driving home next to a lit-up christmas car
way deep in the holiday spirit
is that santa
out for a night on the town?
—
‘following the well-lit path, offers little in the way of magic.’
-seth godin
Dec5
lit.
Author Archives: beth
Dec4
shop with a cop II – holiday edition.
for the second time
i’ve had the honor of volunteering
with local law enforcement officers, firefighters, marines,
first responders, heroes of all kinds,
community members
athletes from university sports teams
all there to host children from across the area
from families who are underserved in our surrounding community
the parents receive a stocking filled with gift cards
for gas, food, things for home, other things they want or need
the children stay with us
for an afternoon/evening of fun, food, activities, a santa visit,
and holiday shopping
for loved ones,
for warm outdoor winter wear for themselves,
holiday pajamas, cuddlies,
for things on their dream wish list,
(we find some things to pass on to a parent to give them from santa for holiday gifts)
along with some other things they’ve been hoping for or need
so joyful to see
most children wanted to buy things for those they loved first
we had to steer them back to also choosing some things for themselves
these are children who struggle
yet still understand the joy found in giving to others
j, the little guy who was trusted with myself and a young sherriff’s officer
said his mom’s very favorite thing in the world was mountain dew
he chose this as the first thing to put in our cart
he also bought some toys for his two cats
but just wrote ‘to: cats’ on the tag
so they would both share them
for ‘papa-grandpa’, some chicken noodle soup
j is an only child, raised by a single parent
he’s not had an easy life
yet, he has a gentle spirit
watched the fish in the tanks for a long while
wanted to take them home and let them go
‘because they are prisoners in there’
loves nature, being outside, running,
catching minnows and letting them go,
fishing and letting them go,
and everything at recess
he played hide and seek in the store with us
laughed with no filter
seemed to love every minute where his role
was to just be a child, enjoy all the fun, he certainly deserves it all
even the giant sugar cookie he decorated
with all of the five colors of frosting on it
and every kind of sprinkle.
—-
“the greatness of a community is most accurately measured
by the compassionate actions of its members.’
-coretta scott king
Dec3
a simple wish.
december
the gingko tree
under a cold blue sky
in a spectacular moment
drops its golden canopy
over tiny hints of snow
gracefully welcoming
the coming of the next season.
—
‘december is a simple wish that brings spectacular moments.’
-author unknown
Dec2
Love is love.
—-
i was so hoping that olive and pete the cat would bond
two cats rescued at different times
both in dubious circumstances
couldn’t be more different
each with their quirks and gifts
now home together.
—
‘home is not a place, it’s a feeling.’
-cecilia ahern
Dec1
mrs. ticklefeather is missing.
this is a reblog, as this book arrived and was promptly lost
at the detroit post office 3 years ago, and i’m hoping maybe it will arrive this year!
—
as a collector of the classic golden books
i am endlessly fascinated
by their history, artwork, authors, short tales, and backstories
i finally found and ordered one i’d been looking for
“lucky mrs. ticklefeather”
which seems to have quickly made it’s way through multiple cities
only to land in detroit a few weeks ago
where is has remained
stuck in an ‘in transit’ status
ever since its arrival.
will *mrs. ticklefeather ever be found?
is she still considered lucky?
is there a rival golden book collector near me
looking for the same book?
does paul her pet puffin, have anything to do with this?
it remains to be seen and i remain hopeful
this story isn’t over yet.
—
*Book summary – Rare ~~ Mrs. Ticklefeather was a very thin old lady with a good sized feather in her hat, and on her feet she had tall black shoes with plenty of buttons. She lived on the top floor of a terribly high building because the top floor is the best place for getting sunshine, and, Oh, what a good thing sunshine is for thin old ladies. When her pet puffin, Paul, goes missing, the elderly Mrs. Ticklefeather becomes very upset, but the next day Paul returns and brings with him a special gift that brings her great and unexpected happiness. Great illustrations in mid- century yet modern style.
—
“hope is the last thing ever lost.”
italian proverb
Nov30
over-sharing over the counter.
i stopped into a cvs store the other day and before cashing out, i asked the employee at the register if he had change for a $50 bill. i was only buying one item for $1.98, and really didn’t want to charge that small amount.
his answer was, ‘of course I do, we’re not 7-11!’
of course he did! what was I even thinking? there must be a secret hierarchy of stores that i am unaware of.
he then casually threw out an additional statement, seemingly out of the blue: ‘my brother in-law held up 3 liquor stores yesterday.’
i took in what he said, unsure of exactly sure how to respond to it, as i don’t have a lot of personal hold-up experience, but wanted to acknowledge it, and all i could come up with was, ‘did he get caught?’
he answered ‘hell, no, and that’s why he’ll keep doing it.’
a very good point, and i believe he was right to assume that.
when i thought about this later, I wondered if this was perhaps all triggered by me asking if he had enough cash in the drawer to give me change from my $50. or maybe he just needed to tell someone what happened. either way, i’m glad that he had someone to tell and to share what was on his mind.
i gave him the $50 bill, he rang me up, gave me $48.02 back. i thanked him and wished him well, as he called the next customer up to his register.
—
‘oversharing is how you leak the energy. privacy is protection.’
-author unknown
Nov29
only human.
many of us learn by trial and error
myself included
—
“the problem with people is that they’re only human.”
— hobbes, from “Calvin & Hobbes,” on the limitations of humanity
– bill waterson
—
image credit: gary larson, the far side
Nov28
thankful on thanksgiving.
welcome all to the feast.
—
“thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude.
gratitude is the completion of thankfulness.
thankfulness may consist merely of words.
gratitude is shown in acts.”
– henri frederic amiel
—
art credit: william heath robinson, 1925, pen and watercolour ; Exhibition. Fairies in Illustration
Nov27
banned!
amazing
that my humor post about losing my glasses
was banned from facebook and put in jail
maybe the bot who banned it didn’t have its glasses on
i really don’t think
it would lure in any unsuspecting readers or be a danger to anyone
is it me?
or maybe there’s something i’m not seeing clearly.
—
‘i’m actually banned from the himalayas, because I’m too good at yoga.’
*judah friedlander
—
*Judah Friedlander is an American actor and stand-up comedian,
known for playing the role of writer Frank Rossitano on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock.
—
UPDATE:
today, within a couple of minutes of me posting this post
about them banning my post from yesterday,
i got a note from facebook banning this post, as well.
Nov26
at least i know they are lost somewhere.
when i lose my glasses i refer back to this chart to help me to find them
—
‘the worst part about losing your glasses
is that you don’t have your glasses to help you find your glasses.’
