Category Archives: Books

I regret to inform you…

Weather in the Tries:
The highest day will be this coming weekend, in the mid 70s, the lowest is scheduled for tomorrow at 60. Most will be in the upper 60s. The nights will be down to a comfortable low 40s, with a couple in the high 30s. There will be no more three dog nights for a few months.

I regret to inform you…

It is with sadness I tell you, your dearly departed uncle has left you the entirety of his estate valued at xxxxxx amount of Dollars, Pounds Sterling, Won, Yen, Whatever. It has taken us some time to find you, as he left only your name and possible location as you’ve recently moved, and there are several people with your name, and we had to ascertain you are the correct recipient of his vast fortune in currency, jewels, and land. yadda, yadda, and more yadda.

Several years ago, my favorite Brother of Choice Dave, told me how to set my computer so the entire sender email is shown (se below). That has saved me no end of hassle and the possibility of embarrassing loss of funds 😉 And, yes, I have sent it on to Phishing@visa.com

This guy is so bad at this, I almost want to edit his letter and send it back. This is his whole letter:

Solomon Williams jeorgekennedy011@gmail.com

hello

To: undisclosed-recipients:;,

Reply-To: cbi.customerservices10@gmail.com

Attention,
I send you this message previously without hearing from you,
Today we received an appropriate letter from the treasury department of the
Executive Board of Directors to continue with the transfer of his
Fund deposited in our bank. We have established all
transfer documents behind your full amount.

1) Through a VISA CARD based on a personalized PIN with a
maximum withdrawal limit of ($10,000.00 USD) per day till
receive your full amount.

(CBI Customer Service)
[cbi.customerservices10@gmail.com]

Photos of the Week:
First up, a photo of my new bookcase. On the left, nonfiction—top shelf is Native American, in the middle are poetry books in the angled shelves, the top middle is my Morgue, in the right is my fiction. Someday I may have to swap location of fiction for poetry 😉 I buy very little hard copy fiction, but all my poetry is hard copy.

Remember my talking about the quilt for my Sister and Brother of Choice’s pet python? Well, as you and I both know, they don’t have a pet python—they have a furry, and claw-bearing cat who likes to sit on the top of their bed’s headboard to look out the window. Here is a shot of the “python quilt” in its new home. And it has been approved!

And here are their new place mats, with the center piece. I drew a circle around the center of the center sunflower in the center piece and used a pale yellow to radiate out from the circle and continue down into the mats. The radiating rays are a stretched out ‘S.’ I was going to use a nice bright yellow, but the backs, or other side, is a soft sage green, and the brighter yellows did not play well with the softer green. Photos of quilts by my SOC, Lee W.

from the desk of the brave dog;
the sun is coming out more and more every day. my human likes it almost as much as me. the days are warmer, and so are the nights. my human still has a heavy quilt on my bed, woof—our bed. but it won’t be long before she will put a summer quilt on it. and then just a sheet. oh, hot weather comes. bark, bark, bark… my human won’t want 2 more dogs to share my, woof, our bed.

Earworm of the week:
woke this morning (Sunday) with Ghost Riders in the Sky by Sons of the Pioneers. Talk about an earworm. And Roy Rogers was still with them at the time. I remember that song from when I was a step above being a toddler. My folks played it over and over. Was I dreaming of them? I don’t know, but my first conscious thought was “Yippee kai yay, yippee kai yo ghost riders in the sky.”

And a quote or two on this national day of poverty, courtesy of romper :

“Isn’t it appropriate that the month of the tax begins with April Fool’s Day and ends with cries of May Day?” — Robert Knauerhase
“Death, taxes, and childbirth! There’s never any convenient time for any of them.” ― Margaret Mitchell
“The income tax has made liars out of more Americans than golf.” ― Will Rogers

…and Life Keeps on Happening

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Public Service Announcement:
…and Life Keeps on Happening: On February 6, 2024, I will be the featured reader at Cobalt Café, an online open mic for poets from anywhere in the world. Cobalt Café is every Tuesday night, 7.30 Pacific Time. If you want to read, you need to sign in at 7.15 Pacific Time. Go here to read more about the Cobalt Poets series and here to sign up to attend, whether or not you want to read. You will receive two emails a week from Rick Lupert, our host. One on Sunday and one on Tuesday, sending you the link. If you have subscribed to the Email list.

