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 A Journal to impart knowledge and facts |
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July 22, 2015 I'm going to start today to record on a daily basis whatever happens to strike my fancy. So, it is a very cool breezy day. I just posted 5 short book reviews to The Monthly Reading Challenge. I'm suppose to put away some winter wood today from the woodpile outside but I'm playing hookey from work to write so starting this blog will get done. I'm having a daily fight with a flock of English Sparrows that are trying to take over my barn. They are making a terrible mess so they have to go. I have destroyed several nests so far they don't leave but they get out of the barn when I am around. I'm just starting the fight so I guess I don't know how far I have to go to discourage them. I'm trying not to spread myself to thin on WDC because I find so many things that are interesting here and I am trying to work on a new story. I really enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and reading blogs on WDC. |
 Camping quote: “Rainstorms will travel thousands of miles, against prevailing winds for the opportunity to rain on a tent.” ― Dave Barry Sunday, July 31, 2016 We land in Madrid on 8/2 where we all meet up at Las-Musas, We will be in Madrid until Aug. 4th then we are onto Barcelona, then Montpelier, Monaco, Florence, Venice, Vienna, Prague, Berlin, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Paris ending in London. Hope you are ready for an adventure! You get a red-eye on the 30th back to civilization. I've got things to do in each city, we are traveling by train to each location, we are staying in hostels except for one splurge in Paris where we are staying at a hotel. Your first prompt is packing your backpack and familiarizing yourself with staying at hostels. Have you ever done this before? What do you think they are like? Have you traveled in Europe before, what was it like if you have? If you haven't what are you hoping to explore? this is our first one:http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Las-Musas-Hostel/Madrid/25547 Lyn, your crazy August travel agent Prompt answers: No. Never done it but thought it would be fun. Staying at a hostel: I will meet other travelers from other countries. It may be packed this time of year. May be like dormitory living. I never traveled in Europe but read some travel books and watched travel shows on PBS. I would like to see the museums, horse farms, meet farming people, eat the food, and maybe visit some churches. Spain should have bull farms as well. Reference: https://www.thesaveybackpacker.comThis is where I found my travel info. Apondia dug into her storage closet and pulled out a backpack and the Sino Ware EDC Pouch camo Bag Military nylon Utility Tactical Waist Bag.. Well that’s nice they were exactly were I threw them after I returned from the Yellowstone camping trip. The bed and chairs in the room were strewn with numerous items. O.K we are going to try to build this pack on the recommended 20 lbs. Clothing: If I start with two tops and two bottoms that coordinate I will actually have 6 outfits to start with. I’ll pack a couple of extra T Shirts. If I need more I can shop. I hear the shopping in Europe is awesome. I bought a couple of new scarfs they will liven up the outfits. These wool socks from Amazon are so comfortable. Sandals for casual wear, hiking shoes, and tennis shoes for walking. The list says two pair of shoes but I can’t go without my tennis shoes. Here is that pretty sarong I bought for the trip. Apondia studies the list: Guess I’ll check off the items as I pack. Ear plugs/ duct tape/rain poncho/flexible travel clothesline /umbrella/bed sheet and laundry soap sheets flexible water bottle retractable cup/ micro fiber quick drying towels 3/ zip lock bags / money belt/ flashlight / Padlock/travel power strip/chargers for kindle and phone/ usb plug in with European ends../extra memory cards/charge cords / Flash light/ sunglasses/ camera/ small back pack for daily use/travel hair dryer/journal for writing/a couple pens/toiletry bag with toothpaste/toothbrush/portable water pik/band aids/aspirin/first aide cream/travel size toilet paper/yoga mat in carry case. Let’s see...... I will lock the photocopies of all my important papers in one place and the papers and passport in day pack. I ought to make myself a memo in the journal to buy a European sim card when I get to Madrid. I can get maps there or GPS on my phone. My phone and Kindle have an alarm clock. I guess I don’t need to take these books about Madrid with me. Lyn will have our itinerary organized. Just look at all the museums, yummy foods and churches. Here’s a botanical garden too. I think I’m ready. Oh! Don’t forget the bottle of Dr. Bronner's 18 in 1 Hemp Lavender Pure-Castile Soap. Last zipper is locked shut I’m out the door. Europe open your doors we are walking in. ![Merit Badge in Blog Camping
