Zen and the Art of Cleaning

I am cleaning in a cosmic sense. Well there is also dirt going away, but more than that, I am shedding. I tend to keep stuff, lots of stuff, generally revolving about someone who gave me something. I have stuff from people I don't care about and doubt they even remember me. It always just seemed rude to discard things that people gave me. It's not. It's clutter and I need less. So I'm down to the last two rooms. (That is not such a grand accomplishment considering I only have four spaces to worry about. Sounds better than half done. Then there is the garage..........{sigh}) I am taking pictures as I go along to remind myself of how it should look. Is that crazed or what?
On a positive note I hung my new painting! It is gorgeous and I'm so glad I broke down and bought it at the Art from the Streets show. All homeless or formerly homeless artists. I need it to be a good work to break down and spend that much money.
I'm off to IKEA this afternoon for new pans, my Christmas gift to myself. I have no lids that fit anything. Part of my making my life more simple. I want things that work!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all. A Poirot Christmas is coming in next.

Joueux Noel : New Christmas Movie Review

Remember the story about WWI, when the opposing forces declared a truce on Christmas? Well this is the back story. Glorious, beautifully conceived, filmed and acted. This story is not about war, but peace. Each side is populated by husbands, sons and brothers that share a time and then find it difficult to continue war.
Filmed in France with subtitles for the French and German parts, you can't put it on and then putter around the room. Sit and watch and enjoy. Oh, and cry.

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy

I woke up this morning and my first thought was how lucky I was. I have my little house, which I love. I have food and clothes. I have a job I like that supports me and lets me make an impact on the world. I have wonderful sons, and brillant friendships. I live in a place I love. I have ways to help others and be spiritual in a way that suits me.
Life is good.

Halfway House Christmas

There are not words to describe how bad this movie is. A fake reality program about people in recovery being in a reality program. Bad in any way you look. A pimp dressed up like Santa. A producer who seeds the house with drugs to improve ratings. BAD BAD BAD
Now the question is, why did I watch it, or keep on watching it? I have no blessed idea. It was strangely , eeiriely fascinating. Don't repeat my mistake. It should never be seen by anyone ever again.

Christmas Movie marathon

I got on Netflix and searched Christmas movies. I selected the most obscure movies I could find and will share the results.


Movie #1
I'm not sure why this was called "Christmas in August" .
A young photographer is dying, and tells no one. I want to say the film is unsympathetic, but that is not quite the right description. Rather say it is an unflinching look at death and dying. Jung-won meets a young woman, falls in love, but never tells her about his love or that he is dying. A remarkable, lovely film, but not what you would thing of as Christmas fair.

The Boys

Meet the boys. These are my constant companions when I'm home. They trail me from room to room and snuggle when I am sitting, no matter if I want to be snuggled or not. The top one is Sarge and the soulful one on the bottom is Buddy. Both rescues from near shelter experiences.

So, the boys and I are out walking in the fields behind our house. I turned them loose to run and realized instantly I had made a mistake. Two deer stood in the field and at the first whiff of dog they are off and running. Now here is the funny part. Both dogs are terrier based, not big game hunters. So while I can see the deer have left the scene, they are running around wildly trying to figure out where the deer are, trying to rely on scent, but of course the whole place reeks of deer. I managed to get a leash on Sarge, but Buddy finally got going in the right direction and took out after the deer. Now I am not worried about the deer at all. They have a good five minute head start. so I walk in the general direction the deer went , called in the wanderer, and he shows up, out of breath and convinced he is a mighty hunter. We walk on a little more and then I turn Sarge loose again because Buddy got his run but Sarge didn't.

Now it turns out, Sarge really is a mighty hunter. It was fascinating to see him hit every brush pile looking for rodents. He found something and proceeded to dig for whatever it was. He torn out dead branches and dug in. He kept checking to make sure that there was no one escaping out the other side of the dead bush. Sarge was all business and a light year away from a pampered lap dog. Evolution in action. Watching him I understood the constant chewing and his intense approach to life. I could not see why he feels the need to pee on everything in the house and poop all over, but one revelation at at time.

