Relaxation, and Reading

There always comes a time of the day to relax. Enjoy the scenery, sip a good drink and read a nonfiction,educational book about women artists. Compared to these women, I have lived the life of riley.

These women decided to have careers in art in a era that no woman would consider working outside the home with a good man.

These women gave up having children, lived under poverty conditions, and never gave up.

They organized their own art shows, and took no prisoners. They were tough women and were resented by the males piers they worked with. During the wars they took on men's jobs,  and after the wars, they would lose their good paying jobs because the soldiers coming home need those jobs. Were they second class citizens? They were fighters. They had talent. They had determination. 

As I sit on my desk sipping my bourbon, I wonder if I could have done what they accomplished. Could I  am not sure.

Spending the Pandemic in my Fabulous Back Deck

 I have spent hours, days, weeks sitting quietly on the back deck. I read, watch baby birds, and I meditate on reducing my stress level. I have become more observant of the obvious. I notice new and exciting things about our neighborhood birds, I know where the nests are, and see the baby's feathers change slowly to adult colors. I can tell when a hawk is near by, the birds react and freeze in their spots. They stay frozen for up to 15 minutes until they hear the the coast is clear sound coming from the other birds.

This is the back yard that I dreamed of as a young child. Three seed feeders, two hummingbird feeders, two birth baths and in the winter suet.  Of course I never thought about the racoons harvesting the humming bird's nectar, or the deer eating out hostas. The ants and spiders who always journey through our house.Then there is the occasional mouse nest in the cars. This year I had a hornet nest in my right side mirror and a nice big nest in my trunk. The stings hurt my pride and my trust in nature. But we go on.

The skunks usually keep a low profile. Turkey's  love to dig in my herb garden in the spring when the perennials are very tender. One woodchuck appear this spring and then we never saw him again. Good news. They can clear out a garden overnight.  

We no longer see any honey bees in our yard. Miss these creatures. Years ago, we were one of the many beekeepers in the area. 

The dragonflies have been few this year. Also, the butterflies have be very limited. Could be the extreme heat? No shure. We do have an underground nest of miniature bumble bees. 

 In this back yard, it is so easy to follow the seasons, come and go. Birds migrate, baby turkeys appear, hummingbirds all disappear overnight to migrate south.

Everybody Gets the Blues

 

Listened to a tribute to James Taylor on U Tube, Dr. John and Taj Mahal and band were playing it and the music was nice and loud and bluesey. 

    

Everybody Sings The Blues

from Poets, Philosophers, Workers, & Wanderers

Well I may not be the smartest man

That ever walked on earth

And some of what’s gone well for me

Might be an accident of birth

Oh but deep inside the mystery

Surrounding me and you

Is something I have come to know

And hold as deeply true

Well you may be a woman

From the right side of town

Going out evenings in the finest of gowns

But one thing’s for certain

No matter the shoes

Sooner of later

Everybody sings the blues

Well you may be erudite

Or a real cool cat

A high priced jet-setter

Going this way and that

Ah but one thing’s for certain

You know it ain’t news

Sooner or later

Everybody sings the blues

Oh, lonely, we all get lonely some times

There’s nothing anyone can do

Hang on, for just another day

And hope that you’ll get through

Well you may be ironic

You may be a clown

You may swear that you’ll never wear

Your smile upside down

Oh but one thing’s for certain

Whether you win or lose

Sooner or later

Everybody sings the blues

© 2013, 2017 – Joe Jencks, Turtle Bear Music ASCAP

A Flash of Color

 

Sometimes when I am sad, I go out to my side deck and try to relax. Today, I was gifted a flash of color. Two seconds of bright orange and then they were gone. Two Baltimore Oreos playfully flew by and flashed their colors to brighten my day. Then I spotted high in a tree, a hummingbird. A dot of wonder above my head was preening its feathers. How can I be sad after nature sends me its glory in the morning?

The Pandemic is still here. Life, new life is now the way we live. Masks in hand, we proceed to shop for our weekly groceries. This coming week, I am attending a zoom baby shower for a friend. It all seems normal and familiar now. 

We changed our Seine River trip for the third time yesterday. First it was May 2020, then September 2020, and now September 2021. There is no sadness, just a longing to be somewhere else, doing things we have never done. 

Day by day, we are falling into a rhythm. Jigsaw puzzles online, reading the virtual Washington Post, and visiting with my familiar animal world in my backyard. Step by step, it feels like the new normal.

I bought flowers yesterday, to brighten up the house. Something new in our home. A flash of color to greet us in the morning while we drink our coffee.  

I long for my old life, but, know that with this is my new life. Time to smell the roses.

 

May I be Quiet and Listen

 may i be quiet and listen

Thought for the day. After doing my yoga exercises, I realised how nice the world would be if everyone became silent. Silent and just listened. How easy would that be. It has always be a puzzle to me why so many people talk and talk but never listen. How can they learn about their friends and neighbors? How can then learn about their sister's, nieces, and cousins, brothers, and uncles or even lovers and friends.

Time for listening  to others. We all need to be able to talk and share a conversation. But 

remember that conversation is a two way process. Talk less and listen more. It is not hard. It is a kind way to communicate. Don't hog the conversation. 

My Mom

 

My mother when she was a small, weak elderly woman would ask to hold my hand. She would look down at my hands. Hands that never saw a manicure, arthritic hands, hands that worked hard. She would look up to me and say "Your hands are so strong, theses are hands that do work. I love these hands."

