Jessica and I met at the Los Duranes Community Center today to attend the death café. We got there at two; it went from 11 to 1:00.
We went to the range café and had lunch. I told a little about each of you. Earlier in the day, I had sent her a note with a link to one of John's blogs about Justin. I told how Justin had been a model for me. (tears come; Jessica's encouraging/teaching me to grieve.)
Greg's been doing an amazing job of heeding the advice given while he was being treated for the cancer.
I went looking for something about Art and found this:
As ymentioned before in several posts, Blogger is more or less a dead application, perhaps with no one at Google working on it all all, but I do like it and still add to a few blogs on this host periodically. If you see 'Anonymous' it's likely 'Art.' Blogger fails to remember me. 'Art' is not really my name. At an early age, pre-teen, I exhibited considerable creativity. Lacking family with any education, single parent, etc., etc., I lost my way and ended working as creatively as one could in the corporate IT world. Overall, other than the money and periodic recognition that path taken was a waste. Leaving the corporate world a decade I've attempted to re-nourish that creativity, wishing 'art' of many forms to have been the path taken. It's a bit of an 'almost too late' turn in direction. My hands shake a bit when painting, my thoughts wander while writing and I lack the ability to be awake as much as I wish, and remaining life obligations are potholes that shake and slow the Art-Uber ride. Your posts remain a motivation. Of course the image of her on the pool table is a reminder that not all is too late.
As I lie here bawling like a child, I'm gonna ask you, Art, again, to show your work. Maybe you were among the group that could do their long division in their head? I kept getting admonished to "show my work." It was the time of the "new math" and I really didn't know how; I barely finished the ninth grade. They gave me D minuses instead of Fs so they wouldn't have to put up with me the next year. Fortunately, we moved.
I'm really curious to see your paintings. I'd even go to FB!
Here she is. I started to post a frontal, but given the repressiveness of the zeitgeist I decided not. Sorry. Give me an email and I will.
She is now, lovlier than ever.
It may sound condescending, but I feel as if each of us is coming into our own. I remember reading - maybe 2 decades ago - a 70+ year old remarking how he never imagined it would be this good. At age 52, though enraptured with a millionairess, I was skeptical; now I nod appreciatively.
May we each enjoy many happy returns.
Lovely.
ReplyDeleteWe have a bunch of Christmas cards up showing Justin and Allie together. It's easy to forget what a mischievous look Justin frequently had on his face during his pre-teen years. I had a nightmare about him being in ICU the other day. Life brings both scars and wonderful memories. Have a great holiday season!
Life decided that I needed a nasty head cold to accompany the holidays. But this too will pass.
That 'trapped in the IT world where I don't really belong' guy sounds kinda familiar.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to dig myself out but, as Chance Peña put it - "I'm not the man I wana be" (i.e. I skipped my workout this morning just because I didn't wana, and now I'm feeling guilty)
But yeah! Feliz Navidad and bla bla bla!
That was thoughtful. Thank you. Both the re-posting and the image were nice Xmas decorations, as they may be. There will sharing. As normal distraction has prevailed. An 1896 house 'flip' has occupied too much time. With the 'new year' approaching the reasons to just walk away and sell 'as is' are accumulating as my back, sciatic nerve (fyi 1/2" in diameter in the pelvis), arthritic shoulder, etc. are exclaiming 'enough.' As noted in the earlier post, creativity is not unusual in the IT world (fuck ChatGPT) and I've been distracted by an articulate, disgruntled farmer in the Pacific Northwest who makes agricultural feed products. The composition varies by available components, the designated consuming animal and the quirks of the person raising the animals. The farmer needs a simple application to provide quotes and invoices for feed pellets that he can use on his iPhone. I've been poking away at that application not because I know this guy but because I'm weak, burned out and avoiding the calling to the creative work I should be ding. Unfortunately he's as an infrequent and unreliable internet poster/responder as I am. What can you expect from strangers on the internet? Often with low expectations the outcome is pretty nice. The pool table in this house has been covered with 'projects' for at least two decades. It's unlikely they'll ever all reach completion. Your shared image will be the resident holistic image. Ha. Your card to the hospice people was very nice. Again, thank you for re-posting (Christmas sucked and life is currently disappointing).
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