comparison and contrast - what a fun day!

Subtitle: Vicarious Living Through Aunt Tina, Daytona and MOAS, part 3

Today, I visited part of the grounds that I had not yet.

Wait, let me start over.

Once upon a time, I'd gone over to the Cici and Hyatt Brown Museum of Art at the Museum of Arts and Sciences, but, for whatever reason, it was closed.

That was the one and only time I'd driven to its location.

(MOAS also has another building down in Port Orange, but that will await another trip.)

Finally, today was deemed 'the day', as I'd fully enjoyed all the new exhibits and the Planetarium - and even the garden and walking trail - at the main structure.

This is part of the 12-panel painting in the lobby.

The plaques mounted on the rail in front of several panels listed the various native species of flora and fauna in the depicted scenes.

I could clearly see that the artist had taken care to include as many of each as possible, to let the viewer know what a special place Florida is... and that it is the place the artist calls 'home'.

Lots of marsh, lots of water, lots of palm trees.

Dr. Seuss would have loved it!

(smile!)

But what really drew me in was the summertime shower, there to the left of that oasis of trees.

I cannot tell you how many times one of those spot showers would catch me unaware while I was at school in Tallahassee!

Sure, it would only last five minutes, but those were solid buckets of water raining down that entire time!

The artist captured that crazy bit of weather very well!

So did these other artists, all part of an exhibit that featured various phenomena peculiar to this US peninsula, as well as other East Coast states.

I think these paintings do a better job with depicting hurricanes than photographs, or even videos, do.

I'm sure it has to do with the energy caught in the bristles of the paint brush and left behind as a textured eye-catcher.

(smile!)

A rain-washed street in St. Augustine was the first to encourage me to compare and contrast.

The small upper painting and the large painting are of the same scene, by the same artist, but each showing a different perspective, even adding more people and splashes of red from one impression to the other.

Nice of the museum to include both!

In another room of that gallery was "The Seminole And The Everglades" exhibit, which included these gems to spark a conversation in my mind.

Again, the same artist is responsible for both, with the same swamp scene as the focal point.

Here's the difference: the work on the left is an engraving, made for publication in a magazine, whereas the work on the right is an oil painting made in his studio and based on his engraving.

Obviously, it's based on his memory, too, as it shows a sunlit scene and rich color.

Very nice illustration of how the remembered image in the mind can differ from reality!

What about a comparison of a similar scene as seen through the eyes of different artists?

I'm so glad you asked!

The upper was done by 32-year-old William Drown, while the lower was painted by 49-year-old Frank Shapleigh, with both showing an old kitchen in St. Augustine.

It should be noted that the paintings were done fairly close in time to each other.

I think it's notable that the younger man's scene is brighter and better lit, giving almost a sense of hopefulness or romanticism to the room.

On the other hand, the painting by the older man is darker, with a more dilapidated air to what was once the heart of the house.

I wonder what may have been going on in their lives when they did these?

Those two were part of the permanent collection, always on view in the upper gallery.

I wanted to concentrate on the new, temporary exhibits on this trip. 

On to "The Latest News From Florida - Wood Engravings From 19th Century Periodicals"!

The docent, Anne, was very informative - I'm so glad I happened to be there on a Tuesday, as that's the only day she is present!

When I'd explained that I'd seen the video about making prints from engravings, she'd brought me straight away to the room with this exhibit.

Many of the works here dealt with wars and skirmishes during the 1800's, but this scene captured my imagination.

Was this military base being threatened by a hurricane and just how close was it to water?

Those questions would remain unanswered.

Well, who was the artist that had made this drawing of Fort Pickens?

That question would only have the vague response of "Mrs. Lt. Gilman"... seriously.

At least Harper's Weekly gave her that much credit, which was remarkable for the time (1861).

While this was the only piece marked with her name, there were other drawings of Fort Pickens that were too similar in penstroke to not have been done by her hand.

Those had been ascribed simply as having been done by someone stationed there.

Very interesting!

On I went to the next little room, this one with the playful title "Gone Fishin' " for its exhibit.

And there it was, taking up much of one wall: a foursome featuring a famous author and his buddy out for a fishing trip.

