...'to unite or grow together, to come together for a common purpose'. It came to mind when reading an article in a recent TIME magazine, about popular media. Written by Judy Berman (who might be a media critic) after viewing an FX show, the comedy 'Better Things'. I wrote down a portion of a sentence to ponder.
Not being a consumer of any video or action packed media, I do not know what the program or show or series is about, but reading piqued my interest. Not enough to go back to Mediacom and sign up for cable, but some small degree of curiosity. I just recently went through a convoluted process of finally getting them to take everything off that can be seen on the big screen television that sits on the shelf in my house.
You know I am the person who lives with electronic devices I do not know how to use, cannot even turn it on. I do not see any point in paying over $100 every month for something I don't use. My house is not the place to visit, with the expectation we will sit and watch TV. I can read, or put stuff on the blog (which lately cannot be accessed by my admirers as it has some sort of dread bug I have not figured out how to destroy/remove/cleanse.) Also there is the option of just going to bed, which is often a very good choice in order to be at work at five or six a.m.
The quote, excerpted from a short two column article by J. Berman: ..."you don't notice narratives coalescing until they are fully formed." Made in reference to the story line as scriptwriters brainstorm for a broadcast program on FX. But it made me think about: Life. How we don't see things coming together in mundane daily occurrences, until we have the vantage point of being able to look back on situations and circumstances and observe that 'coming together'. You might want to attribute that unexpected confluence to harmonic convergence. You might believe in luck, or just happenstance.
You might choose to believe something to be preordained, as it was simply inevitable. Or in a more negative mode, you would think yourself to be in an equally inevitable situation of feeling doomed, with no hope of delivery, but none-the-less a series of events leading to a foreordained destiny. Either a positive outcome or a negative one, still it is what happens when you believe the fortune cookie: Fate.
Not me. I believe a power far greater than humans has influence in our lives. The Great Mystery (a term often found in use by Native Americans to explain the unexplainable) leads us in our daily lives, pointing us towards a future we are not yet prepared to examine or understand. We plod through our lives daily, with our heads down, looking at our feet, rarely seeing the wonders of our surroundings, seldom lifting our eyes to look at the miracles each day presents. When you see the dependably returning miracles of spring, how can you not believe in God?
The wording may be a little off, as I cannot quote directly, but this is from a Tony Hillerman book: 'If you think things happen at random, you are looking at life from the wrong perspective'. So - I am convinced every thing happens for a reason.
Saturday, March 2, 2019
on the road again...
... after several months of staying fairly close to home, other than those exhausting trips made in one day to Valdosta and back, tending to the business of guardianship of the Auntie. For several years I have enjoyed monthly visits to Chattanooga, and taking the time to drive to TN and hang out with family. We put our heads together over the holidays or early in the new year along with freshly minted calendars and pick a weekend each month when I can take time off and make the drive to visit on a weekend. Some of the trips will entail a specific event or project, while others have no reason other than being together, time spent enjoying being with entertaining people.
We went to the Tennessee Aquarium last night for a special event. If you are out in the retail world at all, you are aware that this time of year is Girl Scout Cookie season. Young Scouts will be standing near the entrance to shops, stores, eateries, commercial enterprises by folding tables laden with the current assortment of cookies available for purchase. You should always ask these girls what they plan to do with the funds they will receive after expenses are paid, and how they are going to use these resources for the betterment of their group or the world at large. The girls are expected to have well-thought-out answers, and concrete plans for how their plans will be implemented. Part of cookie sales is the training to handle finances, considering how they will use the profits after they pay for the goods, and what they can do to make the world a better place with the resources they have available.
The event last night at the Aquarium 'Cookie Creations' was an opportunity to sample foods that had cookies as an ingredient. A local catering firm was hired to provide the goods, making up recipes that had one of seven types of Girl Scout Cookies. From shrimp that was baked with a cookie coating, to meatballs incorporating cookies and waffles with cookie crumbs in the batter - all good eats. Then we went on a tour of the fishes, where there were cookie and beer parings! I am not a beer aficionado, but determined to not miss out on anything: willingly sampled every offering. Admittedly the cookies provided at every stop were the best part, I did taste a variety of new beers I would have never otherwise tried.
