We Like It Here

     While lounging in bed, the television program I was watching was about living on the planet Mars.

      I assumed my husband, who does not share my sci-fy interests, was sleeping.

     Colonizing Mars presents many challenges.  The first of those is probably the fact that it is a one way trip.  The scientist think they have figured out how to get there, but there isn't enough luggage room to take the equipment needed to come home.  Yep, there is no coming back from the Red Planet, at least not in the first few brave souls' lifetime.  I guess the Eagles' song, Hotel California, would be the new theme song for Mars.  

"Relax", said the night man.

"We are programmed to receive.

You can check-out any time you like,

But you can never leave."

     Another problem was the living quarters.  They're small, not much bigger than a walk-in closet.  They make the new "tiny home movement" homes look like mansions.  They did appear to be connected to each other via a large tube.  I guess that is for crawling over to the neighbors' pod without having to put on all the protective gear needed to go outside......without dying.....instantly.

That probably limits the community cook-outs.  

     They would need a doctor to make the decision to never again step foot on Earth, or see any family members, because if there is medical attention needed, transmission time between Mars and Earth takes twenty minutes.  That would sure take care of phone calls.  If I had to wait twenty minutes for a response from whom I was speaking to, I'd either forget what we were discussing, or who I had called in the first place.

     Then there is the problem of water.  Ya gots to have water and packing enough bottled water for the trip isn't an option.  The scientist think they have devised a way to extract water from the soil, or sand, or whatever it is up there.  This is quite a process and the yield is small.  Not only is it small, its main purpose would be for drinking, taking a shower could only happen once every two years.

     It was at that time of the program my husband said, "Forget that!"  

     Yeah, I think we'll just stay home.

     

Just When I Thought.....

     Just when I thought I had fallen into a routine, school started.

     Ms. Sassafrass is here two or three mornings a week now.  That throws the entire schedule off kilter.

     I really don't mind, she is a lot of fun.  It amazes me how much she has changed in a few months time.  Last school year I needed to start lunch at 11:30 just to get her to school, pre-K, on time by 12:20.  Now she can wolf down her lunch in less than ten minutes.

     She's only four years old.  I thought about way back in the day, when I was only four, school was the furthest thing from my mind.

     Mother and Dad moved to town when I was two.  Lela was already in high school and Blanche was soon to follow.  I don't remember when Mother went to work, maybe she worked when I was that age, but I do remember my sitter.

     She was an old lady and her name was Lavice, pronounced with a long i and a long e at the end.  Being a late in life child and having no living grandparents, I called her Gramma.

     She was devoutly religious, but not of the same congregation we attended,  and I can remember having religious doctrine arguments with her when I was still very young.  I'm not sure where that came from, Mother took me to church, but not near as regularly as Lavice.  Perhaps I still remembered from whence I had come and thought she needed to be straightened out on a few things.

      I remember, she made a mean tuna casserole and I loved tuna casserole.  One time, just as she was getting ready to put a large dish of the tasty stuff in the oven, she realized she had forgotten to add the mushroom soup.  Rather than scoop it all out of the dish and start over, she spooned the soup over the top, spread it out and put it back in the oven.  It was some of the best tuna casserole we ever shared.

     I doubt that I will be slathering mushroom soup on anything for Ms. Sassafrass any time soon.  Just the looks of it would be enough for her to turn her nose up in the air.  But, maybe we can make some memories with a couple of packs of ramen noodles and a hot dog.

     

Be Very Careful

      Regardless of what it's called, karma, get what you give, what goes around, comes around, it's true.

     One simple way to understand this principle is the saying, "when you point a finger at someone, there are three pointing back at you".  

     Have you ever read a self-help book or sat in a pew, listening to a powerful sermon, and had the thought, 'oh, I wish so and so had heard that'?  If you have, the message was intended for you.

     We are not put here to judge, point a finger, or look down our nose at someone.  We certainly were not put here to be mean to others.  When we do that, there is a very high probability that some day, that very action or judgement will be cast upon ourselves.

     Think about that the next time you feel the need to judge or spout some negative opinion in another's direction.

     Be kind, have empathy, be generous, be happy and look for the good in others.  Then you will indeed, reap what you sow.

     

Such Chickensense

     I read the article about people wanting to raise chickens within the city limits.

     This brought about many concerns and city hall would have to see about making an ordinance either for or against having chickens in ones yard.

     Most people do this to raise their own eggs.

     The main concern seemed to be with noise.  I didn't know chickens were that noisy.  Roosters are noisy, but I thought you only needed a rooster if you wanted more chickens, without having to buy them.  Perhaps I'm wrong on that one.

     Anyway, it seemed that if there was any kind of problem, it was usually solved by calling the police.  Really?  We will have to call the chicken police?  Maybe that is to figure if the chicken can actually cross the road, or if it will need a special permit.  

     Of course, the powers that be were concerned with the spread of disease, even though the total amount of chickens one could have was four.  That made me wonder how on earth anyone who was born in the early 1900's, and lived on a farm, ever made it to the ripe old age of 90 something.  Surely they were exposed to a chicken or two in their lifetime.

