The last time I went to a Cincinnati Reds’ Game… Danny Graves was on the mound.  He tallied a loss for them that day.  I remember it clearly… but it has been a pretty long time ago.

Anyway.  Today we went again.  The Great American Ballpark sure is nice.  Especially when you get to sit in those really nice private suites… with the free food and drink… and TVs right there in your room.  We had great seats right behind home plate.

I had one of the best pretzels with this crazy-go-nuts mustard sauce… that had to be something other than mustard.  It was like somebody had made a mistake … and mixed something with the mustard… and then found out it was stupendously good.   I had a big old cheeseburger too.  Boy oh Boy.  It was scrumptious.

We shopped, and people-watched.  We told stories and laughed… and laughed.  Did I mention that soft pretzel?

There was a big fight and both benches cleared.

And then… there was a bit of baseball here and there.  You know… ALL of us make mistakes.   But when you make them on a baseball field…. everybody notices.  And everybody cares.  And.  The Reds lost 6-4 after 12 innings.  People really cared.

But whoever whipped up those cheeseburgers hit a home run.  Right out of the park.  No error there.

A mistake is simply another way of doing things.  – Katharine Graham

Dag nab it.

Don’t you know this was one jam-packed day with out this monkey wrench in my plans?

Okay…. it started like this.

I felt the need to open a Fortune Cookie… first thing in the day.  I simply wanted to know.
And this is what it foretold…. “You have a friendly heart, and are well admired.”

I think part of this may be true.  There are times when I have a friendly heart.  (I also have my “Evil Twin Moments” in life.)  At any rate, I tucked the fortune into my pocket and set off for the day.

So then…. On my way to visit my Mom, I felt the need for a Diet Coke.  I like a Diet Coke, I’ll tell you.  In fact, I have a bit of an addiction.  Now… before you jump my case about “how bad it is for me”… and all of that…   I have a few thoughts.

Get ready for a side-bar.

Gluten-free is a passing fad.  Pasty white foods will some day rule the world.  And a most recent study has reported that  salt, coffee, chocolate, red wine, zucchini, pickled herring, and Ostrich eggs are good / not good for you…. depending on the day.  Not to mention the whole sunscreen report.

So… back to my Diet Coke stop.  Those people at Coca-Cola are running a very neat-o campaign.  The cans now say things like… “Have a Diet Coke with your Buddy.”  Or “Have a Diet Coke with your Dad; a Star; your sister; a Pal.” And on and on.

Today, I reached in the cooler at the Slurpy-Mart and grabbed a cold one.  A little later… I noticed it said… “Have a Diet Coke with Alex.”  Holy Crap.  I don’t KNOW an Alex.

For the next five or six hours…I walked around town… asking people if they were “Alex”… and I assured them that I had a kind heart… and was even admired by many.  I did this in hopes of convincing someone to have this Diet Coke with me.

It was all to no avail.  I found no Alex.  I grew so thirsty…  that I had to drink the DC… all by myself…. feeling a little despondent… and regrettably…. admired by none.

The rest of my day… continued …. to say the least.  And this evening… when I finally got home… I sat down with Mary, and Max, and Frances, and Ollie.  We talked and laughed about the stories of the day…  while I had a Diet Coke.

And then it hit.  This is what I learned.

Sometimes… everything you are looking for… is found right at your home of homes. Right…. in the center of your heart.  And sometimes it doesn’t really matter WHAT you call it.  This was my Alex.

Sure enough…..  I’ll drink to that.

“The human heart feels things the eyes cannot see, and knows what the mind cannot understand”  –   Robert Valett

Every once in a while, I will have little glimpses back to my childhood.  I think we all do.  Some more than others, perhaps.

A few people have very vibrant and extensive memories about their earliest days here as humans.  At the other end of the spectrum are those who have little remembrances of youth-ish-ness.  (Sounds like somebody sneezed.. youth-ish-ness!  Say it with force.  See what I mean?)

I am mostly in-between.  My memories are kind of scattered.  And some are very crisp and clear… while others are hazy dazy.

My growing up times were mostly good.  And in comparison to some other kids… I think I really had it made.  A little kid with plenty to eat, a safe home, in a free country, with education and health care…. and the icing on the cake… two very loving parents.

But as an adult… I will sometimes watch a little kid… and say… “I wonder what on God’s Green Earth they are thinking right now.”

