The Wolves Inside Us

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, "My son, the battle is between two "wolves" inside us all.

One is Evil.

Iti s anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed arrogance, self-pity,

guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good.

It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness,

benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather:

"Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

-- Author unknown

Observation On Politics, Strange Bedfellow

Election Day is over (thank goodness!).

No more crazy commercials on radio and television. And no more smoke and mirrors from ad agencies using focus-group tested testimonials -- or WARNINGS -- that "Candidate A" or "Issue B" will mean the end of humanity.

The most humorous being one ad I watched online where the opponents of a statewide issue dominated their negative ad with scary comments on how "out-of-state special interests" that can't be trusted would wreak havoc upon the residents of the state if that particular issue passed.

Curious, I dug a little deeper, only to find out that the folks behind the warning ad were -- surprise! surprise!) a second "out-of-state special interest" group that hadn't been invited to play in the sandbox regarding that particular issue.

Jealousy? Just business?

One thing it is is irony....

SkyWatch Friday -- aka Gray Friday

A gray rainy day over the Great Lakes region of the United States.

The leaves of a "firebush" accented nicely against the brilliant colors of a sugar maple. Accented against....that gray sky.

Hey, at least its the weekend!

Sign Of The Season

Spotted in a flower bed during a special walk the day before yesterday. A walk that clarified for me some things I have neglected too long to do. Things I was meant to do. Lifechanging things.

Beautiful, just like what's ahead.....

SkyWatch Friday

Alright, this is the white balanced image. It works much better and truly "pops." THIS IS WHAT I SAW....too bad the initial image I posted below did not reflect that.

Ok, I will admit I "helped" this image along ..... a bit. I did place the gorgeous red maple leaf's stem in the holds of the sign post. Then I started shooting from different angles to see what I would get.

I really like this image of the sky, but am frustrated because I haven't been able to get the photo property white-balanced. I don't know if this is the best I can do, or whether I have a software/hardware problem that is carried over from the horrific Goodyear vs. Toshiba event of a couple weeks ago.



Be sure to check out the work of other "SkyWatchers" by going to SkyWatch Friday!

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One of the best photos I have "made" is yet to come....

Well, at least I think its cool....

If I could only get it loaded from my camera onto the computer. ARGH!!!

Blank

Empty, unfocused, scattered, trying to juggle too many projects.

Writer's block for the past 36 hours. Hah....doesn't sound like I'm much of a budding novelist now, does it? Still in the office. Just got out of a meeting with a client who has done more to hold up a deal than the guy on the other end of the transaction. Since June, it has been in my client's best interest to move forward, and he continues to be greedy and stall the deal.

I worried this day was coming. Unfortunately, his greed turned around on him today. It turns out he owes a lot more money to creditors than he originally let on. For one, in a search I found here are numerous undisclosed liens on equipment he owns. And today, the IRS came-a-calling.

Thankfully, several other projects that had been stalled are suddenly and rapidly moving forward toward completion. But with this one, seven months of work and negotiation may be for nought. No wonder my hair continues to have more and more "highlights."

Gray IS a highlight, right?

NaNoWriMo

I have always said that somewhere deep in me, pretty deep I would guess (I've had lots of inspiration but am still waiting for that brilliant brainstorm for a topic) .... there is a novel.

Next month is as good as any to start. NaNoWriMo gives writers license to just try it on the fly. No embarrassment. No apologies. Just put something down. Fifty-thousand words worth between November 1 and November 30. Its about quantity, not quality, according to the organizers. I'm a little too anal to just leave it at that and will probably write and rewrite and rewrite.

Still, this looks like a fun project to keep me occupied through the month of November.

Oh, the funny acronym? National Novel Writing Month, aka "30 days and nights of literary abandon."

Dusting Off The Pipes

This is kind of cool, and EnigmaDaughter is psyched.

During a telephone call last night she and I were asked to be part of a small "family" chorus to sing two songs during the 200th anniversary of my mom's home church. I was part of a group of seven who sang at the church's 175th anniversary celebration 25 years ago.

These baritone/second tenor pipes haven't been used a lot during the past decade, however. I was heavily involved in choruses and ensembles during high school and college, then followed that up with some dabbling in organized barbershop music. But not a lot in recent years, other than some warbling in the shower, harmonizing to the car stereo, or singing along with someone special. My daughter on the other hand until recent months was singing in organized choruses, first in middle school and then after she entered high school she sang with a regional youth choir that drew kids from several counties. A strong soprano for just 15 years old.

Two songs are on the agenda for the early afternoon performance that takes place a week from this coming Sunday.

The first song is a sacred piece with a title I can't recall. The second piece, however, is one I REALLY cannot wait to jump into -- "Operator," originally recorded by the well-known jazz quartet, The Manhattan Transfer. As I have written previously, I'm not religious, and have no connection to this church other than some 200 years of familial history. BUT, I have ALWAYS loved good, solid, well written gospel music with smokin' tight harmonies. And this fits the bill!



Knowing the talent of the others I am told will be involved (several relatives have a lot of musical talent), we will definitely kick some ass (can you say that about church music?)! Already, one of my younger relations has dubbed our little group "C9." EnigmaMom asked what it means.

"Mom, its sort of a joke. Its code for "Cousins 9." She looked blank. "Get it? A double-quartet plus one?" At this point she rolled her eyes, then grinned.

Of course, if we were just four, we would be C-4. Explosive, baby....explosive! Heh.

We'll strive for explosive anyway! Though I'm not so sure about whether decorum in a church affiliated with Southern Baptists will permit the dance moves...LOL!

I Looked Up

Every now and then when I post a SkyWatch Friday photo, I make note that we should look "up" more often because we are often missing things.

So, every now and then, I am going to post a photo I made when I "looked up." Yesterday, while wandering around an old building for sale in a neighborhood where I walk occasionally, I saw this great viburnum bush growing out of control alongside the structure. A great old place that needs the right TLC to bring it back to its glory days, the building now seems to be home to various flora and fauna. So, without further ado, here is my first contribution to "I Looked Up."

A cold, but sunny day finds two wasps on a vibernum leaf. What I called a "leatherleaf" when I was growing up.

YIKES!

Crown popped off this AM.

Thankfully in the BOB bag (yes it is redundant) in the vehicle I've got some temporary lost filling filler/crown cement.

Its back on but feels funny. And of course, my dentist is on the golf course this morning.....