The “Levi’s Wear Longer Project,” launched Jan. 14 in San Francisco with plans to go global. Workshops will include virtual and in-person lessons to teach adding buttons, patching jeans and altering hems. You can find details HERE.
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A Group of Norway Polar Bears is Healthier than 25 Years Ago
Polar Bears living around islands in Norway are healthier, with more fat reserves, compared to 25 years ago in spite of reduced ice from climate change. Scientists suspect these particular polar bears have discovered more opportunities to hunt on land. The Good News Network has details HERE.
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Older and Special Needs Dogs Included in 2026 Puppy Bowl
This year’s Puppy Bowl, an adoption event aired on US TV before the Super Bowl, included older and special needs dogs for the first time. You can read more about it in this article from ABC News.
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The Singing Resistance Movement
Anderson Cooper brings us Singing Resistance, a group in Minneapolis that sings for grief, solidarity and courage. They practice in churches, then take their peaceful resistance to the streets.
Another example of singing resistance is when Minnesotans gathered outside hotels where ICE and Border Patrol have been staying to sing encouragement to quit and join them, singing: “It’s okay to change your mind, show us some courage. Leave this behind. It’s okay to change your mind. You can join us. Join us here anytime.”
Volunteers Rally to Help Taiwan Recover from Flood
Thousands of volunteers from a variety of countries flocked to Taiwan to help with recovery from the flooding caused by Typhoon Ragasa. The Buddhist charity Tzu Chi mobilized 3,000 volunteers who brought food supplies and portable kitchens. Other volunteers helped remove debris and mud. Good News Instead has more HERE.
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US Judge Blocks Administration from Sending National Guard to Portland, Oregon
A US federal judge has granted a temporary restraining order preventing the US administration from deploying national guard troops to Portland Oregon. On Saturday, US district judge Karin Immergut agreed with Oregon’s leaders that deploying national guard troops to Portland “would likely inflame rather than calm protests.” This article from The Guardian includes a link to the judge’s order.
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Stray Dog Saved from Pound to Become a Rescuer
A stray dog rescued from a pound in Portugal has become a rescuer finding missing animals in England. Read about ten-year-old Rico’s journey from death row to pet detective and see photos in this article from the Good News Network.
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A Singing Group for Forgetful Seniors
The Forgetful Friends Choir in Virginia brings joy to people with Alzheimer’s, along with their caregivers and volunteers. Enjoy this heartwarming video reminding us of the power of music.
Today’sprompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “sing.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
“To sing is to pray twice.” The quote has been attributed to St. Augustine. If it weren’t for the music, I don’t think I’d go to church much. Fortunately, there’s music. and singing.
Would Rev. Dr. William Barber and his prayer partners have been arrested at the capitol Rotunda if they’d been singing (praying twice) instead of praying once? I bet they would have still been arrested. Rev. Barber is significantly disabled. And they arrested him. For praying. They were praying for mercy. And if that’s not bad enough, the capitol police removed all the press before the arrest so we couldn’t see it happen.
Writing about this gives me a some energy in spite of having been very lethargic for the past few days with some kind of sinus infection. It might be related to my root canal to be completed in about ten days. I even had chills one night, and I’m on an antibiotic. Progress is very slow.
But there’s hope. One thing that has helped is the sinus rinse that’s been recommended by multiple doctors which I finally got desperate enough to try, especially since a doctor gave me a sample. The other hope is that I found myself singing yesterday – my corny standby, the Sesame Street song, “Sunny Day, chasin’ the clouds away.” It’s supposed to be sweepin the clouds away, but I’ve always sung chasin.”
I went to look up the correct words, not that I’ll sing them correctly, and found this video of one of my favorite singer/songwriters singing to Oscar the Grouch.
James Taylor is a gentleman and a good sport. His song to Oscar reminds me that sometimes it’s okay to accept someone’s grouchiness instead of trying to change it. Even my own. Sometimes.
