Early November Vignettes

This will be mostly photos since I don't have a lot of time to spare and it hurts my back to sit at the computer for too long.

I just love living where a hot air balloon will just skim by my roof and off into the field. This morning a crow sat on a craggy old branch of a dead tree in our yard and called, "Hello, hello" to me until I went out and took it some peanuts. No, really, it said "hello." It is who we call the Hello Crow, someone must have taught it to speak and it has been around for years. Fortunate happenings like that are plentiful here.

Just a couple of hours drive can take us into some of the most beautiful and remote parts of the state. Leave your cell phones behind but get ready to enjoy the opportunity to see so many starts in the night sky that you have a hard time picking out the main constellations.

I don't live in the city thus have not taken on the useless habit of venting at the traffic that gets in our way as RGBisMe drives. He is pretty zen about it too come to think of it. This attitude helps when we have to travel in and out of New York City to visit Asrai and Ravenboy. We leave a little extra time and thermostats stay cool in the car and in our personal core. Why fret? We will get there.

On the topic of dearest Asrai and Ravenboy I feel I may share the news of their upcoming wedding. Many will be shocked and feel the event in a couple of weeks has been a quick decision. I can assure everyone that their friendship that started many years ago when they met in Chicago and has blossomed into the most beautiful partnership. Well over a year ago, they started planning their wedding. They are very private individuals and have only shared the information with just their closest friends and family recently. Our next trip into NYC will be for that joyous occasion and we will return with them for a local reception for family that was unable to make the trip.

As we have been personally planning the local festivities it has been a very exciting and busy time. RGBisMe and I have happily been putting our heads together over supper in the evenings putting our special touches on anything we can help with and trying not to overstep our bounds. The wedding announcements were just sent out, the caterer is set with the menu, the baker has the cake specifications and the venue is booked.

A lot of the hustle and bustle of planning finally let up a bit after beginning of the month. I foresaw the upcoming little window of rest so earlier in October we accepted a generous invitation to camp with Jbzfarm! This past weekend was the date and we had such a good time catching up with them.

No iPod was needed to listen to, we sang tv show tunes. No computer was needed to surf the Internet, we filled our evening with lively chatter. No stars on tv to gawk at and poke fun at, we enjoyed star gazing in the Perry County skies. Not a chance of boredom, we enjoyed multiple board games, traded stamp carving secrets and sipped secret stuff from Sevoflorane bottles. All of that was our DOWN TIME at night!

Days were filled with local trails and tales. We walked to a pond which it is rumored will be dredged for a 15 year old cold case that is being reopened. A woman had disappeared nearby. We hiked to check on a couple of lonely letterboxes. The long standing Old Growth boxes were in fine shape and the hitch hikers that had been long waiting with their thumbs outstretched were finally moved on. We visited the ghost town of Pandemonium and another cemetery of local forestry folks.

We didn't even make a dent in all the trails that this area of Perry County has to offer. Most tempting were the remote camp sites outside of Fowlers Hollow SP that were near overlooks. The star gazing would be premium and no one around for miles to walk through the area.

We really must return. I know I slowed everyone down because I had hurt my back just hours before leaving. I feel badly for being the bent old lady and want to go back to hike every stretch of trail with freedom of movement. Thank you Jbzarm for being gracious and never acting like my snails pace was a bother to you. You were the consummate hosts, giving everything and expecting nothing in return.

Even though we are probably at opposite ends of the political spectrum, it was great to share a weekend with a family that appreciates the lands of central PA. We were all patting the ancient hemlocks and wondering what their fate would be with the woolly adelgid killing so many. Hunters and vegetarians hiking together and enjoying their commonalities rather than picking battles and trying to convince each other that they must be mistaken. Friendships fostered from nurtured common ground are very satisfying.

Final Day!

Lets cheer Toolman Luke for enduring the hours of trips to Danville and back. Today is his last regular trip and my LiveStrong band made it all the way through yesterday, it broke while I was on the phone with Maga.

