I was posting about the Mews reacting to a 4" snowfal, and it brought back memories of snows of year past. Maryland had unusually cold and snowy weather in the late 60s.
I was a Boy Scout in the 60's. And every winter there was a camping expedition of multiple Boy Scout Troops, called "Operation Icicle" because it was held on the last weekend on January each year. In 1965, it was the hardest ever. There was 2 feet of snow on the ground and the actual temperature (F degree) got into negative territory. Looking back, I can see it was a struggle for the Dads to make sure none of us froze to death. At the time, it was the hardest few days of my young life. But we sure learned a LOT about the importance of keeping dry.
It wasn't like you could get your boots filled with snow, run into the house and Mom would take them off and give you hot cocoa... You got cold THERE and you had to work through it. Get into the tent and get into dry clothes. Take the cold clothes to the fire that you had to attend constantly (at least we didn't have to chop down trees to do it (though we DID have to cut the trees into fire-sized logs).
And we had to cook all our meals outside; on fires hot enough to keep a dozen people warm. That's no way to cook. But it was almost all seared meat. I bet we kids were burning up 4,000 calories a day. It was amazing.
We also had a horrible snowstorm in late January 1966. Mom was pregnant and ready to give birth. The snowstorm last 5 days! The snow was 2 feet deep, but the winds had whipped banks of snow covering the first floor windows. You couldn't see out. But the baby decided it was time to see the outside world. There was no way out through the street in front, but the "main road" behind us was plowed slightly. 200' away from the garage. Dad tossed me the warmest coat and handed me one of the 2 snow shovels. "We're digging to the main road: he said, "and we aren't stopping until we're there".
I understood why. It took 3 hours of rather desperate digging, but we had enough of a path for Dad to drive Mom off to the nearest hospital. I collapsed inside; Dad was still working on adrenalin. I took care of the younger kids. There were 7 babies born in Harford county that day. The other 6 mothers were flown to hospitals by helicopter.
And then, in March 1966, we got another major snowstorm of near 2'. This one was loose wind-driven snow and it filled in every spot as levelly as could be. Dad and I shoveled our driveway. I was exhausted. Then he handed back a snowshovel and said "the Johnstons (elderly couple 3 houses away) needed their driveway cleared and don't ask to be paid, it's a Boy Scout Good Deed thing".
So I went and looked. They had a sunken driveway with cinder block walls from the street to the garage. 5 feet deep at the street, 2 feet deep at the top. It took all day. And I could barely move near the top end. Throwing the snow to the top of the driveway wall wasn't enough, because it simply got too high to toss the driveway snow on. I had to shovel it off the top of the wall too just to make room for more driveway snow.
I think I came close to a heart attack at 16 . My heart was pounding like I couldn't believe. But I couldn't go home and say "I gave up". So I finished it. Mrs. Johnston gave me a cup of cocoa. I wish it had been something stronger, but I was only 16 AND a Boy Scout.
But their driveway was clear of snow. And I gad done my Good Deed for the day. I slept deeply that night. And hoping no more Good Deeds came my way for several days.
I survived all those snowy events (obviously)... But I don't mind saying that, to this day, I cringe when there is a lot of snow in the forecast. I learned to hate the stuff. But old habits die hard. When I moved to my house 27 years ago, and elderly lady moved next door. The first heavy snowfall, I shoveled my driveway and then I looked at hers and I just had to go shovel hers too. Once a Boy Scout, always a Boy Scout; I got a quart of homemade chicken soup in return. It was the worst chicken soup I ever ate in my life.
But I sure thanked her for it...
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Trying To Quit Smoking
Well, as the joke goes, "quitting smoking is easy, I've done it 100
times"! It isn't of course. I have quit for months on occasion only to
fall back into it. The saddest time was in the 1980s while on a
camping trip to Canada with my former friend.
On our last day of camping, he was down to his last 2 cigarettes and
said he was quitting and did I want to share 1 of the last 2. I know
now it was astonishingly stupid, but I felt immune immune. It tasted
GREAT!
You know, I've actually wondered since then if my "friend" did that deliberately. At the time, such a thought would never have occurred to me. But these days, I consider the possibility. He DID frequently mention how envious he was that I had quit when he couldn't...
When we got back to the Park convenience shop, he immediately bought a carton of cigarettes. I stole several and smoked them stealthily. We drove back to NY City where he lived at the time (and yes, I had done all the driving in my car). But I had to drive back to MD from NY and I suddenly couldn't face the long boring New Jersey Turnpike without smoking. And there I was smoking again.
I've stopped a few times since then for a few weeks at a time. But then I face a long drive, a stressful event, or a long night at the computer and I give in again. I wish the damn things were illegal. It's just too hard to stop smoking when they are available 24/7 on every street corner.
