SoCS: 3/25/23: Reaching the Bottom of the Laundry Hamper and Other Natural Highs

Our prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “the last thing you emptied.” Think of the last thing you emptied or something you empty often and use it as your prompt any way you like. Have fun!

We arrived at the mountain house late Thursday afternoon. I thought David had gotten everything out of the back of the car, then discovered he had not gotten the yoga mats and something else. I forget what. Hopefully, I will actually use a yoga mat while I’m here. Probably Monday, or tomorrow, when the kids will be going to see their paternal grandfather who’s in town for the visit since some family have come from Indiana.

In preparation for the trip, I washed clothes and actually got to the bottom of my laundry hamper. That had not happened in a while, so I got to empty little pieces of debris that had collected in the bottom. They looked like tiny pieces of leaves which are abundant in the home of this tree lover. But I really don’t want to know. Now, it’s clean at the bottom.

What’s something more interesting I could write about? Surely there are interesting things that have happened or been talked about. The air here in the NC mountains is fresher than on the coast. The trees are different and have more of an earthy-airy smell, while on the coast, there are different kinds of pine needles, sand, and more pollen since Spring comes earlier. My sinuses are not empty but seem less stuffy. I was reading about the worst cities for allergies. They only looked at big cities, and I don’t think mine was quite big enough, so didn’t make the top 20 list, though Raleigh, the state capital, did. Florida had more cities than any other state.

On Friday, I did a two short hikes with grandkids with a nap in between and more to come. Here are a few photos so far:

On our first night we saw a smiling crescent moon with maybe ? Venus above. My phone camera does not even come close to doing the scene justice, so just imagine it being a smiling crescent moon.

The moon and Venus ?

Do you see a face in the mossy tree trunk below?

Do you see a little green man stepping out of the cave?

I swear my only high was and is a natural one.

Mossy trunk and more

Mountain Stream in Early Spring

Kids in the clouds

~~~

For more on Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

SoCS: Once Upon a Time in Newfoundland, The Moody Blues Song, and Animal Sanctuary Pictures

Today’s prompt for #JusJoJan the 14th and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “once upon a time.” Start your post with “Once upon a time,” then write whatever comes to you, whether it be fact or fiction. Have fun!

Once upon a time we didn’t have phones. Or even TVs. Computers were barely imaginable by the average person. In the 1960s, we had a party line and a phone that sat on a table with a chord. We knew the important numbers by heart. There were three TV stations in black and white. And we thought it was pretty cool.

Lassie and Captain Kangaroo were my favorite shows when I was barely walking and later in kindergarten. Except in kindergarten when we were stationed on the Argentia Naval Base in Newfoundland, Canada. There was only one TV station, and a lot of French was spoken. When my dad got orders to go to Artentia (pronounced Argencia) mom thought he said Argentina. For a city girl from Washington DC, my mom found Newfoundland remote, a bit boring, and of course, cold.

Cold reminds me of the “Cold War” that was going on then. It seemed like everyone was talking about The Russians. I must have picked up on the tension and said, “I hate the Russians.” My dad stopped what he was doing, probably spit polishing his boots, and said, “Honey, you shouldn’t hate the Russians. You should feel sorry for them.”

That was one of the things my dad said that stuck with me. Like “Nothing is impossible” when I was 13.

Don’t hate. and Anything is possible.

Well, mom made the best of being in the frozen wilderness by making friends with the other military wives. The men used to play pinocle. I remember going sledding down a hill out back and that there were wolves howling at night. We used to go on picnics and go out to see the blue icebergs. I would have appreciated the remote location more if I had been older.

Stepping out of the stream, or maybe the stream took me there, I looked up Argentia to make sure I was spelling it right. The base was decommissioned in 1973 and the land returned to the Canadian/Newfoundland government.

One of my favorite photos of that time and place was this picnic photo. I’m wearing saddle shoes.

Me with my parents 1961 or 62

Mom must be wearing Dad’s jacket. Probably a Marine Corps jacket of some kind because it’s red. But that’s just a guess. We went on a lot of family picnics when I was a kid. Why don’t we do that anymore? I wonder what lead me to write about this time and place which I tend to romanticize. These are some of my earliest memories.

And then there’s this nostalgic Moody Blues song and video about remembering an old romance.

More recent memories include the residents of Blueberry Lane Farm Animal Sanctuary where I prepare and serve lunch on Thursdays. Jake, the sheep had a peculiar way of smelling something interesting in the air. Once upon a time, most of these animals were abused or neglected. Now they are living their best lives. Ed, the big rooster in the third gallery picture, had been confined at county animal services (near barking dogs) and had attacked a woman to the point of her needing hospital care. Now, Ed has learned he can trust Debbie and the caretakers at the sanctuary.

Jake smells something.

Delilah wants more broccoli

Manager Debbie with Ed

Debbie and Steve

Mira and Jack were born at the sanctuary.

Padre and Mary

Something must smell really good!

Watch out for the roosters, little guy!

