I promise to tell you all about sessions soon. The Zoom ones like today wear me out, so it is nap time! My Songs page is back on the menu if you want to hear some of my songs.
Category: Journal
Dog Days
Every year July and August – those dreaded dog days.
Never have I ever heard anyone say, “I love dog days!” Jada wants no part of them outside. She much prefers to stay inside lying on the cool hardwood floor, her bed, or the couch.
When I was growing up, spending my summers in the country with my grandparents or cousins, I thought dog days meant days so hot the dogs did not want to do anything but laze round in the shade. We were lazy, too. Our clothes and hair were damp, or even wet, with sweat if we had to do anything in the sun. I do not remember being told to keep hydrated, but I do remember drinking a lot of tea.
In Alabama, Dog days are getting hotter and hotter. Today it is 94 degrees Fahrenheit with a heat index of105F (40.5C). I dare say anyone or anything who has to be outside is suffering. I have not tried frying an egg on my concrete but maybe could. I do know I can not walk barefoot on my concrete.
I found this butterfly on one of my zinnias this morning. Likely the heat compromised his wings.
The term dog days goes back much farther than those hot summer July and August days of my youth. In ancient Greek, dog days began when the bright star Sirius, the dog star, rose in the sky. I do not have enough imagination to see a dog in the constellation, but the ancient Greeks did.
Go to DogTime.com for images and explanation of the history of the term. I am going to keep my growing-up-in-Alabama definition, make some tea, and go sit under a shade tree though and sweat.
https://dogtime.com/lifestyle/65835-dog-days-of-summer
If you are interested in Astrology…https://web.pa.msu.edu/people/horvatin/Astronomy_Facts/constellation_pages/canis_major.htm
You Know You Gotta Friend
Mark Narmore and I sat, both masked, in my backyard under a shade tree this morning and talked like old friends do. We have Zoomed, but this was our first true visit since March. In fact, this was my first visit with anyone other than family since then. We agreed you know you have a true friend when they will mask for you.
Later Will McFarlane came by, and we visited under my shade tree. There are many people I would like to see, but a few I need to see. Mark and Will are two I need to see.
How Will I Be Remembered
I am working on this one. Help me out by giving me your thoughts in a reply. For what do you think I will be remembered? Leslie Paul interviewed me this morning for his radio talk show, Leslie Paul’s Hour. I rambled and was unfiltered. Hopefully this will be more thought out and succinct.
Get me out of this vacuum!
Please, follow this blog and leave comments. I am missing the interaction and feedback now that I am on social media break. This feels somewhat like a vacuum .
Instead of quick Facebook posts, generally not edited, I want to find my style and my voice for the novel I plan to write. To do so, I have to slow down and not be so quick and careless.
July 15, 2020
I spend the day down the rabbit hole of this blog. I have created blogs before, but a lot has changed and I have forgotten a lot.
Nine Years Later
I started this blog thirty-eight days before I retired but have posted only once. I am not going to catch you up on the last nine years other than none was as challenging as this one. Cocid19. I do not want to go there today. I am on break from all social media because posts and photos increased my stress level. However, I miss sharing photos, thoughts, and links, so here we are.
The Other Side of This Hill
I am thirty-nine days away from retirement. Close enough to wonder what I’ll do when the counting is over. Hopefully some exploring and some resting. I am hoping for a lot of hills and not so many mountains.
I am ready for any hills on the other side of this hill. My new motto – No Hill Too High for a Stepper.
Stephanie C Brown 