Like that little girl pointing and making hand gestures… and talking to a friend… who is only visible to her.  Or the little boy  next to that tree, doing a series of running head butts right into the bark.

The little kid spooning ice-cream up near her forehead and letting drip down her nose… or the other young dude… who just thrust his arms up in victory over… a BIG win over something… somewhere… …. somehow.

The imagination is in full tact.  That is what happens in the young brain.  It sees.  It experiences.  It exalts.  And quite logically, the little body follows.

For in the moment… that moment seems incredible real.

Einstein once said… “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

That man said a lot of amazing things.  To continue…. with Einstein….
“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.”

A society which has forgotten the gift of the imagination.  When we “grow up” we are taught to filter out such silly thoughts…. like the big one-eyed donkey galloping down the middle of the street with an apple in its mouth… and King Rachturfusen riding on its back.  You know… the little squatty king with the turquoise robe.  The one who tosses out candy bars wrapped in gold.  THAT guy.

Don’t forget the gift.
As Albert also said… “Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”

As I readied myself for the day, the black blur shot across the mirror in front of me.  Then… the very hairy large fly began to make several swift, and dangerous passes at my head.  They were Kamikaze-like.  Yet.  He had no intention of bombarding me.  He was merely taunting me.

I proceeded to apply the last little bit of my favorite hair-jelly to my scalp.  Again, and again the insect grazed my hands and ears.  Enough was enough.  I reached for the fly swatter and laid it conspicuously on the counter in front of me.  It had to happen.  You see…. IT was me.. or the fly.

With comb in hand… I looked down.  And there he sat.  Right in the middle of that swatter…. knowing well enough that I could not operate that swatter without alerting him. Yes… he sat there… smugly.   All 12,000 eye-facets staring up.  NOW…. he was mocking me.

And so it goes.

You thought the Apple Corporation came up with some great ideas.  The iPhone, the iPad, the iCloud.

Well they have nothing on me.  In the summer time… I have with me… all the time…. the iItch.  Unlike any other… THIS app allows me to be an itchy-mess from morning to night.

Oy yes… it is true.  If there is a bug with a biter on it’s little head… it will find a way to bite me.  Spiders, ants, mosquitos, UFOs (Unidentified Flies and Others).  They sniff me out and hunt me down.

My blood must be  something along the lines of Folklore-ish proportions among the insect world.  It must be some right of passage for them.  They come from miles around just to feast on me.  My body resembles a connect-the-dots game.  But redder.

Sometimes it even happens by mistake.  The other day I jumped in the pool after doing a lot of work outdoors.  After the swim, I threw a shirt on, and came back in the house.  Suddenly, my shoulder started hurting in a strange and significant fashion.  I flipped my shirt back off, and there was a very confused bee… in search of pollen on that bright yellow shirt… only to find my shoulder.  Put a stinger in it… goodness.

Yes… that is the deal for me in the spring and summer… and into the fall.  But I do not complain.  I would rather it be hot, muggy, and buggy, than to be back in the midst of the frozen Ohio Tundra of last year.  So bring it on bugs.  Bite Me!

“When people bother you in any way, it is because their souls are trying to get your divine attention and your blessing”  – Catherine Ponder

Everybody has a story.  It is true.

Why… just on this day…. I talked with an entire slew of people… each with a different story.

From the direct descendant of a Chickamauga Cherokee Indian who had a joyful heart …. to a young boy who’s favorite president was Abraham Lincoln, because Abe helped free the slaves….. to a Trapeze Artist who loved to fly.

I learned stories about people who had been in prison, others who painted old cars, some who knew all about wild animals, and still others who sang in a choir.

I met people who knew how to do things… like make cotton candy, run restaurants,  and construct balloon animals while on stilts.

There were people who just wanted to talk about how good ice-cream tastes, and others who liked historical stories.

And… there were a lot of people helping people.  Which is probably the best story of all.

Yes… each person had something to say…. about something.   I learned a lot… just by listening.

So.  No matter what YOUR story is…. it is good and worthy and true.  They are the words in your heart and you know them.  Live those stories well….  and someone will learn from them.  From you.

And above all…. eat ice cream.  On stilts… if you feel up for it.

“Really great people make you feel that you, too, can become great.” –   Mark Twain

I woke up this morning and had one of those funny inklings.  YOU know those ones.  They are very inkly.

