Can I be like Matt?

Here's how I see Matt's world: we are one color, we are one voice, we all want peace - we are just ONE! Sadly there are people who do not want to see that.

Beautiful song, beautiful meaning too.

Praan Lyrics
Bhulbona ar shohojete
Shei praan e mon uthbe mete
Mrittu majhe dhaka ache
je ontohin praan

Bojre tomar baje bashi
She ki shohoj gaan
Shei shurete jagbo ami
(Repeat 3X)

Shei jhor jeno shoi anonde
Chittobinar taare
Shotto-shundu dosh digonto
Nachao je jhonkare!

Bojre tomar baje bashi
She ki shohoj gaan
Shei shurete jagbo ami
(Repeat 3X)

"Stream of Life"

The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day
runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures.

It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the earth
in numberless blades of grass
and breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers.

It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle of birth
and of death, in ebb and in flow.

I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world of life.
And my pride is from the life-throb of ages dancing in my blood this moment.

Living in low country

So many new things to see, to learn, to experience, to love, and unfortunately, to not like ...

They have over here, a different kind of grapes that are so amazing I thought I was in paradise. They are called muscadines, or some call them scuppernongs. I first saw them at the farmer's market outside my work place. I bought some and tried them and my taste buds went crazy! And this morning I decided to go to the real farmers market at the town square and got more, plus other vegetables for the week. There are different ways to eat them. Johnna from http://www.mamadukesfarm.com/2/post/2011/08/traded-eggs-for-muscadines-today.html teaches you how to eat them. When I first tried them, I ate everything except the seeds, by now I discard the skins and seeds. I had trouble uploading a photo I took so I guess you can google the grapes.

And the mocking birds, they are everywhere. You cannot really miss them with their distinct and loud voice.

What else to do on this beautiful Saturday? The beach came to my mind, so I guess if I am not too lazy I will drive down to the beach then. Maybe I will get to see the dolphins if I am lucky enough.

Bye Summer

Hello Fall! I am in a quaint tourist town right now. I like this place so far. It is full of history with magnificent old buildings. It is located near the ocean so there are miles and miles of beach to explore. The weather has been nice, mostly in the 70s, but it gets hot when the breeze takes a break, and nobody is complaining. In order to get to downtown, I have to cross one of the many bridges that connect the center point. And twice a day, the sight that greets me in doing that is awesome. I am truly blessed to be here. I pray that the World keeps watching over me.



Pict. 1: http://www.forbestravelguide.com
Pict. 2: http://www.city-data.com/picc35249.php

My Garden

Did I tell you I love my garden? Yeah, I love my garden : )

I made the most delicious dinner the other day, thanks to my garden. We had lots and lots of tomatoes and peppers. I decided to make some tomatoes sauce with basil from the garden and fresh garlic from the store. The sauce was so sweet and I added a pinch of roasted garlic salt to taste. I cooked pasta to go with it. Then made a simple apple salad with green apple, onion, lime juice, corn, with hot pepper and mint from the garden. It was heavenly, absolutely heavenly. Makes my mouth waters just by typing this.



Musikfest is here! Anyone who has been to Musikfest knows how awesome it is! They have this huge area where they set up tents here and there and have different kind of music. Over priced food, most of them are fried: oreos, sneakers, cakes, even kool-aid. Don't forget the aw-shuck corns. Alcohol tents all over the place. So you can imagine how it becomes by the end of the day. You can't possibly see everything in a day, so people actually take time off just to go to Musikfest. My favorites are country music and the 80s/90s. They sure don't make music the way they did in the late 80s to late 90s. They took me back to those times, great memories!

