%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |
My thoughts released; a mind set free |
|
These pages contain my thoughts, from meandering ideas and persuasions to deep cerebrations and serious mentations. Why, for what purpose? To release my mind and set creativity free. Somewhere inside the constraints of my mind dwells a writer, a poet, an artist who paints with words. In here I release those constraints and set the artist free. Perhaps, lost somewhere in the depths of thought, is a story or a poem, waiting to be written. 
|
| Daylight savings time is destroying the climate! Okay, maybe not the climate, but it's sure messing up the seasons. As I see it, we have twelve months in the year, and those are divided into four seasons, spring, summer, fall, and winter. Now, I'm not a mathematician, but I can add, subtract, multiply, and divide and I'm telling you, it doesn't add up. We should have three months of each season every year; no matter how you divide it; each season should be three months long (3 months x 4 seasons = 1 year). You could even do it by weeks: 52 weeks in the year, or 4 seasons of 13 weeks each. I did not factor leap years into this because it makes the formula a bit more confusing, and it would only influence the seasons by one a day a year for four years before the calendar is reset again. So, I ask you, how is it that we end up with two weeks of spring, 18 weeks of summer, 4 weeks of fall, and 30 weeks of winter? I'll tell you why, Daylight Savings time. That extra hour of daylight results in the summers being longer! Then, they set the clocks back which results in a longer winter! Since they change the clocks in the spring and fall, these are the seasons that suffer loss. Now, this didn't happen overnight. It took years upon years for the seasons to go spinning out of whack, and it would take just as many years for the seasons to balance again. If I remember history correctly, and I seldom do, it was Gaius Julius Abraham Lincoln Caesar who first began Daylight Savings Time. Why, he was at war with the Chaldeans and wanted to dig the Suez Canal so he could sneak up behind them, cut off their petroleum supplies, and end the war. He was in a hurry because the war was cutting into prime-time television hours and he wasn't able to watch "I Love Lucy" with his wife, and she was making his life miserable. So, in desperation, he called Gallileo and asked him how he could get the canal dug faster. Galileo thought about this and told the Roman president to add an hour to each day so the workers could dig longer, thus finishing the canal sooner. Anyway, that's where this all got started, and over the decades since, it has continually altered the seasons. Now, the time has come for all people to join together and demand equal time for every season! |
| I was gone yesterday; my wife and I left early and didn't get home until late, so I didn't get the opportunity to log in yesterday. Now that I'm caught up (kind of), I decided I would blite (bog-write) about my day. My oldest son called about a week ago, his daughter had asked him if Grampa TJ and Grandma RL could attend Grandparent's Day at her school. They live a couple of hours away, and we hadn't ever been told when these were, so I was quite honored that she had asked us to come. I told him we would try, but Grandma RL had to work and didn't have any PTO left. As it worked out, she needs replacement batteries for her hearing aids and the place she got them is very close, and on the way, to his house. Even though they would not give her an excused absence from work for our granddaughter, they would for any medical purposes. I called him back and told him we had the time and would head down to surprise her, and her brother who happened to have his birthday the same day. He agreed to keep it between us and his wife, and the plan was in motion. So often, it seems that once a plan is established and begins to unfold, something comes along and disrupts that plan, and this time was no exception. But, we worked around a few things and made it work. Yesterday, after dropping off the hearing aids we drove over to our granddaughter's school, found a place to park (not an easy thing), and went inside. It just so happened that we arrived a bit early and she was still at lunch. So, we were allowed to wait outside of her classroom. We were looking at some art the children had created on the wall (no, not graffiti, it was on paper taped to the wall) when she returned. She rounded the corner of the hall and squealed, no, she screamed in delight, almost knocked me over when she ran and hugged me, but before I could hug back she had already pushed off and was attacking Grandma RL. It was wonderful to spend a couple of hours with her at her school, play bingo (I lost every game), eat some cookies (they need to add coffee to the snack menu), and enjoy her excitement. After, she insisted she ride back to her house with us! We went to the office and explained this to the secretary, who then called home to get parental permission, so we could give her a ride. Shortly after getting to her house, my son arrived from work and asked me to ride with to pick up