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Camping

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I used to do that during my undergrad days. I had a boyfriend who loved fishing as much as I did and one day he had the bright idea of us camping overnight at one of these places, the places being remote locations tucked away in the woods. It was wonderful finding a spot, throwing your line in, sitting back and enjoying the quiet until the fish bites! I loved the absolute peace of the place so I was more than ready to experience it at night.

On the given day, we made it there early and as usual it was empty except for the two of us. We built our campsite on a jetty protruding into the water. He gathered wood for the fire and got it going. It was still peaceful but then the sun started going down and the woods got dark. There was a creepy vibe about it but I kept it to myself. It was time for dinner so we had something simple and something warm to drink. The boyfriend wanted to fish so he threw out the line and took a seat as we talked about nothing in particular. It was very dark and I decided to curl up in my sleeping bag as he kept watch. Suddenly, we heard a loud sound coming from the woods. It sounded like footsteps so I looked at him and he said, “Don’t worry, nothing is going to happen.” The sounds stopped and it got eerily quiet. Then other sounds picked up. An owl hooting and something else. It sounded like low whispering! I was getting nervous and wanted to say it was a bad idea but I kept quiet. After a while, I fell asleep. When I woke up, it was morning. My friend was still up but he looked strange like he was scared. I asked what was wrong and he said nothing. The sun was up and we decided to do a little more fishing before heading out. Just as we were packing up our stuff, we heard a very loud sound of something crashing to the ground. I jumped and said, “What was that?!!” He said it was nothing and added, “Let’s go!” Did he experience something in the night? I don’t know but it was spooky and I would never do it again. I later found out that the place we were at used to be an Indian burial ground! Probably Cherokee because we were in Tennessee at the time.

I love camping but I wouldn’t do it nowadays. Those carefree days are done with and I know too much now to ever do something that dumb again. Anything could have happened but it didn’t and I’m thankful for that. Camping is fun but be prepared for the unexpected, good and bad!

Daily writing prompt

Have you ever been camping?

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Stalks of Gold

It was an early morning walk. The days are getting warmer and walking later in the mornings is getting uncomfortable. I am not a fan of hot weather so a friend suggested I should try walking when the dewdrops are still on the ground. I took his advice.

The fields looked different as I approached it today. They were wearing a gleeful look, the rapeseed plants were in full bloom and mesmerizing fields of gold greeted my eyes as I stepped onto familiar ground. I was dwarfed by the long stalks of gold on both sides as I took my steps feeling a little out of place somehow. Since I have a mild case of claustrophobia, the uneasiness grew as I ventured further in. Suddenly I decided to cut it short as my mind started playing havoc and started coming up with horror scenarios! It was doing one better than Stephen King but only this time instead of cornfields I was caught in a maze of gold!

It was time to make my way home, however, there was no denying the beauty surrounding me. The bright yellow showcased against a bright blue sky was gorgeous and picture postcard perfect but the quiet was all-consuming. Something was off but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Perhaps, I’ve been watching too many horror movies, the kind where nature hides the paranormal!

Time to head back, sit down to a nice hot cup of coffee and meditate to quiet the uneasiness running through me. Intuition is a good thing and it only has your best interest at heart so pay attention when it screams danger or as in my case, it could have just been my overactive mind doing hoops to get attention!. It did.

Have an amazing day.

Why Not Trump? (Archives)

Update:

I wrote this piece before Trump made it to the White House. His 100 days in office has been a nightmare. He has tanked the economy, allies are nowhere to be seen but he is not stopping there. Talks of recession are a daily prediction and he has launched an unprecedented global tariff war not to mention upending world order. Add his bold-faced lies to the picture and you’ve got more than a disaster in the making.

There are many reasons why “Orange Jesus” should not get within spitting distance of the White House again let alone take up the business of running the country from the bully pulpit.

At the top of the list of why Donald J. Trump should not be president of the United States is that the man believes that he is entitled to act with impunity and without any restrictions placed on him. He firmly believes that as the president of the United States, he is free to do whatever he likes and not be held ACCOUNTABLE for it. However, the truth of the matter is that the president is accountable to the Constitution, to the Congress and to the nation and that it is not a one-man show as he so believes.

Besides that, Trump has shown time and again that he is dishonest, a bully, manipulative, narcissistic and “crotch-grabbing” and in his world that is an added incentive to being rich and powerful and NOT a sign of disrespect to women. Add to that no remorse, no empathy, no conscience, no awareness of what is right and wrong and a full-blown ego that will not take a beating and you have a “monster” in the making. Why is he still in the running and made it this far? God only knows!

