What a long week – on final push for so many juggled projects and thank the stars I had the good sense to meter out my writing session during the snow day last week into once a day missives – – 🙂
I’m tired, worn out but just a little more and I can loudly declare,
“Ta-Da!” on 10 different projects in the works this past 2 weeks – 🙂
But, I’ve had my moments of overwhelm here lately – and am deeply in need of a GASGNI – what’s that? You’ll see…tomorrow morning…. 🙂
So, I’ll leave ya with a little joke, plan on spending some time at GASGNI tomorrow – and soon, I’ll be posting pics and links to what got accomplished!
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An upbeat young woman started a brand new job and while she loved the company, there was one older fellow in the office that seemed eternally grumpy and gruff – she spent all week trying to get him to smile – to no avail.
At the end of the week, she stepped on the elevator to see his scowling face already gracing the area – determined to be cheerful, she smiled and exclaimed:
Since posting that little gem, the functionality to “Like” comments has become available –
Which is Awesome!
Some things Never Change…
Remember the old telephone game of, “No, you hang up!”, “No, you first…”?
Well, sometimes (especially late at night) I find myself tempted to indulge in the ‘who will hang-up first’ dialogue via online comments – cuz what the person said, I agree with, but don’t really have much to add, and yet, still want to acknowledge their brilliance –
The Solution?
Click “Like” And…
Ta-Da! Done!
Now, they know I read their comment, liked or agree with it, but really don’t have much of anything creative to add to the discussion –
(yes, though a rare occurrence, me, having nothing to say, does actually happen…)
Some time ago, New Bloggy Cat posted her daughter’s unique take on the Selfie craze – Check it out – it’s a better pic, both in subject and photo quality!
Did you look at the pretty selfeet?
Are you sure?
Okay, then, here, in all it’s blurry glory, is my own Workin’ – Selfeet –
It’s late, I’m tired and don’t feel like putting my work boots on again to take a better picture – 🙂
Check out them white chicken’ legs full of bruises, scrapes and bumps that morph into clodhopper hand me downs from ‘bigger feet than me’ man-child! 🙂
Did you know I was thinking about you all last week? While I slaved away at a hundred different projects?
I did – – because, I’ve hit my “Up-Cycle”, which means, for now, I can wonder how you’re doing while weeding at the same time.
(On a really good day, I even dare to add ‘chewing bubblegum and walking’ into the whole mix…)
I Hibernate 2-3 times a Year
When I’m hibernating, I soak in the external experience of whatever shows up – Pretty laid back – spend lots of time researching and going to the cynical dark side of my nature while attempting to put my “Oh-Why-Bother?” We’re all gonna die, anyways” time to good use –
The two main periods are Feb/March and Aug/Sept –
I’ve been told this is because of biorhythms, enneagram or astrological chart –
I’ve also been told it is mere laziness, or depression –
Accusations of SAAD, and every other acronym dreamed up in attempts to quantify/explain/fix the ups and downs of life are offered, as well….
I don’t care –
I’ve learned to honor my unique cycles – fight to preserve and protect them – and not feel bad about myself while doing so –
Because I’ve learned that when I finally get through all the ‘prep’ cycles and am ready to Do – I’ll churn out a year’s worth of projects in a month or so – works for me and I finally have a Lifestyle that meshes nicely with the Me I am today…
(Sometimes, I have to write an “I R Sorry” note to someone who reached out for comfort when I was deep in hibernation and, I, in attempt to cheer them up, actually stressed them out even more, by sharing my favorite pick-me-up mantra,
“Cheer Up! Yellowstone is set to blow any day now – you only have to hold on for a bit longer….”
I Don’t Promise What Works for Me will Bring Comfort to You….
(but! if Mother Nature deems me acceptable, I can promise you a rose garden…in about 3 years…)
New Rose bed – the bare root roses are there – but hard to see – 🙂
Sometimes, I just need to hibernate –
(I’m sure, in my own arrogance, you would benefit from hibernation, too, but won’t press the opinion…just now….)
