Summer Evening

After a long day of work in my home office, I grab my e- reader, download a new book and move out from the cool comfort of my house, to the warm evening sun on my screened porch and I sit down to begin my new book.

Before I really get into my new read, I stop to watch and listen to the summer evening unfold. A light rain falls, not even enough to totally dim the fading sunlight, but enough for me to smell it on the ground and watch the robins gather on the grass in hopes that worms will soon be emerging and the robins will have their dinner!

I don’t think that it was enough rain to push any worms out of the ground, but I do enjoy watching the robins hopping around with hopeful anticipation.

Hummingbirds fight for their turn at the sweet nectar in the feeders. It’s August, so they are in overdrive mode trying to fuel up for their upcoming long journey back south. I wish I had the kinds of Hummingbirds that shared, but in all of years, and all of the types of feeders that I use, mine just fight. Still, I marvel at them each time!

Mourning doves, cardinals, blue jays and sparrows flock around my bird feeders. Blue jays seem to dictate who gets the best spot at the feeders. I think that must be the true definition of “pecking order”

A familiar sound coming from the woods of what I believe to be a king fisher is confirmed when it flies over head. I look up and tell it, as if it understands me, to just keep flying and stay away from the fish in my pond.

I used to love watching the blue heron’s stand by the ponds edge looking for their next meal, and the king fisher’s graceful dive into the pond, but after finding so many injured and dead fish, as well as piles of regurgitated fish bones, (the fish that I objected to when we first decided to stock the pond), I now have no problem moving them along to anywhere else but here.

The fish, mostly large-mouth bass know me well and greet me daily at the beach for their breakfast. It’s no surprise to anyone that knows me to hear me call some of them by the names that I have given them. There is “Mrs. Bass”, (honestly I don’t know if its male or female )who is the biggest, and kind of the meanest of all of the bass, but I like how she swims up and just floats by me, looking towards me when I throw the floating fish food out. Then, newer to the collection is “river monster”, a 3 foot long grass carp who we were told we would never see, as he does his job of eating all of the grass in the pond. Even though he is shy, we do see him eating the fish food along with all of the other fish, including the latest member of the pond,” little guy”, an adorable paint turtle who seems as curious of me as I am of him.

As I look up from this writing, a beautiful deer cautiously crosses the yard staying close to the woods. She grazes and then perhaps hearing me type furiously on my laptop keys in order to capture this moment before it passes, looks my way. Again, in my best” Dr. Doolittle” voice, I assure her with a smile that I am friendly, and she has nothing to worry about with me, but she still seems cautious as she continues to graze and the sun continues on its evening descent into the west sky.

I hear king fisher again, and keep a watchful eye out on the pond, hoping that I won’t have to jump up to scare him off, as that will surely scare the deer off as well.

With the robins still hopping around looking for a fat worm, and all of the other amazing things happening around me, I feel like there should be bunnies included in this Disney like scene but so far, I haven’t seen any which is okay because this was still an almost picture perfect evening among the beautiful nature that surrounds me in my very own back yard, and for that, I am grateful!

 

 

In a Mood

 

I am not sure who made Mother Nature so upset this winter, but I think it’s high time someone had a talk with her to find out.

She has thrown storm after storm, ice, snow, sleet, wind, frigid, bone chilling temperatures to most of this country for the last couple of months, and as she hasn’t done this much damage in the most recent past, obviously something has made her very mad and I think that if we can just clear the air (The air that currently is being ravaged with snow, wind and ice) with her, maybe we can all get on with our lives and have some sort of a normal spring.

The spring that I thought we about to start having given that in the past couple of days she has used her wiley ways and teased us with her above freezing temperatures, bright sunshine and allowed the poor migratory birds to make their way back here with what I am sure was their assumption of the promise of spring too, only to be duped with this crap of a March snow storm. That bitch!

 She must be finding all of this pretty amusing and is giggling at our expense as she watches us shovel, snow blow, plow, slip and slide, bundle up and endure higher than normal heating bills just to keep our houses from having frozen pipes. She has caused us to have to drive like professionals on an obstacle course trying to avoid all of the pot holes and broken water mains all over our streets. Our skin, nails, hair, lips and houses are so dried out, and I say that she seriously needs to stop already!

The crazy thing is that with all of this misery that she has brought to most of us this long winter, she has also brought some of the most beautiful scenes that I have seen in a long time. The way that the wet snow sticks to the branches of the trees and bushes have been breathtakingly beautiful, and the way that the ice fog leaves its layer of frost on everything is amazing, so she must clearly be using her creative side, but for some reason, I guess that is just not enough to get her in a better mood.

