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Me in front of Coleman Glacier on Heliotrope Ridge |
Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance. —Confucius
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Wildflowers on Skyline Divide |
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Me in front of Coleman Glacier on Heliotrope Ridge |
Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance. —Confucius
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Wildflowers on Skyline Divide |
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Peering into its purple depths |
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Mt Baker from Skyline Divide |
I don't want to sound like a Hallmark card, but to be able to wake up each day with food and shelter, that alone is good. Forget aging and the fact that my butt is becoming a little more familiar with my knees than my tailbone. If you are six feet above ground it's a good day. So, give me more! —Faith Hill
It's a good quote, even if Faith is only in her fifties. She has the right attitude, and that is worth a great deal. It would be nice to see how she might fare as an octogenarian, but I won't be around to find out. Some time in the next decade or so I will be happy to lie down on my comfortable bed, surrounded by loved ones, and breathe my last. It's what happens to all of us eventually, and it shouldn't be resisted, in my mind at least. Just go with the flow, right?
Cultivating an "attitude of gratitude" is what I am focusing on right now, today, tomorrow, and in the coming days, weeks, and years. This past week I received an acupuncture treatment and a wonderful massage. I am doing incredibly well but realize that it's all temporary, and finding myself grateful for that realization, too. It makes every moment a precious one, worth paying attention to and giving thanks from the bottom of my heart.
My dear sweet partner still sleeps next to me and John will arrive shortly to take me out for our Sunday breakfast. I'll come home and go out for a lovely walk in the cool of the morning and then retreat into the comfort of my home and spend some time holding the hand of my beloved. Until we meet again, dear friends, I wish you all good things. Be well.
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Foxgloves galore |
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This is Sherlock |
Octopuses are ranked as the most intelligent invertebrates. Giant Pacific octopuses are commonly kept on display at aquariums due to their size and interesting physiology, and have demonstrated the ability to recognize humans with whom they frequently come in contact. These responses include jetting water, changing body texture, and other behaviors that are consistently demonstrated to specific individuals. They have the ability to solve simple puzzles, open childproof bottles, and use tools. The octopus brain has folded lobes (a distinct characteristic of complexity) and visual and tactile memory centers. They have about 300 million neurons. They have been known to open tank valves, disassemble expensive equipment, and generally wreak havoc in labs and aquaria. Some researchers even claim that they are capable of motor play and having personalities.
I think I will re-watch it myself, having just been introduced to Sherlock and enjoying learning so much more about the species. It is also one way I have found to give myself some positive input so that I can think about life with a more inclusive perspective. That, and looking every day at the Astronomy Picture of the Day. Today's selection shows rainbow-colored clouds at sunset over Sweden.
The world is filled with wonders, and every time I lift my head and look out at what surrounds me, I am grateful. I am also grateful that, even if my sight is compromised, I can still see well enough to read and write, even if it is limited and not perfect. It's so much better than I feared, and fortunately there is some treatment to slow the progression. I get my next eye jab in August. Summer has arrived in this part of the world, too. We are under a heat advisory until late Tuesday, with our temperature expecting to reach almost 90°F. I know that sounds pretty lame to those of you experiencing triple digits every day, but for us it's, well, hot. We are in the Pacific Northwest and only occasionally see it get this hot. Homes rarely have air conditioning, but the stores and coffee shops do, thank goodness.
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Steve took this yesterday |
Steve asked me to take off my hat and sunglasses, but I couldn't bear the bright sun on my delicate eyes; I did take off the hat at least. Standing in front of the ice machine also made me feel a bit cooler, just seeing the sign was a reminder that ICE is not so far away.
I do hope you will find a way to stay rather comfortable during this heat wave, which is covering most of the country right now. And I also wish you might find your own way to happiness and contentment. It's there, if you look for it. I know I will be staying indoors in A/C for most of the really hot days. Until we meet again next week, I truly hope you will discover your serenity. I will be looking for mine and being good to myself. Be well, dear friends.
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Daisies, stuffed mouse, and me |
Fledgling crows can take 1-2 weeks to learn to fly and self-feed with the help of their parents. In fact, young fledgling crows will spend approximately one to two weeks on the ground as they go through this essential learning process with their parents. (Wikipedia)
Well, that explains the crows I see walking around on lawns, and the plaintive cry of what looks like a full-sized crow begging another one for food. It's simply a baby learning how to be a crow. The entire corvid family of birds are extremely intelligent and well adapted to urban environments. They include blue jays, ravens, and crows of every sort. Maybe I should take up birding. So many things to explore and learn about in my old age, but I think maybe it would help to have better eyesight than mine. Fortunately, much of what there is to learn is available audibly. And thanks to my trusty hearing aids, I can hear everything. And then some. The only problem I have with them is that ambient sounds are often too loud, like when I'm traveling in a car and trying to have a conversation with someone. The noise of the car can be a problem. There are downsides to all our helpful devices, it seems. But it sure is nice to have them, I'm not really complaining.
