Category Archives: Photos

Podcasting–Not!

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So much for my great new career as a podcaster. Truly, I had hoped to have fun, and bring some smiles, perchance even chuckles, into your lives. Alas, I fear it ain’t gonna happen as I hoped.

Seems I’ve got allergies. Nothing new, really. I’ve had them since forever. Unfortunately, my Achilles tendon is located in my vocal cords. When I’m around smoke of any kind, for any duration, I lose my voice. Also, certain perfumes cause the voice to take a sudden vacation without any warning. Gone. Poof. No voice. I can barely croak. Or squeak. 

And we’ve had fires. Lots of them. Small ones, large ones, near ones, far ones. I live in the Columbia Basin. This basin is a big bowl, and all the smoke from miles arounds falls into our big bowl and stays there for a very long time. 

And after this last bout, where I not only lost my voice for a month, this time it was accompanied by pain — felt like my vocal cords were strained, and even attempting to speak hurt like a son of a gun, I came to the realization that I couldn’t in good conscience make podcasts like I want. One must be able to make them and post them on a regular basis.

Oh, what’s a gal gonna do? I had my heart set on doing this as a fun way to get through these madding times. An escape. A short, Coffee Break Escape to share with all my friends both present and those to comer. I took two aspirin, grabbed my cuppa, and thunk and thunk and voila! I came up with a solution. As I can, I shall record my podcasts, as if they were podcasts, but instead, I will post them under the Spoken Word tab above and not send them out to the platform. (I also won’t have to pay for platform use!) Not really what I wanted, but necessity is the mother of strange workarounds. (And hunger is the mother of weird stir-fries—what can I say?)  

I can still play with my new podcast mic, and you can still hear me. A win-win, yes? Well, at least for me. 😉 Even though I’ll never get my Star on Hollywood Boulevard with a microphone, I’ll never become an overnight “Divine Miss L” of podcasting fame, I can still dream the impossible dream…. But it was fun while it lasted. And dreams are fun. Though the killing of them is sometimes painful. Especially when it’s some silly thing like reality that steps on them and squishes them flatter than that bug under your shoe!

I feel badly for my young friend, Farris Hallaj who wrote and performed the theme song for my podcasts. I’ll still use it, because it’s fun, but at the same time, not nearly as many people will hear it, unless of course, you enjoy it and send the link to people. Farris can be found on Facebook at Farris Hallaj Music, and on YouTube right here. He is an amazing young man. Please, take a few minutes to listen to some of his music. Especially Louisiana Sun!

This pelican fits my mood perzactaly! If I can’t swim with the podcasting crowd, I’ll head off in my own Spoken Word direction!

Addendum to last week’s Recipe post: For those of you who haven’t tried baking biscotti, I just received notice of this Biscotti Pan from King Arthur Flour. It looks to be wonderful, and I may have to get one, myself. Just for the uniformity of size. And, true to Alton Brown, it can be used for baking cakes, brownies, and whatevers—it’s a multi-tasker. Oooh, Auntie Lenora wants…

Entertainment:

Netflix: Oooh, Auntie Lenora is soooooo frustrated. She started watching yet another Korean drama, Hospital Playlist. Definitely not for the squeamish! Anyhow, there are dramatic events, but also lots of laugh-out-loud moments. We got to a story end, and Auntie Lenora was all set for the next episode when up popped a notice that the next season would premier in 2021. What??? How dare they??? Auntie Lenora is not a happy camper! She’s going to have to watch like a normal person? Weekly episodes?

Hospital Playlist follows five young doctors from their internships to ‘professorship’ in a Korean hospital. Four guys and one gal—neurosurgery, general surgery, pediatric surgery, and ob/gyn. Unlike an American soap opera, this one moves right along, and though there is some blood here and there, nothing like ours of blood and gore upon the floor. Still, if one is squeamish, well, forewarned is forearmed. Now, I have to wait until next year to see what happens next. I never got into Gray’s Anatomy, but think this might be similar but different. Think Gray’s Anatomy, the Musical?

How will the pandemic affect season 2? I’ll let you know sometime next year.

In the meantime, Lucifer’s final season has started. I have every hope of parsing the episodes out to no more than one per night, but, knowing me, I won’t. I’ll binge. He is such eye candy. Talk about impossible dreams! /snicker/ Oh, be still my beating heart. (I have made it through the first 3 episodes at only one per night. It’s not easy.)

