celebrate the day: Happy New Year-Happy Year of the Horse
- 02/16/26 01:56 PM
Happy New Year-Happy Year of the Horse
First question everyone wants to know: what animal are you?
But first…the Lunar New Year begins today. The celebrations last 16 days and end with a Lantern Festival on March 3. When I was younger, our family attended big (as in 100+) 9 or 11-course New Year’s dinners. My cousins and I loved guessing what the next dish would be. We also learned at an early age not to ask what that dish was. (try duck feet)
Another fun tradition is giving small red envelopes to children. The envelopes have crisp new bills in them (an even … (17 comments)
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celebrate the day: Friday Fun…18 Years of It
- 02/05/26 01:31 PM
Friday Fun…18 Years of It
When they say that time passes when you’re having fun, it’s true. It’s been 18 years since I joined ActiveRain. I had no idea what I was doing. I stumbled upon this site while researching various websites when I started my Home Staging business.
Members who joined February 6, 2008
Points? It took me months to realize that you could earn points for posting, commenting, logging in, etc.
No one referred me to this site, so my mentoring came from the … (17 comments)
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celebrate the day: Read Aloud Day is Today!
- 02/03/26 04:28 PM
Read Aloud Day is Today!
Do you remember your mom or dad reading out loud to you, especially at bedtime? For many of us, it was part of our nightly ritual. I remember being at our friend’s home at her children’s bedtime. She had 3 young ones, but that did not stop her from reading to each one of them after she tucked them in for the night.
Today is World Read Aloud Day. Besides being a way to bribe a child to go to bed, reading aloud is important to them (and to you) in other ways.
~It forms a connection between … (13 comments)
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celebrate the day: Wordless Wednesday…But, They’re So Cute
- 01/20/26 04:56 PM
Wordless Wednesday…But, They’re So Cute
Larry and I always have unshelled, unsalted, roasted peanuts in our pockets. We don’t dare step out of our back door without at least a few of them. The menagerie in our backyard has a few resident squirrels who love Casa Streib’s buffet.
Today is Squirrel Appreciation Day
As soon as we step out our back door, or they hear the garage door opening when we drive up…there they are. We used to have one who waited for us on our fence for his daily peanut as we walked from the garage to the back door.
We also have squirrels … (20 comments)
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celebrate the day: Let’s Say THANK YOU to Our Law Enforcement Officers
- 01/08/26 02:39 PM
Let’s Say THANK YOU to Our Law Enforcement Officers
Today is National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. I can’t pretend to know what it is like to be on the front lines…willing and prepared to put my life in jeopardy to save and serve my community.
I can tell you what it’s like to be a relative of several law enforcement officers. You say a prayer every day they go to work, asking for them to return home safely. When the news reports that an officer has been injured, or worse, you say another prayer.
And when you see others throw bricks at them for … (15 comments)
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celebrate the day: Happy New Year and Welcome 2026
- 12/31/25 03:31 PM
Happy New Year and Welcome 2026
Welcome, New Year…a chance to get it right or continue doing what you were doing!
We’ll have the traditional good luck bowl of Black-eyed peas, accompanied by 3 college Bowl games.
Thank you, ActiveRain members, for the interesting, informative, and fun posts you share.
May you encounter kindness wherever you go.
May wisdom and compassion be your companions.
Happy 2026!
For a new year to bring you something new, make a move, like a butterfly tearing its cocoon! Make a move!
Mehmet Murat Ildan
Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Every time … (18 comments)
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celebrate the day: Happy New Year’s Eve 2025
- 12/30/25 05:47 PM
Happy New Year’s Eve 2025
It’s almost here…the New Year! Why is it that time keeps moving faster and faster the older you get? It’s a fact! (At least in my world it is)
Mish Mosh Thoughts
If you’ve ever been in Houston when it snows (rare), then you know we go bonkers! It snowed here in january this year.
We may live in Texas, but Larry brought some of his Kansas weather with him. We were in the closet again this year, thanks to two tornadoes hitting the area in November.
