Tag: Savannah

Posted in Five Friday Happy Bringers

Five Friday Happy Bringers 11/14/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

My weekly gratitude journal, of sorts.

1. Buying my first bunch of mid-fall Southern fresh collards at our favorite little neighborhood grocer here in Savannah, The Red and White.

With hog jowls, adding the flavor of yesteryear and Granny. Dinner tonight with Beef Brisket and my jalapeño cornbread.

2. Napping with Benny.

3. The ability to REMEMBER.

What is something you remember with fondness this Friday?

Right now I’m remembering how excited Robert was last Christmas sitting between Santa and Mrs. Claus.

And I realize I’ve had almost a year now to tell HR that there is no real Santa, but with that smile, I just can’t quite bring myself to do it.

4. Pain medication when we need it.

5. The glorious Introduction to the Holidays Robert and I experienced today at the annual Holly Days Luncheon and Bazaar hosted by the incredible women of St. John’s Church here in Savannah.

We’ve been walking across the Historic District for years now to experience this delicious snd elegantly festive day.

The lunch was held at the church’s beautifully historic Green-Meldrim House, which …

greenmeldrimhouse.org

I opted for the BBQ plate, HR the salad trio.

We were GREATLY distracted while eating our lunch because of the Huge Dessert Table right next to us.

I chose the Red Velvet Cake with homemade whipped cream, while Robert got the Guinness Chocolate Cake with whipped cream and fruit compote. (He’s fancy.). He asked for a tall glass of glass of Guinness to go along with it, but he did not get what he asked for.

And post-lunch we loved walking through the Silent Auction area.

Look! A Nanny Bench! (Truthfully, I had never heard of such a thing before.)

See that little railing on the left side. That’s where Nanny plops down Baby so she can snooze a bit while rocking the bench.

Speaking of sitting, check out this beautiful little window alcove.

Let’s get closer and into the light.

Do you think it would be okay if I sat down for just a sec on that gigantic comfy- and angelic-looking pillow?

By the way, it was the golden mirror for sale, not the pretty pillow. My silent offer of $4.99 didn’t get very far, darn it.

But we did pick up a couple of books …

… and some homemade vegetable soup for another day …

We were certainly Well Fed in Every Way at this year’s fun-filled Holly Days.

May you have a healthy weekend and be Fed with a substantial Serving of Joy.

Posted in My Saturday Evening Post

My Saturday Evening Post: 11/1/25 “5 Weeks and Día de los Angelitos”

Posted on by Neal Saye

Robert and I had a quiet, meaningful couple of hours the other evening setting up our annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) ofrenda (altar), remembering our parents and other loved ones who have passed on before us.

The time was especially dear for me this year because I thought to pull out some old files that, along with other paraphernalia, stayed for decades in my parents’ safety deposit box before they died (my mother in 2016 and my father in 2020).

In one file was the funeral information about a brother, Jimmie, who was born in 1946 and only lived for five weeks.

My mother dried and kept some flowers from his little grave.

In the little baggie behind the Celtic cross.

These old flowers are now 78 years ago—three quarters of a century!

I love the Day of the Dead season. “Nov. 1 is known as Día de los Angelitos, which honors the souls of deceased children, and Nov. 2 is Día de los Muertos.” usatoday.com

So today HR and I remembered little Jimmie and his brief life.

And that’s my Saturday Evening Post.

Posted in Five Friday Happy Bringers

Five Friday Happy Bringers 10/31/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

My weekly gratitude journal, of sorts.

1. Making our annual ofrenda (altar) for Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead), celebrating our loved ones who have passed on before us.

Remembering HR’s kitty cat Boopers.

2. Halloween coffee this morning at one of our favorite coffee bars here in Savannah, Origin.

And the baristas who made them …

Robert has (dis)ability to have complete strangers line up for photos sessions.

3. The fortitude to laugh and savor the moment, even in the midst of our current political climate.

4. The Halloween morning light teasing our steep 1840’s stairs.

5. Cool Halloween decorations here in Savannah.

May your Halloween Weekend be filled with Good Spirits.

Posted in Monday Moaning or Monday Marveling?

Monday Moaning or Monday Marveling? 10/27/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

Marveling this Monday, remembering the terrific Savannah Pride Weekend we just experienced.

As I have mentioned before, both Savannah and Atlanta hold their Pride Festivals in October because the traditional month of June is simply TOO HOT here.

We started the weekend at our church’s Friday night Pride Service. 