Thoughts on the election

I think that it is amazing to live in a country that has a smooth transition of power. Men and women of good intent compete and then graciously face defeat and victory. I think I have seldom been so proud of my country as I was last night. It feels like we have grown up and can now move on to compassionate, adult governance. I pray it is so. I heard a man fron Africa talking about what they could learn from our election. He talked about much the same issues. That government should be based not on where you come from , but who you are. Votes can not be bought but earned.

BIG "What not to do"

I have a sinus infection, but that is only relevant because my nose is really stuffy. Here is what you should never do. When you have a stuffy nose, do NOT take a swig of mouthwash and walk around the house getting ready for work. I almost suffocated myself when I had to breath and could get no air. I was either going to: 1. Spew mouthwash in my closet. 2.Inhale said mouthwash. or 3. Make a mad dash for the sink. Yes 3 did work, but don't try this at home, boys and girls. Very, very bad.

The "bad" kid

There is a tendency among teachers to blame the kid when learning isn't happening. He doesn't pay attention. She doesn't do her work. He acts out all the time. I really love it when teachers get down on a kid with a disability over the very stuff that is the essence of their disability.
Let's take a step back. As educators, if we aren't getting through then it is our duty to figure out another way to get the job done. We are raising a new generation of children that are actually hard wired differently. These are media children. An four year old walked into my room. She said she had Spanish homework. She had to find the name of a Spanish lake. "How are you going to do that?" I asked. "Computer" she said. At four!
They think differently and learn differently. And if a kid has a disability, for heaven's sake, think outside the box. "He won't pay attention" HELLO He's autistic. Quit blaming and start teaching.
OK end of rant.

Reunion

I went to a reunion and we relived the meanness we had in high school from some people. One of us tried to explain that another's life must be filled with a lot of pain to be so cruel and another chided her . "No, she is just mean, no excuses."
Is there value in forgiveness? Imagine a virtual garbage bag that you carry around with you and collect all your bad feelings and grievances. It would soon be huge and you would be carrying it around on your shoulder. Who is being punished? You ! You with your giant trash bag. All the people who committed slights against you don't care in the least that you are put out. Why carry around other people's trash?

I discovered a long time ago that you can't make anyone learn something. Did you ever try to make a baby eat or a toddler learn how to use the potty? Well, that is actually the way it is all the time. So I have become a facilitator. I provide opportunities to learn through environment and the aura I bring to the encounter, but so much is in the learners' court. It is all part of the locus of control. We teachers are loathe to give up the illusion that we are in control. But in reality we control very little. Go forth and learn, bold ones.

My new Mac

So... I got a new Mac at work. The first thing I did was look for the rest of it. I just saw this wonderful huge flat screen. THERE WERE NO OTHER PARTS! I have no idea how to use the gorgeous machine but OMG it is beautiful.

The bridge

Happy Birthday

Thank you, thank you, yes, I am a year older. Everyone should have a birthday party on a bridge with good friends, food and wine. People walking past wish you a happy birthday and you watch kayakers and tour boats swirl beneath you. The sun sets red through the next bridge over and the the moon and planets make an appearance. We danced to old "back to school" music ( on KUT's Twinetime. Try streaming it) and played drums and lit candles.
So now I offer up a poem I wrote on my twenty fifth birthday.

On Attaining Twenty-five (years)

Well, I've written a love poem,
Two death poems, it's time.
A poem on my lost youth
on attaining twenty-five.
It seems a good thing for me to write
with me being properly mournful,
Only I don't feel anything.
Oh, a momentary qualm
That I've done nothing with my life
Or a sharp second of anquish
On realizing my life is one third over.
Other than that, nothing.
Of course I've been thinking of nothing
For a week now.

When all else fails

When all else fails, go back and do something you know how to do very well. Just the act of being successful can make taking on new challenges easier. A five year old taught that to me today.

Looking in from the outside

I realized this morning that in every job I have ever had, somehow I have managed to be on the outside. This stems from a comment at my new job that someone was seeing me that way already and I have only been there a week. I like to think that it is a function of my outlook at work. I work with people and they always come first. I think who ever I work with have rights and deserve dignity. And somehow I end up here on the outside again. I am crazy but hopefully in a good way. More later.

random thought's about the universe

ok, I've finally started my blog. be prepared for rtaut's from 3 am on.