I've not been to visit the fishes for years, and enjoyed walking through the exhibits. Some amazingly huge amphibians, interesting displays, fascinating turtle lore, creepy reptiles and huge tanks with large captive specimens, calmly swimming day and night. Really a treat to walk through when the place is not bursting with the pandemonium that accompanies small children, chaotic school tours, noisy conversation, rowdy field trip participants and bustling baby carriages.
We went to the Tennessee Aquarium last night for a special event. If you are out in the retail world at all, you are aware that this time of year is Girl Scout Cookie season. Young Scouts will be standing near the entrance to shops, stores, eateries, commercial enterprises by folding tables laden with the current assortment of cookies available for purchase. You should always ask these girls what they plan to do with the funds they will receive after expenses are paid, and how they are going to use these resources for the betterment of their group or the world at large. The girls are expected to have well-thought-out answers, and concrete plans for how their plans will be implemented. Part of cookie sales is the training to handle finances, considering how they will use the profits after they pay for the goods, and what they can do to make the world a better place with the resources they have available.
The event last night at the Aquarium 'Cookie Creations' was an opportunity to sample foods that had cookies as an ingredient. A local catering firm was hired to provide the goods, making up recipes that had one of seven types of Girl Scout Cookies. From shrimp that was baked with a cookie coating, to meatballs incorporating cookies and waffles with cookie crumbs in the batter - all good eats. Then we went on a tour of the fishes, where there were cookie and beer parings! I am not a beer aficionado, but determined to not miss out on anything: willingly sampled every offering. Admittedly the cookies provided at every stop were the best part, I did taste a variety of new beers I would have never otherwise tried.
I've not been to visit the fishes for years, and enjoyed walking through the exhibits. Some amazingly huge amphibians, interesting displays, fascinating turtle lore, creepy reptiles and huge tanks with large captive specimens, calmly swimming day and night. Really a treat to walk through when the place is not bursting with the pandemonium that accompanies small children, chaotic school tours, noisy conversation, rowdy field trip participants and bustling baby carriages.
about that swim meet...
... where I did another stint of volunteering on Friday. The meet at the Aquatics Center was continuing on Friday, and I offered to donate half of my day to the event. Meaning I had to be on site at 7:30, and would serve as a volunteer for the first shift. The program of events was planned to give everyone from competitors to cleaning crew a break in the middle of the day.Allowing the students and coaches to leave the premises to get lunch, and dry out before the second half of the planned relays/medleys and singles events.
Competitive swimming is something that has never caught my interest, so I do not know anything about it. My knowledge is practically non-existent, other than occasionally seeing the cream of the crop when televised with world class athletes. In order to have the skills they do, they start young and commit to years of daily practice, developing speed. as their bodies mature. Like getting to the national level of competition in any arena, it takes devotion, dedication, and years of getting up early before classes. Being a diligent student, then returning to more practice after school, weekends spent traveling and a willingness to give up other things with greater appeal to young people.
There were dozens of young people I saw in my time on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning at the NAIA meet. (National Association of Independent Athletes? I never asked, and everyone assumed I was far more knowledgeable than I was!) From colleges I was unfamiliar with, arriving in middle Georgia in those big charter-type buses from all over the US. I asked a swimmer if most of the attendees would be on athletic scholarships and she said yes. Smaller, independent colleges, who still want to participate in national events, but may not have the resources to produce powerhouse football teams yet still want to be visible, make a name for themselves in the world of sports.
I was sitting in a wide hallway area with benches and space for teams to gather. My job was to guard a door, refuse entry to anyone who wanted to pass through. The door is actually the entrance to a short hallway where there are lockers lining the walls, and four 'family' style changing rooms. Now being used, during this event as a space for the people who perform drug-testing to do their secretive work. I was instructed to tell anyone attempting to open the doors there was 'no entry'. The signs posted indicated the doors were not to be opened, but you would be surprised at the number of people who either cannot read, think it does apply to them or do not know the meaning of 'No'. My job was to tell them: 'No'.
It was really dull, but I had book and spent several hours on Thursday afternoon reading. Also walking to and fro in that small space so I could keep an eye on my assignment, while getting some exercise. There was plenty of foot traffic, athletes, coaches, parents, supporters, employees of the parks and rec. department, law enforcement, but most ignored me. Though it appeared to be a pointless endeavor, I was assured it was a very important job, necessary to keep the door closed and the people within uninterrupted in their work.