our grandson to surprise him for his birthday. We parked near the bus drop-off and waited. He got off the bus, engrossed in his phone as he walked towards his house (he lives with his mom for one week and with his dad for a week). He didn't notice us parked there, so my son rolled down the window and yelled at him. He didn't notice because he had ear-buds in, so my sone honked. This got his attention enough to see his ride was there. But, he didn't really look to see who was riding with his dad and assumed it was his stepmom. He was shutting down whatever was on his phone as he put his bag in the Jeep, then climbed in, looked up, and finally noticed who was riding along. He also yelled, although not as loud as his sister had, "Grandpa!" We returned home and had burgers cooked on the grill, smothered-baked potatoes, and birthday cake. He had requested a cheesecake first, then an ice cream cake. The place they got it actually makes a combination cake and ice cream dessert and they incorporated a layer of cheesecake into this, it was delightful. We had a wonderful time and stayed much later than we had intended since Grandma RL had to be up early for work today but it was worth it. We returned home at about eleven last night and were both up (I figured if she has to get up early for work, I can at least get up to see her off) at five-thirty. |
| My wife's nephew, who tends to be kind of a loner and does his own thing, is working harvests in the area. Since it was rainy yesterday he wasn't working and stopped by for a visit. He only has a couple of weeks left hauling sugar beets and will likely be done working for the year. He asked if he could stay with us over the winter, which is no problem since we have plenty of room. I had my office pretty well set up, finally (Can you say procrastination?), and just spent half the day taking down pictures and moving everything so he would have a nice room. There is another spare room that's just a bit smaller, and next to our bedroom that I decided to set up for my office. Being in the rear of the house, it's quieter, less distractions, and will work better for me. The problem is, instead of a junk drawer (we have one of them, too) we have a junk room that serves as a catch-all for stuff we don't know where to store. (Again, I think we can say, procrastination) Anyway, my wife and I spent a good deal of time taking everything out of the junk room and finding places to store the stuff. It was a slow process but eventually, the room was barren and everything has a place. I moved my desk, bookshelves, and another set of shelves into the office, figured out how I wanted them, and then carried in all the containers of stuff I had in my office. I did get my books moved and set back up on the bookshelf, and I have my whiteboard up by my desk, but everything else is in tubs, boxes, and containers. I'll likely spend the next couple of days setting everything up again, then I'll change my mind and rearrange everything at least once, but I'm hoping that I'll have my office ready to use in a week or two. There is a morale to this story: Don't put things off till later, do it now! Seriously, it will take even longer if you put it off. Say No To Procrastination! |
| In the previous episode last entry I mentioned Camp Bagoo, which many of you are unfamiliar with. So, without further ado, let me explain how Camp Bagoo came to be. For the sake of brevity, I'll try and keep this short! I met my wife in February 2002 and we did our first campout together in early May, which almost resulted in hypothermia. But, despite this, she continues to love camping. We started out with just the basics, a tent, a few cooking and eating utensils, and some blankets; cooking and coffee were done over a fire, and our bed was the floor of the tent. But over the next few years, our camping gear increased and we soon had a gas cookstove, an air mattress, a couple of folding chairs, a crate to carry things with a wooden top that served as a small fireside table, and a bigger tent. I had a young puppy, Klarissa, and by the time she was about a year old, my wife got a six-week-old puppy, Hyko, as well. They soon became best of friends, and we brought them with us everywhere we went, including camping. These two were a source of constant entertainment, loved the water, full of energy, and very curious; they got into everything. Even so, they were very well-behaved with other people, stayed at the campsite (most of the time), and loved our camping adventures more than anything else, except cookies. No, they would have passed up freshly baked cookies to go camping. While camping, we often saw signs that read, "Welcome to Camp Fill-in-the-blank" and we decided we should get a sign for our camp, but what to name it? We gave consideration to many options over time, but after the two beloved pets passed away, we decided we wanted to honor them and their love for camping. But, it didn't seem to work using their names, "Camp Hyko-Clarissa" or any combinations. As I mentioned, they were quite the characters, and after one incident with Hyko doing something mischievous, awkward, or silly (likely all of the above) my wife