WHEN I GLANCED out my window this morning ... that’s right, THIS morning (we only bring you the very latest here at S&G, right?) ... I saw a squirrel sitting there ... apparently in deep thought.
I imagined he was thinking about that big meal he had last night ... how he had tossed and turned while trying to digest it ... or lay awake mulling over something he had seen on TV ... or maybe he was trying to come up with some prank that would top all his others.
Maybe ... if he spotted me looking at him ... he was simply wondering what I was thinking about ... like that big meal ... something on TV ... or ...
I can tell you now, I was trying to come up with a big prank ... but I was drawing a blank ... an absolute blank.
-S&G-
MY ACHING BACK! If you’re anywhere near my age bracket ... or know someone who might be ... you’ve probably heard someone use the term to express doubt ... or consternation ... over something they had just heard.
Well, when you’ve reached my age ... and I’m not going to respond to any wild guesses about what THAT is ... the term takes on a more literal aspect.
Yes, I do have an honest-to-goodness ACHING BACK.
While I find little enjoyment in that distinction, I do find some comfort in knowing that I am a pain in the neck to some people. But that’s another story entirely.
All of this is intended to bring into focus a topic I’ve broached before ... becoming organized ... or becoming less disorganized, if you will ... in hopes that condition might ease my aching back ... or might even make me less of a pain in the neck to others.
I’ve tried everything.
I’ve tried "sprinting" ... that is, engaging in concentrated effort ... not literally running, mind you (I gave that up years ago) ... but focusing on a project for a short time ... 15 minutes, for example ... then easing up ... then returning to sprinting mode ... easing up ... etc.
Now I’m trying the sandwich approach ... or "layering," if you’d prefer, because "sandwich" makes you hungry.
I’m trying ... really trying ... to work on one project for a while ... like going through papers that I should’ve tossed years ago ... then turning my attention to another project ... then to another ... and another ... all of which I try to do before I get one of those urgent-URGENT messages from my back ... a message telling me that a reasonable person would call it a day about mid-morning and then kick back for the rest of the day.
Don’t let me forget to tell you how this comes out. Oh ... and forgetting? Well, that’s another topic for another day.
-S&G-
THIS JUST IN! (recently) ... from LOREE (Kansas): "When I went to the cemetery on Saturday before Memorial Day, I noticed a new headstone very near to my own (just waiting for a date), that was lavishly decorated ... so, out of curiosity, I walked over to see it.
"Imagine my surprise when I saw that it was the final resting place of one of my classmates ... there were only 14 of us back in May of 1953, and that was the beginning of each of our unique journeys through life.
"This girl was a bit different, bless her heart. Her father worked at that time in the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, where he made BIG bucks, for that day and age. She never made any effort to be a good friend to the rest of us girls, but gave the impression that she was a cut above us, God bless her.
"I say this now ... with no ill will at all ... but the fact that she now lies at rest at my FEET ... and one plot to the north of me ... is a shocker. Somehow, knowing her, I can’t believe that if she had a choice that would have happened.
"Like I said, no ill will meant at all ... heck, maybe she and I will be great friends in the future."
-S&G-
SPEAKING OF class reunions ... LOREE has those covered with a new poem on her site ... and here’s the link:
http://www.poetrybyloree.com/410.html
Enjoy your visit (there are lots of things to see there ... and good listening, too) ... but don’t forget to come back.The welcome mat is always out here, too, you know.
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM ... When was the last time you dusted? I hasten to add that you needn’t answer ... I wouldn’t want to get involved in comparing notes ... since the last time that comes to mind for me was when I was in military service ... which was, well, that’s another story, too ...
Actually, the reason I asked has more to do with the NEXT time you dust, rather than the previous engagement with those rascally little particles.
I’d like you to notice what’s really happening as you and the dust cloth swing into action ... see if it isn’t something like I describe in the following poem:
TREACHEROUS DUST
Resting at will,
but never sleeping,
it rises lazily
ahead of the cloth,
starts settling
back on everything
the very minute
your back's turned.
(originally published in Capper’s)
-S&G-
COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, 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 TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2009
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