Oh! Here’s another song about singing from Enya, another favorite:
Now for some pictures from around the homestead…
Another surprise!Tower Gardensabundant irises Garden AngelBerries on the way!Greenhouse Amaryillis
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “my year.” Use “my year” as the theme of your post. Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
2024 was our year of changes – for my country and my family. It’s still hard to talk, write, or think about the election, so I’ll likely stick to the personal change of moving to Pilot Mountain, NC after living almost 40 years in Wilmington. I traded the ocean for the mountains. Seems like more people are moving to Wilmington and even Florida to retire. But the mountains were calling and I had to go.
I might have mentioned that I miss my old neighborhood and friends, but it was worth the move to be closer to my kids and grands. It was a surprise how much I enjoyed talking with a couple of longtime friends on the phone this past week. Surprising, since I have embraced my inner introvert and generally don’t like to talk on the phone.
Speaking of inner introvert, my inner ear kept me home a lot over the holidays with vertigo. It got better briefly, then worse after I went to church and sang Thursday night. I’ve read that loud prolonged noise can make vertigo (and of course tinnitus) worse.
Thankfully, I’m about 75% better now and go to physical therapy Thursday. It was disappointing to miss the Christmas Eve service where I’d hoped to sing in the choir. Having been gifted with a halfway decent singing voice, I wondered why God was making allowing me to miss Christmas Eve and other choir opportunities. Doesn’t God want me to share my voice?
On Christmas morning, David, who had gone to the 11pm service said they had trumpet, and it was quite loud. I remember now feeling more and more bothered by the loud organ (and loud noise in general) when singing in choir in Wilmington. The trumpet setting on the Wilmington church organ was like nails on a chalkboard.
Maybe God has been shielding me from more damage to my hearing, as David suggested.
Or maybe it’s a coincidence, except I don’t really believe in those anymore.
My year ahead will hopefully include more artwork which has taken a backseat, home cooking, and gardening. I’m also planning to focus on my health. My friend from high school, Elaine, died on December 17. She taught GED classes in prison and was a person of light, integrity, and insight. I’m hoping I can make it to her Celebration of Life service today.
We don’t know how much time we have. Hopefully, my year ahead will include more quality time with loved ones, like hiking with my daughter and granddaughter:
A song that came along in the stream: Changes by David Bowie
Below are some recent photos I’ve managed to take.
Remembrance Candles – Blue Christmas Service ThursdayClinging RaindropsBlanket Hills with Dog HairSunset through TreesSquirrel escaping with full tummyThe Christmas Village Inherited from my Parents
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “food.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
One of my goals for the new year is to cook more at home since we don’t have many restaurants in our small town. The vegan cafe has sadly gone out of business and there are no Indian restaurants that I know of, even in Mount Airy 20 minutes away. I tried to make Indian food yesterday. It wasn’t bad with cauliflower, tomatoes, carrots, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, garlic, and plenty of curry, cayenne, and some exotic smelling Garam Masala I bought on sale… but it just doesn’t taste as good as the Indian restaurants I’ve been to. Maybe I’m missing some secret ingredient. But I shall persevere!
I’m focusing right now on self-care since I have a sore throat and plenty of singing ahead. My new church is joining another church to sing six songs from Handel’s Messiah on Dec. 22 and I’ve also been singing in choir. So that’s one reason there was a lot of spice in the soup last night. Listening to healing meditations on youtube and not watching anything stressful on TV are also parts of my self care. We’ll see what happens….
Here’s a short healing meditation:
Thursday was my birthday, and we went out for lunch at the Thai Cafe in Mount Airy. That was mostly good. I love the basil rolls. Then, my daughter Ayla helped me set up the Christmas Village that belonged to my parents. I tried and tried to sell the village after they died, but no one wanted to buy it. (I felt I didn’t have room for it.) Then Ayla said, “Don’t sell it! It’s a family heirloom!” So now I have room for it, and she got to help me unpack it. There’s some food for thought.
I still have lots of accessories to add.
