Proof that Cats Rule

Click on the picture and you will see who has control of the remote!

The Vision Quest and another Fantastic Tale

Ok, folks here it is - the story that will put me on the fruitcake (unbalanced) list. But there is more there than the solid computer keys you touch.

Once upon a time, I was an alcoholism counselor. I had a field office in a county and I really really loved my job. I also worked on the Indian reservation. Being part Indian, I was accepted fairly well. I went to feasts and ceremonies that other whites were not invited to. I loved the stews with corn and the deep fried Indian bread and the smell of woodsmoke.

There was an old man that could not speak English. We spoke by drawing in the dirt with a stick.

I saw things that frightened me - like an arm coming through my car window. An owl following me from place to place - a girl I went to talk to laid out on the sofa in full ceremonial dress looking like she was dead, but I was told to leave her alone, she was on an astral trip somewhere. I did, I left her lying there. The following week she came back.

I ran into Russell Banks or Dennis Means (I can't remember which, Banks, I think) in a bar while looking for a mommy who was needed by her children. The lights were turned out and I waited. They came back on and everyone was pleased that I stayed put and calm which demonstrated trust. (Little did they know what was going on inside - or maybe they did). Mom called me a white witch, and I told her if she hated whites so much she should hate the liquor that stole her childrens' mother from them.

An Indian friend whose husband was going to trial for murder wanted me to go to the Indian doctor with her and we were to travel to another reservation and leave at midnight. We took tobacco for the shaman/doctor. The owl followed us all the way. He knew me, and gave me my instructions. The Shaman blew a wind over me and shook his rattles. His instructions were to not eat anything given to me on the reservation. Watch out. He was also a psychic surgeon and I saw various organs and wierd things sitting about in jars.

So many problems arose from two warring factions and each faction had it's powerful people putting curses on the other faction.

A tall beautiful brown man fell in love with me. I was dangerously teetering.

Soon, I began to feel pretty messed up. Being a spiritual questor, but not yet a Christian, and having been raised on horror movies, my first thought for help with such fearful spiritual matters was the Catholic Church. I mean, all the horror movies, a cross, a Catholic Church and garlic were the standard protections, right? I went. The Father there said what I was experiencing was real and that is why the Church did not want folks messing with such powers. He didn't give me any of the things I thought I would get. Later, I discovered that if one knows God, then we have power over the entities I battled with.

I packed up my family and left that area and moved far away.

But sometimes when I smell woodsmoke and my spirit tells me the other half of my people are nearby, I want to park my car, get in an old pickup and ride off toward the horizon. Sometimes.

Looking back, I think no wonder I have not kept a job for 30 years and retired - I look back at a series of places where there was deep spiritual battle. I used to joke about the last stint in Wyoming being a spiritual assignment. Maybe it was. I'm sure banged up from the war, that's for sure.

Out there a Mexican shaman became my friend. He always showed up to warn me of problems. He was always right. I knew he had a sickness and I prayed for him. He was/is a brilliant man who sees deep into other places while living a grounded life and running a business. Yes, I put up a guard. I did not want to travel anywhere by any other means than a car, airplane or my feet.

Well, my grandson is bringing me back to firmly planted terra earth, I need to make a bedtime snack and get him settled in for the night.

Mother's Day

Mum's Day plant........it loves the moist outdoors! Mom plant will die and her "puppies" (the new plants)that will grow about her roots will grow and become beautiful in their time.



Ahhhhh, new shoes and dress socks



















Mother's Day! Here's my crew except my other daughter was working.













Yep, this is sort of a belated post! Here it is Memorial Day already. My mother is taking flowers to my son's resting place. I see it in my mind - and the view of the mountains in the Wyoming he loved. I think of all the moms (and dads and siblings) that are having bad holidays because of loved ones not being with them because of war, life's absurdities, or just silly family arguments.

Take time out and hug your family, hubby, wife, dog, cat, today, ok?

Songs and Shreks

This is going to be an eclectic post once again.

I went to my granddaughter's performance recital this weekend. It was so much fun watching her dance and act. I was so proud of her. But I realized the tears in my eyes were not only from love and pride over this beautiful girl, but from regret for the song and dance that was stolen from me. Sometimes, though when that happens, the circle of life brings it back to our hearts anyway! And often in a way we never imagined.

