Just 40 Days

If I continue to eat 2000 calories a day, I will continue to weigh 200 pounds.

So last night, I watched a little bit of ABC's The Last Days of Michael Jackson.  I'm 57 years old, and I grew up with MJ so I was a bit interested.

My New Washer There seems to be this great debate over having an agitator or an impeller in your washing machine. The point of a washing machine is to get your clothes clean.  This requires soap, water, and friction. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer the agitator.  I never had any issues with it before, so why change?  Innovation is good, and this, the 7th washer, all Maytag btw, of my adult life is perfect with it's steel drum and glass top so that I can watch the action. I learned something new last night.  The drum spins slowly as the water for the rinse cycle is added.

The rule made of gold is THE hardest of all! 

My mom had three sisters. She was the youngest of six. I am the third of her eight children, five of which are girls. The five us had bookend brothers, one older and two younger.  We were born within seven years of each other, that's 85 months between the oldest and the youngest. Let me think of it another way - The oldest of us just turned seven when the youngest was born.  And by the time I was five, I had three little sisters. I learned alot growing up with all those sisters: how to share, to care,  to argue and to fix hair.  We learned how to love, to defend, how to build up and defeat. The relationship between sisters is complex. We slept in the same room and shared beds. We were close - we shared an underwear drawer! Sometimes, we were on the same sports teams. This was good for our team as we were competitive and athletic.  It was also good for my parents, as they didn't have to attend multiple games. While in high school, three of my sisters were with me; my ol

I turn off my alarm on the weekends and not that the weather is warmer, I sleep with the windows open.  This morning, it was the song of a cardinal that woke me up.  My windows face the street, so usually the city sounds of cars and buses is all I hear.  I have to go to the back yard to hear the sounds of nature. I'm sure that's why the cardinal's song this morning awakened me.  It was beautiful and clear. It was 7:00 am.  As I lay in bed, I began listening for the other birds.  The chirping of the robin and the cooing of the morning dove, or pigeon. My dog Aiden, wouldn't let me lay awake too long without getting his day started.  So we headed out back to see a half dozen squirrels, scurrying on the neighbor's large oak tree.  A few were demonstrating their high balance routine on the electrical wires. The grass was cut and the tree still smelled wonderful.  Life is good.

My Backyard  I love the color of the trees in the spring. The whites, the purples, lime greens and especially the pink in my back yard My sister Barb had a tree like it in her front yard.  It's a Magnolia I believe, or some call it a tulip tree. Whatever it is, it sure does make my backyard beautiful. The pedals are thick with fragrance.  On a good year, I get about two weeks of beauty.  Last year, it was about a day as a cold front with snow arrived the just before the blossoms opened. They froze and never got a chance.  This year.It was very late blooming this year.  Most of been the unusual winter. But due to the high winds and thunderstorms of this week, the beauty only lasted about four days.  The sweet aroma of its pedals is still in the air though. When I notice nature, I feel calm inside.  Or is it, because I feel calm inside, I notice nature.Which ever the case, I know that life is all around me and it is good for my soul.