All this discussion of airport security leaves me thinking about security in general. Actually, if the scanners or pat-downs cause concern, one can always take the train, the bus, the car or shank's mare. And, the Congressional hearings on the foreclosure debacle drive home the fact that many Americans are feeling very insecure in their homes and their pocketbooks; their futures are too scary to even contemplate at this point.
Why is it then that I am feeling so secure. I believe my Social Security monthly benefit will slide into my checking account every month. My cozy condo carries no mortgage and my 401(k) is starting to mend. I look around my home at the things I have accrued through my adulthood, at my sweet little dog, at my kitchen with proper appliances and tools, at my closet full of clothes, at my paid for car, and think - how lucky I am. How secure I am.
And I'm secure in intangibles, too. My family, my friends, my neighborhood and community. Is it, could it be, unAmerican to feel so secure? Maybe not, but certainly out of step with many of my countrymen.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Bide-A-Wee
Home ... a word with emotional and economic connotations. A loaded word. I'm settled in my home and have been for more years than any other home since I left my parents' home. It's a small, two-story townhouse with a small patio in a complex of 56 units. Not huge, but large enough to be interesting. It's located in a university town so there are students living in my complex. And families, retired persons and couples. Comfortably working class.
It's the place I'm happy to return to; the place that looks like me; the place that feels good. And it's the place I'll live in as long as I can live by myself.
Bide-A-Wee is the name on many little cottages in Michigan which are on lakes, beside rivers, or in the woods. It's a name attached to a retirement home; a home to nestle into after the years of work are completed; and a name that connotes slow, leisurely living. It's the reward for lifelong work and righteous living. And that's what my wine country home is. My place to relax and enjoy the events that life will bring.
And now, I have a little dog to complete my little world. A dog, a garden, my kitchen, my books. That's my little world. Just the right size for me.
It's the place I'm happy to return to; the place that looks like me; the place that feels good. And it's the place I'll live in as long as I can live by myself.
Bide-A-Wee is the name on many little cottages in Michigan which are on lakes, beside rivers, or in the woods. It's a name attached to a retirement home; a home to nestle into after the years of work are completed; and a name that connotes slow, leisurely living. It's the reward for lifelong work and righteous living. And that's what my wine country home is. My place to relax and enjoy the events that life will bring.
And now, I have a little dog to complete my little world. A dog, a garden, my kitchen, my books. That's my little world. Just the right size for me.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Bilbo Barks!
Well, finally. More than 24 hours after I brought Bilbo home, he barked! I was beginning to wonder if he could. He was snoozing in his new bed and suddenly he jumped up barking and raced through the house and into the patio. He must have heard something he thought was a threat. But when I told him no, he stopped barking and went back to his bed and his snooze. So, he will be a little bit of a guard dog, although no hardened criminal would be deterred for a moment by the sound of his bark.
He follows me everywhere and settles down to nap when I spend any length of time in any one room. He's happy to see me and ecstatic when I returned from the dumpster or getting the mail. I haven't left him for as long as to go to the store yet but will have to do that tomorrow. Can just imagine who happy he will be then.
Next week, if he continues to acclimate well, we'll check in with the vet and maybe get him groomed. He's a bit scruffy from his being lost.
His being here has lifted my spirits greatly. It's a good thing.
He follows me everywhere and settles down to nap when I spend any length of time in any one room. He's happy to see me and ecstatic when I returned from the dumpster or getting the mail. I haven't left him for as long as to go to the store yet but will have to do that tomorrow. Can just imagine who happy he will be then.
Next week, if he continues to acclimate well, we'll check in with the vet and maybe get him groomed. He's a bit scruffy from his being lost.
His being here has lifted my spirits greatly. It's a good thing.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
SEDUCING BILBO
He's here! My new dog. And he's worried. I don't know what happened to him to cause him to be a worried dog, but he is. So I have a seduction job ahead of me and I look forward to it with relish. He doesn't like to be picked up. He doesn't like for my hand to come down on top of him when I try to pet him. He will come to my outstretched hand, sniff a little and let me pet his head. Something fell on him from above or someone hit him from above so he's skittish. Who wouldn't be? But, I have hope that he will come around and be very comfortable with me.