I'm convinced I'm habituated to the "process" of smoking and not the nicotine. I think that because sometimes I don't light a cigarette for several days at a time and it doesn't bother me. And because I've been "vaping" an e-cigarette for 2 days which provides nicotine but is not in any way psychologically satisfactory.
The e-cigarette is completely unsatisfactory. It's a ceramic rod that is way too heavy, unwieldy, and (in spite of best efforts of designers) just doesn't work like a real cigarette. I admire that it provides nicotine (in gradually reducible amounts), the appearence of smoke (its water vapor), and none of the carcinigens of actual cigarette smoke.
But they just don't quite work yet. They need to be as light as a regular cigarette, have a paperlike feel to the "filter" end, and provide a better fake smoke.
And don't wish me good luck for stopping. Between the 5th and 6th paragraphs, I drove to the nearest convenience store and bought a new carton of real cigarettes... ARGH!!! I just CAN'T be on the computer and not smoke... I need a better fake cigarette.
You know, I've actually wondered since then if my "friend" did that deliberately. At the time, such a thought would never have occurred to me. But these days, I consider the possibility. He DID frequently mention how envious he was that I had quit when he couldn't...
When we got back to the Park convenience shop, he immediately bought a carton of cigarettes. I stole several and smoked them stealthily. We drove back to NY City where he lived at the time (and yes, I had done all the driving in my car). But I had to drive back to MD from NY and I suddenly couldn't face the long boring New Jersey Turnpike without smoking. And there I was smoking again.
I've stopped a few times since then for a few weeks at a time. But then I face a long drive, a stressful event, or a long night at the computer and I give in again. I wish the damn things were illegal. It's just too hard to stop smoking when they are available 24/7 on every street corner.
I'm convinced I'm habituated to the "process" of smoking and not the nicotine. I think that because sometimes I don't light a cigarette for several days at a time and it doesn't bother me. And because I've been "vaping" an e-cigarette for 2 days which provides nicotine but is not in any way psychologically satisfactory.
The e-cigarette is completely unsatisfactory. It's a ceramic rod that is way too heavy, unwieldy, and (in spite of best efforts of designers) just doesn't work like a real cigarette. I admire that it provides nicotine (in gradually reducible amounts), the appearence of smoke (its water vapor), and none of the carcinigens of actual cigarette smoke.
But they just don't quite work yet. They need to be as light as a regular cigarette, have a paperlike feel to the "filter" end, and provide a better fake smoke.
And don't wish me good luck for stopping. Between the 5th and 6th paragraphs, I drove to the nearest convenience store and bought a new carton of real cigarettes... ARGH!!! I just CAN'T be on the computer and not smoke... I need a better fake cigarette.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Happy New Year
Well, I've always thought the new year should begin on the Winter Solstice because the days start lengthening again. Or perhaps the Vernal Equinox because the weather starts getting better. But sometimes I bow to convention.
Happy New Year!
May 2014 be a better year, because quite frankly, sometimes 2013 sucked...
Happy New Year!
May 2014 be a better year, because quite frankly, sometimes 2013 sucked...
Monday, December 30, 2013
Deleting Old Emails and a Rant
Do you ever go through your emails like once a year and delete a lot of them? And feel sad about some?
I did that last night. A lot were routine emails of blog comments. I keep the most meaningful ones. But some were from a friend I had to give up on in early 2011. In a practical sense, some people just change over a few years and you are not really friends anymore. But this was someone I had known since college days 40 years ago.
The break came when he wanted me to drive him to a place with A-rated plywood for his new toy train setup in the basement and carry the plywood into his basement. I have always been helpful to him and done the hard work (he says he has a "bad back" which I have reasons to doubt) watching him do things he enjoys.
But when I sat down and thought about it, I realized that he was asking me to drive my trailer 30 miles to his house, 60 miles to the wood place, 60 miles back to his house, and then 30 miles back to my house. I checked the wood at the place he liked and found it was the same as could be ordered from the local Home Depot. "A" grade is "A" grade. But he would have none of that. He likes the wood store 90 miles away from him.
I mentioned that in an email (I had to mention details in email because he just evades conversational disputes of any sort).
He responded that I was "mean and hurtful and don't contact me anymore". OK, he does this every few years. I usually reply in a way to jolly him out of his unhappiness. He HATES having his plans questioned even when all the work is being done by others.
And my initial reaction was to get him "happified" again. But you know what? This time I didn't. I unloaded the personal shotgun on him. I told him how insensitive he was, how demanding, and how unreasonable he had become over the years and had become worse. I told him that when he needed help around the house and yard, he had me. But when I needed help around the house and yard, I still only had me. He eventually replied "How do we re-engage"? Re-engage? That was "goodbye jerk" and I made that clear. And that's the last I heard from him.
