Run Fun

It was a busy weekend, and it mostly involved amateur radio.    I volunteered as one of the communication people at two local marathons, the DOW run and the Great Lakes Marathon, both in Midland.   Long days, out in the sunshine, lots of confusion, periods of boredom,  but overall lots of fun.   Both days I was stationed near young people who were cheering like crazy, some in costumes, as they held up signs, handed out water and urged the runners on.    Lots of energy!     I wouldn't mind, and won't be afraid, to volunteer again.

I learn more every day, though, about how much I still need to learn about my new hobby.   Tonight I couldn't be heard on the local net, and after several attempts and trying everything I DO know how to do, couldn't make it work.     I'm planning to call in the cavalry, and expect that he will come up with a fix.

I discovered a cool snack, too.    They were handing out all kinds of stuff after the marathon and I declined it all until a lady practically forced these veggie chips on me.    When I finally tasted them, I was sorry I hadn't taken a case of them, lol.    I'll be watching for these!  :)

Ridiculous Fun

We made bumble bees out of paving blocks last week in one of my grief groups, where I encourage crafts and new experiences as a way to move thoughts beyond grief and prove to ourselves that life, though changed, can still hold a lot of good stuff.   People enjoy this group, if only for the distraction, and a dozen people made bees.    Every one was different and adorable.    This is mine:

And I got the most fabulous package in the mail from my cyber-friend Janne, from Spindelmaker, in Norway.   Janne is not a crafter like me, she is an artist, and does the most amazing work, everything from fabulous paintings of ships and shipyards (love those!) to costumes to jewelry and way, way beyond.    I have followed her for a long time, and am regularly blown away by her work and her creativity.   You will want to check out her blog, she has monthly giveaways, and is ALWAYS doing something new and incredible.

Anyway, to my delight, Janne sent me one of her Girly Girls, which I have long admired, and a beautiful pair of earrings.   

Although I've never been to Norway, I've decided to hang my adorable Girl on my travel wall because, after all, she traveled to me.     She will be a reminded of the wonderful places out there that I have yet to experience, and I hope she will urge me on.    Thank you so much, Janne!  :)   

Yesterday my Friend and I spent the day baking cookies to mail to our daughters, and I "tested" way more than my share.   I made my chocolate butter cookies, my family's favorite, and he made his Michigan Oatmeal cookies, full of local blueberries and walnuts.   

I made a little felt bag to put my cookies in for his cat-loving daughter, whom I haven't yet met.   (I used a pattern for the cat from one of the blogs I follow and want to give credit, but can't remember where I got it -- I'll edit that in later!)

I always have fun with this Friend of mine, he makes me laugh and think, which is, for me,  a good combination.   We pulled simple meals together as we needed them, made a huge mess (which I mostly left behind when I drove home, lol), and actually got the cookies packed and to the Post Office just a heartbeat before it was locked up for the weekend.   The guy with the key shadowed us on our way in and waited for us to leave, locking the doors as we walked back through them.    Perfect timing!    Then we watched a couple of videos to relax from our day of relaxing.   We should have practiced Morse Code, but I am not that good to start with, and definitely not that good when I am tired, so he took pity on me for once.   A perfect day, simple and good.    Today I am eating cookies for breakfast before I freeze the rest of my 'stash,' and I am not one bit sorry that I am exhausted from being up much too late.   I will try to conserve what little energy I have with another lazy day, before spending time with the Grands later this afternoon.    I am so very happy with what I have.   

Five Weeks Ago

What a beautiful day  --  sunshine, blue skies and all the sights that spell 'country' around here.    Ditches full of dandelions, (less lovely, also dozens of dead deer- it is mating season and no one is as cautious as they should be), horses and cows and goats, and a big sign that read "BULL" in front of a cattle farm.     Windmills, of course, that look so odd next to old farm houses.   I also saw a horse and buggy scared into a ditch by a huge 18-wheeler, and saw him get safely back out again.   

I drove for about two hours today through the countryside to make a 15 minute visit with a patient.    Some patients want to sit and talk for hours, but many of them are too worn out to visit and I want to be sure not to use the strength they need for their families.

The man I visited was very weak, it was hard for him to talk.  When I asked him how today was going for him he said that it was just about the same as yesterday.    I knelt beside his chair and held his hands as he told me that, just 5 weeks ago, he weighed 200 pounds and was working around his own property.    Now he weighs 170 at best, and is too weak to stand.   He shook his head as he looked at me.   My eyes burned with tears when he told me that losing so much weight was a blessing in a way, because it made it easier for his wife and boys to care for him now that he was not such a big man.  I told him I liked the way he thinks and that he still seems like a big man to me.   

On the long drive home I tried to remember what I was doing five weeks ago.    I have no idea.    But what I know for sure is that today I will try to show and tell the people I love how much I care about them, that I will swallow any unnecessary criticism, and that I will be grateful for every minute of this very beautiful day.

Function Over Form

And here it is, my first Morse Code keyer -- I know it's not pretty, but it works.    I had a lot of help, but I did most of it myself, and I understand (and respect) the process a whole lot better than I did.    Best of all, it's another one of those things it never occurred to me that I could do.    Maybe the next time I build a keyer it will be pretty.   This time, I am just happy as heck that it works.