~~~

Stream of Consciousness Saturday is hosted by author, Linda G. Hill.

For more streams and details, visit Linda HERE.

Thursday Tree Love: Autumn Amber by Ayla

“We never fully move on,
We leave a piece of ourselves behind
Like leaves and trunks molded into the earth
And forest floor, we give what we know
And others take it up and use it to grow.

I stand under the shade of giants.”

― Eric Overby, Legacy

Photo by Ayla Likens

This photo was taken a few months ago by my daughter Ayla who gave me permission to share it. She has become the family historian working to discover the branches of her family tree. The tree in her photo lives on a hill near Hanging Rock State Park in the foothills of North Carolina.

…

Thursday Tree Love is hosted by Parul Thakur on the second and fourth Thursdays.

For more tree love visit Paurl at Happiness and Food.

SoCS: If I Knew Then…. Does God Roll Her Eyes?

Today‘s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “new/knew.’” Use one, use both, use them any way you like. Bonus points if you use both. Enjoy!

Thanks for the easy bonus points, Linda, since we can use one to say, Happy New Year! and the other some other way. And also a big thanks to Linda for providing so many prompts for so many weeks and years and helping to create communities on wordpress including SoCS, One-Liner Wednesday, and Just Jot it January which I may or may not do. But Stream of Consciousness Saturday has been a good addiction/addition to my week.

If I knew then what I know now, I would have not made the same mistakes. Would I? But then, I would not be the same person. Mistakes give us compassion for others who make mistakes and hopefully, compassion for ourselves which can sometimes be harder. Forgiving the self…. sigh…. is a process, like most forgivings.

If I knew my high school sweetheart would return to me some day, many years later, would I have gotten married to someone else? I suppose so. Otherwise, I would not have become a mother unless I was a single mother, which I was (unexpectedly) for about ten years anyway. But someone knew. God knew. I guess. Wait. What about free will? That’s too complicated to explore right now.

What I know is that when I was 16, the lady I babysat for told me that if David and I were meant to be together, we would be. That really helped my pining heart and allowed me to go on about my life for 39 years until David and I were ready to meet again.

Some things we just don’t know. Sometimes, we have to put one foot in front of the other and hope for the best. But it’s good to know what we know and admit what we don’t.

I know there are a few things I want to do in 2023. Keeping it simple and realistic: Get back to painting with alcohol ink on tile, continuing the de-cluttering process, keep working out, walking, or doing some kind of physical exercise… and love. The word love keeps coming to me. I want to make time for it – romantic, familial, and platonic love. Having reclaimed my inner introvert in retirement, I tend to not seek friends out. With occasional exceptions, I am content to be home with the dog and cat much of the time. I want to listen to my loved ones more and remember that God has a plan for them. I don’t have to try to fix things for them.

