Post a good thing that happened in your life today

[Marianne]

20 hours ago, Michael Ventura said:

Baked more banana walnut bread today and had a nice hour long Skype call with an Italian cousin in Puglia, Italy.  We were born in the same year and have always been close, but technology has made it so much easier for us to be even closer and it is a big plus that she speaks English perfectly (an English teacher in her town) and I speak just enough Italian to get myself into trouble! 

 

Marianne, I have a photographer friend who also went to Smith College, tho I think she graduated after you. Her name is Sarah Hampton (tho I don't think Hampton was her given surname).  She was living in NYC but has moved back up to Northhampton, MA.  Judging by her photos, it looks like Smith is beautiful campus!

 

 

 

Banana bread - yum! - I need to bake more. Smith has a gorgeous campus - a pond right in the middle, ivy-covered buildings, and a lovely little town in the foothills of the Berkshires. A photo I took at the last Reunion I attended was recently licensed for a Serenity calendar. Cool about your Italian cousins. I've gotten to know some of mine through FB - and got to meet some of them in NY last year. Without our current technology getting through this pandemic would be touch - but then the world would be so different, we'd be mailing slides to Alamy, spending time in a darkroom, so much has changed in just this young century of ours. 

 

19 hours ago, Cecile Marion said:

Somewhere, I have an ancient photo (1914?) of my grandmother and my great-grandparents at Smith. My grandmother began attending school there at the age of 16. 
 

Two good things are happening for me today. My daughter is making fajitas for dinner, and my knees aren’t killing me (as they have been off and on for the last five months) after walking three miles this morning. 

 

It would be fun to see the photo. History in the US doesn't go back the way it does in Europe. The college had just turned 100 the year before I started, which seemed ancient. I had some friends whose great-grandmothers had gone there which seemed very interesting, the idea of generations at the same place. 

[Marianne]

17 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

Marianne, I don’t know if optimism is an inherited tendency or if it comes from life experiences. I had some bad times as a small girl. Enough that I sometimes curled into a ball and my mind went to a happy place. Maybe that’s when I decided things couldn’t get worse, so the future had to be better, and I used my imagination to picture it. Big time dreamer.

Every day I try to find joy in something. Today it was a bird flapping away scattering water in my bird bath. When it flew I only got a glimpse, but I think it was a female goldfinch! I hadn’t seen one since moving from Oklahoma.

I agree in times like this the Internet is a Godsend enabling us to keep in touch.

Pardon if I offended anyone with the last sentence, but I speak like I think.

Betty

 

I think  it is just the way we are wired - an inherited tendency. We have both extremes in my family and I took after the wrong branch, but I knew enough to have married an optimist and to count many among my friends. The internet is a Godsend in these times, agree wholeheartedly. God and science are not mutually exclusive. Interesting read along those lines: https://apnews.com/01716afc8e0a746be7ded77162d25437 

Edited May 25, 2020 by Marianne

[Betty LaRue]

8 hours ago, Marianne said:

 

I think  it is just the way we are wired - an inherited tendency. We have both extremes in my family and I took after the wrong branch, but I knew enough to have married an optimist and to count many among my friends. The internet is a Godsend in these times, agree wholeheartedly. God and science are not mutually exclusive. Interesting read along those lines: https://apnews.com/01716afc8e0a746be7ded77162d25437 

Interesting read.

[Michael Ventura]

7 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

Interesting read.

 

Dr Francis Collins is a fascinating man.  I was assigned to photograph him at a DNA lab at NIH a few years ago. He also plays the electric guitar and plays in a band made up of other research doctors!

 

 

I would consider myself an optimist but like Marianne, we have both in the family. I have a sibling who is the opposite...a devote pessimist.  I do think it is in the "wiring".  

[Betty LaRue]

2 hours ago, Michael Ventura said:

 

Dr Francis Collins is a fascinating man.  I was assigned to photograph him at a DNA lab at NIH a few years ago. He also plays the electric guitar and plays in a band made up of other research doctors!

 

 

I would consider myself an optimist but like Marianne, we have both in the family. I have a sibling who is the opposite...a devote pessimist.  I do think it is in the "wiring".  

Nice picture!

My oldest sister is just barely on the side of pessimism. I always wondered if it was birth order, because she often had the responsibility of two younger sisters while our mother worked before and after divorce. But if it is wiring, probably not.

I wonder if the “wiring” has anything to do with left-handedness, because I’m a leftie. Both sisters are righties and lean toward pessimism.

 

One day, we lefties will rise up and take over the world. There will be bigger choices of left-handed scissors, softball mitts, guitars, can openers and other things, and be priced the same as the right-handed things. At least there are some now, when I was growing up, nada. I played softball with the mitt on the wrong hand, and could barely field a ball. A left-handed one probably could have been ordered, but was too expensive. I played my guitar upside down with the small string rattling around in the big groove. I eventually bought a left-handed one but had to pay a premium.
And we’ll write in notebooks starting at the back page with the coils on the right instead of the left.😉 I should do that now. But the first-grade teacher who whipped my left hand with a ruler when she caught me using it made too much of an impression.

