 |
I Am A Proud Member Of:
Phenomenal Women Of The Web
MERRY MEET
 
A quick warning to you Reader...
I LOVE to talk and write!
You might want to get a refill on that coffee!*S*
I was born in Kentucky, July 23rd and grew up in
an area that wasn't big enough to call a town!
But it had a name! Exie, Ky! It has a population of about 43
and I am related to everyone there in one way or the other!
Fry Ridge is located in the cave country of Kentucky
on Green River.
My Mother was born there and most of my
relatives are still there,raising kids and tobacco!
My Father was born in Whitesburg, Ky and raised in an equally tiny town called Neon.
Both left their tiny towns and moved to Louisville in the late 50's.
I am their only child (hence the Spoiled4sure)!
Our family moved often between Kentucky and Indiana when I was young
due to my Father's work.And I developed a great love of travel!
So great that as soon as I graduated from college
I raised my right hand and joined the military.
That turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life,
but not for travel! Uncle Sam sent me to South Texas and left me there for 4 years!
But what a wonderful 4 years it was!
I served as a Behavioral Science Specialist, Nurse,
Anatomy Instructor and CPR Inst at BAMC
and NCOIC Of Adolescent and Child Psych. Also 3 years on the
BAMC Color Guard.
I met the most wonderful family in San Antonio as well!
Evelyn and her whole clan became my family!
In all ways except birth, Evelyn is my sister and Godmother to my son.
The greatest event during this time was the birth of my son at BAMC!
My only gripe about the Army was that
I had to wear that maturnity uniform from the
moment I knew I was pregnant!
Which made it seem like I was pregnant forever!!!
Michael still gets a kick out of saying
that his Mom wore combat boots!*S*
So, after the Army, I found another way to travel and get paid for it!
Trucks,the big kind!(grin)Boy Oh Boy did I get to travel then!!
It was great! I alternated careers for several years..
Psych nurse till I reached the burn out point then
drive for a couple years, then back to nursing. I continued
this till an accident pulled the plug on both career's.
Now, I own trucks but don't drive them!
This was very hard to deal with for a long time!
But,the up side is that now my time is devoted
to my family!And this I cherish!
I have been asked to many times to count, why I would
give up a lucrative nursing career to drive a truck.
It wasn't just my love of travel but my facination with
American history and my over-active imagination! Most of my
driving took me West of Indiana..usually to the Northwest..
My first run loosely followed the trail of Lewis and Clark to Oregon.
I could easily visualize these brave pioneers on rafts floating
on the Platte River thru Nebraska.
How they must have wondered at the vast, treeless high
plains of Wyoming and the vast snow covered peaks of the Rockies.
Did their chin's drop, like mine did, at he first sight
of the mighty Columbia River?
What must they have thought of the sight of
Mt Hood in Oregon and Mt.Rainier in Washington.
I went there just about every week and I was amazed every time!
My imagination was at it's most active when I was headed
for the Bay area of California, along I80.
This route following the trail of the Donner Party.
The hardships those people endured in the winter of
1846 & 47 are unfathomable to me.
Crossing the Utah salt flats in a semi is an easy jaunte,
but in a horse drawn wagon!! I cannot
express the depth of my admiration for the spirit of those pioneers!
The horror of what they endured never really sank in when
I read about it, but when I drove that route it certainly did!
The sheer granite mountains,the blizzards,the winding,
narrow passages thru Donner Pass ( then Truckee Pass).
I drove thru the Pass...those people,
half dead from starvation, sick and weak and frozen....walked thru
in snow 24 feet deep! As for the canabalism that occurred,
I would have done the same rather than
let my children starve to death!
My favorite place in this country is Coeur'd'Alene, Idaho.
The vista is unbelievable when you're East bound on
I90 as you top Fourth of July Pass.
There is a pulloff along side the highway at the top
and I have an album full of pictures taken from the spot!
As you look back West, you see the Lake
nestled in the mountains and forest..
cabins barely visable thru the heavy foliage of the
Coeur'd'Alene National Forest.
It is simply breathtaking!!
I have wonderful memories and ton's of pictures of every
state in the lower 48 and most of Canada,
but there isn't room here to tell all of my "truck driver" stories.
 @ 4074281
A moment dedicated to my husband of 12 years, David!
(That's him in 1976-the first time we were together)
Reader, do you associated memories with music? I do!
When I first met my sweetheart in Morristown,In.
He was driving thru town in his 340 6-pack Duster, the undisputed hotrod King of Hancock County and on a first name basis with every cop in the county as well!
I was walking down the street with my buddies.His mega stereo was blasting Aerosmiths Dream On.
When we went on our 5th date,the song was Foghat's Slow Ride.(EG)!!!
When we married at the courthouse in Robertson County, Tenn.
( 11 years and one bad marriage later), the song was George
Jones " I Put A Golden Band On The Right Left Hand This Time"!
There are many more memorable songs, but those
three always pluck the heart strings and make me smile!!