     Personally, I don't see anything wrong with it.  The only danger to the chickens would be the occasional raccoon, who by the way, does not need a special permit to live within the city limits, or a cat or free roaming canine.   There are probably few young people who actually know where their eggs come from. 

     It always makes me think of the comedian, Andy Andrews, when he does one of his famous lines, "See that chicken?  The next thing that comes out of its butt, I'm gonna eat it."

If Only For A Day

     Recently the item that keeps me connected to life on the planet has developed a major issue and seems to be on its last leg.  My cell phone has some kind of quirk that causes it to get hot.  When this happens, and it makes me think it might just spontaneously combust, it does not work properly and I have to remove the battery and allow it to cool off.

     I did discover that leaving the back off the phone helps to keep it cooler, so that is the route I'm taking to combat the problem.  This has caused me to do something that I have not done in years..... not carry my phone in my back pocket.

     Much to the disdain of my adult children, I have always carried my phone in the back right pocket of my jeans.  Having a couple of pairs of favorite jeans, and who doesn't, means that the back right pockets of said favorite apparel have been totally obliterated.  

     I learned early on, while being in the student transportation business, that carrying a purse was a lost cause.  There is no good place to put one in a school bus and trying to keep it on the floor next to the drivers seat was equivalent to putting a sign on it that read, "step on me".  Which would be followed by thirty or so children doing just that.

     Getting a new phone is not an option.  My cell service provider tells me that I am not due for a new phone until next year.  I think they are wrong, but do not have the time to argue with them about this matter.  So, I have been trying to adjust to not being connected at the hip with the rest of the world.

     During this transition period, I have noticed something amazing.  The world has not stopped spinning and life goes on as usual.  

     Right at this minute, I'm not even sure I know where my cell phone is and I'm good with that.  It is a most liberating feeling to go outdoors without it too.  It's actually possible to get lost in thought and nature without the interruption of  a vibration from the gluteus maximus area. 

     I didn't think it was possible to be unconnected for such long periods of time.  But it is possible and it's kinda nice, maybe we should all try it, if only for a day.

      

The Small Sponge

     Children are like sponges.  They arrive into this world pretty much a blank slate.  They know nothing except from whence they came and what their mission here is.

     We quickly begin to clutter that with all sorts of things we think we know about how life here on planet earth works.  They listen and they soak it up, stashing this new information into their grey matter, for use at a later date.

     I have enjoyed both of these scenarios with our youngest grandchild.  Once, when she, I will refer to her as I have done in the past as Ms. Sassafrass, was just beginning to take her first steps, there was a young girl, about the age of six, lying on the floor in front of her.  The older girl had no intention of moving out of Ms. Sassafrass' way.  While her mother and I watched, an expression crossed this baby's face that one might expect to see on a girl in junior high school.  It was full of contempt and was followed by her reaching out her small arm and taking a swipe at the older girls' hair. Ms. Sassafrass' mother was in total disbelief, Sassafrass wasn't even a year old, where did that come from?!

     Sassafrass is now four years old and has been surrounded by boys her entire life.  I don't care who you are, I don't care what measures you have taken to raise your children, but if you have boys, you have heard more conversations about body parts, or their accompanying functions, than you probably ever thought possible.  Ms. Sassafrass has not been excluded from this odd rule of thumb that seems to be second nature to the male species. Not only has she picked up some of the lingo, she knows when to use it.

     The other day as she and her family where riding in their truck,  Ms Sassafrass was entertaining her older brother with some of her new learned phrases.  Her mother had heard enough, turned around in her seat and began to explain to Sassafrass that the words she was using were not appropriate.  That it was not nice or very 'girl like' to talk that way and she wanted it to stop.

     Silence endued for the next ten seconds and as Ms. Sassafrass rode along, gazing out the window, she spoke these words..........
"Shut your pie hole, tree!"

     

Hats Off To This Lady!

     A good rule of thumb is to be grateful.  Not just in the morning or late at night, but to be grateful all day and for everything.

     Today I am most grateful for a woman by the name of Josephine Garis Cochrane.  I did not know her personally, she was born in 1839, but Josephine literally changed the world.

     She was a wealthy woman and hosted many a dinner party.  She did not wash dishes because she had lots of servants and staff to do that sort of thing for her.  But, she began to grow weary of  the chips her fine china was sustaining due to all the hand washing.  Her remedy for this?  She built an automatic dishwasher!

     Yes indeed, my hat goes off to Josephine Garis Cochrane because if there is one thing I do not like to do, it's hand wash dishes.  

     I remember a time, many years ago, when my good friend got her first dishwasher.  Boy, was my nose out of joint over that. Since I could not share in the joy my friend was experiencing with her new appliance, I later learned the meaning of Karma.  When I finally acquired my own dishwasher, I have since eaten a lot of crow.  Fortunately, now, when the feathered beast raises its ugly head, I toss the whole bird in the dishwasher and hit the pot scrubber button.

     Having a dishwasher has taught me some dishwasher etiquette that I have come to live by.  There are at least three rules that I follow:
     1.  If it doesn't fit in the dishwasher, don't use it.
     2.  If it is the only thing that will fit in the dishwasher at one time, that's OK.
     3.  If it doesn't come clean the first time, leave it in there, it will eventually.

     Thank you Josephine, you were my kind of gal.