So, if we go back to my original statement in that someone has seriously upset her and since we probably will not find out who that is in the near future, than I propose that we all ban together and as with any female, tell her that she is pretty (as evidenced by the artwork in nature left by her snow, frost and ice), funny, (as evidenced by her sense of humor in watching us humans slip on her snowy sidewalks and icy streets) and smart, (as evidenced by her timing of bringing so many of these storms on our weekends, at least here in the Midwest. Truthfully though, this feels a little more facetious than smart, but we don’t need to add any more fuel to the fire, so let’s stick with smart), then maybe, just maybe, we can melt her and she will feel the love for us again and we can all thaw out and finally warm up.

 Hey, it’s worth a shot, nothing else has worked so far!

Men are like dogs, and Women are like cats

If there was ever any doubt about how much men are like dogs, and women are like cats, let me point out a few scenarios, and I think you will soon erase any doubts you still might have.

 

1. Eating- Put food, just about any food in front of a dog, and before they even know what it is that they are eating, it’s gone in about one large gulp, and then, when they are finished with that, they look up at you as if to say “okay, that’s done, what’s next?”. Men, same thing. They don’t really care what it is that they are eating, as long as they are eating something. Now, put food in front of a cat and first they have to inspect it, smell it, sample it, nibble at it, and then and only then, will they proceed to begin to eat it, while leaving the less desirable pieces on the floor around their dish. If they still turn their noses up at the food, it’s because you forgot that they no longer like this type of food. Jeesh, how could you forget this? Women, same thing, dissecting everything that is on their plate, pulling off the tiniest of burnt pieces, and traces of any undesirable fat, all while expecting everyone around them to remember that this week they are vegetarian. How could you have possibly forgotten that, just because last week they devoured an 8 ounce steak in record time!
2. Bathing- Cats meticulously, and multiple times a day, groom, smooth and primp themselves until everything is perfect, taking minutes and sometimes what seems like hours to accomplish. Watch a woman in a bathroom getting ready and it’s pretty much the same process. Dogs sloppily give about 3 to 4 good licks to certain areas of their bodies, and well, that seems to be good enough. Men can get in and out of a shower, run their hands through their still wet hair, and be ready to go in 5 minutes or less.
3. Mother Nature’s calls- Cats can only “go” when they are fully hidden in their very well “scented to hide the odors” litter boxes, and God forbid you walk in on them doing their duty! Once they are done, they carefully cover their scent, check and double check to ensure that any odor is no longer detectable, and then quickly exit the litter box. If they are caught leaving the litter box, and I think If they could talk, they would probably blame any unpleasant odor on the next cat (or dog) that might have used the same box. Women, with all of their “hide the odor” scented candles and sprays need to use a bathroom in the most remote part of the house, and hate having to go in public places where they may be seen or heard, so it is imperative that they have their own stall, much like a private litter box, and will exit a bathroom with ninja like quickness once they are done. Dogs on the other hand have no problem “going” out in any given yard in front of God and anyone, and when they are done, not only do they turn to see what they have done, but will sometimes even smell what they have done. They own it and are proud of it. Men too will lay claim to smells and sounds that may or may not have been emitted from their own bodies. They will use public restrooms with no problem, and will even stand next to each other holding conversations, (among other things) with just a small wall in between them.
4. Napping- Cats curl up in nice snug balls to take their naps. Not many sounds come from them while they are sleeping. When they awaken, they simply stretch and get up. Women also like to curl up with a blanket to take their naps and awaken slowly and quietly. Dogs will lie anywhere, with everything hanging out, mouths open, drooling, and sometimes snoring. Then they awaken with a snort, scratch anything that itches, and get up. Men, well, need I explain here?
5. Waiting for their loved ones- Cats may wait for their loved ones to return, but will usually greet you coolly, giving the impression that they may or may not have missed you, doesn’t really matter to them either way. They may rub up against your leg, purr a soft purr, and then go back to doing whatever it was that they were doing before you came in. Women, well, pretty much the same. Dogs come charging towards the first sound of you, barking excitedly to see and welcome you home. They didn’t think that you were ever coming back and they are so grateful that you are there, and oh, by the way, can you please get them something to eat as they are starving!? Men, umm, yep.
6. Training and motivation- While most don’t think that cats are trainable, I am here to say that some are, however, while dogs are more easily trained, cats can also be trained, it’s just that the motivation for the reward is different in cats and dogs. Dogs can be trained by rewarding them with praise and treats when they follow a command successfully. Men, well, yeah, you too. Cats on the other hand, are not quite as motivated to be trained by being rewarded with something as simple as a treat, but give them the praise to make them think that they are far superior and smarter than the dog, and you will see them fetching and playing dead with the best of the dogs. Women, you should be able to recognize yourself in that. Just saying...
7. Making mistakes and getting into trouble- When a dog does something wrong, such as dig up your flowers, or eat a shoe, and after they have been scolded, they will follow you around just to make sure that you still love them, will feed them, and will not make them stay outside all night. That is how they apologize. Men…..you see this connection here, right? When cats make a mistake such as, well, cats will never openly admit to making a mistake, so how can they be reprimanded, and if you do reprimand them, they will go on as if they didn’t do anything wrong anyway, and how dare you accuse them of shredding the toilet paper, it was probably the stupid dog that did it. Women, come on, this is so true.
8. Retaliation- This is the one category that cats, dogs, men and women all appear to act the same. All destroy things of the being that accused them of the crime or made them upset. Dogs will destroy a couch in a matter of minutes for something as small as running out of their favorite treats. Cats will relieve themselves on your bed so that you remember never to leave them out all night ever again. Men and women, well, they have many ways to destroy things of someone that has wronged them, but you should get the picture by now.
9. Mating Rituals-Now here is an area where cats and dogs are pretty much the same, and I think that most men would probably like it if women were more like the animals as well.

