Connor Blog

I'm having trouble with my Connor Blog, so for now you will just have to sit back and smile at The Connorman.


Here he is visiting with his Granny on the deck and potty sitting as the potty training continues. I guess he is about 70% competent.

Not exactly a sad sack.

Friends, Family and Fellowship

Friends rock my world. Friends fill my life with light and joy. Friends ignore my idiosyncrasies. Friends eat my food -- usually -- drive me places and pick me up both literally and figuratively.

Mary let me into her and her daughters lives. Now there are two granddaughters with another grand baby on the way and I am welcome.
Carol has more creativity than any seventeen people I know. Laughs at my jokes. Shares stories, adventures, experiences, memories and her granddaughter.
Kathleen gives me good titles, books and movies. And medical advice. And thoughtful analysis'. I loved A Somewhat Gentle Man.
Eleanor slips me sweet emails and cards with encouragement or compliments. Inspires with her intelligence and memory.
Sandy graces us all with kindness for all. She has a passion for charities, reading, friends, photography, and rowing in Dragon Boats. And her best friend her husband Jim.
Lynn and Claire go with me, disagree with me, and put me in my place when I am didactic or wrong, and when all else fails they listen.
Amanda shares hopes joys and fears.
Jo-Anne is always ready for coffee or a pedi or a gossip or a dream.
...and Kathy.

Friendship means connectedness. After I have spent an evening with friends I feel lighter and more up-lifted as we visit, discuss, talk and sometimes break-bread. It isn't always quiet, but it is always calm and peaceful.

They are friends to me.

Fellowship is important whether it be with friends or family. Fellowship bloomed around Mark and Amber's new swimming pool this holiday weekend. I wished I was there.

I sent Brittany a gift card for graduation and she bought a piggy bank. That delighted me. Never in this universe would I have picked out a piggy bank to send a young lady off to college with. It's a good thing I took Ian's advice and sent her a gift card instead of a gift.

Roger and Stephanie cruised on the Fortener's boat this weekend. Ian house sat for them. Christian didn't check in, but he was in my thoughts. Jan worked.

I had my first telephone conversation with Connor he said "Hi" and I heard Roger in the back ground say, "Tell Granny you love her" and there it was "Love you." On our Thursday playdate he kept telling me "I do it. I do it." or "I get it. I get it." The wee guy is growing up. I made him cry when I gave him water instead of juice. And when I took the Ipad away. And when I didn't let him leave with me.

He also cried a surprised whimper when he ate some spicy sausages his daddy had grilled. Then cried for more of the same food and cried again because it was spicy hot. Then cried for more. Luckily the food finally ran out and he got some potato chips instead.

Friends family and fellowship rocks my world and ain't I glad.

Life isn't always hot Cajun sausages.

Curiosity

Two ferries, ten hours, fifty dollars, and 100 miles is all it takes to see a friend. What a great day, drive, ride, sail, lunch and smiling granddaughter I experienced on my mini adventure. I took the Edmonds to Kingston ferry and drove down the Kitsap peninsular instead of I-5 to the West Seattle ferry, besides the last time I took that West Seattle ferry I got off on the wrong island. I made no mistakes yesterday.

I saw, read and thought about so much new stuff: I became curious about museums, parks, exits, distances, and traffic patterns.

Curiosity isn't that one of the best thing about life. I get fascinated by names, places, drives, food, people, stories, words, views, jobs, movies and other stuff. Everything from what's in that truck to where does that road go to what kind of name is Neomia. I always thought Neomia was native American due to being named after my mother's native American friend only to learn it is Greek for new moon. Who knew.

I love to type a nonsense word into Google to see what kind of "hit" I will get. The other day it was spudz: besides the rather kinky sites, I found a fabulous children's clothing site. There is a brand of clothes called Spudz and they are great. What a find. Isn't Google a curiosity?

Connor was sizing up my bookshelves the other day. I'm curious how long it will take him to attempt climbing them. He started to then backed off. I'm curious if some innate animal survival instinct said, "Not safe, not safe."