Weather in the Tries:
Wellllll… the Great They had promised us single digits this coming week, and maybe snow on the week end. Looks like the Great They had a slight change of heart. The nights are going to be down as low as 10F and starting Friday it won’t get above freezing until next Wednesday. Unless the Great They change their minds. Again. The fun part is, we might get snow on Saturday, and it will stick around for a day or two. Maybe.

…and Life Keeps on Bringing Goodness:
Backstory~ when our fiction critique group started, one of the gals was working on a story about a gal in nursing school. It was a fun story, but she had to depart the group to devote her time to her novel, not our writing. Understand that, I do! Anyhow, a week or so before Christmas, she emailed me and asked if I would like to be a Beta Reader. I said I would, but only after the holidays had come and gone. I think it was on Friday I received her ms. I was delighted to see it was the same story we’d critiqued the first few chapters of, and it was finished!

I figured I’d start it Sunday morning, read a few chapters, then go to a couple of my Sunday meetings, and get it finished by the next weekend. WRONG! Life (and a fascinating read) happened. I read it until time to leave for book group, and when we got back from discussing Devolution by Max Brooks, I got right back into the ms. I set the alarm so I could go to my afternoon poetry group, the alarm went off, I shut it off, and was going to read until the end of the chapter. WRONG! Life (and that pesky marvelous read) happened. A little after 10:00, I finished the ms and send it back to her. Like I told her in the email, I loved all her characters including the few we were meant to love to hate;-) I further told her that if I was 50-60 years younger, and a fictional character (there has been doubt on that off and on through my life) I woulda made a play for one of the characters in the story. 😉

I really hope she gets it published soon, because I think you just might enjoy owning and reading your very own copy.

All of that is to explain why Coffee Break Escapes wasn’t waiting in your mailbox this morning. Because I didn’t get it written yesterday.

Photo of the Week:
I don’t watch TV, I watch Computer, to be specific, I either pop movies into my player, watch them on YouTube or AppleTV, or just watch YouTube. Somehow, I got to watching a short piece by a quilter, who was extolling the virtues of Hardware/Lumber stores in relation to quilting. Housemate Dan and I went to Harbor Freight the other day and I bought two items for my quilting/sewing. One of them is a 6” metal bowl with a strong magnet on the bottom. It sits on my sewing machine base and holds my pins. They had a blue one and a yellow one, and some unpainted and smaller. But I liked the red. Quilter do love, and use, their toys.

The other item I bought was a plastic small-tool organizer. Remember the new sewing machine I bought? It has NO attached storage. My older machine has storage in the top part, and part of the base is storage, and it comes off so one can have a small sewing area, perfect for cuffs on sleeves, etc. New machine has NO storage, so I bought a Small Tool Storage box, plastic, with 24 little cubes inside with removable dividers, in which to store my extra feet. Uh, sewing machine feet.

From the Paws of the Brave Dog:
I’m off to a good start on keeping my resolution. Naps are good. Especially when I can make a nest out of my human’s sweater! There’s some sort of horrible doggie disease going around, and my human took me to the Vet the other day, and I got vaxxed. My human doesn’t want me sick, and if a bit of an upset tummy and extra naps will keep me from getting really, really sick, I’ll take the vax. So, I got extra naps in for a couple of days. And I won’t get that new disease.

Quote of the Week:
“Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they’re yours.” ~ Richard Bach, Illusions

Some Happy News with Which I Begin 2024

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May your 2024
Be the Best 2024
You’ve ever had!!

Weather in the Tries:
The coming week will be low 30s at night and low 40s for highs during the days with a tad bit of sun on Thursday and a slight chance of rain on Saturday.

Some Happy News with Which I Begin 2024:
Yeah, I know, I wasn’t going to write and post a new one until next week. But I had such a wonderful phone call the other day, I just had to share. My publisher and Good Friend called to tell me I’d sold 91 copies of Madame Dorian! Thirty were bought on one day!

Good news indeed, but also slightly puzzling. Oh, I’m not complaining, I’m just curious—why the sudden interest? Did a school buy them? Libraries? We have no idea, but Boy Howdy! are we celebrating!!

I’m truly grateful, but I wish I knew why, so I could maybe replicate it;-)

Update on Family Celebration:
Favorite Grandson has a job he enjoys, and he spent the Holidays filling in for people who wanted the time off. He’s taking his time off the end of January, to cover his birthday. That’s when my Favorite Family and I will have our get together and celebration.