When very small, I loved to sing, and my heart yearned to dance. I was pretty and nimble. My recollections, though were that my every attempt to sing or twirl were met with nasty comments and cold indifference. I retreated into a fantasy world where I sang and danced in a place far, far away and the pure joy of the dancing did not include any reactions from others. Too young, too young to assimilate that lesson.

Even now, when I want to sing, I have to make a conscious effort to sing for the joy of the sing, and not let words spoken from the past stifle the song. I wrote a poem once about the theft of the song. Here's "kudos" for the parents who rejoice in their children and give them the chances to grow from the talents and desires within their little hearts.

Then, speaking of far, far away, youngest grandson begged me to take him to see the 3rd Shrek. As with the first, I did not want to go, but we went and this time laughed until we cried. The reviews have not been so good, but I found this to be a movie that could pull off zany humor for both adults and children. I loved it. Throw in all the old fairy tale characters that I know so well, Snow White, Cinderella, and more becoming macho women and we laughed some more.

I love the Pussycat character. I can still recite all of "The Owl and The Pussycat" by heart. I was raised on fairy tales, even the scary ones, and made sure my children were read to about Snow White, Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, The Gingerbread Man, and so many more. I read poems to them that I didn't remember well enough to recite.

The classic characters were worth spending the money on the movie. Also I found out, not having seen Shrek 2, that Donkey married the Dragon and they had donkey-dragon babies, fire breathing, donkey-headed, dragon winged babies. Donkey and the Cat were hilarious, at one point, exchanging bodies. Just watching the donkey's fur stiffen and seeing a donkey hiss like a cat was worth going to the movie. It was full of so much fun. See it if you can. I needed something frivolous!

My head feels wacko fuzzy (blood thinners?) - is my brain leaking - I know its leaking important information that it should be retaining - then I get fuzzier from the stress - my back pretty painless other than some soreness, spasms, but hey, low grade to what has gone on from October until recently. I start physical therapy Tuesday.

So that's it for now!

Tryin' to Blog

Been too tired to blog. Don't know why. Just am.

I'll try to think of something at least partially brilliant this weekend. Till then, g'nite!

for Puppy

The Demented Cat Game

Slow Irish music………..flute, guitar, harp

Come on you young fellows and listen while I sing
For the love of a Kitty Kat is a terrible thing
They’ll banish your senses,
You’ll be prisoner with pain and they’ll make you part of
The Demented Cat game

My name is Marc and I’m only 33,
My home is in Austin and two cats live with me
I’ve known all my life that all cats are the same
But I still fell in love with the demented cat game

These two cats of mine have terrorized me
My home is too small for their cat tyranny
My friend Nancy is greatly to to blame,
She taught me the joys of the demented cat game

I came home and saw Tory stretched out in his chair
And I noticed something awful in his stare
His tongue licked his mane
He tormented me with the Demented Cat Game

It’s barely two years since these three cats moved in
The sofa is now covered with the scent of cat gin
I read about felines and never wanted the same
‘til I became part of the demented cat game

I lie in my bed and on me my cats lie
I see Tory’s legs spin, he’s ready to fly
He jumps on my tongue I give thanks for the pain
That's part of the torture of the Demented Cat game

Mother's Day

Shouldn't equate loot with Mother's Day - but hey, all that hard work and pruning, and patience, and standing by them, is paying off. My kids are so good to me. Here is one present - a ZUNE - it holds 7,500 songs - wow! I have even downloaded Irish Drinking Songs for Cats. Now that's something. Lots of Dylan, Cowboy Junkies, Taj Mahal, African Orphans singing songs, all of Paul Simon after he picked up the African sounds, and I'm after more! I am not a music nut either. Most of my life music has taken the low place. First because of finances, a single mom with two kids can barely afford chewing gum, let alone music. Then I became sort of a monk-ess for a decade, and listened to only a limited amount of a certain type of music. Then I've became too busy. Now turning over a new leaf and getting me some portable speakers. I have great ear phones now - can't wait - music in the car, in the office, while exercising, music everywhere! I will have to remember: People! listen to people in my life as well.

