My honey and I are leaving for Europe today! We plan to check off some of those special places on our own "bucket list" --- like Paris and Rome! Hopefully, I'll have some incredible photographs to share with you when I return.

We'll miss some of our beautiful flowers blooming this spring, but this early iris greeted us yesterday!

Everyone stay blessed, happy and healthy and wealthy, while I'm gone from the Stream. Until we blog again ~~~ Bye-Bye, You All! ~~~ Rita B

Last night former president Bill Clinton was coming in town. He was due to arrive at 9 PM, so we headed for the high school at 8:30 PM. Shocker!!! There were many lines of people wrapped around the school. There wasn't a parking space within a two mile radius --- it was hard to drive, let alone park.

Oh, well, we decide to head back home. At the 11 o'clock news, the reporter said that Bill had just gotten there a few minutes ago! He was running two hours late! All those people who waited just for a glimpse of the former president got their wish, but we were very glad that we came on home when we did!

George Clooney came to town and he could have called me any time. Saxy Bill could have called me too, but they both missed their chance!

My "Save the Planet" goal this year is to use cloth bags when shopping. It's worked fine so far --- except those few times I've left them in the van! I've forced myself to back outside to get them, in hopes it will make me remember next time.

All the check-out people have been extremely nice about using my bags. Of course, I always help them bag my stuff. Bi-Lo gives five cents credit for any bag brought in --- which isn't much --- but it's about the same as what we get for using a coupon! Kudos to them for trying to encourage a major change.

I read how those plastic bags do not disintegrate, but even when they fall apart, the molecules stay in the environment forever! You would have loved seeing me chase a white plastic bag around the parking lot today! I'm positive there's a special place in hell for litterers!!

Last year, hubby and I began changing our light bulbs to the more energy efficient. In searching for more changes we could make, we started returning the ink cartridges from our printer for recycling. Staples pays us back with a three dollars coupon for each one! That's pretty sweet!!

The other change I'm determined to make this year is using more "green" products. They aren't as hard to find now, thank heavens. It did hurt my miserly soul when I shelled out more moolah for recycled copy paper the other day, but I'll get over it. It's only money and we're talking about our home planet, right?

Happy Earth Day to all you green Earthlings in the Stream!!!

Ever notice how those happy morning people are drooping by the end of the day? Yeah, honey, I'm talking about you! I know, I know, it happens to all of us.

Anyway, people who study these weird things, say we're actually taller in the morning! We carry ourselves better too; shoulders back just like our mommas told us to do.

What I'm talking about is probably most noticeable on Sunday --- beginning with jumping out of bed and dressing up to look good --- we put on a very "tall" happy face. Also, we put on all those uptight clothes with a waist, binding pantyhose and pointy shoes that pinch.  Or a suit, button-down shirt and tie around the neck!

As the day wears on, gravity makes the worse of what we got. We begin to slowly lose that upturned smile, eventually wearing a blah expression. Then later, as we relax and settle into our normal face, we shed our outerwear for more comfortable clothing to match our physique. By evening time, we're spread out on the sofa in our most forgiving sweatpants watching "Desperate Housewives" and yawning while balancing a bowl of popcorn on our tummies.

Gravity has taken it's toll on us and has won the battle! If we're blessed, we'll live to fight another day!!