I observed Carol's granddaughter yesterday and wondered about other animal instincts us humans have as babies; grasping, lifing our head, mimicing.

I'm curious how Christian's romance is progressing. He was in Tacoma the other day.

I'm curious about the Ethiopian restaurant downtown that I haven't been able to try yet.

I'm curious how the TransLink/Sounder train connections work. Jerry and Jane want to use it and possibly Tal, Julia, Nora and Andrew so I guess I had better go test it out. I'm curious if I will actually do that.

I'm curious if Nora knows that it will be a full moon when they arrive in Seattle for their cruise. Now wouldn't that be something to sail out on the Big Ship up the coastal waters with a full moon shinning on your very first night at sea. If it is overcast and raining they can just imagine it.

I'm curious how imagination and creativity work. Now there is a subject that has been studied for a while.

I curious how scientist get so passionate about a subject that they do study it; mosses, diseases, gnats.

I'm curious where my friend Lynn has gone to.
I can't believe I got the books Alas Babylon and Earth Abides mixed up. Silly me.
I've been reading about the new films at Cannes, I should be seeing them about this time next year.


Hey Jean, I found a picture of Christian sitting in Grampa's sandpile with the yellow truck. Now that was wonderful.

Quote: Words have to find men's minds before they can touch his heart, and some men's minds are woefully small targets.

Here's to a curious day, may yours have some in it.

Missing Family

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there.

I've been thinking about mine. As hard as it has been for me to be my liberal, artsy-fartsy, odd-ball, different self in my times and places it must have been horrific for mother. She had neither the liberalness of times nor the openness of place that I benefited from. I imagine she carried a weight a hundred times greater than mine with few resources or outlets for her spirit, creativity, openness, liberalness, and tolerance and that makes me sad, but it drives my admiration and love for her ever deeper and deeper. What a woman we had the pleasure of calling Mom. Thanks Mom for all you gave and more importantly all you left out.


So, like I said I'm missing family. It seems like it's time for some migratory travelers to show up on my doorstep. I heard about a Gum Wall at Pike Place Market that I have neglected to take all my visitors to, never heard of it until two days ago. Am I always the last to know? It is listed as the second "germyist" tourist attraction in the world, right after The Blarney Stone. So everyone has to come back to daub a glob on the Gum Wall.

Jerry and Jane are coming and I am excited, excited, excited. I asked Jerry if he wanted a foodie trip. a drive trip, or a film fest trip. And he answered "Yes." Jane I have picked your prize, will try to mail soon or present it to you when you arrive. What do you want to do? Try to give me two weeks so I can schedule some time off work without a lecture.

Speaking of work and my new four ten hour days. Monday is when I took my cut in pay and had to start street walking. Since our downtown parking privileges has been revoked my parking garage no longer tells me good morning and to have a nice day, I am street parking and walking.

When I had done a reconnaissance drive by a few weeks ago at 4:30 on a Sunday morning I drove past the man leaning out of his car vomiting onto the street right next to where I thought I would be parking. I guess his Saturday night wasn't over yet. I drove past the man walking in full regalia with his ten foot bow on his shoulders. A comic con was in town so I hope he was in character and not a downtown character I will have to meet too often.

My first day I pulled into the lot at the same time as another car did and this huge, bruiser of a man got out of his vehicle, instead of being scared like a sane old lady at 4:30 in the morning I tripped up to him and asked him to show me how to use the machine as I had never done it before. He did and it is a good thing too because my first time I goofed and he canceled it and then I did it right.

I'm just trying to be the real me, oh wait, I am the real me. There is just no escaping being who you are.

So, like I said I'm missing my family. Jean and Cathy and Brittany aren't going to fly by. Janice and Art aren't going to fly by. I'm hoping to get a glimpse of Julia, Tal, Nora and Andrew when they sail by. Jeff goes the other direction when he goes. Kathy and Mike are engaged in life. So, Jerry and Jane please hurry.

I adore my family.

Thoughts Culled From Facebook

From Lisa Bruce: Modified slightly

I adore my family.

