Another One!

Jefferson Airplane/Starship was such a major part of my life. I remember very few occasions that didn't have Red Octopus playing in the background. There was also Joni Mitchell, Jim Croce, John Denver, Queen, Fleetwood Mac...but our stereo could handle 5 LP's at once. Guaranteed a Airplane or Starship was one of them.

January is almost over and maybe the harvest of major players in the music world will calm for awhile but I will miss the talent of Paul Kentner.

There is one hell of a good band being created in the after-life. Let me know when tickets go on sale!

Off Season Tomatoes Are Good For Something!

Note To Self:  Next Republican Debate attend in person. It is too damn difficult wiping rotten tomatoes off of flat screen TV. (p.s. but your aim is improving, good job).

Life

Damn! I can't stand it when life gets in the way of blogging!

I swear, I'll be back.

What Takes Your Breath Away?

Breathing! It is automatic. Our body just does it but not without a little assist from our emotions or state of being.

My mom was really stressed a couple of days ago. So stressed that her breathing became very rapid and shallow. The longer her breathing was controlled by her anxiety, the less oxygen she had available which caused an inability to focus which caused more stress which caused quicker and shallower respiration.

When she was prompted to breathe slow and deep, she calmed down and relaxed. Then she would start to think about all the things that were troubling her and the cycle would start all over again.

Yesterday, I discovered there were eleven messages on my Iphone. I turned off notifications one day while the baby was asleep and (20 lashes) I never looked or turned it back on.

There were two calls from a dear friend from high school. He called last week to tell me he was in Intensive Care at a hospital; his COPD out of control. Maybe I should say his COPD had taken control and he was having a great deal of trouble breathing. He called again yesterday while I was at my folk's house; no cell service out in the boodocks so didn't get his call.

When I got home, all the calls made to me during the day came in. Phone was vibrating like it was the end of the world. I checked messages. He is still in ICU. We talked for 4 minutes and he had to stop to put O2 mask on twice during the call. He called to wish me happy birthday but could barely speak.

My mom's breathe was lost by stress and anxiety. My friend, Mike's breathe was lost by 40 years of smoking.

On the flip side, some of us lose our breath by the sight of the ocean, or a newborn baby, or a purple/orange sunrise.

I lose my breath in high places. Probably from the scream that releases all the air and then I can't get any air back in my lungs until I step way, way, way, way, way from the edge. I lose my breath from some of the magical things of life. Rocky Mountains, mountain rivers and brooks, poppies that turn a whole field orange, the sight of a mother nursing her child with love in her eyes, a father playing with his kids.
My lungs stay perfectly still, holding the inhale or exhale, when a butterfly or dragonfly lands on my hand or arm.

What takes your breath away? Is it anxiety, a lifetime of bad habits or is it wonder and beauty? Maybe it is a little bit of both?

Under The Dust

 A visitor to this blog informed me that the links to 'follow' my blog were missing. What the....
I checked and sure enough, they were gone. Scratching my head, I wondered if maybe I had awakened in the middle of the night in a state of paranoia or maybe an overwhelming desire for anonymity. Could be, I have often not had both oars in the water, if you know what I mean!

While uploading the links, I checked in with a couple of my other blogs...mostly dusted the poor things off.  Now, proving that my elevator doesn't go all the way to the top at times, I have a blog titled "Observations From The Edge".  I do not suffer from multiple personalities but at a workshop many years ago, we were instructed to search for different aspects of our personalities, flesh them out and write about them.  OFTE is the blog that developed from that exercise. I love it but it disturbs my husband to no end, I think it scares the boogers out of him that I might indeed, be On  The Edge!

Anyway....while dusting off and fine tuning a couple of things I realized that on some of my blogs I used the name Adrianne, which is my confirmation name. Again, what was I thinking. I did discover this post which brought back a dream that was so lucid, that I felt myself back in the dream as I read.

I want to share it with Wandering and Wondering.

Observations From The Edge  October 2014

"Wow! What a dream I had this morning. I could feel the texture of the coat I was wearing, the breeze on my face. People's eyes could be read. Interesting selection of people to join me for such a lucid dream, too.

Three, no four, major players in the dream.

One person, who has a habit of "not showing up" was in the dream and, surprise, did not show up!