I hope he will do something special, stop at Preistley House and take in some Oxygen. Preistley "invented" it you know. Maybe something else since his biography was less than thrilling. Anyway Congratulations Dad and I hope you grab a good bunk at GeeserFest!

Victory!

Thanks to Janila, RGBisMe and I were able to find our 1,000th letterbox.

I was really exhausted when I posted this blog entry. I want to come back to add that Janila was such a gracious hostess. When it was rainy, she was up to having breakfast first. As the skies cleared, she took us to a few excellent grab-n-go boxes of which she had printed the clues out for us. She was flexible about letting us choose which boxes to go for in Nolde Forest and when we wanted to give up on a trail or lead, she didn't complain and shared stories of her enjoyable times in the same park. She gave so much of herself and then she planted a surprise for us as we were seeking our 999th box. Just as RGBisMe found it, she told me of a set of WOM clues. I followed them and there was our 1,000th box along with a bubbly treat!

We did go on to find a few more boxes, one had been giving her a few problems. That 1,0001st box was just as sweet because we could all share the victory. We laughed and chatted all day. As the skies finally cleared to a patchy blue, the temperature had dropped. I started to get tired from the hiking and excitement and I was the one to say I was all in.

As she would say, we are on our way to 2,000. What I like is looking back on the various planters who made it possible. We look forward to all of the new experiences that greet us along the way.

She planted a special Celebration letterbox just for our 1,000th find and packed a bottle of bubbly so we could pop the cork on the trail! YUM! Thanks Jan, it was a great day and we are both exhausted.

Happy Halloween!

Thanks Bug!

For the flowers and sitting with me to watch hours of cooking shows and cooking for me and getting me cold meds and watching me fall asleep to PBS's Pride and Prejudice again.

New Moon

New moon doesn't mean a "Twilight" book or movie to my family. It is simply what it is and an upsurgance in occult interest has thrust us into focus a few times because of our celebrating the cycles of the sun and moon. If it has seemed to anyone that I put off real explanations to questions about our spirituality by making jokes I apologize. It is because I am trying to avoid skeptical smirks that I am given when I give honest answers to those who I feel are open minded people. Not always but sometimes the reactions I get tell me that I may eventually be the butt of a joke that I may not be present for. It feels more safe just to keep that part of my life private.

Some interested people have requested that we include them in some of our houshold's neo-pagan rites. I feel awkward at requests like these because what an outsider might notice would seem to be next to nothing. So many of the Esbats and Sabbats become so ingrained an intertwined with our mundane lives that the moments don't seem to hold much of what many would call a ritual. This forces me to have to explain what is going on, point out the shifts in the energies, audibly add back the songs and the poems that I now hear the universe singing with every cycle. It can take the magic out of the moment.

The real ritual is that the moon cycles and the sun cycles again and again. What we do and what happens to us and our surroundings spiral along with it. The colored leaves are the mandala and the sound of their blowing is the song of worship. The new Oktoberfest brew at Otto's is the "wine" and the Doritoes hanging from our apple tree are the "cakes" for Mabon. We recognize the second harvest in the changes on the farmers market vendor's tables (altars) and the way people dress on the trails. Attitudes of hikers and hunters change and the conversations we have are different. Our lives have changed with the seasons again; magic happens.

Not every neo-pagan family regularly celebrates new moon together. It can frequently be a more personal esbat of introspection. New moon occurs in the middle of the day in the bright of the sun when many of us are busy. It's easy to have the moment slip by and not realize it until later.

This moon, Beaver Moon/ Mourning Moon/ Snow Moon /Fog Moon, is traditionally "a time of washing away the baggage of the past and letting it go. Once you've done that, you'll be able to focus on the joys of the future. During the Mourning Moon phase, say goodbye to bad habits and toxic relationships, and get a fresh start for the new year. Work on developing and strengthening your connection with what is sacred."

I look back on yesterday and see what was thrust upon us by the fates. RGBisMe finally had weather that cooperated well enough to chop and move the four large branches that were littering our yard from the early snow storm. The garden fence was spared, the branches damaged nothing. Clearing away debris as new moon approached seems a little literal to some but there it is. A clean yard for Beaver Moon.

