Thanks Pennie! Did you find any inspiration? When shopping for annuals, I like to look at a greenhouse's "show pots". Then I buy the parts and assemble them to my own preferences. :)
I don't know if I found any inspiration but I am grateful that I don't work in retail anymore. You would have thought it was the weekend or Christmas with all the women that were out shopping.
T-shirt: “Karma is like a rubber band. It can only be stretched so far before it comes back and smacks you in the face.” 😁
Feeding my growth? Oh dear! Ummmm... I'm working on our church website, does that count?
Okay, actually I'm working on questions for a meeting about the church website tonight, that I can't attend in person because I popped positive with COVID the day after getting back from our Alaska vacation, so I'll be there via Zoom.
OK OK, I'm sitting in our porch next to my wife, sipping gourmet tea, listening to our backyard stream gurgle away, getting distracted by birds, animals, and the occasional email, while trying to think of website questions.
Got it! I'm letting my body recover its health while having my mind rediscover underlying creative paths... day dreaming, IOW.
Jack! Thank you for your comment which sent me down a well of thoughtful consideration and pondering -- going deeper into my (and the muses) why. I will try to tackle with grace in today's 3mm.
For everything there is a season? Something about yesterday's letter was like a pebble in my shoe after (before even?) I hit publish. I've been trying to find it in my sock.
Oh! Covid... Are you feeling okay friend?
IOW -- Military acronym for Information Operations Warfare?
Ha! Love your last question. That's exactly how my mind works. 😂
LOL! Many years ago, Gary, my wife remarked it would be really neat if we had a stream in our backyard (not counting the short-lived but occasionally destructive ones we got during summer downpours), to which I said Sure, honey, somebody can just build a stream in a backyard, no problem. 🙄 Then about seven years ago we went to a home improvement show where... somebody had built a stream. With waterfalls. In a convention center. Using pumps. So... huh. They can do that, now. 😳
"Building a stream" turned into "rebuilding the backyard" and "diverting those #@^*! summer gully washers" and for the last few years we have enjoyed a beautiful backyard with seven (short) waterfalls and red bud trees and towering maples and flowers and... anyway, having retired just before COVID started, it's been a delightful place for Deb and me to hang and relax.
Today's wisdom from Saint Exupery: "Constrain them to join in building a tower and you shall make them like brothers. But if you would have them hate each other, throw food amongst them."
I remember some “in progress” photos. Likely near the end of my “active” Medium days. These days, medium active is a good catch all term for my days. Sounds like an oasis of sorts. Thanks.
And the winner of the “Philosopher du jour” prize is (not surprisingly) Gail! I liked your determination to lift the lid on what might hold you back from jumping into the tree project. Some days those types of feelings & thoughts can become a millstone. As I’m not a paintist, drawist, typist, and on a good day maybe a thinkist, I’d be out in the flower beds!
A friend used to say, “I used to think I was a perfectionist, but later learned I just wanted to look like one!” I, as a young’un, thought that a brief period of practice would bestow extraordinary skills. “Why can’t I throw a ringer every toss of the horseshoe? Why am I not first clarinet now? Why can’t I cast my lure exactly where that fish just jumped? Why, why, why?” My friend was right.
You’ve remarked that one goal is to develop distinct personas and “looks” for the Muses, should they at a later point decide to strike out on their own. No pressure there, huh? So the critical self-talk can arise from any and every aspect of this undertaking. The idea of saying to myself, “I’m not doing very well right now. I need to polish this skill with some well refined searches?” is not second nature for me. I struggle getting past the implied fact that I’m lame at whatever has me stymied. The critical parent easily becomes the critical self with age?
But without such challenges, to acquire and refine new skills, staying stuck in the flower beds does little to fertilize our minds and whet our interests. So thanks for once again living out loud and sharing your journey! Let Nia know Tal might need to shed some locks to make her look bigger!
Well, today between runs I was in the garden. All I needed to do was send my Dad out for mulch. Most of you don’t know my story but here’s it in a nutshell.