So much in fact… that I then felt compelled to say aloud…. “There is something fishy about this day.”

And so it began.

Just after breakfast, we ventured out to the YMCA to play Pickleball.  It was my first time to set foot on a Pickleball Court.  We played a little while.  Shortly there after, I found myself… fishing for a compliment.  I was immediately given the hook.  That will teach me.

From there we drove through McDonald’s where I purchased a Filet-O-Fish Sandwich.  We took it to my Mom at the Nursing Care Facility where she lives.  However we had to divide that little fish sandwich, four ways, between Mom and her lunchtime friends.  Good thing I was packing potato chips too.  We had a lot of mouths to feed with one little fish.

Next we stopped at Marsh Supermarket.  We proceeded to buy some fish.

Later for lunch.. wouldn’t you know it?  Mary & I  sat at the piano, and had fish for lunch.  Salmon, and Tuna, respectively.  And I always say… you can tune a piano… but you can’t Tuna Fish.

What Fourth of July 5th… would be complete without grandkids.  Yes… a visit from Titus, and Isaac, and their Mom Tiffany.  Of course, we gathered at the pool… and swam like fish.

We at lots of pizza for dinner.  No anchovies please.

Finally… after dinner… we walked down to the big pond… and fed the fish.

So.  There you have it.  This is no fish story.  It is……  instead… a fish story.

Holy Mackerels.  I knew there would be something Fishy about this day.  You can bet your Bass on that.

“If you’ve heard this story before, don’t stop me, because I’d like to hear it again.”  – Groucho Marx

“Miracles are a retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see.” –   C.S. Lewis

(Disclaimer:  This is not a political statement or commentary about any current events or controversy.  It is merely an observation, coming from someone who used to run a Genealogy Department in a Library.  That’s all.)

It’s about time Americans took back their country.

Honest to Abraham Lincoln.  If I hear an American say this one more time, I just might have to kick them right in the shin.  Hard.

Okay… I won’t kick anyone.  But here is the thing.   The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America says… “We the People…..”
Nowhere does it say… “Me the Person Who Owns This Country & Now I Am Taking IT BACK.”

It continues… “This land is your land, this land is my land.  From California to the New York Island…”   (Hang on .  That is a song, by Peter, Paul, and Mary… the Three Apostles…. but it reiterates the point.)  Your Land. My Land.  We. We. We.  All the way home.

Let me remind you… unless you and yours arrived by Spaceship…. OR…  you are one of the very few who are 100% Native American Indian…..  You got here by BOAT… …. …..      FROM ANOTHER DANG COUNTRY.  Seriously.  You were in the sperm and the eggs of your Mom and Dad.. and their Mom and Dads… and their Mom and Dads before.

And somewhere along the line… those Mommies and Daddies bobbed across the Atlantic from England, or Spain, or Germany… and stepped foot onto the (THEN) foreign soil… of the aforementioned land.   And because this is a land of freedom… you and yours eventually become Americans.

Ours.  In Freedom. To express our opinions.  Our voices.

So… I guess it is well within your rights to say out loud… “It’s about time Americans took their country back.”

But it is also in my right to say… “If you think you lost your country… maybe it is time you better head on back to France.”  Or wherever it is you came from.    And we can let the American Indians take their country back.

Happy Fourth of July.  Light a Firecracker.   Be glad this really is YOUR land.  And mine.   Count your Blessings.  America is one of them.

Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves. ~Abraham Lincoln

There are two freedoms — the false, where a man is free to do what he likes; the true, where he is free to do what he ought. ~Charles Kingsley

Here are some of my most profound life observations.

They have also become Creed-Like for me.

1. “Dunk a cookie twice and you are asking for it.”
I think this one speaks for itself.  I mean.  Really.

2.   Birds wear little wrist watches.  This is so they know when to eat.  And birds require a great deal to eat… because they are very ambulatory.  Because of such …. when they move around….

….Time Flies.

I tell this to my Mom all the time after I feed her bird feeders.  It makes her laugh.
Funny bird feeding.  Plant the seed.

3.  Most men with extremely hairy backs don’t believe in the Theory of Evolution.  I am not sure why this is true, but it is.  The hairier the back… the less THEY think they resemble apes.  Uhhhnnnnn…. is that a banana in your pocket?

4.  Don’t take candy from a baby.  Don’t take candy from a stranger.  Especially… don’t take candy from strange babies… or baby strangers.   This has a secondary benefit.  For those of you dieting, it will help cut calories.