quoted a line from the cartoon, Mr. Magoo, "Oh Magoo! You've done it again!" But she misquoted and said, "Oh Bagoo, you did it again!" I laughed, she looked puzzled. I explained, she laughed with me and said, "You know what I meant." "Yeah, I did, but it was funny, and the look Hyko gave when you said it only made it funnier. You knew she was talking about you, didn't you Bagoo?" He looked at me when I said it, cocked his head, wagged his tail, and from then on, his nickname was Mr. Bagoo. With the two being inseparable and so much alike, Klarissa soon became Mrs. Bagoo. To make it even better, they would respond to their nicknames with cocked heads or back-talk. In time they were no longer pets, dogs, or anything other than a couple of Bagoos. In conversation with people we would, without thinking, refer to them as the Bagoos. it just became a normal term for them. "I have to get home and let the Bagoos out." Or, I have to give Mr. Bagoo a bath." Even things like feeding time, "Are you two Bagoos going to come eat?" And, they would. Ever since they passed, we have referred to our camp as, Camp Bagoo" in loving memory of the wonderful times we shared, but we never did get a sign to put up. Life has a way of making us put things off. But, now that we have the mobile tent, we often reminisce past camping trips and how much the Bagoos would have loved the camper, especially when it rained. (They loved the water, they swam any chance they got, you couldn't keep them out of a river or lake, but they despised getting wet from rain). Now, the time has come to finish our "Welcome" sign. Max and Bellah seem to have a bit of Hyko and Klarissa in them and will do things that the Bagoos used to do. This winter, I'll make the sign and my wife will either paint it or use her wood burner, and by spring we'll be hanging out our sign, "Welcome to Camp Bagoo". Our mobile tent is a 1998 Coleman Bayside, it's twenty-five feet long with the bunks extended and has a slide-out dining area. It's plenty big enough for us, gives us the convenience of a camper, and the enjoyment and memories of our years tenting. When the weather turns nice again, I'll remove the "Bayside" decals and my wife will replace them by painting (I write, she's the artist) Bagoo in their place. We haven't yet decided, but are thinking about replacing them with, "The Bagoo Mobile-Tent". |
| We packed up the mobile tent (pop-up camper) and headed out Friday for likely our last camping adventure of the season. It was damp and chilly, but a nice day for our three-hour drive. The leave's brilliant fall colors were in contrast to the gray, cloudy sky, and the drive was beautiful. It started raining about a half-hour before we reached the campground but stopped just as we arrived. I backed the mobile tent into the site and assisted my wife in getting set up and our gear inside. With my back acting up, she had to do most of the bending and lifting, but we packed our gear in multiple bags and tubs to keep them lighter just for this reason, and the mobile tent is pretty easy to set up. She had just about everything inside by the time I finished hooking up the water, electricity, and sewer. Just as I was going in I felt a few raindrops; it rained for about an hour and the wind picked up to about thirty miles per hour. I started the furnace (the temperature only reached the mid-forties Friday) while she put things in their place. Once we had everything put away, the rain stopped so we took the dogs for a walk, then carried the few remaining items in. Shortly after, it began to rain again. We took out some food, put on a pot of coffee, and enjoyed our first meal at Camp Bagoo listening to the wind blowing and the rain on the tenting. It was cozy, warm, and very relaxing. Saturday I was up early and was able to log in to WdC for a short time, but the WiFi at the campground was intermittent, and since I have a difficult time typing on my tablet, didn't post very much. It got cold at night, down to about freezing, so we waited until it was warmer (it got up to fifty) to start a fire and sit outside while the dogs roamed the area and explored their new surroundings. The campground was about half full, but nobody was camped near us, so we had quiet and the dogs had plenty of room to explore and run. We cooked a simple lunch over an open fire and enjoyed it inside the camper as the wind picked up a little and more rain passed over. But, by the time we finished eating and cleaning up, the rain had passed. Still, it was pretty wet out, so we decided to load up and go for a scenic drive. The fall colors were splendid as we drove the backroads into Bemidji. The furnace did great at heating the camper, but we wanted to get a small, electric heater to save on propane. We found a small, about two feet wide and a foot and a half high, electric fireplace with infrared heat that was perfect to use in the camper. We took a different route back and enjoyed the scenery, some deer, a couple of eagles, and a lot of squirrels. Once back we set the heater up, decided on our dinner, and I got another fire going. Later, we enjoyed hamburgers, baked beans, and sweet potatoes cooked over the