I moved from Amagansett and the beach to the Catskills and the mountains to take care of my Dad when he was going to be 80. Tomorrow he turns 87. My Dad is my errand guy. Got an errand? Give him a list and he’s out the door like he’s on fire!
Home Depot had a huge sale on mulch and after I weeded the garden beds and planted more flowers it was a high priority for me. So today in between the day job I used all 10 bags of mulch in the beds. Plus I had 4 bags of bark that needed a home which I found. Now that all that plastic is in the recycle bin, it’s time for bed.
I too have a terrible time finishing projects. And because I know that about myself I just force myself ti finish what I start without an excuse. Oh and I have an excuse for everything. Like todays would have been I don’t have time to drive to Oneonta, or my car is too small or the sale is tomorrow, and the next day day too, or the weeds couldn’t possibly grow that fast again... you get the drift. But I must say the shear reward was the sense of accomplishment. Knowing that my plants will now have all the moisture they need to grow into beautiful flowers for the season. Considering I grew all of these from seeds, watching them thrive this summer will be my reward.
I LOVE the tree... with each of the muses doing their own thing in their own little worlds together.
Thank you for sharing your story-in-a-nutshell! I love that your father is still running errands. 💜 Go Dad! I'm hoping to get our strawberry picking with my 86 year old dad in June.
Excuses... like mousetraps. So often I try to dash in and grab the peanut and get stuck -- not dead, but sometimes the project is! 😂
I'm happy with the tree concept and the muses... maybe not for a shirt. As I said to Gary, shirt design is better kept simple I'm learning.
I'm not sure where else I can use the design... yet! :)
I fed my growth today by taking the afternoon off and browsed the stores. It's been a while. Love the drawing.
Thanks Pennie! Did you find any inspiration? When shopping for annuals, I like to look at a greenhouse's "show pots". Then I buy the parts and assemble them to my own preferences. :)
I don't know if I found any inspiration but I am grateful that I don't work in retail anymore. You would have thought it was the weekend or Christmas with all the women that were out shopping.
Haha!
Reminds me of my distress at Custer State Park… admiring the buffalo herds surrounded by tourists who I wished could disappear.
They were likely thinking the same thing about me! 😂
I worked retail for a short 6 weeks — a garden center in spring. It’s not a good memory.
Yeah working retail can be rough sometimes. I managed for about 8 years and just couldn't do it anymore. Love the buffalo analogy.
T-shirt: “Karma is like a rubber band. It can only be stretched so far before it comes back and smacks you in the face.” 😁
Feeding my growth? Oh dear! Ummmm... I'm working on our church website, does that count?
Okay, actually I'm working on questions for a meeting about the church website tonight, that I can't attend in person because I popped positive with COVID the day after getting back from our Alaska vacation, so I'll be there via Zoom.
OK OK, I'm sitting in our porch next to my wife, sipping gourmet tea, listening to our backyard stream gurgle away, getting distracted by birds, animals, and the occasional email, while trying to think of website questions.
Got it! I'm letting my body recover its health while having my mind rediscover underlying creative paths... day dreaming, IOW.
I'm sorry, what was the question again?
Jack! Thank you for your comment which sent me down a well of thoughtful consideration and pondering -- going deeper into my (and the muses) why. I will try to tackle with grace in today's 3mm.
For everything there is a season? Something about yesterday's letter was like a pebble in my shoe after (before even?) I hit publish. I've been trying to find it in my sock.
Oh! Covid... Are you feeling okay friend?
IOW -- Military acronym for Information Operations Warfare?
Ha! Love your last question. That's exactly how my mind works. 😂
The stream? Your creation from a spell ago? 🤔
LOL! Many years ago, Gary, my wife remarked it would be really neat if we had a stream in our backyard (not counting the short-lived but occasionally destructive ones we got during summer downpours), to which I said Sure, honey, somebody can just build a stream in a backyard, no problem. 🙄 Then about seven years ago we went to a home improvement show where... somebody had built a stream. With waterfalls. In a convention center. Using pumps. So... huh. They can do that, now. 😳
"Building a stream" turned into "rebuilding the backyard" and "diverting those #@^*! summer gully washers" and for the last few years we have enjoyed a beautiful backyard with seven (short) waterfalls and red bud trees and towering maples and flowers and... anyway, having retired just before COVID started, it's been a delightful place for Deb and me to hang and relax.