Books: Check out Rainy Day Reads for new book reviews since the last post.

Show your love; wear your mask. Show you care for your family, your friends, your neighbors, your dog, your cat, even your goldfish. And y’all come back next week, same bat time, same bat channel. The coffee is always on, the biscotti are home made, and we’ve always got time for a coffee break and a visit. (And, we’ll be properly socially distanced, so you may remove your mask.)

Let’s Bake

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Note: our temperature today is scheduled to be 105 degrees. I am NOT baking this day!

My close-out, or ‘outro’ in podcast parlance, always invites you to stop by for coffee and homemade biscotti. Too few of you live close enough to stop by, and in this day and age, we’d have to socially distance, but it could be done. However, I usually have breakfast about ten a.m. Pacific Daylight Time, feel free to join me with biscotti and coffee at that time, at your own table or desk if you can’t make it to mine.

At any rate, I thought I’d share a couple of links for biscotti and cake that I’ve tried and love. If you’ve got cooler weather, or air conditioning, you can make your own, and we’ll socially distance by miles. 😉

From Giada De Laurentis: Holiday Biscotti. I’m always leery of professional chefs who are skinny, and when they are beautiful on top of it, I’m really suspicious. What kind cooking do they do? And, if you don’t know who she is, she’s part of the movie De Laurentis family. Anyhow, a couple of years ago, I wanted a holiday biscotti, and made this one. Holy Moly Guacamole! This is one of the bestest biscotti I’ve ever made. I do tend to put in closer to a cup each of pistachios and cranberries, but you have permission to make it to your liking. I’ve also made it with almonds (I had them on hand) and one time, I had about a cup of mixed nuts from a biscotti baking marathon, and about the same of leftover dried ginger and other fruits, as well as cranberries. Too many to throw away, not enough to keep separate. Yep, I threw them all into this recipe. I also divide it into two loaves, thereby having shorter cookies. By the way, the ‘leftover’ biscotti were the biggest hit.

I usually make at least five batches of biscotti for the holidays, mix several from each batch into tins and give as gifts. Most of my recipes come from cookbooks, and are copyrighted, but a little judicious searching can find you recipes closely resembling what I make. Or, perhaps a kind email?

As I said, I make several for the holidays: coffee biscotti, triple ginger, white chocolate and macadamia nut, and I like to try one new one I’ve not tried before. My ‘go to’ books are: The World Encyclopedia of Coffee by Mary Banks, Christine McFadden, Catherine Atkinson and Biscotti by Lou Seibert Pappas. The latter is a fun book chock full of biscotti recipes.

The other thing I love to bake is cakes. 

King Arthur Flour’s Farmhouse Buttermilk Cake. For some reason I don’t remember, I bought a half gallon of buttermilk a few years ago. Now, buttermilk is the only milk I like to drink (I know, I’ve never claimed sanity as my strong suit), but that was too much. I wanted to use it before it went bad and went in search of a buttermilk cake recipe. Most called for anywhere from a half to a whole cup of buttermilk. Nope, I wanted to use more. And because I love King Arthur’s site, I checked there. The Farmhouse Buttermilk cake calls for 2 cups of buttermilk—2.5 if you forego the butter! Oh, joy of joys! The absolute best 9×13 cake ever, and perfect for potlucks and social gatherings! In fact, I took it to a potluck and one of the gentlemen who attended was a visitor from the Dakotas, a farmer. It was a ‘cut your own slice’ affair and he had two huge ones. When he discovered I’d made it he asked if I’d give the recipe to his wife. I did, and presumably she’s keeping him happy with it. Made it a while back for a friend who celebrated his 80thbirthday, and he and his girlfriend loved it. They got the recipe, too. As well as a whole left-over cake.

From My Recipes: Margarita Cake.  This one is a tad more labor intensive, but not all that difficult. I made it for a bunch of us gals who got together for ‘happy hour’ — their verdict: I had to bake and BRING IT EVERY TIME! This cake contains unbaked tequila, so be aware before you let your kids help and cut their own slices ;-). When complete, this is to die for. It also contains homemade Fresh Lime Curd, a delightfully easy recipe, and simply wonderful to use as cake filling or with cookies or to just sit and eat. And, last but not least, we cannot forget the candied lime slices. Also, easy to do, and oh, such a treat. I admit, it was difficult to not just eat the batch myself, but that would have meant another trip to the store for more limes. Sigh.

