June 2024

Irises... not Isises... or Ibises... either sacred or profane... 

I recently learned
I’m called a streaming
Churner.
This means
I subscribe to a service
For a month or so
To watch new shows
I’ve read about
And new seasons
Of old shows
That I’m already addicted to.
Like Doctor Who.
I think Nchuti Gatwa
Has the best smile
In any universe.
He’s def my new fave
Doctor.

Of course with
Only one episode unfolding
Each week, I’ve got
More time to explore
And it seems I like
Shows about Egyptian
Archeology
Both past and present.
Yes, I saw the Tut exhibit
At the ROM in 1979…
But I didn’t know
I could get hooked
Til now...
As I watch…
Agog at the tenacity
Of those committed
To literally unearthing
History from the land
Of the pharaohs.

Peter gifted me these
Mini irises for Mum’s Day
And they exploded
Into these wondrous blooms
All at once.
Then
My newfound
Interest in the digs
Brings with it some
Ancient I-words
That keep cropping up
In my ever-present
Crossword puzzles.
And
My mind wanders…
I do this little digging
Of my own...
For you:
     Iris, a flower
     Isis, a goddess
     Ibisis, a sacred bird

Underscoring,
Like Dirk Gently,
The fundamental
Interconnected of
All phenomena
In the universe,
Eh?
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

May 2024

 

Beltane... or May Day...

Whatever you choose
As name for today’s
Honoured day,
This is a day of
Ancient celebration.
We may not be ancients
Ourselves,
But we do love
That the return of Light
That began in December
And we joyously marked
In March
Is now halfway
Between that Spring Equinox
And Summer’s official start
In June.

June twenty-first
Seems already just
Too hot to say it’s
Summer’s start.
That’s why Beltane
Celebrates the
Beginning of Summer’s
Warmth.

We all go outside
Again
To renew
All our personal
Fave activities
Sans coats
And boots.

Today in my
18th-floor aerie
My balcony netting
Is doing it’s job
Keeping the fog
At bay.
Funny to celebrate
The sun
When I can’t see it…
Or even
The views it usually
Illuminates.

But I know it’s there
And I’ll go barefoot
Again
Soon!
...
Here’s some
Celebration background
For this day of yore.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Apr 2024

Spring blooms revel in magenta...

I will never say “pink”
Because pink is so namby pamby.
Well, maybe not hot pink..
But magenta is a major force
By itself… and
Helps make everything
In the world
When it hangs out
With cyan and yellow
And together they let black act
Like the black velvet background
To all of Life’s hues…
And we all say
Oooohhhh!

These magenta offerings
Come from Kate’s bus stop
Near her New Jersey
Clifftop home
That overlooks Hoboken.
In close-up they resemble
The magenta-edged versions
Of magnolias we see
In these northern climes.
But these are something
Much smaller...



As one can see when
Google Maps shows us
A bit wider view
Of that same
Springtime bus stop.

As I look back at my
Floral calendar missives
Here...
Over these past 25 years
I see many display themselves
In magentas.
Wondering now:
Is that because Mother Nature
Favours this colour
To prance about with
Her fresh new spring greens?
Or is it just some personal bias
I didn’t know I had.
I knew, of course,
About my teal fixation…
     But…
What other biases
Might I harbour
Unknown and
Unacknowledged?

You?
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

 

Spring 2024

Spring! Spring! Spring! Sang the animals...

When Kate was wee
She loved the Little Golden Book,
Home for a Bunny
By Margaret Wise Brown…
Whose name should have been
Margaret Wise Green.
I read the book to Little Kate
Several times every night
For what
Seems like years
And years.
I can still recite
Much of it.

As an astrologer
Each spring I find myself
Entranced anew.
I revel in the combination
Scientific reality
Of the equality of
Light and dark…
And of the ushering
Of the Sun
Into the sign of Aries.
The Sun holds sway
Over our personal egos,
Our focus and attention,
And our will to self-actualize.
The sign of Aries
Is the first sign of the Zodiac
Leading the way
Into a fresh new year.
Aires, then, places our focus
On action, initiative, and vitality.
It’s a time when the earth
Pushes up its long-protected
Seedlings and sends
Them forth with renewed
Determination.