I can't include a photo here, but I used a recent photo in a recent post on Medium: https://jherlocker.medium.com/chat-with-deb-back-from-our-alaska-cruise-75a6d596ec7b
Today's wisdom from Saint Exupery: "Constrain them to join in building a tower and you shall make them like brothers. But if you would have them hate each other, throw food amongst them."
I remember some “in progress” photos. Likely near the end of my “active” Medium days. These days, medium active is a good catch all term for my days. Sounds like an oasis of sorts. Thanks.
And the winner of the “Philosopher du jour” prize is (not surprisingly) Gail! I liked your determination to lift the lid on what might hold you back from jumping into the tree project. Some days those types of feelings & thoughts can become a millstone. As I’m not a paintist, drawist, typist, and on a good day maybe a thinkist, I’d be out in the flower beds!
A friend used to say, “I used to think I was a perfectionist, but later learned I just wanted to look like one!” I, as a young’un, thought that a brief period of practice would bestow extraordinary skills. “Why can’t I throw a ringer every toss of the horseshoe? Why am I not first clarinet now? Why can’t I cast my lure exactly where that fish just jumped? Why, why, why?” My friend was right.
You’ve remarked that one goal is to develop distinct personas and “looks” for the Muses, should they at a later point decide to strike out on their own. No pressure there, huh? So the critical self-talk can arise from any and every aspect of this undertaking. The idea of saying to myself, “I’m not doing very well right now. I need to polish this skill with some well refined searches?” is not second nature for me. I struggle getting past the implied fact that I’m lame at whatever has me stymied. The critical parent easily becomes the critical self with age?
But without such challenges, to acquire and refine new skills, staying stuck in the flower beds does little to fertilize our minds and whet our interests. So thanks for once again living out loud and sharing your journey! Let Nia know Tal might need to shed some locks to make her look bigger!
I think I've lifted the lid... it has taken some pause and reflection.
The smallest bit of research tells me that a simple design is best for a t-shirt... and adding color(s) drives up the cost.
Simplify! Simplify! Simplify!
Well, today between runs I was in the garden. All I needed to do was send my Dad out for mulch. Most of you don’t know my story but here’s it in a nutshell.
I moved from Amagansett and the beach to the Catskills and the mountains to take care of my Dad when he was going to be 80. Tomorrow he turns 87. My Dad is my errand guy. Got an errand? Give him a list and he’s out the door like he’s on fire!
Home Depot had a huge sale on mulch and after I weeded the garden beds and planted more flowers it was a high priority for me. So today in between the day job I used all 10 bags of mulch in the beds. Plus I had 4 bags of bark that needed a home which I found. Now that all that plastic is in the recycle bin, it’s time for bed.
I too have a terrible time finishing projects. And because I know that about myself I just force myself ti finish what I start without an excuse. Oh and I have an excuse for everything. Like todays would have been I don’t have time to drive to Oneonta, or my car is too small or the sale is tomorrow, and the next day day too, or the weeds couldn’t possibly grow that fast again... you get the drift. But I must say the shear reward was the sense of accomplishment. Knowing that my plants will now have all the moisture they need to grow into beautiful flowers for the season. Considering I grew all of these from seeds, watching them thrive this summer will be my reward.
I LOVE the tree... with each of the muses doing their own thing in their own little worlds together.
Xoxo
Thank you for sharing your story-in-a-nutshell! I love that your father is still running errands. 💜 Go Dad! I'm hoping to get our strawberry picking with my 86 year old dad in June.
Excuses... like mousetraps. So often I try to dash in and grab the peanut and get stuck -- not dead, but sometimes the project is! 😂
I'm happy with the tree concept and the muses... maybe not for a shirt. As I said to Gary, shirt design is better kept simple I'm learning.
I'm not sure where else I can use the design... yet! :)