Goodbye and Hello:
I am writing this on the last day of 2023, you will receive it on the first day of 2024. I have no idea when you’ll actually read it;-)

I am attending a New Year’s Eve Party tonight. The first one I’ve attended in so many years I’ve forgotten how long it’s been. Someone finally got an idea for said party I can go along with. We can come, drink how much we want and not have to worry about driving home with a road filled with (potential) drunks–including us. We’re having our party on Zoom!! It should be a lot of fun! Now, do I want wine or tequila? I have all day to reach a decision.

And the good news doesn’t stop!
On February 6, 2024, I will be the featured reader at Cobalt Café, an online open mic for poets from anywhere in the world. Cobalt Café is every Tuesday night, 7.30 Pacific Time. If you want to read, you need to sign in at 7.15 Pacific Time. Go here to read more about the Cobalt Poets series and here to sign up to attend, whether or not you want to read. You will receive two emails a week from Rick Lupert, our host. One on Sunday and one on Tuesday, sending you the link. If you have subscribed to the Email list.

Photo of the Week:
Took this a couple years ago. Not sure if it was windy, or my telephoto wobbled, but it’s slightly out of focus, and l think it looks like a painting. It’s a juvenile Great Blue Heron.

From the Paws of the Big Chihuahua:
My human says it’s time to make a New Year’s Resolution. Whatever that is. She explained that people decide to improve their lives, and make a resolution, a promise to themselves, to do whatever to improve. How can I possibly improve me? I mean, I’m the Big Chihuahua! The Brave Dog! Oh, wait, I know. I hereby resolve to take more naps and get my human to join me!!!

Quote from Jimmy Carter (via Robin Givan and NYT):
“Hospice care is not a matter of giving up. It’s a decision to shift our efforts from shoring up a body on the verge of the end to providing solace to a soul that’s on the cusp of forever.”

I’m Home Again, Home Again

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Weather in the Tries:
Lots of wind today, which means the Zombie Leaves will be out to attack the Brave Dog. Will he show them he’s no longer afraid, that he is, after all, the Big Chihuahua??? We shall see. This week will mostly be in the 50s with lows in the high 30s/ low 40s. With perchance a shower or two now and then. Mostly then, according to my phone.

I’m Home Again, Home Again:
Had a great visit with my Sister & Brother of Choice (SOC & BOC) Lee and Dave at their beautiful house in South Seattle. We went out to eat a couple of times, once to a Portuguese restaurant, Ciudad, that was to die for. We had grilled octopus, grilled chicken, and I should have written everything down, because it was to die for. Especially the octopus! The mural is delightful. If you’re in Seattle, or planning a trip, you might want to check Ciudad out!

On Sunday, we went to Jude’s, a neighborhood bar and restaurant, for eats n drinks. The guys who own it are master mixers of great cocktails. Lee & Dave had something truly liked, and I went for a Smokey Salve that could easily become habit forming. Rye, mesquite bourbon, crème de cacao, ginger, & bitters. Oh, yeah, so glad Jude’s is not in my neighborhood. Oh yes, I could develop a habit for that.

The specialize in Cajun cooking, and I had their Grits Plate. Made me homesick for the deep south. Their menu all looked good, it was difficult to choose. Everything I looked at looked better than the one before. The blackened catfish was to die for. So, yes, you must go to Jude’s, too.

Watched the first episode of Foundation. If you read the 4-book trilogy by The Good Doctor (Asimov), the series is based on the books. I read them so many years ago, I can’t remember that much about them to know how close/far the tv show is from the books, but I was hooked, for sure. Now Housemate Dan and I can watch.

We got caught up on gossip, and I left on Monday. I arrived on Thursday pm, left Monday am, so the 3-day rule of company wasn’t too badly stretched. And, on Friday, they drove me to, and fetched me later, my last class of:

Doula Training:
The last class, was a two-parter. We learned how to wash a corpse and shroud a corpse. Sinch we were doing this in a home, we used real live corpses, and the class was divided into two groups. One washed, one shrouded, then we ate and reversed so we all got to see everything. Yes, we did have real live corpses. They were delightful young men, who volunteered, and played dead. Until we got them to laugh. Indeed, their resurrection was a miracle.

In between the first class and the second, when we all traded, we had a feast of a supper. The two corpses joined us to eat. It was fun meeting them, and those of the class who could come. A lot of our cohort is located on the east coast, or otherwise just too far away to come.

