An Award - Wow!

Thanks to Patricia from http://communicationexchange.blogspot.com/ for passing along the “I Love Your Blog” award.

As a beginning blogger, I’m not real familiar with such awards which are out there in the blogosphere, but I understand there are rules, which I found in Patricia’s blog:
So, hurrah for awards! Here are the rules for this one:

1. The winner may put the logo on his/her blog. (done)
2. Link the person you received the award from.(done)
3. Nominate at least seven other blogs. (done)
4. Put links of the nominated blogs on yours.(done)
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.(doing!)

And, to get the circulation going, here are the sites to which I am sending awards and recommending:

The Junk Drawer by Kathy Frederick at http://www.junkdrawerblog.com/. You never know what you’ll find in Kathy’s junk drawer. So entertaining.

Wonders Never Cease by Rebecca Ramsey at http://rebeccasramsey.blogspot.com/. A fellow South Carolinian, Becky picks out her own wonders of the world every day. She finds such excitement in such everyday things.

The Natural State Hawg by Ethan Nobles at http://naturalhawg.blogspot.com/. He writes about all kinds of things and, after reading his stuff, I feel like I can hear him talking – and even understand this fellow Southerner.

Monkey Fables and Tales at http://monfat48.blogspot.com/ and Caption This at http://capthis.blogspot.com/. Check out the post dated 9/13/08 at Monkey Fables. Funny!

Little Man Harrison by Mandy Brantley at http://meetharrisonbrantley.blogspot.com/. Well, this one’s a no-brainer: it’s written by one of my daughters, Mandy, about my only grandchild!!

Before the Sun Sets by Julia at http://mylifeatninetylookingbackandmovingon.blogspot.com/. This is a wonderful blog, written by a lady who is 90! Hurrah!!!

Now, y’all get out there, circulate and read!

You're From WHERE???

Someone asked me who in the world reads my blogs? (I think it was Mom.)
The truth is that, unless people let me know otherwise, I don’t have any idea who the readers are, but I do know where you’re reading from, or at least the general area.

As most bloggers know, there are several services that help us track our readers, not by name, but by geographical location. We also learn how long someone is on the site. This information has been totally amazing to me.

When I first started blogging, I had no idea if anyone at all would read the blog. I was really doing this for myself, to make me sit down and write on an almost-daily basis. Yet, I thought perhaps some family members and friends might occasionally look at it.

It’s exciting to learn that people from all kinds of places drop in on occasion! And I’ve “met” several fantastic and interesting people through our respective blogs.

Within South Carolina, there are routinely readers from Summerville, Charleston, North Charleston, Chapin, Greer, Greenville, Myrtle Beach, Columbia, West Columbia, Lake City, Lexington, Ladson and more.

Readers come from all across the United States. The states with the most visits, other than South Carolina, are Pennsylvania, Ohio, California, Colorado, New York and Washington.

More amazing, though, is that there are readers from all over the world. The one place with the most visits – and those longest in length – is Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

Others have come from Paris, Ile-de-France, France; Kegalla, Sri Lanka; Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa; Viladecns, Cataluna, Spain. These are just a few of the most recent readers.

There have been visitors from the Philippines, Malaysia, Portugal, Thailand and Germany and many others from miles and miles away.

There have been lots of readers from various places in the United Kingdom.

So, aside from writing and making on-line friends, I’m getting a geography lesson.

To all of you, thanks for visiting, for reading, for leaving comments.

I appreciate you!

Don't forget to check out Wordless Wednesday (below) and leave your caption!

It's WORDLESS WEDNESDAY!

(Okay, so it's ALMOST wordless. On Wordless Wednesdays, I post one or more pictures and YOU submit a caption. Let's see if you come up with the best. By the way, if you're here as part of the women's BLOG TRIP, welcome! And, if you have an extra minute, scroll down to read about Sarah Palin & Joe Biden. Your comments are invited.)

Blog Trip Day 2: Crosswords, Scattergories and More

It’s Day Two of the blogosphere trip in which hundreds of women bloggers are visiting each other’s sites, learning about their respective hometowns, hobbies, lifestyles and more.



Today I’m sharing some of my hobbies. One is doing crossword puzzles. In fact, I created crosswords for Sandlapper Magazine for seven years! I love all word games and challenges, including Scrabble.



Some favorite board games are Balderdash, Scattergories, Super Quiz II and Cranium. I also enjoy Charades and card games and like all trivia games.

There’s a game called Buzztime Trivia which is played in many restaurants across the US and Canada. That’s an addiction for me!!!!

