When Panic Attacks CD: The New, Drug-Free Anxiety Treatments That Can Change Your Life [ABRIDGED] [AUDIOBOOK] (Audio CD)
By David D. Burns
Read by Sam Freed
3 hours
The nonfiction audio book suppy at the Fincastle Library is pretty dismal, and when I was in there a few weeks ago looking for something to listen to in the car I came away with this.
I haven't had something that I called a panic attack in many years, but there was a time when I couldn't go into Walmart without feeling like I needed to flee the store. But then again, it was Walmart. That alone is enough to send a body screaming out into the parking lot.
The CD is a synopsis of the book and I suspect one would be better off buying the book and reading it if there is a problem in need of addressing. The CD had a lot of testimonials and stories about people with problems and how Burns' counseling techniques helped over come them.
I was particularly intrigued by some of the journaling methods he mentioned and may at some point look for the book just for those. I like to try new things in my private journal.
Your feelings are your thoughts is the basic premise of this book as well as the first one, Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. I read that a long time ago but it has been so many years I couldn't tell you what it said. It is probably something I should revisit from time to time.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Thursday Thirteen #113
Here's a Thursday Thirteen that takes a look at routine, normal work day for me, as my life is now without so many articles for newspapers to write.
1. Get up, drink a cup of decaf tea, and hit the treadmill. Walk, walk.
2. Shower and have breakfast, which usually consists of an egg, V8 juice, and a banana. I read The Roanoke Times, which these days doesn't take as long as it used to, and make notes if there are any stories that I think might be a good idea for an article or even a poem or short story or that not-yet-started novel.
3. Check emails. Respond to anything that requires attention.
4. Write a blog entry.
5. Read other blogs (see my side bar on the right for some of the blogs I enjoy).
6. Work on an article. This might be making phone calls, querying an editor about a new story idea, going to interview someone, or researching something online or in a book.
7. It should be about 11:30 a.m. now, and the phone will ring and it will be my husband if he at work.
8. Lunch. This is my most difficult meal. I am dieting and lately have been eating a lot of tuna salad or salads. Today I want something, hot, though, because it is wet and windy. Empty the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.
9. Check emails again, and respond to anything that requires attention. Throw clothes in the washing machine as required.
10. Back to work on articles. Generally this is where I should be working on a novel or something, I think. Some long-term project. Right now these hours are rather nebulous for me since my workload is not what it once was. Some days I read, some times I garden, sometimes I just piddle around on the computer until the hours are gone.
11. Return phone calls.
12. Prepare dinner.
13. Watch TV or read.
Pretty boring, eh?
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 113!
1. Get up, drink a cup of decaf tea, and hit the treadmill. Walk, walk.
2. Shower and have breakfast, which usually consists of an egg, V8 juice, and a banana. I read The Roanoke Times, which these days doesn't take as long as it used to, and make notes if there are any stories that I think might be a good idea for an article or even a poem or short story or that not-yet-started novel.
3. Check emails. Respond to anything that requires attention.
4. Write a blog entry.
5. Read other blogs (see my side bar on the right for some of the blogs I enjoy).
6. Work on an article. This might be making phone calls, querying an editor about a new story idea, going to interview someone, or researching something online or in a book.
7. It should be about 11:30 a.m. now, and the phone will ring and it will be my husband if he at work.
8. Lunch. This is my most difficult meal. I am dieting and lately have been eating a lot of tuna salad or salads. Today I want something, hot, though, because it is wet and windy. Empty the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.
9. Check emails again, and respond to anything that requires attention. Throw clothes in the washing machine as required.
10. Back to work on articles. Generally this is where I should be working on a novel or something, I think. Some long-term project. Right now these hours are rather nebulous for me since my workload is not what it once was. Some days I read, some times I garden, sometimes I just piddle around on the computer until the hours are gone.
11. Return phone calls.
12. Prepare dinner.
13. Watch TV or read.
Pretty boring, eh?
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 113!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Praying for Aunt Jenny
James' aunt underwent pancreatic surgery yesterday. This is an involved surgery called a "whipple" procedure. It takes six to eight hours to complete, which is a long time to be under anesthesia. The pancreas is an organ in the middle of the body so getting to it is quite an involved process.
The procedure, the most common operation for pancreatic cancer, involves removal of the pancreas, a portion of the stomach, the duodenum, common bile duct, gallbladder and surrounding lymph nodes.
Then everything must be reconstructed and put back together. It is one of the most complicated and severe surgeries out there.
The news on Aunt Jenny is good. She survived the surgery, which, considering her advanced years (she's 78), was a worry. The doctor thinks that he removed all the cancer, which is also a good thing. Still, once she has healed from the surgery (in about 7 weeks) she will have to undergo chemotherapy and radiation.
Pancreatic cancer is the disease that killed my mother, so this has been somewhat traumatic for me. Lots of memories and thinking back on a terrible year of my life - the last year of my mother's life. It was a rough time; my mother did not fair well with the surgery and had complications that resulted in her spending that last year with a feeding tube. She could not eat or keep down food and her discomfort was great.
My mother's cancer was not removed with surgery, though at the time they thought they "had got it all," too. Instead it turned up in her liver and in her other lymph nodes and soon she was eaten up with cancer. She did not respond at all to chemo and radiation therapy. I remember my grandmother's lament that she knew the drugs weren't working because my mother's hair never fell out.
I am seriously praying that Aunt Jenny does not experience any complications from her surgery because it only makes matter worse.