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Thank you for participating in the August 2015 30-Day Blogging Challenge annual Summer Camp! Hope you had a good time!](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/group-Blog_Camping-1788309_13.gif) |
     Last Creation Saturday, you guys! How relieved are you to not have to do the "30-Day Blogging Challenge" or get these prompts anymore? Don't be shy. Don't kid yourself! If, I did not want to do this I would not. I would vacuum the house, I would wash the windows, I would clean out the closets and accomplish spring cleaning. I would do the dishes, I would wash the laundry, because someone has to do the chores. I would clean the cat box, I would brush the horses, I would clean the barn, I would wash the dogs, Because someone has to keep the chores done. The "30-Day Blogging Challenge" is not in that category. I don't have to answer the prompts, I don't have to do the research, I don't have to keep going. I do it because it connects me with people and new information. And, just because! Of course if the "30-Day Challenge" disappears someday I will, if possible, continue to blog. I took June off to finish some projects that needed done. However, I continued to post my blog. If this blog stops I will have to use some other prompts to motivate new subjects but my intent is to keep on keepin on! P.S. I am writing a lot more than the blog. Good stories take time. |
 Fun Fact Friday! On this day in 1773, the first schoolhouse to be located west of the Allegheny Mountains was built in Schoenbrunn, Ohio. What's one of your fondest memories from the early days of your schooling? Here is the place I need to tell you a little story. I have a granddaughter that visits me for a few weeks once in a while. She is 16 so she doesn't visit very often any more. One time she was here we were talking about school. She has been bullied by adults and children off and on all her life. She told me she doesn't like school. I asked her if it was school she doesn't like or learning she doesn't like? You see she did not think about it in those terms. Most people don't. Home schooling came about because the quality of teachers and schooling was not adequate. One of the problems when people start looking at home schooling is bullying by teachers as well as students. Personally just thinking about it, I don't have too many fond school memories. I enjoyed the circus our class traveled on a bus to see. I liked the field trips outside to investigate the environment in 6th grade. I liked the basketball tournament, the girls in our class played against other schools. (grade 5) The girls from our class played the 6th grade boys from Spartans burg. We won. That was . We had a tough group of girls. In grade school I was puny so I did not get picked for teams until last. The teachers had fits because I wanted to spend recess reading a book.In my senior year I got picked for girls softball first. Because, I could hit the ball out of the park. Mostly, though I did not look forward to school events. I love to learn. I like writing papers and seeing those A's mount up. I was overjoyed to graduate from High School. I tried to go to college in my 20's but was trying to live more than one life at a time and could not make it work. Courses through the mail were the best I could accomplish while farming, teaching horse mastership, grooming dogs, raising sheep, raising children (poor children). But, they, the children, grew up smart. I was finished with a lot of activities by 55 so college was a calm time when all I did was learn, keep house, clean barn and play with the grand children. Learning is always a good time; the social aspects of school not so much. We have to do both to become well rounded. I can't believe July is ending. Wow, the hay is in the barn. Winter wood is almost stacked. The onions are growing well. Looks like lots of cucumbers, squash, and tomatoes are going to be available. Now, I'm looking forward to web camping in Europe. Happy Trails keep on keepin on. |
 Wildcard Thursday! Today's winner via Virtual Dice from all eligible entries wins 5000 GPs! Bullying. Is there a place for it, and if so, why? No. No. No. Bullies are people who prey on other people's physical and emotional vulnerability. It comes from a person who has some amount of power toward someone who is not used to having to wield power. Although, the focus is on children, in today's society bullies can also target the elderly. Sometimes, it becomes a group activity toward a person who is not a part of the group. A person who is being bullied can become socially withdrawn, they can experience the onset of illness or attempt suicide. Some times, aggressive people don't see themselves as bullies. They may think they have a right to their actions. Intervention, within situations needs to be an active responsibility in society. Bullying is a situation where a good deed is always needed. There is never a place for the actions of a bully. There is always a place for kindness and understanding. |
