Here’s the thing.
I am a person who likes her solitude.  That is for sure.  Sometimes… to a fault.  Yet, some things don’t  translate very well when you are unaccompanied.

Playing game after game of Cornhole…. all by yourself… isn’t really all that much fun.   Come to think of it… a game of Darts by your little lonesome isn’t very swell either.

Swimming is pretty okay in the solo form.  I can swim and swim by myself and be happy.    But sharing stories with your shadow?  It is not as engaging as one might imagine.

Here is one to consider.
How do you feel about Fish Tacos?  I love  a good Fish Taco.  The first one I ever had was down in Costa Rica.  Holy smoke-a-roly… THAT thing was GOOD.  I wasn’t by myself when I ate it.  Mary & I were on vacation in that country.  It was better because we shared in the glory of the flavors.

Since then… I have been on the quest for a really good Fish Taco.  Wouldn’t you know it?  I found one.    But not on my own.  No, no.  Friends helped.  In fact… they came over and fixed those Fish Tacos.

This afternoon we had a slew of friends here with us.   And it was fun.  There was tennis-watching, and baseball-watching.  Yummy Fish Taco eating, and eating and eating.  (All the fixings.. plus, Gouda Mac’n’Cheese, Cole Slaw, Rice, Couscous Salad, Desserts out the yang…)

We played Cornhole and Darts.  We fed the Koi. We talked and shared and laughed.  We contemplated angels, and ghosts… we shared stories about our quirky dogs.  We speculated about the early foundations of women’s tennis.

You see… all of this was better… because of friends.  In fact, a lot of this would not have been possible without the interaction of two people.  Or more.  Sharing interests, and likes, and dislikes.  All the ups and all the downs.

So many of those friends bring happiness to my life.  And I am grateful for this.   Some bring that joy in the form of Fish Tacos.  And I am grateful for this too.

And the biggest observation for the night… is this.
When playing 301 in Darts….. If you can see the feathers…. don’t count your chickens before they are hatched.   Simply seeing the feathers doesn’t count.  Especially when the light is bad.

And the point to all of this… is that it is ALL so much better with friends.

“Good friends are like stars…. You don’t always see them, but you know they are always there” – Unknown

Stuck.  Being stuck can mean a lot of different things to different people.  You can get stuck in an elevator.  Or maybe you stuck a post-it note on the refrigerator tonight.  Recent trip to the doctor, and get stuck in the arm with a needle?  Some people get stuck in jobs, or in relationships.  Or perhaps you feel strongly about your politicking, and you are stuck in your opinions.

“Stuck” can cover a plethora of things.

I was driving home from picking up dinner tonight.  Pizza from the Rizza.  I prepared some homemade coleslaw to accompany it.  This is my favorite Go-To-Meal right now.  Pepperoni Thin Crust Pizza (or Cheese) and Coleslaw.  Holy Cow.  It just doesn’t get any better than that.

Okay… I am way off topic… and I haven’t even started the dang topic yet.  THAT is how excited I get about slaw and pizza.  Okay.

Back to my drive home from getting the pie. I get stuck in traffic with the train heading through Camden.  Great.  BUT… what comes on the radio?  One of my favorite tunes of all time.  U2’s “Stuck in the Moment.”

“You’ve got to get yourself together.  You got stuck in a moment…. and you can’t get out of it.”

Gawd, I love this song.  I think because it really strikes a chord with me.  No pun intended.  There have been times in my life when I got “stuck in a moment” and it lasted a long, long time.  Like for decades.  Yes tens of tens of years…. before I got out of it.

Other times… it hasn’t been quite a long.  But it sure does happen.

I think at times… it happens to all of us.

We don’t mean for it to occur.  You know the old saying… “Oh sure.  It is all fun and games until somebody gets hurt.”   But we start out doing something that we think is all good.  Yet… it may turn out to be an addiction,  or a compulsion, or just a really bad idea.

For example, when I was about 13 years old, I thought it would be pretty cool to try cigarettes.  Well, before I knew it… I was stuck in that moment.  I couldn’t get out.  Several decades later… at dozens and dozens and dozens of cigarettes each day…. I had to get out.  GET Unstuck.  And that has been about 13 years now.. that I got myself unstuck.

The Lego Movie hits the topic of  “being stuck” right on the head.  During the entire movie… the little Lego People are trying to save the world by putting the big red thing… back on the Kagle.    As it turns out… the big red thing is the lid for a tube of Krazy Glue.  And the tube is crunched up… that the only letters you can read is K-a-g-l-e.

I am not sure what is the best way… to get unstuck if you are stuck.  Perhaps just acknowledging it is the first step.  And maybe it isn’t as daunting as it seems.  It may just be a time of stillness.  Of non-progression.

Like all times of stillness, it is a really good opportunity for transformation to occur. Being stuck certainly can be an invitation to grow.

