HAPPY HALLOWEEN

A rather tame photo of us 3 sisters, from the v. early 80's...in our post-Beatles, current U2-Stray Cats, pre-Cure phase...didn't everyone have fishnet stockings? HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

First frost...so frosty....

I do promise to post daily. However, the time may be inconsistent as I'm waiting for the frost to melt from the satellite dish! (Fair warning for tomorrow). So, here is a photo from this a.m. GLORIOUS.
You can barely see it, but there is a house up to the left and is in what's left of the old Skymont. It used to be a boyscout camp until it had a brief stint as a commune in the early '70's, where I spent my formative years from age 7 to 17. Mum always says, "It was NOT a commune! It was a community of like-minded people." OK, then. Commune. If you see interviews with actress Patricia Arquette where she's talking about growing up in a "hippie commune," this is the place. And that's the house she lived in with her family. Everyone called it "The Chalet." Altho, now it's just a giant screened-in porch. Oh, the stories I could tell...but I'll save them for another time!

Mmmm...Monday....

I did say that I wasn't posting on Sunday, right? So yesterday was a bonus. Today we had our first frost...I would upload a frosty photo except that I'm on dial-up back-up; perhaps because my satellite dish is frosty? Dunno. And I was so looking FW to ditching Earthlink. Hehhh.... Anyway, so will do pics later. In the meantime, here's a quote from John Morgan's blog post, I Hate My Body.

"The last time most women felt comfortable in a bathing suit was at age 10. That alone should tell you something about how we perceive our bodies. Here’s a question to ponder? How cooperative would you be with a person who detested you? My guess is not very."

Insightful. Inspired. True. A great read for gals AND guys. I wonder if you'll be curious enough now to go read the whole thing....

In GRATITUDE: I have the BEST Karma Ever!

Have you ever evaluated the weather according to laundry? I know Nat will know what I’m talking about…we are a rare breed of people who hang out laundry on the line. I love the fresh sheets and the scratchy towels. I enjoy the whole process. It’s v. ZEN. However, I also enjoy gathering an armful of warm towels out of the dryer on a grey winter’s day. *sigh* It’s like a hug-from-the-dryer. And I appreciate the convenience of being able to do laundry whenever I want instead of waiting for Nature to comply. What’s this?! RAIN? But I’m out of jeans!

I called Mum yesterday to see what she was doing. I had made a huge pot of vegetable soup and banana bread. Our friends John & Melody were there for a visit. Well, Mel was. John-of-All-Trades was there to fix the dryer. I said, “Oh, when he’s finished, can he come fix mine?” (Insert promise of soup & banana bread). And the next thing you know, they all driiiiiiiiive the 50 minutes over to my house!

It soon became apparent that what was a minor inconvenience, was actually a house-fire-waiting-to-happen. I had started to use it when I first moved here and the dryer had gotten really hot (too hot to touch) and I smelled burning. It was suggested that the line was clogged going out of the house. Since it was summer, I just used the line and put the dryer on my To Do List. It was NOT the outside line but the way it had been connected in the first place:

John explained to me that there are 2 options to vent: either on the side of the dryer or in the back. This is how NOT to do it: the vent is not connected to anything. That hose in the back is connecting to 2 outside holes together & the vent is just blowing inside the whole dryer unit. The heating element was covered with dryer lint that was burnt.

And above is the proper connection: white plastic thingie connected to vent outside.

I am SO GLAD John went to Mum’s to fix her dryer.

In the meantime, we 3 gals had a lovely meal of soup and banana bread & I mentioned that my dear friend Robbie had given me her sewing machine when she moved to Florida. I’d not used it because it was dropping mysterious little green pieces from somewhere & I thought it must be the belt. Mel said, “Get John to look at it.” He had already saved me from burning the house down, it’s not like I had any sewing emergencies going on.

Ta Da! John was finished with the dryer & now I can do laundry whenever I please. Oh, I feel so fancy…and Mel said, “Did you ask about the sewing machine?” No, really, John has done enough! But John investigates. And now I have a working sewing machine—stay tuned for new curtains made with the AWESOME vintage fabric I got at the flea market!

I am SO GLAD John went to Mum’s to fix her dryer.

In the meantime, Mum noticed a vine that had taken over part of the porch. I thought it looked nice, but apparently it’s v. destructive. I told Mum I’d wait til the first frost, it would be easier to prune. No really, it’s on The LIST. So of course, while I was giving a percussor session for Mel, Mum hacked away the vine! All done.

I am SO GLAD John went to Mum’s to fix her dryer.

And I don’t know what magic they performed, but the ironing board cover that I had sitting by the kitchen door to return because it didn’t fit…well, they put it on, defying the laws of physics! All done.

I am SO GLAD John went to Mum’s to fix her dryer.

As I was walking everyone out, John noticed my air purifier. He said they had a bunch of them at work. I told him it wasn’t working because it needed a fuse. He said, “I’ll get you one.” Mum just gave me that I can't believe this LOOK. You know the one.

I am SO GLAD John went to Mum’s to fix her dryer.

