Happy Birthday America

 

"Happy Birthday America" by Christine Graves via NightCafe Studio

Happy 250th Birthday to the USA. 

This year marks a milestone for our country, and we couldn't need it more. No, this isn't going to be a political post, I don't do those. I try to avoid politics and that type of material like the plague. However, I'm thrilled to be celebrating our nation's birthday.

Here's the thing. I'm so old I remember the 200th birthday celebrations. Yep, I was 7 years old when our nation turned 200. No, don't do the math. Yes, I'm old. Our little community holds an annual summer celebration around this same time, so in 1976, the annual parade was all about the 200th birthday. I can't say I remember it all vividly, but I remember everyone waving little American flags, the Shriners throwing candy, and everyone having a great time. 

We've come a long way in the past 250 years. We went from a group of individuals trying to make a life for themselves in a new world to a nation of free-thinkers and dreamers. No, I'm not going to go into all the things we're dealing with right now. That's not the point of this post. It's about being proud of what we've created as a nation--one nation, under God.

Now, that being said, let me say this as well. We came here to be able to worship our religion as we saw fit. I'm all for that. I don't care if you're Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, or Pagan. If you feel close to your God, good for you. That's what it's about. I'm not an overly religious person, nor do I try to push my beliefs onto others. I'm a spiritual person, and I miss the spirit of what this country used to stand for.

As we blow out the candles and make our 250th birthday wish, my wish is this. I wish you all love, light, and happiness. I wish you peace and abundance. I wish you reconciliation with those you've lost contact with and I wish you joy in finding someone new. I pray you get that job. I hope you find your way in this world. I wish you to receive all the positivity in the Universe. 

May your Independence Day be exciting and fun, but please be safe. Let's not have someone go to the ER for blowing their fingers off. Even though we have the freedom to do so. 

Happy Birthday, America. May your flag fly forevermore. 

Until next time,
Mom Graves!!!

When the Universe Sends You a Message

 

"Shocked" by Christine Graves via NightCafe Studio

So, as I was working on upgrading the scenery around here, I decided that maybe I should look at some of the old pieces I left on this site. I knew there was a lot of stuff that had absolutely no reason for existing anymore, but I'm leaving it right where I found it. But here's the thing, I think I time-traveled.

Okay, let me explain. I found this blog on the 10th or 11th of this month...June 2026. I was excited and did a quick scan of the site, but didn't really look deep. I just knew I had to get something posted on this site and get it back into circulation. 

I posted my last post a couple of days ago, June 13th, 2026. I was so happy, and it just felt right. I didn't know why, it just did. But then, I got the shock of a lifetime. 

I was looking a little deeper at some of the stuff I'd posted in the past 19 years, then thought, "What was my first post???" It was just a little piece of fodder to get myself in the right frame of mind. But it wasn't WHAT I had posted that freaked me out, it's WHEN I posted it. The first post on this site was on June 13th, 2007. 

WHAT????

No, it wasn't on purpose. I had no idea I brought this site back to life exactly 19 years to the day after I'd first started it. That's when I knew I was on the "write" path. I've been saying for some time now that my calling is to bring back old-school blogging, and I think that was the Universe's way of saying, "No shit". 

In fact, when I created the image at the top of the page, I noticed the book at the bottom of the image said: "The Universe has a Sense of Humor". That sealed it. Now, mind you, the prompt I used in the AI image creator said nothing about adding any words. In fact, here's the full AI prompt:

A whimsical illustration of an older woman sitting at her desk, a look of shock on her face, and eerie wisps of mist surrounding her. 

That's it. That's the whole prompt. And this image is what came of it. Tell me that's not a sign. 

I now have 5 Blogger blogs up and running, the newest of which is about to turn a year old. I've been doing this for a long time. I remember the days of super bloggers. I have to admit, I made quite a bit of money blogging. I know that's not going to be the case this time around, but it wasn't just about the money; it was the creative freedom. But, yeah, the money was nice.

I've decided that this site will be geared toward the everyday stuff in my life, little op-ed pieces I find interesting, TV shows and movies I've watched, and stuff like that. Nothing fancy, just real stuff from off the top of my head. That's a little scary, if you think about it. 

I'm getting more and more excited about blogging again. Even if I only have a handful of readers, I'm still doing what I love. This is my calling and I think it's time to answer the call. Wanna tag along? Come on, let's see where we go from here.

Until next time,
Miss Chris!!!

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