What had also happened in the middle of the storm this past week was that the new tenant for apartment 1 inconveniently threw a change in schedule at us; he set back his lease signing by hours. This required me to rearrange a lot of other things that we had going on to accommodate one of us being here for him. This, it turned out, needed to be RGBisMe because I had become ill. It was even more tricky since RGBisMe was needed in about 12 places at once this weekend. I juggled and made calls (on the cell phone, the land line was dead from the storm) and it all worked out.

The new fellow (who seems polite enough) has a huge truck and RGBisMe saved the widening of the parking space until pretty much the last minute since he had to be present for the lease signing. It all came together, the new fellow signed the lease, moved some some stuff in and he was left to explore what was now his place.

It was a sad and odd moment of transference for us. Apartment 1 was no longer Mososo Kruppe's it was this new fellow's. We realized we wouldn't be just walking down to have a few laughs with this guy the way we had for over a year with them. It was a mournful closure to a hustle an bustle couple of weeks trying to get to the apartment occupied.

The new tenant had signed the lease exactly at new Mourning Moon. This was not contrived by us, we didn't manipulate his schedule. It was he who demanded the exact day and he could not come at the time we had chosen. Without incense, chanting, song or knowingly invoking anything, new moon came at a seemingly coincidental moment. Magic happens that way.

Dark of the Moon

Dark of the moon
New beginnings
Dark of the moon
Plant a seed tonight
Dark of the moon
What we envision
Will come to be
By the full moonlight.

Lutheran Guilt...

or being neighborly?
RGBisMe had to deny our new neighbor access to driving on the saturated lawn to move his furniture in. Instead, he is lending a hand with the big stuff. All this after clearing out 4 heavy branches from the yard and digging a 12' ditch to expand the new guy's parking space for his over sized vehicle. I love my big hearted man with muscles.

Old & New

On RGBisMe's keyring are many different kinds of keys. The expensive one for the car that has some type of coding in it, the house key, one for his office at the university, a bunch of laminated ones sporting bar codes so we get discounts at stores and an old skeleton key that doesn't open anything we for us.

I like that he has that old skeleton key there. It's not because it's an antique nor does he show it off as some kind of icon. He is just the kind of guy who likes to appreciate the styles and designs of old and new. He has old fashion manors and can execute bright new ideas with cutting edge technology. It is that balance that makes him a well rounded person.

Snowfall

Snowfall
Softly
Gently drift down

Snowflakes
Whisper
'Neath my window

Covering trees
Misty lights
Velvet breeze
'Round my doorstep

Gently
Softly
Silent
Snowfall

Covering trees
Misty lights
Velvet breezes
'Neath my window

Gently
And softly
Silent
Snowfall

Drift down
Drift down
Drift down
Snowfall
Ruth Thornhill / Claude Thornhill - 1941

Seasonal Pitfalls

Spring brings this area many insect hatches, occasional flooding and the beginnings of poison ivy. Summer here can be hot, dry and plays host to of Arts Festival traffic. Autumn blows in leaves to rake, egocentric student pedestrians and more cars onto the local roads. Winter in State College can bring downed limbs, slick roads and power outages.

Each season has a new laundry list of things to worry about but I absolutely love living in an area that offers a sample of what each season can offer. There is so much good to be had from living in a climate where you can notice and appreciate the turning of the year. With a sore back from already hefting many heavy loads out of my yard this autumn, I find myself grinning at the next thing nature has thrown my way. Bring it — I love it all.

Dissatisfied Excellence

I know RGBisMe will roll his eyes when he sees the title for this blog. The owner of a company he worked for over 25 years ago threw this out to his management team as a kind of state to always strive for; shooting for excellence but never quite being satisfied when you feel you have gotten there.

I am not a perfectionist but "Dissatisfied Excellence" has always intrigued me as a concept. I have toyed with it as an incentive to shoot a little higher or try a little harder the next time out.