[Michael Ventura]

12 minutes ago, Betty LaRue said:

Nice picture!

My oldest sister is just barely on the side of pessimism. I always wondered if it was birth order, because she often had the responsibility of two younger sisters while our mother worked before and after divorce. But if it is wiring, probably not.

I wonder if the “wiring” has anything to do with left-handedness, because I’m a leftie. Both sisters are righties and lean toward pessimism.

 

One day, we lefties will rise up and take over the world. There will be bigger choices of left-handed scissors, softball mitts, guitars, can openers and other things, and be priced the same as the right-handed things. At least there are some now, when I was growing up, nada. I played softball with the mitt on the wrong hand, and could barely field a ball. A left-handed one probably could have been ordered, but was too expensive. I played my guitar upside down with the small string rattling around in the big groove. I eventually bought a left-handed one but had to pay a premium.
And we’ll write in notebooks starting at the back page with the coils on the right instead of the left.😉 I should do that now. But the first-grade teacher who whipped my left hand with a ruler when she caught me using it made too much of an impression.

Oops, meant to write DEVOUT before, not devote.

 

Well this is no too scientific, but I am right handed and my pessimist brother is left handed.  I hear you about being a leftie in a right handed world.  My brother complained often.  He played ice hockey and paid a premium for left handed hockey sticks as well as other sporting equipment. Not to mention getting ink on your hands while writing.

[MizBrown]

Today was my first second license of the week. 

 

[Betty LaRue]

4 hours ago, Michael Ventura said:

Oops, meant to write DEVOUT before, not devote.

 

Well this is no too scientific, but I am right handed and my pessimist brother is left handed.  I hear you about being a leftie in a right handed world.  My brother complained often.  He played ice hockey and paid a premium for left handed hockey sticks as well as other sporting equipment. Not to mention getting ink on your hands while writing.

Ink, whadda ya mean, ink? I thought that’s how left hands were supposed to be. And all reports were smeared. I did learn how to put a blank piece of paper under my hand and it solved both problems. Lefties are good problem solvers. 😁 we have to be.

[Betty LaRue]

1 hour ago, MizBrown said:

Today was my first second license of the week. 

 

Good, I’ve only sold two for the month.

[MizBrown]

21 minutes ago, Betty LaRue said:

Good, I’ve only sold two for the month.

 

I normally sell three a year over the last three years with just a bit over 900 photos in my portfolio. 

[John Richmond]

My little long haired Jack Russell came through a rough session to extract a number of teeth today.  At nearly 15, with a heart problem she's had since 18 months it was always risky to put her under anaesthetic but she survived and seems totally unconcerned.  Tough little bitch.  Long may she paddle on:

 

[Cecile Marion]

Aw. She looks like a real sweetie. Congratulations on a successful day.

[Betty LaRue]

3 hours ago, John Richmond said:

My little long haired Jack Russell came through a rough session to extract a number of teeth today.  At nearly 15, with a heart problem she's had since 18 months it was always risky to put her under anaesthetic but she survived and seems totally unconcerned.  Tough little bitch.  Long may she paddle on:

 

It was a necessary job. Diseased teeth/gums can infect the bloodstream, potentially the heart. You probably extended her life by doing the hard thing. I had poodles and a Yorkie prone to unhealthy teeth.
I bought a tooth scraper Instrument from a friend who is a veterinarian and began cleaning my Yorkie’s teeth myself. She allowed it because she loved me, so no anesthesia involved. It wasn’t a fun thing to do, though, for either of us.
Your dog is a beauty.

[Allan Bell]

 

Erected the rotary drying line today. Now to get some washing done.

 

Allan

 

[NYCat]

We have another robin's nest. I was in the garden talking to a neighbor when a bird flew by. I saw it go to it's nest. I had been wondering why there was debris in the doorway below. They like these blue plastic strings. Such a messy nest! But it looks like we will have more babies. So happy.

 

Paulette

 

[Betty LaRue]

13 minutes ago, NYCat said:

We have another robin's nest. I was in the garden talking to a neighbor when a bird flew by. I saw it go to it's nest. I had been wondering why there was debris in the doorway below. They like these blue plastic strings. Such a messy nest! But it looks like we will have more babies. So happy.

 

Paulette

 

The robins seem to feel your area is a safe place to raise a family. Ain’t nature wonderful?

I had to get slightly rude with a door-to-door salesman who tried to insist on selling me a pest-control deal. I told him I couldn’t afford it first thing, but he persisted. Until I raised my voice one notch and said, “I. Can’t. Afford. It!!!”

It’s really hard for me to be rude.

He was especially asking about ants in the house, as if he had secret information that I waged a successful war with them a couple of weeks ago! 

