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#WeekendCoffeeShare Downsize Edition
July 22, 2017
— 15 Comments
big car, mini car
If we were having coffee at my house this weekend I would serve you iced tea while trying to convince you to take some of my extra artful objects home with you. I am either giving away or selling as much of my superfluous (high quality) junk as possible. On close examination, I find most of it has become useless and redundant. All of the closets and cabinets in my condo contain gear I do not use. I own a small barn on a lot across the street which is full of things that nobody has seen in years. It is time for me to take an inventory, make appropriate adjustments, and sell the real estate I own across the street. Once I made the decision it was easy for me to sell my big 4 wheel drive Beemer which is all wrong for my lifestyle now. I bought a tiny, darling and sporty Mini Cooper that zips around town. It is perfect for my current needs. I don’t need to become a total minimalist, I just need to carve away the excess from my burden of ownership so that it makes sense today.
The big car is going to be sold to a friend for his son who will take it to college. I made wonderful use of the car. It has served me well, but I am happy to let it go. It will be a safe and functional vehicle for a college student in Utah. Maybe he will use the 4 wheel drive. After the BMW leaves for Salt Lake City my partner will be able to fit his Mustang into our two car garage. The lot across the street has only been serving as a parking place for his car, and a place to store things we don’t really need. We enjoy the fruit we grow over there, but I pay property taxes that are higher than developed land just to have an urban orchard. I can let that go easily. The next owner will enjoy the fruit…and pay the taxes.
We will have to move our firewood storage to the small backyard of the condo, but this is not a terrible sacrifice. We will acquire wood in smaller amounts and when we want to feed the fire it will be right outside the back door instead of across the street. Once I started the chain of events I started to feel very liberated. I can accomplish the give-away/shift in possessions with little effort. The money from the sale of the land will support me for years, so it will be well worth the effort. I will list it right away in hopes of selling it before property taxes are due in October. That would be dreamy. A property tax bill for less than half my current one would be a fabulous way to end 2017.
If we were drinking iced tea I would tell you the monsoon here continues. My rain collection barrel is overflowing. It has been raining every day, but no damaging flooding has taken place. Fires in the forests are contained. My writing is on schedule, more or less. I skipped my fiction post for Friday yesterday in the excitement of trying to get rid of all my possessions. I have enjoyed writing the memoirs, and will continue on Mondays with that theme. I just found a picture in a book that sparked a story idea for next week. What is key for me is keeping the memoir short and time specific. Maybe someday I can expand that range through practice. I also want to “cross over” to historical fiction eventually. How has your muse been treating you lately? Have you been productive? Creative? Ingenious? In my own case the muse is feeling sluggish and lazy from all the humidity. She is around, but kind of flat. I hope yours has been lively and helpful.
#WeekendCoffeeShare
If you want to keep up with the digital beverage party go to Diana’s blog, Parttimemonster to comment, read, or write your own post. Join bloggers from around the globe each weekend for coffee and a chat.
#WritePhoto Melting Mask
July 20, 2017
— 11 Comments
mask
The door was blocked by a large figure standing next to the fire
His face obscured by smoke, his identity concealed from us,
He moved with deliberate intent so swift and sure he seemed a ghost,
A phantom memory of the times when this place served as the center
Of a large and looming ogre with scary tendrils reaching into every nook
We were not sure if he entered the flames on purpose or was pulled
By fate or backdraft into the inferno that had started so suddenly
The night exploded as the bright red fire consumed the mask of power
Some rejoiced as the melting symbol of the past became a molten puddle
Most of us wondered how long it would be before the area would be safe
We all believed the melting mask was telling us to take great precaution
#writephoto
This poem is a response to this week’s photo prompt from Sue Vincent’s Echo. Each Thursday she posts a photo. She is a very good sport to post for us this week since her own computer exploded and has made access to her photo collection tedious. Thank you Sue. We appreciate your generosity. Please join other writers here to read, write, comment on last week’s prompt.