But as I was going through the old emails, I found a few from him still there. I deleted them. A part of my life over. But it also felt sad doing it. The last one I deleted was where he criticized me in return. I paid great attention on to those 6 things a last tine. One was even accurate (I am not really good talking on the telephone). But that was about all he could say.
He complained that I never took him fishing in my boat the last few years. Well he was inept and useless in a boat. You know those cartoons where a person has one foot on the pier and another in the boat and the boat slowly moves away from the pier? He actually did that. And I had to to do all the work unloading and reloading the boat on the trailer every single time. He couldn't.
He tipped over our canoe once leaning way too far over the edge in uplake Canada. When I saw what he was doing I yelled and grabbed for the other side, but 225 pounds beats 160 pounds every time.
After I got the canoe righted and mostly bailed out, I got him back in on one side while I held the other. I then spent an hour going down to feel around for our gear and retrieving what I could. He couldn't because he "couldn't swim well". The water was shallow enough for him (at 6' 4") to stand in). He wouldn't. He didn't have to swim, because *I* could.
And along that line, we had to canoe back 10 miles on the open lake on the last day of our vacation to the camping station when a storm came up. He had no idea what to do. I did. I was in the back of the canoe (of course) and drove the canoe quartering the waves to the lee side of the lake. We hit shore and waited for the storm to pass.
He complained that I wasn't a very "neat" person. OK, My floors weren't fit of to eat from. He used to clean his baseboards once a week and his floors daily. Well, yeah, I'm not like that. I'm pretty sure you can't eat off my floors safely.
He was also angry that my family doesn't have big funeral ceremonies. Never mind that that was none of his business, we just don't do that. The family habit is cremation and no ceremony. You were alive, you are dead, nice to have known you, good life and all of that. My own expectations are the same. Distribute my ashes around the yard, raise a glass of wine in my memory, and history goes on. Glad I was part of it.
And finally, he repeated again that I was "mean". By that, he meant I was honest. I told him what I thought for 40 years, I explained what I meant, and I gave reasons. That was too straightforward and he never liked it, I guess, and I suppose it wore him out over all the years. He considered honesty to be "mean" in that what I said sometimes didn't make him feel good about himself.
He was a constantly annoying person. He never kept a job in one office for more than a few years because he utterly aggravated every co-worker and supervisor he encountered. But he always had a great technical resume, so he could move on. Every place he worked at was "corrupt" and "incompetent". For all I know, he was right, but he never gave much actual evidence of that. I suspect mostly that he was a real "pill" to work with.
So last night, I deleted the last of his emails and went to bed. I slept well. Sometimes, you just have to cut connections.
I did that last night. A lot were routine emails of blog comments. I keep the most meaningful ones. But some were from a friend I had to give up on in early 2011. In a practical sense, some people just change over a few years and you are not really friends anymore. But this was someone I had known since college days 40 years ago.
The break came when he wanted me to drive him to a place with A-rated plywood for his new toy train setup in the basement and carry the plywood into his basement. I have always been helpful to him and done the hard work (he says he has a "bad back" which I have reasons to doubt) watching him do things he enjoys.
But when I sat down and thought about it, I realized that he was asking me to drive my trailer 30 miles to his house, 60 miles to the wood place, 60 miles back to his house, and then 30 miles back to my house. I checked the wood at the place he liked and found it was the same as could be ordered from the local Home Depot. "A" grade is "A" grade. But he would have none of that. He likes the wood store 90 miles away from him.
I mentioned that in an email (I had to mention details in email because he just evades conversational disputes of any sort).
He responded that I was "mean and hurtful and don't contact me anymore". OK, he does this every few years. I usually reply in a way to jolly him out of his unhappiness. He HATES having his plans questioned even when all the work is being done by others.
And my initial reaction was to get him "happified" again. But you know what? This time I didn't. I unloaded the personal shotgun on him. I told him how insensitive he was, how demanding, and how unreasonable he had become over the years and had become worse. I told him that when he needed help around the house and yard, he had me. But when I needed help around the house and yard, I still only had me. He eventually replied "How do we re-engage"? Re-engage? That was "goodbye jerk" and I made that clear. And that's the last I heard from him.
But as I was going through the old emails, I found a few from him still there. I deleted them. A part of my life over. But it also felt sad doing it. The last one I deleted was where he criticized me in return. I paid great attention on to those 6 things a last tine. One was even accurate (I am not really good talking on the telephone). But that was about all he could say.
He complained that I never took him fishing in my boat the last few years. Well he was inept and useless in a boat. You know those cartoons where a person has one foot on the pier and another in the boat and the boat slowly moves away from the pier? He actually did that. And I had to to do all the work unloading and reloading the boat on the trailer every single time. He couldn't.