Aunt Jenny is not my mother, and I am hopeful that this will turn out to have a happy ending. Aunt Jenny is a dear woman, someone who welcomed me into my husband's family with open arms and a hug and a kiss. Not everybody is so accepting and I have always appreciated that.
I also have known her since second grade, when she was a substitute teacher, and that is about 40 years. That is a very long time to know someone.
If you pray I hope you will take a moment and offer up a thought of love for Aunt Jenny. She is in a tough battle and can use all the good vibes she can get.
The procedure, the most common operation for pancreatic cancer, involves removal of the pancreas, a portion of the stomach, the duodenum, common bile duct, gallbladder and surrounding lymph nodes.
Then everything must be reconstructed and put back together. It is one of the most complicated and severe surgeries out there.
The news on Aunt Jenny is good. She survived the surgery, which, considering her advanced years (she's 78), was a worry. The doctor thinks that he removed all the cancer, which is also a good thing. Still, once she has healed from the surgery (in about 7 weeks) she will have to undergo chemotherapy and radiation.
Pancreatic cancer is the disease that killed my mother, so this has been somewhat traumatic for me. Lots of memories and thinking back on a terrible year of my life - the last year of my mother's life. It was a rough time; my mother did not fair well with the surgery and had complications that resulted in her spending that last year with a feeding tube. She could not eat or keep down food and her discomfort was great.
My mother's cancer was not removed with surgery, though at the time they thought they "had got it all," too. Instead it turned up in her liver and in her other lymph nodes and soon she was eaten up with cancer. She did not respond at all to chemo and radiation therapy. I remember my grandmother's lament that she knew the drugs weren't working because my mother's hair never fell out.
I am seriously praying that Aunt Jenny does not experience any complications from her surgery because it only makes matter worse.
Aunt Jenny is not my mother, and I am hopeful that this will turn out to have a happy ending. Aunt Jenny is a dear woman, someone who welcomed me into my husband's family with open arms and a hug and a kiss. Not everybody is so accepting and I have always appreciated that.
I also have known her since second grade, when she was a substitute teacher, and that is about 40 years. That is a very long time to know someone.
If you pray I hope you will take a moment and offer up a thought of love for Aunt Jenny. She is in a tough battle and can use all the good vibes she can get.
Sunday, November 08, 2009
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
Things about November....
1. Foggy mornings
2. Turning up the heat
3. Hearing the cold wind howl around the corner of the porch
4. Big fat moons
5. Long, drawn out shadows
6. Light blue skies
7. My 26th anniversary
8. Autumn reaches the valleys.
9. Giving thanks for the many joys in my life
10. Snuggles beneath the covers to keep warm
11. Pumpkin pie
12. Holiday shopping
13. That certain slant of light
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 113!
1. Foggy mornings
2. Turning up the heat
3. Hearing the cold wind howl around the corner of the porch
4. Big fat moons
5. Long, drawn out shadows
6. Light blue skies
7. My 26th anniversary
8. Autumn reaches the valleys.
9. Giving thanks for the many joys in my life
10. Snuggles beneath the covers to keep warm
11. Pumpkin pie
12. Holiday shopping
13. That certain slant of light
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 113!
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
What would you do?
One of the radio stations is running a contest. If you hear your name and call in, you get on the "payroll" and win $50. You receive an additional $50 for every hour that goes by and the person whose name is called does not respond within the allotted 10 minutes.
This is a game that rewards you for someone else's bit of misfortune. Because the person whose name is called doesn't listen to the radio station or can't get to the phone or whatever, you receive more money.
I started wondering what someone would do if they were the person who was winning and the next name called out belonged to someone they knew?
Would you hope they don't call in, thereby missing out on $50?
Would you call your friend and tell them to call in right away and get the money, which means you would not get another $50?
If your friend was well off, would it matter as to how you responded?
What if it was someone who had lost their job? Would the circumstances matter?
And what difference does it make if you know the person or not?
This is a game that rewards you for someone else's bit of misfortune. Because the person whose name is called doesn't listen to the radio station or can't get to the phone or whatever, you receive more money.
I started wondering what someone would do if they were the person who was winning and the next name called out belonged to someone they knew?
Would you hope they don't call in, thereby missing out on $50?
Would you call your friend and tell them to call in right away and get the money, which means you would not get another $50?
If your friend was well off, would it matter as to how you responded?
What if it was someone who had lost their job? Would the circumstances matter?
And what difference does it make if you know the person or not?
Monday, November 02, 2009
Books: Sex and the Seasoned Woman
Sex and the Seasoned Woman: Pursuing the Passionate Life
By Gail Sheehy
Audiobook read by the author
Copyright 2007
This book is not about how to marinate prior to getting it on or anything like that; instead, it's about women of a certain age. That would be ladies such as myself who are 45 and over, though this book was written more for women over 50. I am not quite there.
Sheehy seems surprised to find out that other women besides herself continue to have sex and fulfilling lives beyond the age of 35. This newsflash seemed a little perplexing to me, considering Sheehy's feminist narrative in previous books.
Anyway, she interviews a lot of women about their love lives, offering up stories about stale marriages that find new life when children grow up, women who divorce and find new loves, that type of thing. She talks about cultivating a new dream in your second adulthood, which seems like a good idea but there was nothing at all here in terms of a roadmap. I think she was talking about that in terms of intimacy more so than in, say, a career, or a new hobby or something. I was looking for something more along those lines when I picked up the book.