This blog is going to fall way short of my goal (incentive to try again later?). When doing research for the topic, I couldn't find too much. I found a lot on people settling for less, being zen about thier short comings, and encouragement for getting over personal failure. It will take me longer than I thought to pull it together as a topic.

Until then I will admit failure, settle for less and just share another interesting piece of writing about general dissatisfaction. It wasn't what you expected with my blog's title but, it's the best I could come up with... for now.

Are You Dissatisfied With Your Life?

By Fiona Shearer-Hann

Life dissatisfaction is something many people experience at some time or other. And for some people, it’s almost a constant in their lives. For whatever reason, many people aren’t satisfied with the status quo any longer, and wonder if there’s more to life than that they’re experiencing.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s dissatisfaction with jobs or careers, relationships, status or whatever, there’s always something you can do. But, making the necessary changes aren’t always easy.

For starters, in order to change your life, you first have to know what it is that you want to change. What aspects of your life make you unhappy, or leave you dissatisfied? This is something you often have to think very deeply about, because it’s sometimes not as clear cut as it appears on the surface. One of the things people have the hardest time coming to terms with is the fact that they have to take responsibility for their own lives, and have to stop blaming others.

When most people hear that, they’re immediately indignant – claiming that they don’t blame others. But how many people really take the responsibility for the state their lives are in. Many will claim that they’re in a dead end job because they couldn’t attend college, or because they’re “dumb”. The fact is – many very successful people never attended college, and many don’t have anything higher than an average IQ. The truth is, you are where you are today because of the choices you’ve made. Read that sentence over again until you can believe it!

What does this mean? It means quite simply that if you’re dissatisfied with an area of life, it’s up to you to change it. If you’re not happy in your job, start looking at other options. Don’t feel you have to stay there! If you need more education, then consider taking a course. Many courses are now available through the mail or online.

If you’re dissatisfied in your relationships, start asking yourself why you developed those relationships in the first place. If you truly believe that an unsatisfying relationship is worth fighting for, and working on, then do it! If not, consider getting out.

What if you’re dissatisfied with other aspects of your life? Many people (in fact, the majority of people) are unhappy with aspects of their appearance (particularly their weight). If that’s the case, the realize that you are ultimately responsible for your weight, and decide to make the changes necessary to improve your weight today. If you need help, there are plenty of online sources of information available to you, and plenty of professionals out there who would be only too happy to put you on the right track!

The fact is – if you’re dissatisfied with your life, then there is something you can do about it, now. Write down what your problems are, and start brainstorming solutions, remembering above all that you are ultimately responsible for yourself and the decisions you make. Once you truly understand that, the process will become much simpler.

Metamorphosis

She...
changes...

everything...

she touches...

and...

everything...

she touches...

changes.

First Frost by the Waning Harvest Moon

The chill hit strong enough last night to cause our first frost of the season. Time to say goodbye to some fruits of summer; those delicate and thin skinned plants are withering in this morning's sun. Annuals, like basil, wouldn't haven't survived this first frost and we had been harvesting the seeds earlier this month and last weekend the final leaves became pesto.

Looking through the chilly morning haze at the waning crest of this year's harvest moon allowed me to reflect on all I have been lucky enough to reap. Our garden yielded a wonderful Spring of sugar snap peas, a moderate Summer of cherry tomatoes (many which had been stolen by the chipmunks) and a meager Autumn of pole beans. The Autumn harvest has been mainly saved to seed the hopes of next year.

By Samhain even many apples left on the trees will have sufficient frost bite that they will be too mushy for eating. There are just a few good harvest days left for much that is good and natural. The wheel will turn again and again and if the old plants do not return it is always exciting to see the new ones and what they bring.

Pesto Day

With temperatures threatening to dip below freezing it was time to harvest the basil. I made a vegan pesto that turned out really well.

All at Once

The leaves have changed all at once this year and the strong winds that visited the area have blown many of them off the trees before we have had a chance to enjoy them. Luckily we had a reason to drive through the Poconos the last couple of days to enjoy some of them. Photos never catch the exact glory of the colors but I always have to try.