Competitive swimming is something that has never caught my interest, so I do not know anything about it. My knowledge is practically non-existent, other than occasionally seeing the cream of the crop when televised with world class athletes. In order to have the skills they do, they start young and commit to years of daily practice, developing speed. as their bodies mature. Like getting to the national level of competition in any arena, it takes devotion, dedication, and years of getting up early before classes. Being a diligent student, then returning to more practice after school, weekends spent traveling and a willingness to give up other things with greater appeal to young people.
There were dozens of young people I saw in my time on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning at the NAIA meet. (National Association of Independent Athletes? I never asked, and everyone assumed I was far more knowledgeable than I was!) From colleges I was unfamiliar with, arriving in middle Georgia in those big charter-type buses from all over the US. I asked a swimmer if most of the attendees would be on athletic scholarships and she said yes. Smaller, independent colleges, who still want to participate in national events, but may not have the resources to produce powerhouse football teams yet still want to be visible, make a name for themselves in the world of sports.
I was sitting in a wide hallway area with benches and space for teams to gather. My job was to guard a door, refuse entry to anyone who wanted to pass through. The door is actually the entrance to a short hallway where there are lockers lining the walls, and four 'family' style changing rooms. Now being used, during this event as a space for the people who perform drug-testing to do their secretive work. I was instructed to tell anyone attempting to open the doors there was 'no entry'. The signs posted indicated the doors were not to be opened, but you would be surprised at the number of people who either cannot read, think it does apply to them or do not know the meaning of 'No'. My job was to tell them: 'No'.
It was really dull, but I had book and spent several hours on Thursday afternoon reading. Also walking to and fro in that small space so I could keep an eye on my assignment, while getting some exercise. There was plenty of foot traffic, athletes, coaches, parents, supporters, employees of the parks and rec. department, law enforcement, but most ignored me. Though it appeared to be a pointless endeavor, I was assured it was a very important job, necessary to keep the door closed and the people within uninterrupted in their work.
Thursday, February 28, 2019
volunteering...
... today for the Sports Council. This is the organization that was started from scratch back in 1996 when the Olympics were held in Georgia. Women's Fastpitch Softball was proposed as a new addition to the competition, and games were held here, with teams from all over the world coming to compete for Olympic Gold.
My job assignment was probably the most worst boring volunteer position ever. Sitting by a door and telling people they cannot open this door. Few actually wanted to go in, and the ones who heard 'sorry, you cannot go in', were remarkably agreeable, taking the long way around instead of that handy short cut. The organizers had actually blocked off a breezeway (fortunately not an exit or the fire marshal would have been standing on his head), to use that small space for people who set up drug testing. I guess that has started to be an issue in any competition, with required proof to keep everyone on the up and up. Sad that this has become necessary to prevent cheating in collegiate sports and performance enhancing drugs at bay.
I was there from 2:30 until 8:00. I am very thankful I had a book in my car. One I had started months ago,but left in my car and never went back to finish. The venue for the swim meet was the city aquatics center, close to the main branch of the public library: a building filled with things to read!
It was the NAIA Championships. I have no idea what that means, but there were college age swimmers from all over the US there competing. Bringing dollars into town when they came for the event, staying in motel rooms and eating Georgia food.
I will go back in the morning at 7:30 until noon. I plan to take my computer so I can keep boredom at bay, even if it requires watching hours of lame, cheezy YouTube videos. Or blogging, pondering the universe...
My job assignment was probably the most worst boring volunteer position ever. Sitting by a door and telling people they cannot open this door. Few actually wanted to go in, and the ones who heard 'sorry, you cannot go in', were remarkably agreeable, taking the long way around instead of that handy short cut. The organizers had actually blocked off a breezeway (fortunately not an exit or the fire marshal would have been standing on his head), to use that small space for people who set up drug testing. I guess that has started to be an issue in any competition, with required proof to keep everyone on the up and up. Sad that this has become necessary to prevent cheating in collegiate sports and performance enhancing drugs at bay.
I was there from 2:30 until 8:00. I am very thankful I had a book in my car. One I had started months ago,but left in my car and never went back to finish. The venue for the swim meet was the city aquatics center, close to the main branch of the public library: a building filled with things to read!
It was the NAIA Championships. I have no idea what that means, but there were college age swimmers from all over the US there competing. Bringing dollars into town when they came for the event, staying in motel rooms and eating Georgia food.