#WeedWednesday Sublingual Medicine
July 19, 2017
— 1 Comment
There are a growing number of products being produced to specifically address the medical marijuana patient’s needs. By refining the plant in various ways the effects can be customized. Those who do not want to smoke have many good options. Our dispensary, Desert Bloom Re-Leaf Center, is constantly developing new ways to serve the patients. Our kitchen goddess, Juliana Desmond, works on finding new ways to deliver the benefits of cannabis to treat the conditions our patients present. She creates, then tests, the products for efficacy and shelf stability before they are sold on the market. It is a long and careful process she coordinates with our lab. She also works at the dispensary so she has direct knowledge of what is popular and most requested by our patients.
People of all ages and walks of life come to the dispensary for relief. As with all healing the patient must trust the provider. Our dispensary agents are trained to pay very close attention to the patient to establish a comfortable, yet clinical, relationship. By listening closely to the self diagnosis the patient gives the budtender now has many tools to try. We teach everyone to start with a very low dose and go slowly. We want to provide relief with the least amount of consumption and expense. By working with the patient to change dosage and or strain to customize the experience , the budtender’s knowledge and professionalism best serves the public. If you are looking for a wide variety of products at all price points, visit the knowledgeable staff at Desert Bloom.
#TeaTuesday Variety- Spice Of Life
July 18, 2017
— 1 Comment
White Strawberry Tea
Not so long ago I was very limited in the teas I consumed. I was a big fan of herbal, and fruit tea but had no love for green, white, or black teas. I had tried some but probably was brewing them incorrectly for maximum results. I probably became intrigued to expand my tea selection by tasting the samples that came with my regular Adagio orders. Reaching beyond my previous boundaries turned out to be a very good idea. Now I am into almost every variety and flavor. There is a place and time for each tea. They offer different benefits as well as flavors. If you want to expand your appreciation of tea, here are the kinds of tea made from the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant:
- Black tea includes the common English Breakfast, Earl Grey, and Dragon Pearls. Brew according to directions to avoid any bitter aftertaste.
- Oolong tea is available in a range of flavors due to a roasting process that brings out flavors in the product. By choosing a method of roasting that will take between 12 and 36 hours, the processor can create anything from green to floral to dark notes. Formosa, Ti Kuan Yin, Wuyi are Oolong teas
- Chai is a blend of tea and spices very popular in India. It is commonly served with milk. The tea can be of any variety and the spices are blended to taste. I love the honey bush and rooibos chais without caffeine.
- Pu-Erh tea is fermented then dried for a full bodied taste with no astringent aftertaste. This tea is smooth and nutty, available in several different flavors. It can be purchased in pearls, which look really beautiful when the unfold in your cup.
- Green tea’s superior antioxidant health benefits are a result of the processing of the leaves. Gunpowder is one of the most well known green teas. My favorite greens are the fruit flavored ones, which I enjoy over ice.
- White tea is the least processed of all the teas. Silver Needle and White Peony are well known examples of this delicate beverage that contains even more antioxidants than green tea. All the white teas make me very happy, especially in the summer. The light, refreshing taste is perfect for hot days. I am crazy for the White Strawberry and White Eternal Spring blends.
The herbal blends, rooibos, honey bush and fruit tisanes make up a group of caffeine free beverages I enjoy liberally. However, I am very pleased to have made the acquaintance of all of the teas on this list because it expands my possible choices. Life is discovery, and tea makes an excellent vehicle to learn more about the places tea is grown and the cultures created around this important beverage. Adagio offers sampler packs, which helped me find new excitement. I have also been very happy to buy some of the other customers’ signature blends. This is an option I have not used yet myself. It is yet another way to taste and share tea. If you like the way your custom blend tastes, you can ship it to your friends with your name and label on it as a gift. I hope you will explore the world of tea with me. It is a satisfying journey.