fire. After eating, we built the fire up and watched a very beautiful sunset before returning to the warmth of the camper. Unfortunately, we forgot to charge our phones so we didn't get any pictures that evening. We started Sunday the same; a warm fire to cook brunch and relax while it warmed up into the fifties. By early afternoon we had most of the campground to ourselves and enjoyed watching the birds, squirrels, and chipmunks going around the various campsites searching out tidbits of food while the fire burned down. My back was doing better, so we went for a short hike on one of the easier trails. When we came to a split in the trail, I was still doing well and decided to tackle the inclined side up to an overlook. The trail was nice with a gentle slope, and about halfway we found a place to sit on a downed tree and take a short break while the dogs explored around us. This was the only bad experience we had! After a short rest, we started walking and called for the dogs who were a short distance away, in the woods. Bellah came right away, but Max was distracted and after we walked a bit further, I called him again. He came this time, but we were further up the hill and the sun was behind us. He looked towards us, but I think he was blinded by the sun and didn't recognize us because he started running around the area he had last seen us in. I started walking towards him, and he panicked and started running back the way we had come. I called him a few times, and each time he would stop and look, but then start running in circles looking for me. He's not quite a year old yet and got very confused until I was in a position where the sun wasn't hitting him straight in the face. Once he could see me, he bolted straight at me! At over sixty pounds, and moving fast, there wasn't anything I could do except brace for the impact... But, at the last minute, he put the brakes on and didn't jump. He stood up against me and licked my face before running over to see the rest of our group, giving them Husky kisses before we continued on. When we crested the hill, we discovered a large meadow on top, the foundation of an old structure, and an old wooden fire lookout station. The dogs ran around the meadow while we enjoyed the view. The tower stood another twenty or thirty feet high and would have made for an awesome view, but it was closed off; not that I would have been able to climb the ladder anyway. We took a different trail back down, this one a bit steeper and more difficult, and by the time we reached the bottom my back was getting pretty sore, so we returned to camp and lounged around in the camper while I waited for the Advil to take effect. Then it was another fire and roasting sausages on forks to go with chips and dip for dinner. In the evenings, since it was a bit too chilly to sit out, we enjoyed the comforts of our mobile tent and played Backgammon. Well, we had brought a Backgammon set along, with the intent of learning how to play, but the directions were very confusing and written so small we couldn't really read them. So, using what we knew, taking what we could from the directions, we improvised our own version of the game. Monday was another beautiful day, no clouds at all, a bit windy, but warmer. There were only two other campers and they were at the far end, so we walked the dogs around the campground a bit, built a fire to cook lunch then started packing things away. Knowing we are in for temperatures below freezing, and it's not very likely we'll get out camping again this season, we stripped down bedding and packed it in the truck, removed all the food items and put them in the cooler, and removed any liquids, so we could bring them inside when we got home. We cooked stew and ham over the fire, enjoyed one last meal in the mobile tent, and then closed it down. We took our time and let the fire burn down and go out, then hooked up the camper and headed for home. Knowing we wouldn't get here until late, we stopped in Park Rapids at the A&W and enjoyed some very good food. I should have taken a picture, but didn't think about it; they still have the carport in the back with car-hop service! Now, after my wife gets home to help me (my back is still acting up) well pull the camper into the lawn and set it up to clean it real good, drain the water, and get it ready to hibernate for the winter. Still, if the weather isn't too cold, I may be tempted to take it out for a weekend, one last time; I can hope. |
