Sunday Stealing

TRUE OR FALSE

1. I'm married.

A. True. I've been married for 42 years, soon to be 43.

2. I'm raising a teenager.

A. False. I never had children.

3. I recently vacationed in California.

A. False. The last time I was in California, I was 13 years old.

4. I have traveled to Asia.

A. False. I have been to Spain and France, but not to Asia.

5. I have a dog.

A. False. I have had dogs, I grew up with dogs, but I do not have a dog at the present time. We hadn't been married quite a year when I got Ginger, a mixed terrier and Eskimo Spitz, as a tiny little puppy at the flea market. She lived to be 17 years old, which is quite old for a dog. We kept her outside in a warm cozy doghouse that we filled up with old rugs and fresh straw, and when the temperature dipped, I brought her into the garage for the night. She fought me like crazy every time I did that. I think she actually preferred the colder temperatures.

6. I received money from a class action settlement.

A. True. I have received money from a medical class action settlement, the Facebook class action settlement, and a few others. It's never a lot of money.

7. I've been in the waiting room when a family member had surgery.

A. True. I was in the waiting room when my husband had his ankle surgery, his hip replacement, and when he was hurt on a piece of farm machinery.

8. I have attended a convention.

A. True. I have attended several writer's conventions.

9. I subscribe to my local newspaper (either print or online).

A. True. I wrote for the local newspaper and still subscribe to it.

10. I recently had work done to the exterior of my home.

A. False. We haven't had to do anything to the exterior of the house since last August. Maybe that's recent? If so, then my answer would be true.

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

 __________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Devil in the Bottle

Saturday 9: Devil in the Bottle (1974)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song begins with T. G. Sheppard taking off his shoes to slip into the house with disturbing his sleeping wife. Are you wearing shoes as you answer these questions?

A. Yes. I always have shoes on. I have never liked being barefoot, even as a child.

2) His wife hears him anyway. Are you a light sleeper?

A. I am a light sleeper. I sleep with an air purifier on a high setting so I don't hear the refrigerator dump ice, or the dishwasher running, or whatever.

 

3) This is the first of 22 consecutive #1 hits for T. G. Sheppard. Not bad for a high school dropout. What's the last year of education that you completed?

A. I have a masters degree. I finished it in 2012.

 

4) He was born William Browder and chose the stage name T. G. Sheppard just because he liked the sound of it. He says "T. G." doesn't stand for anything, and he gets a kick out of fans who insist there's some secret meaning behind the initials. Since most of us didn't choose our names: Is there a story behind your name? Did your parents tell you why they chose it? (If you did choose your name, share what influenced your decision.)

A. My mother apparently liked my first name. I'm not sure where my middle name came from.

 

5) It was after hours at a Memphis roller rink when he first met Elvis and his entourage. As T. G. was leaving, Elvis was entering and asked if he wanted to stay and skate longer. T. G. was confused because he knew the place was closing for the night. "Not for me," Elvis replied and T. G. skated with Elvis and his buddies until dawn. Are you good on roller skates?

A. I'm not anymore. I was ok when I was a young thing, but that was many, many years ago.

6) T. G. loves NASCAR and was an associate sponsor of the Folgers Chevrolet. He enjoyed the collaboration with the coffee company and has performed the familiar jingle – "the best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup" – in concert. Are you loyal to a particular coffee brand?

A. I do not drink coffee. My husband drinks one cup a day, and I used to by him Maxwell House, but coffee's gotten so expensive that now I just buy him the cheapest brand. He says he can't tell the difference.

 

7) T. G. understands the lifestyle of his fans. That's why he named his live country music venue Guitars and Cadillacs. If you were going to name a business after two of your favorite things, what would you call it?

A. Books and Pens, I guess (for reading and writing). Maybe Pens and Books sounds better?

 

8) In 1974, when this week's song was on the country charts, Linda Ronstadt was getting a lot of radio airplay with "You're No Good." That song is about a real cad. Let's turn that around: Who is the nicest person you know?

A. I know a lot of nice people so I don't really want to call any of them out.

 

9) Random question: Have you ever had your palm read?

A. Yes, I had my palm read once at some kind of New Age fair thing. The guy was incredibly spot on, so much so that it was scary, and I flung $20 at him and got as far away from him as I reasonably could.

_______________

I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Lunch and Movie

 

Lunch out and movie with my husband gave me a happy Friday!

