Recently, a new blogger friend and I were chatting by email about our blogs... why we started them, what we like to post about, what we never post about... blogs we love and some not so much... she told me she had noticed alot (certainly not all) of the really big blogs were totally about how "perfect" their lives were... how rich they were, how many things they owned, how perfect their kids were (give me a break, NO kid is perfect! I got my rear end whacked more than once as a child... and I deserved it)... etc, etc, etc...hmmm... I had been having the same thoughts lately too about some of them... I also wonder WHY some women do not want to admit their age?... they either hide it or lie about it... WHY?... one of my favorite sayings is "you aren't just the age you are, you are all the ages you ever have been"... many days, I am ten years old again... women are beautiful at ANY age... some of the most beautiful ladies I know are in their late 80's and early 90's... and they are not trying to look 20 or 30 or 50... with age comes wisdom... life's lessons learned... mistakes not to make again... and confidence... why is it that our country for the most part portrays anyone over the age of 30 as "old" and basically worthless?... this infuriates me so... in Japan and many other countries, as well as our own Native Americans, "elders" are respected and sought after for advice and counseling... looked up to as role models... I love talking with a "vintage" lady or gentleman, and I never ever call anyone old... I will turn 63 in two weeks... and don't mind telling you so...
(Can you tell how much this dog and I love each other???)...I took a few minutes to sit and think about my own blog... how it started (almost three years ago now in June of 2009)... where I've been on it... where I am now... and where I want to go with it... I actually started it to journal my gardens and my love of Nature, and pretty much have stuck with that... I also post about family (my number one priority in life!), friends, thrift~store treasures, a few recipes, you know, day to day events... I am not rich by any means... not in the literal sense of the word... but rich in so many other ways... the love of my family, my sweet Tessy who was Heaven sent to me, and gives me big sloppy kisses on the face to tell me how much she loves me... our beautiful countryside, the gentle cooing of a Mourning Dove nearby, the antics of our resident Blue Jay as he grabs his peanuts from our back porch... the first blooms on my transplanted red roses, an early morning stroll in my gardens, with coffee in my favorite old cup... a glorious morning sunrise above the mountains just east of us... a breathtaking sunset as the sun dips into the Great Salt Lake to the west of us... Jack's smile when I do something silly (yep, he smiles alot every day!)... laughter... cupcakes... simple things... yes, I love beautiful things as much as the next person... but beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder... and the beauty I see in Nature maybe someone else may not... I love even the teeniest ladybug...
I am just a simple country girl... no fancy Nancy here... I don't buy designer jeans... I don't care whose name is on my butt... mine come from LL Bean and cost $19.99... I wait till Reeboks go on sale before I buy a new pair... I shop at Ross and TJ Maxx and never pay full price for anything... if the price of tomatoes is off the scale, we don't have a tomato in the salad that night... I am not a tightwad nor cheap... just trying to be a smart shopper... (and most of those high priced tomatoes this time of year taste yucky anyway!)... I don't have a maid, or a gardener, or a cook... not putting down those of you who do... I just prefer doing these things myself... I actually like to do housework, and I fix a homecooked meal every night of the week...
I am a nice lady... I say thank you and please... and treat everyone the way I would like to be treated myself... I speak up and fight for the underdog... and those who cannot fight for themselves, like all of God's precious little creatures... if someone hurts an animal, or a child, or an elderly person... or anyone for that matter, I become their worst nightmare... I am not intimidated by some big "tough guy" doing any of those things... he may knock me on my non~designer jeans butt for getting in his face... but I will know I went down fighting to protect others... my parents raised me to stand up for what I believe in... and to this day I do... I have posted before about how painfully shy I was as a child... and was constantly taunted and teased because of that... I only felt comfortable around my family and very closest friends... so have been pretty much a loner... that is why it is so incredible to me to have so many wonderful friends through blogging, like YOU!... if I EVER come across as pompous... someone please knock me down a notch or two... for I shall have deserved it... xoxo...
18 comments:
Oh sweet Julie.....You KNOW you are my kinda' gal!
I loved this post.....so open and heartfelt.
xo
Jo
Hi there dear friend, Oh how I love this post-I tell you that we could be sisters. I have never had a house cleaner, gardner or other help. So many things you said could have been me speaking. I love that you are so close with your Tessy-and that she was heaven sent. We/I am just beginning our search for another furbaby pup and praying all the while that he/she will be heaven picked and sent to us.
Thanks for sharing and girl, if you lived close we'd be hanging out together.
Hugs, Noreen
Good post, Julie.
I don't know if you read Tish Jett's blog called, A Femme d'Un Certain Age, but you should. Here is a link to a wonderful series she did on women from their 30's to their 90's. It was so great to see what all these women were doing with their lives. I was happy to be included amongst the 60's. This is the link to that page:
A Femme d'Un Certain Age - 60's
Hello Julie Marie,
What a wonderful post you shared today!!!
I do agree that some people are just too big for their britches!! :)
Love your new header...so pretty and looks like spring!!
