It’s Saturday morning. October 26, 2024. 51 F, 73 F on the horizon. Yesterday’s clouds slipped away to do other things, depositing a clear sky afterwards. We still have that blue sky, and the sun has come up to light everything up and warm us a bit.
While I was out yesterday, I heard someone through the coffee house glass calling another. “Hey. Hey.” My mind began buzzing with a little of Pink Floyd’s “Hey You” after that incident. If you remember, that song came out on their album, “The Wall” in 1979.
Then we headed to Empty Bowls. Arriving fifteen minutes after doors opened, we discovered a packed place. Almost every seat was taken, and the food line circled around three sides of the place. I was told that they’d originally reduced the tables from 12 to 9 but then put the last three back in at the last minute. Good thing. Not only were they needed, but additional tables were put on the stage. In my years of attending this thing, that’s the first time that happened.
I sample two soups and enjoyed both. A pianist played in the corner, offering slow piano versions of rock songs like “Free Bird” and “Running On Empty”. BTW, myMy wife and a friend created the centerpieces, with gorgeous results.
By luck, we ended up sitting with the same guy from last year, Benjy, a data analyst for Harry & David who lives in Talent. We were at the same table, too. Such a coincidence.
As we talked, he mentioned how we — liberals, progressives, Democrats — needed to fight for the Constitution with this election. That comment cemented “Hey You” in my mind, and now it’s playing in the morning mental music stream (Trademark not free). That comes around from the combo of ‘hey you’ and the other line, ‘don’t give in without a fight’.
Coffee and I have reach an agreement whereby I’ll allow some to stream down my throat and it will give me energy. Stay positive, be strong, and vote blue. Here’s the music. Cheers
Fall is bracketing our valley. Clouds sprawl across the sky at different altitudes. Several cloud styles are in evidence, and they wear fifty shades of gray and blue. Sunlight finds cracks and rushes down in bold pools of bright light but the air is chilly. 62 with a sullen wind, we expect 72 to define today’s high temperature.
Empty Bowls to raise money for our local food banks is tonight. My wife is busy setting creating the centerpieces for the tables. I used to be involved with it, but she gently moved me aside and replaced me with Barb. Barb just celebrated her 96 birthday, but she loves making centerpieces. It all works out.
I have daughters in my mind today. First my current novel in progress deals with mothers and daughters. And sisters. Those are important and complex aspects of the story told. Second, I have four sisters, and several of them deal with Mom as my proxy. Mom can be challenging and often frustrates my sisters. Frustrates me, too, but my sisters reach out to me to vent.
Third, I have another friend who was talking about her daughter. Her daughter irritates and annoys her; they clash in multiple arenas of thoughts. It surprises me. I know both women. They’re intelligent and good-humored individuals. Yet, they exasperate each other. I struggle to understand how and why that happens. But I’ve witnessed their interactions. Just an oil and water thing.
Thinking of daughters prompted Der Neurons to fire up Pearl Jam’s 1993 song, “Daughter”, in the morning mental music stream (Trademark streaming). It’s a song about a misunderstood child. It’s ending refrain is “The shades go down”, which reinforces the idea that something is going on that is hidden from the rest of us. The song always hooks my thoughts about the things which happen to children.
On that cheery high, I’ll press on to find my way through another day. Coffee has come onboard my effort and will help guide my energies. Stay positive, be strong, and vote blue. Here’s the music video.
Friday is rocking our world in Ashlandia, where the winds are blowing and the trees are dancing.
October 13, 2023 Autumn is stepping it up. Showery and cloudy today, 55 F now, we’re looking for rain and a high of 64 F. Can you dig it?
I’ve started my coffee early. Gotta break out of the house earlier so I can help my wife. She’s part of the Empty Bowls support crew. She baked vegan cookies to contribute yesterday (thin mints, chocolate chip crinkles, and lemon somethings, yes all vegan). Ashlandia is home to a hefty vegan population. Some are so by philosophy while others arrive there for health matters.
Today, my wife and her friend, B, are creating the centerpieces. Yesterday, per pre-arrangements, was spent going around to several friends’ home to collect flowers and greenery.
I’m just doing transport and taxi service. After that, I’ll head for the writing groove. When I offered my services, my wife said, “But that’s your writing time. I don’t want to interrupt that.” She’s thoughtful in that way.
