13 Bean Medley after soaking overnightVoila! Hambone Soup
And it’s just warm enough to eat outside. It = weather as well as soup.
2. Reading/skimming through this beautifully delightful book about flowers.
And then going outside the farmhouse to practice …
Okay, maybe I won’t win any floral awards. But it was fun.
3. Being able to stay warm in the cold of winter. What a blessing!
Brrr. Savannah!
4. This ceiling light at a local indoor—outdoor restaurant.
5. The neat coincidence of Grandson Gabriel re-entering his recent high school basketball game just as an advertisement for his parents’ medical company flashed on the screen behind him.
1. These gorgeous Paperwhite Narcissus jewels blooming in the yard of the old farmhouse (in January!) where Robert and I are staying while our kitchen and living room get a renovation.
2. Daughter Amy and her Hubby Scott being named one of Savannah’s “Power Couples” in the current issue of Savannah Magazine.
Old Proud Dad
3. Simplicity.
The older I get, the simpler I desire my life to be.
HR and buddy Ellie at our church’s Christmas Party
2. Holidays and Seasonal Changes.
3. Robert’s Recent Rescue.
So the other afternoon HR and I drove over to Jesup GA to one of our very favorite Christmas Tree farms, Days of Creation.
We bought a pretty fresh wreath.
When we got home, Robert put the wreath, along with some branches of spruce, in our shower (!) to freshen them up with some cold water. (Some things in a marriage you simply put up with.)
Oh, that’s his life-size Mr. Nutcracker he plastered on the shower door.
In another room, I heard him yell/squeal, “Neal, look!”
It took me a minute to see the little fellow.
“What are you doing?!” I asked.
“I’m rescuing him, of course.”
His new home outside our door.
4. These amazing little slider hotdogs we had yesterday for lunch at local Sly’s Sliders and Fries.
Holiday Yum
5. Nearby church spires at dusk here in Savannah.
May you look around and see some Peaceful Beauty this last weekend before Christmas.
Robert and I have been up in Philadelphia this week for an anniversary getaway, so most of my Happy Bringers are found within our travel.
1. First, a few photographic mistakes I made during the week. Which are actually sort of cool.
2. Delicious and messy Philly Cheesesteak at Pat’s King of Steaks (who supposedly created the iconic sandwich).
3. The Joy of being able to travel a bit. Everybody certainly doesn’t have the luxury.
4. Well, …
It was our anniversary after all.
5. Unbeknown to HR and me while planning our Philadelphia trek … landing smack dab in the center of Philly’s Gayborhood.
The blue dot is our hotel, Alexander Inn.
Iconic gay bookstore, Giovanni’s Room, a short walk away.
May you have a Grand and Gay Weekend ahead!
P.S. As I write this post, Robert and I are on the Midnight Train to Georgia. (We arrive in Atlanta early morn.)
“[We’re] leaving (leaving) On that midnight train to Georgia (leaving on a midnight train) Hmm, yeah Said [we’re] going back (going back to find) To a simpler place and time (and when [we take] that ride) Oh yes, [we are]”
1. This photo I snapped yesterday of an elderly couple, holding hands and walking into Walmart. For some reason, it sort of melted my heart for a moment.
Even in Christmas colors! 
2. Robert and I attending last night‘s annual Christmas tree lighting at the Jepsen Center for the Arts here in downtown Savannah.
The event featured a Fabulous Harpist (who we have seen at another downtown event or two).
And here’s Robert bothering her while she’s trying to perform.
TIB (Truth in Blogging): They were chatting, and she was excitedly telling Robert about how she unexpectedly started getting email checks for her work that somehow made its way … to Russia! TMI?
Look, The Clauses! (Is that how you spell their plural last name?)
I think she was the real Mrs. Claus. Robert apparently did too. I got HR a quick part-time job, taking festive photos of other revelers.
3. The good-feeling ability to be excited about seasonal changes and holidays. I know that it’s a blessing because many people are not happy at this time of year.
4. Beautiful Camelias, the “Winter Rose,” blooming all over downtown Savannah.
Hiding behind a courtyard wall
5. Beautifully delicious coffee (peppermint mocha) at Origin Coffee Bar.
Robert got a cookie with his coffee too, but it dropped in and melted. I laughed, a bit too loudly. He tried to even the score by saying that his coffee was much better with the melted cookie. 
**********************
And here I am trying to be all bohemian coffee shop-artsy …
May your happiness this weekend be better than a melted cookie.
1. Robert’s little red hat under Burger King’s new lights … which look like a gargantuan burger. See the top bun on the right?
2. Remembering last Sunday and Savannah Photo Club’s Third Sunday Photo Walk. (Whew. That’s a mouthful.)
We met at the newly opened and very cool Laundry Diner …
… and walked about a mile around the Thomas Square neighborhood.
Most folks had these fancy cameras (including Robert), some with lens as long as my forearm, but I tagged along, head held high, with my trusty iPhone.
Perhaps the thing I love most about the monthly walk, other than the photo snapping and the socializing, is the opportunity to really SEE your city, up close and personal, which can only be done on foot.
Oh, we finished up the walk back at the diner, sharing a … little BLT.
3. The ability to walk. Oh my goodness, what an “I usually take it for granted” blessing!
4. Simple beauty.
Centerpiece on a lunch table recently
5. Attending an absolutely fascinating interview at our local Jepson Center for the Arts, featuring New York-based costume designer for stage and film Tracy Christensen.
After talking about the behind-the-scenes work involved in dressing characters, Tracy specifically delved into her collaborative role with Glenn Close and the Broadway reprisal of Sunset Boulevard in 2017.
Miraculously, Robert and I were in NYC and able to see the brilliant actress as Norma Desmond on the very final day of the production.
A few samples of Close’s archive of outfits she wore in various projects over the years on display at The Jepson.
Look! There’s HR, walking down his own pretend runway.
May Happiness and Good Health be your Costume this Weekend.
NealEnJoy 