Suzann ~xoxo~
Awesome post ! I feel the same . I do not like people who think they are all that and a bag of Doreetos as we say here I'd prefer the Doreetos ! Whats rich to me is Family , Nature country side and my girls Miggy and Harley the simple country life ! We sound the same in this aspect ! I dont care about my age all though I always say we are not getting older just better , I am to old to know better but young enough not to care what others think ! Thats my take on it all ! Have a great day !
I so could have written a lot of this! I LOVE you just as you are and wouldn't want to be any different myself.
I must admit it is hard being in crafting business/blog world and not want to point out all the bad behavior or "me" type people that are popular...just don't understand why people follow that type. I will keep my old fashion values,be kind to others, and fight for what I believe in.
Hugs sweetie
This is a wonder post, Julie Marie...a real eye opener that says so much about your qualities. I agree with you on so many levels. We should be proud of ourselves for making it to 50, 60, 70+ years of age. When people tell me I look young, I am flattered of course, for about 1 second. I am most proud that I have lived a long, rich life so far that has been filled with love and blessings. Does that show on my face? I hope so!
Thanks for being open and honest and getting these little wheels in my heard turning! :)
Happy Sunday to you, Jack and Tessie!
XO,
Jane
Just for the record, I will be 54 in 3 days! There...that's out there.
This is a wonderful post. I have had such similar thoughts lately and thought of stopping my blog. But thanks to you, and a few others, I'm hanging in there.
I love you and your blog, Julie Marie. I miss it when you don't post. Your honesty is refreshing, your imagination fantastical and you love always come through. For all of those thing, I thank you!
Hi Julue Marie,
Well my sweet friend, I adore this post, it's sooooooo keeping it real, I don't have a big house or fancy jewels, and I am the happiest lady, not saying that I have a perfect life but one sooooo rich in life, and at the end of the day that's all that matters, so sweetie enjoy your gorgeous garden and all that nature has to offer you :)
Big huggers to you and sweet Tessy gal ;)
Love,
Mari
Loved this, Julie Marie! I know what you mean...life's a little messy, really--wouldn't have it any other way! It's okay to share it, too!
No designer jeans for this girl, either--(I personally like shopping for my jeans at Goodwill--you ALWAYS find great ones there!)
Thanks so much for your sweet visits, my friend...they always mean alot to me. I WISH we were neighbors! I think we really do have so much in common & it would be so wonderful to get to know you better like that....
Wishing you a beautiful and peaceful Sunday, dear friend...
Julie
Oh! I forgot to tell you...I thought of you the other day as we found three tiny, adorable baby kittens in our yard...Born of a wild mother who abandoned them, my girls fell in love with them instantly, researched about what to do for them & have been bottle feeding them all week. What a little joy they are! I'm hearing them excitedly mewing right now as the girls are feeding them...3 little grey ones with the bluest eyes I've ever seen!
The miracle part of this was that we found them the day our old, very loved cat died of old age...the girls were SO sad--we all were...and later in the day this "gift" was given to us...isn't that wonderful?
Knew you'd understand...
Julie
Fantastic post Julie Marie & I LOVE the photo of you and sweet Tess (who I can tell adores you for standing up for all her friends) xo Hope you are having a fantastic Sunday.
The beauty of our blogs is that they are OUR blogs. We get to share whatever we like and post about whatever is happening in our lives and the beauty we experience through life. There are so many different styles of blogs that I subscribe to and I appreciate their differences and individuality that shines through. I try to never compare my life to those who appear perfect. We know that just isn't true. I have loved getting to know some women through their blogs such as you and I do think you beautiful (inside and out).
blessings,
Danielle XO
Lordy, I liked ya before...but I LOVE you now! You are MY KIND OF gal...REAL. I agree with you on so many levels. I really feel blessed to have found you here in Blogland...now could pass the Grey Poupon please?;>) xo Diana
I LOVE,LOVE,LOVE being almost 60...I can relax and be who I am... I LOVE THIS POST! You can be my adopted sister, "I FEEL and DO the SAME things"! Actually I am NOT,NOT,NOT a clothes person at all, I would RATHER buy for my family/friends,garden&house...It IS what makes me happy!
I started blogging to fill a VERY DEEP VOID in my life when our Shetland sheepdog "Darby" Died! I still cannot look at a picture of him... He was the BEST LOVED DOG of all times. We WILL get a new Shetland sheepdog "DARBY TOO", But the time is not right yet!!! Finances are very tight and we are doing the best we can... Nothing that a HOMEMADE APPLE PIE can't help...AND OH MY GOODNESS "of course a SPECIAL win package Arriving from the "MOST SPECIAL Lady" in the whole wide world!!!
Love and Super Squishy Hugs to you,
Donna
Wow! I loved this post. Isn't it wonderful the friends you have gained through blogging and the things that you can talk about to each other? I've met some lovely ladies through blogging and even though I have been off the computer for so long with all the problems we have had with the computer, many of them have kept in contact. This in one thankful lady!
Wonderful post, Julie. I, too, was painfully shy as a child, root for the underdog and shop at TJ's too!
What a wonderful heartfelt post. I too don't wear designer jeans and am a simple gal at heart. Life isn't always easy but each day is a gift God has given us.
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