He tipped over our canoe once leaning way too far over the edge in uplake Canada. When I saw what he was doing I yelled and grabbed for the other side, but 225 pounds beats 160 pounds every time.
After I got the canoe righted and mostly bailed out, I got him back in on one side while I held the other. I then spent an hour going down to feel around for our gear and retrieving what I could. He couldn't because he "couldn't swim well". The water was shallow enough for him (at 6' 4") to stand in). He wouldn't. He didn't have to swim, because *I* could.
And along that line, we had to canoe back 10 miles on the open lake on the last day of our vacation to the camping station when a storm came up. He had no idea what to do. I did. I was in the back of the canoe (of course) and drove the canoe quartering the waves to the lee side of the lake. We hit shore and waited for the storm to pass.
He complained that I wasn't a very "neat" person. OK, My floors weren't fit of to eat from. He used to clean his baseboards once a week and his floors daily. Well, yeah, I'm not like that. I'm pretty sure you can't eat off my floors safely.
He was also angry that my family doesn't have big funeral ceremonies. Never mind that that was none of his business, we just don't do that. The family habit is cremation and no ceremony. You were alive, you are dead, nice to have known you, good life and all of that. My own expectations are the same. Distribute my ashes around the yard, raise a glass of wine in my memory, and history goes on. Glad I was part of it.
And finally, he repeated again that I was "mean". By that, he meant I was honest. I told him what I thought for 40 years, I explained what I meant, and I gave reasons. That was too straightforward and he never liked it, I guess, and I suppose it wore him out over all the years. He considered honesty to be "mean" in that what I said sometimes didn't make him feel good about himself.
He was a constantly annoying person. He never kept a job in one office for more than a few years because he utterly aggravated every co-worker and supervisor he encountered. But he always had a great technical resume, so he could move on. Every place he worked at was "corrupt" and "incompetent". For all I know, he was right, but he never gave much actual evidence of that. I suspect mostly that he was a real "pill" to work with.
So last night, I deleted the last of his emails and went to bed. I slept well. Sometimes, you just have to cut connections.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Its Hard Getting Old And Fussy
A niece is getting married 2 hours away in February. I can't get myself to attend. The drive would be horrible to me, I hate long ceremonies, I don't like loud music, and I hate dancing. And the whole thing is being done at night. So I can't even enjoy any champagne if I want to drive home afterwards, and I hate driving in the dark. I even hate ceremonies. When I was younger, I even hated ceremonies involving ME! I didn't even attend my own college graduation. They say "enjoy myself" and just spend the night in a motel.
Right, stay in a motel overnight and bring home cockroaches and bedbugs...
I love the niece dearly, but I won't drive 2 hours to a long boring ceremony and the threat of insect infestations. I hope I'm not the only one who feels that way. But if I am, it wouldn't change my opinion in the least.
I attended a few weddings when I was younger. In the worst, they played 60 minutes of "personally meaningful music" before they got on to the actual ceremony, which took ANOTHER 60 minutes of pledges. I was ready to run gagging and screaming from the room. I won't do that again, ever.
My tolerance for long drawn-out ceremonies is even less these days. Some of us are just NOT into ceremonies...
Right, stay in a motel overnight and bring home cockroaches and bedbugs...
I love the niece dearly, but I won't drive 2 hours to a long boring ceremony and the threat of insect infestations. I hope I'm not the only one who feels that way. But if I am, it wouldn't change my opinion in the least.
I attended a few weddings when I was younger. In the worst, they played 60 minutes of "personally meaningful music" before they got on to the actual ceremony, which took ANOTHER 60 minutes of pledges. I was ready to run gagging and screaming from the room. I won't do that again, ever.
My tolerance for long drawn-out ceremonies is even less these days. Some of us are just NOT into ceremonies...
Monday, December 23, 2013
Short Movie Review
I watched 'Thor' the other night. Waste of night hours, but I had to for the love of old time Marvel Comics reasons. I seriously regret it. Nice special effects, but anyone can do that these days. Mostly, Thor needed a LOT more "humbling" than he received, to have the redemption he was granted. Another example of how a few "comic books" did a better job than a whole movie.
And Loki was just pathetic from start to end. What were they THINKING? Have the producers never read the mythology? Jeez, even Odin was a bit lame. and that's pretty hard to do with the Asgardian Allfather. Don't even get me started on the weak Destroyer.
The whole thing was a bunch of rubbish. I had to eventually watch it to know for certain, but it really was a waste of time. You sure can't know ahead of time what is going to disappoint, but I sure wish a future self had dropped in to say "no don't"!