She goes into detail about vaginal health and hormone therapy and actually advises women to dismiss studies that indicated hormones offer few benefits. According to her, the study was overblown in the media and the results actually offered proof of good things. I haven't read the study but this did raise my eyebrows. I will have to look this up.
I did not really learn anything from this book but women who are having trouble in their marriages and who are looking for the strength to move away from that may find it beneficial. It may also give a little encouragement to women who think that life is over just because they've hit menopause.
By Gail Sheehy
Audiobook read by the author
Copyright 2007
This book is not about how to marinate prior to getting it on or anything like that; instead, it's about women of a certain age. That would be ladies such as myself who are 45 and over, though this book was written more for women over 50. I am not quite there.
Sheehy seems surprised to find out that other women besides herself continue to have sex and fulfilling lives beyond the age of 35. This newsflash seemed a little perplexing to me, considering Sheehy's feminist narrative in previous books.
Anyway, she interviews a lot of women about their love lives, offering up stories about stale marriages that find new life when children grow up, women who divorce and find new loves, that type of thing. She talks about cultivating a new dream in your second adulthood, which seems like a good idea but there was nothing at all here in terms of a roadmap. I think she was talking about that in terms of intimacy more so than in, say, a career, or a new hobby or something. I was looking for something more along those lines when I picked up the book.
She goes into detail about vaginal health and hormone therapy and actually advises women to dismiss studies that indicated hormones offer few benefits. According to her, the study was overblown in the media and the results actually offered proof of good things. I haven't read the study but this did raise my eyebrows. I will have to look this up.
I did not really learn anything from this book but women who are having trouble in their marriages and who are looking for the strength to move away from that may find it beneficial. It may also give a little encouragement to women who think that life is over just because they've hit menopause.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Remembering a Halloween
My favorite Halloween occurred when I was a teenager. My friend Revonda and I ventured out to a haunted house, I think it was in Vinton.
The haunted house was properly spooky; lots of blood and gore. We clung to one another as we wandered through, shrieking at the appropriate moment.
Near the end, a werewolf came after us. He growled, snarled and then removed his mask. "I've been watching you two. You chicks look hot," he said (or something like that). "Wanna meet me after I get done here? I'll give you a real treat."
Yes, the werewolf tried to pick us up. He was really on the, um, prowl. We declined as we both had curfews. Not that we would do anything like that, anyway. We were good girls.
I think about my friend every year at this time. I haven't seen her since about 1985. After I graduated we stayed in touch; I floundered around, much as I am now, in an effort to find my niche, and she went to William and Mary to study public administration.
In 1982 I drove to Williamsburg and visited with her for a weekend. I had just met my future husband-to-be, though I didn't know that yet, and so we were all girl-giggly over the prospect of my having a steady fellow.
Revonda never returned to Roanoke. She married and lived in Norfolk a while, then moved to North Carolina where she divorced, and is now in Montana with her second husband. We send Christmas cards every year, and occasionally but not often exchange emails. She's definitely traveled around much more than I, and I suppose maybe lived more than I. She's some kind of top official where she lives.
A few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon, I looked up her number and called her for no reason other than it was October and I was thinking of her. We had a nice long chat, catching up on family and friends.
We both remembered the night the werewolf tried to get us in the back seat of his car and wondered if the wolfman ever got his girl. I kind of doubt it; he definitely needed some new pick up lines!
The haunted house was properly spooky; lots of blood and gore. We clung to one another as we wandered through, shrieking at the appropriate moment.
Near the end, a werewolf came after us. He growled, snarled and then removed his mask. "I've been watching you two. You chicks look hot," he said (or something like that). "Wanna meet me after I get done here? I'll give you a real treat."
Yes, the werewolf tried to pick us up. He was really on the, um, prowl. We declined as we both had curfews. Not that we would do anything like that, anyway. We were good girls.
I think about my friend every year at this time. I haven't seen her since about 1985. After I graduated we stayed in touch; I floundered around, much as I am now, in an effort to find my niche, and she went to William and Mary to study public administration.
In 1982 I drove to Williamsburg and visited with her for a weekend. I had just met my future husband-to-be, though I didn't know that yet, and so we were all girl-giggly over the prospect of my having a steady fellow.
Revonda never returned to Roanoke. She married and lived in Norfolk a while, then moved to North Carolina where she divorced, and is now in Montana with her second husband. We send Christmas cards every year, and occasionally but not often exchange emails. She's definitely traveled around much more than I, and I suppose maybe lived more than I. She's some kind of top official where she lives.
A few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon, I looked up her number and called her for no reason other than it was October and I was thinking of her. We had a nice long chat, catching up on family and friends.
We both remembered the night the werewolf tried to get us in the back seat of his car and wondered if the wolfman ever got his girl. I kind of doubt it; he definitely needed some new pick up lines!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Haunted Fincastle
The old jail in Fincastle. It surely must have a ghost or two.
Saturday night my husband and I went on the Fincastle Ghost Walk. Central Academy Middle School students hosted the event as a fundraiser.
I have been on this ghost walk several times, always before as a reporter for the paper. This year I was just a person!
The walk took in the ghosts at the Courthouse, the ghost at the Hayth Hotel, a story about an old woman who died the middle of the road on Back Street, the Kyle House, which is reportedly haunted by a number of ghosts, the Godwin Cemetery, The Figgat House (the Tuckers' current residence - Terry did a great job as the ghost) and the Douglas Building.