| I've been pondering some news my wife and I received last evening, and I have been contemplating if I should write about it or not. As you can see, I decided to write a bit about this. I'm an introvert and I deal with grief, loss, pain, and suffering internally, but I am also a writer and writing is how I let things out and contemplate them. Our neighbor came over yesterday evening to share the news that our landlord has passed away. We moved from a metropolitan area to a place in the country about four years ago, from an apartment complex to a duplex, renting from an older man and his wife. It didn't take long to discover that they were both very wonderful people. Being advanced in years, he couldn't do much for maintenance, so he would hire someone to get it done. Since I'm a bit of a handyman and can do quite a few things, I started just doing most of the repairs instead of calling and bothering him. It didn't take long for him to find this out, and he not only insisted he pay for materials but for my time as well, and not just a little, he insisted on paying well. He also informed me that if I wanted to make any changes or improvements, to just go ahead and do them, and if it was something needed, to track my time and costs for reimbursement without even questioning if it was needed or not. Of course, I would never take advantage of this, and often times I don't even tell him I fixed something. But, he is advanced in years and starting to have a difficult time getting around, so he decided to sell the property we and two others rent from him to his son. I had met his son a few times, and let's just say he is a lot like his dad. Shortly after he took over everything, the person on the other side of the duplex moved out and I asked about renting the entire house. He agreed but we would have to pay higher rent. I agreed with that, and soon he was opening up the wall to turn our apartment into an entire house. I should add the rent for the front side was a bit higher than for our side, but he just doubled ours instead of adding the two together. It hasn't even been a year since we started renting from him and the last I talked to him he was going to pay me to tear the deck off the side of the house, since it's getting a bit rotten, and come spring he was going to get the lumber to rebuild it with my help, which he said he would pay for by the hour, the same as his dad. He also complimented me on how nicely my wife and I had cleaned up the yard and the front of the house, finishing with, "I couldn't ask for better people to rent to." He seemed to be in good health and was younger than me. He was very active, full of life, and always pleasant to be around, a younger version of his dad. He had also built a nice home that he shared with his parents so he could help them out when needed. Earlier this fall, his uncle purchased a permanent camper with plans for him and his wife to rent a place to set it up and stay during the summers, then return to Arizona in the fall. Our landlord took time off from driving a truck to develop a section of the land our and the neighbor's house sits on for them so they wouldn't have to pay ridiculously high lot rent. Three days ago he passed away. He was an over-the-road driver and had stopped at a truck stop. When no one could contact them the police were notified and investigated. He was found in the sleeper of his truck and it sounds like he passed in his sleep. We are all feeling the grief of loss, but I cannot begin to imagine what his parents and children are going through. Currently, we don't know what's going to happen with the property, if it will be sold, or if the parents will continue to rent it out. I know I should be concerned since it's our future hanging in the outcome, but for now, I can only think about what the family is going through. A proud member of "WdC SuperPower Reviewers Group"  "Reading soothes the soul, writing sets it free." T.J. |
| About five years ago, I purchased a new computer, a desktop model, and thought I would be all set. But, as is the case often with computers, it was almost outdated when I purchased it. That's probably why it was on sale. It was fine for most of what I needed, but it wasn't capable of running Windows 11, it didn't have much memory, and it was a bit slow. A couple of years ago, I was able to purchase a laptop computer that is still up to date and working fine. I didn't have much use for my old one, so it sat pretty much unused, collecting dust, and just taking up space. A couple of weeks ago, one of my neighbors, a bit of a recluse, came over with a request. Now, this guy is retired and barely making ends meet, doesn't leave his apartment except for church once a week, and to get food. He mostly keeps to himself. In the three years we've lived here, I've only talked to him a half dozen times! As I was saying, he came over while I was out on the patio with the dogs and asked, if I was willing, to help him out. He informed me he had an old computer that ran Windows 10, but it had crashed. A person from his church tried to get it working again, but he couldn't find his license key (he's a bit of a hoarder) and could not reinstall Windows. He went on to say that all he needed was the Word program so he could continue his writing. The person at the church gave him a Chromebook but had reset it, so he needed to set it up for his use but doesn't have internet service. He wanted some assistance with setting it up if he could use our internet to do so. His plan was to install Windows which he had the money saved up for, and then purchase MS Word, so he could continue his writing that he had backed up to flash drives. The problem was, his Chromebook couldn't be converted to Windows, and it wouldn't read the flash drives that contained his files, since they were formatted to Windows and Word. Also, he had not looked at