something kids need to learn to deal with early on. We don’t always get our way and sometimes we may be cheated but that shouldn’t make us stop doing what we love to do.

The coaches of the Fort Smith team were great examples for the team also. Now there was one team (there’s always at least one) that displayed poor sportsmanship but it was mainly the parents. It didn’t help them to win though.

It takes good adult role models to teach kids how to handle both victory and defeat. Baseball is a great sport in which to teach kids how to live.

That is…Tony Snow.

WASHINGTON — President Bush and the first lady were among a throng of dignitaries, media members and other mourners who gathered Thursday for the funeral of former White House press secretary and FOX News anchor Tony Snow, who died Saturday after a long, public bout with cancer.

Speaking at the funeral, Bush said Snow had “amassed a rare record of accomplishment.”

“He knew the job of a reporter was vigorous. He understood the profession and always treated it with respect,” Bush said, adding that Snow’s was a life that was “far too brief.”

The services were being held on the campus of Catholic University at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Bush also remarked on Snow’s “wry sense of humor and abundant goodness. We will also remember he was lots of fun.”

And, speaking directly to Snow’s children — Kendall, Robbie and Krisiti — he said he regularly called on Snow over weekends seeking advice to learn that he was spending time with them.

“He loved you a lot,” Bush said. “I hope you know we loved him a lot, too.”

The service, open to the public, was being held at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception near Catholic University in Washington, D.C.

There is more.

Tony pointed the way for all of us in this article in Christianity Today, for through his journey in the depths of the valley of the shadow of death, he came to spiritual terms with this present world and the world to come.

When I learned that Tony Snow had died Saturday morning I was out of town at a baseball tournament so couldn’t immediately acknowledge the death of a quintessential American, a man of faith, family and country. The loss of Tim Russert recently, another happy, confident, American man whose exuberant love of life, family and country was always evident, was a blow to American politics. Tim was from the left but he never left an important question unasked and he did it in an open fashion. You couldn’t help but love someone who remembered from whence he came, Buffalo, New York.

I can’t even remember when Tony Snow came into my view, it seems he was always there on my favorite television channel.

But that’s not true.

For many years before Fox News came into being, Americans were force-fed liberal factoids, nanny news and group think. I learned to use the mute button. Then I discovered the great Rush Limbaugh. American communications became more diverse with the advent of a more conservative outlook and I found some kindred spirits in the optimistic, honest American exceptionalism Rush and others espoused.

Then came Brit Hume, Fred Barnes, Sean Hannity and Tony Snow.

Tony Snow reigned supreme on Fox News Sunday for many years with his good natured and intelligent, common sense outlook. He was a fighter and a conservative but he had a calm, reasonable way of presenting his arguments. It was always a joy to watch him and a lesson for us all in how to disagree without being disagreeable. When Tony left his Sunday gig for his radio show I listened and so did my husband. I wrote a while back about a conversation my husband had with Tony on his radio show.

I send my sincere condolences to Tony’s family and friends. He left us too soon.

Way too soon. Our loss is heavens’ gain.

The Anchoress and Sissy Willis have must-read tributes to Tony.

My sister, Lucy and I went blueberry picking today. We planned to leave early this morning while it was still cool but it was raining. But the old saying, rain by seven, clear by eleven is true. We took off around ten and by the time we got to my sister’s favorite place to pick blueberries the sun was coming out. Still, it was cool for a while.

It was cool just for a while. Last year due to the late frost there were no blueberries at all. This year the bushes were sparse. The juiciest blueberries could still be found but we had to look hard for them.

My sister takes blueberry picking seriously. We managed to fill a gallon and a quart basket. Even though Lucy ate almost as many blueberries as she picked.

The last time I picked blueberries I was in Saalfelden, Austria with my daughters.

My brother and his wife were in New Hampshire to visit my niece and her husband and the magnificent Kyle last week. They went to Hyannis, MA and the Ferry Boat Captain told them that the schooner in the above photo was Ted Kennedy’s with Kennedy at the helm.

Here is a report on Kennedy’s health.

Over thirty years ago I was a young Army wife, following her husband overseas to Augsburg, Germany. We had little ones and I was very occupied with them but still, I became very homesick and full of culture shock.

During our days in Germany we traveled around Europe and while I enjoyed it very much I began to notice the difference between Europe and my own country.

Near our housing area was a Jewish cemetery. I walked over to see it one afternoon and it was in bad shape. Grave stones were turned over and defaced. Words written on some of the stones made chills go down my spine.

This incident turned me to the history books and the more I read about Hitler and his Third Reich, the more difficult it was for me to understand a people who could follow that maniac. Hitler inflicted massive destruction to millions of European Jews and others.