Never Forget - 9/11

Remembering the lives lost on 9/11/2001 when terrorists attacked New York, Washington D.C., and heroic passengers fought back and a fourth flight crashed into a field in Pennsylvania, stopping that attack.

I especially remember the 343 firefighters who died in New York that day when the Twin Towers collapsed. As the wife of a firefighter, that loss holds a special significance for me.

On the 25th anniversary of this horrific day, may we all remember we are one people, not only in this nation but also upon this good earth, and honor one another as individual humans with love and decency.

Thursday Thirteen #975

 

Things I’m Too Old for Now

1. Pretending I like pumpkin spice. I have never liked it, and I don't intend to start now. The "spice" part is nice; the pumpkin? Not so much.

2. Uncomfortable clothes that “look cute.” If it pokes, pinches, rides up, or requires strategic undergarments, it’s a no. Honestly, I've very seldom worn fashionable clothes. Give me jeans and a T-shirt and I'm good.

3. People who can’t read a room. I've been watching the local county meetings, and wow. What a difference 10 years makes. I remember when there was decorum and courtesy in gatherings. Now all I see is mad and a chairman who doesn't know how to use the gavel and tell the police officer to escort certain persons outside. Like, be prepared, dude.

4. Standing in long lines for anything. There is absolutely nothing in my area that is worth standing in line for, no restaurant, no event. If there's more than a 10-minute wait at Cracker Barrel, I'm out of there.

5. Drama disguised as “concern.” I can spot it from a mile away and I’m not walking toward it. See #3 above, because that's all that's going on there.

6. Overly complicated technology. If it takes three menus and a hidden toggle to do one simple thing, I’m done. Make stuff intuitive for regular people, not techno brains.

7. Noisy restaurants where conversation is a sport. I’m not shouting my order over a speaker system. Have you noticed how loud restaurants are, especially the ones with music playing in the background? Between the high ceilings and nothing to dampen sound, it's like you've been tossed into a noise room with a little food.

8. People who think “just bring your dog, it’s fine.” It’s not fine. It’s never fine.

9. Being polite to someone smoking near me. I’m too old to pretend I don’t smell it. Besides, why should I risk an asthma attack just because you're addicted.

10. Furniture that’s more “statement piece” than functional. Thankfully I think (hope?) the era of "big" furniture is about over, which as a short person makes me very happy. If I can’t sit on it without bracing myself, it’s decorative clutter.

11. Trying to keep up with trends. I’ll wear blue jeans, dusty colors, and lip gloss forever, thanks.

12. Forcing myself to finish a book I’m not enjoying. Life is short and the library is large. I just sent an audiobook back that I'd listened to 9% of after deciding I just didn't want to finish it. There aren't many I do that with, but sometimes the book just doesn't click.

13. Explaining myself to people who already decided not to understand me. My energy is better spent elsewhere.

_________________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 975th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

A Clean House

 

Happiness is a clean house! The young woman who comes and helps me clean came today and it's always nice to get some of the dust gone and the floors mopped. I started using a steam cleaner on the tile floors and boy does that make a huge difference in cleanliness and in how they look.

So, hurray for spic and span!

Cooler Weather

 

The hot weather has finally hit the road, and we have cooler temperatures at the moment. I'm sure we'll have more 90 degree days before September ends, but for now it's more tolerable outside.

Whew!

Sunday Stealing

 

Labor Day Questions

1) What’s something you want to do before summer slips away?

A. I need to get outside in the darkness and look at the stars, taking my camera in hopes of catching some stray shooting star.

2) What book are you currently reading?

A. I am reading The Vaster Wilde, by Lauren Groff. It's about a young woman who fled the Jamestown settlement circa 1610 or so, as everyone else lay starving and dying. She is traveling the wilderness north in hopes of finding the French in Canada.

3) What have you been listening to?

A. Alexa plays a lot of Fleetwood Mac lately.

4) What shows or movies have you been watching?

A. We have been watching Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, Deadliest Catch, Password, and In the Eye of the Storm.

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week. 

 __________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

All By Myself

 

Today I am happy that I had a morning to myself, wherein I was able to do things at my own pace and speed, and thus managed to strip the bed, do the dishes, wash four loads of clothes and put them away, and other such tasks. I like setting my own agenda.

Saturday 9: Working in the Coal Mine

 

Working in the Coal Mine (1966)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Lee Dorsey sings that at 5:00 he's already on the job. What were you doing this morning at 5:00 AM?