In our “youth,” Larry and I and our friends in Delray … (21 comments)
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celebrate the day: Merry Christmas
- 12/24/25 05:04 PM
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas, one and all!!!! It’s hard to imagine that Christmas is here and we’re about to begin a new year.
Whatever you’re doing today, I hope that you are where you want to be.
I hope you are with friends who are your family or with your family who are also your friends.
Wishing you Hope, Faith, Joy and Love.
Merry Christmas
Christmas isn’t a season, It’s a feeling.
Edna Ferber
One of the most glorious messes in the world
Is the mess created in the living room
On Christmas Day. Don’t clean it up to quickly.
Andy Rooney
May you never be too grown-up to search the
skies on Christmas … (18 comments)
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celebrate the day: Twas the Night Before…2025 Edition
- 12/23/25 05:24 PM
Twas the Night Before…2025 Edition
Since 2010, I’ve played around with a staging version of Twas the Night Before Christmas. In 2020, I adjusted it to reflect our concern for germs and “the virus.” In 2023, I repurposed it for blogging.
The big topic this year has been AI. If you haven’t dipped your toes in, now’s the time.
Twas the Night Before…
Twas the night before Christmas
when all through the house
Not a keyboard was pecking,
no screen light, no mouse.
The blogger who used to spend
countless hours,
Seeking the right words to pen
for his followers,
Turned off their laptop and settled in
for the … (15 comments)
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celebrate the day: Thankful Thursdays…For My Apps
- 12/10/25 05:08 PM
Thankful Thursdays…For My Apps
Many have called me an apps-w____, and they would be right. I love learning about new apps and what fun, information, or help they may offer.
Today is National App Day! Since my first smartphone, I’ve gone through, kept, and deleted countless apps. There are a few that I miss, but I’ve learned there will always be a new app in the pipeline.
AI apps have made their way to our smartphones. Just think, it’s 1997, and if you had a Nokia 6110, you would also have what many believe to be the first mobile app…Snake! I had … (20 comments)
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celebrate the day: Celebrate the Day…It’s Giving Tuesday
- 12/01/25 12:25 PM
Celebrate the Day…It’s Giving Tuesday
We’ve all heard of Giving Tuesday. I know that many are shaking their heads, saying that every day is a day for giving to others. I couldn’t agree more!
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The holiday season nudges that warm and generous feeling we have into high gear. Whether you’ll admit it or not…doing something for someone else, no matter how big or small, gives us a feeling you can’t buy in any store or even on Amazon.
How can you GIVE on GIVING TUESDAY?
Volunteer … (17 comments)
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celebrate the day: Happy Birthday to My Best Friend
- 11/30/25 03:49 PM
Happy Birthday to My Best Friend
Forty-eight years ago, I met the person who became my best friend and husband. Today is Larry's birthday!
There is never a day or minute that passes that I don’t thank God for this remarkable Renaissance man.
This man flew F-4s, kayaked in the Everglades, dived, and hunted. He is also a great baker and sewed his own lightweight tent and curtains for the VW bus he transformed into a camper.
He may not have been the person I ever imagined myself ending up with, but he’s exactly who I needed—and the one I was meant to be with.
There’s … (21 comments)
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celebrate the day: Happy Thanksgiving!
- 11/26/25 04:44 PM
Happy Thanksgiving!
When you go around your Thanksgiving table, and everyone says what they’re thankful for, what will you say?
I am eternally grateful for the buffet of life I’ve been given. I’ve not always chosen wisely from the smorgasbord set before me. I cannot complain because I did have choices, and they were mine, for better or worse.
I am thankful for…
*My family and friends
*Being born in the country I love.
*Being around for the iPhone and Google.
*AI photo generation software
*The many good people in the world.
*Morning walks in nature
*Dark chocolate
*My ActiveRain family
*Still learning something every day
*The love of my life, Larry
I could go … (18 comments)
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celebrate the day: Celebrating World Kindness Day
- 11/12/25 04:50 PM
Celebrating World Kindness Day
We’re all ready for this day because we need more of it (KINDNESS) in the world. Today is World Kindness Day.
What does it mean to be kind? Or, to show an act of kindness?
It isn’t just being friendly to someone or generous. It’s also being considerate and thoughtful.