The day we returned home to the United States I will never forget the emotions I felt. It was like going from a very dark place into pure light. The tears flowed.

Not only was I thankful to see my family, I was grateful that America is my home.

This gratitude has continued to grow over the years. Americans are blessed beyond their knowing.

May God continue to bless America.

July 4th was a very happy occasion for our family. It was the first time since 2005 that we were able to celebrate the fourth with our son. He was training to go to Iraq in 2006 and was in Iraq in 2007. We grilled barbecue chicken, burgers, hotdogs and roasted vegetables. The table was spread with potato salad and baked beans. We had strawberry shortcake, cookies and apple pie for dessert.

Our city has an ordinance against setting off fireworks in the city limits. Everyone ignores it. I could look in any direction tonight and see fireworks all over the sky. Later on, my husband and I watched 1776 which has been a family tradition for over twenty years.

So I am up, wide awake (so to speak) and I discovered a beautiful photo essay by Sissy Willis. Check it out. Have a Happy 5th of July. We should never forget to celebrate this wonderful country and we must always remember our freedom is due to those who fought and died for it.

Iraq is blooming now but the media concentrates on the weeds in Afghanistan. Anything to avoid the words: victory and freedom.

In March 18th, 2006 I wrote about the progress in Iraq after fifteen million Iraqis had voted in the Constitutional Referendum just five months earlier.

I wrote…..

Which brings me to the War on Terror…

in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Israel and elsewhere.

We were told by the left that since there were no weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq that President Bush lied. The left refused to believe that their favorite dictator, Saddam Hussein, could have a relationship with that Osama.

We have since been served up a whole passel of lies by the antique media including the New York Times.

Because of the insurgency in Iraq, the abuse at Abu Ghraib and a host of other real (and imagined) struggles to lift the Iraqis into freedom the left has jeered at every attempt by the newly elected Iraqi government to get up and running.

The bud’s been left with little water except that poured on by the true gardeners of freedom, the American military and by the careful clipping of the stalks by those of good will who would see a strong, healthy democracy grow in the Middle East.

The troops continue to fight for Iraq, weeding out the terrorists, homegrown and other and now, new developments are blooming out all over while other entities are withering on the vine.

Some are remembering those who were lost on the day that spurred all the heroic efforts to save civilization while others have been digging for the truth. And it’s busting out all over.

Still, the scarecrows in the media tell us don’t believe in that truth, it’s not important anyway.

And now, for some reason, even the weeds are tiring of themselves. They aren’t growing as much this season. Too much exposure to the light of the blogosphere?

So, although I may have been premature in my hopes for Iraq and its government I still didn’t give up on them. As the opponents of the war in the media and the Democrat party decried any success and stressed every setback even weak-kneed Republicans began to lose heart.

Urged on by Senator John McCain and others, President Bush changed course in January, 2007.

General David Petraeus was given the charge to surge troops into Iraq and that great military gardener brilliantly carried out his plan.

Still the media and the Reids and Pelosi’s continued their diabolical strategy of painting the war in Iraq a failure. With the help of the media this perception of failure became a reality to the American people. Barack Obama still clings to the Pelosi/Reid construct.

They couldn’t be more wrong.

Ralph Peters wrote in May, 2008…..

DO we still have troops in Iraq? Is there still a conflict over there?

If you rely on the so-called mainstream media, you may have difficulty answering those questions these days. As Iraqi and Coalition forces pile up one success after another, Iraq has magically vanished from the headlines.

Want a real “inconvenient truth?” Progress in Iraq is powerful and accelerating.

But that fact isn’t helpful to elite media commissars and cadres determined to decide the presidential race over our heads. How dare our troops win? Even worse, Iraqi troops are winning. Daily.

The media now acknowledge that there is success in Iraq but on the other hand, failure looms.

The New York Times grudgingly accepts that security is better but questions linger.

There is a scarcity of news out of Iraq these days which leads me to believe that old saw: no news is good news. On the other hand, things have gotten weedy in Afghanistan. General Petraeus has been selected as the new Commander of the United States Central Command so I’m certain that in due time he will take a big honking garden hose to the Taliban.

The Times Online in the UK asks:

Since the ‘warrior scholar’ David Petraeus led the American military surge in Iraq last year, the body count has plummeted. Will he go down in history as the man who won the war, or is it all too little too late?

All too little too late? Why is that? Civilization requires time, blood, sweat and many tears. A Democratic government by its very nature involves intensive work, cooperation, compromise and leadership. At least the writer in the Times piece had the audacity to mention, “won the war.”

We will not see those three words in that order in any elite media reports before November, 2008.

That is, if they write about Iraq at all.