Weather today in the Tries (Richland, Kennewick, Pasco WA):

I do believe Spring has sprung! The air feels different, the sun is out, the birds are noisy, and today’s high is on schedule for 58F and Mostly Sunny. Pack a lunch, head to the Columbia!       

Write That Letter!

You know how I’m always yammering at you to write a review, let an author know you liked his book, her poem, their song? Well….

I believe I told you way back in January that I’d broken down and made a New Year’s Resolution, something I never, EVER do. OK, if you forgot, I signed up for A Word A Day years ago, and every Monday through Friday I get a new word with the parts of speech, etymology, and lots of other good stuff in my inbox. And I started writing something each day it comes, using that word. Some things are silly, and some aren’t too bad, but I’ve been doing it.

The words each week are related, and each day the previous ones of the week are posted. So, on Friday, the word was body blow, for the week they were merchant prince, journeyman, gold-digger, roughhouse, and body blow. I got the first four written, but on Friday, I came up with

Oh, Woe, Woe, Woe…
the body blow
to the merchant prince
came shortly after he
and his journeymen
lost an easy election
to outright theft
and fraud that didn’t
exist. The gold digger,
forced to move
from his cushy
and protected home,
lost not only shelter
in his position,
but money, and now
must rely on others
as he prepares to
play roughhouse
in various courts
of law.

and thought it was kind of fun, so sent it off to Anu Garg, who is the Wordsmith of A Word A Day. On Sunday, he sends a compendium of all, or at least many, of the emails he receives, usually a lot of limericks (I couldn’t write a limerick if my life depended on it!). He actually published mine in his compendium (AWADmail Issue 973)

So, that was fun, a fun poem, and a fun publication, and today I received an email from Lisa, and print it here with her permission, “Hi Lenora, Really enjoyed your pangraph in last week’s AWADmail. I hope you continue! -Lisa”. A short note, but you know, I was down just a bit, had received another rejection, and in popped Lisa’s note. The sun got so excited, it banished the clouds, and joined in my happiness. I don’t know Lisa, but her short note meant a lot to me. (Anu publishes email addresses in the Compendium) So, because someone I don’t know took the time to write, I’m now doing a happy dance!

By the way, the poem is called a Pangraph for using all the words for that week.

So, when you read a book you like, leave a review (they are important) and for shorter pieces, drop a note to the author (they are important, too). Most authors have websites, or in the case of something this short, an email posted on site. 

Second Jab!

Easy peasey (for me). 😉 Again, kudos to our Governor Jay Inslee and the Washington Army National Guard medics! Hats off, you gals n guys! You’re marvelous.

Jab Day, by the time I went to bed I was aware that the cute Army medic assaulted my arm, but no pain.

Day 2, still no pain. By bedtime I was a little stuffy and my head hurt a little bit. The winds were really blowing, figured it was dust in the air, and my chronic headache. And I was really tired.

Day 3, rolled over to right side (I always get shot in dominate arm if possible) for a bit in the morning, and could definitely feel the shot. Still windy out, still stuffy head and mild headache. Neither of which are (I’m fairly certain) from the shot. Besides, the medic who gave it was tooooo cute to give me side effects, too 😉

Day 4, too boring to continue. But several friends have also reported being more tired than normal, so that might be part of it.

There is a lot of conflicting info out there, and I’m easily confused, so I have made up my own mind on the idea of restaurant dining. April. That’s when, all things being equal, I will consider dining in. In the meantime, if it’s sunny and not windy, I’m willing to dine out at a restaurant.

Entertainment:

Netflix: OMG. Too much going on in my life at the moment. I needed something to escape, and Netflix sent me an email about a series they thought I’d like, Vincenzo. “During a visit to his motherland, a Korean-Italian mafia lawyer gives an unrivaled conglomerate a taste of its own medicine with a side of justice.” Oh, yeah, baby. This is my kinda show. At least the first episode. Alas, I’m starting close to the beginning, so will have to content myself with one a day for a couple more days, and then wait until next weekend for new episodes. Great English subtitles, but it’s funny when the worst swear word is ‘gosh’ 😉

Books:

The Meaning of It All, Thoughts of a Citizen-Scientist —Richard P. Feynman. In a word: disappointing. I believe this is a transcription (unedited) of three lectures. Live, they were probably very entertaining, but on the page they were flat. He rambled and never made a point. Read his other books. They’re marvelous.

Other Stuff:

“The world is a beautiful place

to be born into…

    …but then right in the middle of it

                                                       comes the smiling

mortician” 

—Lawrence Ferlinghetti, #11, Coney Island of the Mind

Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti

March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021

I was introduced to Ferlinghetti’s poetry via Coney Island of the Mind, while in WAC Basic Training, and his poem, #11, (the second one, there was one earlier on) got me through Basic. He was 101 years old when he died, and like a lot of his fans, I was pretty sure he had figured it all out, and would be here for at least 101 more years. We were wrong. Sigh.

Wear your masks! Get your shots. Stay Healthy, Stay Safe