I will go back in the morning at 7:30 until noon. I plan to take my computer so I can keep boredom at bay, even if it requires watching hours of lame, cheezy YouTube videos. Or blogging, pondering the universe...
found: my personal banker...
... at the branch near the mall, where I was greeted, assisted, and made to feel like a valued customer. I had such a crummy experience when I stopped in the branch that would be most convenient I had to wonder if it would be best to change to a different financial institution. But went to the bank a bit less accessible for my needs, and closer in to town, and met with someone who was amazingly helpful and seemed truly interested in problem solving with me. So, yay, I have found myself a banker who I can work with, someone who knows people that can help me get the info. I need.
I recall when we first entered the world of social security payments, and discovered that it is 'income' even though you are just getting back the funds you were taxed and paid into the system all those working years. So unless you set aside a portion for Uncle Sam's needs you will be in the hole at income tax time. Pretty annoying to feel like you are being taxed within an inch of your life/sanity. I decided when I signed on early, that the best idea would be to open a savings account linked to checking in order to have funds transferred monthly as a cushion, a form of insurance, when the time came to pony up for taxes. If I don't need it, I am building up a nest egg, but if I do end up having to fork over extra when taxes are filed, I will be prepared and it will be less painful when I can borrow from myself!
Now that my payments have increased considerably, I thought it would be wise to do the same thing with the extra funds. Especially after getting so annoyed when my tax refund from the state last year was rolled over and paid toward federal taxes due. Remember the story of when I never even got to get my greedy little hands on the hundreds of dollars I would have gotten back from GA tax refund?
I need to go back and revisit the W2 form again, and figure out what would be a reasonable, safe amount to have withheld to make it all come out more-or-less even. Get to the place where I do not owe GA or Uncle Sam, even if I do not get any back, I just do not like the idea of paying taxes out of every paycheck, and then forking over more on April 15.
I recall when we first entered the world of social security payments, and discovered that it is 'income' even though you are just getting back the funds you were taxed and paid into the system all those working years. So unless you set aside a portion for Uncle Sam's needs you will be in the hole at income tax time. Pretty annoying to feel like you are being taxed within an inch of your life/sanity. I decided when I signed on early, that the best idea would be to open a savings account linked to checking in order to have funds transferred monthly as a cushion, a form of insurance, when the time came to pony up for taxes. If I don't need it, I am building up a nest egg, but if I do end up having to fork over extra when taxes are filed, I will be prepared and it will be less painful when I can borrow from myself!
Now that my payments have increased considerably, I thought it would be wise to do the same thing with the extra funds. Especially after getting so annoyed when my tax refund from the state last year was rolled over and paid toward federal taxes due. Remember the story of when I never even got to get my greedy little hands on the hundreds of dollars I would have gotten back from GA tax refund?
I need to go back and revisit the W2 form again, and figure out what would be a reasonable, safe amount to have withheld to make it all come out more-or-less even. Get to the place where I do not owe GA or Uncle Sam, even if I do not get any back, I just do not like the idea of paying taxes out of every paycheck, and then forking over more on April 15.
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
a lot of business...
... to be done at a local bank branch, but they were not so friendly, welcoming. I finally attracted someone's attention (while being consistently well behaved), who nodded at me, and said he would be with me shortly. Apparently his definition of 'shortly' and mine are not related, as I eventually left with all that business un-done. Not 'undone' in the sense that it fell apart, but undone as it never got started, so nothing occurred to help with resolution of my concerns.
I still need to go get questions answered and problems resolved, but will take my business to another branch and hope for more positive, interactive staff at the next close-est branch when I go to establish a relationship with my personal banking representative.They just did not seem to be concerned with customer service, or interested in making an effort to be accomodating. I know I do not have big piles of cash, like Scrooge McDuck in the cartoons/comic books, when he is taking a bath in cash, swimming in his vault full of lucre. But they did not know that, or anything else about me.
I went in after work, and was in work clothing: black pants, ugly green knit shirt I have to wear on the job, and sneakers. Decent dressed: not in pajamas like I often seen shopping, pushing a grocery cart at work. I felt I looked ok, but not paint-spattered, or raggedy like you can see in the bank lobby, cashing pay checks. Cannot say if they were short-handed, under-staffed, or that sense of distracted employees is standard. They seemed to not be in a hurry to greet, or assist, so I won't be in a hurry to go back into that particular branch bank in the future.
