Southern Yard Art: Beauty Is In The Eye Of The Beholder

"Mom, we're gonna look Southern!"

Kid 5's warning stopped me only briefly in Lowes today.

"No, these aren't Southern" I told him.  "They are hippie yoga chakra wheels!"

"Yeah, that's so much better."

Southern yard art is a real thing; colorful glass bottles made into trees, little gnome tree houses, even pie tins hanging from the tree branches.

But not my yoga chakra wheels that spin when the wind blows! The colors of each one correspond perfectly to the chakras so they must be intended as more than just yard art.

Now true Southern yard art is the five-foot tall multi-colored gaudy metal rooster sold at the garden center up the street.

Every time I see it I wonder who would want this monstrosity sitting in their front yard. If it were mine I would decorate it for each of the seasons. A Santa hat on the rooster's head at Christmas and an Easter basket in the Spring.

It is a truly hideous piece of yard art.

It's so hideous it's fabulous and I want it. The only thing stopping me is the $300 price tag and some remaining common sense and dignity.

But every time we drive by I look at it and think someday that horrible metal creature will be mine.

This is either a sign of an impending mental breakdown or Kid 5 is right and I have been down here in the South way too long.

Be Content

Today I was agitated. Too much reality.

My mind was elsewhere. I wanted to be elsewhere.

I walked outside this evening in a huff to accomplish yet another task on my never-ending to do list and this is what I saw.

I just stood spellbound for a minute. Eventually I called the kids outside and we all sat and watched the sunset. My mom always said she loved southern skies. 

Be content. 

It's going to be ok. 

*This picture is not photoshopped and was taken with nothing more than my iPhone.

God Bless the South

God bless the South.

Those aren't usually the words I use when I talk about adjusting to life in the South. But those of us that live here are weary. It's been more than a week of one tornado inducing storm after another. The waves of torrential rain just keep coming.

We need a break.

The Mighty Mississippi is over flowing, causing flooding through the smaller rivers and local roads. Two of my close friends have moved their belongings upstairs and have their kids clothes packed in order to evacuate once the order is given. Another friend took her babies and left to her parents to get out of the way.

My kids have hid in the bathtub so often this week I've lost count of how many times I've given the order to get in and put the blankets over your head.

And we're the lucky ones.

The state of Alabama has been declared a disaster area. My dear friend Jilda, who writes at Transformation Information  has been out of touch for days now. She is safe and her house is still standing. But in the one brief message I got from her she said power is out everywhere and the area around her looks like a war zone. She and her husband are out helping in the search and recovery efforts.

My iPhone Weather Bug says the storms are supposed to continue a few more days. There are constant updates on the flood maps.

The South is on high alert again tonight.