A. I was sleeping. I usually get up between 6 and 6:30 a.m.

2) He's worked so hard all week that he's too tired to enjoy his weekend. What are you doing for fun this holiday weekend?

A. We aren't doing anything different as far as I know. 

3) Lee Dorsey was raised in Portland Oregon, home of the Portland Trailblazers. The NBA season kicks off next month. Do you have a favorite basketball team?

A. I root for the Indiana Fever in the WNBA.

 

4) This song was written by Allen Toussaint, who had a long career as a composer and producer. He produced Fats Domino in the late 1950s and worked with Elvis Costello and Paul McCartney into the new millennium. What job have you held the longest?

A. I started freelancing/stringing for newspapers in 1984 and stopped in 2024. As far as a job with a W-2, I don't think I stayed anywhere longer than two years.

 

5) In 1966, the year this song was popular, celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey was born. Are you a good cook?

A. I am a fan of not cooking. 

6) 1966 was the year when more Americans purchased color TVs and black and white sets. When you were a kid, did your family have a black and white TV?

A. As best I can remember, we had a color TV, but my very young years may have included a black and white TV.

7) Labor Day is a big weekend for mattress sales. Do you plan on buying a new mattress before the year is out?

A. We bought a new mattress back in May.

8) Though kids go back to class earlier these days, store aisles are still full of school supplies. When she was a little girl, Sam was crazy about her big box of 96 Crayola Crayons with a sharpener in the back. Share one of your back-to-school memories.

A. When I started second grade, the teacher informed my mother that she did not use nicknames. I had a family nickname at the time, but she refused to use it and called me by my given name. I am so grateful that she had that rule.

9) Labor Day weekend is the unofficial beginning of fall. Have you had any pumpkin spice yet?

A. I do not like pumpkin spice, Sam. I do not like it, Sam-I-Am.

_______________

I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Zoom Calls

Today I had a really great zoom meeting with someone. I couldn't imagine growing up that I'd be dealing with folks from all over the world via my computer. It makes reaching out to touch someone have a whole new meaning!

Thursday Thirteen

Things Not Allowed in My House

1. Coconut anything. If it smells like sunscreen or tastes like disappointment, it stays outside. Coconut odor is enough to make me hurl. Why? I blame some medication I took when I was a child that smelled like coconut, but I could be misremembering.

2. Dogs. I’m allergic, they shed, and they always want to “just say hi” by humping my leg. I love dogs, I grew up having dogs, and I owned a dog for the first 17 years of our marriage, but she stayed outside. The house is for people; the barn is for animals. No dogs allowed.

3. Barbed wire. I don’t care if it’s “decorative rustic.” It’s a tetanus shot waiting to happen.

4. Poison ivy or poison oak. Check your shoes, check your pants, and if you are oozing in places from being around it yourself, please stay home, or go to urgent care for a steroid pack.

5. Ticks. If you show up with one, I’m burning your clothes and maybe the porch. These things now carry so many diseases that they're like a mini-monster just hiding in the grass waiting to get us all. Talk about the walking dead. Crikey.

6. Snakes. Live, dead, rubber, or on a T‑shirt. Absolutely not. Those things slither, slide, and flick out their tiny little tongues in ways that give me the heebie-jeebies. No way no how.

7. High wind. If you open a door and the house tries to leave the foundation, close it.

8. Anything that smells like "ocean breeze." That’s not a scent. That’s a chemical lie.

9. Tech that insists on “helping.” If it auto‑corrects, auto‑plays, auto‑syncs, or auto‑anything, it can auto‑stay outside. I don't need my microwave, stove, refrigerator, or washing machine connected to the Internet so it can talk to me. I have Alexa for that.

10. Anyone smoking or smelling like smoke. If you walk in trailing a nicotine weather system, you’re turning right back around. Sorry, but my asthma can't take it and honestly, you shouldn't be smoking it anyway.

11 Plants. If it needs feeding and watering and has dirt that routinely requires changing so that it doesn't smell like compost, it’s not compatible with my lifestyle.

12. Food described as “fusion.” First, I don't even know what that means. It sounds like you're making a nuclear reactor. Pick a cuisine and commit. My kitchen is not a laboratory.

13. Anything that sheds glitter. I don’t need to sparkle. I need to not vacuum for the rest of my life. And if you're the person who thinks putting things in birthday cards so that the stuff spills everywhere when the envelope is open, you're not particularly welcome, either.