A friend on FB shared a quote:

“If you want to make God laugh, tell her your plans.” – Anne Lamott

(Dang! Coulda used that for One-Liner Wednesday. Well, who says I still can’t just because it came along in the stream of consciousness…)

I like to think that when we tell God our plans, God will laugh but also say, “I’ll take it into consideration,” with a smirk or eye roll.

Does God roll her eyes? Is she rolling her eyes at me right now? Does God have eyes? Of course! In some form or other. All seeing eyes.

If my guardian angels knew how much work I would be, especially in my early twenties, would they have signed up? If I get to be someone’s guardian angel after I die, I’ll probably have someone difficult as payback. Oh, but mine haven’t had to work nearly as hard lately! Except when I ask them to look after my grown up children. I can feel my guardian angels rolling their eyes at that.

But here’s the real lesson: If I knew things were going to eventually work out okay, I would not have worried so much. Maybe I’m still learning to trust the timing.

Well, thanks for reading the ramble.

Recent photos from coastal Carolina:

Neighbor’s Camillias

December 13 ~ Hanging on

Christmas Morning

Christmas Morning Ice

May your new year be filled with peace, love, joy, and blessings!

~~~

For more streams and rules about SoCS:

visit our wonderful host, Linda Hill,

by clicking HERE.

SoCS: Taking the Easy Trail on Thanksgiving Day

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “on your/my plate.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

You don’t have to eat everything on your plate in one sitting. You can save some for later. Put it in the fridge. Maybe even the freezer. This has been a weight loss strategy for me. Sometimes it works. I tell myself I can still have the rest of the food or a second helping. I will just have it tomorrow. (Unless I go back and get it at 9pm as a bedtime snack.)

The exception may be Thanksgiving dinner which traditionally has been a time when a lot of us overeat. I certainly ate more sweets on Thursday than usual since I usually don’t eat sweets… much.

There have been plenty of times when I’ve had too much on my plate and not always food. Responsibilities taken on due to interest, a sense of obligation, or not saying no, may need to be put in the frig, the back burner, or prioritized. Delegated maybe.

We packed a lot into Thanksgiving Day in the Appalachian Mountains and drove back home to the coast on Friday. Thursday morning, we went to Linville Falls and took the short, easy trail since my knee has been bothering me. I got a stretchy sleeve to put on my knee which helped a lot, though it falls down after a while which is better than being too tight. I also wore my compression socks to help with my heel spurs. I’m very thankful I was able to hike the half mile or so to the falls and decided not to continue on to the uphill climb to get the view further along the falls. That will be next time. That hike will go in the freezer maybe for next year.

That afternoon, my son cooked practically the whole dinner of mostly vegan food, while I helped my granddaughter with a school project on temperate forests. We ate too much and then went for a walk along the nearby river trail. Then we went back to the house and had pumpkin pie, macaroons, and vegan ice cream sandwiches. Everything was delicious! My granddaughter and I set up the nativity stable made by my father many years ago and then decorated the Christmas tree. Whew! It was a busy day. But not too much. I’m thankful to have been with family in the mountains. Still, it’s good to be home!

Now, to see if I can find the photos….

In the fourth photo, do you see the profile in the rock on the right? It has bushy hair.

Linville River

David, Marley and my son

Linville Falls

See the Rock Head?

David, Marley and Me

Blue Ridge Mountains

Mostly Vegan Dinner

After Dinner Walk

My granddaughter arranged the figures in my dad’s stable.

~~~

For more SoCS rules and posts, put Linda’s blog on your plate.

She’s our persevering host.

SoCS: A Lost Covid test, Silent GERD, and the Hacking Cough is Going, Going…

 Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “me.” Find a word that starts with “me” or use the word “me” as the theme of your post. Have fun!

Meaningful posts should not always be about me, but that’s where my stream of consciousness sometimes goes. How about some meaningful health information that has recently come to my attention?

