Message in a Minute: My “Reverse” hike with Fly in the Ointment

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My “Reverse” Hike with Fly in the Ointment.
The day was warm and sunny (no rain in sight) but we are beset with sudden showers and thunderstorms when they forecast promised little rain. It is soggy in the Covesville, VA hollow nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, our refuge for the pandemic. My hike began downhill to the pasture (my kid’s lovely farm) to the garden below. The blueberries will soon be begging to be picked, the garden grows before our eyes and is lush and green. I continued on the “reverse” hike (one that starts downhill then finishes UP hill. I passed the ever meandering Hardware River, burbling and filled with birdsong. A neighbor drove downward and stopped for a hello before continuing his journey. I walked and pulled a quick stop for a caterpillar slowly crossing the road. (must be a joke there) I heard a car drive uphill and he too stopped to chat as I grimaced with worry about the caterpillar being squished. He missed it by 3 inches. We talked, I graciously declined a ride up the hill and he continued on the way. The next caterpillar “portrait” revealed a companion to the bug, the fly. There was much flickering and bending between the two and then my beloved daughter in law drove up the hill. I felt helpless to warn her of the ensuing crushing but she too missed it by an inch or two. However I did not know that until I looked; the bug looked dead to me. Then he squirmed and moved and as you see, continued across the road. follow the link for the images.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/44Hw447ndawDo1139

Message in a Minute: 40 Acres and a Mule

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News is filled with the age-old saga of oppressed people seeking refuge.  As we travel in our RV passing endless miles of vacant land, much of what we see offers potential for transformation into re-claimed land.

 

All it takes is human will and determination, planning, identification of water sources, elbow grease and a government who cares. One asks, “why can’t we welcome these folks to our country, provide land and resources for individuals and families to build homesteads safe from their oppressors and offering care and love.”

I am by no means alone in these wishes and ideas. We have been thwarted by poor and uncaring leadership, not exclusive to this period of time but throughout American history. I recalled a phrase learned in my High School American History courses just after the freeing of the slaves;”40 acres and a mule.” This memory was reinforced by a New York Times editorial 6 7 2020 by Michelle Alexander, entitled, “America, this is your Last Chance” discussing saving our democracies, (a poignant article). She recalls the short life of these promises, a sad outcome of granting relief and then erasing that relief as briefly highlighted below. 

Forty acres and a mule is part of Special Field Orders No. 15, a post-Civil War promise proclaimed by Union General William Tecumseh Sherman on January 16, 1865, to allot family units, including freed people, a plot of land no larger than 40 acres (16 ha). Sherman later ordered the army to lend mules for the agrarian reform effort. The field orders followed a series of conversations between Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton and Radical Republican abolitionists Charles Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens[1] following disruptions to the institution of slavery provoked by the American Civil War. Many freed people believed, after being told by various political figures, that they had a right to own the land they had long worked as slaves, and were eager to control their own property. Freed people widely expected to legally claim 40 acres of land (a quarter-quarter section) and a mule after the end of the war. Some freedmen took advantage of the order and took initiatives to acquire land plots along a strip of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida coasts.[2] 

2. “…It became known as of Jan. 16, 1865, as ‘40 acres and a mule,’ ” Elmore said. Stan Deaton, of the Georgia Historical Society, sadly points out that after Lincoln’s assassination, President Andrew Johnson reversed Sherman’s order, giving the land back to its former Confederate owners.Jan 12, 2015.”Some land redistribution occurred under military jurisdiction during the war and for a brief period thereafter. However, federal and state policy during the Reconstruction era emphasized wage labor, not land ownership, for blacks. Almost all land allocated during the war was restored to its pre-war white owners. Several black communities did maintain control of their land, and some families obtained new land by homesteading. Black land ownership increased markedly in Mississippi during the 19th century, particularly. 
A sad but factual reversal in policy.  In my own contemplation of  using vast tracts of land with potential for habitation, I did not word it as 40 acres and such but as a great way to offer refuge and hope for people who just need a chance in life. People of all color have indeed suffered under white regimes with plundering, torture, starvation, death. I fear this is an ongoing plague increasing in number as Covid 19 leaves people, homeless, poor and destitute. Let’s open our hearts and our lands to show our true love for people of all walks of life. After all it could affect anyone at any time. 
Click on link in blue for image and information. 

Art, Music and Books: Making tea in books, films, stage

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A blog entry to escape the world of today for a few minutes, I hope of pleasure.

“Tea … is a religion of the art of life.”
― Kakuzō Okakura, The Book of Te

An recent article in the New York Times caught my eye; https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/06/books/breakfast-in-literature.html.