My mother had beautiful handwriting before her arthritis ruined her fingers and hands. I found this postcard which she wrote her notes on glaciers many years ago. It was wonderful to find a piece of her so many years after her death. She was a curious person. Always trying to figure out how machines work, or how to fix chipped champagne glasses. She knew that my father was not clever in these ways. She would watch his frustration on not fixing something. She left him alone to his agony. When he walked away from this project. She would sit down and think for abit. She would turn the item over, look at all the pieces. Then she would fix it. Put it away and days later, My father would be shocked to see it fixed and he would thank her. She would smile and know she saved the day for him and did not embrasse him. She was a kind and loving wife.

Carry On Sweet Girl And See the New Normal as Normal.

 Yesterday's jig saw puzzle that I completed  online. So pretty and meditational. It makes me want to fly away with this swallow tail butterfly. The butterflies in our yard have been spare this summer. We did have a swallow tail yesterday visit our gardens. The weather, the birds, flowers, and animals are off their schedules this strange summer of 2020. 

I have learnt to be more patient, quiet, and self dependent during this pandemic. There is little need to purchase things. We do purchase groceries, wine, and such. Clothing is on the bottom of the list. I don't dress in anything but hawaiian shirts,t shirts and shorts. Sock and shoes are very optional. I do wear my french knot sun hat hat outside. Most days, I just wear my summer bathrobe that is a blue and white kimono with butterflies on it. It is cool, collected,  and comfy.

I also have learnt about the friends that matter most to me. The ones who make me laugh, think, and are extremely kind.

We eat pretty simple foods. Lots of salads, lots of fruit smoothies with yogurt and lots of fish and other proteins. 

I have been practicing different manuel settings on my camera. I shoot less, throw out more and keep the best results. I am happy with what I shot. Mostly everything I shot is local. Very local. Why travel when it is safe, and beautiful in my own back yard.

My Yoga teacher has encouraged me to self practice yoga at home. I have blended some of my old back exercises but, do mostly yoga on my back and I am working on making my belly strong and small.

I am happier lately. The dark days of early self quarantine have passed. I take joy in nature all day long. 

So I carry on with my masks. and six feet apart and no museums, no trips and no real restaurant experiences.  I carry on with loving who I am and improving my health and my back. I carry on forward...what else is there to do?

Ice Cream is my sweet dream

Ice cream has always been my go to....when I was unhappy. As a child, I remember sneaking downstairs to have a private ice cream fest. I can remember ice cream at Howard Johnson's with my  New York cousins who were visiting us. I was pretty young and I picked a new flavor....Strawberry.

I started to eat it until I my tongue rain into a frozen and hard strawberry. My dear cousin saw my disappointment and was kind enough to switch cones...back to safe chocolate.

I love eating ice cream cones outside when the temperature is hot, hot, hot. The melted ice cream cools my mouth and soothes my soul.

Over the years, I have gone from plain ice cream to brands with funny names and funny flavors. But, I always come back to chocolate. 

Summer ain't summer with out ice cream.....just saying

Note To My Back (if you are listening)

Above is my sister's birthday present. It is a perfect mug for coffee  in the morning with attitude.

Hello to my back. This is just an update for you. I have been doing the Pt. exercises now for months and my body is no stronger than when I started. I have now stop medical marijuana for over 2 months. i think the smoke fools my body that it is working at relaxing me. I want it to relax on its own. MJ does work will for the pain.  

My Yoga teacher has been doing zoom during the pandemic. I tried one class and it just was not the same as a real sesson. She started doing Outdoor Yoga at the Atkinson Common in Newburyport. A beautiful setting. Complete with a civil  war statue, fountain, ancient trees and open greens.  My back hurt the next day, but my body came alive again. The dormant muscles woke up, and gently stretched. Oh what a good feeling. 

I try to love this 70 plus old body filled with arthritis. But arthritis give no advance warning to the pain, and I try to be alone with the pain. So, I self isolate and this was going on way before this Pandemic. 

Then, I get depressed, then my pain get worse. Then I tend to curl up and sleep. This is my routine. I know this is not good. 

I used to enjoy biking to Newburyport and go to small streets and check out people's gardens and the fabulous architecture of first period homes. Two years ago, I was stopped drinking water near the Newbury Upper Green, and I fell over. How can you fall over when you are stopped on a bike. One year ago, I dusted the bike of and started to go to Newburyport. I go only to Green Street, ten minutes from my house. I was tired, I needed to rest, the hills had exhausted me. So I stood with my bike between my legs and  rested. Again, my body collapsed and I crashed to the street, lost my breathe, and had the bike on top of me. I was bleeding on my knee and elbows. I wiped off the blood and continued to ride for five minutes, when I stopped my bike and sat on a rock and rested. I must have looked very pathetic as, a few bikers stopped me to see if I need help. So, since that time I lost my love for racing through a beautiful city and enjoying its splendor.

Well, I have not been on my bike since. My back has been bad, my body has been screaming at me.

I wake up in the morning, and I walk slowly down stair with a body that creaks, pops,  and hursts.

So seeing my husband go out biking is hard. It reminds me of the wind in my face, and joys of biking.

I try to walk. My left foot is a mess and by the time I finish, my body is finished for the day. I started having shots in my back. This has really helped the arthritis in my back. Oh, it is a miracle. But,

it only lasts for a few months and then, yes, then the reality of my arthritis comes back.

So, today is a red letter day. I took the advice of  Chris, my yoga teacher. She showed me safe ways to do more yoga moves on my back. Came home sore, but, a good sore.  Today, I did not do my PT exercises, but, did some modified yoga. Damn, I feel alive now. My body , my mind, my back will all agree,,,,this worked.

Chris is a fine teacher, she is kind, gentle and so intelligent. I send her namastes  today for her kindness and for being in my life.