 

So there you have it. Some really compelling scenarios that should erase any doubts you may have had about men and women right? And, I could probably come up with some more examples, but, I see a warm sun ray just begging me to curl up and take a nap in.

 

Mother Nature and My Garden

We shall have weather, whether or not"

 My mom used to say that, and it always makes me laugh whenever the subject of weather comes up. It’s so cliché to talk about the weather, but still such a normal part of any conversation.

It fills an uncomfortable silence with a "how about this weather we are having, strange huh?!", and in a first time greeting- "nice to meet you, where are you from? San Diego, wow, must be nice to have perfect weather all year round!” It doesn’t matter how educated you are, or how much money you have, it seems that weather is the one thing that everyone can comfortably talk about. After all, it is what it is, and there is absolutely nothing you can do about the weather other than adjust your life around it. Also, what other job can you gets paid for, even if you are wrong more than half of the time? You can just shrug your wrong forecast off to “well, that’s Mother Nature for ya, she’s an unpredictable Gal!"

I would love to see if others could get their job wrong so much and still be employed. Somehow I doubt that, but I digress...

While this article is kind of about the weather, it’s not about the profession of weather forecasting, but rather how unpredictable weather can be, or at least where I live, in the Midwest. It’s true that you can have all four seasons in one week or less here, so I am pretty used to it, and usually have a backup plan for whatever I am going to be doing "just in case".

Last year at this time, I was writing about how long, hot and relentless our summer was. I was tired of the heat, and ready for fall.

This year is a totally different story. It’s been wetter than normal, cooler than normal, and here it is, the third week in August, and summer has finally arrived just in time for the kids to go back to school. Sorry kids!

But while this has been a very different summer weather wise than last year, and I feel like I have not really even had a good dose of summer yet, and am definitely not ready to relinquish it to fall yet, I do have to note that there have been some good things that have come out of this weather. This year’s weather caused the farmers to rush to get their crops in, dodging rain drops and late spring frosts, but recent word is that they are going to have bumper corn crops, so that is great news! And even though I have not been able to spend much time in my pond due to the coolness of the water, (truth be told, I couldn’t spend much time in it last year as the water level was too low, and frankly, what water was in it, felt more like a hot tub than a refreshing dip in the pond, so pass on that!) my garden has loved and is thriving like crazy with this kind of weather. I have given part of my mega loads to my family and friends, and still have plenty to can and freeze, and so I have been canning and freezing my produce with a bee like frenzy!

Now, If you have ever canned foods, you know that canning and freezing it a lot of work and a lot of mess, but I have to say, I love, love, love looking at my full shelves and freezer with all of that food. The satisfaction that I get looking at the finished product, far outweighs my achy back and mountains of dishes that I have to do each time I can something. I have tried new recipes this year, and each one is better than the next, and I find myself looking forward to going out to the garden to see what is ready to be canned next. All of this has been made possible by Mother Nature providing the perfect weather for my garden. Not the hot summer that I expected and thought that I was planning for, but exactly what my garden needed, so, I guess I would have to say that her unpredictable nature was exactly what I needed as well. That Mother Nature, she is an unpredictable Gal, isn’t she?