I am signed up for the A Sacred Passing class on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD). Then I will take the class from End of Life Washington (Death With Dignity) if it’s different. I will need to shadow another doula a few times, which may be a tad fun this winter, as I will be the only one in the Tri-Cities. I’m hoping there is someone no farther than Spokane. That’s a trip I can make in the winter. But getting across the Snoqualmie Pass may be dicey. I had to drive from Seattle to Portland to Kennewick one time. It was not a particularly fun drive at double the distance, double the time.

I need to get all my forms filled out, both to know how, and to have them available for when (if?) needed for my death. If you live in Washington State, I strongly urge you to check out End of Live Washington, and go to their Wonderfile, read and download the forms and instructions you need. If you live in another state, I suggest you find the equivalent in your state. There are even forms you can fill out now, leaving instructions for what happens if you develop dementia, if you are in a same sex relationship your bio family doesn’t like, but you do. Some need to be notarized, many do not. Then, every year, on your birthday, go over them, and make any necessary changes. As End of Life Washington says, “Plan now, die later, do a lot of living in between!

From the Paws of the Brave Dog:
My human came home yesterday and the first thing she did, well, almost the first thing, was to come to the bed and snuggle me for a really long time. It’s so hard to snuggle her when she isn’t here. Housemate Dan is good, but he doesn’t snuggle like she does. She didn’t even read her books or anything. She just snuggled. Oh, happy day, happy day. My human came come. My human is home and I happy danced all the way to the bed. Did you see me happy dance?

Duck, Death and the Tulip:
This is a delightful book about a duck who meets Death, and the friendship that develops. It’s a children’s book, that I bought after seeing the video in one of our classes. The words and drawings are from the pen of Wolf Erlbruch, a German writer and illustrator. It is a marvelous story about a duck who sees Death following him and they become friends, until Duck dies. There is no religious theme to the story. Or the death of Duck. The only think I would have liked to see is one more comma in the title, so it reads Duck, Death, and the Tulip. But the Oxford comma is not in high favor at the moment.

Weather and…

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So I thought I’d forgotten to shift the PM to AM when I scheduled the publication of todays exciting adventure. Nope. The computer nicely says it missed the publication, but doesn’t tell me why. Grrrrrrrrr

Weather in the Tries: Wowsa!! A whole week coming up with no triple digit days in sight! Alas, a week of 90+ but they ain’t gonna be triple digit days!!! We takes our cool where we can find it, yes?

For you folks in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, &c, you have my most sincere sympathies. Maybe get the whitest white paint made and paint your homes? It might help. Use color in the trim if you need color.

Read the other day where if we were able to stop Climate Change now, we will not cool down in our lifetimes or anytime soon, but we can stop the heat climb. If we want to. In other words, if we stop it right now, this is gonna be as good as it gets. And if we don’t stop it, it’s just gonna get hotter. That’s the crux of the problem, eh? We don’t really want to. We want others to do it, but don’t want to take responsibility ourselves because we’re too good, too rich, too obnoxious?! The countries who contribute the least to the Change, suffer the most. Island nations in Southeast are already under water. Bangladesh, is learning how to grow food on floating gardens. Countries with low-lying coastal areas are already losing ground. When I lived in Florida, my house was built on top of a hill with a 27-foot elevation. I think I’d have been okay as long as I had a boat and could out-paddle the resident ‘gators.

And the higher the temps, the smaller the food crops and production. Coral is already bleaching in Florida, when the coral dies, the reef will die, the fish will migrate toward more habitable waters. Sharks will follow, and when they can’t find enough fish, they’ll go for people. ‘Gators will go for dogs, cats, people, whatever they can catch, kill, and eat. And don’t get me started on my beloved salmon and bears!

And check out this magazine. Hakai. It’s free.

It’s kind of nice having a housemate who is a progressive. Slowly, we are cutting down on our use of plastics. I am back to using bar soap, and bar shampoo, and when my conditioner is gone, I’ll use bar conditioner. I wish someone would come up with a solid dish soap. Wait, what did I say? I asked the Duck(DuckGo) and I’ll be hornswaggled, The Earthling Co., has a solid dish soap. Non-toxic ingredients.

Housemate is much better than I in one aspect, he buys ALL his books as electronic ones. I’m still on my paper books for nonfiction and poetry, and if the electronic version of fiction is more than $4.99, I’ll buy a used paper copy for less. I think Amazon &c should be honest, we are only renting books from them, not actually buying the electronic ones. We can’t loan them to friends, although some we can loan ONCE to one person. We can’t give them to our children when we die, unless they want to keep our accounts open. A lot of people check electronic books out from their libraries, but publishers are fighting that, too. They are cutting down on the affordable number of licenses libraries can buy.