This photo is of the last one of trio of watercolors in "Hemingway Among The Sharks", along with text recounting the conversation between him and the artist, Waldo Peirce.

(If you get a chance to see this, take the time to ready the spidery handwriting - it's a hoot!) 

Above the three watercolors done on paper was a much larger piece which was an oil painting on canvas.

This was done for the same gory scene as shown in that last watercolor, but made more vivid and with a real sense of the frantic actions involved in killing the shark.

There's absolutely no doubt that the brush strokes shown in the oil medium made this fishing expedition every bit something that a he-man like Hemingway - and his good buddy, Waldo - would engage in.

At the time of the paintings in 1928, the author was only 29 years old; the painter was 48, making him the "old man" in the fight with the denizens of the sea.

I'll let that allusion to a literary work just percolate there on the back burner...

get it?

(smile!)

As a last showing from this particular exhibit, how about a more humorous turn?

This net full of mermaids would have been deemed a perfect catch by my middle brother!

Thinking of how much he would have enjoyed it made me smile - and that was very good.

I'm fairly certain this is one of Ralph Cahoon's pieces, especially as it is such a whimsical scene.

I made note of another of his works, "Palm Beach Bridge Club", with very similar mermaids playing cards, for the physicist, so I'm sure I'm right.

(smile!)

Now, to shuffle back to the suite at DBR and start emptying the fridge for one last dinner here within view of the the Atlantic.

Later, my dears!

(smile!)

ambigram - that's a word?

Yep, as much of a word as ambivalent or ambidextrous.

That "ambi-" is from the Latin "ambo", which means "both", as in someone who is ambidextrous uses both hands equally well.

As for "-gram", that would refer to a something visual, such as a written word or drawing.

This particular prefix and base were not combined as a single, unique, word until 1983, when the physicist philosopher Donald Hofstadter did so to describe his art.

Therefore, the word "ambigram" is the same age as my first niece (Christina), my eldest niece (Christy), and my first nephew (Stephen).

(That helps to put it into perspective for me.)

So, why the fuss today over such a thing?

Well, here is the reason: today's date, in numeric form with the year fully expressed and with month and day expressed in two-digit format and excluding any punctuation, is not only a palindrome, but is also an ambigram.

It doesn't matter how one reads it - left to right, right to left, right-side up or upside-down - the numbers come out with the same exact meaning.

Admittedly, the font does matter, and using a sans serif helps make it true.

Take a little time, play with it, even set it up to read vertically instead of horizontally.

The result is the same: 12 02 2021 = 1202 20 21, spaces inserted to make my point.

How did I mark the occasion?

For my dinner, I created an Italian favorite, using a favorite Greek soup, as well as leftovers from Tuesday!

First, I heated up the Progresso Chicken With Orzo & Lemon, which is a pretty quick and easy version of Avgolemono soup.

I added some chopped spinach - 'cause I love them veggies! - and more lemon juice, to brighten the taste.

Then I tore the two pieces of bread from Truffles into pieces that were about one inch square.

When the soup was boiling, I threw in the bread, stirred, and turned off the heat - it was done!

Ribollita was my reward, as it had been when I first supped on it in Siena - magnifica!

And what did I do for entertainment?

I watched "Annie" 'with' Christina!

'Tis the holiday season and so the local channels are wooing our attention with fabulous specials... and this beloved musical, with its current Broadway cast, was on ABC - hooray!!!

I could certainly sense Mama's presence, joining in with us as we texted back and forth.

I'm sure she approved of this stage version, even though some of its songs were different from those in the movie that had Carol Burnett.

A musical is a musical is a musical, and this was certainly that, especially with Harry Connick, Jr., as Daddy Warbucks!

What a sweet surprise when I realized the older, stouter, bald, man was that crooner!

Guess how I finally knew it was him?

I had closed my eyes to listen to the voice and thought it sounded like that of Mel Torme, though I knew he had died years ago.

And, justthatfast, I had the correct identity!

Very nice, very nice!

So glad that first niece was able to join me tonight!

i thank You, God.

vicarious living thru aunt T - make it legendary!

Here I am, at the first hole of the Professional Course - the supposedly easier one of the two.