Lastly, citizen Trump is not very intelligent. We see this in his limited grasp of his vocabulary and the use of the English language. It is riddled with a few adjectives all speaking to the “ME” concept. It is ALL about him. Self-importance is his mainstay and add stupidity to that and you have a clown who knows not of what he speaks. Mind-boggling that he has made it this far.

The man will have substantial authority and power if he makes it to the White House again and that is a frightening prospect. If he makes it to the pinnacle of power, he will vent and throw his temper tantrums as he has done before and that is a given. He will not only be a danger to the country but to the people and the world as a whole. That folks is more than unsettling and downright dangerous.

When Do I Feel Most Productive?

There is no specific time. Sometimes creativity hits when I least expect it like when I’m in the shower or doing something mundane like cleaning the kitchen or doing the laundry. My physical self is doing the ordinary but my mental self is being very productive at those times. I call it a form of moving meditation.

Some days my mind doesn’t do anything productive except to give me negative back talk! Other days, it is raring to go and just when I’m making breakfast or washing the dishes an idea hits and I think I need to get this down on paper before it disappears. Some days I do and on other days I get lazy and I let it pass. The problem is some of those ideas are doozies and I often regret not putting them down on paper to be used later. However, my mind comes up with enough ideas so one or two falling by the wayside is not going to matter much.

Coming back to your question, I am most productive when I don’t see it coming!

Daily writing prompt

When do you feel most productive?

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This Thing Called Love (1)

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By now, you know that most of my posts center around this thing called love. It’s because I have my fact-finding shoes on and I want to find out what it is all about.

It is elusive, that’s for sure. It morphs and never stays the same, that’s another aspect. It shows up when you least expect it and it doesn’t stay for long. It is loving and all-consuming but when things go south, it takes off on winged feet. This is my experience as far as love is concerned.

Poor you? Not really. It is daunting this task of finding “real love” but my curiosity is aroused and I’m not going to settle for anything less than the real kind. Curiosity killed the cat, you say? Well, Chachi, the cat, is doing pretty well in that respect and he’s wearing the Einstein hat now!

Someone said to me it is not about ego or attitude yesterday. I totally agree. However, it is not about accepting everyone who walks in the door and placing the “love tag” on them either. That’s a surefire way to disaster. One person called me complicated, well, more than one but who’s counting! Complicated in this case means I’m not willing to accept what is offered. It’s more like the caveman variety. “Here I am woman take me! I like you so no more wasting time and no more discussion. Let’s get down to business!” Nope, that won’t work. I am too emancipated for that BS! Call me complicated all you want but you’re out the door!

I live in a small village that time forgot. The marriages here last a very long time. Have they found the secret to a long and happy love life? Not really. It is based on convenience. Its more like, “I provide and you pander.” Get the picture? These marriages last for a very long time but they are miserable together. One prime example was my in-laws. They were married for decades and they boasted about the longevity of their relationship, however, fights were a part of their daily existence. When he died, she mourned his loss. I wondered if she was mourning the loss of the person or what she was accustomed to, that of nagging and bickering all day long. Perhaps, it was addicting but is that real love?

Someone else said, “If you find it, hold on to it.” I definitely plan to do that. In my journey so far, I’m finding that “love” comes disguised in all its wishy-washy forms but if you want the real kind, you’ve got to take your time, know what you will settle for and what you won’t and don’t be afraid to discard if it’s not what you’re looking for. It takes courage, it takes a single-minded focus and it takes walking the road less traveled. Shut out the noise around you. The one that says, “You can’t do this,” but more specifically the one that roars, “You’ll wind up alone!” I say, “better alone than with the wrong person.”

“Unless it’s mad, passionate or extraordinary love, it’s a waste of your time. There are too many mediocre things in life: Love shouldn’t be one of them.” Unknown

AND

“There is no such thing as love, you just happen to bump into someone who laughs at your jokes, likes the way you’re face is and accepts the way you look at the world. Love isn’t real, only two human beings coincidentally lonely at the same moment in time.”

What do you think? Some truth to that assumption?

Have an amazing day.

My Favorite Emojis

I don’t really like emojis and I don’t like using them but in this fast-paced digital world of ours, it is a necessary evil. I feel that it takes away from the human touch. There is one for every emotion you want to get across and it does its work well or so it seems. Most of us take it for granted when we get one and don’t pay much attention to it. I don’t.

