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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Snakes

Those who give you a serpent when you ask for a fish, may have nothing but serpents to give. It is generosity on their part.
~Kahlil Gibran
- - - - -

How did they get those serpents, though? And why did they keep so many of them?

Life is a myssssssssstery.

Monday, March 18, 2024

Patience



Life is simple. Everything happens for you, not to you. Everything happens at exactly the right moment, neither too soon nor too late. You don't have to like it... it's just easier if you do.
~ Byron Katie
- - - - -

I love the idea of things happening for me rather than to me. I have shared this idea with others. I tell them that it works for me think that way unless I am stuck in traffic or with bad drivers. Then I just get annoyed.

I'm not sure why. Unless I'm headed home, I'm probably not in a big hurry to get where I'm going, anyway.

Sunday, March 17, 2024

Dancers

Dancing is the poetry of the foot.
~ John Dryden
- - - - -

Some dances are like a haiku - short and to the point. Others are like a sestina or chant royal - longer and more complex.

And the ones that are like a limerick... well, maybe don't do those in public.

Saturday, March 16, 2024

Pupoet

Not everyone who drinks is a poet. Some of us drink because we're not poets.
~ Dudley Moore
- - - - -

If Lily were a poet, I think she would write mainly odes. Ode to a Treat; Ode to a Hike: Ode to Belly Rubs. But if she drank, I bet she could write a good limerick, too.

There was a young puppy from town
Who followed nice people around.
She'd wag her sweet tail
And then without fail
Would flop belly up on the ground.

Friday, March 15, 2024

Love

Love is a really scary thing, and you never know what's going to happen. It's one of the most beautiful things in life, but it's one of the most terrifying.
~ Ariana Grande
- - - - -

I've heard it said that in every relationship one loves more than the other. 

(pause)

Sometimes you can tell which one is which.

 

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Road

Take me home
Country roads
To the place
I belong
~ Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert, & John Denver
- - - - -

Roads don't always take us where we expect. Sometimes we think certain others are going to stay on the journey with us. However, some people just don't belong on the road with you. Sometimes they are in there and you have to navigate around them. Remember to trust them when they show you who they are and find relief in that. You don't have to listen to them or be obliged to them or cover up for them when they mess up. They messed up their relationship with you. Let them be.

And if they aren't on the road with you, also remember that it's one less person you have to share your roadtrip snacks with.

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Michelle

I learned a long time ago that the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side.
~ Maya Angelou
- - - - -

I sometimes wonder, if I am ever on a TV show, if the captioning might read "Indistinct chatter." for everything I say.
 

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Leader

A leader isn't someone who forces others to make them stronger; a leader is someone willing to give their strength to others so that they may have the strength to stand on their own.
~ Beth Revis
- - - - - 

In the case of dogs, a leader is someone who is at the front.
 

Monday, March 11, 2024

Jumping

Those who don't jump will never fly.
~ Leena Ahmad Almashat
- - - - - 

They say sometimes you just have to jump in with both feet to do exciting things. Dogs jump in with all four feet which is why you might think they are twice as good as people. 

(pause)

That's not true.

Dogs are way more than twice as good as people.

Thursday, March 7, 2024

Ears

When the ears of the student are ready to hear, the cometh the lips to fill them with wisdom.
~ Three Initiates
- - - - -

I watched a show one time and it included a character named "Prozac" which I thought was a weird name for a character. Turns out it IS a weird name for a character since her name was actually "Rosa" and I just misheard.
 

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Learning

She never returned to school, although the college counselor pushed competitive courses and applications on her, and learning was her drug of choice.
~ Tess Gunty
- - - - -

sadvising \sÉ™d-ˈvÄ«z-ing\ (verb) the act of giving bad academic guidance 

Tuesday, March 5, 2024

Courage

Life shrinks or expands in proportion with one's courage.
~ Anais Nin
- - - - -

 You can't have courage without rage. Turns out you can't have a garage without rage, either. 

Monday, March 4, 2024

Cat

Confidence is not, "They will like me." Confidence instead is, "I'll be fine if they don't."
~ Christina Grimmie
- - - - -

And for some cats confidence goes even further to mean, "I'd prefer that they didn't."

