Thursday Thirteen

Stuff on my mind . . .

1. My friend Diane over at Blue Ridge Gal has authored a great response to the current political debate and explains why she votes the way she does. I agree with every word. Please go read it. I vote for women's rights, like she does, before anything else. That includes an economic policy that has a safety net and helps the poor, because most of the poor in the United States are women. In 2010, there were 4 million more women living in poverty than men. If you are not in favor of helping the poor, you are not in favor of helping women. One party in particular is not in favor of helping either the poor or women. That party will not get my vote.

One of my friend's sculptures

2. I have an artist friend who is very ill. She makes sculptures, and her work is outstanding. That she still lives is a miracle in and of itself. I think of her a lot. I wish people did not hurt.


3. I can no longer upload photos to my blog using Internet Explorer and have to switch to a different browser. I can't tell you how frustrating this is. For example, I started this entry in Internet Explorer but had to switch over to FireFox after trying yet again - and failing - to upload a photo in IE.

4. I stopped using Google for my searches after I realized that, for whatever reason, I couldn't take the browser back to my searches and was stuck on a web page. It doesn't happen with any other search engine but google.

5. My personal opinion, based on #3 and #4 above, is that either Microsoft has configured its browser not to work well with Google products, or Google has configured its products not to work well with Microsoft. After all, Google has its own browser. The problem with uploading photos began after an automatic download from Microsoft. Thoughts?

6. Last night just for fun we checked out new cars. I drove a Toyota Camry and a Venza. Sweet rides, both. No plans to buy soon, but looking is good. The Venza is a surprisingly nice vehicle and will certainly have to be considered when the time comes for new wheels. It is all-wheel drive and that might be useful during a snowy winter.

7. Also last night I found a woman's wedding ring in a bathroom stall at a restaurant. It was a dainty 14K white gold band with engraving inside that I was unable to make out. I turned it over to the management and left my business card. Later I looked up a similar band online and found it is probably worth about $100.

8. Students everywhere are going back to school. I have watched them somewhat longingly. I will always be a student at heart and learning is an important part of my life. Have fun, kiddies!

9. The song, The World I Know, as sung by Collective Soul, keeps running through my brain these days. I don't know why. It's an old song. But I think it points towards something I feel in the air right now.

10. How long is a promise good for? If you made a promise 25 years ago to someone you don't even see anymore, does it still hold true?

11. I visited the dentist yesterday and received a good check up. The night before, I dreamed that I was in the chair but then I bolted halfway through, running out with the napkin thing for dribbles still draped around my neck. I woke up in a sweat. Fortunately that dream did not come true.

12. I have a set of rune stones for creative people that I found in a book store a long time ago. Sometimes I draw a stone and study it. This morning I drew out the moon. It means dream time - honor your dreams. Good advice.

13. One year when I was using these stones, I continually drew out a single one - a whirlwind, meaning chaos, for weeks. There are 20 different runes so I should have drawn something else occasionally. At the time my life was in a state of change and flux and the stone was appropriate. After a while I started wanting to see a different stone, though, and I was glad when that run came to an end.

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 256th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.