All you mommas, have a happy mother's day - if you aren't a momma, and you probably are to kids or cats or puppies or bunnies or somethin' - or you have a momma or a good friend who has nurtured you in some way - have a happy happy mother's day

oh dear - I love my ear phones - hubby sitting behind me on couch ranting on about Immus and people griping about bigotry being bigots and I don't get it - oh yeah, happy to have the music - Dylan, "...ohhhhhhhhh, mamma, you gonna miss your best friend now, you gonna have to find another best friend somehow......mamma don't you let me down." Hmmm, I wonder if Dylan had a prophetic moment about the New Orleans disaster - he's singing about a flood almost sounds like a description of New Orleans 9th ward ....

gotta go, now we are into "Tangled Up in Blues."

Are we willing to gamble?

IPCC Global Call for Action on Climate Change. By Joseph Coleman, The Associated Press, May 4, 2007. "Under the most stringent scenario, the report said the world must stabilize the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by 2015 -- eight years from now -- to keep global temperatures from rising more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit over preindustrial levels.

Delegates said the approval of the report should conclusively debunk arguments by skeptics that combatting global warming was too costly, that it would stifle development in the world's poorer countries or that the temperature rise had gone too far for humankind to do anything about. 'If we continue doing what we are doing now, we are in deep trouble,' cautioned Ogunlade Davidson, the chair of one of the working groups at the weeklong conference in Bangkok, Thailand...

Coming out of the meeting early Friday, delegates said science appeared to have trumped politics -- especially opposition from booming China, which wanted language inserted allowing for a greater buildup of greenhouse gases in the environment before action would be taken... Delegates at the meeting had wrestled over how to share the burden of cutting emissions, how much such measures would cost, and how much weight to give certain policy measures, such as advanced nuclear power, an option supported by the United States.

'This is still an excellent report,' French delegate Michel Petit said, adding that China and the other developing countries ended up compromising on all major issues. 'Nothing important was removed during the process'... The report follows two studies by the IPCC earlier this year warning that unabated greenhouse gas emissions could drive global temperatures up as much as 11 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100, triggering a surge in ocean levels, destruction of vast numbers of species, economic devastation in tropical zones and mass human migrations.

Even the most stringent efforts outlined in the report, however, would not save the globe from suffering. An increase in temperatures to 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit could still subject up to 2 billion people to water shortages by 2050 and threaten extinction for 20 to 30 percent of the world's species, the IPCC said."

Roses.....

The pale pink roses counted up to over 90 roses that were in bloom, had just bloomed, or budding. The darker roses are all I will probably get off that bush this summer, maybe one or two more flowers as it gets hotter.

The ex-son-in-law and little boy worked hard getting the weeds out this afternoon after we made a trip to Lowe's and I purchased primer and paint for the front door, grass seed for the bare spots in the lawn, a new invention - a weed mat which you lay down over cleaned soil, dig a hole in and plant your flowers. The water & light will go through but the weeds can't grow. Also bought a couple of plants. While digging out the weeds, they found the remnants of the lavender that used to bloom so profusely and attract the bees.

Husband said he was glad the bees were gone - but unless they are yellow jackets, bees won't bother you. I love bees, they entertain me, but more importantly, they serve a grander purpose of keeping the earth in balance. Anyway, I could put my hand down in the lavender and the bees were too busy on their pollinating mission to bother with hurting me. I've been reading that the bees were disappearing around the world. This bothers my heart a lot.

One of my most precious memories was a trip we made up the side of the mountain in Albania, the eastern music playing through the hills. We were on our way to pray for a friend's sick bees. Those minutes of walking up the mountains, the music, the smells were heady and hypnotizing. In the countryside in Albania, I wished I could stay frozen in the moment forever.

There, honey was, and probably still is, an important dietary staple. Until then, I took honey's presence on our grocery shelves for granted. I began to realize how precious even the smallest things of this planet are and was honored to be asked to pray for the bees. I don't know the fate of the bees. That was ten years ago. I do know humans need to take care of this planet that we live on. If we don't take care of things, including ourselves, everything eventually dies.