And Loki was just pathetic from start to end. What were they THINKING? Have the producers never read the mythology? Jeez, even Odin was a bit lame. and that's pretty hard to do with the Asgardian Allfather. Don't even get me started on the weak Destroyer.
The whole thing was a bunch of rubbish. I had to eventually watch it to know for certain, but it really was a waste of time. You sure can't know ahead of time what is going to disappoint, but I sure wish a future self had dropped in to say "no don't"!
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Winter Solstice
Darn, I missed it! Well, I did notice it a couple of times during the day, but only when I was busy doing something else. I suppose that doesn't matter. It's not like I need to do anything that day, I just like it. But I didn't get around to posting...
It means the days will be getting longer. And even though it means it will be getting colder for 3 months, it means that gardening season starts again in a couple weeks. Not the planting, but the seed ordering. And even then, it will only be 4 weeks before I can plant the first seeds in flats under lights in the basement! After that, it's not too long to transplanting the sprouts to individual cells and then outside.
I plan to plant a lot more flowers this year. I spent 10 years focussing on perennials for the convenience of not replanting every year, but quite frankly, most of them aren't worth having. So many perennials bloom for a week or two and then they're done for the year. Some bloom most of the season (coneflowers, black-eyed susans, reblooming daylilies) and I'm keeping those. Some make quite an impact with just a few plants (oriental lilies, stokes aster). Some are for the foliage anyway (hostas).
So I've been growing more annuals the past few years. The season-long blooming of 30 square feet of bright zinnias is worth the hour it takes to plant them outside.
Two such patches of different color zinnias, one of marigolds, and one of vivid salvia will go a long way and cost less than one hosta.
But back to Winter Solstice. I like the more natural holidays, the ones that occur for uncomplicated real reasons. New Years Day, Summer Solstice, Thankgiving, Winter Solstice... Near Year's Day is as artificial as can be (because calendars are completely artificial), but I like it because that's the first day of the current calendar, and you might as well celebrate a new year starting. Summer Solstice is OK as a natural event, but somehow the longest day of the year doesn't have the same meaning as the shortest day. At Summer Solstice, I'm not noticing the change in day-length all that much.
Thanksgiving is close to the best holiday. Coming from a long line of farmers and having a strong sense of agriculture through history, I appreciate the importance and relief of a good Fall harvest. Especially those crops that don't keep well (it's eat it or lose it)! Even with year-round fresh food in these modern times, a Winter grocery store tomato is NOT the same as an August tomato from the back yard.
But I personal like Winter Solstice for the historical agricultural reasons above. Maybe (as an ancestor) the Fall Harvest was not what you hoped it would be, but the Winter Solstice is the promise and hope of a better year ahead. Promise and hope can keep you going in April when you are down to your last moldy or shriveled potatoes, carrots, and apples. And lucky to have those.
(site said the image was "free")
I suppose I should mention Ground Hog Day. It's not an accident that it is halfway between the 1st day of Winter and the 1st day of Spring. In olden days, it meant "we've made it halfway, we can get through the other half". And there is even a reason for that celebration. From what I've read (disclaimer clause), Winter weather warms up earlier in Europe, sometimes starting in early February. For pre-calendar farmers there, the emergence of hibernating burrowing mammals (hedgehogs, marmots) was a good sign that it was the time to plant the earliest Spring crops. However, if shadows were seen (meaning clear bright days, meaning still-cold weather) it was best to wait a couple of weeks. When those Europeans arrived in NE North America (where the climate stayed colder longer being on the eastern side of a continent), they had to adjust the timing. And they had to adjust the animal.
So instead of small hedgehogs who HAD to emerge earlier because they had smaller fat reserves (and who don't exist in NA), they went by the larger groundhogs (2 foot tall marmots like land-based beavers without a tail, for my European friends) who could afford to check outside conditions and retreat for more hibernation if required.
So, I'll add Groundhog Day to my list of "natural" holidays even though I don't think it was a very good guide for planting (sunny days occur rather randomly in NA Winters). A good measure of Groundhog Day sense in NA is that nobody sends Groundhog Day cards to friends. LOL!
And lastly? I like these holidays because there isn't much theology involved in them. Natural and calendar events just "are" and you don't have to worry about them. I DO like that... :)
It means the days will be getting longer. And even though it means it will be getting colder for 3 months, it means that gardening season starts again in a couple weeks. Not the planting, but the seed ordering. And even then, it will only be 4 weeks before I can plant the first seeds in flats under lights in the basement! After that, it's not too long to transplanting the sprouts to individual cells and then outside.
I plan to plant a lot more flowers this year. I spent 10 years focussing on perennials for the convenience of not replanting every year, but quite frankly, most of them aren't worth having. So many perennials bloom for a week or two and then they're done for the year. Some bloom most of the season (coneflowers, black-eyed susans, reblooming daylilies) and I'm keeping those. Some make quite an impact with just a few plants (oriental lilies, stokes aster). Some are for the foliage anyway (hostas).
