This, That & the Other

Tuesday night was a rare night off here and it wasn't because work was busy. I got caught up on a bunch of emails that needed to be done. They were just aflyin', here, there and everywhere. To management here about issues and concerns, my home group members collectively and individually, Lynda, friends. My cousin BJ is back from a weeks holiday so we got caught up on each others news. When I put out that photo request she came up with one of us together at the last big family 'do' - our aunt and uncle's 50th anniversary. Nice shot! I'll share it if I get her permission.

JPW and I finalized plans to have dinner Friday night before I come to work. We have a good franchised restaurant chain here called Swiss Chalet that turns out great roasted rotisserie chicken so that's where we're headed. He and I haven't seen each other for months so it'll be a good time.

I don't know if Blogger is messing up or if I've done something but...those last 2 photo posts were strange. After I hit 'publish' the pictures didn't appear in the pane; just lines of text which I imagine describe the pictures re: size, location, placement, etc. That's why my lines of text appeared at the end of the posts; ordinarily I'd put whatever description between the shots. Actually, the text in this post doesn't look like it normally does. Go figure.

Tonight I had my first ever Gmail chat; this with friend Sue in S.West U.S.ofA. and we were on for almost an hour. She offered up a ton of information, advise and encouragement regarding smoking cessation. Sue is a bit of a character who has a good sense of humour to boot.

It brought to mind a period when daughter Sarah suddenly up and took off to South Korea for almost a year to teach English at a private school in Seoul. I think she was just 21 or 22 at the time and she freaked me out by doing that but that's her nature - adventurous. We used msn messenger quite a lot through those months and it was great to have real-time 'conversations' at such a distance. Sometimes we'd use it to set up times for phone calls - 'Okay, I'm just in the door. Call now!'

Young 'Arlo' pulled another no-show yesterday which didn't impress me much after I'd gotten up early to take him out. I don't know when I might see him again as he's away next week.

Musically I've been bouncing around a lot lately. When I'm not cycling through Jeff Beck CD's, Prince's 'Musicology' has been in the car deck a lot. It kicks. He's a genius. In quieter moments I've put on a classic that I pulled out from a box I'd packed - actually 2 classics - the original 'Will the Circle Be Unbroken' compilation and also the N.G.D.B. 2nd generation release which is likely about 20 years old; hmmm..could be 30. Bluegrass and country legends at their finest - lots of great pickin' & grinnin'. Every morning / night when I go to bed it's still David Gilmour's 'On An Island' that I go to sleep to.

The speaker at last nights meeting is a guy I've known slightly for a few years but who I'd never heard speak before. He was describing things that've happened in his spiritual life in his last couple of years sobriety that have been occurring with me recently. I made a point of talking with him afterward and we decided adversity not only tests faith, it's a faith builder. He's recommended yet another book that sounds like a must read.

I'll recommend a movie here with a caveat; don't believe everything that's presented but do present an open mind. It's about metaphysics and is titled 'What The #Bleep# Do We Know??'. It examines belief systems through a series of vignettes around a character played by Marlee Matlin interspersed with explanatory segments. Like I said it isn't all to be accepted as fact but most of it will get you thinking. I haven't seen it for a while and recall there were a couple of parts that didn't necessarily click with me but overall it was worth seeing.