Are the authors getting higher royalties when their books are electronic? No. Does it cost the publisher more money? No. In fact, they get more, because once the book is formatted, it’s done. It’s uploaded and forgotten, except the spreadsheet that comes however often from the seller. And they go bwahahahahaha all the way to the bank.

Also, trees are a renewable resource. In fact, we have some planted “forests” (orchards?) not too far from us where some kind of trees are planted and harvested by machine. I believe they are trees for paper. And I think it takes 4 years from plant the trees to harvest. Still, I try to use less paper. I’m afraid I’m failing. I also really like the feel and smell of books. Those tries might be for fence posts with the leftovers going to paper. It’s all used, somehow.

I watched the ducks the other day, when it was really, really hot (triple digit hot) and kinda wished I was a duck, and could go swimming and dabbling in the pond, and then I remembered what all is in that pond and decided a cool shower would make a whole lotta more better sense

So, DuhSantis is strangling the educational system in Florida, Abbot in Texas, and probably all the southern red states will follow suit, as well as a few of the northern ones. What will happen to the kids? Will they have to go to Prager U or Tammy Fey U in order to get a college education? I mean, seriously, do you think Hahvahd will take any of those kids? Or any of the other ivy league schools? And when they graduate and go hunting for jobs??? And those grand old southern schools of higher learning? What’s going to happen to them when-out-of-staters no longer want to apply? Sure, The Crimson Tide is a great football school, and so far a pretty good U. Will Southern Universities start giving local boys from the South preferred acceptance? Will that affect their good standing? Their income? Will they ever recover?

If you have any children in Florida or anywhere else where books are being censored, please, mail them some age-appropriate real books. Or send them an eReader and buy them some real books. Consider
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexei,
We Had Our Reasons–Poems by Ricardo Ruiz and Other Hard-Working Mexicans from Eastern Washington,
Wizard of the Pigeons a novel by Meghan Lindholm, and
Caste: the Origins of Our Discontent by Isabel Wilkerson.
Read these books first, so you can discuss them with your far away child. Don’t forget books by Toni Morrison, Octavia Butler, James Baldwin, Dee Brown, Vine Deloria, N. Scott Momaday, Leslie Marmon Silko, Kathleen Alcala, Isabel Allende, and so many others. Give them a well-rounded reading.

I have left LGBTQ+ category of books off, because I haven’t read that many—and that’s not to say there aren’t Two-Spirit authors mentioned above. I don’t know, nor do I care. I’ve read some LGBTQ+ books, and thoroughly enjoyed them. The best I’ve read lately is This Way Out by Tufayel Ahmed. I laughed, I cried, and I recommended it to all my friends, especially those in the LGBTQ+ community. It’s a great book to show that odd as it seems, they’re just people, too. Oh, yeah, I cheered by the time I got to the end.

If my book suggestions don’t tickle your interest, check with your local librarians, they are the keepers of all knowledge 😉 And they love nothing more than to share that knowledge with readers.

Okay, your assignment, should you choose to accept, is to see that short people you know in book-censored states have access to good books to give them a more or less well-rounded look at the world in which they will live. This blog will not self-destruct in five seconds.

Sammy doesn’t understand the last paragraph. What can I say? He’s a dog. But he’s much happier with new, lower temperatures. It’s still too warm for him to snuggle all night long, but I often feel a little paw touching me somewhere. He sends pupkisses. As long as they come a while after he’s eaten, they are pretty nice to get. We all wish you a fantastical week!

Speaking of books, I have two more reviews posted at Rainy Day Reads.

There are two kinds of people

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Weather in the Tries:

Whoa, Doat! It looks like Friday was (note that, past tense) our last hot day for a while, maybe even until next summer. This week looks mostly sunny with temps from 81 to 93, with most in the 80s someplace. It’s nice to not just think about cooler weather, but for a while to enjoy it. Until it gets super cold this winter. Actually, I don’t mind the cold either, if I can dress for it, and the dog can go out in it, but that time isn’t here. Yet.