So I've been growing more annuals the past few years. The season-long blooming of 30 square feet of bright zinnias is worth the hour it takes to plant them outside.
But back to Winter Solstice. I like the more natural holidays, the ones that occur for uncomplicated real reasons. New Years Day, Summer Solstice, Thankgiving, Winter Solstice... Near Year's Day is as artificial as can be (because calendars are completely artificial), but I like it because that's the first day of the current calendar, and you might as well celebrate a new year starting. Summer Solstice is OK as a natural event, but somehow the longest day of the year doesn't have the same meaning as the shortest day. At Summer Solstice, I'm not noticing the change in day-length all that much.
Thanksgiving is close to the best holiday. Coming from a long line of farmers and having a strong sense of agriculture through history, I appreciate the importance and relief of a good Fall harvest. Especially those crops that don't keep well (it's eat it or lose it)! Even with year-round fresh food in these modern times, a Winter grocery store tomato is NOT the same as an August tomato from the back yard.
But I personal like Winter Solstice for the historical agricultural reasons above. Maybe (as an ancestor) the Fall Harvest was not what you hoped it would be, but the Winter Solstice is the promise and hope of a better year ahead. Promise and hope can keep you going in April when you are down to your last moldy or shriveled potatoes, carrots, and apples. And lucky to have those.
I suppose I should mention Ground Hog Day. It's not an accident that it is halfway between the 1st day of Winter and the 1st day of Spring. In olden days, it meant "we've made it halfway, we can get through the other half". And there is even a reason for that celebration. From what I've read (disclaimer clause), Winter weather warms up earlier in Europe, sometimes starting in early February. For pre-calendar farmers there, the emergence of hibernating burrowing mammals (hedgehogs, marmots) was a good sign that it was the time to plant the earliest Spring crops. However, if shadows were seen (meaning clear bright days, meaning still-cold weather) it was best to wait a couple of weeks. When those Europeans arrived in NE North America (where the climate stayed colder longer being on the eastern side of a continent), they had to adjust the timing. And they had to adjust the animal.
So instead of small hedgehogs who HAD to emerge earlier because they had smaller fat reserves (and who don't exist in NA), they went by the larger groundhogs (2 foot tall marmots like land-based beavers without a tail, for my European friends) who could afford to check outside conditions and retreat for more hibernation if required.
So, I'll add Groundhog Day to my list of "natural" holidays even though I don't think it was a very good guide for planting (sunny days occur rather randomly in NA Winters). A good measure of Groundhog Day sense in NA is that nobody sends Groundhog Day cards to friends. LOL!
And lastly? I like these holidays because there isn't much theology involved in them. Natural and calendar events just "are" and you don't have to worry about them. I DO like that... :)
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Christmas and After...
The cards all addressed and mailed to cats, family, and friends, the presents sent, no more trips to the post office. Time now to turn to those kitties and friends for whom I have only email addresses these days (and new ones I have received cards from)...
But basically, I can relax and listen to the radio Christmas songs for a week. Thats about as many days as I can take. I really do like Christmas Carols on the stereo, but repetitiveness wears me out fast.
I miss the days of my youth when "Christmas Season" was just "the couple weeks before the day".
I am saving all the cards I/we have received so far to open them on the Winter Solstice Day at 12:11 pm EST. I personally LIKE the moment of the first lengthening of days. That what all the winter holidays center around, after all. It's probably the oldest human holiday. And it is a natural one. One day is the shortest day of the year, the next is the first longer one. I like that. Every day past then leads me to the Spring planting season, and that is a highlight of my year.
I am already searching through the garden catalogs for the replacements of old seeds, the idea of some new ones, and the thrill of seeing the new plants grow and thrive.
I look forward to the first flower seeds I can plant outside in February (snow peas) and the first flowers I can plant inside at the same time (who grow germinate and grow slowly). Thing speed up after that. But it's the best time of year. Harvest is great, but the starting is better. All that hope, you know?
But basically, I can relax and listen to the radio Christmas songs for a week. Thats about as many days as I can take. I really do like Christmas Carols on the stereo, but repetitiveness wears me out fast.
I miss the days of my youth when "Christmas Season" was just "the couple weeks before the day".
I am saving all the cards I/we have received so far to open them on the Winter Solstice Day at 12:11 pm EST. I personally LIKE the moment of the first lengthening of days. That what all the winter holidays center around, after all. It's probably the oldest human holiday. And it is a natural one. One day is the shortest day of the year, the next is the first longer one. I like that. Every day past then leads me to the Spring planting season, and that is a highlight of my year.