Person-two, I found her stuffed bunny, gave it back to her. We chatted and danced while we waited for Person-one to not show up. She (Person-two) left on the school bus and took her bunny with her, both seemed very happy to be reunited!

Person-three, was headed to the laundromat, but eyes told me that maybe later.....

Person-four - What are you doing in my dreams? I've never seen you here before; welcome! You look good at the head of the table! Your leadership skills are becoming very impressive!

I was wearing my pretty royal blue coat with the fur collar that I lost 45 years ago. All this time I thought it was stolen but I just left it in the land of dreams. What other items might be waiting there for me to rediscover?  It would be nice if my skate key is there. I don't have the skates anymore but I sure liked that skate key. It would look good on a 30" silver chain surrounded with Kyanite and Iolite beads.

The restaurant where I was having lunch with friends was built with thick redwood beams  and boards. Windows wrapped around three sides of the dining room. I could smell the vegetables roasted in rosemary and the ravioli (I'm pretty sure I brought the ravioli with me from watching Master Chef Canada last night. I could taste it too and all I have to say is "YUM"!)

I do hope my subconscious noted the location of the restaurant; the ambiance was remarkable and the black currant balsamic vinaigrette was literally out-of-this-world! I'm going to start sleeping with a  mason jar just in case I go back.

If I die in my sleep, know that some uptight dream-realm official wouldn't let me transfer dimensions with a mason jar full of salad dressing and I chose to stay with that divine nectar of the gods!

I found a folding laundry basket, returned it to Person-three, returned to the curb to wait!  I looked down the street and knew that Person-one was always going to not-show-up. I unbuttoned my coat, put my hands in my skirt pockets and started walking in the direction of home. I made the choice not to wait but to show up for myself.

The walk felt good, the pace was brisk, even in an elegant pair of heels! I was smiling. The air brushed my face as I walked and as I woke, I could still feel the breeze on my skin and I was still smiling.

Now, if you'll excuse me. My teapot is whistling and I have fresh ginger to peel and chop. The crew is waiting for me by the pool. We are going to repair the net on the pool sweep and draw straws to see who is going to sweep up the mess of crushed sand dollars in the entry, family room and living room floors.

I learned two lessons in the last 24 hours. I can show up for myself." AND

You can build a fence out of steel or iron. It can be twelve feet tall or reach the sky. Signs threatening trespassers can be every six feet or every six inches. Sooner or later though, you are bound to leave the gate open.

What life lessons have you learned lately awake or in a dream?

Snape...Snape...Severus Snape

Cancer is definitely on a roll this month, taking some of our best.

The passing of David Bowie and Alan Rickman just floored so many of us to tears or, at the very least, knuckle dragging sadness.

Bowie's portrayal of the Goblin King in Labyrinth raised goose flesh. He really did scare me, enough so that I couldn't watch the entire movie.

Alan Rickman is the only actor I could have imagined who could have brought Severus Snape to life in the Harry Potter series. There was a sensuality to his darkness that was hard to resist. He did do a bad-to-the-bone Hans Gruber in Die Hard, too.

Watching movies with truly scary villains is not my cup of tea, I'm not a scared-of-the-dark kind of person but I am scared of the dark when someone dark and scary is in there with me!

Darth Vadar was a bad guy and James Earl Jones' voice was perfection for that role.

Could anyone but Jack Nicholson break through the door and do Jack Torrance's "Herrrrrrrrrre's Johnny!"?

Ricardo Montalban did a believable bad-ass Kahn, 'my old friend' in Star Trek. Not scarry just mean.

Burgess Meredith' Penguin and Margaret Hamilton's Wicked Witch of the West were pure genius. I believed the characters 100 percent.

Though he never uttered a word, I would have to say the bad guy who frightened me right down to the core was James Arness, in the 1951 black and white movie, The Thing! (see my spine shiver just at the thought of it).

Who are some of your favorite bad guys and villains? Do you like them slathered in make-up or disguised as a normal human? Do you like extraterrestrials, sociopaths, psychopaths or metaphysical manifestations? Who visits you in your nightmares?

Dang Gum

Headed up the canyon today to make a presentation in Mt. Shasta. Snow predicted for Mt. Shasta and area with possible thunder storms on the way back. Possible ice on the road.