Somehow….. We know that what worked before no longer works.  We know it.  And so….  it’s up to us to see where we can open up and let go.

If we believe in ourselves… our potential is expounded.
We all have the power to put the big red thing… back on the Kagle.

Or… in other words… to grow.

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Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart…. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes. – Carl Jung

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world. – Harriet Tubman

It is all one big connected ball of yarn.  A whole bunch of jumbled wires… intertwined and crisscrossing every which way… but loose.  Yes… this universe, this existence of our…. is a interwoven screen door.   I’ll give you an example.  Take today’s date. … this August 28th.

And so it begins……with …. the oldest city in the United States.  It was established on this date. It happened way back in 1565.  And the place?  St. Augustine, Florida.

Now… it was named in honor of Augustine of Hippo…. who is better known as Saint Augustine.  He was an early Christian theologian and philosopher.  Not only that….he was the bishop of Hippo Regius.    This area is now Algeria, Africa…..  His memorial is celebrated on 28 August, the day of his death.  Yeppers…. today’s date.

He is the patron saint of brewers, of barrels, printers, theologians, the alleviation of sore eyes, and a number of cities.  Go to Florida, and you will find this out.

Okay, now here is the kicker.  Same date, August 28th, but in 1837.  While most other pharmacists were tinkering around with cocaine and such…. those brilliant Pharmacists John Wheeley Lea & William Henry Perrins manufactured Worcestershire Sauce. (Mostly out of vinegar, molasses, salt, and tamarind… Tamarind… a tree found in Algeria.  Africa.)

They first concocted the recipe… and didn’t like it so much.  So the stuff sat around in barrels.   About 18 months later…. somebody decided to taste it.  And Viola’.  We have the best dang condiment on the planet.

Now.  Let’s move on to the hippopotamaus.  You know.  Hippo.  Like St. Augustine.  Although hippos might look a little chubby, they can easily outrun a human.  They are regarded as one of the most dangerous animals in Africa…. where they live.  Hippopotamuses have short legs, a huge mouth and a body shaped like a barrel.  Like a barrel.

Resting in water helps keep hippopotamuses temperature down.  Hippopotamuses give birth in water.   But scientists at Cal-Poly recently discovered that the prefer water which smells slightly of Worcestershire Sauce.

This is ALL crazy-go-nuts… isn’t it?  Welllllll….. isn’t it?

Now if you can’t see how that is all wrapped up tight together…. I would say that you should pray to St. Augustine… for clearly you have that sore eye affliction.

“Just as the wave cannot exist for itself, but is ever a part of the heaving surface of the ocean, so must I never live my life for itself, but always in the experience which is going on around me.”
― Albert Schweitzer

One thing leads to another.

That’s how the saying goes.   And it is true.  One thing does lead to another.
Each second… To each moment…
Then the days… The years.

It all goes.  From one thing unto the next.
We don’t really steer it.  We can try… And we all DO try.

But when it comes right down to it… Or perhaps more telling .. When it comes right down to the gas pedal…. Not a one of us is truly driving the bus.

Some times… It is  adversity, or sadness.  Other times… It is a goodness, and joy…. And bright shining wonderful things.

Like the little frog…  Now that is a great story of one thing leading to another.  You know the story.

The frogger…. Who went for a walk in the woods.  During that little walk…well…. really… it was more like a hop.  Anyway.   The little frog spotted the love of her little froggy life.  They stopped… Looked into eachother’s bulging little eyes.. And then.. they KISSED.  Yes….  That little green frog found the one true other kindred amphibian … And a beautiful pond to swim in.  Two Frogs.  Together.    Hoppily ever after.

I think that’s how that story goes….

Actually, I am sure that’s how it goes.

“A loving heart is the truest wisdom.”  — Charles Dickens

Oh… You are going to miss it when it is gone.

I drove down the road this morning… And saw the green.  Fields and fields of green.  Splashed against the backdrop of the bluest sky.

Everything is green, and yellow, and pink, and purple.  And blue.  So very colorful.  And I love it.

This afternoon….The heat was incredible and intense.  I loved that too.  Several times today… I would just stand outside… to soak it in.

You see.  This past winter, the weather was miserable, by my estimations.  But  I gritted my teeth.. … and held on.  I knew…  that somewhere in the future… there would be heat.  Hot scorchy heat..on a really green day.  The kind..the when you look at the pavement…you can see the invisible wavy lines rising from the surface.

And wouldn’t you know.  Here it was.  We haven’t had too many sizzling days this summer.  Not too many at all.  So I am drinking them in while they are here.   And soaking them up.

Just like bees soak up the nectar to make honey.

Yep.  I am going to bask in the heat as much as I can.  I’m going to miss it when it is gone.  I’m going to miss the green too.  I wish I could store it up… And away.  Like the bees do with honey.