After 6 grueling hours (3 stuck in traffic in NJ) we made it into NYC on Friday. It was just dark when we walked into the plaza at Lincoln Center and enjoyed the new fountain that was finally up and running. It was odd not going into the Met Opera House for the performance. We were to enjoy seeing the theater at Avery Fisher Hall for the first time.

Prior to the show, just hanging at the fountain with Asrai was on the the best times that evening. She knew how long we had been stuck in the car and was kind enough to walk to Whole Foods to get us some food. We sat on the marble edge of the fountain, slurped some of the best carrot ginger soup and caught up with what had been going on with her that week. It was so much more gratifying to hug her, talk to her and see her than our daily typing to each other online.

After the obligatory bag inspection, we took our seats in the back of the orchestra section to watch American Ballet Theatre's fall performances. First was a new work, Ratmansky's Seven Sonatas. I was immediately aware that the seats in this auditorium were terribly uncomfortable, set up one directly on back of the other and the man in front of me had a huge head. Asrai offered to switch with me a few times but there was no way I was going to let her be tortured with the head that covered the whole stage. I twisted to see the dancers and decided the piece just wasn't worth my time; I would save my energy for the last work in which Ravenboy had a solo.

It's hard to sit through three ballets without seeing much but a giant head. It's even more difficult when you have spent most of the day sitting in the car. I decided I was pretty much uninterested in ballet forever. The second and third pieces did grab more of my interest. Other Dances and Some Assembly Required had some entertaining movements that were far enough stage right that I could see them.

I could tell I needed a plan to see the final piece of the evening, Ben Millipied's Everything Doesn't Happen at Once. There were only a couple rows behind me and no one had been sitting in them. My plan was to sit on my feet and try to look over the giant head. After the intermission I got into place but almost instantly my feet started to lose circulation. It was a faulty plan because I still couldn't see over the giant head.

A couple of people had decided to sit behind me and I felt badly for them because I was not going to miss seeing my son in this performance. I bobbed and weaved and jumped around in my seat following his every move. I was no longer sitting still and was getting a workout to watch my son dart in and out of two dozen other dancers for most of the first movement.

I love seeing Ravenboy blend perfectly with the corp of dancers and thrill at actually losing him in the mix on stage. For so many years, as a talented boy dancer he was almost always featured or at least stood out as the only boy on stage. It was easy to find him and follow his every move. Now he is with the best of the best dancers in the world, men and women, and I have a hard time picking him out — it's glorious!

The piece progressed and the big head must have settled into a place where I could let some blood flow back into my feet for a brief moment. Ravenboy was not onstage for a one movement that was a duet so I prepared for the next. Ballets, even new modern works, have a formula and I could sense that after the slow duet would be the dynamic solo. Ravenboy would be next and I jockeyed for position in my seat.

The role was not made for Ravenboy but he made it his own. A curious highlight was when a large portion of the corp came onstage with some under current of the music and positioned themselves to catch him in mid flight out of the air! There he was, suspended feet off of the stage in a perfect split, caught in time like a photograph before they released him to dance freely again. Like the beauty of Autumnal colors, Ravenboy's performance made us thrill and gasp.

The final movement brought the entire cast to fill the small stage. As is typical for a coda, he duet couple recreated a few of their moments and the other movements were briefly remembered. Ravenboy took center stage one last time on a ramrod straight leg turned in pirouette one, two, three, four... All at once the lights were killed but in that brief moment when those tungsten filaments went from hot white to warm yellow to barley amber, Ravenboy turned on and on. No dropping curtain prepared or warned the audience; applause erupted and the house rose to its feet in cheers.

The rest of our evening was spent with Ravenboy and Asrai. Directly after the performance Ravenboy politely dodged autograph hounds, fans and donors. We got to the car and drove back to their place to remain happily holed up for hours of happy catching up.

It was late afternoon on Saturday when we found ourselves driving back through the Poconos. Our visit had been wonderful and brief; Autumn's splendor may be past peak but the memory of it's beauty will stay with me all winter.