There Are Two Kinds of People

Okay, there are probably several kinds of people, but I believe most people will fit into one or the other category. 1. The LOVE talking to computers and playing games with AI. Many don’t want the personal touch of a human, they want to get in, get out, get back to what they were doing. Or, 2. They hate talking with computers, they want a person who can understand them, hold their had (virtually, if necessary) and take care of business with a smile in their voice, and a nice goodbye well-wish. I’m in the latter category. I hate having to push buttons for this, for that, for anything. When I call a business, I want to hear something like, “Please listen to the following menu as we’ve made a few changes. If you’d like to talk to a living, breathing human, press 1; if you’d like a computer who doesn’t give a frap about you or your piddling problem, press 2.

I hate it when I say I want a representative and the AI says, “Before I connect you, please tell me a little bit about what you want.” So I, being the dumb person I am, say, I need a pin number. “Oh, I can help you. Do you want to cancel your account? Press 1. Do you want to cancel someone else’s account? Press 2. Would you really like to unplug me? Press 3.”

I suppose, another way of saying there are two kinds of people is to say there are old farts and fartesses, and young farts and fartesses. Those of us who grew up when telephone operators were there to help like real people. Those who grew up taking computer classes in the second grade, want to talk to AI.

Then, if you’re a fan of AI, may I recommend a book? I read it 25 or 30 years ago, and am sure I’ve forgotten a lot of it, but I remembered enough that I went looking for it and have a new (used) copy to reread again. Lady El a science fiction novel by Jim Starlin and Diana Graziunas. I had just about given up on the book as the beginning was pretty rough—not the writing, the story line where a little girl (black) was the smartest in her class and was on her way to college in a few years and then her stepdad pimped her out. Uh, no. I don’t need that kind of a story, but I gave it another chapter and BAM!! All that was back story that was necessary, but that wasn’t made clear. Anyhow, she escaped, made her way to NYC, worked at menial jobs, but never THAT job, and spent her spare time in the libraries reading (my kind of gal). When she got her ID card, she signed up to be an organ doner. Yeah, you guessed it, she was shoved between the subway and wall, and was crushed to death. Ewwww. BUT the military was looking for ten good brains, from heads that weren’t damaged.

When she came to she found herself in a computer. The other nine either didn’t survive, or couldn’t handle the new them. But Lady El, she was on an adventure. She could visit any and all libraries in the world. She could read and comprehend books in mere seconds instead of hours. She could get even with her stepfather (stand up and cheer!!), she could go anywhere, and do just about anything. Yep, her death was the beginning of a new and best life ever! The best one she could have ever imagined. If you want a fun book, hit your favorite used bookstore and get Lady El, by Jim Starlin and Diana Graziunas.

Photos of the Week:

I may have put this enthusiastic dabbler in before, but I just love him and his kicking. All the other ducks are much more couth. But this little guy is having FUN!

One of the dragonflies. Alas, they are mostly gone now.

Books: Remember, if I finish a book, I review and post it to http://lenoragood.blogspot.com

I not only finished the four Golgotha books that are out (two more are coming—eventually) I ordered his other two series!

I did buy and read a new chapbook. It’s a small book with about 22 pages, 20 poems in Spanish and English, written by young men between 13-17 years of age who were, at the time of the writing, unaccompanied minors waiting in the Selma Carson Home in Pierce County WA to find out if they could stay or would be shipped back to their home country. Really, they were boys, but their poetry says they are old for their years. My review is at http://lenoragood.blogspot.com. The book is $12.00 including shipping & handling. Buy the book at https://www.collateraljournal.com/community. You’ll be glad you did. These young men have found the beauty in life, the book is full of hope. I hope they all got to stay. We need people like them.

Earworms:

3 hours of Spanish Guitar. Great background music while you rest, read, work.

Quotes from Andres Segovia:

“It is not so hard to be original, what is hard, is to be original with continuity.”

“A man without patience is a lamp without oil.”

“The guitar is the easiest instrument to play and the hardest to play well.”

And there you have…the week past, the week future, and I hope an interesting read. Be well, laugh often, and love one another.

I Don’t Read…

A Double Dose of Goodness!!

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Intro:

Wednesday last, 11 November, wasn’t just hump day, it was Mountain Day. I was lifted to the highest peak and am still cruisin’ on down!

First off, I put together a collection of poetry and thought it was pretty good. I sent it to a professional editor, Sharmagne Leland-St. John (editor Quill and Parchment, an online poetry magazine), who went through it, marked it up, and sent it back. She agreed it was good, and she made it better. Way better. (If you’re going to pay for advice, you maybe oughta use it;-) At her suggestion, I then sent it to her publisher in India. They took it, and on Wednesday, I signed the contract, and approved the final proofs. I mean, how cool is that? Purely happenstance, but the cover is a shot of dandelions in puff mode. Because I’ve always been somewhat of a contrarian, dandelions are my favorite flower, and the puffs most of all (can you tell I’m not a gardener?). Besides, I can actually grow dandelions!

