In the Service of Her Majesty The Queen

LOL, yeah, an error.

And quite well, too!

Well, swearing helps, after all I do work with claim adjusters!

It was more alluded to your jamming issues. The main printer I use jams all the f***ing time. This is supposedly a $20K piece of machinery and it's been serviced more times than I have hot meals. So I totally sympathized at your plight! My language howerer, tends to be a bit more colourful, especially when I'm trying to move files along and I can't.

Good to hear! Keep pushing those fluids through and you'll be fine! :thumbsup:

 

An emergency kept me on the neighbor woman's couch most of the late night, to have someone there for her children. She is ok, but I didn't sleep.

I walked home before the night sky lightened, before the birds and squirrels woke up. I thought about sitting on the porch and seeing the day begin, but I was too tired and just went to bed. Collapsed into bed is more like it. I may have fallen asleep before my head was settled in the pillow.

So my day begins late.

More of the dogwood blossoms blow off in the breeze, there will not be many left at the end of the day.

I see one of the redheaded woodpeckers drink from the hole in the live oak, see the doves drink free of attacking squirrels from the birdbath. Butterflies fly, and look a little ragged.

The pine tree pollen continues to fall. It is trying hard to rain outside. I hope it does, it is the only thing that washes the pollen away.

Another long day today, even if it does begin late.

Have a good day, everyone!

 

It is raining, rained I guess most of the afternoon and into the night.

The rain hits the blossoms on the dogwood tree and pounds them off, those that are left. One after another falls to the ground underneath the tree. I feel like I should stand out there and do a wake for them, a standing in the rain wake, but I don't. I only brought 1 cigarette. So untrue to the tree, I am. Self centered as usual.

To those who sleep tonight on this side of the world,

The Nightly Mission:

Like a baby, deeply sleep.
Rag doll limp, no dreams
to haunt you next morning.

When you are done with the night,
wake to a day so bright
that you are astounded.

And smile, smile.

G'Night!

 

Good Morning to those who rise from sleep on this side of the world
(Good Night to all the rest).

The birds are not yet singing, nor do the squirrels venture forth from
their nests when I rise this morning.

There are still a few blossoms on the dogwood tree.

When the sky changes from black to navy, the birds start to sing,
here and there. As it lightens, shades to grey, the buzzards take off flying, the
only birds that take wing this early. Pink clouds in the east seem to tell all
the birds to sing, and it is noisy and full of chirps, whistles, warbles and clicks.

I sit and smoke and think. And think. I think of where the answers are, who
holds them, who knows the questions to ask. It is a maze I think through.

I come in the house before anything else flies, before the squirrels awake.

A busy day ahead.

I hope it is a good day at it's end.

And I hope you have a good day,
all day long.

 

It's Saturday night and I ain't got nobody....

Wait... I have somebody!

J and I are headed out to see a friend of mine's son's band play. N's sleeping over at his friends house. I've barely seen him or his friends all day! When he was home, he could wait to go back to them. :roll:

Anyway. the "bar" concert's always a good thing. The band is the "house" band and all of us "older" fans get the VIP table. Or a J calls it, the VOP table (very old people). Most of the crowd are 20 somethings. But us "seasoned" vets get a special place of recognition!

A good time to be had, for sure. :drunk:

Enjoy your night (or day, as the case may be)! :thumbsup:

 

The wind blows hard enough today to send a large branch crashing down on my car, denting the fender. I was lucky and was on the other side of the car.

There were branches down all over town, on the roads, lawns and roofs.

When I got home, I plucked one of the last blossoms off the dogwood tree. I should have taken the time to microwave it, but didn't. It is pressed in one of my books, where I will forget it until I come across it one day and remember why I put it there. Surprise encounters scattered throughout my book shelves.

The thunderstorm that followed the wind stayed and boomed overhead for a long time. I have experienced thunderstorms in other areas, but none like what we get here. They are fierce. I have not yet been frightened by lightning or thunder, but these come close.

And now, for all those who have trouble going to sleep on this side of the globe,

The Nightly Mission:

If your dreams are not friendly,
your mind fights battles as you sleep
and you rise in the morning,
no song in your heart to sing
you through the day, have patience.
All things change in time.

Get through the night
rise in the morning,
one day at a time.

G'Night.

 

The line of thunderstorms last night knocks the last of the dogwood blossoms off the tree, there is no white left on it, only green.

It knocks me off the internet, too. One lightning strike is very very close, I hear it crackle in the air. No power, nothing to do but listen to the thunder crash, I go to bed. And fall asleep in the middle of the storm.

I wake up with the dawn again, it is getting to be a habit and not one I like. The birds sing and sing to one another. I see a flock of ducks fly to the north, the cranelike bird does as well. Crows caw to one another harshly before they fly to another area and the bluejays are busy copying all the other bird's songs.

Unlike yesterday morning where I was surprised at how many of the neighborhood houses had lights on while it was still pitch black outside, no lights were on this Sunday morning. The south is church-heavy, so I expected even more lights. Even the family down the street, who attends church 2 or 3 times a week, was not up yet. They were yesterday.

Ahhh, I hope you all had a good night and have the best of days. I hope I do, too.

 

Well, the concert was a blast. Tons O Fun to be sure.

J showed up EVERY woman with her dance moves. Damn, that woman CAN sway!!! :love::love::love:

The band was tight and rocked hard, even doing some great covers as well.