Sunday, March 3, 2024

Anger

"Anger is a funny thing. And it does funny things to us if we keep it inside. I encourage you to consider a question: Who benefits, my dear, when you force yourself to not feel angry?" She tilted her head and looked at me so hard I thought she could see right into my bones. She raised her eyebrows. "Clearly not you."
~ Kelly Barnhill
- - - - - 

I've seen anger in some people. Most of the time I didn't think it was very funny at all.


Saturday, March 2, 2024

Lizard

And there's nothing wrong with being a lizard, either. Unless you were born to be a hawk.
~ Leigh Bardugo
- - - - -

Whether you were born to be a hawk or a lizard, you're probably not reading Leigh Bardugo's work.

Friday, March 1, 2024

Sight

With these hungry eyes
One look at you, and I can't disguise
I've got hungry eyes
~ Eric Carmen
- - - - -

I offered my friend Maureen a dollar to go into her next optometrist appointment and tell her doctor she's got "hungry eyes."

I don't think she'll do it, but if she does, that will be one of the best dollars I've ever spent.

Thursday, February 29, 2024

Lights

'Cause little sister don't miss when she aims her gun.
~ The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia by Bobby Russell
- - - - -

I love my brother very much, but if his spouse cheated on him, I would not hunt the person down and shoot them when Kirk was out of town. 

 

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Truth

You will come up short by telling tall tales.
~ Christine E. Szymanski
- - - - -

Leslie: I liked your blog post today. It was actually true.

Me: All of my blog posts are true. (pause) ish.

Leslie: Yes, well, some are more true than others.

Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Storefront

I went window shopping today. I bought four windows.
~ Tommy Cooper
- - - - -

The other day I saw the most ridiculous post on social media. It said that if you want to minimize your belongings, one thing to do is to go through your closet. Each item you pull out, you're supposed to ask yourself, "Would I buy this?" If the answer is NO, you get rid of the item.

That's so stupid. If I did that, I would say NO to everything because I already have that stuff.

Monday, February 26, 2024

Mad


All mathematicians are mad, as you know.
~ Elly Griffiths
- - - - -

Maybe, but not all mathematicians are mad all the time. This mathematician looks pretty happy. 

(pause)

I mean Maureen, not Puppa.

(pause)

Okay, they both look pretty happy. I just mean that Lily isn't a mathematician.

(pause)

Well, she does know the concept of "more" so maybe I'm wrong.

Bwaa ha ha ha ha ha. No. gasp. No, I'm not wrong. Can't believe I even typed that.

 

Sunday, February 25, 2024

Pole

A well developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life.
~ William Arthur Ward
- - - - -

If you find out that the tightrope of life you are walking is actually a power line... Well, suffice to say transformers can transform us in a shocking variety of ways. 
 

Saturday, February 24, 2024

Exhaustion

I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom.
~ Thomas Carlyle
- - - - -

Grandmothers are prone to exhaustion because they are living moments with their grandchildren while often reliving moments with their children at the same time. Both are adventures requiring a lot of energy, but worth it.

Unless your children or grandchildren are horrible. But if that is the case, the grandmother made have had a little something to do with it.
 

Friday, February 23, 2024

Famous

I'm more interested in being good than being famous.
~ Annie Liebovitz
- - - - -

 I like to visit cemeteries. I especially like seeing the resting places of famous people. 

Thursday, February 22, 2024

Yard

Novels are not about expressing yourself, they're about something beautiful, funny, clever, and organic. Self-expression? Go and ring a bell in a yard if you want to express yourself.
~ Zadie Smith
- - - - -

The British call their yards gardens. The Scottish call their yards if there has been a murder.

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Heron

You are the hero of your own story.
~ Joseph Campbell
- - - - -

Or, if you identify as a woman, be the heron of your own story.

(pause)

Or, if you're a heron - regardless of gender.

Monday, February 19, 2024

Fiction

Reading fiction is often an act of empathy, as is writing it.
~ Julie Buxbaum
- - - - -

As is living with a writer.

Sunday, February 18, 2024

Unclear

There is something special about the beauty in the unclear, the ambiguity, the in-between that you can't totally recognize.
~ Alessandro Michele
- - - - -

I was talking with someone not too long ago about politics and leadership (or lack thereof). I said something like, "Well, at least we don't have to worry about George Santos anymore." And the other person said, "What are you talking about?!" I said, "What?" They said, "He's a fictional character." I laughed, but that made the person angry. "The guy from Seinfeld?!" the person said loudly stressing the word "Seinfeld."

