They claim tonight's full moon will be a super moon event as the moon is the closest it gets to the earth in 18 years. So those of you younger than 18, this will be your first event... I wondered why my dreams last night were more intense than normal and expect I will have the same thing occur tonight.
I leave on Monday for Mérida, Mexico for a week. The Internet access will be sporadic while I am down there, so it's doubtful I will be posting any blogs for that length of time. But, hopefully when I get back on-line after the 28th, I will have new tales of Mexico to relate. I plan to visit some Mayan ruins, go to Progreso and Celestun, both on the Gulf of Mexico, do some archaeological research at the big museum in Mérida for my book, eat some good food and drink some cold beers.
I'll soak up some sun and heat and get to avoid mud season for a week :) Have a good one!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
March 18, 2011--Mud season, March madness...
Mud season has arrived in a flash. Two days ago it was snowing and today, cars were bottoming out on the road. We are faced with three options for the next couple of weeks: 1) using the truck and mud running the road when we need to get in and out, usually with the groceries and/or gasoline for the generator, 2) only using the car in the early morning or late at night when the road is somewhat frozen, 3) parking at the top of the hill and walking in 1.5 miles to the house, which requires two sets of shoes--mud boots for the walk and regular shoes for use in the car, around town etc.
It is also March madness and since I live with a huge basketball fan, especially of women's college basketball, the next couple of weeks will find me alone on the computer while one game after another is seen on the television.
I don't mind either situation...they are both signs that spring is definitely on the way, that we have survived the worst of this winter, that the wood did hold out (just barely), that the sap will continue to flow for another couple of weeks.
There are a couple of things I do mind, though: 1) is that my winter's exercise program has not yielded as rapid results as I would like which means I either have to up my efforts even more, cut back on a bit more food once again, or both if I am to make it into the bathing suit I want to wear in HI in June, and 2)suddenly, it feels like winter went by too quickly as I look around at the list of things I wanted to do this winter and still haven't done, like the photos waiting to go into albums.
Oh well, maybe during the long, lazy evenings of summer those will get checked off. In the meantime, I must haul out the mud boots, find the lighter weight jackets, and take the down comforter off the bed.
It is also March madness and since I live with a huge basketball fan, especially of women's college basketball, the next couple of weeks will find me alone on the computer while one game after another is seen on the television.
I don't mind either situation...they are both signs that spring is definitely on the way, that we have survived the worst of this winter, that the wood did hold out (just barely), that the sap will continue to flow for another couple of weeks.
There are a couple of things I do mind, though: 1) is that my winter's exercise program has not yielded as rapid results as I would like which means I either have to up my efforts even more, cut back on a bit more food once again, or both if I am to make it into the bathing suit I want to wear in HI in June, and 2)suddenly, it feels like winter went by too quickly as I look around at the list of things I wanted to do this winter and still haven't done, like the photos waiting to go into albums.
Oh well, maybe during the long, lazy evenings of summer those will get checked off. In the meantime, I must haul out the mud boots, find the lighter weight jackets, and take the down comforter off the bed.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
March 17, 2011--Happy St. Patrick's Day..
Happy St. Patrick's Day to all my Irish friends and Happy Birthday to my son, Johann, who is 19 today.
Just a quick posting tonight as it has been a long day of waiting at the hospital while my husband had a routine colonoscopy--not the best way to spend this lovely spring day but the sap ran well and I collected about 24 gallons tonight which is a nice start towards a boiling.
It being St. Paddy's Day and all I thought I would list a few of my favorite Irish books, two of which I bought while in Ireland with my dear friend, Dodie. We spent a week traveling in Ireland together, visiting her relatives and staying in bed and breakfasts. We had some hilarious moments while lost in the Barrens and a scary moment when we first arrived, exited the Shannon airport in our rental car and found ourselves going the wrong way in a roundabout. It was up onto the sidewalk in a flash. I remember I quickly sketched a big "L" for "learner" on the cardboard backing of a yellow legal pad and propped it up in the back window which instantly stopped future honking when we went the wrong way.
Now for the books:
The Best of John B. Keane: Collected Humorous Writings
An Old Woman's reflections: The Life of a Blasket Island Storyteller by Peig Sayers
and Whoredom in Kimmage: Irish Women Coming of Age by Rosemary Mahoney
There are others, but they are lost on our numerous bookcases and I'm too weary to look but these three give a good taste of Ireland to any who are curious.
And here's a blessing by St Patrick himself:
"May no demons, no ill, no calamity or terrifying dreams
Disturb our rest, our willing, prompt repose..."
