travel

ANECDOTE OF MRS. SPAULDING OF NEW HAMPSHIRE.*

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

Through the deep wilderness, where scarce the sun
Can cast his darts, along the winding path
The pioneer is treading.
                                                                        Street

                        An energy
A spirit that will not be shaken.
                                                Willis

One of the first two settlers of Northumberland, New Hampshire, was Daniel Spaulding, who removed thither in the summer of 1767. On the way to his new home, with his wife and child, the last burnt himself so badly at Plymouth that the mother was obliged to remain and take care of him, while Mr. Spaulding proceeded to the end of the journey. She soon became uneasy, and, anxious to join her husband, started off with her child, twenty-one months old, to travel twenty-six miles through the wilderness. A friend who had agreed to accompany her the whole distance with a horse, returned after traveling about one third of the way. Undaunted and persevering, she pushed on, alone and on foot; waded through Baker’s river with her child in her arms; was overtaken by a heavy “thunder gust” in the afternoon, and thoroughly drenched; seated herself beside a tree when darkness appeared, and held her child in her lap through a long and sleepless night; resumed her journey early the next morning; waded through a small pond, with the water waist-high; pushed on to another river, which, though swollen by the rain of the preceding day and looking rapid and terrifying, she forded in safety; and at eleven o’clock that day, the second of her journey, she met her husband, who was on his way back with a horse for her accommodation.*

*The substance of this anecdote we find in the second number of the first volume of a periodical called “Historical Collections,” published nearly thirty years ago at Concord, New Hampshire, and edited by J. Farmer and J. B. Moore. The anecdote was communicated by Adino N. Brackett, Esq. of Lancaster, and appeared in the June number for 1822.

*This pioneer matron of northern New Hampshire, was living at Lancaster, in 1822, then in her eighty second year. She was a descendant, “in the third degree,” of Mrs. Dustin, the heroine of Penacook.

______

Excerpted from Noble Deeds of American Women
(Patriotic Series for Boys and Girls)
Edited by J. Clement
——
With an Introduction by Mrs. L. H. Sigourney
Illustrated
BOSTON: Lee and Shepard, Publishers
Entered by Act of Congress, in the year of 1851,
by E. H. Derby and Co., in the Clerk’s Office of the Northern District of New York
______

Tiny House Part 22: Get Ready & Go

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We’re nearing the end of the official tour with only this, the headboard wall, and then my bedroom area. I will continue to make occasional posts as I change things or implement new storage solutions I want to share. 

This area, my “get ready & go” space, is by the door. So, for perspective, here is a shot I took while standing in my open front door.

The teal blue curtain covers the closet, and the four hanging photos are on the closet’s end wall. This blue lingerie chest, which I’ve had for years, was kept firmly in mind when determining the size of the closet. There is just enough space between it and my open door. Truly, we made every inch count.

Every time someone sees a photo of it, I’m asked about this lingerie chest, which is obviously a great solution for small spaces. This lovely thing is a relic of the 70s. I picked it up at auction and had a talented friend repaint it from its original ivory and gold. The drawers seem small, but it holds an amazing amount of my clothing. An amazing amount! This is where I put sweaters and other knits I don’t want to hang, shirts that don’t have to be hung, shorts, pajamas, lingerie, socks…even my electric razor simply because it fits. This is one of the most important pieces in my little home; if you can find one, you’ll love it!

As you look at this picture, it becomes quickly obvious why I call it my get ready and go corner. Getting dressed, putting on makeup, and even tossing on what little jewelry I wear and a spritz of cologne all pretty much happens right here. There are three pegs under the yellow shelf. Two of them always hold these two bags; well, they’re there unless I’m using one, which happens a lot. The third, middle peg, generally holds my little crossbody purse so I can snatch it up on my way out the door.

The lighting, which is the same inset LED fixture you find throughout the apartment, is perfect for makeup application. This is such an “obvious” solution for my makeup that it seems ridiculous how long it took me to come up with it. If you remember the bathroom tour, you might recall that I started out doing my makeup in there.

Here you get a better understanding of my makeup storage, as well as a glimpse at the front door and wall. The little colored basket things you see are rubber. I picked them up on clearance at Hobby Lobby years ago, and they have served in a variety of ways ever since. They fit perfectly here, leaving just enough space for me to slip eye shadow palettes around the edges.

The mirror is a heavy brass piece that I picked up cheap at an auction and spray painted one of my favorite colors. The yellow shelf is yet another offering from my decorator friend. It is a wonderful thing, having friends with gifts like hers!