I’ve had this cough for at least three weeks after the acute phase of whatever virus attacked me during the first week of September. The cough is still with me, but it’s much better due to various medications aimed at loosening phlegm and suppressing the hacking. I never thought I’d be so excited about producing phlegm since the cough was so dry for so long. In googling dry coughs, I had read that acid reflux/aka GERD, could cause this kind of cough. I dismissed this since I have not had any GERD symptoms in quite some time.

I had a covid test on Thursday Sept 22, and they LOST my test! The sample didn’t make it to the lab and apparently went into some kind of black hole. On Tuesday, I went back for another test which turned out to be negative like the one on Sept 5. The cough being persistent, my nurse practitioner told the nurse to tell me to try omeprazole for acid reflux since I have a history of GERD. The nurse told me she had “silent GERD” with no symptoms and the omeprazole has helped her cough and sinus issues. I appreciate helping professionals sharing these kinds of personal experiences. In counselor training we were often cautioned about self-disclosure, but sometimes it is meaningful. I figured I might as well try the GERD/reflux meds being very tired of the annoying cough.

I started the OTC GERD medication on Wednesday and my cough was significantly better that day and today. Maybe it was just time, but maybe the nurse and FNP were right. Maybe “silent GERD” can cause a cough or make it linger. Maybe I’ll keep taking the anti-GERD meds along with keeping my Ricolas on hand for the cough which continues to flare up now and then.

Wherever I go, they go.

Meanwhile, Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ian is making landfall again (as I write this on Friday) and bringing lots of rain and wind to the Carolinas. I’m praying for the folks in Florida and glad Linda’s son is okay as well as our friends and relatives down there.

The oldest part of our fence blew down in the storm. I had it propped up with various pieces of junk. We knew we’d have to replace it soon, which now means tomorrow if we can get the materials. Marley will have to be on leash until it’s fixed.

Old Fence Blew Down

We finally made it to the beach last week. I didn’t swim, but the sea air did me good.

The bird is flying away like my cough…. going…. going….

Last week, I shared a photo of my son with his baby sister. I had completely forgotten to check another photo album and found more:

Click this. It’s my favorite.

~~~

For more streams of consciousness and rules,

visit our host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

SoCS: Staying Home and Watching Christmas Movies

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “home.” Use it as a noun, a verb, an adjective, or an adverb. Enjoy!

The first thing I thought of was the song, “Home,” by Cat Stevens, from the album, Numbers. I’ll share that at the end of the post because that’s where it traditionally goes. Not that tradition is the be all and end all of everything. In the episcopal church tradition is one leg of the three-legged stool, along with scripture and reason. That reason part is part of the reason I go to an episcopal church as my home church.

I haven’t been to church in three weeks since I’ve been home sick. I like staying home most of the time, but I do miss singing in church. It will be a while before I can do that because of this nagging, dry cough. I got a new medication for it, so maybe it’s on its way out. Ricola cough drops have come in pretty handy.

Yesterday was the first cool day we’ve had here in a very long time. The high was in the 70s! It was wonderful! I love autumn. I got so excited to put in my orange, glowy, flickering light bulb on the front porch. I think I’ll make soup today. Looking forward to pumpkin or sweet potato pie and feeling well enough to walk Marley to the park. When we come back home, and walk through the gate, I tell him, “GO HOME,” at least twice, so if he ever runs off and someone tells him to GO HOME, he will know what that means.

I wish everyone had a safe home, a place where they feel comfortable, at least a safe, comfortable room or corner. Home really should be safe. If it’s not, get help. Please. Everyone deserves to have a safe place.

It is very possible that I have shared Cat Stevens’ “Home” here and not that long ago. Well, maybe everyone didn’t see it or hear it. I don’t mind listening to it again. Here it is: https://youtu.be/OmnIOc3WN5o

I was checking my photos and had taken some of the TV when I watched the Home Alone movies, 1 and 2. They are two of the many movies I can watch over and over again, along with Elf. When my son was about five or six, people were always saying, “He looks like that kid in the Home Alone movie.” He actually did. Now, not so much.

Here’s a picture of my son, age 7, with his new baby sister in 1993: (That was almost 30 years ago!)

1993 Time flies!

Here’s the feel good ending of Home Alone 2. Kevin is giving a gift to the homeless lady who became his friend and saved him from the bad guys.

