Friday Fragments

Back again with my earth-shattering views!

Weather: “They” lied – there was no sun yesterday – it was still gray, damp, and cold – yuck! But – all good things come to those who wait – the sun is out today, there’s a gorgeous blue sky, and things are looking better. My weather picture on the right shows snow on the ground – there isn’t, but it is very cold. With the sun, I don’t mind the chill quite as much. It’s predicted that we’ll really be cold next week. Oh well, it is January, and this, too, will pass.

Finished [almost]:  I was finally able to get my kids to take many decorations off my hands, and now I’m almost back to normal. The snow people were put into bins and sent with my daughter. My boys took some wreaths and some bigger decorations. Now I just have a few small odds and ends and we’re back in ordinary time. Funny how it always looks so plain. I do miss my little white lights, though. They adorned all three trees, the windows outside, the front door and mantle wreath, and the mantle greens. Now that they’re gone, it feels barren. Oh well, soon (yeah, right) it will be spring and I can decorate with flowers. Before then, though, I have a ton of to-dos that need completing little by little.

Visiting:  A sister who used to be in our parish was retired recently (against her will because of sickness.) She was a sweet little nun, and she did a lot – visited the sick on a weekly basis, planned funerals with families, attended a gazillion meetings, and kept the church locked/unlocked and in good repair. I miss her a lot, so I’m going to visit her next Tuesday. It’s not far away, even though it’s in the next state, so my husband will drive and my two friends will join us. I’m trying to think of a little gift to take to her.

TV and Books:  I’m working toward the end of Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult and I am  loving it! She really has such a talent as a writer! TV watching has been extensive! I’m so into Downton Abbey, and I wish there were more episodes – the end of season 3 will come quickly. My husband enjoys NCIS, and this week’s closing was great. Tomorrow, I’ll watch all the shows I DVRed. Am I a lazy lump or what!?

Grammar: You knew it was coming…

Last week I started semicolons, and then this cartoon showed up on FB.

Use a semicolon between independent clauses joined by words such as: for example, for instance, that is, besides, accordingly, moreover, nevertheless, furthermore, otherwise, therefore, however, consequently, instead, hence.

These transitional expressions are preceded by a semicolon and followed by a comma.

Ellie felt shy; however, she soon made friends.

Caution: when one of these expressions is used within one of the clauses, not as a transition between the clauses, it is punctuated as an interrupter and is set off by commas.

Our committee voted to have a fundraiser; the chairperson, however, vetoed the idea.

There are still two more uses of the semi, but I’ll leave them for the next two lessons.

Now you may get back to your much more interesting lives!

Peace,

Muff