I have 22 years of memories with my sweetheart, not all of them wonderful
but the good far out weighs the bad!
I can't wait to see what the next 22 years bring!!!
Are you ready David Paul? I certainly am!!!!
I would like to take another minute and share
my thoughts with you on my beliefs.
I came to my way of thinking via a very long
journey thru some things that I won't go into here
except to say these experiences had me doing some serious questioning
of traditional religions.
I did not "turn into" a Pagan, rather,
I realized there was a name for my belief's and life style.
A very good friend pointed me in the right
direction when I started asking him questions
and I have been on a roll ever since.
Druidism didn't just "spark" my interest.
It reached out to me, wrapped warm arms around me
and made me as comfortable as being curled in my Grandmothers lap.
Envoking feelings of complete peace, safty and belonging.
A sense of being "home", if you will!
But an even stronger realization of "this makes perfect sense" to me!
I am still learning, still growing and I hope this journey of discovery
continues forever!
My other focus is tree's!!
I have a major emotional attachment to tree's!
I think of them as old,wise, living spirits!
My heritage is Scotts/Irish/Native American. My Great Grandfather Patterson was the first off
the boat from Ireland on my Mother's side. One of my cousins on the Anderson side of the family is currently doing research on the origins of the Andersons. I am very much looking forward to hearing her findings. What little I have been able to find out about them points to Scottland.
Granddaddy Patterson married Cherokee.
I am just now exploring my Native American heritage
even tho I have always been facinated by
all the Native cultures!
My Uncle Johnny is tracing the Patterson family tree and
has contacted the Irish side of family still in Ireland
Both sides of the family settled in Kentucky...Anderson's in Eastern Kentucky
and Patterson's in South Central Ky.
Granddaddy Patterson had shocking red hair and bright green eye's.
In Granddaddys last years, he resumed speaking his native Irish language,
which was musical to listen to, but,
no one in the family knew what he was saying!
Just recently I have had the most wonderful thing happen!
Around my birthday this past July (2001), I received a phone call one evening from my cousin Diana..We chatted for a spell, then in her most serious voice she says that she has something she has to tell me.
Of course, I'm thinking someone has died or some other dreadful thing. Instead, she says, "You have a brother"!
To some folks this might have been shocking news. Reader-I knew my Father very well, so I wasn't shocked. I was, however, absolutely thrilled!
I've know for many years that I had a brother somewhere, but I had no details. I also have two half-sisters that I am searching for.
I won't go into how he found us, it's a long story...I am just so very glad he did contact us!
Two weeks ago, my husband, sons and I went to my Uncles house in Indiana to meet my Brother and his family.
Reader, I can't honestly describe how I felt when Lonnie walked thru the door. I was beyond estatic, my heart nearly burst. I couldn't stop looking at him. It was kind of spooky in a way because he looks so much like our Father.
I met my Sister-in-law, Donna and my nephews, Michael and Bret. This being the first of many coincidences, that we both have sons named Michael.
We spent several hours at our Uncles house, with his wife and three daughters and their husbands, telling Lonnie about the Father he never knew. Lonnie was only 3 when Dad died.
I can't begin to tell you Reader how happy I am about this. I have shown the pictures we took that day to everyone who will stand still long enough to look at them! I've called everyone I know to tell them I have a Brother! And I love saying that!! I have a BROTHER!
And, so far, we have so much in common! I am so looking forward to spending more time with Lonnie. Geting to know him and his family...and I am very much looking forward to introducing him to all the Anderson clan!
I'll let ya'll know how it goes! :)
If you are interested in learning more,
I am including a couple links here with extensive information on Druidism and other Pagan Religions.
For links to my favorite sites, please visit my links page.
I recommend "The Druids" by respected Celtic scholar Peter Berresford Ellis as reading material.
It is a compelling and highly reliable study of the Druids,with reference to the latest archaeological and etymological findings, giving the first authentic account of who the Druids were and what role they played in Celtic society.
This book and several others by the same author, are available at  Or you can search Barnes and Noble directly from My Bookstore
A particularly informative site can be found at http://www.oocities.org/Rainforest/1669
 |
 |
 | Clan Anderson
Oh Danny Boy provided by Creolas
Home to Traditional Celtic and Irish Music.
Please sign, I'll be sure to come visit your page! *G*
Living Tree JPG ©Robin Wood.Used with permission.Blessed Be Robin!
(Index)/(Page For My Husband)/(Michael's Page)/(Jason's Page)/(Meet My Friends)/(Favorite Links)/(Family Photo's)/(Causes & WebRings)/(Garden Tips)/(Canning Tips)/(Canning Fruit)/(Jam Recipes)/(Jelly Recipes)/(Marmalades & Preserves)/(Pickle Tips)/(Pickle Recipes)/(Salsa Recipes)/(Favorite Hillbilly Recipes)
This website is hosted by Get your own Free Webpage
Page Design by Sandy Anderson-Miller
|