Among the mundane

It becomes necessary to look more closely amid the mundane to find the little delights and be determined to enjoy them in spite of the gray clouds that must be lurking somewhere.






Taken from the car window




#

Seasons

There is an old joke which comes to mind now and again- the punchline is "We have four seasons here in LA, too; Mudslide, Drought, Fire, and Earthquake".


The above was taken on Saturday from my window upstairs. The Santa Anas had been blowing strong all night and there were fires to the west of us.


This was taken this morning, from outside. The winds have pretty much died down, but the smoke is moving in.


This was taken only a few hours later.

#

A piece of summer

We went to Cambria in July. We stayed in an inn on Moonstone Beach. It was the first vacation as a couple that didn't involve a trip to the Mid-West or East coast to see family. We've been married 25 years (in July) and never been on a vacation alone, just the two of us. Almost scary stuff, that.

It was gorgeous and interesting and of course, chilly on the central coast. We walked on the beach several times a day. We did some touristy things like going to Hearst Castle, and a little local art and trinket shopping. I am always amazed at the amount of 'made in some third world country' stuff mixed in with the real thing that is available in these little tourist towns.

It was a very pleasant week. But there were vague, discomfort just below the surface, feelings, bobbing into almost focus in random little moments. That has been happening for a couple of years. I haven't figured out exactly what is wrong and what I ought to be doing instead of what I am -- and I think that flows over into a lot of different things it has no business coloring.

And at the oddest moments, it still does.

#
#

Intentions

Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work. ~Peter F. Drucker
On the plains of hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, at the dawn of decision, sat down to wait, and waiting died. ~Sam Ewing

I've opened a compose page once a week, every week, for months. I write, edit, get stuck somewhere before finishing, then wander off to look up something or clarify something or think some more, get sidetracked, and give up. It's not thought that is stagnated exactly, nor creativity, but something else that stops me. And often something in my thoughts and the writing seems either too honest or not honest enough.

I've learned a few things in the past couple of years in between my very sporadic posts. But I don't know if I can articulate anything of value for anyone else. I don't necessarily want to be just part of the noise. Yet I am not entirely ready to say I've quit blogging completely.

I've got a few pictures to post, a few thoughts to see if I can put down, simply because I need to share somewhere. I think I'm ready to try to keep some kind of regularity here on this page. Intentions aren't enough. Action and follow through are all that matters.

OH... I suppose it goes without saying that I'm happy with the way the national elections turned out.

If you're walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you'll make progress. ~Barack Obama

#