I took pictures but most of them did not come out. I also didn't get any weird orbs or anything like that. Too bad!
Above is a bad shot of the rear of the Methodist Church from the cemetery. I am not sure what those blue lights are...
I leave you with a version of my favorite of the stories we heard:
A fiddler went up into Kelly's Hollow on his way to New Castle and stopped for a drink. The farmer invited the fiddler to spend the evening with him, since it is a long journey by foot.
The farmer told the fiddler about a secret cave he had on his property. The next morning the fiddler asked if he could see the cave.
The opening was small but they crawled in and found a huge cavern with many winding passageways leading away from it. "I wonder how my fiddle would sound in here," the fiddler said. He opened up his instrument case, put the fiddle to his chin, and began to play.
The echoes of the music were astoundingly beautiful and he played for hours. He began moving around while he played and soon vanished down a passageway. The farmer called for the fiddler to return, but he did not.
Finally the farmer left the cave and ran for help. Searchers turned out and began looking for the fiddler. Sometimes they could hear the sounds of his instrument but they could never find him. After three days they no longer heard the noises and they gave up.
But now late in the evenings when the wind is just right, travelers on the way to Kelly Hollow can hear the dancing tunes of the fiddler as he makes his way through the cave passages...
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Writing Workshop Success
My first writing workshop, The Business of Freelancing, was successful.
While I only had four students, for a first time I was quite pleased with the number. Since I am not used to public speaking or standing in front of people and offering up insights, this was a comfortable group for me.
Most notably, I never once felt the familiar flushing and self-consciousness that I generally experience when I am before a group. I was really pleased about that.
During the three hour session, I talked about the difficulties inherent in freelancing as well as the pleasures. I explained how to set up an office, keep records and be business-like.
I talked about query letters and courage. It takes a lot of courage to offer up a precious idea to an editor; it's a 50-50 shot at rejection, at after all. The editor will either say yes or no.
We also went over ways to gather your information, most particularly how to interview. It's easy to write an article if you have your information in front of you. A good interview is vital to a good article. This is important stuff if you want to be a freelance writer.
Two of the four ladies who attended are friends of mine; I am sure that went a long way toward helping me overcome my stage fright. I have treasured my relationship with both of these ladies for many years and I am grateful for their support.
This event was very good for my self-confidence and I may have discovered a new niche for myself. The ladies who attended said the information was good; one told me she learned more in the three hours with me than she had in two years' attendance at the Roanoke Writer's Conference. That made me feel good for sure.
*My friend Gwen Johnson took these pictures for me during the workshop break. My thanks to her for the pictures, her presence and her support.
While I only had four students, for a first time I was quite pleased with the number. Since I am not used to public speaking or standing in front of people and offering up insights, this was a comfortable group for me.
Most notably, I never once felt the familiar flushing and self-consciousness that I generally experience when I am before a group. I was really pleased about that.
During the three hour session, I talked about the difficulties inherent in freelancing as well as the pleasures. I explained how to set up an office, keep records and be business-like.
I talked about query letters and courage. It takes a lot of courage to offer up a precious idea to an editor; it's a 50-50 shot at rejection, at after all. The editor will either say yes or no.
We also went over ways to gather your information, most particularly how to interview. It's easy to write an article if you have your information in front of you. A good interview is vital to a good article. This is important stuff if you want to be a freelance writer.
Two of the four ladies who attended are friends of mine; I am sure that went a long way toward helping me overcome my stage fright. I have treasured my relationship with both of these ladies for many years and I am grateful for their support.
This event was very good for my self-confidence and I may have discovered a new niche for myself. The ladies who attended said the information was good; one told me she learned more in the three hours with me than she had in two years' attendance at the Roanoke Writer's Conference. That made me feel good for sure.
*My friend Gwen Johnson took these pictures for me during the workshop break. My thanks to her for the pictures, her presence and her support.
Friday, October 23, 2009
A dash of salt
Recent problems with my blood pressure have forced me to read a new line on food labels. Now I look for sodium content.
My doctor told me not to eat anything with over 500 mgs of sodium in it. Do you have any idea how hard it is to eat a low sodium diet when you're not much of a cook and when you eat nearly every meal alone?
Sodium is in everything. Canned goods. Soups. Practically every frozen TV dinner. Rice-a-Roni has 1100 mgs a serving! It's nothing but salt. (I mention that because it is among the highest I've found.)
Capt'n Crunch cereal has 200 mgs of sodium. Most cereals seem to be okay if you go by the under 500 mg guidelines. Unfortunately I don't eat a lot of cereals, not because I don't like them but because I stay away from gluten. That means I eat very little wheat and I limit oats. Rice and corn don't seem to bother me, leaving me a choice of Corn Flakes or Rice Krispies in the cereal isle. I do eat Bob's Gluten Free hot cereal in the winter and enjoy that. I need to remember to check the salt content on it and buy some if it's an allowed food.
What I'm learning is that if I eat any processed or pre-packaged food, I need to limit it to one a day. Otherwise I get too much sodium. That means I really need to limit how often I eat out, as well. Fortunately I only eat a meal out no more than twice a week, but still.
Chocolate, fortunately, has very little sodium (but lots of sugar, carbs and calories, of course). I also have learned that dark chocolate, which, thankfully, I like, can help lower blood pressure.
Granola bars also have very little sodium, I have found.
As for meats, ham is out (and I love ham). Actually, all deli meats are out, leaving me with the chore of cooking pork and chicken. I try not to eat red meat more than once a week.
