Baby Gays

 

 Random Gift of Baby Gays

I was out shopping with my friend who asked me to go with her.  She needed to make some clothing purchases for an upcoming cruise.  We were in Ross store, and I was just casually browsing since I didn’t have anything in mind to buy.  I thought about my daughter-in-law who had most recently had a baby, my fourth grandchild.  She was adjusting to the transition of having three children, breastfeeding, and the repetitive loss of a full night’s sleep.  I thought I’d pick up a little something for her to show her she was appreciated for all her effort to survive a newborn.  I remembered that my son had said she really used a lot of Q-tips.  Somehow it came up in a conversation when were on vacation together, I think.  When I saw these cute plastic containers shaped like clouds and filled with Q-tips, I immediately thought of that random conversation.  I wanted to get her something useful after all and not something to produce more clutter or to cause more stress.  I needed a sweet gift with a purpose.  This was the perfect gift as far as I was concerned.  I purchased it for her and presented it to her the next time I was at their house.  My son and daughter-in-law thought it a funny and unusual gift, but nonetheless, something she would definitely use.  These particular Q-tips had a normal tuft of cotton on one end and the other end was a rigid, pointy cotton.  This distinction caused me to Google the uniqueness of this ear-cleaning device.  During my search I discovered many “fun facts” about the use and origin of ear swabs.  For example, I learned that originally ear swabs were invented in the 1920’s and called “Baby Gays”.  Shortly afterwards they were renamed to Q-tips, and the “q” was to indicate “quality” in the product.  My research provided numerous facts, such as how in the UK they are known as “cotton buds”.  We laughed and my daughter-in-law said it was the strangest gift she had ever received.  I said that the facts about the Q-tip would make a wonderful trivia question on a gameshow!

 Now comes the crazier part of the story.  Later that same evening, I was watching a show called Split Second on the Game Show Network.  You guessed it.  “Ear, Ear!  Tell me if these facts about Q-tips are True or False”, the host blurted out.  I was quick enough to snap a picture of the television screen with my phone camera.  Otherwise, I doubt anyone would have believed my story.  The questions posed to the contestants and written on the screen were: 1. “They were originally called Baby Gays; 2. “They’re made with real cotton”; and 3. “The “Q” stands for quick.”  Of course, the answers were:  1. True 2. True and 3. False.  I immediately sent a text with a picture of the tv screen to my son and daughter-in-law along with an excited phone call!  Remember how I said Baby Gays would make a good trivia question?  None of us could believe that this had happened.  It was even more astounding than me buying my daughter-in-law a box of 500 Q-tips and joking that she might need more in about 6 weeks!   Tammy Harvey   10/17/2024   

Sydney McStickerson

 

Sydney the frog

A frog is suctioned to my window on this starry night,

He is a rather small fella, and his underbelly is white,

He seems to enjoy sleeping in his vertical bed,

While I prefer the comfort of my horizontal seat instead,

He is so peaceful there, stuck firmly to the glass,

I won’t disturb his slumber; never would I harass,

My little companion who joined me for a sweet nightcap,

I watch him from my couch with a blanket in my lap,

He is gone this morning; he got up before I did,

I hope he returns tonight- I think I’ll name him Syd,

Sydney McStickerson will be his formal name,

If I could read his mind, I think he did the same,

He probably named me old Mrs. McCoucherson,

Does everyone think this way or am I the only one!?

Tammy Harvey

10/6/2024

What a Friend

 

A True Friend…

Accepts you unconditionally,

Helps you grow,

Supports you during tough times,

Increases your ability to love yourself,

Is honest and empathetic to you,

Is loyal and loving,

Is a good listener,

Is forgiving,

What a friend we have in Jesus!

Tammy Harvey

9/24/2024

A Friend Wrote

 

A Friend Wrote…

Story by Chris B.