From the Information/Sell Sheet: “Marking the Hours, A Collection of Poems contains historical poetry of the Oregon Country, poetry of space flight, fantasy, and the title poem, Marking the Hours, is an essay in poetic form of the last hours of her uncle’s life. This is a book of loss, of hope, of grief, of love, of the beauty of being human.”

Not sure when Marking the Hours will be available, but when it is, I’ll be sure to let all of you know. And post it in My Books.

And then, yes! there’s more! I told you it was a double double dose of goodness, didn’t I?

Jim Bumgarner, one of three Tarweed poets (Jim Thielman and I are Tarweed Poets—there are two others, but they did not contribute poetry to the book) called to tell me that our book is now live on Amazon. By the way, Jim B. took the photo and designed the cover. Isn’t it stunning? Wait till you read the poems inside!

From the Information Sheet: “Reflections: Life, the River, and Beyond. Jim Bumgarner gave us Reflections and Observations made through his life. Lenora Rain-Lee Good wrote River Songs about living on the Columbia River. Jim Thielman gave us poems from Beyond the Bridge. All the Tarweed Poets live close to water, if not the Columbia River, the Yakima, the Snake, or the Walla Walla. Water is life, and it plays a large part in our poetry.” Be sure to check out the My Books page above.

Entertainment:

I finished Frida. Netflix is marvelous, it knew where I stopped, and had it all waiting to resume. It is said to be the true story of Frida Kahlo (Salma Hayek) and her husband Diego Rivera (Alfred Molina). From what I’ve read of them, it probably is. They had quite the volatile marriage, but also passionate and caring love. I do wish they had spent more time on her and her paintings than on them and their drinking and sexploits. (This is not family entertainment.) The acting, photography, well, everything in the movie was high-shelf good.

Books:

I’ve actually read books, yes plural, this past week. I’m still working on Peter Stzrok’s book. But I really needed a break from politics, and moved on to something more uplifting—murder, mayhem, and one of the most beautiful novels I’ve read since Wizard of the Pigeons by Megan Linkholm—Memories in the Drift by Melissa Payne. Reviews are posted at: Rainy Day Reads.

Outro:

PLEASE, WEAR YOUR FREAKING MASK! Keep those around you safe and keep YOU safe. I don’t have so many friends I can afford to lose any, especially when it could be prevented by wearing a mask. You are, each and every one, important to me. Yes, because the vaccine is coming, the vaccine is coming, the end is in sight — but it’s still a long, long way down the road. If you’re on a hill, you might be able to see the light, but don’t bank on it. Yet.

Want to know the best mask to wear? Easy Peasey — the K95, the blue surgical masks doctors wear (you know those guys aren’t going to cut their oxygen intake one wee whit!), a mask with at least 2 layers of different and closely woven cloth, preferably three. It needs to fit snuggly over your mouth AND YOUR NOSE. If your nose isn’t covered, you’re not dressed. A mask will help keep you healthy, your neighbor healthy, and as an added bonus this winter, it will also keep your nose warm.

If masks give you ‘panic attacks’ I suggest two things—talk to your dr. about getting some anti-anxiety medications, and learn some meditation. Believe me, the claustrophobic anxiety of wearing a mask is nothing compared to the claustrophobic anxiety of wearing a coffin!

Here is the CNN story, Choosing the best mask to protect you and others.

If you enjoy this blog, please share with friends.

If you have a comment, please leave one. I read and reply to all of them.

Not the Post I Planned for Today

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I have a post written, and was going to put it up today, but then, life happened. Next week we’ll discuss the hazards of dog walking.

The West Coast is burning. Literally. And, no, it isn’t because we didn’t go out and sweep or rake the forest floor, it’s because of climate change and our collective inability to face it and act to correct it. Or at least slow it down. As Governor Inslee said, these fires are not an act of god, they are an act of climate change. If anyone knows about forest and fire management, it’s West Coasters.