The author researched breakfast foods mentioned in books, films and on stage, Thus, another entry in my frequent blogs about books. The article thoroughly covered breakfasts and referenced many books found on my “books I have read” list. Foods are a frequent player in the chapters of a book. Mystery writer Nero Wolfe, of a bygone era, is the father of culinary crime and his recipes leave your mouth watering as you try to identify who the culprit must be. 

As a devoted tea drinker and enthusiast, I have enjoyed many books that reference tea as a necessary daily item, offering preferred methods and arguments about the best way to prepare tea: offering tea as medicine, tea socially enjoyed (with pinky in the air), tea to warm up, tea to calm down, tea with alcohol. In Dreaming Spies by the prolific author Laura King, Protagonists Mary Russell and her husband Sherlock Holmes travel aboard ship to Japan. They befriend a quirky Japanese character who loves her ritually prepared Japanese tea. Britishers in that era the 1900’s enjoyed British tea with milk but Mary, American born deems it wimpy and It seems Sherlock agreed. In this story, she bargains with the chef; No Japanese tea or British tea for me, just give me a good cup of strong American tea.

Jean Grainger, The ever enjoyable Irish author includes tea endlessly with arguments about preparation, sometimes taking many paragraphs or frequent references to the enjoyment of the tea as the story unfolds. A frequent greeting in many stories would be “I will put the kettle on for tea then we can talk…” and surely this happens in films and stage plays and real life. The first thing my grandmother and mother did was make tea–with preserves served in glass/a “Glassel of tea.” This tea is often served in Stories set in the “old” country; Russian novels, Tsars, murder, scheming and intrigue with the spoon in the Glass slurping the preserves or fresh cherries. Yum.

The world of books, drama and more offer endless servings of tea and opinions about tea. I have chosen a few quotes to share and hope you will share books, sources and your experience about tea and books. 

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
― C.S. Lewis

“I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.”
― Fyodor Dostoevsky, Notes from Underground

“Writing is a job, a talent, but it’s also the place to go in your head. It is the imaginary friend you drink your tea with in the afternoon.”
― Ann Patchett, Truth and Beauty

 “As far as her mom was concerned, tea fixed everything. Have a cold? Have some tea. Broken bones? There’s a tea for that too. Somewhere in her mother’s pantry, Laurel suspected, was a box of tea that said, ‘In case of Armageddon, steep three to five  minutes’.”

― Aprilynne Pike, Illusions

Ahh, a  remedy for the times we live in today, I wonder what that tea contains?

A final quote; “There´s more than one kind of tea?…What do you have?”
“Let´s see… Blueberry, Raspberry, Ginseng, Sleepytime, Green Tea, Green Tea with Lemon, Green Tea with Lemon and Honey, Liver Disaster, Ginger with Honey, Ginger Without Honey, Vanilla Almond, White Truffle Coconut, Chamomile, Blueberry Chamomile, Decaf Vanilla Walnut, Constant Comment and Earl Grey.”
-“I.. Uh…What are you having?… Did you make some of those up?”
― Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life

And I wonder my readers, do you drink tea, what will you have today? 

Message in a Minute: State of our state

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Can you believe the goings on in our country? I am sharing the following article found in Tablet  Magazine;  subject and link below if you are interested. Are some states ready to activate Succession??…reinvent ourselves, our Union? what next
Political scientist Louis Hartz accurately described the United States’ underlying cultural hyperindividualism. Is the next logical step the dissolution of the centralized federal state to become more like the EU?
 

Art, Music and Books: Behind the Door

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Hi all, I am starting a 2nd blog post with a different focus from the years old “Message in a Minute. It is as you see above all about my take and your sharing your feedback to me regarding art, music and books. I will continue my series about books I have read and discoveries about the arts and music. I hope you enjoy and will share feedback with others and add names to the recipients. 

The URL below is from Tablet Magazine, wonderful books and articles with a Jewish theme but completely varied. This is a peek into history and a story about 2 sneaky art thieves. I hope you get a chuckle and forget any current woes for a short time. go to;

https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/de-kooning-art-theft?utm_source=tabletmagazinelist&utm_campaign=167b3d7582-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_05_15_03_43&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c308bf8edb-167b3d7582-207829689

Message in a Minute Posts will continue under that title as always. Carol 

Message in a Minute: Along the River

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What River you may ask? The American river of legend and renown, the MISSISSIPPI river. We are trekking eastward in our RV and stopped at the Tom Sawyer Campground in West Memphis, Arkansas. The river is high having flooded the campground several times this season. We had reserved one night but upon seeing the wonderful campground we requested an additional night and some R and R from all of the long days of driving.

  Sunday Morning I took a very early morning walk with my Leica and am sharing some of the sights along the fast flowing river.

Barge traffic is high

     We seldom take selfies

Find the bird

 

Sunrise and clouds. It rained hard in the afternoon.

 

 

 

Some time to meditate

More traveling ahead but we are ready after a glorious day off. Be well all.