Bye July

It has been fun living with you. Crazy busy at work but fun at home. We watched the final part of Harry Potter in the drive-in theater, with the full moon shining down on us ... magical! Pool time at friend's house. BBQ in the backyard every other week. Delicious tomatoes and pepper from the garden. Watermelons will be ripe soon. Jasmine flowers spreading its scent all over the deck. Clear cool night outside. Iced green tea with honey and mint. Country music filling the air. Bunnies hanging out under the bird feeder. Cardinals, sparrows, robins, blue, yellow, black birds pecking on seeds. Song birds singing to us. Light breeze blowing every so often. Trimmed hedge. Close your eyes and imagine that ... that's my backyard. And those days with 95F-110F? That was when you hang out in the pool. That huge thunderstorm on Monday? The plants are thankful for it.
As for the picture above, sunflowers from the store, lilies and hydrangea from friend's yard.
August will be here soon. A new adventure. Hope it will be as great as July if not better. New moon on Saturday/Sunday?

Summer magic

Every season is different. What can I say about summer? Ice creams, yard sales, extended daylight, plants growing, animal all over the place, beach, shorts, fresh fruits and vegetables, flowers ... I could go on and on ...

Summer makes you happier. Fireflies, outdoor festivals, drive-in movies, stree fairs in NY city (woohoo!) ... sigh ... Life is beautiful in America!

Happy Summer!

photo: http://www.backgroundsfordesktop.blogspot.com

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July America! Thank you for everything.
Enjoy and be safe!

picture from:http://www.rockanddrool.com

Second camping attempt

I love it! I love it! That's all I can say. Though it was a bit bright outside from the city light, it didn't bother me. Around 1 am the moon was shining down on us. We slept until past 6 am when the first plane flew past our house to land at the nearby airport. The tent was covered in dew. We continued our sleep indoor. That was last week.

Today, it rained on and off. Sometimes it was light, other times it was heavy. I managed to mow the back yard before the weekend starts ... yay!!! I weeded my garden too. I'm so excited. Tomatoes are getting big. I see baby melons here and there. Hot peppers are growing too. I found out too that bunnies like to rest on those patches without grass in my yard.

Right now the clouds are clearing fast. I saw a star when I came out. Now I see many stars. It's the waning crescent phase. Time to clean out some garbages ...

Good night World. Thank you for watering my plants today.

I am home

I'm staring out into the night,
Trying to hide the pain.
I'm going to the place where love
And feeling good don't ever cost a thing.
And the pain you feel's a different kind of pain.

Well I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old,
So I'm going home
Well I'm going home.

The miles are getting longer, it seems,
The closer I get to you.
I've not always been the best man or friend for you.
But your love remains true.
And I don't know why.
You always seem to give me another try.

So I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old,

Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all,
And then some you don't want.
Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all, yeah.

Oh, well I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old.
I said these places and these faces are getting old,
So I'm going home.
I'm going home.

Everything will be alright

because of one thing ... FAITH! Thank you, for opening my heart, my ears, my eyes.

First camping attempt:Fail

Friday evening: got home earlier than usual. However, the temperature was not favorable for mowing. So I waited until 7.30pm to mow the lawn. I almost finish the back yard when I saw a baby bunny hiding in a corner of the yard. So I shut down the lawn mower. It turned out that one of the neighbors was holding another baby bunny, an injured one. They called SPCA but it was already closed. When he found out that there was another one, he put the injured one together with the one in the corner, in my yard. And they all went back into their houses ... yes, leaving the injured one in my hand. I didn't want to frighten them any more, so I mowed the front yard instead. Half way into the yard, I found another one. So there were three babies. And I found the burrow too. Alright, mowing is done for the day. Continue another day.
Friday evening, 10pm: Tent was up in the back yard. I was all excited. Temperature in the comfortable zone. A little nice breeze every so often. Getting near to 11pm, I decided to check the weather forecast. Not good! Thunderstorm?! Ok, first thing came in my mind ... the injured bunny. I went to check on her and found the healthy one already gone, leaving the injured one upside down. Since it was already touched by human, I decided to pick it up and take it to the burrow. Poor bunny lost its front legs function and can only move using its hind legs. Once I lay it down in front of the burrow, it started pushing itself into it. At least I know it was going to stay dry. By the time tent was taken down, I was really sleepy.
Saturday morning: Woke up by the thunder. It was probably ~3am. Was I glad I packed up and came inside. By 9am, we were already up and about getting ready for a hair cut. I went out to check on bunny, did not see any sign of it. So we left for the city.
Saturday, 4pm: Bunny was out, part of its body was wet. I decided to take it into the house to keep it warm. We called SPCA. A good lady gave me the number to the wildlife sanctuary. I placed a call and waited for someone to call back. 15, 20 minutes went by, finally the phone rang. Another good lady said she can come by to pick bunny up. We were very grateful. I don't know how or what to feed bunny. It probably still depend on the mum and mum probably abandoned her already. The lady took one look at it and told us it didn't have much chance. We kinda knew that too. That was why I took it inside and try to make it comfortable. She left us a brochure and her number. She is a volunteer. Thank goodness for the kind people of United States. You make this country so much better and wonderful. May the World bless you and protect you in your pursuit of kindness.