From our beginnings
Humans have sought
Understanding
Of Life itself
Through observing
How Nature
Repeats herself
In endless cycles.
All cultures
Have sought
Ways to observe
And even predict
Nature’s cycles.
Peter recently visited
Stonehenge,
One culture’s evidence
Of such seeking
And understanding.

Today I celebrate
This Equinox…
It came early
This year partly because
Of Feb’s leap day.
I hereby send
This, my own seedling
Into the ethers
Where you might
Join my praise
Of the eternal
Quest for awareness.

I invite you...
Seek out your own
Hosannas
And traditions.
Here are some ideas:
Get outside.
Plant some seeds.
Host or attend a bonfire.
Bring spring buds into your home.
Get creative!
Sunset Magazine offers more ideas here.
...
Be sure to listen to me read the Bunny book.
Here's the link again.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Mar 2024

 

My Balcony Buddha ponders the eternal play of Lions and Lambs

Blue is merely the milieu
Not the mood.
Yesterday was definitely
A day of the Lion
Here in Toronto…
And today’s totally
Lamby-pie.
Laced with a
Sunny and sweet
Demeanour, today is
Like Shari Lewis’s
Lambchop.

So... Leap Day was a Lion
Which gave
The First of March
The opportunity
To be a Lamb.
Thank you, Science,
For bringing in our new month
Brimming with hope
And eagerness…
No matter that
Environment Canada
Says there will be
A plethora of both lions
And lambs in store
This month.
Let’s all simply
Bask in the
Time of the Lamb
While it lasts.

Pondering is optional.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Feb 24

Everything old is new again...

A few weeks ago, Kate and David
Joined friends in the Riviera Maya,
Just south of Cancun in Mexico…
For lots of sun, sand, tacos, tequila,
Tzereques, pisotes, iguanas,
Howler monkeys, peacocks, and
One very friendly cat.

Then…
A trip to the ruins of Tulum…
The fort that the Mayans
Built as their coastal defence
Sometime before the 13th century…
And abandoned
At the end of the 16th century.
Yup she’s old,
But with the tourist development
In Cancun, Tulum is now back
On the beaten track…
Indeed she’s now her own destination.
Her splendour renewed
By all the attention, she sprawls aglow
In her own wonder.

Like Tulum, I, too, have become old…
OK less old in years, but still officially
People-y old.
And a few weeks before
My November b’day
I undertook an adventure
To renew my own splendour…
And now after lots
Of generous attention
From dentist Dr. Divya Patel
And the whole delightful staff
At Dr. Teodoro Happy Tsang’s
Main Street offices, I am
Proud to announce:
As of this past Monday
I have nine new teeth!!!
Here’s a pic.



The good news is
You can’t tell the diff…
But I certainly can.
Now I’m learning to eat again…
And
I’m learning to talk again, too.
I have quite a lisp
Which Dr. Patel says will
Gradually disappear.
In the meantime, remembering
Last month’s alliterative poem,
I’ve read the first stanza
Of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,
Both before and after
Installing the new teeth.
As benchmark, I’ll re-read
That same stanza each week…
Plus…
Throughout each day
I have little sessions where I say
RED LEATHER. YELLOW LEATHER.
Over and over and over again
Just like an eager actor warming up
For a big show.
Yes, I’m practising sprawling aglow, too,
In my own renewed wonder.

Me and Tulum.
There’s a lot to be said for simply
Lasting.
...
As usual this month’s calendar in higher-resolution form, lives here. In the same folder there is also a version without the RED LEATHER-YELLOW LEATHER line at the bottom, in case, like me, you’d rather spend this month with just Tulum’s unadulterated beauty on your desktop. In that same folder I’ve included the animals Kate and David encountered around their hotel... a couple of them are little movies!
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

 

Jan 2024

 

A Hasty and Heartfelt Hosanna
     to Halliteration...