#MemoirMonday My First #MeatlessMonday, 1970
July 17, 2017
— 1 Comment
1970
When I was 19 years old I lived in the suburbs of Durham, North Carolina. I shared a large house on 200 acres with two other women. We split the rent of $80 a month. Part of the house was built before the Civil War. It had been a grand estate, but was slated for development, so the owners did not want to do any repairs. It had been left empty for a few years. We found the estate agent, Dallas Branch, in Durham and convinced him to rent it to us. He had a thick southern accent and at first was opposed to three women living in the woods without a chaperone. He warned us that the owner might sell at any time, so there was a month to month agreement. That was the best rental deal I ever had in my life. We had wonderful parties with our friends there that created epic memories.
The house had a fireplace in the downstairs living room, in which we burned coal. There was no insulation, so this fireplace was not adequate to heat the house. We each had kerosene heaters in our bedrooms to stay warm at night. Our expenses were low, and one of the women had a mother who sent us all kinds of fabulous canned goods from her garden in South Carolina. Two of us worked at a small publishing company downtown Durham (I got a ride to work with my roommate since I owned no vehicle) and the other was in drama school in Chapel Hill at UNC. I can’t remember how she got to school. She did not have a car either.
At the publishing company I met a group of friends who attended Duke and lived in Durham. They invited me to go to the Union Grove Fiddler’s Convention on Easter. A caravan of cars full of sleeping gear and tons of food traveled from Durham to the campground that surrounded the big performance tent. We pitched our tents and spent the weekend immersed in Bluegrass, beer, and food. I took an entire country ham and a lot of bread I had baked, including hot crossed buns. Everyone ate way too much, myself included.
On 29 March, 1970 I made a decision to be a vegetarian. I did not have a reason. I just did it because I was 19 years old and I ate too much ham on my weekend trip. There was no moral or health code attached to the decision. Many Mondays later I am still a vegetarian. It is much easier now to find products. Today vegan diets are promoted to save the planet as well as cure common ailments. I agree with that point of view, but do not push it on my friends. Sometimes PETA can be a little overkill (pun intended) with the methods they use to sell the idea to non believers.
Have you tried to cut down on meat, gentle reader? We have come a long way since 1970. If you are looking for ideas they are abundant, especially on Mondays. Follow the hashtag #MeatlessMonday any day for recipes and helpful hints.
Lettuce not forget
#SelfCareSunday Social Media Management
July 16, 2017
— 1 Comment
heard it through the grapevine
heard it through the grapevine
Social media has a way of consuming more time than anticipated. The phone is a silent thief vibrating in your pocket, distracting you from whatever you are doing. There are now special programs at hotels for folks who want to do a detox. The deal is that the front desk will keep your phone locked up for you while you try to go cold turkey. You pay a fee for this service. This example from 2009 is listed as a detox package for just $199 a day ( that is per person) at a fancy place just outside Washington, DC. They were probably pioneers in the growing market, and DC probably does generate a lot of social media anxiety.
The terem social media management is normally used to refer to the marketing of a business using the various platforms. What I mean is personal management and strategy. You don’t need an expert to help you design a strategy. You are the only person who knows how far social media has slipped into every aspect of your day. You are the only one who really can asses your need for “likes” and what that need represents. This is not a relationship with your phone, although it seems to be. This social media presence is a self image, crafted by you.
There are now businesses designing custom social media detox retreats. This is a high growth industry. Just like the opioid crisis, the social media addiction problem can be treated with mindfulness and meditation for a long term cure. Staying “clean” after one of these intentional cleanse periods will require a plan. But why wait until you need an expensive intervention? Now is an excellent time to find balance between life and digital devices.
My own strategy, which works pretty well, is to have no relationship with my phone. I don’t give out my cell phone number, and ignore my phone most of the time. I have a land line to talk to people, and I don’t text. I use the phone for GPS and to make calls when I travel. I sit at my desk (like now) to write or read on the laptop. I limit the desk time just because I am not the type who likes to sit for long periods of time. When I finish my tasks on the computer, which include a couple of platforms, I leave it behind while I move around and do the rest of my day. This keeps my focus on the task at hand, both at the desk (because I want to finish) and on the go. I occasionally get sucked in for short times, but basically this system creates a functional boundary. Have you ever thought about where your digital boundary is….or where you want it to be? Take care of your time, gentle reader…it is a terrible thing to waste.