From Summer Newman:

‎"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."

Martin Luther King

The Great Big Fat Magical Universe of Jan

We want our magic to be memorable, we insist on the big epiphany explosions of color-lights-action and clarity while all the time magic is in the mundane, floating in the soft soup of the universe. The blade of grass growing. Dory Previn sung about it: Down where the iguanas play.

I am magical, I have been magical since I was three. What makes me magical is the willingness to accept without understanding. To let the divine, the eternal wash over me in all of it's mundaness. I haven't fit in since I was three, letting the world wash over you is different, odd. I couldn't conform enough to be a girl scout, a hippy or a PTA mom. Roger gave me a card once that said, " Masquerading as a normal person day after day is exhausting." "The truth is that I don't profess any belief in any orthodox sense. It seems to me that the mystery of life is too great and too wide and too deep for us to do any thing more than wonder at it. Anything further would be, as far as I'm concerned, an impertinence." Thank you John Huston.

We live, we exist in a magical world.

I am magical in listening, receiving and appreciating. I am magical in the passionate belief that the world is unfolding as it should. What's not to love. We may not recognize this new world because it's not our world, it is changing, influx, in constant transition, in constant motion, but it is right and it is magical. Everything dies and something will renew, will fill it's place whether it's a blade of grass, a human being, a star or a universe. Now that's magic.

Sir Issac Newton wrote: I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself, I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier sea-shell than ordinary whilst the great ocean of truth lay all un-discovered before me.

Thank you Roger, John Huston, Dory Previn and Sir Issac Newton for teaching and sharing the world with me, now on to the magic of paper, feathers and angel's wings.

May Jean have a magical recovery and may you have some magic in your day.

You Live In Washington If:

From my little chef friend, Amanda:

A little long I know, but it is funny and true!!


THIS IS WHAT JEFF FOXWORTHY HAS TO SAY ABOUT 'LIVING IN WASHINGTON'!
If someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance and they don't work there, you live in Washington. If you've worn shorts, sandals and a parka at the same time, you live in Washington. If you've had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone... who dialed the wrong number, you live in Washington. If you measure distance in hours, you live in Washington. If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you live in Washington. If you have switched from 'heat' to 'A/C' and back again in the same day, you live in Washington. If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in Central, Southern, or Eastern Washington. If you design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over 2 layers of clothes or under a raincoat, you live in Washington. If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow and ice, you live in Washington. If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction, you live in Washington. If you feel guilty throwing aluminum cans or paper in the trash, you live in Washington. If you know more than 10 ways to order coffee, you live in Washington. If you know more people who own boats than air conditioners, you live in Washington. If you stand on a deserted corner in the rain waiting for the "Walk" signal, you live in Washington. If you consider that if it has no snow or has not recently erupted, it is not a real mountain, you live in Washington. If you can taste the difference between Starbucks, Seattle's Best, and Tullys, you live in Washington. If you know the difference between Chinook, Coho and Sockeye salmon, you live in Washington. If you know how to pronounce Sequim, Puyallup, Issaquah, Snoqualmie, Wenatchee, Spokane, Umpqua, Yakima, and Willamette, you live in Washington. If you consider swimming an indoor sport, you live in Washington. If you can tell the difference between Japanese, Chinese and Thai food, you live in Washington. If you never go camping without waterproof matches and a poncho, you live in Washington. If you have actually used your mountain bike on a mountain, you live in Washington. If you think people who use umbrellas are either wimps or tourists, you live in Washington. If you buy new sunglasses every year because you cannot find the old ones after such a long time, you live in Washington. If you actually understand these jokes and forward them to all your Washington friends, you live or have lived in Washington.

Also if you wear your hiking boots to weddings, funerals, job interviews or church you live in Washington.

If you know what a sunbreak is you live in Washington.
If you know the difference between mist, drizzle, and rain you live in Washington.
If you know what a convergent zone is you live in Washington.
If you know that scattered showers doesn't mean intermittent through out the day but instead means from block to block you live in Washington.

I have more but you have probably had enough.