Can I stay home?

Great day for staying in with a good chick flick, soup, and a little Emmett's in my coffee. Screw the coffee. Good movie, soup and a nice hefty glass of Emmett's!

So, I just get an email that the person I'm headed up to the land of ice and snow is going to dress up; slacks, nice shirt, sweater and nice shoes! Here I sit in levis, two sweaters and a knit snood cap.

Yes. I'm blogging. It's called thinking, or re-thinking. Our with the jeans and boots. Can't wear brown boots with any of my dress pants except for one pair of tan which are very, very thin for Shasta County summer weather in the 100's.

Thirty-seven minutes to find something which makes me look sharp and won't cause me to bite my tongue off from shivering while making presentation.

This better be worth it!

Little Things

 Relationships have their own little quirks. I just read a blog or a link from Facebook on little mundane parts of romantic relationships. It reminded me of a couple of choices my husband and I have made over the years that have inspired our friends and family to scratch their heads in wonder.

We wanted to buy a car that would fit our three kids and the minimum of three additional kids that typically tagged along. We piled ten of us (including 8 teenagers) into my Plymouth Satellite for a ride back home from town one afternoon. Thank God and Detroit for boats! We knew an investment in a larger vehicle needed to be made. By 'larger' I mean longer not wider! 

We always sat close to each other on our bench seats. When he drove his truck, I was smack dab next to him. When I drove the white boat, he was next to me, blocking the rear view mirror with his handsome head (Thank God and Detroit, again, this time for right side mirrors).

We choose a brand new Dodge Caravan. We searched for one with a bench seat in front. We drove everywhere looking for one on a lot. We'd done our research and knew they existed. We drove to the San Francisco bay area, south bay and east bay. We searched the lots in Sacramento and Stockton. Each salesman told us we were crazy and there was no such creature. In Redding, we found a salesperson who knew his stuff. He kept in touch with what was happening in the market. We ordered one through him.

Sadly, it didn't arrive soon enough for our vacation to Florida so we bought a Caravan off-the-lot from him. It was steel blue, just like I wanted. It had baby blue upholstery, just like I wanted. It had divided front seats. We loved it anyway. You could move back and forth, front to back. The dog could sit between us on the floor so we could still make goo-goo eyes at each other or steal kisses. We drove it, filled with kids, dogs and camping gear to a remote site on Shasta Lake. It was wonderful. We could still sit next to each other in our trucks!

We loved to spoon on the couch while watching tv or a movie. Problem was our sofa was so shallow that whoever was laying in front would spill off the couch. We decided to buy new furniture! We bought a wonderful sofa and love seat that was deep enough that we could spoon and a grandchild could lay in front, arms all around each other while we watched our favorite shows. The problem with that? Every adult who sat on our sofa sat with their legs straight out, like a small child. Even my 6' 5" son couldn't sit all the way back and touch the floor. We invested in about 1200 pillows to help people retain their dignity but finally gave the set away and joined the world of adults. We watch our favorites in bed! Our living room and family room furniture gives the appearance that mature beings live here....well, except for the Mickey Mouse castle, blocks, sponge letters and numbers and children's books spread about.

I have a bad (apparently) habit of bartering. My husband thinks I'm trying to make bargains all the time. I think I'm just working towards efficiency or to being together. Drive's Frank crazy.

I'll say, "Let's go in the kitchen. If you empty the dishwasher, I'll make dinner!"  Or 'If you move the clothes from the washer into the dryer, I'll run in the bedroom and get the other load for the washer."

He wants me to just say, "Frank, will you empty the dishwasher. I'm going to make dinner"  I'm trying to, but it seems so bossy, as if I was the one who sleeps on the right side of the bed! Frankly, I think he's a bit of a nit-picker but he's cute and kisses good, so what the hell!

What quirks do you have in your relationships? Are you together because you both don't like mustard?  What little personal quirks do you have that drives the other crazy?

It's Okay Tuesday

Over at Airing My Laundry it is Hey, It's Okay Tuesday!  Tuesdays are her day to list all sorts of things that it's okay (for her) to be okay about. She invited her readers to join so I am jumping in head first.