The mocking bird came ...

and boy, did it stay long. It woke me up around 7, kept going on and off for 9 hours. Something was attracting it to our area (I hope it was the magic garden). Even when it was at some neighbors' sites, we can still hear its loud and amazing sound. The funniest sound it made was the car alarm. That made me laugh so hard. At one point it mimicked the seagull. What a marvelous day!

The weather was beautiful, not too hot nor too chilly. It was cloudy most of the time too but didn't bother me at all. I weeded my garden, 'fluffed' the soil and water my beautiful vegetables. They are growing bigger everyday. Unfortunately, some creatures of the earth came and ate the strawberries. The least you can do is save some for us. We feed you most of the time, don't we? Somebody gave us some hyacinth and tulip bulbs. We planted all of them, ~50 bulbs, in the front yard. Next year we are going to have beautiful yard, I hope : ) Half the hedge was trimmed, it's funny- hedge now until we trim the rest.

We had the fire going most weekend nights too. Chilly but still beautiful with the Big Dipper looking down at us. We had dinner outside on Sunday. Fried noodles with mashed fish. Long story about the fish. I didn't fry it long enough, so the inside was still raw. Left it simmering in the brown sauce too long ... it was still good despite the pathetic appearance. Yay, I'm happy.

Thank you World for such beautiful life.

photo from: http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/birds/tn_mockingbird.htm

It's Friday again. Yay!!!

I know. I can't wait to get home too. Last Sunday someone gave me a little fire pit. I had the fire going for 2 nights and I just love it, love it, love it!! I love to see the flames dancing while my other half loves to roast marshmallow. It is just perfect! However, I don't like to mow the lawn ... hmm ...

New wish sent out recently. I hope someone near will get it and grant it. It would mean a lot to have it came true ... Thank you!

What does this mean?

Something happened. I cannot explain it. It did not start good. So I let it go and move on. But yesterday, this matter came back. I was given a second chance due to technical error. It never happened before. So now I am all excited. Is this a good sign? I hope so ... I really hope so!

Goodbye Weekend

Another weekend gone. It was not that great. Weather wasn't that nice. Cloudy all day and drizzling here and there on Saturday. I didn't stay out on Saturday. On Sunday, we decided to work on the yard. It was still cloudy and misty once in a while, reminded me of a little town up in the hill back home. Got my vegetables planted. Our strawberries are coming along. I'm so excited. I have my tomatoes (heirloom, purple cherries and sweet honey bunch) and peppers (lady bell, stuffing, thai, sweet cherries and habanero). This year I decided to try watermelon. I've never planted one before. So we will see how it turns out. Then we cleaned up the front yard and I decided to plant my chrysanthemums. Fed them some fertilizer as well. I hope they will grow and bloom. I also cleaned up my three tier plant stand and planted some annuals. I decided to work on the front porch after I saw some grey clouds floating along and thunder rumbling. Boy, did I do the right thing because the rain came down all of a sudden. It was really nice working on the porch listening to the thunder and rain. But they were gone in no time. Then the sun decided to come out. Finally! Removed some of our dead evergreens and replaced them with blue star juniper and dwarf fire bush ... I hope they survive because the black locust roots seem to mess those little ones up quite a bit. Sunday turned out to be wonderful after all. To finish the day, the sound of the airplane from the airport nearby ... aahhhh ... sigh of contentment ... Good Night World. I love you ...

