Category Archives: Blogging Community

Taking Steps

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If we were having coffee, I would still be having herbal tea, mango ginger to be exact. I continue on with my daily walks. I am noticing more people out doing the same thing. Not sure if it is the moderate temperatures or that our indoor exercise classes were canceled due to Omicron.

The roadrunner was out for a morning walk the other day. He usually walks or runs everywhere, so this was not new for him. If he had a pedometer or smart watch, I wonder how many steps he would record a day? Probably a lot more than me.

Are you looking at me?

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Rainy Day

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If we were having coffee, I would be having herbal or decaf tea. I have given up coffee for a while because it was one of the things that was causing stomach problems. If you had asked me a few months ago if I thought I could stop drinking coffee, I would have said it would be very hard. It surprises me that it has been pretty easy. I don’t think I have had caffeine withdrawal she says as she falls asleep at the computer.

I made a resolution to get outside and walk every day and I have been sticking to it almost 100%. It does feel pretty good to go out and look at the trees, various cacti, flowers, and the beautiful expanse of sky over the Coachella Valley. I even like the dark grey clouds like the ones we had about a week ago that brought some rain with them.

So far it hasn’t really stormed here but we did get enough to soak our patio and one of the roadrunners. I spotted it up on a fence puffing up its feathers, trying to dry off.

Hawk on a lamp post as rain clouds start to clear away
Roadrunner puffing feathers to dry off after rain
Heather fluffs feathers too

Stream of Consciousness Saturday, #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill.

Weekend Coffee Share hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer

Hope For the New Year

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At the start of a new year, it feels like more of the same. Except now we have had booster shots and purchased KN95 masks. A recent NY Times newsletter described it as being in pandemic purgatory. I really liked the description and when I googled it found out it has been used more than once in other news articles. So not sure who to credit the term to. Only to say to whoever it was, good one.

I don’t like making New Year’s resolutions, but I think this year I resolve to do more in spite of the virus. Not talking about running around maskless amongst large groups of people. I want to plan more activities. I don’t want my life put on hold like it feels like it has been.

One activity is to get outdoors and to walk outside every day. So today I took a walk around the complex for about 30 minutes for a start. I was admiring the neighbors’ plants when I spotted a roadrunner perched on a fence. Before I could get my cell phone ready to catch a photo it had jumped down. I thought I had lost it when I saw him again so was able to catch a few quick shots. It’s hard to take photos will the cell phone in the bright sun because I can’t see anything in the viewfinder. But I did manage to get a couple.

January Saturday Roadrunner
And off he goes
Notice the name of the company. Is that a good omen?

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Like It Or Lump It

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I thought by now we would all be looking in the rear-view mirror at the pandemic, but it continues to have a few tricks up it sleave. So here we are heading into another holiday season with a new variant. It’s having to worry about catching it, wearing masks, nervous about letting repair people into the house or getting too close to a stranger or slightly known acquaintance. I know some like to throw caution to the winds…

via giffy.com

And even though I feel like it sometimes, I don’t want to catch COVID or spread it to someone else. So, I don’t have to like it but, I will continue to take precautions and I hope you do too.

Hope you have Happy, Healthy, and Safe holidays!

Mill Rose Inn, Half Moon Bay, California

Stream of Consciousness Saturday, #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill. The prompt word for today is ‘opposite.’

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Photo of Mill Rose Inn by Wonderlane on Flickr.com

Holiday Celebrations?

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If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I have to cut out caffeine for a while. And I haven’t found a good substitute for my morning coffee, (that doesn’t have caffeine in it). I can still offer you some good coffee or tea.

We are still in the middle of the pandemic and I am trying to figure out how to comfortably celebrate the holidays without risking infection. I felt more confident with get togethers around Thanksgiving because it was with close family who were all fully vaccinated. Now we have been invited to couple of holiday get-togethers in our community. We did go to one with our masks on and it felt awkward because many of the other people were not wearing masks. How are you supposed to eat and drink at a social gathering while wearing a mask? I am thinking that I will ask the host of the next party if she knows if the other guests are fully vaccinated. If she cannot be sure, I will wear a mask. It makes we wonder if it’s worth it to go in that case. We are just getting to know people here and it makes me feel a bit anti-social.

There is a damper on the holidays this year, with all the worry about another COVID surge and the new variant. I feel like scrooge or the grinch. Bah humbug!