The rules for being human

The thing I love about cleaning out files, closets, and just about anything else, other than getting organized, is that you never know what you might find.

Here is yet another good article that I came across while cleaning, so I thought that I would share.

When you were born, you didn't come with an owner's manual; these guidelines make life work better.

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's the only thing you are sure to keep for the rest of your life.

2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called "Life on Planet Earth". Every person or incident is the Universal Teacher.

3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of experimentation. "Failures" are as much a part of the process as "success."

4. A lesson is repeated until learned. It is presented to you in various forms until you learn it -- then you can go on to the next lesson.

5. If you don't learn easy lessons, they get harder. External problems are a precise reflection of your internal state. When you clear inner obstructions, your outside world changes. Pain is how the universe gets your attention.

6. You will know you've learned a lesson when your actions change. Wisdom is practice. A little of something is better than a lot of nothing.

7. "There" is no better than "here". When your "there" becomes a "here" you will simply obtain another "there" that again looks better than "here."

8. Others are only mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another unless it reflects something you love or hate in yourself.

9. Your life is up to you. Life provides the canvas; you do the painting. Take charge of your life -- or someone else will.

10. You always get what you want. Your subconscious rightfully determines what energies, experiences, and people you attract -- therefore, the only foolproof way to know what you want is to see what you have. There are no victims, only students.

11. There is no right or wrong, but there are consequences. Moralizing doesn't help. Judgments only hold the patterns in place. Just do your best.

12. Your answers lie inside you. Children need guidance from others; as we mature, we trust our hearts, where the Laws of Spirit are written. You know more than you have heard or read or been told. All you need to do is to look, listen, and trust.

13. You will forget all this.

14. You can remember any time you wish.

(From the book "If Life is a Game, These are the Rules" by Cherie Carter-Scott)

Adult Resignation

I was cleaning out a file yesterday in my desk, and I came across this letter. I had forgotten about it and it made me laugh and sigh at the same time so I thought I would share it. I hope you enjoy it as well.

If only sometimes.....

Adult Resignation

I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult.

I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year old again.

I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four star restaurant.

I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make ripples with rocks.

I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.

I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.

I want to return to a time when life was simple. When all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.

I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good.

I want to believe that anything is possible. I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.

I want to live simple again.

I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and loss of loved ones.

I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.

So....here's my checkbook and my car-keys, my credit card bills and my 401K statements.

I am officially resigning from adulthood. And if you want to discuss this further, you'll have to catch me first, cause, "Tag! You're it."

-- Anonymous

Lists

“The palest ink is better than the best memory”

This is a Chinese Proverb and my mom reinforced it. She had lists everywhere, so needless to say, I am also a list maker. But not just your occasional list maker. Nope, I will admit that I am a certifiable, compulsive list maker!

I make lists for everything, and I do mean everything!

I not only make the normal grocery list, and the ever popular” to do” list, (lists for beginners in my opinion) but I also make the “to do” list for work” to dos”, project lists, including, but not limited to, spring, summer, fall and winter, short term as well as long term “to do” list. Items that need to be completed today, this week, this month and finally, this season.

I make lists of items that I need to remember to share with my kids. (And I think in turn, adding to their lists. Sorry kids!) Lists of places where I want to go, list of must reads, must download to my iPod, and must make foods for my next gathering.

I combine lists, and then break some of them down by category. I have also been known to put my “to do” lists in order of importance, and will even map out my errand list in order to save time and gas. So, depending on what is on my list, and where the location is of each place that I need to stop at, my list can be broken down like so:  1-Pick up dry cleaning, 2- Put gas in car, 3- Drop off donations at Goodwill, 4-Grocery shop.

I can drive myself crazy with all of my lists, but will almost have a panic attack if I find myself somewhere without my lists.

I know that this probably sounds quite crazy to many, as now that I am writing about it, it kind of does to me too, but I am actually a very organized person, and I have to attribute at least some of this to my compulsive list making, while the rest is most likely due to my need to keep things moving and on target. As a matter of fact, writing this article about my list making actually made it to my things to write about list! Sad to say, that’s not a joke!

Wow, reading all of this really makes me think that maybe I should try to scale back on my list making a bit.

Yes, I am definitely going to put that on a list of things that I need to change... 

 Oh well, maybe not. After all, who am I to challenge a proven Chinese Proverb?