Message in a Minute: Globetrotters vs the Virus

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Even though I am VERY busy in this time of sheltering, my mind wanders and old memories come back or are triggered as I read on line material. So many references are made to the deep hole felt by the world of sports. I am not an avid sports person but I do enjoy Soccer and Hockey, except when games are bloody. (It must be my Canadian side showing off.) A reference caught my eye in the realm of sports, a basketball team of great renown that Paul and I and our sons used to watch and roar with laughter. Are some of you old enough to remember the Harlem Globetrotters; the always win, super-duper comedy act Basketball team of the 1900’s and beyond and the many superstars of the team.  It was a pleasure to follow the history of the team and their antics.  

Who were/are they? I have copied in notes from the Harlem Globetrotters web page.

“Abe Saperstein founded the team in 1926, and they played their first road game in Hinckley, Illinois, on Jan. 7, 1927. Since then, the Globetrotters have entertained more than 148 million fans in 123 countries and territories worldwide, introducing many to the sport of basketball.”

Then it occurred to me that we are now fighting a Globetrotter of a different and terrible ilk, not a sport, not comedic but deadly, of course, I refer to Covid-19. But this time we, the underdogs HAVE to win, which gives me painful  quivers in my belly when hearing about families starving, tempers rising, suicides among our brave and ill treatment of our beloved medical staffs, people helping people and being insulted or harmed, early openings, crowds of people in oceans, lakes, parks, promenades and the leadership horrors of our government. I applaud news broadcasters going to the ends of the earth to communicate, global sings, dance parties, young people striving to stay in the loop in their schooling and studies and so much more.  My message must be in a minute as promised when I started these blogs many years ago.  The Globetrotters of renown are still active–of course with new players through the years playing the teams that were set up to always loose. What fun.

The games of course are now on hold. Follow this URL for the planned schedule:  https://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/World-Tour/Schedule 

I cannot insert a photo; copyright security but to view photos, go to https://www.pinterest.com/chandagreer/harlem-globetrotters/Meanwhile, our sense of humor must never fade, no matter what life brings to the forefront. Be Well. 

 

Message in a Minute; The Many Faces of Praise

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A Long URL that will put Long faces on our own facades from the New York Times.

The Url; https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/26/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-briefings-analyzed.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

By Jeremy W. Peters, Elaina Plott and Maggie HabermanApril 26, 2020

260,000 words Full of Self Praise, From Trump on the Virus. Each portrait tile of the moving lips is dated with further info in the text of the article. He is denying everything that is negative for his re election…; well, see for your self.
I took a few minutes of my “very busy schedule” (subject to be covered in anther blog entry) to count in the style of the article authors. There are about 13 different colors of tie, in some he wears no tie. no MAGA hat, but his hair is a different style each day (and I thought the beauty parlors were closed). There are American flags and his suits or jackets in different tones. Also, two of his cronies in the background in half face and some others in the windows with moving mouths. But the mouth goes on, the eye lids remain white and droopy contrasting the complexion in gold or reds and hair in various tones of gold. But the mouth goes on and on and on but doesn’t seem engaged in the words that are emitted into the air. I hope this offers a light moment in your day, especially as you go off to the golf course, barber or beauty shop, park, beach or walk on the promenades around the world as if you would. Still, we must cover up with masks, remain 6′ or more apart, don gloves and beware of the devil among us whether human or viral.

Read more

Message in a Minute; Re-elect WHOM?

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Another blog also to serve as another diversion to forget for a few moments what is in the news today.  The label on the car window is not  what you think; it is counter and still timely.  I shot this photo on 02/22/2011. We were camped on the beach in LA with the nose of our rig damp from the ocean surf spray in Dockweiler State Park, url;  https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=617. Out for a walk I spotted this window sticker and did a double take. Yes, it says, re-elect Nobody. Hmm, appropriate for today? and a  I wondered about the owner of the vehicle. If you can make out the other stickers you will see the owner served in the Marines, and in Iraq with the US Navy during the Freedom Campaign. He/she is certainly someone to be honored having been a member of the National Rifle Association and as the seal of America’s Heritage declares, the right to bear arms. His/her bio is right there for all to see. And a banner stating that this is an official U. S. Air force Veteran. I don’t know what license plate the car carried, could be CA. 

The election that year was a gender gap year. Men were not voting for women. Terms were lost. There were three new governor, certainly not a landmark year. But as as result we have seen a fast rise in the number of female candidates. see more at https://cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/elections/past_candidates#e2011. The unique message on the vehicle had to be shared.

BE WELL all, we will get through all of this, with unbearable losses, dysfunctional leadership, hopefully with reduced gerrymandering and voting on line and the strength, dedication of all of the heroes on the front lines. We are all there in some way.

bumper sticker re elect nobody