I am already searching through the garden catalogs for the replacements of old seeds, the idea of some new ones, and the thrill of seeing the new plants grow and thrive.
I look forward to the first flower seeds I can plant outside in February (snow peas) and the first flowers I can plant inside at the same time (who grow germinate and grow slowly). Thing speed up after that. But it's the best time of year. Harvest is great, but the starting is better. All that hope, you know?
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Chris Christie, NJ Gov
You know how some simple images ruin Presidential political aspirations? Like Mike Dukakis riding in a tank, Jimmie Carter beating at a rabbit swimming toward his canoe, or John Kerry windsurfing?
Governor Chis Cristie may have just had that politically fatal moment regarding shutting down some traffic lanes at the George Washington Memorial Bridge to annoy the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee New Jersey. Gov Christie surely and obviously ordered his political appointees to the Port Authority to do it.
They resigned, and the reason is not hard to guess. The final act of any political appointee is to fall on his sword. After being assured a nice job elsewhere in the politisphere...
It SEEMS that it was a petty repayment for Republican Gov Christie not getting a gubertorial endorsement from the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee NJ. I can imagine the telephone conversation:
Gov Christie: Endorse me for Republican Governor!
Mayor Sokolich: I'm a Democrat you idiot, I cant do that.
Gov Christie: You'll pay, and yer little dog Toto, too, heh, heh, heh...
You get the general idea. A Republican Governor demanded that a Democratic Mayor endorse him and then got pissed off when he declined for the very logical political reasons. So he reacted in the most petty ways. How could anyone trust someone like Gov Christie to be president in charge of the IRS and NSA after acting in such a small sorry way? Do you remember Nixon and his use of "The Enemies List"?
Where do these people come from? If a Democratic Governor had demanded that some Republican Mayor endorse him (with equivalent threats), all Hell would have broken loose on Fox news. Tea Party Republicans would have been screaming for "impeachment", calling the Gov a "tyrant", and suggesting "2nd amendment solutions" (aka assassination).
Governor Chis Cristie may have just had that politically fatal moment regarding shutting down some traffic lanes at the George Washington Memorial Bridge to annoy the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee New Jersey. Gov Christie surely and obviously ordered his political appointees to the Port Authority to do it.
They resigned, and the reason is not hard to guess. The final act of any political appointee is to fall on his sword. After being assured a nice job elsewhere in the politisphere...
It SEEMS that it was a petty repayment for Republican Gov Christie not getting a gubertorial endorsement from the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee NJ. I can imagine the telephone conversation:
Gov Christie: Endorse me for Republican Governor!
Mayor Sokolich: I'm a Democrat you idiot, I cant do that.
Gov Christie: You'll pay, and yer little dog Toto, too, heh, heh, heh...
You get the general idea. A Republican Governor demanded that a Democratic Mayor endorse him and then got pissed off when he declined for the very logical political reasons. So he reacted in the most petty ways. How could anyone trust someone like Gov Christie to be president in charge of the IRS and NSA after acting in such a small sorry way? Do you remember Nixon and his use of "The Enemies List"?
Where do these people come from? If a Democratic Governor had demanded that some Republican Mayor endorse him (with equivalent threats), all Hell would have broken loose on Fox news. Tea Party Republicans would have been screaming for "impeachment", calling the Gov a "tyrant", and suggesting "2nd amendment solutions" (aka assassination).
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Random Thoughts
1. Marley threw up today after chasing tossed kibbles around during my dinnertime and thats been a LONG time. And Iza didn't which is routine..
2. The "low tire pressure light" came on in the car, and I had just filled them. And I checked again. They are all at 32 psi.
3. Pogo.com Risk suggests you should click on the originator's icon to see the special conditions of the game. But if you do, the game is all filled up. So you really have to enter each game blind.
4. Republicans are essentially merchantile or anarchists. No other explanation for refusing to regulate the worst practices of SOME industries and the idea that people should go into bars, get drunk, and carry guns.
5. BTW, being merchantile AND anarchistic is "libertarian". And most Republicans hate libertarians. They are horrified by the idea that "Someone, Somewhere, is Having Fun".
6. Democrats can be idiots too. Throwing money at problems doesn't always work.
7. What happened to the idea that Congress should "govern"? Good ideas get ignored for entirely political reasons.
8. I had to build a high fence around my yard to keep huge viscious dogs out. Why didn't "THEY" have to build high fences to keep their viscous dogs "IN"? Were you ever attacked by a wandering cat?
9. People say cats reduce bird populations. There are more birds living on my property now than when I moved in 27 years ago because I assist them. And I let the cats out daily. They catch about 1 a month. Guess how many birds a hawk needs to catch every day...
10. Playing games against a computer is essentially worthless. If a program can't improve its odds of winning to at least 50-50, the programmer should be fired.