Going back to the date, it IS Friday the Thirteenth. I have no concerns about it, but realizing the date, I thought about luck and superstition. Getting into the spirit, The Neurons poured some songs about luck and superstition into my morning mental music stream (Trademark unlucky). There was “Lucky Man”, “Silly Superstition”, “Bad Luck”, “Luck Be A Lady”, “If I Ever Got Lucky”, and a few more.
Eventually, Daft Punk got lucky and their 2013 song, “Get Lucky”, took up residence. While it’s DP credits, Niles Rodgers is on guitar and Pharrell Williams contributed vocals and lyrics. It’s a jaunty tune and, a real mood-lifter, and a solid antidote to worries.
Stay positive and be strong. Here’s the music. I gotta take my coffee to go. Cheers
Greetings to all Earthbound beings. It’s Tuesday, October 10, 2023 — 10/10 — in Ashlandia, where the rain is welcomed and the temperature is chilly. Autumn has swiped brushes over the window’s vistas. Overnight, plums and burgundies have been delivered to compete with green, amber, lemon, and red. Quite a splash for the eyes.
Rain plays metal notes on the roof’s vents. It’s 53 F now and will advance ten degrees up the thermometer before the sun’s retreat.
With this ambience underway, I’ve not checked the news. I’m saving myself for a few minutes more to just ensure my safe little bubble of existence.
I’m eager to continue writing. On the other hand, chords loaded with guilt on sometimes struck. I feel I should be doing more about the house. Part of this is that my wife has a busy week: Food & Friends deliveries yesterday, exercise classes every other morning, and book club Wednesday night, in which she’s the moderator. She takes moderating very seriously.
Besides those pretty standard things, Empty Bowls is on Friday. This is a fundraising effort to fund the city’s charities to help fed, cloth, and shelter the less fortunate and homeless. Local artists and art classes provide bowls. You basically buy a bowl for $25 and fill it with soup. Local restaurants and politicians provide the soups, along with breads.
An annual event, my wife has been preparing the table centerpieces for a decade. The pursuit has become more involved; Peace House, the hosting organization, has less and less resources for the centerpieces. That moves the burden to my wife’s shoulders, so she’s been scrounging for flowers and vases. The ‘vases’ are pint bottling jars. Thanks to one of my friends, we managed to procure enough of those.
All that puts her on edge. But in addition, the Empty Bowls commit also asked her to make some vegan cookies for the event.
Well, my wife isn’t one to refuse such a request. Agreeing added anxiety, though. She went through recipes and made a decision about what to make. We bought the supplies last Friday. The baking will be done Thursday. I wish I could do more to help her, and that’s why I feel guilty for going off and writing.
The cloud-heavy sky has me thinking about the upcoming ring of fire eclipse. Due on Saturday, we’re right on the path’s edge as the eclipse traverses North America but wonder whether the weather will clear enough for us to enjoy a view. Stores and businesses have been selling eclipse glasses for several weeks, but Scienceworks gives them out free. We’ll get them free and then give them a donation, LOL.
I was listening to Papi singing this morning. Papi is my ginger gentlefloof, a slender blade of a feline who exhibits a standoffish air. I’m the only one permitted to properly visit with him, although my wife is making progress with him. He’s skittish and wary to the extreme, a complete 180 from Tucker (our black and white long-haired fellow), who deeply enjoys human company. Papi avoids people and animals.
So, growing cold weather induced me to close the pet door. Papi loves the night and enjoy popping in and out. Coming in to eat kibble, going back out to witness the world. The pet door’s closure forces him to convince me to let him out. He knows I don’t like breaking out of sleep and slipping out of bed to do this, so he now sings the “I Want Out” blues.
The song starts soft and slow, just one gentle note every other minute. Gently the notes build in volume and then begin to come more frequently. Finally, a wail invested with the power of all unfairly imprisoned entities breaks the dark. I usually get up and do as bid with the first few notes. I thought that I’d let Papi sing a while before letting him out, as he has such a beautiful voice.
Naturally, rain and Papi’s blues inspired Les Neurons to conjure blues about rain in my morning mental music stream (Trademark possible). Well, first there was Tina Turner singing about rain on the windows. Then John Fogerty broke in to ask me if I’ve ever seen the rain.
Slipping into the blues, Stevie Ray Vaughn apprised of flooding in Texas. Finally, though, we had Buddy Guy singing “Feels Like Rain”. Buddy’s song struck the right balance of feeling and being so it won honors as today’s theme music. It’s a song I’ve used before as my theme music, basically for the same reasons.
Stay pos, be strong, and keep chill. Coffee has landed; here’s the music. Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 