Canada’s Dreamy PM Shares His Playlist
July 15, 2017
— 1 Comment
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released his own Spotify playlist Saturday. Trudeau’s “PM Mix” features 39 songs. Canadian artists including Drake, Shawn Mendes, k.d. lang and The Tragically Hip are prominently featured, as well as other songs by artists like Fiona Apple, R.E.M., Peter Gabriel and Nenah Cherry. Trudeau tweeted about the playlist Saturday morning…
via This Is What’s on Justin Trudeau’s Summer Spotify Playlist — TIME
#WeekendCoffeeShare Monsoon Edition
July 15, 2017
— 7 Comments
Sonoran Desert
When it rains it pours in the desert. We finally have our summer rainy season. If we were having coffee this weekend in Tucson you would notice the uptick in humidity, and the relief all the flora is now expressing. The long dry spell is broken. This annual event is met with great rejoicing here, no matter when it arrives. We would all burn in hell without our summer rain. Have a seat, relax, and tell me about your week. We are still up to our ears in dates, so help yourself. For tea, we have every flavor you can imagine. I can serve it up on ice to keep you cool for our chat. What’ll ya have today? I am guzzling white strawberry iced tea..makes me remember spring, when it was not so hot.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about the ironic timing of events in the last week of my life. First I crashed the back of my car and sent it to the shop for repair. This incident kicked off a virtual cascade of related reactions. This is the first insurance claim on a car I have made other than a cracked windshield. I know the insurance company will raise my rates, and I have been thinking that my car no longer suits my lifestyle. With my new job I now have a commute and it would be better to have a more efficient smaller vehicle (for which I will also pay lower insurance premiums). I visited the Prius dealer and picked out my salesman. He is extremely cool, from Senegal. He claims to be able to dance better than all the West Africans in France…we shall see about that!! Moustapha and I will be cooking up the perfect deal for my new vehicle and image. I will be sure to show it to you all when it happens. There is much to study before I make this move.
I had scheduled a light treatment at my dermatologists office before I crashed the car. The treatment to remove precancerous spots from my face requires that I spend a few days in total darkness to recover. I had changed my work schedule accommodate what I call the vampire days. If you have to have your car repaired anyhow it is the perfect time to stay home in the dark. I had a great time yesterday getting rid of things. I have decided that along with my car and a layer of skin on my face I will shed everything I own that no longer thrills me. This process will take some time, but I am determined to finish the job. I feel liberated already by making these decisions.
I was distracted by real life enough to skip two days of writing this week. I started to write a memoir on Monday because the alliteration just works. I wrote a short piece about my father and fishing ( because alliteration rules) I skipped #TeaTuesday because we had a very long meeting plus training at the grow. A doctor presented both an hour of basic cannabis training, required by the state for those of us who hold the dispensary agent license, and a more advanced lecture for the whole staff. Both hours were jam packed with information. The doctor was a good presenter with plenty of science to back everything he said. This job is the bomb. I shot some good footage for #WeedWednesday but did not get the post written this week. Lucky for me nobody really suffers if I skip some days. I only disappoint myself.
Since I discovered that alliteration is such a great way to create an editorial calendar I decided to write fiction of Friday. I chose a familiar real character from my youth and made up a story about her life. I don’t think it qualifies as historical fiction, but I did make a start, so I am pleased with the idea. I know it is corny but #SelfCareSunday, #MemoirMonday, #TeaTuesday, #WeedWednesday, and #FictionFriday make me very happy. I write either fiction or poetry on Thursdays because I enjoy Sue Vincent’s #writephoto prompts. Do you follow a writing schedule or do you just let it flow?
What are you working on now? I think many of you have inspired me to attempt fiction, and I thank you for that. What kind of subjects do you like to cover? Where do you get story ideas? What remedies do your employ for writers’ block? I am curious about your process. Let me pour you another glass of tea and listen. Tell me your news.