All those little things on my To Do List have been done. The only thing left is to get the chimney swept for the woodstove; which is a job for the volunteer fire department. For a donation, they come to your house. Even in the wilderness.

And now, here's the kicker: John couldn't fix Mum's dryer yesterday because it's an electric issue, not a dryer issue. Apparently he's crawling under her house today to fix it. A BIG *THANK YOU* to John (& Mel for volunteering him) ;-) and to Mum.

P.S. Open invitation to John & Mel to come fishing. John was wearing a shirt that said "Work is for people who don't fish." PLUS FREE PERCUSSOR sessions!!!

Airport Drama-o-rama

Well. I went to the airport to pick up Mum. I got there in plenty of time. Puh-lenty. When I went in, it said on the screen by International Arrivals that the flight was delayed. By 3 hours. So I immediately turned lemons into lemonade and decided it was an opportunity to listen to the WONDERFUL Dave Dobson tapes that John Morgan has lent me. I went to the car and listened to one for a half hour or so (and I'm listening to Dave, so how much time has really gone by??? That will be funny to a coupla Dobsonians reading this). Anyway, so the tape stopped. Hmmm... that's odd. I wonder if I drained the battery. Why, yes, I did. How would you react? Think about it as I tell you what I did next:

I Reikied the battery for about 40 minutes (WTH, I had time to kill).
I chanted the Gayatri mantra (all-purpose Vedic chant). Click here for a v. cute version.
I visualized myself celebrating and saying, "THANK YOU!" because the car started.
Then I muscle-checked when the whole process was complete and turned the ignition... and this part may surprise you...

...or perhaps not. The car did not start. Can you believe that? But just when I had tried to start it, a man was walking by, so I asked him if he had jumper cables. He did. AND his car was right across in front of mine. AND he just happened to be a mechanic. It would be so cool if I could say my car started right then, but alas, no! The cables were too skinny and didn't get enough juice to the battery. Another guy walked by and Mechanic Guy asked him if he had jumper cables. He did. My car started. I celebrated just as I had imagined. THANK YOU!!! :-)

I knew it was all taken care of, I just had the details of *how* a bit fuzzy.

Now some of you, in your smug little Newtonian Clock Universe, will think, "Who Reiki's a car battery?" Really, why didn't I just go look for help in the first place? Well. And this is my clean-little-secret: I Reiki everything. Now you know. Because I live in an Einsteinian Energetic Universe; everything is energy and thoughts & intentions direct that energy. AND it has worked in the past. OK, not with a car battery, but it's worked with my computer and other situations. AND doing Reiki helps me get grounded in stressful situations. Chanting Gayatri makes me feel calm & centered. AND when you feel better, you do better. AND instead of wandering around looking for help, it came to me. I only asked one person. Plus, and you may interpret this as the REAL reason: it was POURING down rain, and I didn't want to get out of the car. Until it stopped. It didn't. And I asked myself, "What can I do sitting in the dark on a rainy night in my car with nothing else to do but wait for the rain to stop?" Pray. Meditate. Reiki. Always a good thing to do, and rushing around as I had for the past 2 days, had not taken time to do that. So, there you have it.

PART 2:
I had an hour to recharge the battery and listen to Dave. (Note to self: Blog post on Dave). Then I went into the airport and waited for Mum. Have you ever seen that movie, Love, Actually? With Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson. I forget what it's about because it's the opening of the movie that I LOVE. They filmed regular people at an airport for 2 weeks meeting friends & family off the plane. It's so BEAUTIFUL to watch. And I got the live version of it as I watched people come out of customs. There were 2 little boys who ran up to their grandfather. Papita! Papita! And happy tears all around. A British gal with her children meeting her sister. Very proper and so sweet. An Indian family greeting their father-brother-uncle. It made my heart *smile* to watch all this as I'm waiting for my own mother.

And then my phone rang. It was Mum. "Where are you?" she said.
"I'm at the airport. Where are you?"
HOME. Her plane was NOT delayed and she had sat in the airport for 3 hours while I sat in the parking lot. She finally got a taxi home. In the rain. With a driver who didn't speak English. D'OH!!! (Note to self: Oh, never mind! Too many notes!) So there you have it.

WELCOME HOME, Mum! Sorry your daughter is such a twit!

Mum on her last B-day.

This is our version of Easy-Lazy Trifle (no one wants to bake in August!) :
Store-bought angel food cake, slice around to make 2 layers. Add Byrd's frozen strawberries to bottom layer (thawed, of course). Put on top layer of cake, add more strawberries to the top. Slather with whipped cream (the REAL stuff, not that spray crap-in-a-can). If you're feeling extra-inspired, you can do the Byrd's custard on top of the strawberries before the whipped cream. The center of the cake just fits a Catholic candle (Mother Mary). :-)

Mum, You ROCK!

Mum is back from Scotland, and she brought me back a heart-shaped rock. Isn't this AWESOME? My internet connection has been on & off today...perhaps the rain is affecting the satellite? Dunno. Anyway, will write more tomorrow. :-) H.

I See Hearts Wherever I Go

This is a pear tree I found in the field in front of my house. Dave Dobson says that to get to the fruit, you have to climb the skinny branches. Hmmm....