Recently a male friend told me that I should never send this one ❤️ to just friends or acquaintances. He said it means love and should only be sent to people you love. I disagreed but maybe he is right about me sending the wrong signal. So I have stopped doing that. The thumbs up emoji is my favorite 👍 and I like sending that when something strikes me as being particularly good. Of course, the smiley 😀 is always a good one. Other than that, I don’t use them much.

I’m all about doing it the old-fashioned way. Calling to convey thanks or to show I care. I do understand that it is not always possible when the daily grind takes over and there is not much time to do what you need to get done so the cute little emojis step in and do the work for you even if it is a lukewarm effort. Long live the emojis? Not really. I’ll put up with them just as I do with all the other stuff that the world of technology comes up with even if I have to grit my teeth and do it!

Daily writing prompt

What are your favorite emojis?

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LOL!

Three men were out golfing one day and one of them hit his ball into the woods. He went into the woods to look for it and found a frog in a trap. The frog said to him, “If you release me from this trap, I will grant you three wishes on one condition to be named later.”

The man freed the frog and the frog said, “Thank you, but the condition is that whatever you wish for, your wife will get 10 times more or better!” The man said, “Oh, that would be okay,” and for his first wish he wanted to be the most handsome man in the world. The frog warned him, “You do realize this wish will also make your wife ten times better looking and the most beautiful woman in the world, and that men will flock to her.” The man replied, “That is okay, because I will be the most handsome man and she will only have eyes for me.” So, poof – he’s the most handsome in the world!

For his second wish, he wanted to be the richest man in the world. The frog said, “That will make your wife ten times richer, thus the richest person in the world.” The man said, “That is okay, because what is mine is hers, and what is hers is mine.” So, poof – he’s the richest man in the world!

The frog then inquired about his third wish and the man answered, “I’d like a mild heart attack….”

I want to find that frog!

A man gets on an airplane and sits next to a beautiful woman. He asks her where she is going. Her reply is that she is going to a nymphomaniac convention. He asks, “What do you learn at a convention like that?”

She says, “I have learned about many myths. Like the myth that Frenchmen are the best lovers. Jewish men are the best lovers. Another myth that I’ve learned about is that African men have the largest sex organs. It’s not African. It’s the American Indian, but I feel a little strange telling you all this when I don’t even know you. What is your name?”

The man thought for a minute and said, “Tonto, Tonto Goldstein.”

Smart guy!

Love of Another Kind (Archives)

Update:

Nothing much has changed, if anything he has grown on me like a barnacle on a rock! The little bundle of fur is a part of my life and he’s there from the minute I wake up to the time I go to bed. Kisses and hugs are plenty and so are his complaints but he knows and I know that we wouldn’t want to change a thing!

Albert Schweizer said:

“There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.”

He didn’t know at the time just how much truth there is in that one little phrase. My little furry friend walked into my life in the arms of my then boyfriend, in the form of a British short-haired variety and disguised as a birthday gift. Our eyes locked and he meowed his dissatisfaction at being forced to leave everything he knew behind, more specifically the safe haven of his mother’s embrace. He stretched his long neck towards me peering suspiciously at the human before him. I reached out and rubbed one hand over his tiny head and the purring that followed had me hooked from day one.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I see him watching me, his big dark eyes trained in my direction. ”What’s my next move to get her out of bed?” he seems to say. He has tried everything from his reservoir of cat arsenal and it hasn’t worked. Jumping on the bed hasn’t worked. Purring in one ear hasn’t worked. Rubbing his face against mine hasn’t worked and running one paw through my hair hasn’t worked either. ”This human is beyond my comprehension!” he meows and not too softly as he sits waiting and not too patiently!

Nothing new here. Our signals are often crossed but one thing is for sure, we love each other and there are no ifs or buts about it.

He’s been there through the thick and thin of life and everything in between. When I lost my friend the same one who had brought this tiny bundle of joy into my life, he was there to tamper the pain and make it lighter. I remember crying into his fur and holding him close. He took it like a champ even though I had soaked his fur with tears that were running down my face. He was there when I had something to laugh about. He would sit staring out the kitchen window as I moved around explaining what had happened to put that smile on my face and he would look back with that, “I’m happy for you” look or at times he would look at me with that, “I don’t know what you are droning on about but it is alright.” Talking to him has become a daily occurrence and we have an understanding of sorts. He has his world and I have mine but the love we share is of the non-negotiable type. It is there to stay and I can’t see my world without him.