Here's to life and the beauty of it. I hope my bees and dragonflies come back to enchant me in my flower garden. I also must talk to the cats about mutilating the charming little chameleons that hang out here occasionally.

What a Great Place to Be..............but which one?

Here is a sampling of the available fun in the area for the weekend:

"Henri Mattisse: A Celebration of French Poets and Poetry" This exhibit pairs the etchings and lithographs of world renowned French artist Henri.....with translations of the works of French Renaissance poet Pierre Ronsard and Modern Poet Stephan Mallarme.

Celebrity Blues Series presents Guitar Shorty at the Gutter Lounge. Shorty has worked with Ray Charles, Little Richard, Sam Cook and Willie Dixon over the long course of his career.

23rd Annual Crawfish Creole Festival featuring thousands of pounds of boiled crawfish and other traditional Cajun and Creole fare. .....Louisian Bayou country and zydeco music........

"Mozart and Margaritas" (This one makes me smile.)

"Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance" at the S. Theatre.

Family Day at Krispy Kreme.

Free Comic Book Day.

$59 room rate at 4 Diamond Resort, plus $10.00 in slot credits, and free breakfast for two.

Martina McBride concert.

"The Men of Las Vegas" at Chan's (dancing in their underwear).

Pompeii Exhibit

Music and Movie in the Park

Announcement of Contest for Greater Gulf Coast Arts Festival Poster

University Senior's art show

At least a dozen artists featured in as many galleries

.......and Cinco De Mayo

The first of a series of "Cult Movies" at the cheap theatre where you sit at round tables and can drink beear and eat hot dogs or chips & cheese while watching such movies as "The Return of the Swamp Thing" or Lucio Fulci's Zombie" .....and more!

How could one possibly choose? Which one or more would you choose?

A bit of this - A bit of that

Ok, trying the MS Word and cut and paste suggestions.

Saturday I went to four hours of the little grandson’s school carnival. It was interesting as there was some really great musical talent among the teenagers, former Montessori students. The art auction was awesome to watch. How would you like to get $900 for a collaborative quilt that you made when you were three? I bid on a large pottery bowl that was also a collaborative work that included my grandson – but backed out when it went over $200.00. My daughter won a raffle and soon we’ll go to the beach for three days and two nights (don’t know when) in a tourist area – a hotel right on the beach! They can go to the water park and I will lie in the sun.

Sunday I spent recuperating and watching “Daughter from Danang.”

“Daughter” was a story of a young woman airlifted out of Vietnam during the war. Supposedly these children were orphans, but according to the documentary, not many were. The movie was a heart breaker and showed a lot of actual footage of the kids and moms being separated to be flown out. The documentary centered on a young woman who found her Vietnamese mother and family. Her growing up in the U.S. with a mother who walked away when she reached her teens and who forbade her to acknowledge her ancestry was a study in rejection. This, added to her feelings that her Vietnamese mother gave her away, made her feel as if she wasn’t worth anything.

When she returned to Vietnam, she was stunned by culture shock. She wanted to be a nurtured daughter and was looked at by her Vietnamese family as a rich American who would take care of mom and help the other sisters and brothers. She returned to the U.S. disillusioned and unable to continue contact. The rest of the story…..that’s all I’m telling.

What else is new? I’m understanding what we’re doing at work and my books are balancing at the end of the day. Not very exciting, but predictable and the people are soft spoken and just the fact they aren’t stabbing one another in the back is such a treat.

My roses – oh, my roses! Stunning, stunning. I’ll get a photo or two in the morning. Large pink blooms on one, and dazzling reddish with yellow and orange tints in the other bush. I almost had them dug up. So, a lesson learned here! A rose can grow in the middle of weeds, in fact the rose looks dazzling compared to the weeds….

Lots going on, including this pervasive tiredness. Maybe getting up at 5 a.m. has a little to do with it. Not used to commuting and hour each day - I am working one whole week almost just for gas to get there. What is it with the U.S. and the lack of good public transporation?

Friday I am going to get the clotting tested on blood. I guess they figure the red blood cells are holding their own, no tests requesedt by the doc.

‘Night now.

Growllllllllllll

Blogger has refused two of my posts - time consuming posts - I'm trying....