Thursday Thirteen

1. My friend that I wrote about a few weeks ago, the one who was a sculpturer, passed away on Tuesday. Her name was Joyce. She created great beauty, something of which the world has too little. I will miss her.

2. I have a little stuffed bear wearing a t-shirt that says "Hollins University" on it sitting on my shelf at my desk. That is where I went to college, both as an undergrad and graduate.

3. I am completely out of ideas for a Thursday Thirteen today. Can you tell?

4. Autumn snuck in the other evening like a thief in the night, stealing the heat of summer out of the air. This is my favorite time of year, this fall, this time of decline. I love the slant of light, the shiver in the morning, the frost on the dying flowers.

5. I gave up on the Weight Watchers website. I did well on it last year for six months, but in December the company changed the website. I found it less helpful, less supportive, and less encouraging. A week ago I found sparkpeople.com, which is free (!) and it seems to have lots of ways to encourage you to do the things you need to reach your goals. It counts calories, not points, so it will take me a little while to convert to that, but it should be fine.

6. The clutter on my desk has reached monumental proportions. This is what happens when you hate to file. I need a time out and clean-up session (which I think will happen this afternoon).

7. I have a "license to laugh" card posted above my computer screen. I received it during a Laughing Yoga session. Laughing yoga is an interesting and unique way to exercise and feel good. It employs "self-triggered" humor and is done with games, chants, clapping, rhythms, and breathing. It has been almost 18 months since I had this session and it still makes me smile when I think about it.
8. Also on Tuesday, we lost a baby calf. It was born on Friday but it could not stand. We attempted to save it by bottle feeding it in hopes that it was just weak, but the vet said it had a birth defect and would not live. Cows need to be able to stand up in order to properly digest their food, and despite our best efforts the poor thing died. I felt very bad for the momma cow, who stayed right with her baby even though he could not reach her milk. She would lick his head, walk away a few steps, and then call to him to follow her. It was sad to see. Death is the part of farming that I do not especially care for.

9. When I am trying to stop eating chocolate, I chew a lot of gum.

10. If I have to listen to another political message, I think I will scream. Do they really think this is helpful? Talk about negativity overload.

11. I bought a pedometer to measure my steps. I am not sure it is accurate. But if it is, then I walk about 4,500 steps around the house every day without even trying, back and forth between my office, the kitchen, the bathroom, and the laundry room.

12. Magazines that I read include Redbook, Women's World, All You, Writer's Digest, Poets and Writers, and O.

13. Yesterday after I ate breakfast, I took my dishes to the sink and spied five very large tom turkeys in the backyard. On my back deck, to be exact. I was so stunned and it happened so quickly that I wasn't able to get my camera. But they were quite a sight.




Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 259th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.