Two Below

(A sampling of the icicles hanging out in our neighborhood after the BIG SNOW this week)

RESOLUTIONS?

I didn’t make any New Year’s Resolutions this year ... can’t remember the last year that I did, as a matter of fact.

Instead, I’ve gotten into the habit of making DAILY resolutions, like ...

Remembering to take my meds ... without having someone else ask if I remembered to ... oh, yes ... I was just going to do that.

Working ... seriously working ... on the backlog in the study before it poses a serious bodily threat to those who venture too near the stacks.

Taking care not to misplace printouts of e-mails ... especially those which have the potential of turning S&G into a really ... REALLY interesting posting.

Balancing my checkbook ... once I find it again ... and then can find my last couple of statements.

Reading ... sitting down for a few minutes each day to do some serious ... or even light ... reading.

Writing ... to do more of that than I did the day before ... which should be an easy mark to top.

Catching up ... in general ... but more specifically with my posting on my daily "blog" ... known as "Chosen Words" ... but which perhaps should be known as something more befitting the lag there, too.

-S&G-

I’M SURE you get the picture. I start each day resolving to do better than the day before ... and end each day wondering where it went so fast ... and why I didn’t really make a dent in my list of things to do.

Well ... there’s always tomorrow ... a new copy of the old to-do list ... and a new set of resolutions.

And one of these days ... maybe even tomorrow ... who knows? I might even ... well, I’ll let you know.

-S&G-

I DO APPRECIATE your patience with me during these recent hectic weeks. I’m surprised there are any visitors to S&G ... or that any of you are still speaking to me ... and thank you ... thank you ... thank you ... that you are.

-S&G-

EVEN THIS PAST week, when we ... like a lot of the country ... were snowed in ... I thought I might be able to make some headway on catching up.

After all, I was homebound for three days ... plenty of time to get to the keyboard ... get in gear ... get things done.

Instead, I seemingly spent hours staring out at the snow ... ventured out a few steps beyond the side door ... and right back in ... finally did some shoveling, when the storm ended ... spent some time thawing my fingers and getting the kinks out of my back ... and WHAMMO! ... another week had gone whizzing past.

-S&G-

THE WEATHER ... as is often the case ... was even worse elsewhere ... Rogers, Arkansas, for example, where a son of LOREE (Kansas) lives. They had two inches of solid ice over everything, he reported to Mom ... they were without power ... and "he fell asleep last night with the constant noise of a war zone in his ears ... the cracking, breaking and snapping of tree limbs."

-S&G-

LOREE ADDS that she’s glad "to see that you have once again gotten the upper hand over that headstrong brute residing in your house ... the computer!"

Well ... and I’m afraid the computer may hear me saying this ... but I don’t think I’ll ever again feel that I have the upper hand over it. These rascals have ways of tossing us humans around like ... well, like bits of scrambled data ... and dragging their feet? They don’t even have feet, but they drag ‘em, just the same ... and, most baffling of all, don’t leave any skid marks ... I just don’t understand. Or have I said that before, too?

-S&G-

TODAY'S QUOTE: "When your toes are as cold as your nose ... and your fingers are as brittle as frozen spittle ... just remember: We’re another day nearer to the beginning of spring." - Professor Squigglee

-S&G-

TODAY'S POEM - I’ve learned ... the hard way ... that I can empty the room ... almost instantly ... during a family gathering, simply by saying, "That reminds me ... "

They’ve all heard THAT before ... all of it ... Even with variations, they know ... bottom line ... that they’ve heard this one before.

Now, at risk of emptying the room, albeit the electronic room in which you are viewing this installment of S&G ... I’m going to share a poem that you’ve likely seen before.

All because this recent weather ... not just in Ohio, but across so much of the country ... reminds me ...

Meanwhile, the poem:

TWO BELOW

Pale slice of lemon
floating in thin clouds
far above temperatures
fallen, clicking,
struggling to rise
where they were
sometime yesterday
before falling back
in the sullen darkness
that will cradle us
like two sleeping bears
dreaming of spring.

(originally published in Southern Humanities Review)

-S&G-

IF YOU FEEL like making a quick comment, please do ... below the current installment, if you like.

Or if you'd prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations. Just send an e-mail, please, to rbrimm@peoplepc.com... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-

UNTIL NEXT week ... take care ... see ya.

-S&G-
© 2009