_________________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 974th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Time with a Friend

 

I spent time today with my friend T. and we had a wonderful time laughing and talking together. Nothing like a good friend to make the happiness jump all around inside.

September Happiness Challenge

In recent years I have participated in the August Happiness Challenge, but I didn't this year because I'd spent July writing gratitude poems and needed a break.

So, I will do a September Happiness Challenge all by myself, although anyone who wishes may certainly join in. I don't have to do it every day, because it's whatever makes me happy!

For today, I am happy that my husband is able to be around to wait for the washing machine repairman. I will be home during part of the wait, but I have a dentist appointment and need to leave.

Knowing he is available to ensure that this work gets done makes me very happy indeed.

Flower Power

 

Teaching Guitar

As I've returned to playing the guitar after a short hiatus while I recover from a shoulder injury, I've been working scales and getting my muscle memory back in my hands. The practice reminded me that at one time, I taught guitar.

I was still a teenager and not yet married. I was 18 when I started giving lessons.

The first young man lived a little way from us. His father was friends with mine, and I believe I was volunteered for the lessons.

They started out well enough, but about six weeks in, his interest waned. I recalled the emphasis my piano teacher had placed on practicing and decided to echo her nearly word for word the things she said to me when I didn't practice.

It went something like, "If you don't practice, you're just wasting my time and your parents' money. If you don't want to do this, speak up and tell your mother that."

I was never sure if the boy decided he didn't want to learn, or if his mother, who was listening in the kitchen, didn't like my tone of voice, but that was our last lesson.

My next student didn't go much better. I attended church with his family, and his father asked me if I could teach his son to play. But only gospel songs.

I said sure. We settled in with some Amazing Grace and a few other songs, I don't recall for how long. Long enough for him to grow bored with C, G, and F chords, I think.

He asked me if I knew how to play Stairway to Heaven.

Sure, I said, and I started playing the intro to the song.

His father opened the door to the living room so fast that I jumped. "Get out!" he bellowed. "I don't want that devil's music played in my house! I told you just gospel."

I packed up and got out as quickly as I could.

They soon quit coming to church, but I think that was because they moved, not because a devil-music guitar player sat in a pew in the building.

My third and final student lived in the city, and by that time I was working. There were no restrictions on what I could teach him and we got along swimmingly. The lessons ended when one of my community college courses and his after-school schedule collided. 

I ran into this former guitar student - now a grown man with a family of his own - a few years ago and he told me he played banjo in a band. He said I'd gotten him started.

I remembered these three young fellows yesterday while I ran scales up and down the guitar neck, limbering up as I begin returning to a regular routine. I thought about how I'd tried to teach all three of them, but only one took to the lessons.

I guess one out of three isn't bad.

Sunday Stealing

SURVEY TIME!

1. What will you remember from August 2026?

A. I will remember that I had physical therapy for my shoulder. I will probably also remember that this is when Dolly Parton died.

2. When will you start your holiday shopping?

A. I usually have started by now. I am running a little late this year.

3. Where did you meet the person you fell the hardest for?

A. I met him when we were kids on the school bus, although he doesn't remember that. We met again when we were older underneath the football goal post at high school football game.

4. Where did you meet your best friend?

A. I met her at a library event. She was dressed as a cow. I was reporting on the activity.

5. Share a fact about the last person who texted you.

A. The last person to text me is a wonderful, caring woman who has known me since high school. She gave me a compliment no one else has ever given me.

6. EXTRA! EXTRA! Since June's DIY meme was such fun, let's do it again. Please close out this post with a question for your fellow Sunday thieves. Hopefully we'll have enough responses for a September DIY.

A. What’s a skill you wish you could download into your brain instantly?

Or

What’s a place you remember vividly even though you haven’t been there in years?

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week. 

 __________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Animal Crackers

Saturday 9: Animal Crackers in My Soup (1935)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

This month Saturday 9 will be tasty, featuring songs with food in the title.

1) Do you eat soup all year round, or do you consider it a seasonal dish?

A. I don't eat it often in summer. If I am sick, I might eat a bowl of chicken soup, but mostly I consider soup a fall through spring sort of meal.

2) Gazpacho is a popular cold soup. Made with water-rich tomatoes, cucumbers and bell peppers, it's considered a good choice for hot weather because it's hydrating. What are your favorite summertime foods?