Yep, that's my purple-handled club!

My pink ball is already in position for teeing off.

The more striking thing - you like that little pun? - about these holes are the quotations at each one.

The vast majority are Bible verses, as in this case, but not all, as some from other sources were sprinkled in.

And just where was I mini-golfing today?

At Legendary Golf, situated in Wexford Plantation, just off William Hilton Parkway.

I'd spotted it Tuesday on my way to Sea Pines -

not to "see" pine trees, of course, but to watch films at Park Plaza.

Wah ca, wah ca, as Fozzie Bear would say!

The grounds were beautifully landscaped.

Hole 4 of the Professional Course even had a lovely waterfall splashing in view of the tee!

The placard for my reading pleasure, though not from the Bible, was religious.

"Unless we have in us He who is above us, we will soon be consumed by that which is around us. Without a doubt the highest thought the mind can entertain is the thought of God."

It was written by Aiden Wilson Tozer, a pastor who was so gifted with words that he was granted honorary degrees from two colleges.

Nice, right?

I certainly made sure to read these quotes, made even more meaningful in this nature setting, under a clear blue sky.

Right place, right time!

Here's another beautiful view!

This was part of the Championship Course and that's my pretty little pink ball, one stroke away from the hole.

As I was lining it up, I was stopped by the sheer beauty - a tiny rivulet running down into a still lake, with a waterspout springing forth, under shade trees and surrounded by a grassy verge...

so much prettier than it had needed to be, but surely a welcomed reminder of this sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of William Hilton Parkway, just past the edges of the meadow.

The rushing noise of the constant stream of cars was almost inaudible, thanks to the splashing of the fountain.

I loved having the leisure of taking a moment to enjoy this gift of nature.

This heart-shaped miniature lake deserved a moment of my time as well.

I have to wonder how many passersby may have noticed its form?

Positioned near a gazebo, it would be easy to overlook its message of love...

ah, but not by me, as accustomed as I am to the need for a change in perspective to better communicate with the spiritual world.

A nearby quote from J. C. Ryle certainly seemed to cinch that concept.

"Happiness does not depend on outward circumstances, but on the state of the heart."
And, sometimes, the need to squint your eyes and hold your mouth just-so to see what gift is hidden in plain sight!

(smile!)

Sometimes, that gift is a perfect shot when least expected.

For me, it was on Hole 16.

Look closely.

Let your gaze follow the length of the straightaway, through the neat brick walls.

Then, go up to and enter the opening formed by the two ends of the crescent-shaped lake.

Now, continue peering into that circular expanse, heading straight toward the large rock positioned at the center of that curving body of water...

and there's my pink ball, resting just in front of the boulder, inches from the the hole.

Wow, right?

That gave me a birdie on that one!

(smile!)

And, to highlight that this place was designed by someone not only with a religious core, but with a grand sense of humor toward mankind's place in the world, this is the message awaiting those who visit the loo!

"Please...Do Not Flush the Following Items Down This Toilet: Paper Towels, Sanitary Napkins, Old Phone Bills, Goldfish, Bandaids, Cherry Bombs, Leftover Salad, & Your Hopes & Dreams.

- Thanks!"

Nice joke, y'all!

DEEP as opera: heard!

What a grand view I had for this third, and last, evening in the rotunda of Telfair Academy!

(Thanks, Katie and Olivia, for D-13!)

I was very excited about "Song", as I knew several works from the youth at DEEP were to be featured... and I do so love their insights!

Of the fifteen pieces performed, five were from four of those middle-school students!!!

The poetry from Lincoln Davidson and Madeline Pelli was transformed into a musical triptych, painting a poignant picture of hope for better days and easier nights.

"I Lay Myself To Rest", "A Voice", and "I Dream Of A World" had been set to music with the help of Patrick Vu (who had helped do the same for an artist in svf-8.)

The middle piece, paraphrasing a classic riddle as "if a man shouts in an empty house, does anyone hear him?", nearly brought me to tears.

In its entirety, that trio of songs reminded me of classic works from Elvis Presley ("If I Can Dream") and others, speaking to a human need for unity and connection to others.

That trio was performed by Chad Sonka (with his lovely baritone), Sara Zoe Budnik, and Melanie Spector (both sopranos). 