I swear (or affirm if you prefer) the icing recipe (at bottom of the cake recipe) made twenty pounds, easy. However, there was no booze in it, and my neighbor (who LOVED the cake) had two starving teenage boys. She took the left-over icing and put it between graham crackers. They ate it for a month. They were and are still starving.

I have several other recipes I dearly love to bake, and I follow my cardinal rule when baking them. I MUST make them for a social gathering that I will attend, eat ONE SLICE, or maybe two biscotti, AND LEAVE THE REST! I only bring home empty plates, containers, or cake pans. (I was at a potluck one time, and there was left over Arctic Chili left that I brought, and I told everyone if they liked it, to take it home, or I’d throw it in the garbage. Three guys fought for it. When I brought the buttermilk cake, there was about half a cake left, and I said I was ready to leave, if anyone wanted the leftover cake to get it before I scraped it into the garbage. I went home with a pan so empty I almost didn’t have to wash it! Now I live in an apartment complex, and before we were in lockdown, I’d bake and take it to the office.) And all those leftover crumbs from sweet things? Don’t throw them away, let them dry out, store them either in a jar or the freezer, and use them on ice cream, or hot cereal. Let them eat cake!

These Canada geese are dabbling for baked goodies. They’ve heard of them, and want to try them, but they aren’t good for geese (or ducks, or any fowl), so they’ll have to settle for salad—or fish—all the more for us!

Did you know if geese and ducks get enough bread they will starve to death with full bellies? Feed them grapes cut in half, find out what kind of seeds, or meal worms they eat (Google is your friend!) and if you’re really into being nice to ducks, get some duck chow, but please, Mother Nature and Auntie Lenora, will bless you if you DON’T FEED THEM BREAD!

Entertainment:

Neflix—binged on another Korean 20-episode drama. Great fun, a lot of humor, but definitely more drama than the last one. Immortal Classic loosely follows four generations of a well-respected family and one not so well known or respected. As www.asianwiki.com says, “There are two families, one family runs a restaurant and the other family are acknowledged master chefs. The drama” depicts relationships, misunderstandings, and forgiveness through these families. We have heroes and villains, and some great acting. It’s a modern story, but many of the women wear traditional dress. I wonder if they do in Korea, or if that was thrown in for people like me who love to see it. Food plays an integral part throughout the series, and I am now sooooo hungry for Korean food. We have a couple of Korean restaurants in town ;-). I am now on the search for a good Korean cookbook. In English. Did you know there are about 200 varieties of kimchi, and they are not all hot? I’ve eaten sweet kimchi, mild kimchi, and hotter than… kimchi. I’ve never met a kimchi I didn’t like, and most I love. Of course, every family has their own recipes. 

Books—check our Rainy Day Reads for the new book reviews.

Show your love; wear your mask. Show you care for your family, your friends, and your neighbors. Show those nasty old flowers you don’t care for their pollen. And y’all come back next week, same baked time, same baked place. The coffee is always on, the biscotti are home made, and we’ve always got time for a coffee break and a visit. (And, we’ll be socially distanced, so you may remove your mask. 😉

Auntie Lenora

You Would Think…

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… since I spend so much time with words—reading them, writing them, listening to them, speaking them (when I have a voice with which to speak)—I’d be fairly conversant in the meanings of them. Well, I am with most of them, but every so often I get to wondering what a particular word means. One I’ve used ever since I learned to speak in moderately coherent sentences, but never really thought of. 

Two words and their usage regarding grave sites or other plots of ground, have puzzled me for some time are ‘holy’ or ‘sacred.’ Why have areas of bones and ash been so designated? Who determines if this plot of land is or isn’t holy? The term, ‘Holy Land’ means something very different to me than it possibly means to you. If you follow one of the Judeo-Christian-Muslim faiths (faiths of The Book), it means the middle east—today’s Israel and Palestine.  If you follow other faiths, that term probably means other countries, other areas, depending on where your god was born, raised, died, and resurrected. To me, it is any piece of land on which I stand and hear the world go hush, hear the holy song, think the holy thoughts, and know the love of all my relations.* Whether that is desert of New Mexico, the coast of Oregon, the Black Hills of the Dakotas, or the Beaufort Sea in the Arctic. It’s me that makes it a holy land for me, wherever I am when the song, the hush, the thoughts come.