Hibernation is Always Followed by the Fermentation period
Here, I start ruminating about how this tangled mess of new info from a hundred-thousand perspectives, can be put to good use for me and others…
When I’m up to it cross-referencing and organizing the files in my grey matter…
When it doesn’t seem so overwhelming to add yet another item to the “To Do” list….
Fermentation time is like living with someone who’s going through hot flashes –
It’s a dicey period and maybe things get done and maybe they don’t and woe to anyone demanding anything other than what IS, this second….
About 1 Day Or 3 months later, the “Doing, Doing, Frantic Doing” Period Arrives
If you chose to stay friends with me during the hibernation and fermentation period, you’ll be the recipient of all the things I learned the past few months that may be of help to the thing you bitched about 7 years ago – – Cuz all the pieces of the puzzle have arrived over the years of Hibernation and Fermentation and NOW! I think I actually have a pretty picture to give to you as a solution…
It’s also the time where I’m furiously crossing 9 items off the top of the To Do list …
…and adding 27 new entries to the bottom –
Good thing I have software that allows me to add ‘tasks, soft-maybe- need more info – must be Done’ labels, complete with reminder alarms – to keep me focused on what to actually DO, For Today…When I have a hundred options to choose from….
Juggling what can be done that day is always dependent upon what my body says is possible –
And if My Mind confirms, “Yup, we know what we need to, Let’s get ‘er done…”
And if My Spirit roars, “What are ya waiting for? Let’s Go!!!
This System Works Fairly Well Until….
I either drop dead from the frenzy or the next cycle of Hibernation appears…
Since I haven’t dropped dead yet, and overall, am much happier than I was in my 20’s – I guess I’ll stick with the current approach…
Until something better shows up….
🙂
Frequently, My Cycles Are not In Tune With the Accepted Status Quo
“You sound like Elmer Fudd! You Overdid! Why do you do this to yourself?”
“Why can’t you just set a steady pace to work Mon-Friday 8am-5pm?”
“Why can’t you just slow down before you overdo?”
Granted, most pleas come from those who love/care, but seriously, after all these decades of same-ole, same-ole, you’d think they might have caught a glimpse of the whole cycles thingamabobber –
Alas, I’ve been repeatedly informed there are strict, accepted seasons for said hibernation periods that are socially acceptable –
My only response is…
“I’m not a tree or a bear – get over it….”
You’re Likely Tired of Hearing Me Say It –
But a very smart lady, over 15 years ago, asked me one question:
“Do you think you could fashion your life to work with your natural cycles instead of against them?”
And That’s Been My Goal – Ever Since…
To do what I want to do in a way that meshes with who, I currently, Am….
Body hurts?
Write!
Need to stay up all night to monitor security updates or a child with a concussion?
Fine!
All my living room bookcases were in need of dusting, anyhoo – if only I don’t fall asleep while dusting –
I can’t find the stats just now, but I’m certain people have died from boredom while dusting…
I can garden, landscape, weed while thinking about what I simply must share with you – my community
I thought about sharing with or asking you about last week – –
I know, somewhere in my community here, there is someone who will get what I’m talking about, has the answer or who is hot on the trail of the next shiny solution, for all of us…
Over 12 Robins showed up after the big dirt moving day – and have made steady appearance ever since – just there for the worms, or a Sign to Guide me in the right direction?
Didja Know – The little, white, looking worm-thingees that like to nest right next to the Purple-Stinking-Weed-from-Hades have been identified by others as either, “cutworms’ or “Not sure what they’re called, but you don’t want those lil’ bast***s in your garden.” – So, feeling less and less guilty about the mass murder of wild mustard plants, because it seems the non-beneficial bugs move to purpler pastures once I’ve weeded an area….
Apparently, Robins won’t lower themselves to feast upon the buffet listed in Item 2 – but Chickens, apparently, love ’em – should I become a Chicken Wrangler?
Does anyone else hate the new ‘great for mobile’, ‘sucks for desktop users’ style of websites showing up? Where you have to scroll, scroll, scroll to get to where you want and no longer have a nice top and sidebar selection of options to choose from on the very first page you land on?