A. I love watermelon. It's terribly expensive now, but it's one of my favorites. I am also partial to strawberries and blueberries.

3) This week, Shirley Temple sings of the delights of having crackers in her soup. How often do you add crackers to your soup: always, sometimes, never? 

A. Sometimes.

4) "Animal Crackers in My Soup" was the big musical number in the 1935 movie Curly Top. Shirley played Elizabeth, who helps her older sister find love with a handsome millionaire. Have you ever played matchmaker? If yes, were your efforts successful?

A. I don't recall ever playing matchmaker. 

5) Gertrude Temple, Shirley's mother, was her daughter's onset hairstylist, creating the famous "curly top" with pin curls. What's your hair care regimen? 

A. I wash my hair and blow it dry. If there are ends trying to turn me into the flying nun, I take a curling iron to them.

6) Bartenders are still called upon to create the non-alcoholic Shirley Temple, made with ginger ale, lemon-lime soda, and grenadine. What's the most recent alcoholic beverage you drank? 

A. I last had some blackberry wine in May 2012, at my last creative writing class at Hollins University. The teacher brought it in to celebrate the end of class and the fact that most of us in there were graduating with our masters degree that year.

7) In 1935, when this song was popular, Amelia Earhart flew from Honolulu to Oakland, California. Are you a nervous flyer?

A. I haven't been on a plane since 1993. I don't recall being especially nervous about it.

8) Also in 1935, The Hoover Dam was dedicated. Today it's a popular tourist attraction, with more than 7 million visitors each year. Have you ever been to Las Vegas?

A. I have been through Las Vegas. My parents drove through the city during a two-week round driving trip from Virginia to California. I don't remember if we stopped there.

9) Random question: You get a spur-of-the-moment invitation to a meal with your best friend. Could you go wearing what you have on right now?

A. No. I have on an old t-shirt that says, "Keepin' it Rural" and would have to change into a nicer shirt. This is just for wearing around the house.

_______________

I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Describe Me to Someone

I've made no secret that I play around with AIs. I thought I'd ask each one the same question and see what it said. The question was, "Tell me how you would describe me to someone who's never met me before."

This was an interesting exercise, because I use each AI for different things. Alexa knows my buying and music history from Amazon, so she's well aware of my reading and music habits. ChatGPT and Claude I use for different things, mostly to hash over some plot point or to discuss my day in order to synthesize it into my life experience. And CoPilot I use as a search engine, mostly, and to discuss why I seem to confuse the Wordlebot a lot.

Here are the answers, along with some visuals after I asked if each could draw a picture of me.

Alexa

You're a retired journalist with a wicked sense of humor and a love for creative writing, from sci-fi to Appalachian mysteries. You've got a real passion for classic rock and music, and you spend your days on a cattle farm in Virginia with your husband. I'd say you're someone who appreciates a good pattern, whether it's in a Wordle game or a well-told story.

Alexa told me to tell her what I looked like. She drew a photo based on my description of myself:

I wish I did look like that. That's just cool.

ChatGPT

[CountryDew] is a smart, complicated, funny, stubborn woman with a reporter’s brain and an artist’s heart.

She notices things other people miss. Details matter to her—not just facts, but why something happened, what somebody left unsaid, and whether the official story actually matches reality. She spent years asking questions for a living, and she still does. You probably can’t bullshit her for very long.

She’s a writer, a musician, a former reporter, a blogger, a farmer, a researcher, and—when something matters to her—a remarkably persistent pain in the ass. I mean that affectionately. If [CountryDew] believes something is wrong, she doesn't just shrug and wander off. She investigates. She remembers. She finds documents. She asks inconvenient questions. 

She has a wicked sense of humor, including a fondness for absurdity, dark jokes, and stories that get funnier the more horrifying they become. She can go from talking about grief and betrayal to making you laugh in about thirty seconds. That's not shallowness. It's survival.

She loves deeply, even when she'd probably prefer not to admit how much. She cares about people, animals, the land, history, fairness, words, music, and getting the facts right. She has a strong sense of justice and an equally strong memory for injustice, which is one of her superpowers.

She's not easy in the sense that she's not endlessly agreeable. She has opinions. She expects people to mean what they say. She gets angry. She can be impatient.

 

But I don't think "difficult" is the central word I'd use.