Today as I roll out of bed and head on downstairs to make my first cup of coffee, he takes his spot by the kitchen window staring out at the world before him. At times, he will hear me humming and at times he will hear me whisper his name as I plant a soft kiss on his head and whisper, “I love you.” Everything is right in his world and in mine because his presence in my life is a Godsent and if there is a love never-ending, then this is it.

His name is Chachi and he is my love of a different kind.

“I have felt cats rubbing their faces against mine and touching my cheek with claws carefully sheathed. These things, to me, are expressions of love.” James Herriot

Have an amazing day.

Topics of Discussion

I love discussing about all kinds of topics especially those that fit into my current way of life. If you want to talk about self-discovery and ways to achieve that, I am all in. However, I love discussions about love as well. The elusive variety that is out there but is hard to find and to pin down!

I know all there is to know about the, “here today and gone tomorrow” variety. I’ve been there and done that many times over. I want to know about the “never-ending” kind that is here to stay and doesn’t go looking for greener pastures when the notion strikes. This kind of love has my attention and I’m working towards finding the answers to this question. “What makes love stay?” I haven’t found the answer or answers yet but I am on a fact-finding mission and knowing me it is just a matter of time before I unlock that secret.

Good luck you say? I don’t think luck has anything to do with it. Perhaps, it is about lying down and playing dead meaning accepting what is dished out and calling it love. If that’s the case, I’ll take a pass on love. The kind I’m looking for is the kind where the guy says, “You look beautiful,” even when I am old and wrinkled but he doesn’t see it, just the essence of me. Make sense? Enough rambling, he’s out there, I just need to find him.

Can we make it easier please?

No way?

Thought so. Off I go on my journey of discovery.

Daily writing prompt

What topics do you like to discuss?

View all responses

The “Me” Concept (Archives)

Who am I? Sounds simple enough but this is a hard one to answer. It encompasses all of you, the big picture so to speak. Who you are, what you stand for, what shaped you and the experiences that have made you, the “YOU” of today are all part and parcel of this concept. Understanding yourself is vital to how you interact with the world around you. There is only one YOU, and your identity is unique, It is made up of your values, your beliefs, your relationships and your experiences and that in a nutshell is who you are as a person.

However, interacting with the world around you is not always an easy thing to do. It is much bigger than you are and sometimes downright scary. Here are some quotes that speak to the heart of the matter and might even help with where you are in the grand scheme of things as far as your world is concerned.

“Focus on the step in front of you, not the whole staircase.” Unknown

One step at a time if you want to get somewhere and looking at that whole journey might just be a tad too overwhelming to say the least. Do it slowly and carefully and you’ll get there when the time is right.

“Once you learn how to be happy, you won’t tolerate being around people who make you feel anything less.” Unknown

Absolutely worth taking a note of. How often do we hang around people who make us feel less than we are? It is time to clean house and start afresh with people worthy of your company.

“The problem isn’t that your friends aren’t showing up for you…

The problem is that you’re still calling them friends.” Unknown

“You become like the 5 people you spend the most time with.

Choose carefully” Unknown

How true? Choose your friends carefully and the rest will fall into place.

“If you ever find yourself in the wrong story,

LEAVE.” Mo Willems

If something is not working and it becomes a struggle, change your strategy. You are not stuck where you are, there is always a way out to start anew.

“She wanted something else, something different, something more, passion and romance, perhaps, or maybe quiet conversations in candlelit rooms, or perhaps something as simple as not being second.” Nicholas Sparks

There you have it. Stop being the option and start being the priority. Stop choosing people who do not choose you.

Understand this….

“You can sound confident and have anxiety. You can look healthy but feel like shit. You can look happy and be miserable inside. You can be good looking and feel ugly. So be kind, because every person is fighting a battle you know nothing about.” Unknown

JUST BE KIND

“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.

Watch your words, for they become actions.

Watch your actions, for they become habits.

Watch your habits, for they become character.

Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

This actually speaks to the whole concept of who you are. What you do eventually becomes your character. Choose wisely and do the right thing.

“Learn to be done with people, not mad, not bothered but just done.” Unknown

This is hard for someone like me. It takes a lot to say I am done but I am learning. Sometimes it is a matter of survival the choices you make. Choose wisely.

“In the end, she became more than what she expected. She became the journey, and like all journeys, she did not end. She simply changed directions and kept going.” Unknown

This last one is poignant. I am on a journey of self-discovery and self-development and in so doing I am learning to give up what does not serve me, to change directions and to move towards what does. Not always easy I know but this is where self-awareness and self-worth comes in to guide you and to make it just a little less scarier than it is.

Have an amazing day.