Do any of these said companies understand that the combined stats of my local customers indicates less than a 10% usage by return visitors via a tablet/cell phone? (Hey! We live in spotty internet, no wi-fi on every corner, low median income area!)
If I still layout sites like it’s 1999, but plan for moving forward, easily, when things change here, will that be good enough?
Sob…when will I learn to type on my smarter-than-me-phone without so many errors?
Why do the new tools/clips for fence building not work with the recycled T-Posts I was gifted? Were they given to me, because the giftor knew I’d be fiddlin’ with 20 year old baling wire and fencing pliers, while they whipped through using the Fencing Solution Fork on their newer T-posts?
Did the bunnies really just shear off the yellow tulips because I griped about not seeing my purple/white, color coordinated preferences a few weeks ago? Or are the purple/white ones so GMO’d that the bunnies know better than to eat them?
While I acknowledge the sentiment of the songwriter who penned, “Driftin’ Along with the Tumbling Tumbleweeds” I also believe they are personally responsible for all the ones that stop their drifting at my place –
Did you know you can get a staph infection from handling tumbleweeds? Hasn’t happened to me, scratched hands, arms, legs, face and all – yet, but apparently – it has been known to happen…
Who would have guessed that neurological exams for concussions and possible brain bleeds look very similar to roadside sobriety tests – – neither me nor the man-child could (during my stroke and his concussion) rattle off the alphabet, backwards, while balancing on our left foot – – and touching our nose with both fingers…arms parallel to the ground – thankfully, we both received medical care instead of being incarcerated for suspicion of indulging in a beer lunch….
Do you know how much your art here enriches my life?
I got the carefully watched and left undisturbed wild poppy area weeded today.
(to the internal tune of Count Dracula, from Sesame Street, chanting,
“1, I count One Poppy! 2, I count… “
And then heard him exclaim,
“WTH!?! You said the highest I had to count to was 12! You want 41 now? We must count winks then….”)
After clearing out the tall native grass, I counted each existing plant and the picture doesn’t capture all of them, BUT, I have more wild poppies than I previously thought or reported to you:
Remember when that area looked like this?:
Before – Over 20 wild poppies this year – once I carefully clip all the grass away, I may just discover more!
Now, it Looks Like –
After- Hope I didn’t weed native grasses so much that I deprived Poppies of support and late spring snow protection!
Finally, another spot soon to be finished…
The above picture is of an area located right in between the iris/rhubarb bed:
To the west
and the soapweed/tulip/daylilly area…
To the East
After 3 years of having a slowly diminishing pile of sand/fine gravel mix,
(delivered by my generous neighbor for the long ago scrapped first plan of what to do right next to the house….)
I’ve decided to level it out over the entire area (over the shorn heads of native grass and layers of newspaper) nestled between the two finished areas, re-arrange the rocks to encase the entire area, top off with quite a few inches of dirt/compost mix and the new home for Amaranth and Wild Poppies will be complete.
Funny how this all came about so well without me planning it on purpose-
I was surprised to discover the length of the two existing areas, cleaned and neatened yards and months apart, actually line up almost perfectly, so the rock border to enclose everything won’t look like I was tipsy when I laid it out.. 🙂
I do Confess to Having an Uneasy Conscience…
…over clearing out that area of native grass – not sure exactly what kind of grass it is, but it’s hardy, has deep roots that are aerating the soil, grows fairly tall, in amongst other plants, but doesn’t seem bent on strangling its’ neighbors –
If it could be happy only reaching three or four inches in full height, I would leave it alone and cherish the ground cover that requires no mowing.
The future will tell if Mother Nature is pleased with my weeding efforts or not.
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Yes, I did mislead you about how many poppies there were – but not on purpose –
If you sue me for leading you astray in my amateur-half-arsed gardening attempts – have fun with that –
You can’t get blood from a turnip, but if all goes well, you can safely ask for your ‘jury awarded compensation’ to be paid in turnips, over the next 50 years….
The Good, Bad and Ludicrous 