I still need to go get questions answered and problems resolved, but will take my business to another branch and hope for more positive, interactive staff at the next close-est branch when I go to establish a relationship with my personal banking representative.They just did not seem to be concerned with customer service, or interested in making an effort to be accomodating. I know I do not have big piles of cash, like Scrooge McDuck in the cartoons/comic books, when he is taking a bath in cash, swimming in his vault full of lucre. But they did not know that, or anything else about me.
I went in after work, and was in work clothing: black pants, ugly green knit shirt I have to wear on the job, and sneakers. Decent dressed: not in pajamas like I often seen shopping, pushing a grocery cart at work. I felt I looked ok, but not paint-spattered, or raggedy like you can see in the bank lobby, cashing pay checks. Cannot say if they were short-handed, under-staffed, or that sense of distracted employees is standard. They seemed to not be in a hurry to greet, or assist, so I won't be in a hurry to go back into that particular branch bank in the future.
book review: "in Pieces"...
... a memoir by Sally Field, published in 2018. I heard a review on public radio, some time ago, that must have been the author talking about it soon after it came out, in the way that writers feel they are forced to 'do the circuit' when their books are published. Meet-and-greets, readings, signings at Barnes and Noble to push the product when their editors line up lots of opportunities for readers to have an 'in person' experience with authors.
She had an interesting life in film and television. Starting with 'Gidget' on the beaches of SoCal, and the nun who has the ability to take to the air. Then there was another made-for-TV series when she was a young woman who has ESP, scripts written to give inside info. similar to what she might have known, as per scripted stories from her experience in the convent with a direct line to heaven.
Her home life was fraught: mom divorced, raising Sally and an older brother. She then married a man who started out in acting as a stunt man. He became well known, and eventually cast in a Western series. Chaotic family life, with drinking, fighting, shouting at night, plus the man was a molester. Much to hide from, things overlooked, or ignored for many years. Plenty of opportunity for dysfunction, with ongoing therapy over most of her lifetime.
She was won an award for "Sybil," as a young woman with mental illness in a movie made with Joanne Woodward. Then made a number of light, silly movies with people like Burt Reynolds, who was dysfunction personified if we believe the version in this book. She has been acclaimed for her body of work, most recently as Mary Todd Lincoln in the movie starring Daniel Day Lewis. A stalwart in the film industry, and highly respected for her accomplishments, though put through the mill as a female actor as were many from the era.
I enjoyed the book, even though it took me several weeks to finish, having to re-check from the library a couple of times. Well written as she kept voluminous journals over the years of her acting career, and was able to provide interesting details from years ago. Some pretty damning evidence at the end as she had conversations with her mother about the step-father and experiences of her youth, but probably not nearly as uncommon as you would like to believe.
She had an interesting life in film and television. Starting with 'Gidget' on the beaches of SoCal, and the nun who has the ability to take to the air. Then there was another made-for-TV series when she was a young woman who has ESP, scripts written to give inside info. similar to what she might have known, as per scripted stories from her experience in the convent with a direct line to heaven.
Her home life was fraught: mom divorced, raising Sally and an older brother. She then married a man who started out in acting as a stunt man. He became well known, and eventually cast in a Western series. Chaotic family life, with drinking, fighting, shouting at night, plus the man was a molester. Much to hide from, things overlooked, or ignored for many years. Plenty of opportunity for dysfunction, with ongoing therapy over most of her lifetime.
She was won an award for "Sybil," as a young woman with mental illness in a movie made with Joanne Woodward. Then made a number of light, silly movies with people like Burt Reynolds, who was dysfunction personified if we believe the version in this book. She has been acclaimed for her body of work, most recently as Mary Todd Lincoln in the movie starring Daniel Day Lewis. A stalwart in the film industry, and highly respected for her accomplishments, though put through the mill as a female actor as were many from the era.
I enjoyed the book, even though it took me several weeks to finish, having to re-check from the library a couple of times. Well written as she kept voluminous journals over the years of her acting career, and was able to provide interesting details from years ago. Some pretty damning evidence at the end as she had conversations with her mother about the step-father and experiences of her youth, but probably not nearly as uncommon as you would like to believe.
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