Hey, It's Okay Tuesday at Wandering and Wondering

1.  It's okay that instead of taking down the garland around the front door and window and putting my last two Santa's to bed that I spent the day with my husband looking for great advantage points to snap shots of Mt. Shasta.

Mt. Shasta, late afternoon.

Mt. Shasta about noon. Not a lot of texture.

 2.  It's okay that the thought of the television show The Bachelor turns my stomach. A bunch of women competing for the love of one man...really?  Doesn't this promote.....well, honestly, I can't use the word "promote" because that should be a positive note. Why doesn't ABC just call it Objectification 101?









3.  It's okay that I want to climb this fence, get on the path and follow it to wherever it might take me.
I would have but I didn't have a good book, journal or breath mints in my backpack!

Photo by Toni Tona

4. It's okay to put on your pajamas in the morning and stay in them all day, with a good book, some good tea and candles flickering here and there.

5.  It's okay to be open and honest about your spiritual beliefs without having to defend them and without judging others' for theirs.

6.  It's okay to have ambiguous feelings about Donald Trump and his diatribe. On one hand, his speeches are so off the wall and bigoted he makes me laugh. On the other hand, it scares the hell out of me that there are people who cheer him on.

7.  It's okay sleep naked in San Francisco and not worry about the next earthquake.

8.  It's okay to be me.

9.  It's okay to be you.

10. It's okay if you and me disagree.

11. It's okay that I took the literary license to use the word 'me' in the sentence above.

Not A Poet!

Have you been to visit Imaginary Garden With Real Toads? Kerry O'Connor has put a wonderful blog together full of magic and imagination while providing a great environment for writers to practice their craft.

Today, Brendon, one of the creative writers at Imaginary Garden With Real Toads introduced a fun challenge. Actually it is called the Sunday Mini-Challenge, though I am not a poet and haven't written any poetry for at least 20 years. So, if this was a mini there is no way I will be able to rise to a maxi!

Following incredibly interesting history of the Emerald Island he suggests that we try our hand at a poem (of any style) and it must contain the word "Island" and be about any of the islands we have found ourselves on in this life's journey.

Forgive the lack of a regular rhythm and rhyme, please. Thank the great poets in heaven for the definition of free verse. I also ask the great poets in heaven for forgiveness. Please don't visit me in my dreams unless it is with creative criticism...punitive flogging is purely forbidden and my angels will be on guard! 

Ready...Set....Go....

The Isle of Dreams: Lost and Found

For countless days, waves tossed the boat all about
Seizing the oars from our hands, the sea howls,
Scoffing at the impertinence of desperate swabbies.
Who are we to believe we could steer our own course?

Hope clambers aboard when a distant island appears.
Waves cease their rise and fall and the vessel
of insolents is pulled to the isle. We are saved,
our never-failing insolence cries out.

Is it destiny that threads  us through treacherous rocks
Fully onto the beach, free of the sea, we are delivered.
In silence, each  of us steps out of our scow
That once threatened to be our last earthly abode.

White sand blows aside and a pathway emerges.
While waves at our backs pull the boat back to sea .
We step onto the aisle the strand has provided
Walking towards a structure on a hill in the jungle.

I spied a small shop on the hillside and a sign on it’s door.
“Come Close, Dear Friends” the emporium beckons.
“What a sweet little cottage,” I exclaimed to my mates.
“Are you blind? It’s a castle!” our captain responded.

“It’s my grandmother’s house,” laughed the last of our crew.
“And she is inside with warm bread and beef stew.
We paused on the steps for only a moment
Are we dead, we all thought but dare not say out loud.

A heavy castle gate lifted for the captain to enter.
The top of a half door stood open and I reached for the latch
Pulling the bottom open, third mate walked before me
Yelling, “Seanmháthair,  where are you?

The room we each saw was exactly as expected.
But for the shelves that awkwardly hung on the walls.
Dusty bottles and vessels of all colors and shapes
lay before us, cobweb adorned, labels faded.

Assorted bottles lined a rack bearing my name.
What sorcery is this that knows who I am
And the names of my mates as I see them step forward
Is this magic or witchery that prevails.

Clearing the webs from a translucent vial
I saw myself inside, astride a great steed.
A thatched cottage, smoking chimney and
Green rolling hills in the background abound.