Eating healthy when you haven't really focused on it is quite difficult. I am very envious of people who can do it and make it seem so easy.
If you have advice on how to better deal with sodium content in food, leave a comment. I'm trying very hard and willing to listen to most anything.
My doctor told me not to eat anything with over 500 mgs of sodium in it. Do you have any idea how hard it is to eat a low sodium diet when you're not much of a cook and when you eat nearly every meal alone?
Sodium is in everything. Canned goods. Soups. Practically every frozen TV dinner. Rice-a-Roni has 1100 mgs a serving! It's nothing but salt. (I mention that because it is among the highest I've found.)
Capt'n Crunch cereal has 200 mgs of sodium. Most cereals seem to be okay if you go by the under 500 mg guidelines. Unfortunately I don't eat a lot of cereals, not because I don't like them but because I stay away from gluten. That means I eat very little wheat and I limit oats. Rice and corn don't seem to bother me, leaving me a choice of Corn Flakes or Rice Krispies in the cereal isle. I do eat Bob's Gluten Free hot cereal in the winter and enjoy that. I need to remember to check the salt content on it and buy some if it's an allowed food.
What I'm learning is that if I eat any processed or pre-packaged food, I need to limit it to one a day. Otherwise I get too much sodium. That means I really need to limit how often I eat out, as well. Fortunately I only eat a meal out no more than twice a week, but still.
Chocolate, fortunately, has very little sodium (but lots of sugar, carbs and calories, of course). I also have learned that dark chocolate, which, thankfully, I like, can help lower blood pressure.
Granola bars also have very little sodium, I have found.
As for meats, ham is out (and I love ham). Actually, all deli meats are out, leaving me with the chore of cooking pork and chicken. I try not to eat red meat more than once a week.
Eating healthy when you haven't really focused on it is quite difficult. I am very envious of people who can do it and make it seem so easy.
If you have advice on how to better deal with sodium content in food, leave a comment. I'm trying very hard and willing to listen to most anything.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
For today, I offer up a study of light (or perhaps: scenes from my life).
1.
Remnants of a beech tree.
2.
A six-point buck caught in the fading sun.
3.
The Godwin Cemetery in Fincastle.
4.
Sunrise over the Peaks of Otter this morning (7:20 a.m.).
5.
The Town of Fincastle from Cemetery Hill at Godwin Cemetery.
6.
Fincastle Methodist Church at Godwin Cemetery.
7.
Most of my husband's relatives are buried here, including his grandparents.
8.
My husband's family farm.
9.
Aunt Jenny's house on the other side of the farm.
10.
The old chicken coop as seen through the oak trees.
11.
Light on leaves.
12.
More light on leaves.
13.
A squirrel that barked at me for a very long time.
1.
Remnants of a beech tree.
2.
A six-point buck caught in the fading sun.
3.
The Godwin Cemetery in Fincastle.
4.
Sunrise over the Peaks of Otter this morning (7:20 a.m.).
5.
The Town of Fincastle from Cemetery Hill at Godwin Cemetery.
6.
Fincastle Methodist Church at Godwin Cemetery.
7.
Most of my husband's relatives are buried here, including his grandparents.
8.
My husband's family farm.
9.
Aunt Jenny's house on the other side of the farm.
10.
The old chicken coop as seen through the oak trees.
11.
Light on leaves.
12.
More light on leaves.
13.
A squirrel that barked at me for a very long time.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 112!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
In the year 12525 (A rough draft of some fiction)
A historian in 12525 puzzled over over what few remnants of relics from the year 2009 he could find:
"He tweeted this response..."
The historian read that and scratched his head. He had seen several references to this type of speech or writing in this stack of ancient scribbles. Tweeted?
He wondered if it was possible if humans 10,000 years ago were kin to birds and thus talked in some kind of bird language. Based on the number of tweets referenced, he thought this highly likely.
"His classmates left messages for him on his FB page."
He'd seen the FB initialization several times before. More head scratching. He believed this to be a reference to something he'd seen called a "Facebook." This, he thought, must be some kind of scrap book or photo album. It might even reference the little boxes.
Those little boxes puzzled him, and turned to a set of photos. Picture after picture showed a single skeleton sitting before a flat boxes. The photos were taken at a recently uncovered archaeological site. The dig had produced a large structure that had been buried for centuries in rubble. It had yielded dozens of rooms with the same scenario: people sitting before movable little boxes. Other had small little boxes in their hands. Some folks lay on bed-like structures in front of still another kind of box.
It had to be some kind of worship ceremony, he decided. This box must be an altar. He made copious notes in preparation for a paper on religion in the year 2000.
This was part of his paper:
"Early mankind worshipped constantly at the base of some kind of box, which was named for the deity being worshipped. Humans in 2000 worshipped an entire pantheon of deities who went by the names of Dell, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, e-Machine, and Apple. Handheld worship boxes carried names such as Blackberry, Razar, iPhone, Sprint and Nokia. A third type of box, similar to the first, carried the names of RCA, Zenith, Samsung, Sony, Sharp and Mitsubishi."
After looking at the way the skeletons were poised and cuddling various boxes, he wrote this:
"Apple and Blackberry appear to be very highly regarded gods; since these are named after foods this makes sense. Sustenance based worship is of course representative of survival and it is only natural that these gods would be considered foremost in the pantheon."