Heather Jones performed "Worthless", another that wrenched at my heart, written by middle-school student Ella Zipperer and set to music by Dave Ragland.

Why did it affect me so?

The child was being regarded as nothing, absolutely nothing, for only being "100 pennies" instead of a dollar bill.

Wow.

The fourth student appeared on video, having not only composed "Blessed By The Best" but also set it to music and performed it - quite enthusiastically, too!

I just have to believe Louis Armstrong would have loved that one as much as I did!

Positive perspective and faith in God - oh, yes!

Maybe living in a pandemic, still, has made me even more sensitive to such issues.

I just know it's been like a dream to be attending concerts again!

Maria Zouves even performed two pieces, "Sinevi Stin Athina" and "Floghera", plus there was Jonathan Walker-VanKuren with "I Found A Woman" and the fabulous "Landscape 1: From A Train", in which the piano captured the sound of wheels on a rail very well!!!

Even so, with all this wealth of poetry in the air, the performances I was most drawn to were the two solos from Mariano Gladić for "Cancion al arbol del olvido" and "Los pajaros perdidos".

And just what would be my reason for that?

He sang them to me!

He looked straight at me - practically dancing in my seat, feet tapping, hands at work with my invisible piano - and sang to me that he would not think of me at the tree of forgetfulness, and that he realized I had been his only love among all the lost birds.

He did, he most assuredly did!

How blessed am I by the Best?

i thank You, God!

And now the blessing that is this day continues - the Chicago White Sox are playing the New York Yankees at the Field of Dreams, a place etched into my heart... and I get to see it for free on tv!

i thank You, God!

woodstock went woof!

 

Thanks, Ivan of the League of Savannah Bloggers, for posting this on fb for me to 'borrow'!

Little Woodstock just found out from his beagle buddy that this is the day when people eat turkeys as well as several other types of winged creatures.

The little bird didn't miss a beat.

"Woof!", he said!

(smile!)

How clever of him!

I had a little bird for my feast, but not of whatever variety that the 'Peanuts' character is.

Mine was a Cornish game hen and I ate every bite!

What's that, it looks like it's upside-down?

Well, that's because it was!

That's how the cajun chef, Kevin Belton, had said to do it on his "New Orleans Kitchen" show.

Start it right side up for about 30 minutes, then flip it over, to keep the juices basting that breast meat.

Worked like a charm!

Speaking of television shows, guess what was on today?

A marathon of "The Partridge Family"!!!

Hahahaha hahaha!

Very nice inside joke, Antenna TV!

When I told me ex about it, he thought it was probably just my perspective, but he was sweet enough to not word it that way.

"Wouldn't it be more appropriate at Christmas?"

(smile!)

He and Amy were off to her boss's house for a more traditional feast, like on this bird's kin.

That is one enormous turkey!!!

Apparently, it's the first float in the Macy's Parade every year!

I'm glad I woke up in time to catch it, though I have no idea why I had awakened so early.

It wasn't even 9 AM yet! 

I don't usually wake until 10.

I'm chalking it up to right place, right time.
(smile!)

 

While I was waiting for my bird to cook, I was texting with family and friends, sending and receiving greetings of the day!

Mi amiga Barbara had been the first, last night before she went to bed - lol!

Sherry Moore was the first today, and I promptly 'borrowed' hers to send out as my own!

"May your Thanksgiving be filled with laughter, love, and delicious food!!"

Out it went through the ether, to my brothers Smitty and Tony and to my first niece Christina in Hinesville!

To cousin Penny in Tallahassee, cousin Bev in Augusta, cousin Sharon across the river in North Augusta! 

To Aunt Babs in Glennville, stepmom Bonnie in Alabama, and Jeff the ex in Michigan! 

To mi amigas Sandy and Carolyn!

To Dawn and the bfe and the bfrb and Christa and Sue G and Jackie!

And back to me the greetings and love and virtual hugs came!

I am so blessed...

and so very grateful to have so many who love me...

on this day of Thanksgiving.

i thank You, God.

(smile!)

a different tack for a year that was whack

Every year, about this time, I always look forward to making my Christmas card list and sending paper hugs to those I know and love.