5. There is more than one way to walk a dog.    Especially if the tail is wagging the dog.   But if the dog is wagging a white flag…. he needs water.  At which point, you should quit walking the dog.  No matter.

6.  Roller Coasters are not the things you put under couches legs, when you are trying to move furniture.  I learned this the hard way.

7.  And finally.. if you can’t say something nice about someone….. become a Radio Talk Show Host.  And put a Rush on it.

One more finally.  Creed-Like?  It is kind of like Serious Serious MoJo.

“ The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.”  – Eden Phillpotts

“The essence of life is finding something you really love and then making the daily experience worthwhile.”  –   Denis Waitley

When Jack falls down and breaks his crown.
When the Electric Slide gets unplugged.
When the Milky just can’t seem to find its Way.

Not cool.  Not cool.  Not cool.

You know…. “Cool” used to be “THE” word.

Now… cool just isn’t quite as cool as it used to be.

AND… YOU know that “Cool” has fallen out of favor…. when even the Cool Whip isn’t cool any more.

In fact…. it is disgusting.

So… what happened to the word that The Fonz immortalized?

Well, just like the dessert topping in the photo … it got old.   But it is more than just the word.

We all have know someone who has done something that isn’t cool.  I mean, some people can be real Butts at times.  And that is not cool at all.

Now don’t get me wrong.  I’ve had my fair share of Butt-Making in my life.  These days… I try to steer clear of Butthood.  Yet.  Believe you me… I’ve done some very uncool things to people over the years.  Nothing that I am proud or happy about.  In fact… in most cases I think I have sought to make amends .

Yet…. there are those who just seem really good at being butts.  They are always negative.  Always saying something downtrodden.  Pitching a fit.  Complaining.   And never once… putting forth an actual solution.  It gets old.  Moldy-old.  And that REALLYisn’t so cool.  I ran into a couple of Buttheads today.  Hence, this review.

And it just makes me appreciate the folks who keep their cool.  The one’s who walk through their days with grace and dignity.  I look up to those individuals.  I aspire to be like them .

So here’s to the people in the world who are just the opposite of the mold.  The ones who are just like Fresh Cool Whip.  They are even sweeter than dessert.  In fact.  They top it off.

And just for the record, I like having friends who are not like mold.

“Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on or by imbeciles who really mean it.”  –   Mark Twain

“Some days even my lucky rocketship underpants won’t help.” –  Calvin & Hobbes

I like to meditate.

I do.
Some people call it prayer, or deep thought, or reflection.

But however you look at it.. in some form or another…  it is to think deeply or focus one’s mind for a period of time.  Some people do this in silence….. others use some methods of song… or chanting.   But most agree.. it is conducted for spiritual purposes or as a method of relaxation.

Now some people are better at this than others.   Like the Dali Lama.  Now that dude can meditate!  I know quite a few people who practice meditation.   My oldest brother’s husband is snappy at it.  You hear a lot of different “figures” in the media talk about their meditation practices from time to time.

Me?  Well.  I suppose I am just a little preoccupied… in general.  This is one reason I am working so hard at meditation.

I even built a Meditation Garden to help me.  It has a lot of rocks in it.  I like rocks.  In fact… rocks are good for a lot of things.  Rock’n’Roll.  Rock Hudson.  Rocky Top.  Rock of Ages.  Bedrock.  Rock a bye baby.  I’m gonna’ Rock around the clock tonight.  You rock.

DAG NAB IT.  See what I mean?  I try to simply JUST TALK about mediation…. and I get off track.

There are times when I try to meditate and all sorts of things come rushing to mind..  ..

I mean.  The WHOLE idea is to clear your mind of the clutter.  Hell… I hear clutter and I feel the need to clean something. THEN, the “Zestfully Clean” Theme Song will pop into my head.  Next thing you know… I’m saying… why did THAT POP into my head…. and all of a sudden I am hungry for a Pop Tart.  And then….

Pathetic.
Hopeless.
Meditation Misfit.

But I got one heck of a Rock Garden out of the deal.

Wait without thought, for you are not ready for thought: So the darkness shall be the light, and the stillness the dancing.”   ― T.S. Eliot

“Keep your best wishes, close to your heart and watch what happens”   ― Tony DeLiso, Legacy: The Power Within