Then Saturday was the Savannah Pride Festival in beautiful Forsyth Park.

HR Trying to decide if he’s too old for the inflatable gym.

I love the beautiful truthfulness of this poster:

Posted in Five Friday Happy Bringers

Five Friday Happy Bringers 10/24/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

My weekly gratitude journal, of sorts.

1. Yummy Muscadine Barbecue Wings I made the other night.

2. Walking into PetSmart and seeing this Halloween costume display for doggies.

Seriously?

3. Our sense of Sound. What are you hearing right now? Pause for a second and be mindful of all the sounds in your experience at this moment. Even if some of those sounds are perhaps a bit annoying (hello neighborhood dog that will not stop barking), still, what a blessing to be able to hear!

4. Being mesmerized by more than 10,000 pumpkins (!) on display on a recent trip to the Atlanta Botanical Garden.

(P.S. I asked one of the garden workers what would happen to all of the pumpkins when they were removed. She told me they would be made into mulch for the garden. I felt better after that.)

5. This quirky drawing of a goat.

May something quirky give you a bit of happiness this weekend!

Posted in My Saturday Evening Post

My Saturday Evening Post: 10/18/25 “No Kings — Savannah”

Posted on by Neal Saye

Today’s No Kings Day here in Savannah loudly and colorfully protested Trump’s increasingly dangerous authoritarian moves.

Robert and I joined five thousand other patriotic Americans to say in unison that we have had enough of Trump’s Hitler-esque “leadership.”

My favorite chant at the protest:

“Tell Me What Democracy Looks Like.”

“This Is What Democracy Looks Like!”

It Really Isn’t.

What a peaceful, beautiful, loving, patriotic gathering of folks wanting the best for our nation.

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

And that’s my Saturday Evening Post,.

Saturday Evening Post
Saturday Evening Post
Posted in One-Word Wednesday

One-Word Wednesday 10/8/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

“Mooning”

As you probably know, Monday night gave us the beautiful Harvest Moon of 2025. And while I didn’t have any crops that needed to be harvested in the bright moonlight (as was done yesteryear), Robert and I did go on a wonderfully invigorating and insightful “Harvest Moon Hike” with about ten other moon watchers at nearby Skidaway Island State Park here in Savannah.

“The moniker harvest moon indicates that it’s the full moon event closest to the autumnal equinox, or the first day of fall. Historically, the moon’s bright light helped farmers complete their harvests for the year, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.” cnn

I look a little crazed. I’m blaming it on the full moon. 

“This moon will be the first of three back-to-back supermoons this year. A supermoon happens when the moon reaches perigee, or its nearest point to our planet, making it appear larger and fuller.” cnn

One of Robert’s photos:

And some of my sad attempts …

… which I ended up sort of liking and am now calling “artistic.”

“Oh, shine on, shine on harvest moon up in the sky
Shine on, shine on harvest moon”

Posted in Five Friday Happy Bringers

Five Friday Happy Bringers 9/26/25

Posted on by Neal Saye

My weekly gratitude journal, of sorts.

1. This lovely little harbinger of serenity who peacefully greets me each time I walk into our bathroom.

No, no, not the patriotic wise owl on the top shelf. Look closer, down in the lower left.

In light and shadow, she welcomes me.

(But I’m trying to get her a better working environment.)

2. My beautifully shirted HR and this amazing cinnamon roll we had the other morning at a new restaurant near us, The Municipal Bar, inside a new hotel, The Municipal, which is a gorgeous revamp of an old city building where we used to pay our water bill. TMI?

3. The ability to taste. Isn’t that sense just absolutely amazing?!

4. Experiencing the Fall season, even inside the house. Here’s our pretty mature fiddle leaf fig.

She has been shedding a few leaves lately—but then again, haven’t we all?

For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to simply throw the leaves away.

So I looked around and plopped them in our little wall vase.

And actually found them quite beautiful in their color-changing Autumnal phase.

Look at the chlorophyll saying goodbye.

Robert (so very helpfully) reminded me recently that I too am in my Fall/Autumn Phase.

After I started speaking to him again, I thought about it and decided to hope that my chlorophyll stays bright and green for a while longer.

5. Getting successfully through an intracept procedure earlier this week (a type of back surgery, which hopefully will help my lower back pain).

I got to keep the hat. 

Is it legal for HR to take photos in a surgery center? I would have yelled at him, but I was a bit out of it.

(More about THAT entire experience in an upcoming post.)

May you have some non-surgical fun this weekend.