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Grinch via Giphy.com

Nature Therapy

12 Replies

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that we have Columbian or French Roast available today along with cinnamon-raisin toast, bagels, or turkey sandwiches. I’m recovering from our Thanksgiving celebration. My kids, grandson, and a brother-in-law were here along with two dogs. The turkey and the trimmings turned out well. It was lovely to be together with family. My daughter and I fit in a couple of outings in the days leading up to the holiday. We did a short hike in the East Indio Hills Badlands and made a daytrip to the Salton Sea. I had never been there before and it was very pretty. A moderate temperature and breeze made it very pleasant. The beach was covered with a blanket of tiny shells which we later learned were barnacle shells. The barnacles were introduced to this small inland sea by sea planes, and they have reproduced abundantly. The Salton Sea is really a terminal lake, meaning it does not have an outlet. It is the largest lake in California, 35 miles long, 15 miles wide, and an important wetland for many species of birds. I hope it can be preserved for the birds and humans to enjoy long into the future. It was really therapeutic to be out in nature again.

Badlands view with me included
Another perspective Badlands
Badlands
Grasses and plants near Salton Sea beach
Grassy plant or abandoned nest
View of Salton Sea beach and mountains
Beach is covered with barnacle shells
Salton Sea and mountains
Fact sheet from Visitor Center Salton Sea Recreation Area

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Thanksgiving

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If we were having coffee I would tell you preparations have already started at my house for the coming Thanksgiving holiday here. Busy with the housecleaning, shopping, and our turkey has been ordered. We are expecting our kids, our little grandson, and my brother-in-law to join us for dinner. This weekend we are off on a visit with our son’s family to celebrate our grandson’s fifth birthday. Everyone is fully vaccinated. These are the first bigger family gatherings for us since the pandemic began. Thankful that we can be together and all of us are healthy. Looking forward to seeing our daughter. It has been almost a year since we have seen her.

Happy Thanksgiving to those who are celebrating it this year. Hopes for more happy get togethers for us all in the coming new year.

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Happy Thanksgiving

It’s How You Put The Words Together

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If we were having coffee, I would tell you I have gotten caught up on my book list. I almost believed I was over reading books anymore. Now I think I just got out of the habit. I have a prompt today from Linda G Hill for Stream of Consciousness Saturday that relates to books.

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “close eyes and point.” Grab the closest printed material to you when you sit down to write your post, open it up (if it’s a book, flyer, etc.), close your eyes, and point. Whatever your finger lands on, use that as your prompt. 

SOCS

I am getting near the end of ‘All The Devils Are Here,’ by Louise Penny. So I picked up the book, opened it, and my finger landed in the middle of a sentence on ‘hand reached.’ This made me think of people reaching out a hand to each other. Which leads me to something I have been thinking about after reading three other books on my list,

‘The Glass Hotel’ by Emily St. John Mandel

‘The Witch Elm’ by Tana French

‘His and Hers’ by Alice Feeney

There is a thread connecting all three of these books. The last book was one from my book group and some of us picked up on this thread. It has to do with the flaws of many of the lead characters, (protagonists), that you would usually want to root for. Not that characters can’t have any flaws but when they have too many I find it hard to be in their corner. They definitely did not reach out to help each other. What was disturbing is how they almost casually, mindlessly caused harm.

Maybe, the authors are all in a negative mind set from all the bad going on in the world. But when I read a book, I don’t want to be made depressed at the end. Louise Penny does give us characters to root for. Don’t we need that right now?

Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.

Don’t Say Boo

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If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I need an extra cup today because I did not get enough sleep last night. I’m feeling pretty grouchy as well. I woke up in the middle of the night to a pitch black room. It was creepy because I could not see a thing. What if there was someone hiding in the dark? After a bit, I told myself it was more likely the power was out. I turned toward the window on the opposite side of the bed and saw some light coming through the blind. The room was warm and it felt like there was no air, so I decided to get up and crack open the blind and window. I carefully walked over and opened the blind, then slid one side of the window open. I thought I saw a flashing light in the neighbor’s back yard and wondered could it be lightening or a fire. I groped around on my nightstand for my cell phone and clicked on the screen. This gave me some light to go into the living room and check out the house and neighbor’s yard. No more flashes from next door and our house looked normal. No one lurking in a corner or sitting on the furniture. I went back to the bedroom and there was more light in the room now from outside, but not enough to see well walking to the bathroom. I was concerned about my husband getting up and falling. When he did wake up a short time later, I informed him of the power outage and escorted him to the bathroom with my cell phone. He told me the flash lights were in the garage refrigerator. So I thought it best I be the one to go into the dark garage, with my lighted phone, to get the flashlight. It was pretty spooky to be in the dark like that. If someone said ‘boo’, I would have screamed my head off. Another spooky thing. My bedside clock radio was off during the power outage, but after the power came back on several hours later, the clock was showing the right time. Usually, it would have lost those hours, been way behind, and the dial would be flashing. I told my husband we must have a ghost. Or could I have been dreaming?

I plan to have flashlights in both of our nightstands from now on just in case.

by Fotozeit on Pixabay.com

Stream of Consciousness Saturday,https://lindaghill.com/2021/10/29/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-october-30-2021/ #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill.

Also, sharing with Weekend Coffee Share which is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer

Featured image of cat eyes by PublicDomainPictures on Pixabay.com