Not this time.

With 2020 being so out of the norm, a change was warranted.

This time, family and friends are getting Thanksgiving greetings as well as a 'newsletter' ripped from my blog's headlines.

The hug is coming early for them - 

and they'll be able to follow my ramblings, should they choose to do so.

That'll be a little different perspective for them, and maybe a new tradition for me.

Love for them...

love for me...

i thank You, God.

difficult choices

No, this has nothing to do with the recent election, so if you're looking for political pontification, keep walking.

I may, or may not, espouse on that topic once all results have been tabulated and the voting officials have released the names of the winners in all races.

You didn't think just a President was being elected, did you?

If you're a news addict, then you just might have thought that very thing.

Please seek help.

 

My post concerns two recent movies, one seen some few weeks ago, the other tonight. 

Neither movie had a hero to root for, someone fighting evil and triumphing.

Of course, that may just be my perspective, but let me plead my case.

The first movie was "Unhinged".

That one featured Russell Crowe as a man recently divorced, unemployed, and homeless, taking medication that did not seem to help his mental state.

During the night, he had killed his ex and her lover, finalizing the deed by burning down the house.

A few hours later, it's morning and he's in a trance at a traffic light.

A woman, taking her son to school, gets stuck behind him.

She's going through a divorce and her ex is not cooperating, plus she is one of those people who are perpetually late, a habit that adds to her stress.

At this point, she is not only going to get her son to school tardy and have him go to detention, but she is also standing up a friend who has agreed to to help her navigate through divorce court.

Frustrated by the hand dealt by life and how she has played it, she now finds herself behind a stopped truck at a light changing from yellow to red.

She blasts the car horn and swerves to the right to pass the truck, then continues, albeit very briefly, to the traffic jam ahead.

The truck catches up, of course.

While both are stopped, the driver gets her son's attention and tries to politely get the mother to apologize for her rudeness.

Not only does she refuse to do so, but she compounds her rudeness with more.

Then it's "game on" between the pair, with the boy caught in the middle of the hostilities and collateral damage as others get killed.

Honestly, the boy was the only one worth cheering, as he tried, unsuccessfully, to get his mom to do the right thing and not be a bully to a stranger.

At least this one had a moral:

Be kind to everyone because you do not know the sadness in their world.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that wasn't the intended message, but that's certainly what I took away from that movie.

As for tonight's movie, watched with Carolyn, I couldn't root for either side.

Both had matriarchs who expected everyone in the family to obey them...

and both were blindly obeyed, as to do otherwise brought unwanted attention.

I had very much looked forward to "Let Him Go", as it starred one of my favorite pairs of actors, Kevin Costner and Diane Lane, made dear to me as Superman's "parents" here on Earth.

I knew they were grandparents in this one, so that was cool.

I knew the movie had been filmed in Montana, so I expected to see grand vistas and so had chosen to see it in BigD.

Very good choice, as the cinematographer clearly loved that lonely land of mountains and desert.

The movie opens with the couple's son dying while riding a horse (shades of Christopher Reeve), leaving them to help raise his infant son.

Then the widow remarries... 

eventually moving away...

and that's when the grandmother's obsession begins.

Sure, she had seen the new husband strike the woman and the boy, but instead of bringing it to anyone's attention, she allowed the thought to fester in her mind.

When the new husband had suddenly moved the family away, the grandmother became determined to go in search of them and to return home with the grandson.

Period.

Grandpa knew how she was, knew that once she set her mind to something nothing could dissuade her.

He goes along with her, hoping for the best, expecting an altercation, surprised to find she'd packed a gun, but still hopeful for a peaceful venture, reminding her that they "are not young" and the child in question is only three years old.

As a retired lawman, he realizes too late that they are in over their heads...

but he stays by her side, as he loves her in spite of her faults.

So, when did he suspect they were in trouble?

When all their inquiries concerning the stepdad of their grandson were met by folks cautioning them to take care in their dealings.

And when did he know for a fact they were in trouble?

When they find out the stepson had been summoned to return by his mother, a woman who had kept her sons close to hand all their lives and was upset that he had run off.