the current cost of Windows or the cost of Word. I did a bit of research to learn all this, and also discovered that the money he had wouldn't even cover the cost of Windows, let alone purchase MS Word! Knowing he is barely scraping by, I wanted to help him out, and being a writer felt empathy for him not being able to write anymore. It's about the only thing he does. So, the question was, how to help him? I could assist him with setting up a Google account so he can use the Chromebook, but even if I downloaded MS Word, he wouldn't be able to use the Windows formatted flash drives to continue his writing. The only solution was to get him set up with a Windows-compatible computer he could use. Since I had an old desktop I wasn't using, I fired it up, spent half the evening waiting for it to update, and then removed all my files, email, and anything else I could to free up space. I have everything backed up, so I didn't lose anything. Now, I could have just reset the computer and set it up for him, but it didn't come with MS Word, which he needed. I could purchase and download it, I trusted him to pay me back, but I really didn't want to take his money. So, since I use MW 360 and have a family account, I can run MS Office on multiple devices. So I left my account on the computer, then set up another profile for him which had access to MS Office through my license. By the time I had it set up, it was getting late, but he was still up so I carried it over, explained the issues with his Chromebook, and told him he could use my old computer if he wanted. I also told him it was kind of slow, had Windows 10, and didn't have a lot of memory for storage. He was ecstatic! He knew Windows 10, saved everything to a flash drive so storage wasn't an issue, and didn't mind if it was slow. I helped him set it up, and he proceeded to try the flash drives, opened Word, and typed a bit in one of his documents. He couldn't believe how fast it was compared to his old computer! He also liked the extra large flat screen, it was easier for him to see. We spent at least an hour setting everything up, getting him accustomed to it, and then I told him I should get back home. He asked, with a bit of hesitation, how much it was going to cost him. When I told him it wasn't going to cost anything he started to tear up and insisted I had to take something. When I refused again, he wanted to know why I was doing this. I explained that I really didn't have any use for the computer, but he did, so now it's repurposed and someone is getting use out of it. |
| Our third and likely last camping adventure is coming up fast; we leave Friday and return Monday, so it's time to get everything in order. I know, it should be already done, but September was a busy month and it didn't get done. What can I say? Yesterday we celebrated my mother-in-law's 89 birthday with a surprise gathering of friends and family. The day started out great, but shortly before we left, I got up from sitting and had to step around Bellah and Max, our pups, who always like to lie by my feet. I didn't want to step on either of them, so I had to do a bit of a twist and step to gain clear footing, and guess what? I felt a tightening in the right side of my back, kind of like having a cramp that ran from just below my shoulder, over my right kidney, and down into my right hip! I tried to stretch it out, but it wouldn't let up. Within minutes, my lower back began to spasm, and by the time we left, I was once again suffering from an old back injury. I didn't let it stop me and enjoyed a nice visit with some family and friends, sang Happy Birthday, and helped a dear lady celebrate her birthday. But, since I knew it would likely get worse, my wife and I drove separately, just in case I had to leave earlier than she did. I did have to leave and return home around five, which was fine since the two dogs were at home and needed to be let out. But, by this time, I was feeling a hot, searing pain in the lumbar and sacrum area of my spine! I took it easy all evening and was hoping after a good (as good as possible) night's rest, it would feel better today. Instead, it has increased and is causing some pinching of nerves, numbness in my feet, and making it difficult to do anything more than sit, which also starts to hurt if I don't get up and move around. To make it even worse, my chiropractor, who does wonders with my back issues, is in Italy for two weeks! I know, right? Why would she plan a vacation when my back is going to go out? Anyway, she likely didn't know, or perhaps I should curse my back for going out while my chiropractor was gone. No, it's already cursed and doesn't need any more. It does this, goes out for no real reason, from time to time, and yes it's a pain, but it's old news. It usually corrects itself in a day to a week and ends as quickly as it started. But, I'll be taking things easy for a while and hoping it's better by Friday and won't impact our camping trip. In the meantime, it does provide me with a lot more time to spend in WdC and if I can get comfortable enough, may even give me some time to write a bit. |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