Main Street in Pilot Mountain feels like a village. Thursday night we took Marley to the coffee shop for a pup cup. I got a warm birthday brownie. David got ice cream.
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “use ‘just’ in your first sentence.” Use the word “just” any way you’d like in your first sentence, then just write to your heart’s content. Enjoy!
Sometimes I just can’t wrap my brain around certain things like the US national election results and cruelty to animals.
Thinking about injustice reminded me of this quote I saw recently:
This, my dear
is the greatest challenge
to being alive.
To witness injustice in the world
and not allow it to consume our light.
~Thich Nhat Hanh
How do we keep our light alive and strong in spite of injustice?
I walked away to ponder this a bit and realized that being in nature helps. I’m good at that. And singing. Singing helps me breathe deeper. If you’re in a place where singing is not okay, then hum.
We can always hum. Maybe a moan could turn into a hum…. Or an Ommmm.
It can also help to do good deeds and acts of kindness, even small ones.
From JRR Tolkien
Then there’s gratitude.
I’m grateful that my apparent brush with shingles has been mild. Makes me wonder if it really is shingles. The clinician I saw Tuesday said the rash looked like shingles to her. It really bothered me for a few days, but it’s definitely getting better. My energy was extra low right before this rash showed up on my torso about a week ago. But Thursday, I had lots of energy for which I am thankful. Maybe the energy is due to the anti-viral I’m taking. I scheduled to get established with an acupuncturist Dec. 5, and I’m trying not to watch the TV news. Instead, I’m watching Christmas movies, meditating and doing yoga, to build my immune system up and keep my light going strong.
Just breathe.
Inhale…. Exhale…..
How do you not let injustice consume your light?
What keeps your light glowing brightly?
Here are some recent photos of things that help my light glow brighter:
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “confidence.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
Taking acting classes at a small community college in the late 70s did wonders for my confidence. It was so much fun once things got rolling. I played Helena in A Midsommer Night’s Dream and the Red and White Queens in Alice in Wonderland. It was such a carefree time. It’s okay that I did not pursue acting. The confidence I gained was enough so that later in life, I was able to speak in front of groups, in spite of the shyness of my youth and being a natural introvert.
These days, I have no interest or need to speak in front of groups, but it’s nice to know I could if I needed to. Whatever we practice gets better. Like singing. Listening to the soundtrack to The Sound of Music helped me practice singing when I was 10 and 11 years old. Now, I mostly sing for fun and also in my small church choir. The older I get, the more work it takes to keep my voice (and everything else) in shape.
Here’s a song from The Sound of Music about confidence where Maria is about to start a new job as governess taking care of the Von Trapp children.
Starting a new job requires confidence. If I ever had to start a new job, I’d study the hell out of whatever the job was before starting. Thank God, I don’t have to do that! I love being retired!
Last Saturday, we visited David’s son and his family. They have one big standard poodle and two little poodles. I’m so glad they invited Marley, and that Marley was a good boy. He was nervous at first being in a new place with three dogs barking at him, but he gained confidence, including the confidence that he would get some turkey.
Marley and Cooper meetingMarley and Cooper watching DaveHere’s why.
No, I didn’t have any turkey, but Marley did!
~~~
Stream of Consciousness Saturday
is brought to us by Linda Hill, aka, the Queen of SoCS.
I heard this song yesterday right before I read the prompt. It goes “happy and well.” I remembered it as healthy and well. Maybe that’s because I made up a song to the tune of “I’m so Pretty” that goes, “I’m so healthy.” But anyway, this song below is fun and easy to learn. I’m a firm believer in singing and affirmations. I also like her outfit.
I’m wishing all of you good thoughts of being well from deep down in my heart.
I wrote the above on Friday evening which is usually my habit with SoCS. Now it’s Saturday morning and time to publish the post. I have to be honest. Though most of my posts are positive, because that’s what I think the world needs most, I’m not always positive. Sometimes I have waves of anxiety or sadness and grief, like this morning. I’ve been tired a lot lately. I tell myself it’s allergies. Maybe it is partly. So much is blooming. But it’s important to acknowledge all of our feelings.