She was also upset that he had married without her approval and now had a step-child in tow.

She reminded me of my first husband's mother, a woman who had not approved of me and had not even come to the wedding, not even meeting me until after our second anniversary - yet, she expected us to live near her in Gresham, Oregon, and give her grandchildren "with the Schiller name".

That had been petty scary and had certainly contributed to the failure of that marriage.

So, we have ultra-controlling matriarchs on both sides, one using passive aggression and the other forthright aggression, and neither willing to bend.

And Grandpa, even after having his right hand chopped by a hatchet, knew his life would be hell if they did not complete their quest, knew the only way to return home was to get his wife what she wanted.

Kevin Costner was excellent, as always, clearly portraying this man trapped between doing the right thing and doing what would bring peace to his woman.

That's because she was still set on her path, even though her actions had led to his being maimed.

If this one has a moral, it may be something like:

Take care that your choices do not cause harm to others.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that wasn't the intended message, but that's the one I'm going to believe.

what's this? what's this?

Wanting a little entertainment with my afternoon snack, I turned to TBS for an episode of my boys of physics.
Sure, I've seen "The Wedding Gift Wormhole" (TBBT s12e2) several times, but it struck me differently this time.
It was all about perspective.
People tend to see what they want to see
It's immaterial whether what they see is factual or imagined.
That's what perspective is all about: bringing one's own knowledge and experiences to bear in the interpretation of current circumstances or events.
In this episode, a wedding has occurred and a gift has been received.
As Jack Skellington - a scientist! - would ask, "What's this?"
Each couple had all seen the same exact object, an unusual one with an unknown purpose.
Each couple had then projected onto the object the meaning they wanted it to possess.
Only one person, the original giver of the object, knew it for what it actually was.
Only one couple, the first couple to marry, had been the original recipients; they had begun the re-gifting of it down the line, as each couple married, almost like a runner in a relay race passing the baton to the next person.

So, the first to wed were Howard and Bernadette, during "The Countdown Reflection" (s5e24), back on May 10, 2012.
In other words, that was eight years ago and serves as "t(1) = zero" for my purpose in this post.
As a gift Raj gave his best friend, Howard, the expensive crystal chakra wand (most likely the one representing Anahata, which has two triangles forming a hexagram and symbolizing the union of male and female).
No doubt, he thought it would be an inside joke with his best friend, a sex fiend.
Sadly, Howard did not ken its meaning, and neither did his wife.
Away into a drawer it went!

Fast forward to September 21, 2015.
The second to marry were Leonard and Penny, with "The Matrimonial Momentum" (s9e1) carrying them, on the spur of the moment, to Las Vegas.
That would have been about three and half years after the first couple had wed, so now "t(2) = 3.5 years".
Howard and Bernadette took that opportunity to offload the odd gift, the one they had never found a use for and that they may not have even recalled who gave it to them.
The newlyweds had no idea what it was, perhaps thinking that it might be meant as some strange decorative piece, right?
Not wanting to possibly offend their friends by asking what it was, they took the passive route.
Away into a closet it went!

Now, fast forward once more, this time to May 10, 2018, six years - to the day! - after the first wedding of these four physicists.
Would it be Raj's wedding?
Oh, please, only if he was marrying his little dog!
No, the time was finally right for Sheldon and Amy to tie the knot, with "The Bow Tie Asymmetry" (s11e24) at work in their favor!
Now, this wedding was almost three years after the second one, making "t(3) = 6 years".
Keeping up with the time line?
At t(1), Howard and Bernadette have it; at t(2), the object has passed to Leonard and Penny; and now, at t(3), the object has touched the hands of all four men and now belongs to this third couple.
In short, the object has been out of Raj's possession, and tucked away in a closet or drawer, for six years, all without him ever knowing that Howard no longer has it.
After the honeymoon in Lego Land, Sheldon and Amy are back home in Pasadena, opening gifts and writing thank-you notes.
Then, they get to the one for the gift from Leonard and Penny... and are stymied.
How can they properly thank them without knowing what it is?
Leonard and Penny, when questioned by Sheldon, allow him to think that the crystal piece is the first clue in a scavenger hunt that will lead to the real gift - and Sheldon rushes to tell Amy that they have a puzzle to solve!
Oh, joy!
Here's the thing: they truly believed they were on a scavenger hunt...
one that led them back to the coffee shop where they first met...
one that prompted them to look in the "lost and found" box...
one that rewarded them with the empty locket, to fill with their own photos...
one that led to a true gift from the heart, figuratively and literally.
Aw... how very romantic, right?
As Sheldon and Amy told the other couple, they'd actually been given a three-part wedding present: a puzzle-solving adventure; the locket at the puzzle's end; and the realization that Sheldon and Amy can do anything as long as they worked together.
Wow.
That really is a "glass is always full" sentiment, isn't it?
How appropriate for a physicist...
and for a chemist, too.
Opportunity abounds, like atoms and molecules, filling every space.
I must remember to look for that silver lining...
it's there, it truly is.
Even during the panic caused by a tiny virus cluster, there has to be a silver lining, right?