~~~

For more homey streams of consciousness, visit out host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

SoCS: Why or why not?

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “start with why.” Begin your post with the word “why.” Have fun!

“Why can’t I ……?”

“Because I said so.”

When I was a kid, I promised myself I would never give that irritating response to my children. “Because I said so,” is no answer for inquiring minds who really want to know the reason. I believe I broke this promise a couple times with my kids, but not often.

Asking why is healthy. It helps us learn more about the world. Unless you’re in a life-or-death situation, like a tornado is coming and we all need to get down in the cellar.

There’s a quote about asking why:

Some men see things as they are and say why. I dream of things that never were and say why not.

Robert Kennedy

Why did he say, “men,” and not people. I guess saying men or man was still the norm back then.

Why do we have to have two main political parties with such polarity and hoopla on each side of the chasm?

Why not try more ranked choice voting which is what got the first native Alaskan elected to the US congress. Mary Peltola defeated Sarah Palin in a ranked choice vote. The way I understand it is that you get to rank your preferences on the ballot – first choice, second choice, etc. This gives a more accurate measure of voter preference with less temptation to vote for someone who is more electable. The person with the lowest number of votes is eliminated and their votes go to the second choice for each voter. I think that’s how it works. I just read about this yesterday. Didn’t even know it was an option. Well, why not?

Wrote all that Friday. Now it’s Saturday morning.

Also, why did my home covid test come back negative yesterday when I feel so damn sick? I guess I should be thankful it’s not covid, which I apparently haven’t had yet, but I was almost sure it would be positive. The symptoms remind me of my reactions to the vaccines: Zero energy, body aches, headache, no appetite, plus foggy brain, and at 2am I had teeth chattering chills and a fever. Ugh. Sure makes me appreciate an average day with just feeling okay.

One good thing is I did some art before I got sick. I was going to share it here, but not sure if I have the energy…. Maybe later.

Okay, here are the two pieces from the acrylic pouring class I took. For the first one, I used a small stick to make the lines in the starbursts. In the second one, the I used a paintbrush to add the dolphin which was totally unplanned. I’d been playing with the still wet paint with my finger (why do we do that?) and messed it up. Eventually, the dolphin emerged.

Dancing Network

Dolphin Dream

For more streams and details on SoCS, visit our host, Linda Hill, but clicking HERE.

SoCS: Contact Paper, DIY Lucy, and a Praying Mantis

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “wallpaper.” Use it however you’d like. Have fun!

My parents didn’t have wallpaper that I remembered, because I was probably too young. But I do remember they had “contact paper” in the kitchen over the sink. Contact paper was supposed to be easier wallpaper, I guess. Maybe it was a peel and stick thing. They loved it like the coolest thing since sliced bread. It had yellow, orange, brown, and maybe green flowers, with a 60s look. When we were getting the house ready to sell a few years ago, I peeled it off and painted it yellow. The buyers probably redid all the walls since the house needed a lot of work.

Early in my first marriage, we lived in a duplex that had different contact paper in every room. We had looked at the place in the dark since the landlord didn’t have the electricity on. Of course, that was a mistake, but the rent was low. The living room contact paper was similar to what my parents had over their kitchen sink. The kitchen had contact paper with lemon and lime slices on it. The landlord was proud of it and said, “it came all the way from New York!” He was probably in his 80s and had a thick German accent. Talk about a time warp. The contact paper was still tacky, even in 1985. I hung a lot of stuff on those walls to try to distract from the paper. One thing I hung was a large brown and white tapestry that I bought with the money I saved in a jar when I quit smoking cigarettes. It had a Native American design. I gave it to my son when he quit smoking cigarettes. Who knows where it is now. I still have a lot on my walls, but no contact paper or wallpaper. I do have peel and stick blue and white squares on the wall over my stove. They are meant to be temporary, until I get real tile, but I like them.