Today’s missive
Is brought to you by
The letter H...
     With appreciation
     To Craig Mod
     Via his newsletter,
     Roden: Issue 088.

Of all the lessons learned
From my Texas public school
English lexicons,
Those about alliteration
Captured my imagination
With the most immediate
And ever-lasting glue.

Just think:
Here is a form of writing
That we best observe,
Understand,
And even enjoy
When we read it aloud.

Its history goes back
To Old English epic poetry
Like Beowulf
And Middle English ones
Like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight…
          Which Robin Sloan…
               As has often been his
               New Year’s Day wont…
          Will again read aloud to us all
          Live today at 1:00 pm ET.

Alliteration was first identified
By Giovanni Potano
In the 15th century,
The word comes from
The Latin word littera,
Which translates as
Letter of the alphabet.

The form found its foothold
In Old High German,
Old Saxon and Old Irish…
Not to mention it apparently
Had roots in classical Latin,
Greek, and Sanskrit poetry.

Today, so Wikipedia says,
Alliteration is used poetically
In many languages
Including English, Arabic, Irish,
German, Mongolian, Hungarian,
Somali, Finnish, Icelandic,
And…
American Sign Language!!!

Just think:
A form of writing
That we best observe,
Understand,
And even enjoy
When we read it aloud…
Being observed,
Understood,
And even enjoyed
By people who
Cannot hear it.

I am
Astonished,
Awed, and even
Amused..
And I do adore
And appreciate
The letter A…
Therefore, I hereby Appoint
The letter A
As host of
The Advent of
A year of Alliteration.
I invite you to Activate
Your own Alleritations list.
One letter to sponsor
Each fortnight:
I suggest
At least three words:
   One noun
   Modified by
   Two adjectives
Like beautiful blue bubbles.
But you can decide which
Three words…
Just make a list of
As many words
As you want
For each letter
Starting today
And proceeding every-other
Monday throughout this year.

I’ve made a little PDF list
Just to make it easier
For us all to be
   On the same page…
   In the same position…
   With the same paddle.
At this time next year,
If you’re so inclined,
I invite you to initial your page
And scan it and send it back to me…

I promise to read your words aloud.
...
Today’s image is from my grandson Jackson, taken on his recent trip to Portugal. He reports: this is Lagos, early morning...  absolutely gorgeous beaches with a lovely boardwalk that takes you along the coast… crystal clear water that was perfect for floating in.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Dec 2023

In memory of a dear friend...

Teresita Patricia Gonzalez Magnon
Was born in Mexico City.
An Aries, about six years after
My own Sag birth in Seattle.
We both went to high school
And university in San Antonio, Texas.
But we didn’t meet until
We both worked for EQAO,
In Toronto 1997.
She was director of assessments
And I was a temp typist…
Actually working as a graphic designer
And copyeditor.
We bonded over the work…
And the love of Mexican Food.

We both moved on,
Me to actually learn digital design
And she to work with UNICEF
With consulting educational assignments
All over the world,
Including Nairobi, Moldova, and two years in Vanuatu!
We always kept in touch
And when she moved back to Canada
She lived just a few blocks from me.

Continuing her advocacy
For children everywhere,
I was privileged to copyedit
Teresa’s UNICEF reports.
I learned so much about
Truly important issues about education
In places like Montenegro, Turkmenistan, and Albania.

We regularly met for brunch at our local diner
Or for our fave Mexican street food
At Broadview’s own El Charro—
Now moved to a bigger spot
On the Danforth.
A few years ago, Teresa went on
A long-dreamed-of African safari.
The pix, which I’ve shared here,
Were amazing… and I loved
Hearing of all of her adventures.
This past year she made a big trip
To visit with her family in Mexico
And she travelled to many of her favourite
Parts of her home country.
Teresa passed before she could tell me all,
But she did send some pix.
This month’s calendar is one of my faves.
I miss her… but I’m happy with
All the delightful memories
Of my friend Teresa.
 