Bought a few more of their first CD's to add to the cars/office. We'd love to take N to one of their shows and the the lead singer has extended an invitation for N to join them on stage, but it needs to be at a venue where N can LEGALLY get in.

Drove home @ 2AM/3AM through a vicious snow storm. It's a great thing that there was hardly any traffic on the tollway for the ride home. A bit white knuckling at times, but managed without a single incident.

N had a great time at his friends, sleeping over. I still have no idea (netiher does N) how late N stayed up. :twitch:

A nice, QUIET, relaxing Sunday. Lots O coffee, laundry, no kids running around (for now). Not a bad day. Hope all of yours are going good, too!

 

I hate driving in snowstorms. The flakes coming at you make me dizzy, I have to look between them, and that is not easy. I always white knuckled it. :twitch:

Glad you made it home ok. :yes: And, of course, glad you had fun at the concert.

 

Another day gone. Today must have been car washing day for the neighborhood. Everyone busy wiping away at their cars. After church, of course.

A quiet day, too...hardly a kid in sight.

The birds are not nearly as noisy in the evening as they are in the morning. I wait to see
them build nests, but haven't yet. Maybe they are not done with the territory fighting and
that's why they sing so much in the morning.

Butterflies out again today. Don't know how they managed to survive last night's thunderstorms. And the solitary tree frog was on my wall, again. I haven't seen the porch lizard for several days.

It is hard for me to look at the dogwood tree. I do miss the blossoms. Maybe when it is
fully leafed out I will feel better about it. How on earth can you get so attached to some-
thing? It really doesn't make sense.

One of the squirrel's nests was blown out of the live oak by the wind last night. So one of them at least has to be busy making a new nest, but I couldn't tell that any were.

One of my friends is not having a good day, so I spent some time with her on the phone.

I, on the other hand, had a good day. Another to put on the string of good days. I have a few of them, now.

Have a good night, all!

 

To all who go to sleep or already have tonight on this side of the world,

Very belated Nightly Mission:

When the night calls
so strong and dark
do not go there.

Stay in the light,
you can find it
if you look for it.

And I am looking...

G'Night

 

I am up early again, but not quite as early as I have been...
Still, more sleep would have been a blessing.

The birds, of course, sing and twitter, fly about.

The squirrels are already on the ground, wet and cold as it is.
Hunger drives us all.

Speaking of which, one little bird braves my presence and comes
to the feeder and stays awhile, even when I move, he doesn't
fly away. I go to town today, and must remember to get more
birdseed. It is almost gone in the feeder.

The dogwood still grows it's leaves.

I meet a vampire on 2nd Life who has the image down. The
movie guys would do well to visit 2nd Life before they make
another vampire movie...they could learn a lot. He role plays
better than I do. I am glad it isn't real life...I would have
to garlic up the windows again, as I did when I was a child.
He wants to bite me. We talk awhile and I escape, unbitten.
I do not know if that was a success or not, for sure.

A busy day today, I hope I get everything done.

I hope your day goes well, bright, in the light,
unfettered by the dark.

Good Morning!

 

Last night, I heard the owl hoot again. The sound was
moving off toward the south, toward the overflow reservoir.
I suppose the owl went to hunt frogs.

It is quiet out tonight, though. Too bad, I'd like to hear the
owl again.

The moon waxes and the month will soon be done.
It is odd how much can happen between moons.
Nearly a lifetime's worth.

Tonight, the light was shining in the dark.
It found me. I wasn't even looking.

Strange how that works.

And now, I have a new bottom line.


To all who go to sleep tonight,
on this side of the world,

The Nightly Mission:

Take some light along,
when you walk alone
in the dark.

Sing a sweet song
and keep it strong
in your heart.

You may not be
as lucky next time.

Sleep soundly,
Wake up tomorrow!

G'Night!

 

A grey, overcast morning.

I sleep longer than I have been. That's good, I think.

The birds sing as usual. I do not see the squirrels, though.
It isn't cold enough to keep them in their nests, so I wonder
why I don't see them.

The blue jays sing the other bird's songs. I wonder if the other
birds can tell it is not one of their own kind that sings and calls
using their own song? If they can tell, then why does the blue
jay bother in the first place? What gain? And they -- the blue
jays -- do not sing just one song, they mix them all up and sing
many of them in a row. Is it to produce confusion? And allow
them to avoid territory fights?

I sit on the porch and do more thinking than watching. My
thinking will not settle and goes round and round, skirting
the problem, the issue I want to resolve. Why is it so hard
sometimes to get to the truth?

My thinking is like the blue jay and it's songs. It plays every
song it knows to avoid the one I want to zero in on.

I should know better than to stay with the thinking.

Get to the gut.

The day does not start out clear, is muddled all the way around.

Nonetheless, I hope it will be a good day. And I hope it will
for you, too.

 

The sun dives to the other side of the world, later each day.

There is a last moment reshuffling of the birds, in the twilight
they fly back and forth among the trees, finally settle down.
An hour ago, they were already situated and quiet.

It has been overcast all day, but hasn't rained. Muggy and
warm. The clouds, dark in the middle, move steadily to the
north, an unending stream of them.

Perhaps it will manage to rain tonight.

I count 3 tree frogs on the outside of my house. They are
small and sit quietly. Awhile ago, they were croaking to one
another. There were no mosquitoes out earlier that I noticed,
so I suppose they sit quietly now so as not to scare off the
mosquitoes they wait to catch. You'd think they would peep,
not croak, they are so little.

Today was not the best day, but it has passed.

I hope you have a good night.