Just a swingin'

Is there anyone that doesn't like to swing? I honestly wouldn't mind having a swing in my house. A friend of a friend of my husband did have a swing in his house. I never saw it, but Roger came home telling me I would have loved his house.
That is the thing I can't wait for in the spring--it being warm enough to sit in the swing on either the front or back porch and sit and visit with friends or family. Or sit out there when I talk on the phone.

My love affair with swings started when I was a kid. We had a fair sized walnut tree, and always had at least one swing in it. And most of the time there were 3 0r 4. No tipping over the swingset for us. But every now and then the rope would break....or, I think part of them, if not all of them had a chain that went around the limb, and the rope then attached to the chain. I can remember very clearly one time the piece of chain coming loose and coming down hitting me on the head. It was not the typical porch swing chain...it was an actual working chain, not super heavy duty. I think about like the chain used to connect horse to plow.

It was before I was in school...I know there were no leaves on the tree, and no one else was around. I think I cried, but don't remember for sure. Oh, and at least part of the time, if not all, our 'rope' was actually baler twine. And we didn't call it baler twine...we called it grass string.
I think we plaited it sometimes...not sure if we did all the time. But we did at least double it or triple it..

That walnut tree seemed huge to me then....

If it is like this now....

I can't help but wonder how much longer we will have this kind of color. The first two photos are north and west of me one block. I have been seeing them for quite a while now.
It was a little late in the evening when I finally decided to try to capture the color. I am hoping I get back there tomorrow at a better time, though I do like these. But it is just hard for me to capture how glorious the trees are. They almost seem to glow from within.
But I look at them, and the other trees and notice how many more leaves are on the ground and I can't help but wonder how far off scenes like the ones below are. At least I am hoping for at least one good snow.
Though I hate being cold, I am not sure I could ever live where it didn't snow. I love getting out when it snows better than almost anything. Oh, I don't like having an appointment that I have to keep, don't especially like to go shopping then. But I don't like general shopping at any time. However, I do love to get out and ramble around on the back roads at a slow pace.
I have always loved getting out in the snow. When I was a kid, I couldn't wait to get out. I loved going sledding...and no store bought sled for us. I can remember my brothers building sleds out of just whatever lumber they could find. If Neal sees this, maybe he can give more detail...I just remember them being heavy.

I can also remember the brother that is between Neal and I in age--he and I got some old car hood and used it. Talk about heavy! I think it came from a car that had been left on some property of ours, but not real sure. We had several places where we went sledding, and it is a wonder to God that we didn't get killed at a couple of the places. Especially this brother I am talking about being between Neal and I in age...he had no fear of anything and still doesn't.

And if I didn't go sledding, I loved taking the dogs and just taking off. I guess people today would call it hiking. But we didn't especially follow a path...I liked trying to track rabbits. Not to kill them or anything, just to try to find them and watch the dogs chase them. I never can keep it straight which way they are going...whether the wide apart tracks are the ones in front or behind. I guess I should look that up when I get off here. Now I call what we did rambling around, but back then I just called it 'going to play,' but I did until the day I moved to Indiana...and that was in 1975. I had my twentieth birthday that year.

Those dogs are long gone, and though I could still ramble on a big part of the land, there is quite a bit of it owned by people I don't know. And though my two brothers that still live in TN does know them, it is not quite the same...I would not feel free to do as we did as kids. Neal and I both talk about how we would love to be home one more time when it snows. But I am not sure it is ever going to happen.

It is time....

It is long overdue that I acknowledge these awards, well, at least the first one. The others are relatively new. I have debated and debated on how to do this...back in July while we were gone for a little get away, my friend Carletta at Round the Bend gave me this Super Commenter award...I cannot remember what all was happening, but I kept putting off acknowledging it till I was embarrassed about it. But it has always been there in the back of my mind...I visit Carletta's blog almost every day of the week...seriously, there have only been a handful of days that I haven't visited. I felt and still feel honored that she gave me this award...and Carletta, I am sorry I was so long in acknowledging it.
And just recently I started visiting the Tuscaloosa Daily Photo Blog and she gave me the award below and I have not did anything about it...I really do appreciate it, but not sure if I am going to pass it on.
And then there is Ms. Hays at Bluff Area Daily Photo...I found her through Sky Watch Friday. And I have visited her every day since. And will continue to do so. Again, I am not sure if I am going to take the time to pass it on. Mainly because I am so indecisive about who I would give them to.
But I do want you to know that I feel very honored to have received them and I wanted to publicly acknowledge them.

Change of subject....
I showed you a couple knives and sheaths that Roger had made.
Well, he had these three knives finished then also, but did not have the sheaths made to go with them.
He finished the sheaths 3 or 4 days ago, and they are done at their new homes. Due to things happening these are the best shots I got.
They have also been given to their new owners.
I think I am safe in saying that everyone is happy with them.
Roger worked on them all at the same time and I think he decided he would rather work on knives one at a time.

edited to add: The dollar bill is pictured with the knives for you to have something to go by to imagine their size.