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Nov 2023

 

Tis the season of cottages and black cats...

A couple of weeks ago,
Peter came up and
We drove to London together
To see Lucas’s doc,
Homelessness in London,
At the Forest City Film Festival.

We got to have a delish lunch
With the filmmaker himself…
Then to see his film
Along with five other films
That addressed issues
Involving mental health.
We were touched and
Sooooo proud,
Even posing for
A red carpet pic together.



Twas a wonderful—even if overcast—day.
Bonus was seeing
All the autumnal colours,
Particularly as we
Started out heading north
Along the Don Valley Parkway.
I didn’t try to take any pix
From our moving car,
But Marje sent me this one
From her family cottage,
On this remarkable little lake
North of Toronto.
Like in my Nov 2018 precedent,
I’ve hidden some black cats here…
Five of them for you to find.
Here’s a black cat for you
In case you’d like
To add one—or more—to your own
Creations.

 

 

 

 

 

 ...

November marks the time
To write your own story.
Why not get started on yours?
NaNaWriMo. 

 ...

Have a great Mo/November
And
Be sure to remember
While you're remembering
On the eleventh:
Vonnegut
Et al.
His birthday
And pleas
For humanity.

 ...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Oct 2023

A time for choices...

Once upon a time
Peter’s dad and I
Discovered that we
Shared a long-time yen…
It wasn’t a prolonged discussion…
Just a random admission
That we each had always
Harboured the yen
To live in Australia.

The planning did take
A long time.
First were the formal applications
And the waiting for approvals…
Then the divesting
Of all our Texas stuff.

Then the decision to travel
To Sydney via six months
In Mexico…
Because... maybe we’d
Never be able to return
To see stuff we’d always
Saved for “next time.”

Oz presented us with
Choices of the
Starting-over variety…
The chance to
Reinvent ourselves
Each with our own tools
From our pasts.

Many more choices
Ensued…
Most with the awareness
That timing within
My lifespan can
Give breadth to
New hopes and aspirations...
To expand my options
For my future self
To relish.

Of course, some choices
Grabbed me by the nape
Of my neck and
Forced me to reconsider.

Decisions are like that, eh?
Neither good nor bad…
Just creating a fork in the road
That can change everything.
~
At the budding starts
Of their careers,
Lucas and Lauren have chosen
The magic of Halifax
To be their first home together.
This month's offering is another pic
Showing us yet another reason
For their choice:
Sunrise from Point Pleasant Park.

Early last month
Peter and Lisl visited them
And saw for themselves…
The nature and the food and the culture.

and the food

and the culture.

From the Maud Lewis exhibit
At the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
To the rooftop reading room

At the glorious Halifax Central Library…
All just short hops
From their delightful new digs.
 
I applaud.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Sept 2023

Sunrise...  Moonset... 
One season following another...

Thursday morn greets both
Rise and set…
And my westward view 
Is multiplied
In heaven’s splendour.

As you know by now,
I always see the sunrise
Reflected back to me
On the buildings
Across the Don River
From my 18th-floor aerie.
But Thursday's sunrise
Underlines this moon's
Setting.

This moon is 
Both blue and super.
With my continuing obsession 
With the colour blue,
I’d like it to be actually blue, 
But, alas, a blue moon
Is not at all blue… 
In hue.
You know the expression,
“Once in a blue moon?”
This is simply the olde timey
Designation for 
Any second full moon
Within any given month.

But this blue moon
Is also super.
That part refers to
The distance of the moon
From the earth.
Because the moon’s orbit
Is an oval, which means that
The earth-to-moon distance varies
And because of that the moon
Appears to us as changing size
We simply see the moon
As hugely bigger.

Scientists apparently
Don’t all agree
On what the distance
Must be to qualify as super,
But this blue moon qualifies
To everybody.