So, back to my question, why are grave sites considered holy, or sacred? Who gives them that designation? Well, thanks to Google, I have an answer. Those words are designations that humans give (not gods) to areas to set them apart, to keep them separate, to honor the dead buried in them. They are set apart in that manner to make it clear that mankind designated them holy, not religion.

I wrote a poem a while back, called Holy Lands (not yet published, but making the rounds), and a couple of people in my poetry group had a hard time accepting that term. To them, the holy lands were where their god was born, lived, died, and resurrected. They could accept the term sacred, and we had a pretty good discussion about it. And yes, it was a good discussion, no raised voices, etc. The poem is still called Holy Lands. I’m in a good group, and their input is valued, and I often make their suggested changes to my work. In this case I believe I used all of their suggestions but that one. 

Of course, I now come up with more questions. Below is a photo I took last winter at dawn. I took it from my patio, I heard the song, heard the hush, thought the thoughts, and for a time, I stood in a holy place looking at this holy view. Is my patio holy now? No. But for a moment in time it was. As the Buddhists might say, I was awakened or enlightened at that moment, gazing at the sunrise, the trees, the river. The photo reminds me it happened and can happen again. Awakening or enlightenment is not a once and you’re done happening. It happens and happens again. As the Buddhists also say, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” In other words, life goes on, only awakened you are more in tune with it, the harmony of living on our planet is greater. At least for a while. Because you don’t awake from sleep only once, but every morning, so does enlightenment happen more than once.

*All my relations: Lakota, Mitakuye Oyasin, means All Are Related or All My Relations.

Also, in keeping with today’s subject, I offer another phrase. “Bright eyed and bushy tailed.” Now, where did that one come from? What does it mean? That’s another one I’ve heard, and used, since, well, I could speak. It’s straight out of the fox hunts. A fox whose eyes are dull, whose tail is not groomed and bushy, is not a healthy fox. So, when someone wishes you a good night’s sleep, and that you wake bright eyed and bushy tailed, they are saying they hope you wake well rested and healthy. Who knew?

My Week’s Entertainment:

TV:

Amazon Prime: One of my all-time most favoritest TV shows is Morse. I think I’ve seen them all, some more than once. The other day I realized Amazon Prime has the first six seasons (alas, short seasons of 4 episodes each) of Endeavour. Morse, who never ever used his first name, had one, of course. It was Endeavour. And this series is the prequel to Morse. Endeavour as a young man, just starting out. The cast, the props, etc., are all top drawer. If you haven’t seen it, I heartily recommend it. (I wonder where they found so many actors who still smoke tobacco? Or if those were all fake and CGI? Just watching those smoke-filled rooms, etc., set off my allergies! The wildfires outside didn’t help, either.)

Netflix: 16 episode Korean, good subtitles, It’s Okay Not to be Okay. This was a fun ‘dramedy’ — listed as a Romantic Drama, I found far more laughs in it than drama; however, the drama was intense enough to pull it out of the comedy category. The central protagonists are two brothers, the younger taking care of the older who is on the autism spectrum, and a writer of children’s fairy tales who is, well, hard to like at first, but for good reason. Her mother was a monster, and disappeared when the girl was quite young. The girl wasn’t sure if she was dead or alive. Her mother drove away the one friend the girl had before leaving. The mother of the two boys was killed shortly before the mother left (died?) and the boys took off on their own before the police could separate them and institutionalize the older brother. Sounds pretty grim, doesn’t it? That’s why it’s not a comedy. But it’s full of humor and laughs-out-loud. The older brother is a delight. His world is black or white, and he is honest to a fault—and many laughs. Highly recommended.

Books:

I’m a pretty eclectic reader. I tend to go in streaks and read fiction (prefer happy endings to my escapes) and poetry as my primary choices, but that leaves it wide open. I also read nonfiction, especially essays or biographies. Rather than give you a list of what I’ve read and recommend in the past week, I’ll give you a link to my book blog, Rainy Day Reads. You probably won’t care about all the books, but the list goes back a few years. Prowl around, and if you like some, hit the Follow button and each time I post a new book, you’ll be notified. Or you should be.

Show your love; wear your mask. Show you care for your family, your friends, and your community. Show those nasty old flowers you don’t care for their pollen. And y’all come back next week, same masked time, same masked place. The coffee is always on, the biscotti are home made, and we’ve always got time for a coffee break and a visit. (And, we’ll be socially distanced, so you can remove your mask. 😉

Auntie Lenora

A Bit of This, A Tad of That

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OK, I promised something lighter after the last two, and here we go…

Numero uno.