#WeekendCoffeeShare
This weekly digital beverage party is hosted by our lovely hostess Diana at parttimemonsterblog. You can join the fun by reading, writing, and commenting here. The group is diverse and witty, and who doesn’t want to visit New Orleans every week?
Cabbage Rolls Again?
July 14, 2017
— 1 Comment
Audrey
She knew from the smell when she opened the front door that her mother was cooking cabbage rolls again. The hallway and the stairwell smelled heavily of cabbage when she came home from school. For her it was the reassurance of a meal to eat, but for others who visited her after school it was foreign. They always asked when they arrived at the landing in front of her upstairs apartment, “What is that smell?” Her parents were both from Poland, and her mother was an excellent cook. She used cabbage almost every day because it was cheap and healthy. Audrey was both proud and ashamed of her heritage and her ethnic diet at home. She wanted to blend in with kids at school who ate much differently than her family. Her mom was really the one with the mad chef skills, but she was ashamed of that cuciferous odor coming from the kitchen all the time.
Her home and the family income were average for the time and the place. Audrey felt that she and almost everyone she knew in school would be classified as “middle class”. There were fewer class distinctions in elementary school than there would be later in life. She had friends, boyfriends, and was popular. In the 1950’s in our tiny town the children were given relative freedom to do as we pleased until dinner time. Friendships that began on the whiffle ball field or in a snow fort would often conclude with an invitation to eat dinner at another kid’s home. Most mothers would consent if an extra child was brought home, but permission had to be granted from the visitor’s parents. In this way we checked out each other’s family dining habits and parental norms. It was a very common practice. She held back from accepting invitations because she did not want to reciprocate. This was the beginning of her social withdrawal.
Now that she is back at home taking care of her parents in their home she wishes she had learned to make stuffed cabbage the way her mom did. She is an adequate cook, but does not know any of her grandparents’ traditional recipes from the old country. She buys frozen foods and prepared packaged meals. A certain amount of guilt consumes her as she spoon feeds frozen corndogs to her mom. She does not understand what her mother is telling her in Polish, and she feels a loss that cannot be recovered.
#WritePhoto Messenger In Black
July 13, 2017
— 6 Comments
as the crow flies
They called out to each other when he entered the building. “CaCaw-CaCaw”, the sound of the crow echoed through the staff to warn that the boss has arrived. Quickly scurrying to clean up, sweep up, and look alive, everyone knows what the boss likes to see and what sets him off. This factory was for a while the last remaining business in the town. Generations of village folk have worked in the same jobs for decades. The relationships between the factory and the town were simple. The workers provided an honest labor force, and the factory provides jobs to keep the economy alive.
The casket industry is a lucrative niche in the death market. Since 1795 the luxury leaders in the industry had been Royal Flush. They were the providers of royal caskets, designed for pomp and ceremony. To stay in high society and leave a lasting legacy the final statement had to reflect an abundance of tradition and very flashy symbols of wealth and power. No expense was spared as the Victorians went about turning the funeral into a well orchestrated show with all the trimmings. Modern times brought new color and swag to the final container. The possibility to jack up the price with extras had never been better. Nobody wanted to be outdone by others as they made their final exit. Caskets were almost pure profit.
Times changed, global warming had severe consequences for graveyards everywhere. As the costal waters rose currents swept through cemeteries causing remains to float to the surface and drift out to sea. Nobody had anticipated this side effect. Suddenly burial was no longer the first choice of those who needed to dispose of their dead family members. Royal Flush was the last place any sane person would look for a civilized end. The factory doors closed and the workers all had to move to higher ground. As they looked back at the factory for the last time a black crow swept low in the sky and shouted, “CaCaw, CaCaw”. They understood his warning, his message. They saw the folly in resisting change and biting the hand that feeds. It was too late.
#writephoto
This story is written in response to Sue Vincent’s Echo, where a photo prompt is featured every Thursday. Join us to read, write, and comment here. Jump right in with your version! It is fun to see how many ways the picture is interpreted.
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