Another vessel from the shelf, shaped much like an urn,
Showed me a me, seated at a desk, pen in my hand.
I’m writing the book that I always imagined
Beyond doubt, I know what these bottles contain.

We let the fear of success waylay our ambitions.,  
Like cowards, we set them adrift in the ocean.
With mercy, the gods and the sea rescued our passions.
“Welcome, Shipmates, to the Isle of Lost and Found Dreams.

"A nostalgist's dream come true"*

 How would you feel about being able to download, print and frame images-of-old?

The Verge* just announced that the New York Public Library just made it possible to access nearly 200,000 nostalgic images from icons and images of cultures to pre-victiorian art.

 "A is for angler...."

Do you like to mat and frame sheet music that tells people a little about you or where you come from?  Maybe your mom's and dad's soul song! Remind me to look for Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White; I think Mom and Dad would love it.

Just maybe, you're interest doesn't lie in the framing the pretty cover but placing the music on your piano and bringing it back to life!

Try it! You'll like it! Something for everyone! New York Library Digital Collection.

Fantasy Photography

Do you believe in elves?

They really are remarkable little creatures.

Photo Courtesy of Nicole Chelonis Photography

If you climb into the shadows of Whiskeytown Lake and sit very, very quiet, you just may see this beautiful elf on her daily rounds.

Photo Courtesy of Nicole Chelonis Photography

Photo Courtesy of Nicole Chelonis Photography

    Nicole Chelonis is an incredible photographer. She doesn't just snap shots of elves, but she has many, many ideas. She travels to other planets, back in time and into the future. Her photography is remarkable.

Photo Courtesy of Nicole Chelonis Photography

Lights Out

Photo by Toni Tona

Do you ever wonder if gnomes celebrate the taking down of Christmas lights from our yards? 

I would imagine that fairies love the twinkling bulbs and icicles. They do tend to be a little showy but gnomes are more comfortable in the shadows.

Maybe I'll leave a little cheese out for them tonight to go with their wine and bread.

 

Question of the Month

Michael's question this month: "What are some of the resolutions you have had in the past?"

Number One answer: Lose weight, every year for the last 10 years!  Last year I did it. I juiced almost every morning and now I can take my jeans off without unbuttoning them! (Though some crap hit the fan at the end of September and I've gained a little back.) Sooooo....

Number one resolution for this year is to lose that weight and than some.

One year I made a resolution to start a book club. I did and now they are my best buddies. I don't know what I would do without them.

One year I made a resolution to learn how to ride a horse.  My daughter and her daughters ride so beautifully. I got as far as patting a horses rump and feeding her an apple. Up close and personal, I realized that horses are big. I'm afraid of heights and, who knew, but I'm afraid of horses, too! Learning to ride was a loss and was quickly removed from the list.

For several years I resolved to create my own art studio. Two years ago I did it. I created my own art studio. It was awesome and I worked in it every day for at least 4 hours, sometimes 12 hours when I found myself on a roll. My grandson's little family lives in my art studio now which is a good thing and I know that I will have it back someday. In the meantime, I can work on the book I am writing.

Yes, the book was a resolution for years and years. I finally started it and (2016) I promise you I will finish it this year.

I've probably made the same resolutions as many of you and, at my age, there is a good chance I have made a great deal more resolutions than most of you.

If each year was considered an athletic event; New Year's Resolutions was a team and I was a team the score would be somewhere around 556 (NYR) to 5(ME)!

Hell, at that rate, I am not even in the same Division, so give me some slack!

This year:

Finish my book
Find a new room for my makeshift studio
Say "YES" to things I haven't done
Use "No" a little more often (but with kindness)
Go back on the juicing...I love it and it's good for me
Make more friends
Be adventurous
...and just maybe go back to that cute Kung Fu Master and learn a couple of new moves!

What are some New Year's resolutions you've had in the past? - See more at: http://www.alifeexamined.com.au/p/blog-page_26.html#sthash.wwHXlJKK.dpuf

What are some New Year's resolutions you've had in the past? - See more at: http://www.alifeexamined.com.au/p/blog-page_26.html#sthash.wwHXlJKK.dpuf