So I guess my good news is that I didn’t allow him to steamroll over me!

Betty

[Bryan]

On 27/05/2020 at 09:48, Allan Bell said:

 

Erected the rotary drying line today. Now to get some washing done.

 

Allan

 

 

But did you take a photo?

[spacecadet]

Good news: I get to travel tomorrow.

Bad news: it's for a funeral. Worse news: yes it was coronavirus. Very slightly less awful news: he was 2 months short of 90.

Better news: I made this today. A house number for the gatepost.

Edited May 28, 2020 by spacecadet

[Allan Bell]

1 hour ago, Bryan said:

 

But did you take a photo?

 

DARN!

 

Allan

 

[Michael Ventura]

Had a real nice day. A childhood friend, who lives in Brooklyn, NY called and said he had some business to do in Delaware (just about half way between us).  So he suggested that we meet there for lunch.  The one good thing about having no work due to the virus, it was not a problem to jump in the car and go.  It was also a great opportunity to bring him this framed photo of mine that was a gift for his new apartment.  We found this great take away seafood place that had excellent crab cakes and fries (chips)...love crab cakes (crab meat burger like sandwiches, not dessert).  We parked our cars in such a way so that we could talk but still be six feet apart.  So worth the drive to see an old friend...been close friends since we were 8 years old! 

[Betty LaRue]

9 hours ago, Sally R said:

 

I'm a leftie too Betty, and I also learned to use a piece of paper to avoid smudging ink. At school I remember other kids thinking I'd injured my little finger because it was blue with ink and looked like a bruise. I've noticed some lefties develop a writing style where they curve their hand around to avoid smudging, but I've never been able to do that. 

 

It seems quite common for a lot of lefties to be a bit ambidextrous. It is hard to know how much that comes from fitting in with a right handed world and how much it is there from the start. In my case it feels like a bit of both. I actually use scissors and play guitar right handed, but write left handed. I did athletics as a kid and threw the javelin and shot put with my left arm, and the discus with my right. My brain also tends to work sideways, to think laterally, which can be good for problem solving, but also means I'm not always good at linear thinking and can be a bit all over the place 😜 

I do everything important that requires precise work left-handed. Casting a fishing pole also. But I lead with my right foot when I start to walk and I’m right eye dominant. And I have an artistic bent. I don’t say I’m good at it, but I have it and it’s a compulsion.

[Allan Bell]

2 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

I do everything important that requires precise work left-handed. Casting a fishing pole also. But I lead with my right foot when I start to walk and I’m right eye dominant. And I have an artistic bent. I don’t say I’m good at it, but I have it and it’s a compulsion.

 

Oh Betty I am sorry to hear your artistic is bent.

 

I am left handed too and when at school I was left footed. (Oops, please don't read that the wrong way.) I meant that I kicked a ball with my left foot. Yet when holding a cricket bat I hold it in the right handed mode. If I try the left handed way it feels all wrong. Also when I was in the seniors at school we had an art teacher who suggested I go to art school but I was told to get a "proper job" by someone else. You never know I could have been another Hockney or Turner.🤣

 

Allan

 

Cleaned half the garage out today. Will move the rubbish to the clean half tomorrow and clean the free side out.

 

ITMA

 

Edited May 29, 2020 by Allan Bell
Keeping on topic

[NYCat]

I got a cat-sitting booking today for mid-July. I've been doing my usual weekend gig for a few weeks now but this is the first sign that people may travel again and I will have work. Feels so good to get a bit of normality back.

 

Paulette

[Betty LaRue]

Allan, you nut! Yet a good nut. If I kicked a ball, it would be with my left foot. I think.....maybe..who knows. It’s been too long. I can only relate to the last time I kicked someone’s butt, which was more recent. You gotta watch us bent people.
 

Paulette, that sounds promising. Normality is wonderful.
I have cut and colored my hair most of my life except for a few times. Today I’m going to a stylist. Since I’m going grey, now, I want to see if she can blend the grow-out so it’ll look a little more graceful. 
I must say I have trepidation about getting out, but I don’t want to spend the rest of my life sheltering in my house. Whatever happens, I guess I’ll deal with it or I won’t, or my body won’t. I’m still doing masks, hand-washing and distancing. But I can’t distance from a hairdresser. Gulp.

[Bryan]

Picked and shared with the Mrs our first home grown strawberries of the year - raised in a greenhouse which I am tending due to the virus lockdown of the owner. Absolutely delicious, those you buy in supermarkets are tasteless in comparison.

 

Then  - our musician mate sent us a transcription of a Kathryn Tickell tune arranged for treble recorder and piano, not too difficult to play and a lovely tune. The treble starts on F, which makes it difficult to play many popular tunes, but our friend also plays the treble and knows how to get around the problem without having to resort to multiple accidentals.

 

Plus - heavy rain forecast for tomorrow, the garden desperately needs a drink.

Edited June 2, 2020 by Bryan