He is small, about the size of a large cat, and he looks like a white curly haired lamb in his body. He is a miniature poodle but isn't clipped like a poodle. Has a chopped tail but there is enough left to wag (thank goodness, I hate chopped tails). He's approx. 2-3 years old. He was picked up in a neighborhood running with another white poodle about the same age.
We had a long session at the animal shelter in Rohnert Park yesterday. I sat with him in the 'play room' for quite a while and then took him outside for a walk on the grass. He was good on the leash. Then back inside to convince the staff that I could handle a 'worried' dog and that I would welcome the chance to make him happy. Then the paperwork: he is microchipped, licensed, tag on his colar, fixed and vaccinated. A fully American citizen. Then the payment, then out to the car for the drive home.
It will take a while to get him relaxed and happy but I am confident it will happen and in the meantime I am so pleased to have a little being in the house, someone to talk to, feed and live with.
It will be a while before he's ready to meet the rest of the family and my friends, but when he is ready I know you will all welcome him with open arms.
He is small, about the size of a large cat, and he looks like a white curly haired lamb in his body. He is a miniature poodle but isn't clipped like a poodle. Has a chopped tail but there is enough left to wag (thank goodness, I hate chopped tails). He's approx. 2-3 years old. He was picked up in a neighborhood running with another white poodle about the same age.
We had a long session at the animal shelter in Rohnert Park yesterday. I sat with him in the 'play room' for quite a while and then took him outside for a walk on the grass. He was good on the leash. Then back inside to convince the staff that I could handle a 'worried' dog and that I would welcome the chance to make him happy. Then the paperwork: he is microchipped, licensed, tag on his colar, fixed and vaccinated. A fully American citizen. Then the payment, then out to the car for the drive home.
It will take a while to get him relaxed and happy but I am confident it will happen and in the meantime I am so pleased to have a little being in the house, someone to talk to, feed and live with.
It will be a while before he's ready to meet the rest of the family and my friends, but when he is ready I know you will all welcome him with open arms.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Tis Autumn
Tis Autumn - days of slanting sun, earlier dusks and cooler temps. Or, maybe cooler temps. We've had the hottest days of the year since the equinox, but they won't last long and the evenings bring coolness. The evening after the equinox, at dinner in my house with friends, as we talked and laughed, the golden September full moon rose over the Sonoma Mountains and we all stopped our conversation to just enjoy the sight. The moon, after all these centuries, can still enthrall people, still remind us that we are just a small part of the larger whole which is composed of the earth, the moon and the sun. These are the fundamentals of our life here and the gorgeous autumn moon, rising over the mountains between our two wine counties, reminds us of those things that are fundamentally true. That life on this planet is good, is precious, and beautiful.
I've always thought of the moon as female and the sun as male. The light the moon reflects down is most definitely female. Soft and silvery and somehow sweet.
Thinking of the silvery light that was to soon be shining down on my patio and garden as the moon rose in the sky, I said that I thought the fairies would be dancing on the patio that night. Now, I don't really believe that the fairies would actually appear, but what a nice thought to have. And to hold. And so I will hold onto it.
I've always thought of the moon as female and the sun as male. The light the moon reflects down is most definitely female. Soft and silvery and somehow sweet.
Thinking of the silvery light that was to soon be shining down on my patio and garden as the moon rose in the sky, I said that I thought the fairies would be dancing on the patio that night. Now, I don't really believe that the fairies would actually appear, but what a nice thought to have. And to hold. And so I will hold onto it.
Trepidation
I'm starting this off after setting up my own blog, a feat I can't quite believe I did. Not sure how to get back to it after I 'publish' but hopefully it won't remain a mystery for long. Still have to think about things like format, font, etc. The purpose of this blog is to set out thoughts about this amazing world around me, kinda like Jon Carroll in The Chronicle. We'll see how this goes.
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