I’m amazed at the people I talk to who either never took basic science classes in school (my first science class was in fifth grade) or forgot all they learned. I am not a particularly well-educated person. I’ve had some college, but I am fairly well-read. And I suffer from terminal curiosity. I’ve known about climate change for at least two decades. These people with little to no science knowledge, also seem to have little to no curiosity. It’s almost as if they’re afraid to be curious, to ask a question. What if the answer isn’t in alignment with what they already believe? Gosh, can’t they change their mind? I can’t imagine people with no curiosity as to how the world about them works. All children are curious. They are born that way. Getting answers to their questions is how they grow, survive. How did these people lose their curiosity? Parent? Teacher? Preacher? Are you one of those who has lost your curiosity? Do you know why? If comfortable doing so, leave your answer in the Comment section. I’m truly curious. and it may help me understand where you’re coming from.

The data are in. The data are known. It’s gonna get worse before it gets better, and if we don’t start acting soon, like today, it won’t get better until humans are extinct. Which might not be all that bad. It seems obvious to me that many people think that way, vote that way, act that way, and we’re headed that way. So, they must want it that way, yes?

I have low-grade asthma, I have a good mask and filter, I have a dog, and the air around my domicile has been in the dangerous to hazardous zone for over a week now. I try not to go forth more than four times a day, and even the dog seems to recognize that he needs to do his business quickly and come back inside. My eyes burn. I don’t know if my low-grade asthma will blossom to full-bore asthma or not, and I don’t want to find out the hard way.

A friend lost her home. All that’s left is part of the chimney — and her memories. She lost her belongings, she lost her local community, but she’s alive. She gives meaning to one of my favorite affirmations: Things are to use; people are to love. Roshi Suzuki said that all is an illusion, some illusions are sadder than others. The loss of one’s home, the treasured belongings, the physical reminders of cherished memories, is one of those sadder illusions.

Check out Bill Nye the Science Guy on climate change. He has a marvelous way of putting technical stuff into words even I can understand. Besides, he’s fun to watch and has several YouTube presentations. There is a wealth of information online, good information, about the climate crisis we are now in. If you search, you will find. And if you find someone who agrees with you that it’s a hoax, fake news, doesn’t exist, they are flat out in denial and or lying. Follow their money.

Photo of Bateman Island taken last winter from patio, the trees on far shore are in Pasco, Wa

Photo taken 11 Sep 20, same view. Pasco is gone. The dark water you see just past the island is a raft o riverweed, not the far shore. This has been our air for the past week and then some. THIS is smoke brought about by Climate Change.

Entertainment:

Netflix: I became so engrossed in A Thousand Goodnights, I gave up parsing it to one episode/night, and binged the last few episodes. For some reason, I had the idea it was only 10 episodes long—it wasn’t. It was 20, and I’m chuffed it was. There was plenty of time to develop all the subplots and get to an appropriate ending. It was, in a word, delightful. If you are looking for something without car chases, gunfights, swordfights, nasty people, &c, I strongly recommend this. It’s slow, beautiful, and lovely.

I started Life, a Korean drama about an arrogant businessman who has taken over a hospital. I probably won’t finish it. It’s 16 episodes long, and not even humor to defuse the tension. The bad guys wear black (suits) the good guys wear white (lab coats). Gosh, I wonder who will win? And there’s not a single character in the first five episodes I give a rat’s hind end about.

Amazon Prime: I’m not watching anything at the time on Prime, but one series I absolutely loved is Hamish Macbeth. It’s out of Scotland and Hamish lives in a small town, is the local cop, and deals with some of the most fun crimes around. Be sure to turn on captions as the brogue is thick and fast and I guarantee you won’t catch it all, no matter how attune you are to the dialect.

Books:

See Rainy Day Reads for reviews. and mayhaps a bit of snark. Who? Me? Snark? Bwahahahaha!

Wearing a mask is a proven method to help slow down the spread of Covid19. Please, wear your mask. And wear it properly—keep it over your nose! Your Auntie and your Granny appreciate your thoughtfulness. However, I promise when you come next week for a fresh cuppa and homemade biscotti, we’ll be properly socially distanced so you may remove your mask at that time. Honest. Trust me.

Speaking of masks, check out this site, Puramasks. Their masks are good to keep smoke out (filters are at 2.5 whatevers), as well as give you a chance to protect your neighbor. https://store.purakamasks.com I can tell immediately if I have the mask on correctly, so the filter is over my nose. If on correctly, I don’t smell the smoke. If not, I adjust toot sweet! 😉

Auntie Lenora

Coffee Break Escapes with Auntie Lenora

Short readings for short times