#SoCS: The Ring that Takes us Back

Ring, circle, loop, wheel… I’m not sure what it is about the coming of autumn. Memories ring and hang in the air. I have been drawn to the home of my youth on a number of occasions, but autumn always takes me back to the lake. Shadow Lake. Where I used to spend many summer days, tanning with the Coppertone lotion that may have had a sunblock of 5 or a sunburn of 5. I didn’t sunburn as a child,Read more

#SoCS: No, Not Me

No matter what you believe, I am not bored. No, not me. I was simply checking in with the sun. The warm sun. Making sure all was okay. Good news! It was sunny and warm and bright and warm and yellow and warm. It made me sleepy for awhile. But I’m not bored. Gibbs is not bored. He’s just very old. Hey…wait a minute peanut… Old people and old cats need lots of naps or they get grumpy. I’m gonnaRead more

#SoCS – Filling Frames

“The key to happiness is not to get more, but to enjoy what we have and to fill the empty frame of our lives instead of enlarging it.” ~Albert Szent Gyorgyi~ I like this – a reminder that I have plenty to work with inside my own frame and don’t need to turn an 8×10″ into 20×24. Friday reminded me that I have special people who make up part of my life’s photograph…spending the morning with a friend who IRead more

SoCS: All Over the Place

Ubiquitous: Everywhere. In mind and body, this summer has been packed with places to go and things to do. I feel as if I’ve been all over the place the past eight or nine weeks. In other words…everywhere. Vacation, meet-ups with friends, appointments, keeping a kitten occupied, a music festival, watering flowers, walking at night with the neighbors, and volunteering for a week-long arts camp for kids through the church I attend. In between laundry, house cleaning, grocery shopping, etc.Read more

SoCS: Bagging the Last Two Weeks

Gibbs bagged himself a spot on the couch arm recently, and hung out. He was happy his human was home from vacation, but nevertheless gave that “poor, poor me” vibe. Things would turn worse, unfortunately, when the poor soul went to the vet for dental and had two incisors pulled. They are smaller teeth between the canines on the upper and lower jaw. I had a cat once that had all of his lower incisors pulled and afterward, he hadRead more

#SoCS: Trails are the Easy Part

For this week’s Stream of Consciousness, Linda G. Hill has made it easy for me to post: “Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “trail/trial.” Use one, use both, use them any way you’d like. Bonus points if you use both. Have fun!” First and foremost, I will not be responding to trial. There’s a celebrity trial going on right now (haven’t watched a second of it) that is much in the media and seemingly never-ending. I think thisRead more

#SoCS: The Fly

“What, are you catching flies?” she asked as I watched TV. I responded with a shrug. “Close your mouth,” she then scolded me. I suppose, to avoid a flying bug. But it happens again, I cannot deny The fleshy portal opens sure and slow I watch an episode of Olive and Popeye And give mother’s orders an innocent blow She glares at me and I once again comply Although an overbite says otherwise Honestly, I try and try and tryRead more

#SoCS: The Nose Knows

He knows He yowls The human shares its noes It smells It desires He reminds her how this goes We spar He resists The nose wants what it wants They waft They float The essence of chicken taunts She speaks up He turns deaf Human food not to be shared The whines The sadness Hunger is loudy declared Almost time Almost here The feeding of this cat Forgets chicken Embraces fish The nose smells where it’s at Stream of ConsciousnessRead more

SoCS: How Ya Doin’?

How many times have you asked that question of family and friends? A hundred? A thousand? Too many times to count? When we don’t stay in touch with our people on a regular basis, it’s a fairly common first question to ask. Right? So, how are you doing my fellow blogging peeps? I’ve been a tad busy the last couple of weeks, which means I haven’t published a post or been reading many of your posts. I apologize. I’m notRead more

#SoCS: Tie a Knot

Tie a knot of hope with ropes of blue and yellow Make them strong everlasting never to fray Tie a knot of love with ropes of many colors Keep them fused unified eager to help Tie a knot of resilience with ropes for all Ukraine Bind them in resolve supplication opposing the dark Tie a knot of freedom with the ropes of humanity Always to rejoice peacefully in God’s hands in our hands Stream of Consciousness Saturday is the brainchildRead more

#SoCS: My Compulsivity

I joke at times about being a bit OCD, but the photo above is not far from my truth in the kitchen. I can obsess about keeping the counters clean, running my hand across the top, looking for crusty smudges I missed the last time I wiped them off. And I cannot wake up in the morning to a sink filled with dirty dishes. Natasha used to wonder about that – why I had to do dishes every time IRead more

#SoCS: Bike Tripping

Biking buddy and I have been busy planning an end-of-June trip to Missouri. The Katy Trail, at 237 miles, is the longest “rail-to-trail” recreational delight in the United States. Spanning East to West from Machens to Clinton, it follows the path of the Missouri River for most of its length. We will be biking the western half of the trail, with visits to the Clydesdale ranch, breweries, wineries, and historic buildings thrown in. In preparation, biking buddy and I madeRead more