Just a quick posting tonight as it has been a long day of waiting at the hospital while my husband had a routine colonoscopy--not the best way to spend this lovely spring day but the sap ran well and I collected about 24 gallons tonight which is a nice start towards a boiling.
It being St. Paddy's Day and all I thought I would list a few of my favorite Irish books, two of which I bought while in Ireland with my dear friend, Dodie. We spent a week traveling in Ireland together, visiting her relatives and staying in bed and breakfasts. We had some hilarious moments while lost in the Barrens and a scary moment when we first arrived, exited the Shannon airport in our rental car and found ourselves going the wrong way in a roundabout. It was up onto the sidewalk in a flash. I remember I quickly sketched a big "L" for "learner" on the cardboard backing of a yellow legal pad and propped it up in the back window which instantly stopped future honking when we went the wrong way.
Now for the books:
The Best of John B. Keane: Collected Humorous Writings
An Old Woman's reflections: The Life of a Blasket Island Storyteller by Peig Sayers
and Whoredom in Kimmage: Irish Women Coming of Age by Rosemary Mahoney
There are others, but they are lost on our numerous bookcases and I'm too weary to look but these three give a good taste of Ireland to any who are curious.
And here's a blessing by St Patrick himself:
"May no demons, no ill, no calamity or terrifying dreams
Disturb our rest, our willing, prompt repose..."
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
March 16, 2011--Gloomy but better...
Yesterday's bleakness did eventually dissolve into a quiet crying jag while comfortably ensconced in bed, tucked up tight against my husband's slightly sweaty smelling shoulder. The need for fresher air helped pull me out of the hiccupy, raggedy breath stage and into a calmer state of mind. Today has just been gloomy but mainly due to the snow that persisted in falling most of the day instead of the forecasted rain.
The news has not improved, if anything more child abuse cases on the web make me wonder about the sanity of the human race. Are there just too many of us rats in this cage at this point? Do people prey on the young and the helpless when extremely stressed? If that's the case, then I hate to think what the world will be like in another thirty years. I could foreseeably still be around to see what that world is like and the thought does not thrill me if the current state of the world is any indication of that future.
The evening news is full of increasing fears of a nuclear meltdown in Japan and the potential for one in this country if an earthquake should hit anywhere near one of our plants. We, as a race, have created a monster wearing a mask with nuclear power--the smiling servant serves us well, providing affordable power until something goes wrong and then the mask is removed, revealing the true beastie that it is, one that we really don't know how to tame.
Here's to hoping that tomorrow is better for everyone.
The news has not improved, if anything more child abuse cases on the web make me wonder about the sanity of the human race. Are there just too many of us rats in this cage at this point? Do people prey on the young and the helpless when extremely stressed? If that's the case, then I hate to think what the world will be like in another thirty years. I could foreseeably still be around to see what that world is like and the thought does not thrill me if the current state of the world is any indication of that future.
The evening news is full of increasing fears of a nuclear meltdown in Japan and the potential for one in this country if an earthquake should hit anywhere near one of our plants. We, as a race, have created a monster wearing a mask with nuclear power--the smiling servant serves us well, providing affordable power until something goes wrong and then the mask is removed, revealing the true beastie that it is, one that we really don't know how to tame.
Here's to hoping that tomorrow is better for everyone.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
March 15, 2011--Bleakness inside...
Today was a beautiful, warm, sunny day and all I've wanted to do is cry. I feel such an emptiness, a bleakness inside. I think the daily news of Japan, the relentless pictures and videos that I've seen on the news, through my job, reading tweets and blogs and instant news results is taking its toll on my soul. I can't imagine how the Japanese, forced to live with the horror, are managing to survive.
And, it's not just Japan, but the rising oil and gas prices, the ever so slowly changing economy, the horror stories in the local paper and on the Internet of child abuse, child porn, rapes, and murders of women in foreign lands. I wonder how the sun can shine so brightly, the breeze feel so good on my skin when these atrocities are being committed on a daily and hourly basis. I wonder what has happened to man's basic humanity, how women can turn and abuse their own children... It sickens me to see the headlines of the rising number of child porn cases and abuse in the news. I think, how can anyone hurt a child like that and more importantly, why would anyone want to hurt a child like that?
I feel such sadness today. My body wants to curl up someplace warm, dark, and safe and cry for all those who can't. It is a powerful urge, primal, as if Mother Earth herself is commanding me to let loose a flood of tears; it's not an option not to cry....