Since so many of the folks were in the large building, he determined that everyone must have been inside worshipping at a given hour. The structure could have been some sort of church, he surmised, and the folks laying down and looking at boxes were invalids receiving healing. He bent over his paper and surmised that RCA, Zenith, etc. were the healing gods of the year 2000.
The disaster that buried the building must have taken everyone at once and given no warning, for few people had risen from their worship to leave, he thought. That lent itself to a very sophisticated weaponry, the kind outlawed in the Human Rights Code of 10528.
He went back to his paper.
"Lack of communication, because humans used sounds akin to bird language (calling it "tweets" in written language) along with an intense focus on worship of great number of gods who were symbolized by boxes, obviously led to this civilization's demise."
"He tweeted this response..."
The historian read that and scratched his head. He had seen several references to this type of speech or writing in this stack of ancient scribbles. Tweeted?
He wondered if it was possible if humans 10,000 years ago were kin to birds and thus talked in some kind of bird language. Based on the number of tweets referenced, he thought this highly likely.
"His classmates left messages for him on his FB page."
He'd seen the FB initialization several times before. More head scratching. He believed this to be a reference to something he'd seen called a "Facebook." This, he thought, must be some kind of scrap book or photo album. It might even reference the little boxes.
Those little boxes puzzled him, and turned to a set of photos. Picture after picture showed a single skeleton sitting before a flat boxes. The photos were taken at a recently uncovered archaeological site. The dig had produced a large structure that had been buried for centuries in rubble. It had yielded dozens of rooms with the same scenario: people sitting before movable little boxes. Other had small little boxes in their hands. Some folks lay on bed-like structures in front of still another kind of box.
It had to be some kind of worship ceremony, he decided. This box must be an altar. He made copious notes in preparation for a paper on religion in the year 2000.
This was part of his paper:
"Early mankind worshipped constantly at the base of some kind of box, which was named for the deity being worshipped. Humans in 2000 worshipped an entire pantheon of deities who went by the names of Dell, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, e-Machine, and Apple. Handheld worship boxes carried names such as Blackberry, Razar, iPhone, Sprint and Nokia. A third type of box, similar to the first, carried the names of RCA, Zenith, Samsung, Sony, Sharp and Mitsubishi."
After looking at the way the skeletons were poised and cuddling various boxes, he wrote this:
"Apple and Blackberry appear to be very highly regarded gods; since these are named after foods this makes sense. Sustenance based worship is of course representative of survival and it is only natural that these gods would be considered foremost in the pantheon."
Since so many of the folks were in the large building, he determined that everyone must have been inside worshipping at a given hour. The structure could have been some sort of church, he surmised, and the folks laying down and looking at boxes were invalids receiving healing. He bent over his paper and surmised that RCA, Zenith, etc. were the healing gods of the year 2000.
The disaster that buried the building must have taken everyone at once and given no warning, for few people had risen from their worship to leave, he thought. That lent itself to a very sophisticated weaponry, the kind outlawed in the Human Rights Code of 10528.
He went back to his paper.
"Lack of communication, because humans used sounds akin to bird language (calling it "tweets" in written language) along with an intense focus on worship of great number of gods who were symbolized by boxes, obviously led to this civilization's demise."
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Old buildings
These are images I grew up with; both of these buildings are on my father's property.
The first is the barn where he stored hay and where the horses and ponies stayed when I was young.
The second is used now for storage but it once was an old cannery, and thus a place of employment for many women in the early 1900s.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Making Changes
First I decided to stop reading fiction. I made this decision while we were at the beach and I was ravenously devouring books.
During this period I was also thinking about what I would like to write. I thought I might return to my fantasy novel, and then I read a fantasy by someone else that touched on some of the themes of my book. I thought she did it better than I ever would, and my decision wavered.
So I thought, I shall not read any fiction for awhile. I have stories in me, I just know I do, but maybe they are drowning in other people's thoughts. Maybe if I don't read fiction for a while (the time was not specified) I would clear my head and find some kernel in my brains that I could develop into my own story.
But a reader cannot simply NOT read, so after we returned home on September 5, I turned to nonfiction. I have read a lot of magazines, blogs, online newspapers, etc. and listened to nonfiction books on tape in the car. Sometimes I think maybe I'd better take up counted cross stitch or something because TV at night is certainly very bad, but I haven't done that - yet.
On September 10 I decided it was time to do something about my weight. I am obese, which is just another word for fat. How I got here is a long story, one that began in 1983 when I started on birth control pills when I married. That put on 10 pounds; then our efforts to have a baby failed, which made me depressed, and that combined with the infertility drugs added more pounds, then after six surgeries came the hysterectomy at the tender age of 29 and the Premarin, which added even MORE pounds (I no longer take that but still take a plant-based estrogen called Estrace, though in tiny amounts, which I suspect doesn't help).
And of course I never learned to exercise and eat properly growing up; my mother did not fix us breakfast or attend to the food groups; my grandmother thought macaroni and cheese was one of the basic requirements of life, and no one in my family exercised. So it's a family thing; my brother, my aunt, my uncles, we all struggle with our weight. Genetics and poor familial habits, I guess.
So anyway, September found me not reading fiction and dieting. I have lost four pounds (which is sometimes five but I seem to keep regaining that one). One of the first nonfiction books I listened to was one of Dr. Atkins' books, because I know from past experience that limiting my carbs works a lot better than, say, a low fat diet, at least for me.