Happiness

I was looking for a picture of happiness when I found this blog. I am happy someone can put what I feel in words. I see happiness around me. They are normally small, but they are everywhere. They get bigger when you are among people/things that are special to you. It is great to be happy because it shows in everything you do. And when I am happy, I do that ... like the picture above!

Be happy!

Picture and more about the article at: http://happylotus.com/2009/06/26/the-hidden-secret-to-genuine-happiness/

I guess I am not the only one who ...

love lily of the valleys!

Flowers never bother me at all. I actually love them ... or used to.
Not anymore. The other day, I was watching this ad, it showed a butterfly emerging from its cocoon and then flowers blooming in a time-lapse manner... something about the sound of spring. I felt this fear in me ... Yup, you got it right. Allergies!!! I never had any problem with allergies until last year. That was my first year. I thought last year was bad, but it got worse this year. Zyrtec didn't help, neither is Clarithin, nor Allegra ... all I got was sniffling and feeling buzzed from all the medications. Early spring is when I go around doing things in a dazed-like condition. Hopefully by middle to end of May, this feeling will be gone and I get to enjoy the outdoor. Right now my garden box has a strawberry plant and little tomatoes. The strawberry was blooming but our unofficial pet bunny decided to harvest the flowers. So we had to put chicken wire around the box.

Oh oh ... I got to tell you this. So, on Saturday, we were talking about mocking bird with some friends. I have never seen one before. And I told myself that it would be nice to able to see one in real life. And just like that, on Sunday, we were in the back yard and here came a mocking bird! How did we know that? It was mimicking the other birds. So of course we started our own 'music' ... come on, you think we would sit quietly and do nothing? It was funny and but mocking bird didn't think so because it got tired of us and flew away ... Come back Mocking bird, we are not done with you yet! ... Must be my magic back yard ...

Blog name

When I first started this blog, it took me a while to look for a name. I have to say, when I picked Minet, the meaning I read in the dictionary wasn't that bad ... seriously, it wasn't! Mais oui, je parle francais, mais l'ecole n'enseigne pas des argots! This blog was just for my personal fun. Before I went into hibernation, the website was viewed 2000 times. When I got out of my hibernation, it was more than 11000. I was shocked. Who had been looking/reading my blog? Was it that good? Nope ... it was most probably the name. You thought the blog was all about minet, don't you? You sick perverts ...

I have to admit that I never laughed so hard until now. I'm so sorry to disappoint you, but the only minets I talk about are the furry ones ... and no, that doesn't mean I'm not into the hairless ones. Wait a minute here ...

Hey, you never know, maybe one day, when all my stars align, I will talk about minets.
Oh you like that, don't you? You sick frea#$%*& ...

Until then, happy reading!

First one is done

First wish is out. I have no control over it anymore. It is up to the universe to grant it to me ... or not! Whatever it is, I've got to prepare for the outcome. I just need to let it go and move on to the next one.
On a different note, I've been listening to BonJovi for so many times that I'm starting to go a bit crazy here. But I still love the song. And he is H.O.T! Sadly, if he ever walked past me in New York, I would not be able to recognize him.
Yes, I want to make a memory, BonJovi. I want to steal a piece of time, but I will not sing a melody to you and you are more than welcome to write me more than a couple of lines ... and just like that, this little dream-like state disappeared. I just remember that I forgot to shut something off. I was comfortable and warm in my bed and now I got to get out of it. And watch this, when I come back to the room, my warm spot on the bed will be taken ... you would think those furs would keep them warm, but nooooo ...
I have been writing more than usual, for one good reason-the fishes! ... I know they are not real, but I feel bad if I don't feed them everyday ... and feeding leads to writing