The next time the moon
Will be this close to the earth
Will be on 5 Nov 2025…
And this will be the last
Super blue moon until 2037.

I can hardly wait!

...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Aug 2023

Lush... A richness in so many ways...

Grandson Lucas and his sweetie Lauren
Both graduated from university
This just-past spring.
After a trip to Halifax
They decided that’s where they
Wanted to make their first home
Together.
They are now each employed
At their first grown-up jobs…
Lucas writes remotely
For The Peak, a daily newsletter
That focusses on Canadian business
And the international news that affects
It—and therefore—us.
Lauren has found work in Halifax
And come September they move
From temporary summer digs
Into an amazing apartment
That’s part of a house built in 1870!

The day in this pic,
Lucas and Lauren strolled
Among these rich greens of
Cape Breton National Park…
Where they found this gushy waterfall.

Theirs is a life filled with
The lushness of nature
And of youth and of the promises
Their lives hold
For them…
And for the rest of us.
Because as family…
And friends…
And even
As friends of friends.
We can all rejoice
In our own reflections
Of their lush experiences.

I say,
Hooray!
I am such a lucky
Nana Bee!
...
     FYI, my still-new post-cataract eyes
     That continue to be amazed
     By all things blue…
     Also relish wallowing
     In the copious greens
     That keep viing for my attention…
     Just in case you haven’t noticed
     In many of my recent calendars.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

july 2023

 

Crookneck Squash Grows in Texas...

I’ve been in Toronto
Since 1976
And I no longer
Live without tacos
Or okra.
For about 10 years
I could even get
Gebhardt’s Chili Quik
At Kensington Market…
But since that ended
The internet provided me
With a recipe I can make
For myself.
I even have places to get
Mexican chorizo
And real corn tortillas…
Even masa harina
Should I want to make my own
Using my cute red tortilla press.
And I can even get Texas-style BBQ
Delivered to my door!

But one of the things I
Continue to miss is
Yellow crookneck squash.
Like these that Phoebe’s sister Sally
Still grows at her
East Texas home.
These blossoms will very soon
Erupt into buttery yellow goodness
Like this

 

My mum used to slice them
And steam them
And serve them with a bit
Of freshly squeezed lime juice.



One day in 1962
I played with my food…
Sketching what became
This cast sterling silver pendant.



Oh, Toronto…
Please tell me where I can get
Me some yellow crookneck squash.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

For Teresa

 

Teresita Patricia Gonzalez Magnon
March 17, 1949 ~ June 27, 2023

Noren: indigo


Split curtains from Japan,
Hang in doorway.


Custom dictates that


We bow as we pass through...
Show respect for


Place left behind…
And place entered.


In response


Noren sway in breeze...


Give visual evidence


Of our journey.

Teresita, you have been


The warm breeze


To the noren of my life.


Each time we met


I was refreshed and renewed...
I was nurtured and ennobled...
I was affirmed and valued.

With you I found


Inspiration and joy.
We shared our interests
In books, movies, and TV shows.
Through you I learned
Of the plight of those
You were committed to helping
All over the world.

Teresita, you personified
Hope and confidence
In life’s infinite capacity
To renew itself...
And not always to take
Itself just too, too seriously.

Thank you, my dear, dear amiga.


We are all humbled by your
Passing breeze.

~

Bette Forester


Toronto, 1 July 2023

~

Image: Summer Delight

by Teresa Gonzalez

Acrylic on Canvas

2019

 

June 2023

 

Lush paradises invite... lure...

To celebrate a major milestone
Peter and Lisl journeyed first
To Windsor to attend,
Not a coronation, but a wedding...
And thence onward
To a fortnight in Mallorca...
For promised languishing
In a lush paradise.
Of course their home in Barbados
Is its own brand of lush paradise.
This pic shows us new definitions
Of lush and paradise...
It’s all lush… and all paradise…
Just with its own delights
And history spread out
For fresh discoveries
Each day.