Do you like the old Grade B (or worser) horror flicks? If so, have I found a site for you. Friday Night Frights on YouTube. Go to the right arrow and start with Episode #1. the first ones are in the five-minute range and are a hoot. The later ones actually have movies. I haven’t made it through the movies. Yet. But here’s the trailer. Full disclosure here, I’m friends with one of sound people who has been training me to do my podcasts. Grab a glassa, a bowl of popcorn, and enjoy.

Number two.

(Hey, I only took the first class of Spanish on DuoTrope!)

I had another poem accepted. Quill and Parchment, an online lit mag that publishes the first of each month. Russian Sage is in the August issue. Please, do stop by, read the magazine, leave a comment. Click on the photo to enter the site, then scroll to enjoy. If you’d like to leave a comment, use the Contact Us form at the bottom of the page.

Nummer drei.

(Yes, I actually lived in Germany for a couple years. Pronunciation: Nummer dry. I can order something to eat that isn’t more difficult than, oh, say, “kraut und wurst” which is really kraut and best, and I can order bier. Boy howdy, can I order bier. I can even sing (??) the bier song— In Munchen steht ein Hofbrauhaus hause, eins, zwei, sofa … I may not spell it correctly, but I’ve had bier there.)

I had an email the other day from some web developer wanting to help me improve my business, and FOR ONLY $500.00 a month, he would do it. Second best laugh I’ve had in a while. I was still getting emails from Team Other asking for my money at that time, but when they got up as high as nine per day, they got sent to Junk. After all, I can only take so much humor in these trying times. Of course, I know the actual Team Other isn’t sending any of these out, which makes them funnier, it’s all done electronically.

Numero quatre.

(French. Isn’t Google wonderful? I haven’t a clue how it’s correctly pronounced. Even with my hearing aids I can’t quite hear it. I also don’t have a clue how to get the accent marks in.)

Big Brother is Alive and Well. Well, maybe that should be clarified as Big Computer is Alive and Well. I sent one of Team Other’s emails to a friend, who in turn sent it on to another friend. Now, neither my friend nor I are on Facebook, though I’ve been thinking about rejoining. So, Other Friend is on Facebook, and as soon as she received the forwarded email, she started being inundated by ads from Team Other. I think I’ll continue to stay off Facebook. That was one of the reasons I left, actually, and don’t think I want to go back on.

Numer piec.

(Polish. I think it’s pronounced Numer pee aitsch. It has two accents I can’t load.)

Here’s a photo I took this past spring—21 Apr 20) of two mule deer, I’m guessing a doe and her yearling calf. The ‘beach’ they are on has been underwater for the last couple months. I’m surprised deer live on the island as people walk their dogs there and let them run free. They are supposed to be leashed while on the island, or in the park.

They look pretty hungry, actually. That was the only time I saw them, though one of my neighbors said she’d seen them several times. 

I love my apartment, and the view. It’s truly never the same from day to day. And when the weather is nice, and the boats and kayaks and paddle boards cavort, it changes by the minute.

Helu ‘eono

(Number six in Hawai’ian.)

A bit of nice news. I subscribe to Atlas Obscura, for Curious People. The definitive guide to the world’s hidden wonders. It’s been free since before I found it. I comes daily, with photos and short articles about anything from old gas stations to Dracula’s castle. Then, they started asking for paid subscriptions, one of the benefits being a rate break on the trips they sponsor. Since I have no intention of taking the trips, and since I can’t afford subscribing right now, I was beginning to feel somewhat guilty keeping my subscription going. And then an email came in stating one of the other benefits of a paid subscription is no ads. As long as I use the free subscription, I get ads, a slightly fuller wallet, and a clear conscious to enjoy. I even asked if I was reading it correctly, and they actually responded and said I read it correctly. If you haven’t checked out Atlas Obscura, please do so. It’s great fun. Unless, of course, you have no curiosity. But, if that’s the case, why are you reading this blog?

Now, wasn’t that an interesting post of bits and pieces? Kinder, gentler than the previous ones? And you may even have learned a thing or two. Isn’t that exciting?