ABT @ Avery Fisher Hall

This week, American Ballet Theatre brings three bold premieres center stage from three of today’s visionary choreographers: Benjamin Millepied, Aszure Barton and ABT’s Artist-in-Residence, Alexei Ratmansky. Plus, ABT offers repertory encores of two ballets from the Company’s vast repertoire: Clark Tippet’s Some Assembly Required and Jerome Robbins’ Other Dances. All performed with the dramatic artistry and thrilling bravura of ABT’s world-class dancers for one week only at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall.

Tonight we will enjoy supporting Ravenboy (above, kneeling in center) in his solo role in Millepied's Everything Doesn’t Happen at Once. It is a very short run at Avery Fisher Hall and we feel fortunate that he was able to get us tickets.

The choreographers for the new works they are performing this week...

look a lot like another trio we have seen elsewhere.

Autumn Breeze

Maga11 and I got out in the wind for some local letterboxing yesterday. The couple of miles that we hiked and climbed included a historic home, creek side ramble, swamp view, and more than three vistas of central PA's rolling farmland in autumn.

The wind gusted more than 40 mph and was loud on the ridge top. We made our way along, enjoying the woodland and colorful leaves. Much of the trail had downed branches so our progress was not speedy. This allowed a lot of time for chatting and visiting. We talked about the couple of times this month she spent putting up hot peppers and how she was still coughing from the oils they had thrown into her sinuses and lungs.

We only saw three other people on the trail yesterday. One was a jogger who came upon us so quickly as we were stamping into one letterbox that we had no time to do anything but watch him run by. Who knows what he thought we were doing off trail.

Hickory nuts, puff balls and big old black walnuts also littered the path on our hike out and back. The walk was just wonderful as we took the descent slowly and carefully. We were glad to have parked well away from the black walnut tree in the parking area. It had been dropping its large heavy fruit the whole time we were hiking.

When all was done, we came away with three new letterboxes and a hitch hiker found. We celebrated with a pack of crackers before we went shopping at Wenger's. It easy enough to get carried away shopping in that store and best to not go in hungry.

How to Dance in the Rain

Thanks to DaBraLady for sending this to me
It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.

I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound. On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning. He said no, he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I inquired as to her health.

He told me she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's Disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late.

He replied she no longer knew who he was, she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised,and asked him,'And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?'

He smiled as he patted my hand and said,'She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is.'

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, 'That is the kind of love I want in my life.'

True love is neither physical, nor romantic.

True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.

With all the jokes and fun that are in e-mails, sometimes there is one that comes along that has an important message. This one I thought I could share with you.

The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have.

I hope you share this with someone you care about. I just did.

'Life isn't about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.

What will you Leave Behind?

Have you ever sat and wondered what legacy you are leaving behind? Seven interesting perspectives on Helium.

I Need it for Tomorrow

The perfect addendum post to my Good Fast Cheap blog, RGBisMe blogged about a little video clip that sums up certain aspects of our lives perfectly. At one time or another, we have had clients say almost everything the green robot says! Warning - the cheeky blue robot says words that we usually keep to ourselves.

Apartment Applicants via CraigsList

I am no longer excited to be getting applicants for the apartment and have even less enthusiasm to reply to phone numbers in Korea or people who cannot compose a business oriented email with any decorum.

I will keep adding to these gems.
sample emails so far...

Hi I a intersted inthe eff. apartment tat you have listed o Craigs
List. Plese ma I see it and file the application process? Not able
to move in until 11/09. Thanks

hiiiiiii
I'm interest in your apartment please send me your phone number or call me at 814 XXX XXXX
thank you

hi i like to take a look at the efficiency you have listed i work quit a bit however ido have tomorrow off so do u can u please call me 717-XXX-XXXX my name is xxxx if tomorrow don't work for you than maybe we can set up something later ill hope to hear from you .