Soon it will be winter.  All we will know is gray for months on end.  I’ll grit my teeth again… And hang on until things cycle around .  Just like they do.  Again and again and again.  I know we should be happy… For the moments we are in.   But in the winter, it always makes me sad to see those bees with their little ear muffs on.

“To enjoy life, we must touch much of it lightly”  —   Voltaire

“True happiness is… to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future.”  —   Seneca

I like a Crow.

Well… I don’t like to eat crow.  And these crow’s feet around my eyes?  Well.. not so much.  But I DO like to measure distances between two places.. .as the crow flies.  And I am crazy about Crow Knees.  Get it. Krony’s.

Most people don’t care for Crows.  They are large, and black, and can be quite noisy.

But the thing of it is… and I’ve used this “age-old-saying” before.   “You can’t judge a bird by its feathers.”

Or something.

Yep.  That Crow.  The Old Heckle & Jeckle Routine …   those are some brilliant birds.

There are about 45 species of crow worldwide….  and those types include… treepies, corbies, nutcrackers, bushpies, choughs, and the pica pica.   Not to mention the raven, and the rook.

They are often times very faithful.  Crows will often remain together for years and some until parted by death.   It is kind of sweet.  But they have a hard time keeping their little wedding rings on their claws.

Corvids are absolutely fearless.   They will chase away bigger birds… eagles, and hawks and such.   On other occasions, they’ll pick up and drop stones, pinecones or sticks on predators or people they come in contact with.

They can use tools too.  Not like a Black & Decker Drill or anything.  But simple tools to perform various life tasks.

They can learn the human language.  And Corvids also have great memories.  They hide and stash food… and them move it… and stash it again.  All the time…remembering exactly where they put it.  I have friends that display this same behavior with Reese Cups, and Snickers.

So why all this Crow Business?  Ahhh….well… today… someone called me a Bird Brain.  And I said… “Oh yeah?  Like a crow?  I welcome that observation buddy.”

Wouldn’t you know it… he just stared at me blankly… and then flipped me the bird.

And I said… “Yeahhhhh….. NOW you’re catching on.”

And he thought he was going to ruffle my feathers….

“Intelligence is not to make no mistakes, but quickly to see how to make them good.”   —   Bertolt Brecht

“It is wiser to find out than to suppose”  —   Mark Twain

By this very minute… we are all getting older.

Here is sort of how it works… how we keep track of time.   The hands just keep moving their way around the face of the clock.  That part is for sure.  But on the bigger scale.  The earth spins…. day and night… and night and day… on it axis.  Cock-a-doodle do.

All the while…. this big blue ball….whirls along its predetermined orbital path around…. and around…. the sun.  Our moon sticks right with us.  But there are other planets.. and other moons…. each with their circular schedule around the sun.   The mechanics of it are miraculous.  Incredible.

Is it all complete randomness…. or a very well constructed pattern… a defined schematic?

Tonight… we went to our oldest grandchild’s birthday party.    It seems like all I did was blink…. and this earth of ours… had done eighteen laps around the sun.

And as I stood there tonight… amongst those people who I love very much… who mean so much to me… I was so glad & grateful for that moment.  I was so thankful for all the moments…. and for sharing that time with them.

I simply cannot believe that it is sheer dumb luck… or complete randomness… that you are you.  And I am me.    That they are who they are.

Just like the earth has a very well defined orbital path around the sun… passing different planets at different times…., I think too, that we have orbits.  We move through life.. passing different people at different times… all on their separate paths.  Some of us coming closer than others.  But each… on a unique circular schedule.

On the other hand… I think there are unexplainable things which happen completely in a random and nonsensical way.  Like Justin Bieber finding fortune and fame.

I can’t pretend to know how any of this works… to be honest.  I just know that tonight I am thankful for who I am… and where I am.  I am grateful for those good and lovely people in my life.  And that our paths have joined together… whether by design, or by arbitrary tumble.

I happen to think… that somehow… it was meant to be.  Exactly as it is.

There’s no business… like Show Business!
And… The Show Must Go On!

Boy oh boy.  I get excited when I hear this is some kind of a Show.

Really…. any kind of shows.  I love a good magic show.  Or Broadway play.  I find great delight in seeing the old Song and Dance Routine.  And how about a Horse and Pony Show?  (I hear people say that all the time…. but I’ve never actually seen a Horse and Pony Show.)

Tonight… we decided to go to the Car Show.  In Downtown Eaton.  Imagine my anticipation.  I have never seen cars do much…. but move along down the street.  Surely… since this was a show… it would be different.  But what?  What could it be?  I swear… I could hardly wait.

Could it be singing and dancing cars?  Neat-o maneuvers?  Maybe they would fly up ramps, and jump over other cars?  I was so excited at the prospects.  Like the movie Cars… maybe.  Those Cars could TALK!