Show your love; wear your mask. Show you care for your family, your friends, and your neighbors. Show those nasty old flowers you don’t care for their pollen. And y’all come back next week, same masked time, same masked place. The coffee is always on, the biscotti are home made, and we’ve always got time for a coffee break and a visit. (And, we’ll be socially distanced, so you can remove your mask. 😉

Auntie Lenora

(Love Means) You Never Have To Say You’re Sorry

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Do you remember that song? The movie (Love Story) from whence it came? Personally, I found the song a real turn-off and never watched the movie, or read the book, because of that one phrase. To me, Love for another person means being able to say you’re sorry. If you can’t apologize to someone else, someone you love, it means you’re in love— with yourself, not the other person.

Well. I’m apologizing. Or perhaps I’m explaining. Or a bit of both? (Is there a rationale in here?)

There was a tv series that ran from 2005 – 2012 and I don’t think I missed an episode. I truly enjoyed the cast, the stories (well most of them), and the humor. When I moved back to the Tri Cities, I opted to get an antenna v. cable, and lo & behold The Closer  was running on one of the antenna channels. Every day. Two back to back episodes seven days a week. Yeee Haw!

I’m pleased to say, it has held up well. Too well. Watching one episode a week was considerably different than watching two episodes a night, seven nights a week. Perhaps I’ve been sensitized by Black Lives Matter, which I support, but suddenly, what used to be humorous—the small, southern Brenda Leigh Johnson dealing with big bad guys (of any color)—became all too real. Where it had been humorous watching her set the white boy up to get his come-uppance in a Mexican jail for raping and killing a Mexican girl in LA; where it was pure Karma seeing her send the Mexican drug cartel cop to jail under a false name and knowing there was a ‘hit’ out for that name that he paid for; where it was a gotcha moment when she supported the gang-banger in getting his by his brother gang members; well, all of that was violence at the hands of the police. All of it was taking the law—arrest, trial, sentence—into her own hands. 

It wasn’t funny anymore. She became all the Derek Chauvins, by all the names they go by, she was every cop who ever killed an unarmed man, woman, or child whether deliberately or by mistake, or just because he thought he could get away with it. She was the cop who deprived people of their constitutional rights in the name of justice. 

So, I apologize for touting the show for so long as funny. My eyes did not see, my ears did not hear. I no longer think it’s funny. Yes, old fartesses can learn new things. And I thank Black Lives Matter for helping to open my eyes.

I still dislike that song; however, if you’ve never heard it, or can’t remember it, or want to hear it one more time for your weekly Zoom karaoke class, here it is:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APMHp9sZyME

And here is the Richland, Washington All Gull Choir singing—Big Gulls Don’t Cry. Unfortunately, I was too far away, and my recording wasn’t all that good, so here’s Fergie singing her own rendition. It’s ok, but not as good as the All Gull Choir. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agrXgrAgQ0U

Have a great week. Remember to laugh often and loud, sing a new song—try out for a Zoom choir, dance like you’re Fred Astaire or Ginger Rogers in a closed rehearsal, and be sure to stop by again—same gull time, same gull channel. The coffee’s hot, the biscotti are homemade, and we always have time for a short break. Stay safe, stay healthy, and care for and love one another—because one another is all we’ve really got.

Dancing While on Lockdown

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My friend Nonie sent this video to me a month or two ago and I watch it frequently. The dancers are good, but the audience at the end cracks me up each time I watch. We all need something to bring us cheer and happiness, laughs and giggles. So here. Laugh. Giggle. Join the dance. It’s less than a minute long. Indulge! Save it to your desktop and indulge often. It’s necessary. Honest. Trust me.

And I’m still getting emails, about five a day, from Team Other (formally known as Team Opposition). Oh. Em. Gee. They are better than getting a joke a day. Of course, I also get emails that are almost the same from Team Us, so I can’t complain about the one and not the other. Somehow, the ones from Team Other are funny, and Team Us emails are just annoying. Perhaps it’s my warped sense of humor?

The little House Finch outside my patio could care less how many emails I get from anyone, or even if I get any. All he (females are drab, males have color) cares about are the seeds he’s busily harvesting.

My new computer is here, is up, and is working. I wasn’t sure how to get all the stuff from my old computer to my new one; but figured a good place to start would be to use the Quick Start guide that always comes with new computers. Bwahahahaha! Tweren’t none! They assumed (silly Apple people) that if I was smart enough to buy an iMac, I was smart enough to plug it in and turn it on. Eventually, I figured that out. Then there were two pictures that kept alternating. One of the keyboard; the other the mouse. Eventually I realized there is a wee teensy on-off switch and I had to turn them on. Sigh. From there it was relatively painless. Did I have another Mac? Yes. Did I have data I wished to transfer from it to the new one? Oh, yes. Well, then, do this, this, and go have a cuppa. Voila! If directions are there, I’m pretty good at following them ;-). Sometimes. Especially if they are in words. English words.