I only recently “finished” the top of this chest. In fact, it was knowing I would soon be writing this post that pushed me to get on the ball. (Motivation is a good thing!) It needed that final “something,” which ended up being this burned wood tray. I wanted unpainted wood, because one of the beautiful things about this apartment is that they finished it with a lovely variety of woods, and I felt this vignette lacked that touch.

I found the Phirkcraft 12″ Round Wooden Serving Tray with Handle on Amazon. Of course.

I’ve mentioned before that it’s important, especially in small spaces, to surround yourself with things that have meaning for you. This corner does that in spades. The large print on the wall is a photo I took (with my iPhone 5, believe it or not) of an old bridge right down from the family cemetery. It has meaning on so many levels!

First, I have a thing for pathways. To me, they represent the unanticipated adventures that lie ahead. You never know what’s around the corner. Even if you can safely guess, you don’t know for sure until you get there. I see pictures of pathways and I dream of what they’re not revealing.

But there’s a lot more going on with me and this particular photo. 

Two of the greatest people I ever knew were my mother’s parents. Their home, on their 76-acre farm/ranch, was my absolute favorite place in the whole world. Over the years of visiting and staying with them in the summer, and even one year spent living right up the road from them, we traveled a lot of country backroads and went over many of these scary bridges. Yes, I said scary. I was a cautious child, and driving over those one-car bridges without safety rails made me nervous every time.

But the memories are still good, because any time I expressed concern Grandaddy would lovingly reassure me that we were perfectly safe, and he was always proven right. (He was proven right when he assured us the dogs would keep the howling wolves away from the house too.) So, in a kind of twisted way, this bridge also represents security and a grandfather’s love.

And then, there is the fact that this exact bridge was right down from where he and so many other members of my family are buried; it should be no surprise I have it on my wall. That old wooden bridge is gone now. I found out from relatives in the area that it was replaced with a modern construct shortly after I took this photo. I’m so glad I didn’t miss that opportunity!

The four photos on the other wall (Surprise surprise…2 are pathways) are from the El Yunque National Rainforest in Puerto Rico. These are from one of the trips I took with my sister, and I have to say that, in all the places we’ve stopped on cruises, Puerto Rico is by far my favorite. I would really like to go back and stay there a while, preferably exploring it with locals, as opposed to only having a few hours while on a cruise. I cannot express the beauty, on all levels, of Puerto Rico!

Finally, we have a bucket list item represented in the shadow box that sits on the chest.

I’m not a huge exercise fan, but I do enjoy walking, and for years I told myself that I was going to one day walk a 5K. That day came when wanting to support a friend who ran our local half marathon/5K, combined with the knowledge that both my nephew and son were going to be involved, pushed me into making the commitment. I didn’t get to train as much as I wanted to, but I was in pretty good shape and knew I could do it, if slowly.

My son competed in the half marathon with my granddaughter, who had trained a bit with him, but who also had to be carried part of the way. Consequently, their time wasn’t what he would have liked, but it was a great daddy/daughter experience, and I was proud of them both. (Random note, she now runs cross country in school.) My nephew walked with me, and since he had been training more than I had, it was he who set the pace. Where I might have lagged, he kept pushing, and we made it through the course in under an hour. Great time? No. But I was extremely glad I’d done it and am still proud of myself for following through on something I’d always wanted to do.

Having a bucket list or just dreams is a good thing.
Following through and doing the thing; that’s the best.
So if you do, keep reminders of your accomplishment.

Be blessed, my friends!

Celebrating Jesus,
Tammy C

Photoshoot Results

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

Photo Credit: Angela Hernandez of Creative Heart Photography

Aphantasia Network publishing my latest aphantasia post as an article triggered the need for an updated set of portraits. Or, more accurately, it shoved me forward into doing what I know is a professional necessity for my upcoming new website and my social media accounts.

But, you see, photoshoots are one thing I have always dreaded, because I almost never like photos of myself. This is literally the first time I’ve gone into a shoot unfazed. I’d decided to leave the whole thing in the hands of God and the photographer (and told God about this decision, of course). The result was a Tammy who wasn’t worried about “producing” and could simply relax into obeying the photographer’s instructions.

It was a great experience over all, even though our outdoor shoot in Baytown’s historic district meant very cold wind. I told my photographer that I had a whole new respect for models who do bikini shoots in the middle of winter! We did get some good pictures, though, including the one above. My favorite is this one of me against a plain brick wall. It was one of the few times that the wind worked in our favor. Or, as she put it while shooting, we got a diva wind.

You see those crossed arms? Yep, not only for looks.
It was fuhreeeezing! But fun!