Alas.  When we arrived… there were tons of  incredibly cool cars.. … sparkly & shiny…. old & new.  But they were all parked… lined up and down Main Street…. so carefully and neatly arranged.

I didn’t want to look like a dummy …. so I didn’t ask.  Apparently we had just missed all the excitement… the biggest show of shows.  I thought it went from 4 to 8 pm.  We were there in plenty of time… I thought.

Clearly those cars had done what ever it was…… they were there to do.  Because now they were at rest…. some of them so tired… they even had their hoods propped open.  Their owners were all rubbing them with towels and such…. like they were giving them car-massages.  It must have been something to see.

Yep.  A day late and a dollar short.  So… we just sort of sauntered up and down the street… and looked at those cars.  And those cars looked back.

Even though we must have missed the grandest of performances…. we had a great time just admiring the aftereffects.    I like a good residual…. every now and again.

“Life is filled with so many exciting twists and turns. Hop off the straight and narrow whenever you can and take the winding paths. Experience the exhilaration of the view from the edge. Because the moments spent there, that take your breath away, are what make you feel truly alive.”
—  Stacey Charter

“This life is yours. Take the power to choose what you want to do and do it well. Take the power to love what you want in life and love it honestly. Take the power to walk in the forest and be a part of nature. Take the power to control your own life. No one else can do it for you. Take the power to make your life happy.”  —   Susan Polis Schutz

I think is important that we support the Arts.  Especially locally… Where ever your “locally” might be.  HERE.  It is the Preble County Art Association, and I have to say… We have a really great Art Association in this rather small community.

Tonight, we attended the Oinkers for Art.   Which was… The Visual Arts Center of Preble County in partnership with The Preble County Pork Festival to decorate the town with ten painted stone pigs… For the upcoming community events of the Pork Festival… And such.

It was great.  Great to see the painting of the pigs… And so many talented people… Taking part in this great event.    But why do they?  WHY?

Art plays a pretty dang big part in making our lives infinitely rich.  I am not even sure I could imagine a world without art!

Art touches our brains.  Each of us in different ways.  It can make us laugh… Or make us angry.  Or just about anything in  between.

It also gives each of us…. A way to be creative.. If we choose to.  It gives us a chance to express ourselves in a variety of different ways.

You many think Art is no big deal.  But without it… Well…. Your video game would totally bite.   How about the box of cereal you had this morning?  Did it have a plain brown cardboard box?  What about your jeans, or your t-shirt…. Or consider your living room furniture?  All influenced… and created artistically.

They… (Those “they” people again)  say that  “Art is subjective, and means something different to every single person on earth.”   Well,  this is true.   But there are parts of it which are objective too.

And at its backbone….. ART is form, and content.

Form…   which is mostly …     the elements of art, the principles of design and the actual, physical materials that the artist has used.
Content….. wellllll….  that can be  a little bit tricky. Content is idea-based.  The things like:  What the artist meant to portray,  what the artist actually did portray and  how we react, as individuals, to both the intended and actual messages.  There is more to content… But… I won’t  blah, blah, blah you tonight.

Art is a profound and wonderful thing.  No matter how or what your view…   As long as you open your perspective to all that art has to offer this life.

“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” Edgar Degas

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” Pablo Picasso

Tonight, I wrote a long story about my evening.  It was kind of a funny deal… I took a swim tonight.  And at the end of my swim, I found a dead bunny on one of the ledges on our pool.  Well… after writing the expanded and exaggerated account, it hit me that it might not be appropriate to publish it here.  Given the recent events at our county fair.  So… now I have to switch gears and write of something else.

Tonight, the thunder is a rumbling.  It sounds like more rain might we on the way.  Earlier in the day… we got those drops.  We sure needed the rain.

In this part of the world… the Ohio Valley… specifically good old Preble County, Ohio…. those news-guys have been promising us some rain for weeks now.  But it never comes.

The farmers around here really needed it.  For contraptions like the one in this photo.  I am not sure exactly what it does.  It is probably some kind of grain storage deal… or maybe a grain elevator… or something.  But I never quite understand why grain needs to take the elevator.  I personally, always prefer the stairs.  Even the escalator.  But you never hear of grain taking the  stairs.

They say grain is healthy.  I would think something that healthy would WANT to take the stairs.    Maybe they can hardly wheat to get to the top.

Or maybe it takes the elevator, because all that wheat is just trying to give someone the shaft.

I wonder a lot of things….. like if their is that loopy music playing on grain elevators.  And if so… I wonder if it gives the farmers my-grain headaches.

Any way… all of this because of the rain.  We sure needed that rain.  But I guess I got off track… and from that point on… things surely went a-rye.  As it is… I could barley finish all of this.

“Believe deep down in your heart that you’re destined to do great things.”

~ Joe Paterno

“Things turn out the best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.”

~ John Wooden