I do have suggestions for Apple, not that they’re overly excited to reach out to me, or read the emails I’ve sent — 

  1. While the keyboard is stylish, and cute, I can’t use it. Make it so it breaks in half and can be tented (think Gold Touch) and add a ‘right’ delete button as well as a ‘left’ delete button, I would be much happier with it. I tried using the new keyboard and my carpal tunnel started acting up again. The oh-so-stylish magic mouse has also been swapped out for my ‘tower’ mouse. Same reason: tunneling carpals.
  2. ALL the slots for peripherals are in the back, at the bottom. Nothing remains on the side. There are nonApple after-market ‘hubs’ one can buy and fasten to the front or bottom of the iMac for most of the slots, or one that the iMac can stand on, adding an inch or so to the height, that handles jacks, and everything else. Still, when one pays what they pay for a computer, I think one should get a couple of ‘easy’ fixes for free. Especially when I’m the one forking over my retirement check!
  3. They could also preload it with a no-charge commercial-free game of solitaire! 

So, now I have my new one working away, and I hope to get back to podcast recording soon. I really want to go live before the end of June.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a date to go dancing. Harharharhar….!!!

Have a great week. Remember to laugh, sing a little, dance like no one is watching and be sure to stop by again—same bat time, same bat channel. The coffee will be made, the biscotti are homemade, and we always have time for a short break. Stay safe, stay healthy, care for, and love one another—because one another is all we’ve really got.

Auntie Lenora

Surveys and the People Who Send Them

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I know, I promised to try not to talk politics, but this was just too funny not to talk about. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima grande.

I received one of the best chuckles ever the other morning when I opened up my email and discovered I had joined “Team Opposition.”

The day before, as I read an article online, an ad appeared wanting to know if I approved/disapproved/or was unsure of a certain politician. I clicked Disapproved. Of course, in order for my vote to count, and they assured me it was veryimportant, and they would welcome my input, yadda yadda yadda, I had to add my email. (I know how to block emails so wasn’t too concerned) and submitted. To be honest, I was surprised they didn’t ask me for money, but then I figured since I disapproved, the algorithms of their site would realize I wouldn’t donate.

The next morning, I received a great email welcoming me to “Team Opposition.” That said Politician is counting on me, and to please add my cell number to the list so I can get said Politician’s PERSONALLY sent updates, etc. Oddly, the home team still didn’t ask for money. And I didn’t volunteer my number.

I hate that they are counting me as part of their team, because I’m not, but then, it may skew their numbers a wee bit if enough of us ‘join’ the team. But they’re good for a laugh. Okay, a chuckle, now and then.

I also really hate all those online and emailed surveys where they try to assure me how important my opinion is, but all they really want is my money. They obviously don’t read their surveys, they merely glean emails, and figure if you responded, you’re on their team. Not!

Sometimes, I think Britain has the right idea. No campaigning until six weeks before the election! Actually, it isn’t sometimes I think this, it’s most every day, every hour I think of politics, I think of this. Think how much real work would get done if we weren’t so immersed in party politics day in and day out. 

A duck swimming in a body of water Description automatically generated

A Pelican Pollster dabbling for important input and greenbacks. Lotsa Greenbacks.

Addendum: A couple days later, I received another one question poll, I answered and was immediately sent to the website. The poor, pitiful, politician looks like he’s going to bawl, and now he really wants my money (I knew he did!), but I’m not donating. Well, not to him, anyway. As I started to close the link, a note popped up telling me I wasn’t through yet, I hadn’t donated any money. Computers are getting too darned smart.

A swan swimming in a body of water Description automatically generated

This is not a Politician. She’s a Pelican. And she’s cold (picture was taken in January 2020). She doesn’t really know about, or care about, Politicians of any ilk. She’s far more interested in finding lunch. She should be interested in politics, as Politicians control whether or not she will have lunch available to find in years to come. And I have no idea of the maleness or femaleness of said bird. I figure it’s only important that the bird knows!