I thought of this in a moment of panic.  I had just gotten home after running errands after work.  I was trying to take some of the laundry out as well as get a shower and put away a gift I had gotten for a friend.  Anyway, I always take my rings off and put them in a little ceramic container at my bathroom counter before my shower.  The cat jumped up onto the counter as she wanted some water from the sink.  I thought I took both of my rings off and placed them on the ceramic dish.  I took my shower and put away the clothes and went back to get my rings.  There was only the wedding band there and my engagement ring was not there.  I panicked and prayed as I looked on the floor and shook out the clothes.  I panicked and prayed harder as I retraced my steps.  When I first went into the bedroom, I remembered that I had tidied up the bed as Ray loves a neatly made-up bed.  I removed the sheet carefully and the quilt on top too but found nothing.  Then I looked down between the bed and the nightstand and there it was.  It was almost directly under the cross on the wall.  That cross reminded me to get back to my daily devotions in the morning before starting my busy day.  When I do, my day goes smoother, and I feel like I’m not pressing the 911 panic button for prayer.

Isn’t it funny how God gets your attention?   Thank you, Chris, for sharing this story with me. 

Tammy Harvey

8/24/2024     

Sea Turtle Rescue

 

Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehab

I am fortunate to be acquainted with Kathy Zagzebski, one of the leaders at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City, NC.  They rescue injured sea turtles, rehabilitate them and release them back into the ocean.  They also monitor sea turtle nests and protect them until they hatch, giving them a better chance of survival.  Of course, they collect data and offer information to raise turtle safety awareness to the public.  Most turtles are injured due to human causes.  They can swallow fishhooks or get entangled and hit by a boat’s propeller.  Plastic is a big culprit in their sicknesses and death.  Many turtles die every year due to ingesting debris they mistake for food.

 A group of my friends and myself were privileged to stay with Kathy Z at her home for a weekend recently.  She gave us a personal tour of the rehabilitation facility, and we observed the turtles in their tanks and learned so much about them.  The second night we were there, we visited a “Sea Turtle Nest Analysis” location.  This nest had hatched 3 days prior, and the protocol is to wait 3 days then dig up the nest and count the eggshells.  The area around the nest was roped off and a nice smooth “ramp” had been cleared to the water’s edge.  The nest was in the dune area of the beach.  It was possible that some of the hatchlings might emerge.  A volunteer, one of many hundred in the project, carefully dug into the sand and removed a total of 105 eggs, 87 hatched eggshells and 18 that had not hatched at all and were not viable.  However, there were no hatchlings left behind.  While we didn’t get to witness the hatchlings, it was good news that they all had made their way out on their own.

 After that we ventured further down the beach to another site that was being “watched” by volunteers because it had reached the gestation period and could hatch at any time.  Again, it was roped off and a group of volunteers were there.  They had waited all night the night before.  They took a device that picks up sound and placed it in the sand next to the nest, and with headphones they could hear if any activity was occurring.  They heard the “rain stick sound” that indicates some movement in the sand.  By now it is dark out, and the moon is full, the smooth sand ramp is in place.  It is the perfect combination for a hatching.  The baby turtles go toward the light of the moon when they are born.  They have to make the journey down to the ocean on their own.  They are magnetically imprinted to the sand to give them a reference to return to the same spot one day.  This is why the volunteers do not pick them up and physically move them to the water.  In many instances, artificial light from streetlights or nearby beach homes may confuse the babies and they may go toward the wrong light source, leading them away from the ocean.  That is why some of time, the nest is relocated to a more remote spot and/or the volunteers have to ask that the streetlights be extinguished, and the homeowners turn off their lights.  We watched alongside the group of volunteers until 8 pm then we left and returned to Kathy’s home.  I had a suspicion that this might be the night, but of course, there was no guarantee.  Sure enough, Kathy received a text message that evening at about 11 pm that the nest had hatched.  While I would have loved to have seen that happening in person, I was overjoyed to know that we had been a small part of the process.  We had come alongside the group and asked numerous questions, as did other observers gathered there.  We had learned so much about the necessary work involved in protecting the sea turtles from harm.  It was quite an experience.

Tammy Harvey

8/21/2024