Thin Slices of Joy
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Woke up to snow. I love snow. It makes me happy. Even if I have to drive to work in it. Just a skiff this a.m.
Overnight surprise!
Old Man Winter ain't done yet.
Fat flakes dance aloft.
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Serenity, that Yo-Yo Ma cello piece gave me the goosebumps. Beautiful and poignant.
Bach was a genius, and Beethoven was no slouch, either. Love love love this video.
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If music is your thing and you love to read then maybe you will find Madeleine Thein's book Do not say we have nothing of interest. I posted this in response to 208's posting of a book she listed.
208...A very diverse reading list. I looked up The Madeleine Thein book and found this review by the pianist Steven Osburne that includes parts of Bach Goldberg variations. The author explains her use of music to express where language fails. As I know nothing of classical music, I'm thinking her music references might fall on my deaf ears, however, I found her explanation of her choices compelling additions to the narrative. If the audio version was not 50+$ I would get it.
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badger - Love that video! There are many street/subway musicians downtown. Once we were lucky to listen to a quartet. It was during the summer in the Old Port. We were able to sit and listen because we were there with a guest (instead of being at work).
magic - That is an interesting review of a book! Will take a look. I don't know much about classical music either. Most of what I know I learned from Bugs Bunny.
I'm sending the link to my MIL. I think she would really appreciate it. 0 -
Found a house to rent for a week this summer on lake Winnipesaukee in NH. We were there 3 years ago and can't wait to go back. Both kids will come and maybe friends. Gives me joy just thinking about it!
Decent week but developed a cyst in remaining breast. Knew it was a cyst because it hurt but gyn still sent me for an ultrasound. Trying to learn to worry less. You all are helping me focus on the joy. Thanks!
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jcn - I hope for good news from your US.
My husband makes me laugh. Earlier today my older daughter was leaving to go to campus. I asked her to let us know if she'd be home for dinner. She said yesterday that she texted her dad. It went something like this:
DD: Be home later.
DH: Well, since you're not home now, I imagine you'll be home later.
And sometimes he makes me want to wring his neck. He's lucky my grip strength is down.
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hi jcn16, it makes me smile to say Lake Winnipesaukee. Good luck with US results.
Serenity, your DH is a logical man. :-)
My thin slice of joy today is a working pocket door between the back porch and the house. It was a nice feature until we got new flooring last year and they didn't factor in the pocket door. The floors looked great but the door wouldn't close due to lack of clearance. They said they'd be back to fix but never did and we got tired of waiting.
A handy friend came over yesterday. He and DH had to remove the framing around the door, wrestle out the door, shave a quarter-inch from the bottom, re-hang the door, and nail the frame back into place. Took a couple hours and he wouldn't take any $. So a happy thing all around.
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badger - That's a good friend!
Yesterday I went Qi Gong. My meditation stance is improving. I tend to lean back too much. Working on relaxing muscles. Of course, once I relax one muscle then another gets tense. It will always be a work in progress.
The teacher had copied the music from class onto one of my flash drives. It's 1 1/2 hours of meditative music. Listened to it this morning, but teen daughter didn''t like it. Said it was missing guitar riffs. Silly teen.
After Qi Gong, I went to the library. They have a coffee/tea/water table. I've learned the coffee isn't good, but I gladly drank 2 cups of water out of a Villeroy and Boch cup.
The room was soothing. We have a view of the snowfall, but we were warm with the fire lit.
I can't remember if I've posted a picture of the fireplace, so here it is:
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It's begging for a mantle, but I'm sure it's on the to-do list.
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This evening, a little slice of joy was found with a little slice of lime......I made my very first frozen margarita at home after buying some mix and tequila. It was pretty yummy. It's my very favorite drink.
Nice reading all the other slices of joy here, like unstuck pocket doors, to a benign cyst, tea by the fire and snow.......
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Badger it must be fantastic to have that door fixed at last. My DH and I are not at all handy, we just about manage to hang pictures but that is about as much as we do, so I always make lists of jobs that need to be done around the house and when there are more then 3 or 4 I get the local handyman to come and do them all at once. It means they get done properly. Feels a bit extravagant but since we both hate doing these things, I love that we canget them done without any fuss. X
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It is great having the door fixed to close against the cold. Check that off the "honey-do" list.
Got errands done then spent some quality time with a good book and a sleeve of Thin Mints.
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Love margaritas and Thin Mints!
Teen daughter came up to me as I was doing my exercises. She gave me a hug, said "I love you", kissed my forehead, and checked that she still towered over me.
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Went to see Itzchak Perlman last night. It was an awesome performance!
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Nice, glennie!
This is too true.
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LOL Serenity, that's my house except we don't have a snowblower.