My exercise habits, alas, have suffered. I need to be walking every day if only for my blood pressure, which has decided to climb back up in spite of my medication and the loss of four little pounds. I have found it difficult to exercise for two reasons: my feet still trouble me (I have plantar fasciitis and a heel spur) and some mornings my chest hurts. I have a hiatal hernia and am pretty sure that is the chest pain but I have enough of a hypochondriac in me that it makes me anxious because of course I worry that it is my heart hurting. And who can exercise if you worry that if you start to sweat you will drop over dead? Which might be alright if I thought someone would find me quickly but that is not the case. It could be many hours before I am missed.
Another reason for my lack of exercise, though, is this blasted computer. This blog. Facebook. All of the great things to read online.
For at least a decade (maybe longer), I have turned the alarm off at 6 a.m., climbed from my bed, put on my robe, and stumbled into my office beside the bedroom and turned on the computer. Then I go make my morning decaf tea with a little drop of honey and return to the computer to read my email. For a few years (yes, really, years) I did this and then exercised, because if I don't exercise first thing I simply don't do it.
But in the last several months (probably since I lost my main client, but I am not sure of that) I have instead found myself reading things on the computer, writing a blog entry (as I am doing this morning), piddling on Facebook, or simply playing Spider Solitaire until I look at the clock and think, golly, I need to get a bath and get dressed or I will never get anything done today. And then I think, oh, I haven't exercised, I will do it at 4 p.m. or 5 p.m. or whatever, and of course I rarely do.
So it is time for another change. This is the last morning I stumble to the computer. Instead my plan is to keep away from the computer until after I've showered, which will occur after I've walked on the treadmill or done some other exercise. This is necessary for my overall health and well being and it is time I stop dilly-dallying around with something so vital and take care of it. Otherwise I will not live to see 50 and that's only four years away.
Having said that, if you see me online before 8 a.m. from now on, please gently remind me I am supposed to be doing something else, won't you?
During this period I was also thinking about what I would like to write. I thought I might return to my fantasy novel, and then I read a fantasy by someone else that touched on some of the themes of my book. I thought she did it better than I ever would, and my decision wavered.
So I thought, I shall not read any fiction for awhile. I have stories in me, I just know I do, but maybe they are drowning in other people's thoughts. Maybe if I don't read fiction for a while (the time was not specified) I would clear my head and find some kernel in my brains that I could develop into my own story.
But a reader cannot simply NOT read, so after we returned home on September 5, I turned to nonfiction. I have read a lot of magazines, blogs, online newspapers, etc. and listened to nonfiction books on tape in the car. Sometimes I think maybe I'd better take up counted cross stitch or something because TV at night is certainly very bad, but I haven't done that - yet.
On September 10 I decided it was time to do something about my weight. I am obese, which is just another word for fat. How I got here is a long story, one that began in 1983 when I started on birth control pills when I married. That put on 10 pounds; then our efforts to have a baby failed, which made me depressed, and that combined with the infertility drugs added more pounds, then after six surgeries came the hysterectomy at the tender age of 29 and the Premarin, which added even MORE pounds (I no longer take that but still take a plant-based estrogen called Estrace, though in tiny amounts, which I suspect doesn't help).
And of course I never learned to exercise and eat properly growing up; my mother did not fix us breakfast or attend to the food groups; my grandmother thought macaroni and cheese was one of the basic requirements of life, and no one in my family exercised. So it's a family thing; my brother, my aunt, my uncles, we all struggle with our weight. Genetics and poor familial habits, I guess.
So anyway, September found me not reading fiction and dieting. I have lost four pounds (which is sometimes five but I seem to keep regaining that one). One of the first nonfiction books I listened to was one of Dr. Atkins' books, because I know from past experience that limiting my carbs works a lot better than, say, a low fat diet, at least for me.
My exercise habits, alas, have suffered. I need to be walking every day if only for my blood pressure, which has decided to climb back up in spite of my medication and the loss of four little pounds. I have found it difficult to exercise for two reasons: my feet still trouble me (I have plantar fasciitis and a heel spur) and some mornings my chest hurts. I have a hiatal hernia and am pretty sure that is the chest pain but I have enough of a hypochondriac in me that it makes me anxious because of course I worry that it is my heart hurting. And who can exercise if you worry that if you start to sweat you will drop over dead? Which might be alright if I thought someone would find me quickly but that is not the case. It could be many hours before I am missed.
Another reason for my lack of exercise, though, is this blasted computer. This blog. Facebook. All of the great things to read online.
For at least a decade (maybe longer), I have turned the alarm off at 6 a.m., climbed from my bed, put on my robe, and stumbled into my office beside the bedroom and turned on the computer. Then I go make my morning decaf tea with a little drop of honey and return to the computer to read my email. For a few years (yes, really, years) I did this and then exercised, because if I don't exercise first thing I simply don't do it.
But in the last several months (probably since I lost my main client, but I am not sure of that) I have instead found myself reading things on the computer, writing a blog entry (as I am doing this morning), piddling on Facebook, or simply playing Spider Solitaire until I look at the clock and think, golly, I need to get a bath and get dressed or I will never get anything done today. And then I think, oh, I haven't exercised, I will do it at 4 p.m. or 5 p.m. or whatever, and of course I rarely do.
So it is time for another change. This is the last morning I stumble to the computer. Instead my plan is to keep away from the computer until after I've showered, which will occur after I've walked on the treadmill or done some other exercise. This is necessary for my overall health and well being and it is time I stop dilly-dallying around with something so vital and take care of it. Otherwise I will not live to see 50 and that's only four years away.