(Yes, the above name was lower case.)

hello. i am going to be a student at psu for the 2010-11 school year. i am looking for a place to rent. i am interested in renting your place. please contact me by email or cell
717-XXX-XXXX. my name is xxxxxx. thank you

(Yes, the above names were also in lower case.)

Where is this apartment located?

(There is a google maps link to the street on the ad.)

Hello,

is your proposition still valid?
If yes, please leave your coordinates, we can meet tommorrow evening. I am seriously would like to take this apt.

hi my name is xxxxx xxxxxxx and iam lookin for a place i can afford iam kinda homeless right now so iam lookin for a place asap my number is 000- 0000

I called another man and his response to me was, "Is this your number?" I replied that I had not given him my number. Another woman I called agreed to a specific time to view the apartment because, "I have practice before that." She said she would call me before she came. I hadn't given her my number either.

Another converstion on the phone starts with one fellow asking me, "So tell me something that isn't in the ad."
I hesitated and asked, "What do you want to know?"
He chirped, "I see I caught you off guard. How about the dimensions of the rooms?"
"The dimensions of the rooms as well as photos are in the ad. I am at a loss to tell you anything more because I thought the ad was pretty comprehensive."
He looked at the ad, verified the room dimensions and then went on to ask more questions that were already in the ad as he was looking at it.

I know not everyone has the ad in front of them and that people can view and record the phone number I am calling from but I feel like a lot of presumptions are being made. Business etiquette has gone out the window with a lot of other manners. I guess I am not looking forward to this process at all.

LiveStrong Day 2009!

A day to be together as a family traveling to radiation treatment #3/25. Danville Regional Medical Center has some of the best treatment facilities in the area. We were treated to the valet parking so we didn't have to walk a long distance in the cold nor catch the crazy tram that drives around and around.

This hospital also has some of the best and affordable vegetarian soup. There is one selection every day and today's soup was Cream of Tomato. Don't try to get between me and my Danville soup.

After a great lunch of the best hospital food anywhere we went up to Radiation Oncology to celebrate LiveStrong Day 2009! There was a spread of goodies while we waited and Dad came out with a great organizational folder and new LiveStrong wristband that he gave to me! I will do my best to wear it until all of his treatments are complete in November.

Hospital visits always have an edge to them for me. I am doing my best to get over my personal fears and squeamishness and see the facility for what it tries to be. It's a hospital that is helping people recover from, heal their bodies and conquer diseases that in the past were seen as death sentences.

Indigo 2009

Not only do most people just assume I am a huge Indigo Girls fan but they think my screen/trail/camp/stripper name was inspired by them. I do like them, a lot, but almost chose a different name so that people wouldn't make that assumption about me. Realizing that assumptions would be made no matter what was chosen, "true indigo" was chosen and it stays.

"Indigo Girls, huh? That's a dyke band," will assume many partially informed pseudo-musicophiles. Anyone with a good ear has to admit that they are more than just a couple of gals with ideas and guitars. It's those who can set aside their prejudices that will actually admit it.

Much of the society I am surrounded by is filled with attitudes, images and language that reinforce the opinion that women and all they have to offer is junk. Women have tried to get over, up and around this issue by proving themselves as individuals and as a whole to be not only up to par with the male gender but to exceed them in certain areas. A couple thousand of years of reinforced patriarchal ways are not quickly overcome so it is not infrequent that the girl band, woman's opinion or female created anything is disregarded before given real consideration.

Let it be known that I try to speak my mind when I see people around me being blatantly sexist. Sadly, I have held my tongue too often for the sake of keeping peace in social situations when I hear of mistrust of women in general. With close to 50 years perspective, I am at the point of realizing that it is more uncomfortable for me to stay quiet and be insulted than it is for me to speak up, run the risk of upsetting the group dynamic and call someone to task on their prejudices. The mouthy hag is rising; you have been warned.

So thank you Amy & Emily for singing your magic last evening. Surrounded by people who appreciate and support your work, most of them women, was empowering. Your music is so well crafted and your performance was beautiful. Thank you for reminding me of your aspects of Indigo.