| Today's refreshment: water with sliced strawberries, ice, and a touch of honey stir gently War Chest Wednesday! From a previous challenger... If you were the wind, what type of wind would you be? This is an edition of Because the Earth Turns Honestly? After some contemplation, I have to say I would be a land breeze or a sea breeze. It is difficult to choose because of the rising and falling pressure. Add gentle to moderate winds in a local setting. Of course, the Coriolis Effect gives me a Southern inclination in a Northern Hemisphere. If that's possible Oh, Oh? I'm reminded of the book I read that tells what happens to people when the earth stops turning. I better look that up. It will definitely have an affect on the winds. Seriously, Happy Blowing Reference: http://www.eschooltoday.com/winds/Introduction-to-winds-for-young-people.html |
| Tea for the day: Raspberry mint Talk Tuesday! What's your take on celebrity gossip? Two links from a google search: 1.http://www.celebrity-gossip.net/  2.http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/  Inside the world of journalism there are some rules. One of them is: if you are pursuing a public life you are fair game for the journalistic publicity that goes with it. Personally, I don't care for knowing every detail about celebrities. I've watched the ongoing battle between the paparazzi and celebrities over the years and wonder why the paparazzi don't just back off? I'm more interested in the law suits being waged against them by celebrities.  I think how awful it must be to have some one watching every step you make when you go out shopping, take the kids to the park, or go out to dinner.  Who really cares who inherited Bill Cosby's estate?Then there is another side of the story. If a celebrity is not reaping enough publicity to keep their name if front of the public they go out and do something stupid so we remember they are around. This probably fits under the category of finding a job to pay the bills.  I thought that was the job of a manager?Of course, you must consider that there is a group of people in society that literally feed off news about celebrities.The have a lot of time on their hands so they keep up with the celebrity gossip. Another thought says, that the public needs people to look up to so the celebrities fill that space in society. What happens when there are not any people to look up to? I need to get out my social studies and look up this question. Maybe we just fall in a ditch and crawl away? Sorry! this appears to be dark farm girl humor. Anyway, I'm Nix on celebrity gossip! Have a good day! |
| The weather cooled yesterday it was a pleasant day. Today, It rained early in the morning and the rain seems to be hanging in the still air adding to the humidity. Do you think it's better to do nice things anonymously, or would you rather it be known? Nice Things Anonymously: Sometimes nice things happen spontaneously. In the 60's my husband was pulling an old two horse trailer, loaded with horses, to a gymkhana. This happened in Texas. Something caused the trailer to tip over? It landed on its side. We did not have any way to get the horses out. Along came a truck with some Spanish men in it. They jumped out, crawled all over the horse trailer looking at the situation. After a minute discussion with Richard' they grabbed tools out of their truck and cut off the top of the horse trailer, quick and slick. Next, they rolled those horses out onto their feet. handed us the lead ropes, jumped into their truck and vamoosed. This all happened so fast you couldn't think of the details. No one to thank. Just a quick helping hand in an emergency. Yesterday, we watched Spare Parts. A movie about young people in a High School out west who grew up in the USA without birth certificates. I wondered if the gentlemen who helped us then, were illegals. Every day throughout the world good deeds go unrewarded. Good Deeds which you always know: If you do good deeds, that people will notice, you may be openly rewarded. Are the kinds of rewards, that you gain by attracting people to your good deeds going to fill your needs? If I had a chance to do something nice for someone else I would just do it. I probably would not stop to think of the consequences. Most people don't look for the reward at the end of the deed. Stay cool. Happy Writing. apondia#1781748 apondia#1781748 apondia#1781748 |