I read and listen to books on CD and cassettes. Right now, I’m listening to a book named “Fury” written by Robert K. Tanenbaum; reading “Step on a Crack” by James Patterson; and reading Kelly Fryer’s “Reclaiming the ‘E’ Word: Waking Up to Our Evangelical Identity.”

I love baking but need to forget this hobby because I also like eating! This is not a good thing since I weigh in at Weight Watchers each Thursday!

Ebay is another addiction – both selling and buying. Another is Craig’s List. And, as long as I’m confessing addictions, I guess I should add diet Cokes and white wine and cheese and chocolate. There, I’ve confessed!

While you’re here on the blogosphere trip, take a moment to vote on the anonymous poll on the left-hand side, okay? And don’t forget to come back on Wednesday for Wordless Wednesday where you’ll submit your own caption for the pictures.

Oh, I almost forgot. The question for the day for bloggers is "How much is gas there?" Here in Summerville, it has been $3.41 to $3.55 over the last few days, but with the hurricanes, it may change significantly over night!

One more thing: I'd really like to know what YOU think about the points made in the post below about the vice presidential candidates.

We Like Football and Scarecrows and Azaleas and Pine Trees

Welcome to Summerville!

Along with many other women bloggers, I am participating in a “blog trip” this week.



Part of what we’re doing is introducing our hometowns to others from throughout the US and the whole world. So, here we go!

I’m a lifelong South Carolinian, currently calling Summerville, SC, home. Summerville is also known as “Flower Town in the Pines” or, shortened, “Flowertown.”

There’s a Flowertown Festival each spring – just when the thousands and thousands of azaleas are in bloom. The old historic district of the town has loads of magnolias, pines, azaleas, camellias and more. We were the first town to have an ordinance prohibiting the cutting of trees:

To protect Summerville's biggest asset, the village became an official town in 1847, passing a first law prohibiting the cutting of certain-sized trees without permission, and fining offenders a then hefty $25. That ordinance, one of the oldest of its kind in the United States, is still on the books. (from the Summerville web site.)


The tree-cutting ordinance is one of several environmental niceties about Summerville. Years ago, the town was the place people came to escape mosquitoes during the hot, muggy summers in nearby Charleston.

In fact, in the late 1800s, the International Congress of Physicians declared Summerville as one of the two best places in the world for the treatment and recovery of lung disorders. (Talk about breathing a sigh of relief!) This was based on the perceived healing aspects of the pine tree's turpentine scent.


Numerous inns and small hotels were constructed to handle the many visitors, who came for their health; realizing the beauty and quaintness of the town, many built seasonal homes and then became permanent residents. Cosmetics magnate Estee Lauder lived in Summerville.

Right in the middle of town, there’s Hutchinson Square. Every October, we have “Scarecrows on the Square.” Groups decorate and sponsor scarecrows. It’s fantastic for children! On Independence Day, the celebration is known as “Red, White and Blue on the Green.”










Aside from the town’s Azalea Park, where many weddings are held, there are nearby gardens known world-wide: Middleton Place Gardens, Magnolia Gardens and Cypress Gardens. There are 700 local buildings on the National Historic Register.









Azalea Park hosts the annual "Sculpture in the South" event each May. The town is acquiring some beautiful pieces for public display and appreciation.




And, like in many Southern communities, there is football. But football here is like in no other place. That’s because of Coach John McKissick, the winningest coach in history in the sport of football. Here’s the blurb from Wikipedia, along with a picture from NFL Legends:

John McKissick In 2004, he became the first American football coach in history to win 500 career games. His 500th win came against Mount Pleasant's Wando High School. He had already beaten Wando in 1993, to establish a national high school football record with 406 wins. As of 2007, he hasn't missed a game in 55 years. He has led Summerville to 10 state championships. With over 500 wins, Coach McKissick is the winningest and longest serving active high school football coach.


There are unique restaurants throughout town, including the prestigious Woodlands Inn and Resort. As noted on the inn’s website:

Woodlands Resort & Inn is one of only three lodging properties in America to be awarded the Mobil Five-Star and AAA Five Diamond awards for both lodging and dining. It is also a member of the highly esteemed Relais & Chateaux and is the Charleston area's luxury retreat only 30 minutes from the historic District. The Dining Room has been awarded the Relais & Chateaux highest culinary designation - Relais Gourmand. http://www.woodlandsinn.com/.


Downtown is full of unique shops, restaurants and just plain beauty! It's a great place to take a daily walk, which I do, though not quite daily.









Come visit in person some time. Great schools, friendly people, modern AND quaint!



While you're here during this blog trip, please take a minute to vote in the anonymous poll - top left-hand corner. Thanks so much!