13: Is the Snowman Half Empty or Half Full?
1. Posted on Facebook by my dharmacrat poet friend Will, who coined the term “alter-native” and “moonth” for the word month: “The moment we think we are superior to others, we have it backwards.”
2. The discipline of poetry is in overhearing yourself say difficult truths from which it is impossible to retreat. Poetry is a break for freedom. In a sense all poems are good; all poems are an emblem of courage and the attempt to say the unsayable; but only a few are able to speak to something universal yet personal and distinct at the same time; to create a door through which others can walk into what previously seemed unobtainable realms, in the passage of a few short lines. ~ David Whyte
3. I once titled a booklet of poetry “The Backseat Poet.” ”˙ʇǝod ʇɐǝsʞɔɐq ǝɥʇ“ ʎɹʇǝod ɟo ʇǝlʞooq ɐ pǝlʇıʇ ǝɔuo ı
4. I’m having a hard time filling out my Facebook status. I’m stuck on what to answer for “work” and “school” because my work is no one thing and everything in life informs me. I’ve been considering saying that I’m a writer/poet who’s been educated by the uni-verse-ity or maybe by a “school” of whales.
5. My friend Will, who also has a 9 to 5 aversion and coined the term “Job doesn’t work,” wrote: “I hate jobs/love work on his Facebook status. HERE is an old post some of the “odd jobs” I’ve had.
6. As someone who manages a variety of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I’ve been tired a lot so I don’t think I can handle being retired.
7. Now HERE is the State of the Union address you didn’t see. My favorite part is the woman dancing next to Hillary.
8. The latest news about a dog trained to detect colorectal cancer with 98% accuracy through its sense of smell led blogger Fred First to wonder if all the dog-to-dog greetings he had witnessed over the years weren’t actually medical exams.
9. My grandbaby Liam has a helium effect on me. When I’m around him my voice gets raised to a new baby-talking high level. See HERE.
10. I sometimes use “cred” (short for Colleen Redman) for my online name and have recently discovered that it means: credible, credence, credit, credential, credulity, incredulous, creed, and incredible.
11. I taught my 2 year old grandson Bryce the word “incredible” yesterday, in response to his toy motorcycle man who can be manipulated to do a variety of bike tricks. Bryce calls this toy “a devil, “short for “dare-devil” (another word I taught him that only half took).
12. I took a photo of Bryce sleeping peacefully with his motorcycle daredevil guy in his hand and imagined a putting a sign next to him saying “NO Uranium Mining in Virginia, Please!” (Story HERE.)
13. Check out fun things to do with snow HERE.
~ The 13 Thursday Headquarters is HERE.
February 3rd, 2011 1:45 am
I like the David Whyte quote. I also have an aversion to 9-5 jobs but, well…I kind of like to eat and have a roof over my head. Sigh…
February 3rd, 2011 2:59 am
LOL @ #9. I think a good lot of us do that. Happy T13!
February 3rd, 2011 5:56 am
so true # 2 need to see many photos of Liam art below love it and the tea party !!
February 3rd, 2011 8:32 am
I really like #7 & #8 is familiar with a cat at a facility I go to can smell when someone is dying. And she will stay at the door or bed of the person for hours. It is something! Also I can not connect to the video of Liam. Byrce is as sweet as ever!
February 3rd, 2011 9:59 am
Your grandson is adorable. What a sweetie. Of course when they’re sleeping, they’re all lovely!
February 3rd, 2011 10:45 am
On number 4…. I vote for the school of whales or are they a pod of whales… perhaps and iPod of whales. Well, I looked it up… a pod is a small school…but if they are bottle nose whales.. they are a grind. Interesting site: Collective nouns, groups of animals.
About that camellia… they are under a canopy of tall pines and other trees so mostly in the shade, but that day the sun managed to send a ray right to the heart of this one bloom….just to make me smile.
February 3rd, 2011 11:27 am
From a month or two ago…. you’ve inspired me to download “Higher Love” and I’m gonna listen and dance dance dance this weekend. Also, sending it to a friend. =)
February 3rd, 2011 12:44 pm
why the hell couldn’t my dogs have sniffed it out? Sheeeesh 😉
February 3rd, 2011 12:57 pm
What an adorable little guy!
Sorry to learn of the CFS, I know how much it can add to the smallest task. But we’re the persevering sorts. *grin*
Happy TT
~Xakara
13 Paragraphs Dawn’s Early Light
February 3rd, 2011 2:41 pm
Very thoughtful 13! A beautiful picture of your sleeping son as well. A picture says it all. Thank you for sharing.
February 3rd, 2011 2:43 pm
I see Bryce is your grandson. I apologize for the error.
February 3rd, 2011 3:14 pm
Don’t you love what we ‘half teach’? It happens to me so often I wonder what the children in my classroom are truly absorbing.
I think this line from your post rings especially true for me: “my work is no one thing and everything in life informs me”. I thing that’s how we should live as well as how we become wise(r).
February 3rd, 2011 4:35 pm
4. I give fb as little personal data as possible. or as false for their data mining operations.
8. dogs — they can’t help but try to help. it’s their nature. 🙂
9. weird how that happens, eh?
February 3rd, 2011 7:34 pm
I haven’t filled out any of the information squares on my facebook profile. It is too much work. ha
I love the writing upside down thing. Very fun.
Bryce is such a cutie!
February 4th, 2011 8:54 am
What a fun list. And – I love that facebook post. So ‘creative’!!!
February 4th, 2011 2:42 pm
Kiam has the most wonderful and delightful smile!!! You could take that smile and put it on a Card, Colleen…!
As always a very rich T13!!!
February 4th, 2011 2:45 pm
“LIAM”….This one-finger typing has it’s drawbacks….I am always hitting the keys NEXT to the Correct Key….lol….Sorry about that, my dear.
February 7th, 2011 3:35 pm
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