| The Sunday News! Comedian and sitcom star Jim Gaffigan recently did a stand-up comedy show in Buffalo, NY, and apparently was so funny it drove a pregnant woman into labor three weeks early. There really isn't any way of knowing for sure if one led to the other, of course, but you can tell us this...'One time I laughed so hard...' (and then what happened?). When I was in High School, one of my cousins and I had a class together. We studied together for an up coming test the next day . We began finding ways to make fun of the questions in the book and other pieces of information contained in the study material. The longer we studied and asked each other questions the funnier the material we studied became. It was one of those things where you laugh so hard the color of the air becomes something to laugh about. The next day we both aced the test. Laughter is a memory stimulant. In an article from the web. How Laughing Leads to Learning, http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun06/learning.aspx I found this quote: "The key to his teaching style, he says, is using humor to enhance otherwise dull statistical methodology by tapping into students' multiple intelligences and learning styles in a way that forces them to think in divergent and real-life ways." Laugh and Learn. Write On. |
| Tea for the Day: Iced Green and White Creation Saturday! Invent a new dance move. Tell us in detail how to do it...does it include shoulders, hips, arms, knees, etc.? Feel free to add some music you'd show off your new moves to. Fairy Dances: This dance is meant to bring peace and contentment and a feeling of well being. You have to chose the type of music, so you can connect. And, you have to adapt the movements of your own body to the style, feelings, and joy you wish to achieve. Beginning: Give yourself room to move. You can do these movements on any surface.I like to do them in my bare feet because it connects me to the surface and gives the muscles in my feet an ability to expand. The music used should be firm and rhythmic. I have include two types of music as an example. In the first the tree will be breezy, peaceful, and, stays attached to the ground. In the second type of music the tree will be tossed and stormy. 1: Standing straight, Lift your body onto your tiptoes 3 times. Bounce slightly on your heels as you return to the surface. (Depending on the music the movements will be fast or slow.) 2: Swaying your hands out to your sides for balance take 3 cross over steps to the right. Pause, Lift up onto your toes return to the surface, then take 3 cross over steps left. (a cross over step = Left foot steps to right in front of right foot. Right foot steps to the right. Repeat 3 times.)after lifting onto toes once return to surface (right foot steps to the left in front of left foot. Left foot steps to the left. Repeat 3 times.(focus on the music. Move to the rhythm.) 3.With arms out for balance twirl one full turn to right. Lift onto toes then down to surface. Twirl one full turn to left. (Can you twirl with your eyes closed?) 4.(focus on the sound of the music you use.) Lift hands into the air, swaying gently like a small tree on a breezy day. Sway and bend to the right. Sway and bend to the left. 5. With graceful movements return to the beginning and repeat all movements as often as you wish. Dance your way into peaceful thoughts. Stimulate your muse as you dream up the perfect writing. Your movement will become as peaceful or as Jivey as you make them. |
 Fun Fact Friday! On this day in 1926, legendary baseball player Babe Ruth caught a baseball at Mitchell Field in New York. The ball had been dropped from an airplane flying at 250 feet. Have you ever done anything extraordinary that no one else you know has done? Or, do you have any kind of weird/unique talent that your friends can't do? Well yes!! The normal size of a hay wagon is 12 foot wide by 18 foot long. When I lived in Texas I owned a 17 hand Quarter horse with Thoroughbred bloodlines. I was taking riding lessons with a group of young people on Randolph Air Force Base. I was 21 they ranged in age from 12 to 14 or 15. One day we assembled riding our horses, on the shooting range, for a cross country lesson. There was a hay wagon sitting out there, in the middle of the field. The children dared me to jump over the hay wagon. Did I act like a responsible adult and say no way, to dangerous? Nope! I took the dare and jumped the hay wagon. Good thing I had witnesses. In order for a jump to succeed, you should leave the ground about the height of the jump, before the obstacle. Angels must have been guiding Tweet Hornet's hooves that day. The teacher arrived as I just landed. The kids were jumping up and down laughing and pointing. The teacher was not impressed. As for Babe Ruth's catch, what would be, the velocity of a ball dropped, from that height? The science on The Big Bang Theory is suppose to be accurate. Sheldon once explained how, when superman caught Lois Lane; when she was dropped from an extreme height; he still could not have saved her; because of the velocity involved in the fall; and the sudden stop when he caught her? O.K. I have to go read other blogs now. Toodle oooo! ![Merit Badge in Courage
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Congratulations on an honorable mention in WDC Scavenger Hunt 2011! Attached is your GP prize. Thank you for your participation. *^*Smile*^*
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