When I was staffing offices, we had a remarkable motivational speaker. When we left, all of us were pumped up to try what she suggested.
Something she said, though, stayed with me.
It takes a lot of thought to be thoughtful.
How often have we slapped our forehead and said, “Why didn’t I … (17 comments)
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celebrate the day: Veterans Day 2025
- 11/10/25 04:49 PM
Veterans Day 2025
Today is the day we honor all the many men and women who have served and are actively serving in our military.
There are approximately 16 to 17.5 million veterans in the United States, according to data from late 2023 and mid-2025
ActiveRain has members who have served. Most of us have had husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, aunts, uncles, and children who have honored us with their service.
Years ago, I shared a link to an article by Doc Bailey. What I read made me pause and reflect on my own words when I said “Thank you for your service” to … (27 comments)
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celebrate the day: First Responders Day…
- 10/27/25 03:37 PM
First Responders Day…
Today, we celebrate the many who put their lives on the line for all of us. It is First Responders Day… and that includes firefighters, emergency medical technicians, law enforcement officers, paramedics, SEARCH and RESCUE teams, and 911 dispatchers.
As of last October, 2024, there are 4.6 million men and women who stand ready to protect and serve their communities.
Many here have family members who have or are serving in their communities.
We know the sacrifices first responders and their families make. But did you know…
*676 First responders died by suicide in the U.S. between 2015 and 2017
*Sudden cardiac death … (12 comments)
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celebrate the day: World Heart Day 2025
- 09/28/25 04:07 PM
World Heart Day 2025
We celebrate many occasions, but World Heart Day is important to me for personal reasons.
In 1999, Larry spent months chasing a physical problem. He went to a cardiologist who ran several tests. Upon his suggestion, Larry even saw a Gastroenterologist.
During the 4+ months of chasing a diagnosis, he continued the activities he loved, including diving. Finally, bossy Kathy stepped in, and we insisted the cardiologist perform an angiogram.
Larry had 99% blockage in the right artery. (thankfully not the widow-maker) He had 2 stents put in.
Then in 2014, he required a 3rd stent. Once again, Larry listened to … (23 comments)
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celebrate the day: Wordless Wednesday…Bluebirds of Happiness
- 09/23/25 05:31 PM
Wordless Wednesday…Bluebirds of Happiness
When I learned that today is Bluebird of Happiness Day, I couldn’t resist. Larry and I monitor and maintain bluebird boxes at Kickerillo Mischer Preserve and one in our backyard.
Bluebirds are cavity dwellers. With developers encroaching on wooded areas, the removal of dead trees due to land management, and the introduction of European starlings and house sparrows, the availability of nesting sites decreased.
Throughout the country, volunteers have placed bluebird boxes along established bluebird trails. Because of these efforts…bluebirds are back!!!
Besides their vivid blue color, especially during mating season, bluebirds carry with them a spiritual meaning of “happiness and … (16 comments)
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celebrate the day: Celebrating Our Constitution and Citizenship Day
- 09/16/25 04:26 PM
Celebrating Our Constitution and Citizenship Day
After 9/11, I began carrying a small copy of the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution in my travel bag. It was my way of keeping my country with me, no matter where I was.
Today is Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. Our country did not just happen. There was a purpose and reason behind each paragraph and Amendment.
Do you remember memorizing the Preamble to the Constitution when you were in school???
Can you still recite any of it??
Did you know the Preamble to the Constitution consists of just 52 words?! Remember that the next time you take … (15 comments)
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celebrate the day: Motivational Monday…Thankful for a Labor of Love
- 08/31/25 01:44 PM
Motivational Monday…Thankful for a Labor of Love
Happy Labor Day! Many of us have had more than one job or profession before getting into some facet of real estate. We may have started with a paper route, waking early to toss a rolled newspaper onto someone’s front porch.
We’ve worked in retail and waited tables. A few of us helped people find jobs. Some have served our country in the military or law enforcement, or nursed the ill. There are teachers and lawyers among us. Others worked in the corporate world.
Some of us are retired, while others have their sails set for that … (17 comments)
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Happy New Year-Happy Year of the Horse
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