Get a raincoat you love

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

I used to hate rainy days.

Then I lived through a month without rain and nearby wildfires ravaging acres and acres of dry land.

Rain became more like a acquaintance who sometimes stays around too long. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t want it around any more than necessary.

Then one day I found a fabulous pink rain jacket.

Now, I look forward to rainy days. I get to wear this bright pink protective layer that makes me smile.

It makes rainy days better.

Get a raincoat you love. Get an umbrella that looks like a palm tree.

Suddenly dark and dreary days feel brighter and happier.

We can’t stop the rain. We need it. But we don’t have to be gloomy.

An umbrella that looks like a palm tree 🙂

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Favorite: Written? Kitten!

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

http://writtenkitten.net

This is a good one for writers who need a little motivation. You may be happy with kittens, but I write for giraffes. Follow the instructions for changing the URL.

If positive reinforcement works for you, give it a try!

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Old Mill Park

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Brave Thoughts


Empty stream bed at Old Mill Park

It was a nice day, so I told the car to find a nearby park for me. I picked Old Mill Park. There’s got to be a story behind this one.

The small parking area can hold maybe six or seven cars. There is a loop walking path around what looks like a dry reservoir, with a covered bridge over a dry stream bed. The non-stream disappears around a bend.

On hills above, there are large homes that overlook the park. I imagine they used to enjoy the view of the water.

There are several structures around the non-lake. I imagine one of them was related to the old mill. I found a rock to sit on and did a little writing.

I give it 3 stars.  ◊ ◊ ◊  Or diamonds, because there are symbols for those. I’ll have to go back and actually walk the loop.

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Pizza 2

Posted on October 28, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

  • Whole wheat crust (the other one from the Whole Foods 2-pack)
  • Apple, sliced thin.
  • Applesauce
  • Mozzarella cheese (or a cheddar blend)
  • Cinnamon
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Almond slivers
  • Cream cheese (optional)

Prep your crust as directed on the package or in your recipe. Again, I would recommend a short pre-cook for homemade crusts.

I decided to try cream cheese on this one, so I put little dabs of it all over and spread them out a little. I’m not sure it made much difference in the end.

Spread applesauce on the crust. Sprinkle with cinnamon, and don’t be stingy. Add the apple slices in a circular pattern. It looks cool.

Next comes the sunflower seeds and almonds.

Cover the whole thing with the cheese.

Bake at 400° or so until the cheese starts getting golden brown on the highest points. It’s so good.

Enjoy!

 

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Quote: Education

Posted on October 27, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.

William Butler Yeats

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Picture of the week: Wildfire

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Wildfire

I smelled the smoke before I saw it, near Strawberry Reservoir. There were a couple of spots where it had burned near the road.

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Pandiculation && Pavonated

Posted on October 25, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Sometimes you run across interesting words:

Pandiculation.

Did you know there was a special word for that stretching-yawning thing we do in the morning? It’s pandiculation.

Pavonated.

You know that cool color you find on a peacock’s neck? If something looks like that, it’s pavonated.

 

 

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How to get a free waterbed

Posted on October 24, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Once upon a time, I wanted a waterbed. I thought waterbeds were the best. I’d slept on one at a sleepover and loved it. I was still a teenager, so I couldn’t just go out and buy one. And I couldn’t ask for one, it was ridiculously expensive.

There was a nightclub not far from our neighborhood that was open for teens on some nights of the week. It was an old disco bar that was trying to stay alive after disco had died. Glowing dance floor and all that.

There was a special party at the club one night, and they were handing out tickets as we came through the entrance. There would be drawing later for prizes.

Yeah, whatever. I never won those things.

Well.

It was one of those “slow-mo” moments where it seems unreal. I was reading the ticket number and it seemed like it matched. I had to show it to my friends.

Yes, yes! Go up! I had to go up onto that glowing dance floor all by myself. The potential for humiliation was great: all of my classmates would witness it if I was wrong. But I wasn’t wrong. I won the prize.

And it was a waterbed!! Yahoo!

So all you have to do to get a free waterbed is be a teenager, get a ticket, and have it match the numbers when the prize happens to be a waterbed.

Waterbeds are still pretty neat, but if you’ve ever been in one when the heater stopped working, normal mattresses look pretty good after that.

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Favorite: Wayback Machine

Posted on October 23, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Here’s an oldie but a goodie. It’s so old and good that you might even find your favorite old websites preserved in a time warp.

https://archive.org/web/

They say they have over 20 years of web history accessible through the Wayback Machine. I remember using it quite a few years back (over a decade).

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Smiling Gravestones

Posted on October 22, 2017 by Brave Thoughts

Many years ago, I started a cemetery of sorts in my journals. It’s been so long, I can’t remember exactly why it happened this way. In my mind there are vague connections to a performance of Our Town we did in school.

Each gravestone is unique and has a face, usually a smile. When someone special dies, I write their name on a stone. It’s like my own private tribute to people who have passed on and left an impression on me.

I don’t always know the person, but their passing has touched me in some way.

I had almost forgotten about my smiling gravestones when a recent loss reminded me of them. I found the page in my journal with the most recent set of stones, and added the name of this person.

Among the earliest stones is my father, though I’m sure I started it a couple of years after his death. We just passed the anniversary of that day, which sometimes hits me as surprisingly difficult even though it’s been over 25 years.

I don’t remember what this one was all about. The old me must have known.

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