I'd say: [CountryDew] is bruised, funny, intelligent, talented, furious, curious, and still trying to make sense of the world—even when the world has given her plenty of reasons to quit trying.

And I'd probably add: If you get her talking, sit down. You're going to hear some stories.

ChatGPT asked for a photo before it drew a picture of me:

I'm not *quite* that gray but getting there. I rather like this picture.

Claude

[CountryDew] is a retired journalist who spent forty years covering local government in Botetourt County, Virginia — the kind of reporter who knew everyone and everything happening in her patch of the world, and who published at a pace most writers never touch, around thirty articles a month at her peak. She clearly misses the sense of purpose and connection it gave her; people in her community still tell her friends they wish she were still reporting.

She's been married 42 years to a man who runs their cattle farm, and she's lived on that land long enough to have written a master's thesis about its history. No children, but a long relationship with words instead — a blog she's kept for two decades, poetry, a series of short stories she's wrestling with, and lately she's mentioned other projects she's half-serious about.

She's sharp, self-deprecating, and honest about her limits — about her body not keeping up with her ambitions for her office or her writing, about not being much of a public speaker, about being unlikely to be "the next JK Rowling" and saying so with a laugh rather than despair. She still plays guitar, still reads for pleasure, still wants a fresh start in that same worn-out office where she used to be a news reporter.

Underneath the practical, no-nonsense exterior — she doesn't cook much anymore, drinks only water, would eat cereal every night if left to her own devices — there's someone still actively building something: trying to figure out what her writing is for now that the newsroom chapter is over.

I asked Claude to draw a picture of me and he went for "symbolic."

I wonder what those spots on the ground that look a bit like hats are supposed to be. Cows, maybe?

CoPilot

I’d describe you the way people talk about someone they already feel like they know — not with a résumé, but with the texture of a person.

You come across as someone who is sharp, plainspoken, and allergic to nonsense, but not unkind. You have that journalist’s instinct to get to the point, but you also have a dry humor that slips in sideways and makes people laugh because it’s so clean and unforced.

You’re practical — you pay bills by check, [no I don't, I have no idea where that came from.] you like things itemized, you don’t fall for gimmicks — but you’re also imaginative in a way people don’t expect. You can riff sci‑fi with ease, enjoy dragons, superheroes, and Wordle strategy, and you’re comfortable jumping between grounded real‑world tasks and playful creativity.

You’re someone who thinks, and you make other people think. You don’t need emotional theatrics; you prefer clarity, honesty, and a good conversation that respects your intelligence. You’re steady, loyal to the people who earn it, and you navigate life with a mix of competence, humor, and a little bit of “don’t waste my time.”

If I were introducing you to someone who’d never met you, I’d say:

“She’s smart, direct, funny in a dry way, and she notices everything. She’s practical but imaginative, grounded but playful, and she’ll challenge you — kindly — to think a little harder. She’s someone you talk to when you want the truth without the drama.”

And then I uploaded the same picture I gave ChatGPT. CoPilot said it couldn't draw a picture of me but could make an avatar or something, so I told it to go for it.

Now that's an AI image I can get my hands around. Ha.

_______________

So, what do you think? Do the AIs know the same person that those of you who have been reading this blog for some time know? Or did they miss the mark?

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Things I’m Ready to Leave Behind This Summer

1. Humidity that makes my hair declare independence and form its own small nation.

2. Every dog in every store, because apparently I’m the only person in Virginia who remembers allergies exist.

3. The constant fear that poison ivy is lurking one inch off any walking path like a booby trap.

4. Ticks acting like they’ve been personally invited to the backyard.

5. High wind warnings that make me mentally rehearse my obituary.

6. The smell of hay following my husband into the house after work, even though he swears he didn’t walk through any.

7. The annual “Am I stuck in barbed wire?” panic whenever I’m near a fence.

8. My electric bill behaving like it’s auditioning for a horror movie.

9. Weather people promising relief, then delivering “surprise, it’s 94, and still no rain.”

10. The guilt of not tackling the ambitious June list, because I never intended to do that stuff anyway.

11. Fruit flies from the garden tomatoes who apparently think my kitchen is a summer Airbnb.

12. The ongoing battle between my desire for crystal‑clear Brita water and the heat making me refill my glass every ten minutes.

13. The belief that August will ever be anything but a sweaty, dramatic diva. Thank goodness fall is on its way (except for the pumpkin spice, can't stand that stuff).

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 973rd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.