And, it's not just Japan, but the rising oil and gas prices, the ever so slowly changing economy, the horror stories in the local paper and on the Internet of child abuse, child porn, rapes, and murders of women in foreign lands. I wonder how the sun can shine so brightly, the breeze feel so good on my skin when these atrocities are being committed on a daily and hourly basis. I wonder what has happened to man's basic humanity, how women can turn and abuse their own children... It sickens me to see the headlines of the rising number of child porn cases and abuse in the news. I think, how can anyone hurt a child like that and more importantly, why would anyone want to hurt a child like that?
I feel such sadness today. My body wants to curl up someplace warm, dark, and safe and cry for all those who can't. It is a powerful urge, primal, as if Mother Earth herself is commanding me to let loose a flood of tears; it's not an option not to cry....
Saturday, March 12, 2011
March 12, 2011--Gloomy outside, colorful inside....
I know painting walls is best done when the weather is dry outside, but since my son, Yule, decided to fix some of the poor mud/tape job that we did years ago in the bathroom, we have reached the stage of having to paint or look at joint compound for the next several days. Since we are all tired of having everything from the bathroom scattered about the rest of the house, we opted to paint despite the rainy, foggy weather.
It's been gloomy outside for days but the bathroom is a cheery lilac/dusty rose purple which reminds me of spring flowers, warmer weather,and better days ahead.
After the devastation in Japan, Hawaii, and along the West coast, it seems a very small triumph to know I can put my bathroom back in order when there are people with no homes at all now...but it will be nice to make some order out of the chaos in this house and to rearrange things in the room so that it works more efficiently.
Since the bathroom is being renewed, I now want to move into other parts of the house that have been unfinished for years. The trouble with owner-built homes is that you need a place to live so as soon as the basic structure is done, you move into the space you've just built, even if it isn't finished, This results in years going by before some things actually reach the finished stage. I am eager for the snow to melt, so we can use the truck to get flooring and cover up the old floor that sheds splinters at every step and more sheet rock to cover some of the insulation on the ceiling. Then, it will be nice to pick out other bright colors of paint to add to the walls, colors bright enough to dissipate the gloom of any rainy, muddy springs in the future.
It's been gloomy outside for days but the bathroom is a cheery lilac/dusty rose purple which reminds me of spring flowers, warmer weather,and better days ahead.
After the devastation in Japan, Hawaii, and along the West coast, it seems a very small triumph to know I can put my bathroom back in order when there are people with no homes at all now...but it will be nice to make some order out of the chaos in this house and to rearrange things in the room so that it works more efficiently.
Since the bathroom is being renewed, I now want to move into other parts of the house that have been unfinished for years. The trouble with owner-built homes is that you need a place to live so as soon as the basic structure is done, you move into the space you've just built, even if it isn't finished, This results in years going by before some things actually reach the finished stage. I am eager for the snow to melt, so we can use the truck to get flooring and cover up the old floor that sheds splinters at every step and more sheet rock to cover some of the insulation on the ceiling. Then, it will be nice to pick out other bright colors of paint to add to the walls, colors bright enough to dissipate the gloom of any rainy, muddy springs in the future.
Friday, March 11, 2011
March 11, 2011--Earthquakes and tsunamis and heavy rain....
What is happening to the Earth? Today we woke to the news of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, followed by the threat of the tsunami in Hawaii, where my son lives. I immediately turned on the television and the computer to get any and all coverage of the unfolding stories. Watching the videos of the tsunami in Japan only heightened my anxiety for my son in Oahu. I called him twice and finally got a return call about fifteen minutes after my second one to him. He was attempting to sleep in his girlfriend's apartment on the 13th floor of a building near Waikiki and assured me he was safe and he was going back to sleep. So, I watched the water surge forward and suck back like some strange water breathing alien for the next several hours on the live stream video from Hawaii News Now. It was creepy to see the reef get exposed off of Diamond Head, reef that has never been exposed suddenly empty of water. I think it was even more creepy and odd since it was still dark and only parts of the water and reef were visible due to some floodlights a house owner had turned on to shine on the beach. I kept wondering when the mega wave was going to appear on the right side of my computer screen, but am glad that it never happened.
I think about the recent earthquakes in the past couple of years: Haiti, Chile, New Zealand, Japan and wonder where the next one will hit. I think it will be CA, as they are overdue for a big quake and it seems the whole Pacific Rim is active at this point.
I am grateful the damage in HI was relatively small, no lives lost and am sad to see the videos of the destruction in Japan--I wish those people all the best.
I think about the recent earthquakes in the past couple of years: Haiti, Chile, New Zealand, Japan and wonder where the next one will hit. I think it will be CA, as they are overdue for a big quake and it seems the whole Pacific Rim is active at this point.
I am grateful the damage in HI was relatively small, no lives lost and am sad to see the videos of the destruction in Japan--I wish those people all the best.
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