What else is going on in my busy mind? Oh yes, there is the problem of not being able to think of a word that is right on the tip of my tongue. Yesterday I couldn't think of the name of the app on my phone that allows me to navigate to places I don't know how to get to. You know, the Google Maps app. I tried so hard to think of it as I was talking on the phone, but it just wouldn't come. Now I begin to understand when someone uses a word that doesn't quite fit. It's called anomia.
Word-finding difficulty, also known as anomia or word-retrieval difficulty, is a common experience that can affect people of all ages. It can feel like the "tip-of-the-tongue" sensation and can be made worse by certain emotions or lack of sleep. However, if the difficulty becomes persistent or severe, it could be a sign of a more serious condition.
Yes, I have experienced this many times, but somehow becoming an octogenarian has increased the frequency of my frustration with finding the right words. I am unused to it and hope it doesn't get any worse. Do you have the same problem? I wonder.
That pretty much describes the week I just had. This is the last day of the month, and July's heat will soon make me try everything I can to keep cool. Fortunately, we don't live in one of those parts of the country where it gets super hot. I couldn't deal with it very well. We don't have or need air conditioning at the moment; fans do the trick, but it sure looks like the world is getting much warmer. That's another thing I probably won't live long enough to be inconvenienced by. But who knows what lies ahead?
Well, this turned out to be a rambling post, going nowhere in particular, but simply a chronicle of my week. The good part of my day today, after breakfast with John, is getting to know Alice better. I'll probably take a walk at some point, and I am determined to enjoy every moment of the coming week. My dear partner still sleeps next to me, and I hear the birds incessantly chirping outside, and life is good. I do hope that you will enjoy your week ahead, too. Until we meet again next week, I wish you all good things.
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Fifteen years ago |
Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness. —Desmond Tutu
When I think about how so many innocent people in the world today are facing dire straits, through no fault of their own, I teeter on the edge of despair. And then I remember what the enlightened among us, like Desmond Tutu, remind me: there is light despite all of the darkness. It matters where I place my attention, and so today I will make an effort to think only positive thoughts, surround myself with only positive energy, and remind myself that I am one of the lucky ones: I can pick and choose what I will make of today and who I will spend it with. And just like that, I can feel gratitude beginning to surface in my heart, and as the light grows in the sky outdoors, I can feel it taking shape all around me.
My dear friends, I hope that today, and this coming week, will bring you all that you desire, and that you will also surround yourself with positive energy. It's there if we just look for it. Until we meet again next week, be well.
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Sitting in the feathered seat |
If there is any immortality to be had among us human beings, it is certainly only in the love that we leave behind. Fathers like mine don't ever die. —Leo Buscaglia
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Low tide at harbor (Steve's picture) |
Your destiny is to fulfill those things upon which you focus most intently. So choose to keep your focus on that which is truly magnificent, beautiful, uplifting and joyful. Your life is always moving toward something. —Ralph Marston
Although it's hard to see in that picture, the tide in the harbor was lower than I had ever seen it. We've been having what is called a "spring tide," which occurs during full moons and new moons. (It has nothing to do with it being springtime, they occur year round.) During spring tides, the high and low tides are more extreme. This has been going on all the time, but I only recently (like yesterday) noticed how far out the beach continued in the harbor. People who live near the coast usually already know about tides.
I remember years ago, when I lived in California and decided to hitchhike down the coast to get to Big Sur. Since I was living at that time in Sacramento, it was not a long ways to go, a few hours ride in a car, and I had no fear of hitchhiking back in those days. I was a young and not-too-bright hippie who never thought anything could happen to her. One driver gave me a ride to the coast not too far from Big Sur, and I decided to camp out on the beach.
I had a small backpack with a sleeping bag and some clothes, and I found a lovely place in the warm sand to set up my makeshift camp. I snuggled into the bag and fell asleep, only to be awakened in the middle of the night by the tide coming in, and suddenly I was surrounded by water! I didn't know anything about tides, but I found a rock that jutted out above the beach and scrambled onto it. There was nothing to do, nowhere to go, just stay there until the tide receded. That was my first adventure with tides, and I soon learned that they rise and fall twice a day. Bellingham is located at 48.75 North Latitude, near the Canadian border. It also means that our tides are higher and lower at this distance from the equator.
When I was sitting on that rock, surrounded by water, I watched a seal playing nearby. He was so at home there and seemed to realize that I was not a threat to him, but instead found me to be a captive audience. That seal lives on in my memory of that fateful day. Once the tide receded, I packed up, walked to the highway and hitched the rest of the way to Big Sur. It was something I never forgot, and now that I am living in a coastal city, I am much more aware of the vast ocean at my doorstep and its characteristics.