Having said that, if you see me online before 8 a.m. from now on, please gently remind me I am supposed to be doing something else, won't you?
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Thursday Thirteen
Random 13 today.
1. Yesterday I met Lenora at A Journal of Days. This very striking and handsome woman introduced herself to me in the library after overhearing my conversation with the staff genealogist. I was looking for information about a small diary that came into my possession this week and she had read my blog entry about it and guessed my identity. I was thrilled to meet her. Her blog is a fun and thought-provoking read. There is now only one other person on my Botetourt bloggers' list whom I have yet to meet.
2. Whitening strips make my teeth ache. I bought a box to try and daresay I wasted my money. I couldn't stand them on for more than 10 minutes. Apparently I have very sensitive teeth.
3. Last night was the first night for running the heat in the house; the temperature dropped below 40. I was hoping to go to October 15 before turning it on; I missed it by one day.
4. I am offering a course on "The Business of Freelancing" through the county Parks & Rec Department on October 24. It is at the Fincastle Library from 9 - 12:30 and costs $50. I already have about 20 pages of handouts and am working on more. I want to be sure participants get their money's worth.
5. I love my husband so much it hurts sometimes.
6. No fiction reading for me since September 10. I am hoping that if I empty my brain of other people's stories, my own story will find its way in and I will begin writing it. I don't know how much longer I can hold out on not reading a story, though. Not reading is hard work when you're an avid reader.
7. Nonfiction books on tape in the car and reading magazines and other nonfiction instead of fiction are now filling this strange period of my life. Maybe it will make me smarter.
8. I have struggled with exercise in recent weeks.
9. My blood pressure has become an issue again. Nobody told me blood pressure meds could work for a while and then ... not.
10. My car will be in the repair shop for several days next week, thanks to my October 4 accident wherein I backed into my husband's motorcycle. The damage estimates for both vehicles came to over $1,500. The motorcycle has yet to be fixed. What a lot of money to pay out for one careless mistake.
11. Good news on the work front; I picked up a new client yesterday.
12. I despise MS Office 2007. I have spent much of my time since July trying to learn this new interface. MS Office 2003 worked fine; why does Microsoft have to keep changing things? (Answer: so you'll have to spend money to buy the new product, that's why.) Not only have I found it difficult and less than intuitive, the changes I make to the normal template, particularly in paragraph spacing, simply will not hold. I have to change this every frickin time I open a new document. It is really irritating. Who designated a space between every paragraph and after every hard return should be the default, anyway?
13. Photo editing software that I actually like is hard to find. I've downloaded several of the free ones; so far I like Picasso the best of those but it has its limitations. I bought The Print Shop Deluxe a few weeks ago because it was on sale for next to nothing but it seems unwieldy to use.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 111!
1. Yesterday I met Lenora at A Journal of Days. This very striking and handsome woman introduced herself to me in the library after overhearing my conversation with the staff genealogist. I was looking for information about a small diary that came into my possession this week and she had read my blog entry about it and guessed my identity. I was thrilled to meet her. Her blog is a fun and thought-provoking read. There is now only one other person on my Botetourt bloggers' list whom I have yet to meet.
2. Whitening strips make my teeth ache. I bought a box to try and daresay I wasted my money. I couldn't stand them on for more than 10 minutes. Apparently I have very sensitive teeth.
3. Last night was the first night for running the heat in the house; the temperature dropped below 40. I was hoping to go to October 15 before turning it on; I missed it by one day.
4. I am offering a course on "The Business of Freelancing" through the county Parks & Rec Department on October 24. It is at the Fincastle Library from 9 - 12:30 and costs $50. I already have about 20 pages of handouts and am working on more. I want to be sure participants get their money's worth.
5. I love my husband so much it hurts sometimes.
6. No fiction reading for me since September 10. I am hoping that if I empty my brain of other people's stories, my own story will find its way in and I will begin writing it. I don't know how much longer I can hold out on not reading a story, though. Not reading is hard work when you're an avid reader.
7. Nonfiction books on tape in the car and reading magazines and other nonfiction instead of fiction are now filling this strange period of my life. Maybe it will make me smarter.
8. I have struggled with exercise in recent weeks.
9. My blood pressure has become an issue again. Nobody told me blood pressure meds could work for a while and then ... not.
10. My car will be in the repair shop for several days next week, thanks to my October 4 accident wherein I backed into my husband's motorcycle. The damage estimates for both vehicles came to over $1,500. The motorcycle has yet to be fixed. What a lot of money to pay out for one careless mistake.
11. Good news on the work front; I picked up a new client yesterday.
12. I despise MS Office 2007. I have spent much of my time since July trying to learn this new interface. MS Office 2003 worked fine; why does Microsoft have to keep changing things? (Answer: so you'll have to spend money to buy the new product, that's why.) Not only have I found it difficult and less than intuitive, the changes I make to the normal template, particularly in paragraph spacing, simply will not hold. I have to change this every frickin time I open a new document. It is really irritating. Who designated a space between every paragraph and after every hard return should be the default, anyway?
13. Photo editing software that I actually like is hard to find. I've downloaded several of the free ones; so far I like Picasso the best of those but it has its limitations. I bought The Print Shop Deluxe a few weeks ago because it was on sale for next to nothing but it seems unwieldy to use.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; you can learn more about it here. My other Thursday Thirteens are here. This is number 111!
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