Below is a clip where Lucy and Ethel hung wallpaper. Lucy was always worried about Ricky being mad at her, but looking back, he didn’t get that mad. He had some patience. My mom was like a quieter version of Lucy – emotional and zany, but quieter. Come to think of it, Dad was often quiet, though when he used his Gunny Sgt voice, you paid attention and didn’t give him any back talk.

I bet Lucy would love contact paper.

Back to 2022, there have been a lot of praying mantis sightings lately. Besides the one below which I found walking upside down on my clothesline, a big brown mantis was on my shoulder at the sanctuary yesterday. They’re a good luck sign!

Praying Mantis on my Clothesline

I resisted the urge to help and let it be.

~~~

To learn more about Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit out host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

SoCS and Lessons Learned from my Pitsky’s Mountain Escape

 Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “—amble.” Add letters to the beginning of “-amble” to make another word or use it as is in your post. Enjoy!

I used to have a cat named, Ramble. She was the first animal my son lived with. One of his first words was what he called her, trying to mimic her meow. It sounded like, “avoo?” He called Ramble, “Avoo.” That was thirty something years ago. Longer ago than that, when I was five years old, my dad had a yellow Rambler. It was the first car I remember. Seems like it was a station wagon. I’m guessing a 1958 Rambler.

Rambling is common in the stream of consciousness. That’s what makes it fun. You never know where you’ll end up. Rambling is something I enjoy in the woods or on a walk through the neighborhood. Rambling is not what Marley did on his ten-minute escape, unless you can ramble fast. He did not have a plan that I’m aware of but saw the opportunity to slip through the door past my daughter in law on his first trip to the mountains.

Marley took off down the road at top speed. If I wasn’t so terrified, it would be cool to watch him run. I was terrified because he was 300 miles from home and had NO COLLAR on! I’d given him a break from the e collar. From now on, I will never have a dog collarless away from home. Dogs need to have ID if there’s any chance they might get outside. Like being scared of the fireworks. Lots of dogs get lost during fireworks and thunderstorms.

I don’t recall ever praying so hard as when Marley escaped, though I probably did when my kids were teenagers. As I followed him with the car, trying to keep up with him, Marley ignored my calls. I prayed, “GOD, I NEED YOU NOW MORE THAN EVER! PLEASE HELP ME!” It was intense to say the least. When almost to the main road, Marley turned on to a side road in the quiet neighborhood. I caught up with him at the top of a hill when he stopped to pee. Opening the driver’s door, I said, “Marley! Let’s go home!” He got right in and got stuck under the steering wheel/dash, so I had to move the seat back for him to climb to the back. (I had not wanted to take the time to open the back door.) Then we went to pick up David who was at the bottom of the hill – having set out on foot he’d walked up a previous hill to point me in the direction Marley had run.

My heart is beating fast just remembering this event. There’s always a lesson or two to learn.

1. Always keep a collar with I.D. on a dog if there is ANY chance he or she can get out, especially away from home.
2. Always let host families know if you have a hyper, escape prone dog.
3. There’s no place like home.
4. Oh, and I have been thinking if a dog escapes, it might be better to pass him in the car and stop ahead of him to offer a ride. That way, he doesn’t feel like you’re chasing him. (Just a theory.)

Good news besides being home safe is that Marley can see Mama Cat through the pet gate and stay in “PLACE” (with supervision) without going crazy.

Friday evening, on the way to the mountains, the clouds looked like castle mountains:

(Slightly edited for more color)

Saturday:

Marley and Me

Overlooking the River

My two sons

Into the woods

Granddaughter

Fern Growing on Rock

After the escape – looking pleased with himself

Husky tail

~~~

For more Streams of Consciousness, rules, and more, ramble on over to Linda’s blog by clicking HERE.