Author Archives: beth

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About beth

Ann Arbor-ite writes about enjoying life with all of its ironies and surprises.

connection.

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nimble.com

it was an ordinary summer’s day

and began with

a trip to the doc

who was out

so i met a partner

who was very shy

but who smiled

in spite of himself

as he handed me

a ‘good patient’ princess sticker

then off to the apple store

where a ‘genius’

gave me an hour and a half

of his time

without complaint

while smiling

answering all of my questions

with patience

 no attitude

later on my walk downtown

 i watched

a hearty construction worker

on his lunch break

reach into his pocket

pull out a dollar

gently bend down

give it to a homeless man

right in his hand

next

i saw

 a very young and skinny

chain restaurant worker

with his company t-shirt on

hand some of his tip money

to another street person

and i continued on

where i crossed paths with

a hot dog stand guy

who gave me a nod and a friendly wink

crinkling up his eyes as he smiled

and with each interaction

it felt like people

were doing their best

to stretch a little bit

out of their comfort zone

in an effort

to reach out and touch others

to make a small gesture

and making a larger impact

than they ever imagined.

—–
“the real energy occurs in each connection between two people,

which can bring about exponential returns.”

– tom rath

image credit: nimble.com

“some of the best memories are made in flip flops.” ― kellie elmore

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IMG_0202 (1)a flip-flopped family makes memories as they head to

the giant water slide event on the streets of ann arbor


“600 feet of sweet, slippery vinyl for you to slide away all your summertime sadness.

You’ll never look at your streets the same way again.”

– slide the city

find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough.
– emily dickinson

 

ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom. – marilyn ferguson

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happy 4th of july from the u.s.a.

very proud that my country chose freedom over fear

“dogs have boundless enthusiasm but no sense of shame. i should have a dog as a life coach.” – moby

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JULY 3: THE START OF THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER

“dog days” originally referred to the period of the summer

when  sirius, the dog star rose each day around the same time as the sun.

even though the two events don’t line up around this time as perfectly anymore,

it’s still the name given to

 the really, really hot stretch of summer from july 3 to august 11.

credits: googleimages, moby

700.

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01 700 Posts Published 

as of today

looks like i share this special number with some very diverse company:

fireworks, guns, comedians, romantic skeletons,

piles of poop,

knights, and the religious right

who could ask for more?

700 AD Chinese Invent Gunpowder

The Chinese combined saltpeter, sulpher, and carbon to create gun powder. The Chinese used gun powder primarily for fireworks.

700-Year-Old Skeletons Found Holding Hands –

For one medieval couple, “till death do us part” wasn’t nearly long enough. A team of archeologists excavating the Chapel of St. Morrell in England’s Leicestershire County recently discovered two skeletons buried with their arms entwined. Believed to be a destination for pilgrims in the 14th century, the chapel was “lost” for centuries before being rediscovered by a local historian.

Barrels of 700-year-old poop found in Denmark –

Archaeologists excavating I. Vilhelm Werners Square in Hans Christian Andersen’s hometown of Odense, Denmark, are delighted to have found barrels full of medieval excrement. Poop is a boon to modern archaeology because it can tell us more about the daily lives of past people than golden treasures, and this particular poop is very well preserved thanks to having been buried in an oxygen-poor environment.
700-Year-Old William Wallace Letter Finally Reaches Scotland

Few traces remain of Scottish hero William Wallace, the medieval knight who fought against English oppression until his 1305 execution and later inspired the 1995 blockbuster “Braveheart.” Now, after spending the last seven centuries in England, one of two surviving documents associated with the legendary warrior will go on display this August at the Scottish Parliament.

The Remington 700 –
When Remington introduced the Model 700 in 1962, advertising it as “the world’s strongest bolt action,” sales were swift and immediate. Its good looks, light recoil, and strong accuracy for the money, combined with Winchester’s move to a push-feed action in 1964, put the 700 on a path to dominance.

700 Sundays (2014) –

In 700 Sundays, legendary comedian and actor Billy Crystal tells the stories of his youth, growing up in the jazz world of Manhattan, his teenage years, and finally adulthood.

The 700 Club (1966– ) –

Television talk show dedicated to bringing stories, guests, news, and much more from a Christian perspective.

 

credits: the history channel, wordpress.com, entertainment channel

as day turns to dusk on the detroit river.

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so sinks the day-star in the ocean bed,


and yet anon repairs his drooping head,


and tricks his beams,

and with new-spangled ore,


flames in the forehead of the morning sky.


~john milton

—-

credits: john milton, detroit renaissance

fruit only angers my need for chocolate. ~ jason love

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happy international fruit day!!

oh! canada?

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we set out on a 2-hour tour

not unlike

 *’gilligan’s island’

all kinds of us

togethe

with high hopes

for a grand day

on the detroit river

a natural boundary

between

the united states

and

canada

and were

met with

gale force winds

and

torrential downpours

and slippery decks

but we made the best of the rough seas

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most people are rowing against the current of life.

instead of turning the boat around,

all they need to do is let go of the oars.
– esther hicks

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and this guy

jack

our mascot for the day

survived

a bit the worse for wear

paper mache mashed

one eye blown off

quickly balding

open wounds

but

like jack

we all hung in there

(nowhere to get off really)

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and it was a grand adventure

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we may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.
– martin luther king, jr.

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canada is like a loft apartment over a really great party.
– robin williams

happy canada day to our very friendly neighbors!

*gilligan’s island backstory:

IT WAS INTENDED TO BE A “METAPHORICAL SHAMING OF WORLD POLITICS.”
One day in a public speaking class at New York University, the professor had students compose an impromptu one-minute speech on this topic: If you were stranded on a desert island, what one item would you like to have? Sherwood Schwartz (the show’s creator), was a student in that class, and the question so intrigued him that it remained lodged in the back of his mind for many years.
After working for some time as a comedy writer for other shows, Schwartz decided to pitch his own idea for a sitcom. Thinking back to that desert island question, he thought it would make for an interesting dynamic to have a group of very dissimilar individuals stranded together and have to learn to live and work together. The island would be “a social microcosm and a metaphorical shaming of world politics in the sense that when necessary for survival, yes we can all get along,” Schwartz explained in Inside Gilligan’s Island: From Creation to Syndication. Schwartz quickly discovered after his first few pitch meetings that words like “microcosm” and “metaphor” were not very helpful when trying to sell a comedy.

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credits: cbs television, mental floss, sherwood schwartz, diamond jack boats

 

 

a gift from the universe.

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we’re getting a leap second today

because the earth is taking an extra .002 seconds to rotate.

use it wisely.

man, if you gotta ask you’ll never know. – louis armstrong

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unnamed

indeed.