In the meantime…

Are you a poet? Do you like poetry? Do you miss Open Mics? If you answered at least 2 out of 3 of those questions with a Yes, check out Rattle.com.  They are now hosting a dedicated weekly open mic show in addition to their usual livestreamed Rattlecast episodes. This week’s open mic will broadcast live on Sunday at Noon ET /9am PT at https://youtu.be/Zu4b9Hm1r1Y

If you’re interested in sharing a poem that relates directly to current events, published or not, you can join in by Skype (rattlepoetry) or the regular phone. Just contact Tim (Tim Green, Editor, Rattle) either of those ways during the show, and he’ll call back as many people as he can. Details are in the notes on the YouTube page, and he gives out the phone number during the broadcast, but it’s 818-850-7727—and while you’re there, please do click that “subscribe” button. I haven’t joined in yet, but I did take a couple minutes to lurk this past Sunday and plan on participating next week. 

It’s worth marking and remembering, and also worth remembering my favorite quote about poets from the late Robert A. Heinlein, “A poet who reads his verse in public may have other nasty habits.” Oh, yeah….;-)

Hmmm, maybe the pelican pollster is really a pelican poet looking for an open mic??? Do fish write poetry and have open mics??

Have a great week. Remember to laugh, sing a little, dance like no one is watching and be sure to stop by again—same bat time, same bat channel. The coffee will be made, the biscotti are homemade, and we always have time for a short break. Stay safe, stay healthy, and care for and love one another—because one another is all we’ve really got.

Auntie Lenora

What the World Needs Now…

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Oh, this is soooo exciting. Well, to me, at least. I decided to upgrade my free blogsite, and buy a real site, so you have yet one more URL to deal with, but this is it. Honest. Trust me. With many thanks to my friend Barbara, who built the site for me. https://coffeebreakescapes.com is now up and running. She wasn’t able to move the subscriptions from the last blog over to this new URL, so I’d really appreciate you subscribing one more time and following me around on the web. With all the social distancing of the moment, it’s the closest I can get to an in-person hug. And I like hugs. You’ll find this site is new, improved, different, and built by someone who knows what she’s doing—my friend, Barbara. Alas, it’s still the same old me. 

Like my previous blogs, I’ll be discussing a bit of this and a tad of that, and sharing some of my photos, and perchance some of my writings. Now and then something from the news. I’ll keep you up to date on the Podcasts, which I know you’re interested in. I’m hoping to have a Grand Launch Party by the end of the month. You’re all invited. 

Speaking of photos—the blue background visible on a full-screen computer if not your phone, is of the Columbia River taken on one of my walks. The header—flying bird—is a pelican, gliding over the Yakima river where it joins the Columbia. Living on the Columbia I have opportunities to take pictures both from my walks along the river, and from my patio. My apartment looks out on Bateman Island Wildlife Refuge, and earlier this spring, I saw a gossip session out on the flooded sand bar. Photo taken from my patio using a telephoto lens.

Gossip Session
Canada goose, Great Blue Heron, four American White Pelicans
The hump on the pelican indicates it’s breeding season. Both male and female develop them then shed them by the end of the breeding season.

A couple of people have asked why I’m using ‘Auntie’ Lenora in my blog and podcasts. Auntie is a term used to refer to elders by Indigenous cultures (world-wide, actually) whether related or not, and I am after all, part Catawba and African. Though I am an Auntie to several adorable nieces and nephews, now I can be Auntie to you, too, if you’re in the market for a new auntie. Of course, if you don’t want a new auntie, we can be friends. Yes, I’m admitting to being an elder by using the term, but it doesn’t make me feel as old as I probably am and should embrace.

I have spent the last week enjoying an ear worm. (Is that the right phrase? I know it isn’t a Ceti Eel!) At any rate, because of the situation in the outside world, I’ve had a song going through my head, and I don’t mind. Really. In fact, I’m going to share it. It’s from the ‘60s, by Burt Bacharach and there are several recordings of it on YouTube, and I like them all. Here is Jackie DeShannon singing What the World Needs Now Is Love. If you don’t remember it, give a listen. If you’ve never heard it, give a listen. Check out the lyrics and see if you don’t agree with me.

Have a great week. Remember to laugh, sing a little, dance like no one is watching and be sure to stop by again. Same bat time, same bat channel. The coffee will be made, the biscotti are homemade, and we always have time for a short break. Remember to stay safe, stay healthy, and to care for and love one another—because one another is all we’ve really got.