My Weekly Checkup (#17)

A Collection of Some Things I Found, Some Thoughts I Had This Week

I am coming up short this week. Sorry. But I figured I should share something. So here are two offerings: a song and a poem, both from the same artist.

Just think of them as yet more windows into my mind.

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I just adore Bob Dylan. Well, his music, that is. I love lyrical songs, and he has gifted us volumes of verses. This one has always resonated with me, since the first time I heard it. The opening reminds me of the opening to the 

"Shelter from the Storm"

Yes, I know, Jimi Hendrix covered this one, and, for many, it is his version they prefer, or the only one they know. But Bob Dylan wrote it, and his voice and sound, in my mind, mirrors the spirit of "Shelter from the Storm". The way he ends it is genius: he gives us the beginning of a tale full of intrigue and danger. So he lets us use our own imagination to carry the story forward. Well, that's how I have interpreted it. And I have, indeed, developed a story to go with this song. I just need to commit it to writing.

All Along the Watchtower

This last one is a long one. And there is no music. It is basically a very lengthy poem (it took up five pages). Although he is referring to someone famous in the poem (Woody Guthrie), I feel like anyone who has lost someone special (whether through death, an argument, distance, etc.) can relate to Dylan's pain and frustration. 

Listening to this is not for those who are impatient, or are easily distracted. It is seven minutes long. But if you take some time and join Dylan on this ride, and see it through to the end, I doubt you'll be disappointed. His last few verses still give me chills.

Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie

Vegetable Gardening and Me (#13)

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I want to make this a weekly post. I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

Another week, more stuff to harvest, a loss to mourn, and an epiphany to behold...

A Brief Interlude (#5)

I Daydream.  A lot. 

Instead of living it, I dream about doing it. 

I imagine clever dialogues, witty retorts, and spectacular actions.

Daydreaming distracts me from the present purpose: engaging with people, completing projects, creating art, or writing a blog post. It also prevents me from making mistakes and learning from them, making breakthroughs with people and ideas, and acquiring actual skills and building extensive portfolios. Real life doors do not actually open when you are only pushing on imaginary ones.  In the end, daydreaming without translating it into real life, is a waste of time.

I may have a problem… 

Weekly Checkup (#16)

A Collection of Some Things I Found, Some Thoughts I Had This Week

I am not in the mood to share anything worthwhile tonight. Depending on how tonight goes, I'll probably have to run an unpleasant errand tomorrow morning.

So, I'll leave a few sad and melancholy songs that people have shared with me at one time or another, that I have come to enjoy listening to whenever I am in this kind of mood.

Vegetable Gardening and Me (#12)

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I want to make this a weekly post. I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

The fruits of my labor have begun to arrive...

A Brief Interlude (#4)

"It's a very rare person who is taken for what he truly is."

        ~ Schmendrick the Magician, The Last Unicorn

I forgot about this piece of dialogue for my last weekly checkup. It kind of fits into what I wrote for today.

Molly Grue: 'Please! Please do something!'

Schmendrick the Magician: 'What can I do? Do you think the Red Bull likes card tricks? If I could, I would change her into some other creature, some beast too humble for the Bull to be concerned with. But that would take a real magician with real magic, and I can't pretend anymore...'

Molly Grue: 'But you do. You have magic. Maybe you can't find it, but it's there. You called Robin Hood, and there is no Robin Hood. You have all the power you need if you dared to look for it.'

Oh, and a bonus. A Bob Dylan song that I enjoy listening to, and is relevant to this post (not a fan of the video, but I do love the lyrics to this song--I can't believe I only remember as I went to publish this post): "A Series of Dreams" .

 

My Weekly Checkup (#15)

A Collection of Some Things I Found, Some Thoughts I Had This Week

I have spent the better part of this past week on the internet reading people's opinions concerning the reopening of schools during this pandemic. My upcoming Monday blog post will explain why I am not ready to share my thoughts on this topic (and many others) at this time. However, since I  have managed to post weekly under this heading for several months now, I decided to share a little something. Hope you enjoy it!

Vegetable Gardening and Me (#11)

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I want to make this a weekly post. I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

All quiet on the gardening front...

A Brief Interlude (#3)

Gurney: “It’s time for your daily lesson.”

Paul: “Not today, Gurney, I’m not in the mood.”

Gurney: “Moods are for cattle and loveplay, not for fighting!”

~ Dune by Frank Herbert

Me: "With all due respect, Gurney, I am still not in the mood. Well, I have certain priorities today, and writing my Monday blog post is not one of them. Fine, fine. I will write something, but don’t expect too much, or anything worthwhile. "

(For the record, I loved reading the book, all six times, and thoroughly enjoyed the TV miniseries.)

The OTHER Starry Night

My Weekly Checkup (#14)

A Collection of Some Things I Found, Some Thoughts I Had This Week

I hate rabbits, but I do love going down rabbit holes (metaphorically speaking). And that is why I love the internet:  it is mostly a series of interconnected warrens teeming with interesting information and stories. So, I have decided to layout for you one such Google search.

Also,  I needed to do something light this week (next week I plan on sharing a darker, more serious post, but it requires some research). 

Read on to find out why I 
chose this painting.

Vegetable Gardening and Me (#10)

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I want to make this a weekly post. I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

The week when I discovered what fox urine smell likes...

My Four Callings (Part 4C): A Call to Teach

And there's a million things I haven't done.

But just you wait, just you wait...”

~ “Alexander Hamilton”, Hamilton

For me, a calling is an intense belief that God requires me to embrace a vocation in order to make the world a better place. At one time or another, I have felt one of four callings: to become a healer, a soldier, a priest, and a teacher. Some times they have appeared strong and forceful, revealing an obvious path. Other times they have been subtle, even nested in other callings. Or, they have been all together hidden, emerging after years of contemplation. As I have grown older, I have begun to realize that each one of the original four can take on many forms.

Finally, as I enter the second half of my life, it has been made clear to me, I need to combine all four into a single path.

My Weekly Checkup (#13)

A Collection of Some Things I Found, Some Thoughts I Had This Week

This will be a quick post, mostly because I had a long day, and a busy week; therefore, I did not spend a lot of time searching out, or thinking about things worth sharing. But, for the past two weeks, I have found myself thinking back on an image my brother posted from an art book he found. An image that has provided continual amusement for me.

So here goes.

(This is not the image. This is a self portrait of the image's illustrator, Aubrey Beardsley.)

Vegetable Gardening and Me (#9)

As I mentioned in my first post on gardening, I want to make this a weekly post. I am not an expert gardener, and I have made plenty of mistakes, but my adventures may help others have more fun and success. 

Also, I now have a page dedicated to gardening, that will contain all past and future posts, as well as resources I have found useful.

This past week, there has been progress, without any setbacks. So far.