Wild geese are going over right now as I write this. Their honking reminding me of Mary Oliver’s song. I meant to type poem. No, song…. I’ve shared this poem before here on “Anything is Possible.” The geese tell me to share it again.
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting —
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
Mary Oliver
Experience teaches us that the waves come and go. We learn to surf or to dive deep. The waves always pass.
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Today’s prompt was: “deep.”
Dive deep into the Stream of consciousness with Linda Hill at:
Here are the rules:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
8. Have fun!
Spread the word:
California just passed a law that will make it illegal to sell cosmetics or ingredients that have been tested on animals. The California Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Act will go into effect in January of 2020. Read more below from The Good News Network:
Derek Black, the son of a KKK Grand Wizard and godson of David Duke, broke free from the white nationalist movement. It was a gradual process that started when he went to college and his friend Matthew invited him to a Friday night Shabbat dinner. You can read more in this article or watch the video below. The discussion about change starts about four and a half minutes into the video.
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Singing is Good for You!
It’s not hot off the presses, but here are some surprising ways singing can improve your mental and physical health:
Waiting. That’s what I seem to be doing lately. At least in my head. I’m busy as ever. But my mind is focused on something that might happen in the future. Now that I think about it, there is more than one big thing I’m waiting for. Exciting things, energizing things, things that could make very big changes in my life. (I should have written: life changing things.) Oh, stream of consciousness. So tempting to edit. I’ve been a rule follower all of my life. I’m tired of it sometimes. But I still follow the rules, mostly, but not always. That scares me to write that. I’m going to get caught. Stop it!
Back to… what was it…..? Waiting. For things I can’t reveal right now. Things that may not happen for a few months, or several months even, but within a year.
So, what to do when I’m thinking too much in the future. I do think too much sometimes. When the thoughts are not helpful, like… am I getting a cold or is this just allergies? or other worse thoughts that I’m not going to write, because they are not happening and why give them any more thought? What I do sometimes that works really well, is SING!
I love to sing. I’ve loved singing since I was about 11 years old and listened to the sound track of the Sound of Music over and over and over again. That’s how I learned to sing.
But I rarely sang in front of people, outside my inner circle, my ring of comfort, for singing, was small, until I was in my 40s – when I started going to a church that had contemporary praise music, and they invited me to sing with them after I went to a rehearsal and they knew I could sing. I eventually learned more guitar chords and sang and played guitar on the little stage. It was not a huge congregation, but anyway, it got me more comfortable singing in front of people. Now, I still get nervous in front of a new group, and I have to work harder to keep my voice in shape since I’m almost 60 (!) another thing that will happen in just a few months, wait, it’s in just over two months! My, how time flies.
My point is, that it’s never too late to become what you might have been. I don’t like to watch those shows on TV where amateurs compete with their talent, because it makes me feel like I could have been a professional singer. But I needed to learn some things first. Plus I want to be an artist and a writer. Correction. I am an artist and a writer!
So, while I wait for those things that I anticipate with excitement, I can sing to keep myself in the present moment. I find singing to be soothing. Singing to myself, with the radio, or a video, especially. When I’m worried about my health, which is really pretty good, all things considered, I sing these words to the tune of “I’m so Pretty,” from West Side Story. Oh, I just discovered it’s “I feel Pretty.” ! I’ve been singing it wrong….no, I’m not, because I’m making it up. Here are the words I sing:
I’m so healthy, Oh so healthy
I’m so healthy and happy and free
I’m so healthy
Cause I’m finally learning to be me……
I’m so healthy, Oh so healthy
I’m so health and wealthy and wise
I’m so healthy,
Cause I’m seeing through clearer eyes.
Here’s Adam Sandler singing his version in Anger Management, accompanied by Jack Nicholson.
Are you feeling prettier, now?
Today’s Stream of Consciousness post prompt was that our first word has to end in “ing.”
If you’d like to jump into the stream, start here:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
Anything is Possible! 