No more excuses now that I have a working keyer.   Back to a daily practice schedule so that I can claim success on Code, no matter how much longer it takes.  :)

Good Times

I guess you could say that I get paid to listen.   Mostly to keep my mouth shut and listen.    I hear a wide variety of stories and conflicts and fears most every day, and I always wish I had something wise to say in response, but mostly I don't and there is nothing to do but listen.     I come home sometimes exhausted, full to the brim with problems that I cannot solve.

This week I tried something new to see if it would help me relax a little.    I have mentioned that I am learning Morse Code, and there is no point in saying again that I often feel like I'm going backwards instead of forward, because it's beginning to sound like whining (although, let's face it, I have no shame and I do whine, repeatedly, because it is SOOOOOO HARD and I don't seem to be getting any better!)    My Friend, the owner of the keyer I was using, needed it back (the brute), but he is helping me build another, with parts that belong to yet another friend, with the agreement that if I put it together,  I can borrow it for awhile.    Sounded like no big deal to me.    I have a mentor, he has the parts and the gear and the knowledge and the experience, the whole thing is so small it fits into an altoid tin, gotta be easy peasy.

Well, a full day later with another day to go all I can say is Good Grief!    All those guys you know who fix and solder and mess around with chips and wire and potentiometers and dohiggys are not, as it appears, just goofing around.   This stuff is not nearly as easy as they make it sound.    (The names of the parts alone is enough to give me a headache.)   The bottom line is that, despite my sweat, blood and tears (okay, my whining and my tears), the keyer still doesn't work.   I wrecked one blinkety blink cheap plastic part (those solder irons turn out to be very hot indeed), and the replacement part I used turned out to be a closed intermittent switch where I needed an open intermittent switch -- and the very fact that I now know what that means should tell you how far down this road I've traveled.

But tomorrow -- after another day at work of listening to problems and fears and sadness I can't fix, after exhausting myself with agency politics and problems and conflicts -- I will drive back to My Friend's house and get that puppy finished and finally have a keyer again that I can use to practice so that I can finally learn that blasted Code that is driving me crazy.   

Relaxing?   You betcha.   And I can hardly wait.

Travels

 I just got back from a short trip to California, where I spend a few days with my two brothers and my sister.    What a lot of fun!   The place we stayed was lovely, with a pool, a hot tub, a koi pond,  citrus trees in the back yard, and a mountain view out the front door.   Fresh orange juice and lemonade every day, thanks to my picking and squeezing siblings.  

I had hoped to spend some serious time in the desert but my family had other ideas, so we only made a very few short stops and (I thought) spent way too much time in the car.   Still, the desert was amazing, and almost every cactus was in bloom, which was such a treat for me.    I saw my first Joshua trees, and my first of every imaginable cactus.    I was thrilled by the cool mornings that made the hot days bearable, and the stars!    The night skies were amazing.

We stopped in Palm Springs -- to my amusement, the MOST walking we did was in shopping areas, which says a lot about my Fam -- and we saw the statue of Marilyn Monroe that towers over the city.  

 I loved watching hummingbirds feeding on the cactus flowers, I could have watched them for hours.
When everyone else was sleeping or busy, I worked on Morse Code and just took in whatever was around me.

 On our way to and from the airport, we passed miles and miles (and miles) of wind turbines and solar fields.   On the way back, we passed through a small dust storm.   I loved the alien landscape.

I always think I am nervous about flying until I get into the air, and then I love looking through the window.   On the flight home, I took a million photos of the landscape because everything was new and so cool looking.    And a new fun thing for me was listening on my mobile radio during the layovers in Dallas.   The airport structure made it impossible for me to talk on the radio, but I got to listen to local folk talking about a variety of things, providing a little local flavor to my trip.    The return trip was like Oz in reverse, coming back from a world of color and sunshine and  returning to Detroit, where the landscape seemed black and white in comparison.   

But it was good to be home.   Good to see my Grands and family.    Good to practice Morse Code and radio stuff with my Friend.   Good to get the laundry done.    Just all good.

Now, home only a few days, it is already time to pack up again and drive for four hours to the the Upper Peninsula for a work seminar.   I both dread and welcome the trip, looking forward to the information I'll learn that I hope will make me more useful to the people I serve, but not looking forward to the lonely hours away from everyone I know.    Getting used to being with people is dangerous that way, I guess, lol.   I'll take my new hobbies along, of course, and try to use the time well, and find as many ways as I can to have Ridiculous Amounts of Fun despite it all.     Hoping for bright skies and no wind as I begin my drive north!

Lessons

Today I hugged a crying woman who kept saying she couldn't believe that her 100-year-old mother was "failing so quickly."    Talked to a grieving widower who said that he now knows that virtually everything he ever spent his time on was unimportant, and how much he wishes he could have those hours back to spend with his wife.  

No kidding, no matter how long it lasts, life is short.    I need to rethink my priorities daily, maybe hourly, maybe now.