11. My car battery dies in the garage about every few weeks. Pisses me off. On the other hand, it never dies at Walmart or Safeway. Why is it always when it is in the garage?
12. When you download a new program, why does it fail so often and the provider doesn't feel embarassed, and just say "sorry site down"? So why do all the Republicans attack the ObamaCare Website? Should Government do better than the best internet sites.
13. Why can't I cook stir-fry as "cooked yet crisp" as a cheap Chinese restaurant can? I sure try.
14. When I play Pogo cribbage against the computer, it always stays even with me until the last turn, then gets a wonderful hand. Can't they program it to play more evenly than that? It starts to feel pointless except for the enjoyment of playing at all.
15. Comet ISON ticked me off. It was SUPPOSED TO BE the spectacular comet of the decade, and then and went and fell apart traveling around the sun too close. I mean WHO was in charge of that? Should they get fired? (j/k)
16. How many deer need to be killed before I can grow hostas in the front yard? I can buy dead wild ducks at the meat store. Why isn't venison offerred routinely. We certainly seem to have enough deer around.
Just some thoughts...
2. The "low tire pressure light" came on in the car, and I had just filled them. And I checked again. They are all at 32 psi.
3. Pogo.com Risk suggests you should click on the originator's icon to see the special conditions of the game. But if you do, the game is all filled up. So you really have to enter each game blind.
4. Republicans are essentially merchantile or anarchists. No other explanation for refusing to regulate the worst practices of SOME industries and the idea that people should go into bars, get drunk, and carry guns.
5. BTW, being merchantile AND anarchistic is "libertarian". And most Republicans hate libertarians. They are horrified by the idea that "Someone, Somewhere, is Having Fun".
6. Democrats can be idiots too. Throwing money at problems doesn't always work.
7. What happened to the idea that Congress should "govern"? Good ideas get ignored for entirely political reasons.
8. I had to build a high fence around my yard to keep huge viscious dogs out. Why didn't "THEY" have to build high fences to keep their viscous dogs "IN"? Were you ever attacked by a wandering cat?
9. People say cats reduce bird populations. There are more birds living on my property now than when I moved in 27 years ago because I assist them. And I let the cats out daily. They catch about 1 a month. Guess how many birds a hawk needs to catch every day...
10. Playing games against a computer is essentially worthless. If a program can't improve its odds of winning to at least 50-50, the programmer should be fired.
11. My car battery dies in the garage about every few weeks. Pisses me off. On the other hand, it never dies at Walmart or Safeway. Why is it always when it is in the garage?
12. When you download a new program, why does it fail so often and the provider doesn't feel embarassed, and just say "sorry site down"? So why do all the Republicans attack the ObamaCare Website? Should Government do better than the best internet sites.
13. Why can't I cook stir-fry as "cooked yet crisp" as a cheap Chinese restaurant can? I sure try.
14. When I play Pogo cribbage against the computer, it always stays even with me until the last turn, then gets a wonderful hand. Can't they program it to play more evenly than that? It starts to feel pointless except for the enjoyment of playing at all.
15. Comet ISON ticked me off. It was SUPPOSED TO BE the spectacular comet of the decade, and then and went and fell apart traveling around the sun too close. I mean WHO was in charge of that? Should they get fired? (j/k)
16. How many deer need to be killed before I can grow hostas in the front yard? I can buy dead wild ducks at the meat store. Why isn't venison offerred routinely. We certainly seem to have enough deer around.
Just some thoughts...
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
The Risk Game Report
Joined 3 games of Pogo.com Risk today. Started with crap in each (the games were already started and I had little to work with). But I felt rather coldly lethal today (Skeeter anniversary) AND fortune smiled on me. I lost one game that was dragged out to a hard end and then one the other two from way behind against higher-rated players.
I can assure you, THAT does not happen often. So I think I will stop playing and rest on my laurels. Not that laurels are all THAT soft to rest on. But what I mean is that when you only play once a week, nobody remembers who you are. Because they go after recent winners... A low profile is sometimes a good thing.
I think it would be wise to go play cribbage or backgammon for a few days.
But there is also something else. I've learned something by watching the cats hunt mice. You sit quietly and don't disturb the environment. And when the opportunity arises, you pounce...
I can assure you, THAT does not happen often. So I think I will stop playing and rest on my laurels. Not that laurels are all THAT soft to rest on. But what I mean is that when you only play once a week, nobody remembers who you are. Because they go after recent winners... A low profile is sometimes a good thing.
I think it would be wise to go play cribbage or backgammon for a few days.
But there is also something else. I've learned something by watching the cats hunt mice. You sit quietly and don't disturb the environment. And when the opportunity arises, you pounce...
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