Encounter of Meanies

I love me, most of the time. Until I met some mean people in my path. I am petite and cute, I think I pretty. But I have been told that "Cute means ugly but adorable!". Yeah, from someone who is 'facially challenged'. Nope, not the legal definition kind, the physical kind. I was sorry for the person because of her lack of confidence.
Then there were all these research findings about how tall people seemed to be doing better financially, tend to be more intelligent, tend to hold higher positions than their shorter counterparts. Which made me wish I were taller. But then guess what? I have decided to prove you WRONG!! Watch me World!!

Hmm ... maybe I do need mean people to make me do extraordinary things!

(You Want To) Make A Memory

Hello again, it’s you and me
Kinda always like it used to be
Sippin' wine, killing time
Trying to solve life’s mysteries.
How’s your life, it’s been a while
God it’s good to see you smile
I see you reaching for your keys
Looking for a reason not to leave.

If you don’t know if you should stay
If you don’t say what’s on your mind
Baby just, breathe
There’s no where else tonight we should be
You wanna make a memory.

I dug up this old photograph
Look at all that hair we had
It’s bittersweet to hear you laugh
Your phone is ringing, I don’t wanna ask.

If you go now, I’ll understand
If you stay, hey, I got a plan
You wanna make a memory
You wanna steal a piece of time
You could sing a melody to me
And I could write a couple lines
You wanna make a memory.

If you don’t know if you should stay
And you don’t say what’s on your mind
Baby just, breathe
There’s no where else tonight we should be-
You wanna make a memory
You wanna steal a piece of time
You could sing a melody to me
And I could write a couple lines
You wanna make a memory
You wanna make a memory

-BonJovi

Bonjour Jeudi!!!

And then comes Friday. And life gets more beautiful ... sigh ...

Spring is HERE!!!

What more can I say? All the neighbours' daffodils are blooming except mine, what's with that? We had a beautiful weekend for once and we cleaned up the yard and made a new box for my tomatoes. I love my vegetable boxes, the bunny likewise. Last year, it kept coming back to hide among the tomato plants. I started planting lily of the valleys too. I have always loved this plant. Saw it the first time in France and totally fell in love with it. I hope it'd grow. There is something magical about our backyard. It makes one wants to dance and run around ... life is good when you are happy! I sent out some wishes and hope that the wind would spread the words.

note:photo from www.wallpaper.org

Jewel - Satisfied

If you love somebody
You better let it out
Don't hold it back
While you're trying to figure it out
Don't be timid
Don't be afraid to hurt
Run toward the flame
Run toward the fire
Hold on for all your worth
Cause the only real pain a heart can ever know
Is the sorrow of regret
When you don't let your feelings show

[Chorus]
So did you say it
Did you mean it
Did you lay it on the line
Did you make it count
Did you look 'em in the eye
Did they feel it
Did you say it in time
Did you say it out loud
'cause if you did hun
Then you lived some
That feeling inside
That's called satisfied

Busy people walking by
Can't help but worry some
With so many things to do
So little love gets done
Empty hearts everywhere
Drowning but dying of thirst
If you want love
It's not that tough
Start by giving it first
It's so easy to give
Baby can't you see
Just close your eyes open your heart
And do what comes naturally

[Chorus]
So did you say it
Did you mean it
Did you lay it on the line
Did you make it count
Did you look 'em in the eye
Did they feel it
Did you say it in time
Did you say it out loud
'cause if you did hun
Then you lived some
That feeling inside
That's called satisfied

[Bridge]
Horses are built to run
The sun is meant to shine above
Flowers are made to bloom
And then there's us
We were born to love
We were born to love

[Repeat Chorus]