Science fiction, fantasy, mystery and what-not
A Tiger Swallowtail butterfly landed on a butterfly bush’s long purplish panicle as he approached the plant on his walk. Such a Zen moment, he felt forced to pause for consideration of the scene. Then the butterfly and he moved on, as though neither were ever there, leaving the bush standing alone and patient once again.
Hello. It’s Wednesday, 7/12/2023. Mood: energetic
Gonna be 90 F here in Ashlandia, where the produce is fresh and the cheese is locally made organic. 66 F now — about 19 C — and you know I’m enjoying that. Trending warmer, but we are the fortunate. Looking south and east, a heat dome has settled over the land. In Arizona, wildfires rage. Their daily high temperatures have been over 110 F every day in July so far and isn’t showing signs of abating. That’s hot, friends. It’s even staying in the low 90s at night, so there is no relief. Feel for the land, people, animals.
Meanwhile, New England suffered heavy rains. Vermont experienced serious flooding. A warm, dry day is expected for them today, but more heavy rain is forecast for tomorrow.
Not feeling it? You might, if you’re in the US. That heat dome is expanding to the south and east. From Accuweather:
More than 50 million Americans in the southwestern U.S. are under heat advisories or warnings as temperatures will take a run at records that have stood for nearly 50 years in some locations.
More than 50 million Americans in the southwestern United States are under heat advisories or excessive heat warnings as a blistering heat dome maintains its grip on the region. The heat will place additional stress on the energy grid, elevate the threat of wildfires and increase the risk of heat-related illnesses.
Temperatures will climb to levels unusual even for the notoriously hot region of the U.S., putting long-standing records in jeopardy. A sprawling area of high pressure that is positioned over the Southwest, known as a heat dome to meteorologists, is the culprit behind the extreme temperatures.
“This [pattern] will help to minimize the number of showers or storms and allow for intense sunshine that will help boost temperatures,” explained AccuWeather Meteorologist Andrew Johnson-Levine.
AccuWeather meteorologists say that the scorching conditions will increase heading into the weekend and even expand into parts of the Central states and Southeast by next week.
Here’s a link for your further reading.
Meanwhile, the 1966 cover of the folk song “Sloop John B” by the Beach Boys is playing in the morning mental music stream (trademark pending). I have a sense that the song was/is related to my dreams, but I can’t get through the maze to find the connections. Nevertheless, dream and sing have lifted my spirits, so I’m going with the flow.
Stay pos, and be strong. I’m going to have some coffee now. The day is on. Let us begin.
Here’s the tune. Cheers
A woman I didn’t know was outside, speaking about our bodies. White but tanned, middle-aged and slender, I slowed, then stopped, listening to her. She said that we all have body and blah, blah, blah.
I interrupted. “No, I have two bodies.”
“Well,” she began, defensiveness edging into her voice, “yes, we do but, blah, blah, blah.”
At that point, I brought up my second body. It was a little grayed out, with some fuzziness, and the color danced like a drunk guy trying dance moves, but it was there. In most appearances, it was like me but about an inch taller and a teaspoon thicker in the shoulders. We were wearing the same clothes, a yellow buttoned shirt, short-sleeved, not tucked in, with khaki shorts, and we were barefoot.
The woman stammered about how that was impossible. I said, “Yet, here it is.” She went on with a drying, confused voice that two bodies cannot exist in the same plane. I answered, “No, he’s in the other world. That’s where he exists and why he looks a little uneven. But the thing is, the other world is here. So he’s in the other world, but the other world is here. Meanwhile, I’m in the this world, which is the other world to him, and he’s explaining this to you as I’m doing here. Clear?”
Then I laughed because her confused look explained it wasn’t clear, and woke up.
Michael Seidel, writer 