There certainly are an abundance of perceptions concerning that phenomenon.
Some people have had no interruption to their work status, losing not one moment, perceiving this health crisis and the resultant shelter-at-home to have been a moot point for that part of their life.
That's been the case for my first niece, as well as for my brother Tony and his wife, Laura, plus for my cousin Sharon and her partner in Augusta.
Some people have had their work change from live at the job site to video from home, with no loss of income, so the shelter-at-home has had little effect to their wallet in that regard.
That would be folks like my sister-in-law Mary, and Christina's boyfriend, and my friend Scott, plus the psychologist bfrb, as well as many of the teachers I know, like the bfe.
For some people, their jobs vanished into thin air as the shelter-at-home order was established, causing a massive impact on their finances.
Those folks would be my brother Smitty, the tour guide Eric, the pedicab driver Jason, Mia at the cinema, Drew at the Olive Garden, Jenn at SavRepTh.
And here's the thing: work is just one aspect of people's lives.
The income from work not only provides funds to keep the lights on, but also gives the ability to dine out, to go to a movie, to see a play, to enjoy art, to hoist a brew with friends.
When it comes to ability to to have entertainment, everyone has the same perspective: life is definitely harder without raison d'etre.

The trick is to keep breathing...
one day at a time...
one moment at a time.

consider the source

I managed to talk the bfrb into seeing "Parasite" for last week's Tina Tuesday.
That's because I had been told the foreign-language film was a horror movie, so that's what I had told him.
He's a big fan of the horror, so every once in a while I agree to that genre.
What was my source for that movie misinformation?
Mi tres amigas.
They had gone to see it primarily because Tomasz had brought it in last year, before the AMC Cinemas had it, to screen for Cinema Savannah.
According to Barbara and Carolyn and Sandy, the film was essentially two different movies, with the horror show as the second part.
However, they were all raised in higher middle class households, attending private girl-only schools and even having finishing classes for young women.
Not so for me.
I had none of that.
With a gambling father, public school was all the four of us ever had.
Public schools, co-ed classes.
When you add in that I lived with three brothers, it's even clearer why I am not girly like my three girlfriends are.
I'm not saying that I like horror, mind.
I'm saying "Parasite" was not of that ilk.
It's a class-struggle movie, with a bit of violence wreaked when the father of the poorer class has too much denigration by the father of the richer class.
It truly is quite an insight to life in South Korea.

"Gretel & Hansel" was one I saw on my own today.
I had seen the previews for it and decided against it, thinking it a horror show with much violence toward children.
Not my cup of tea, at all.
However, after the panda had raved about it and said he'd see it again - say what?! Him?! Spend money to see a movie multiple times in a cinema?! - I looked it up on this site and decided to judge for myself.
I'm so glad I did.
I've always enjoyed fairy tales, whether fractured or not.
This retelling of the classic, with the emphasis on the girl, was captivating.
It was a story of love between the older sister and the much younger brother.
It was a tale of a girl on the cusp of womanhood, having to make difficult choices.
It was girl power triumphing an evil witch, good winning out over evil.
Everything I like...
and excellent music, too.
The bfrb is a child psychologist, so he knows a story with meaning when he hears it.
I'm so glad I listened and went to this supposed horror movie.

Ya gotta consider the source.