It snowed enough to take the day off work and blame the weather. I already have a long commute. Add in slippery conditions and idiots on the road equals two+ hours of misery with the chance of accident/injury. Thank you, no.
Today is DH's day off. He's still asleep. He knows I was going to take a vacation day but he doesn't know I shoveled the driveway and sidewalk. Surprise!
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That will be a nice surprise! I'm in a condo association, so all outside maintenance is covered by the association. It is so nice to see the snow cleared by someone else. Tomorrow I have to go to the hospital. I was hoping to drive, but if the snow is bad, I'll take public transit. Love that I have options.
Getting cuddles like this from my pup.
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Serenity,
Thanks for the definition. Perfect timing because I'm trying not to be upset with a co-worker who forgot to tell me about a transaction that came in while I was out for my MX and $100K has been sitting in account waiting for us to move it. Been back for 6 weeks and I just learned of it today from the bank. UGH. Or should I say I'll take the "irenic" route?
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Glad it helped! It's a good Scrabble word, too.
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Chocolate-covered espresso beans. Period.
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Chocolate covered frozen banana slices. Period.
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Hmm, maybe no period.
White chocolate banana cream pie.
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I saw a different kinesiologist today. My regular one saw there were appointments available and called me yesterday to schedule it. Very thoughtful of her. Good news - my measurements are down! She gave me some variations on MLD and taped my truncal area.
I drove to the hospital. Getting there was OK, but return trip was mostly stop and go with the snowstorm. Happy to get home in one piece.
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I read the article because I read a couple Hesse books long ago. I should read them again.
EYES UP
Hermann Hesse's simple trick to change your day for the better
The works of Nobel Prize-winning writer Hermann Hesse explore man's search for meaning. In the 1905 essay "On Little Joys," the Siddharthaauthor identified a small difference between those able to find poetry in the "aggressive haste" of the modern world, and those consumed by busyness.
"I would simply like to reclaim an old and, alas, quite unfashionable private formula," he wrote. "Do not overlook the little joys!"
In a passage highlighted recently by Maria Popova at Brain Pickings, Hesse writes a simple prescription for overwhelmed senses: Look up.
Our eyes, above all those misused, overstrained eyes of modern man, can be, if only we are willing, an inexhaustible source of pleasure. When I walk to work in the morning I see many workers who have just crawled sleepily out of bed, hurrying in both directions, shivering along the streets. Most of them walk fast and keep their eyes on the pavement, or at most on the clothes and faces of the passers-by. Heads up, dear friends!
Just try it once—a tree, or at least a considerable section of sky, is to be seen anywhere. It does not even have to be blue sky; in some way or another the light of the sun always makes itself felt. Accustom yourself every morning to look for a moment at the sky and suddenly you will be aware of the air around you, the scent of morning freshness that is bestowed on you between sleep and labor. You will find every day that the gable of every house has its own particular look, its own special lighting. Pay it some heed if you will have for the rest of the day a remnant of satisfaction and a touch of coexistence with nature. Gradually and without effort the eye trains itself to transmit many small delights, to contemplate nature and the city streets, to appreciate the inexhaustible fun of daily life. From there on to the fully trained artistic eye is the smaller half of the journey; the principal thing is the beginning, the opening of the eyes.
https://qz.com/931186/an-easy-way-to-improve-your-...0 -
This article reminded me of what I used to do when I worked downtown. I would spend almost 3 hours a day commuting. That was tiring, but what I would sometimes do is look up when I was downtown. Not hard to see beauty in the picture below. From the metro, I would walk along the buildings on the left. I worked inside the 2nd building. When I looked up during my walk,I would see the Notre Dame Basilica.
On the way home though, it was a mad rush to catch the train home. A co-worker took the same train, and we would run from the office to the metro and to the train. Interval training.
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Thanks for the passage Serenity! I will be sure to look up as I head off to work this morning.
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I could still see the moon this AM when I walked the dog. Lovely sight.
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Beauty can be found in looking up, and also at times, looking down! We have a small backyard pond that we enjoy while sitting on the porch. An especially pretty view of it can be seen from an above angle thru an upstairs window in our bedroom. Since the window is in the corner of the room with a nightstand and lamp in front of it, we don't sit and gaze at it from that vantage point all the time. But, every day when I make the bed and pull the blind up on the window, I look out and about, around the yard. In the summer, all kinds of blooms surround the pond and the apple tree leaves are out and birds are at the feeder. I once took a picture of the pond from this window and when I posted it on FB, my husband was shocked. He acted like I was projecting some kind of fake image of my yard on FB. "Where did you take this picture from?" he demanded to know. And when I told him, I could tell he'd never taken the time to zero in on how lovely the pond can look from this viewpoint.
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What a lovely thread. Divine, that is a really pretty little pond and garden.
My favorite things in life don't cost any money. The most precious thing we all have is time.
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