I challenged OpenAI
To write me something
About this courtyard
In Peter’s and Lisl’s
Air-BnB home in Sóller
Where they sipped morning coffees
Near their own pool.
Lush paradise, indeed.

OpenAI spewed out reams
But I’m particularly
Entranced with these lines:

     In Mallorca's sun-kissed embrace,
     Lies a realm of beauty and grace,
     Where courtyards bloom in vibrant hues,
     Amidst lemon trees and terra cotta views.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

May 2023

 

My dad, an apprentice in Puebla...

Sometime around 1970
My father discovered gemstones.
His job involved lots of
Road travel in Texas and
He rejoiced in all his finds,
Whether roadside or
Local rockhound shops
That he found dotted around
His wide-ranging territory.
He built himself
A little backyard shed
Under a big pecan tree,
But he added air-conditioning, of course…
This was San Antonio, after all.

He equipped his shed
With polishing equipment
And cutting equipment
And produced mounds
Of beautiful shiny ovals
Ready to be mounted
In pendants, or rings,
Or belt buckles, or bolo ties.
He learned a lot from asking others
And from the library…
Eventually, he decided
He wanted to learn how to set
His own stones. He wanted
To learn silversmithing.

Now, Mexico has oodles
Of talented silversmiths,
And Puebla is perhaps
The largest concentration of them.
So my mum, who spoke fluent Spanish,
Found a silversmithing place
In Puebla who agreed to take
My dad on as an unofficial apprentice.
Did I mention that this dad of mine
Spoke almost no Spanish???
Anyhow off my parents went
For two weeks in Puebla,
Where my mum would drop
My dad off each morning, then
Return at lunchtime, and again
At end of day.
During the day my dad would
Follow example instructions
And when my mum came
She would translate for
Both my dad and his teachers.
Seems the Puebla guys
Loved my dad…
Not a surprise, he was
Infinitely lovable.

He learned loads and returned
Back home and work.
On the weekends at home, he loved
His time in his shed.
The next year they did
Another fortnight in Puebla.
This time he learned
About casting and added
A centrifugal casting machine
To his shed’s equipment.
Seems dentists use the same machines.
He loved casting and he started
Branching out into some
More designer-type options…
Some which I still wear
With joy and pride.

When my dad passed
My mum sold most of his
Remaining gemstones
And gave me a cool collection
Of what was left.
You see some of them here,
In an African stone bowl
With a carved turtle that guards
The bright shiny treasures…
He’s always happy
When I stop by and
Run my fingers through them…
And remember my daddy.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

April 2023

 

March just seemed to ooze away...

No lions.
No lambs.
But the month this year
Was filled with lotsa
Rampaging lions…
And some
Gently portending lambs.

My balcony Buddha,
Has watched with
Shivering determination
And hopeful delight.
Now backed by netting
Installed to protect him…
And my table…
And my rocking chair…
From pigeons.
The interstices seem
To invite some bullet journalling
Above the rail
And some graphed diagramming
Below the rail.

Maybe my balcony Buddha
Wants us all to notice
More about our daily worlds
And to jot down our observations
To give voice to our eyes.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

March 2023

 For our fresh new year...

We’re all just
Too, too familiar
With aspirations
For our fresh
New year.
We have our
Hopes…
Wishes…
Resolutions.

But Mother Nature
Shows us the way:
No matter what,
We must all
Proceed with firm
Determination.
Indeed,
In the face of
Winter’s freezing howls,
Spring asserts her
Firm determinations
In the form of pulsating
Buds
That push through
A frozen crust
To show us all
How it’s done.
...
In October last,
Fiona Beth Phillips
Moved with her family
To new digs in
Atherstone in England.
She reports they
Wintered in place
And are now greeted
With this early emanation
Of flowering quince.
I like that The Spruce
Reports that this is a shrub
“With a somewhat
Messy growth habit!”

I invite you all
To join me in a
Fresh determination
To indulge in our own
Messy growth...
Nothing tentative...
Messy is always
Good.
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Feb 2023

Many happy returns... always...