Then I laughed even more. They got really angry. I said, "No, Not George Costanza. George Santos." 

They looked at me for a minute and I could tell they wanted to laugh and they wanted to yell at me because they were embarrassed. And they wanted to yell at me because I was laughing at them so hard that I was crying.

This is why you shouldn't discuss politics with others.

Saturday, February 17, 2024

Threatening

Authority should derive from the consent of the governed, not from threat of force.
~ Toy Story 3
- - - - -

Author is originator. Authority is author whose writings are considered correct. That seems odd to me. I don't think of those in authority as authors. I don't think of them as writers or readers, come to think of it. At least not all of them. 

Friday, February 16, 2024

Buoys

Feeling is deep and still; and the word that floats on the surface
Is as the tossing buoy, that betrays where the anchor is hidden.
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- - - - - 
I like the water and shops around the water. Tackle shops, boat shops, whatever. One time this person told me about a great shop where they sold marine equipment and had a collection of buoys. They said they knew the owner and he could give us a tour and tell us the history of water floatation devices.

I was really excited to go, but I had something come up. I didn't have the number or even the full name of the person who told me about this place. I felt horrible that I couldn't contact them. I spent the rest of the day thinking, "Dang it, Michelle! Where the buoys are, someone waits for me."

Thursday, February 15, 2024

Conversation





Being a father is the single greatest feeling on earth. Not including those wonderful years I spent without a child, of course.
~ Ryan Reynolds
- - - - -

A Conversation

Zak: Papa, can I ask you something?

Kirk: That depends. What is it?

Zak: Well, I was wondering if I could take the little gardening cart Grandma Boettcher has and drive it off the deck like a stunt person in the movies.

Kirk: (long silent pause)

Zak: (stares at Papa hopefully)

Kirk: What do you think I'm going to say to that, Zak?

Zak: (pauses) I should ask Grandma Boettcher if it's okay?

Kirk: (long pause)

Zak: Hm. Okay. I guess I'm not doing that dream.

Kirk: Zak, come here and sit down for a minute.

Zak: (gets on Kirk's lap)

Kirk: Why do you think I don't want to let you do that, Zak?

Zak: Because your job as a parent is to kill my dreams?

Kirk: (long pause, looks at me as if to say, "See what I have to deal with? Or maybe as if to say, "WHY. ARE. YOU. TAKING. PICTURES?")

Zak: I'm just kidding, Papa. You love me and you don't want me to get hurt.

Kirk: (laughing with relief) That's right, Zak-y. I love you so much.

Zak: How about if we each get ourselves a donut instead. 

Kirk: That's a great idea, bud.

Zak: I love you, Papa.

Kirk: Ohhhhh... I love you, too, Zak.

Zak: (whispering) And I love donuts. 

Kirk: What was that, buddy?

Zak: I love you so much.

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Love

Quit being annoyed with me, and just be in love with me.
~ Michelle Boettcher
- - - - -

Love isn't "never having to say you're sorry." That's stupid. Love is never doing anything you have to say sorry for. And if you make a mistake, that's it. The love is over. 

(pause)

Love is pretty rigid.
 

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Triangle

I've been in a few love triangles. I've been in a love quadrilateral.
~ Beau Mirchoff
- - - - -

What if instead of calling them "love triangles" we called them, "love tryangles." 

We'd be spelling it wrong, that's what!
 

Monday, February 12, 2024

Sky

The sky is the part of creation that nature has done for the sake of pleasing man.
~ John Ruskin
- - - - -

Power lines are the part of creation that man has done for the sake of pleasing man.
 

Sunday, February 11, 2024

Evening

Every sunset brings the promise of a new day.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
- - - - -

Evening should be when the day evens out. But some days are odd days. 

Saturday, February 10, 2024

Someone

An ordinary life is long if you live it together with someone else.
~ Fredrik Backman
- - - - -

And VERY long if you have to lie it with the wrong someone else.

(That is not my circumstance. I'm just reflecting on what others have shared with me.)