It got even more fun when we moved to the studio. Not being at the mercy of the elements meant we could take our time and get more creative while having laughs and picking on each other. I really like a lot of what we accomplished there!

I genuinely appreciate the results of this shoot, both because I had an experience I not only totally enjoyed and that we ended up with such completely satisfying results.

And I leave you with the last photo we took. Well, one of the last. I’d already kicked off my shoes and moved to the floor for other poses when she asked me to “sit criss cross.” My book, Experiencing the Bible, was sitting right there so I snatched it up as if I were reading it and she started shooting.

When she was finished, I read aloud the verse I’d randomly turned to. It was Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” That “happens” to be my life verse, has been for years, and I don’t believe there was anything random about it being the one I was looking at in those last shots. God is so cool!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

PS: The links to Experiencing the Bible are associate links. If you buy a copy using this link I’ll not only earn my usual royalties, but will also get just a little bit extra as an Amazon associate. Thanks!

Tiny House Part 10: The Bathroom Tour

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

I’ll say up front that this will come to you in more than one post. As small as my bath is, this room is a vitally important part of any successful tiny home, so there are several details I’ll go into.

Oddly enough, I feel the bathroom gives the most complete picture of me and my aesthetic. Eclectic is the word for my “style,” and my color palette is all about summer in the Caribbean. I fell in love with the vibrant, alive colors while cruising and visiting various ports with my sister, and the bath very much represents those cruises.

So, let’s enter. Moving forward, we sweep aside the curtain that we’ll pretend I keep shut. (Nope. I only shut that curtain when I actually need privacy, which is almost never) The first thing that catches our attention is a mirror mounted on the wall. I don’t have a picture of it; just trust me that it’s there. We placed that mirror carefully so I could step back and see myself from across the kitchen. This is also my makeup mirror, though I’ve recently begun to wonder if I want to move my makeup activities elsewhere. More on that later.

To the left of that mirror, over the toilet, is a set of three photos. All three were taken on the cruise that made me fall in love with that part of the world. The top is a beautiful butterfly we saw in Puerto Rico. That visit to the butterfly habitat was one of our favorite excursions, especially when one butterfly mistook my sister’s tattoo for a real flower and not only landed on her arm but stayed there long enough for several people to take photos. There are probably pictures of her wrist stored digitally all over the world – just not here since she was the photographer and couldn’t capture it herself.

The second picture is one of bliss. We were virtually alone on that beach, with our ship in the distance and the sound of the waves. Unlike what you experience here in my neck of the woods (Galveston is not one of my preferred destinations), those beaches are magnificent. And yeah, that’s me. 

And last, but far from least, sunsets on the ocean… Let me tell you, if you’ve never been on a cruise, you should seriously consider it. From discovering the reality of the color ultramarine blue to seeing flying fish to watching dolphins, to simply enjoying private time on a ship’s balcony… And that’s only touching parts of it. Life on board can be so enjoyable that I’ve at times considered not even going out on excursions when we made port.

But I do! Go on excursions, I mean. One of my favorite stops… Ok, one of many… was on an island owned by the cruise company. We began by wandering around, seeing a variety of fascinating and beautiful things, including a lovely little chapel and one of my personal favorites – peacocks! (They are represented in my bathroom too.) The best, though, was something my sister absolutely insisted on, and I’m so glad she did!

We started out on a traditional trail ride; yes, horses. I’m sure most trail rides are similar in one thing. There are a few people like my sister who actually know how to ride, and then there are others ranging in skill all the way to those like me who have been on a horse but really don’t know what we’re doing. The trail ride was ok. Even when a horse two riders up got antsy, my horse kept plodding along as calmly as you please. I knew he was the one really in control, but it was ok.

But then we were sent to change into our swimsuits while they swapped saddles. The water saddles were, as best as I recall, like a waterproof blanket, so you had no trouble staying mounted and the horse was protected. Once back on the horses, we headed into the water. Just getting into the water on a horse was great, but once we hit the deeper water things went way beyond “great.” I can honestly say I’ve only had one other vacation experience that was as exhilarating. That moment when I felt the horse’s hooves leave the seabed, when we started swimming, was gold! The rest of the ride was an absolute blast, and the experience is definitely something I’d like to repeat. I have aphantasia, so I don’t have any visual memories to refer to, but just typing about it right now triggered a shadow of those amazing feelings. 15 out of 10, I highly recommend!

Well, this took a sideways jaunt. I’m glad I warned you ahead of time that there would be multiple posts. See you next week!

Here’s your link to the curtain I use as a door. I only use one panel, but it comes in a set of two.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C