If you are born in Toronto

At 9:15 am today, this is what your

Astrological natal chart will look like.

The sun is associated with

Your best expression of yourself.

In your chart the sun’s in Aquarius,

The sign associated with

The forming of community,

Of developing a path

To inclusion and universality…

In other words: common ground.

Plus, in your chart Aquarius

Occupies the second house,

The parts of your life

Concerned with your

Personal resources...

Whatever you need

For your own sustenance…

Like food, money,

And a rock solid

Sense of values.

Every year on your birthday…

     Give or take a day or two

     Because: leap year…

The sun shows up

In the same place.

That’s what the ancients,

Like those famous

Three wise men,

Called your solar return.

That’s the real reason

People will wish you

Many happy returns.

The sun’s position is easy to know

Because the earth orbits

Around the sun every 365 days...

     Sort of… remember

     Leap year catches us up

     For those extra

     5 hours,

     59 minutes, and

     16 seconds each year.

The moon, of course,

And all the planets

Also have returns,

But their orbits around the sun

Take different amounts of time

So you’ll need to look it up

Or ask an astrologer,

The scientists of yore

Still plying our trade

In 2023.

...
Want to know what those symbols are on this month’s calendar? I have a keywords chart for you in this folder. You’ll see the sun and the moon are listed as planets. That’s just tradition talking. We know they’re not really planets. While you’re there, why not pick up the higher resolution version of my calendar and try it out as wallpaper on your computer desktop? That’s what I do every month. (background photo by Cosmic Timetraveler on Unsplash)

Please enjoy this glorious and short month... hearts included.
xo
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course

Jan 2023

As they say... No mud. No lotus...

The lotus flowers and seeds
Simultaneously
But can do nothing
Without having its roots
Stuck firmly into
Some thick, gooey,
And messy mud.

The mud’s invisible,
Of course,
But the lotus
Knows its job…
And bloom, it must,
So it sinks its tendrils
Ever deeper
And draws up
The light
That is the essence
Of all life.

As humans we also bloom
When our feet are planted firmly.
Our mud is the stuff of daily life.
And there’s a lot of it...
Mostly daily grind stuff…
Often obstacles that
Must be overcome
For our path to even appear…
Then require further
Vanquishment to keep on
Keeping on.

Sometimes our mud
Is our own choosing…
The quality defined
By the nature of our aspirations.
This year I am choosing
The mud of learning
Some new things…
All which I’m showing to you
Here, in this month’s calendar.

My determination this year
Is to learn Affinity
Designer, Photo, and Publisher…
Affordable alternatives to my
Long-time faves from Adobe:
Illustrator and Photoshop.
I’m retired now
So don’t need to keep paying
For a costly professional subscription…
But I want to be able
To continue making
Calendars—and more…
As is my wont.
So I bought the Affinity apps
(One-time fee, no subscription)
And I produced
This month’s calendar
In its entirety
Using Affinity.
What would have taken
Thirty minutes in Illustrator
Took three days.
Ha! Not because
Affinity is slow or difficult,
But because I had
To learn lotsa new stuff:
New vocabulary.
New menus.
New controls.
All so the result
Can look like
A seamless continuation
Of my monthly offerings.
...
Thank you again, Susan,
For taking this glorious image
On your travels…
And for letting me use it… again.

And why does my calendar say
Nam myoho renge kyo
Across the bottom???
That’s the title
Of the historical Buddha’s
Last teaching,
The Lotus Sutra.
That’s what I chant
Every day…
Morning and evening…
Like breathing out
And breathing in…
To awaken my own
Buddha nature
And rejoice in the happiness
Of my everyday life…
Mud and all.

I must admit
The mud of these
Past few years
Made me think I might
Be blooming as a dandelion
Instead of the
Hoped-for-rose.
But I continue
To bloom
In my solitude…
Toes happily squishing
In each day’s mud.
...
Any new mud
For you this year?
...
If this isn't nice, what is?
              ~ Kurt Vonnegut, of course