1. I saw an ad this morning stating “Stay hydrated with custom drinkware!” Your name, a motto, or catch phrase in cutesy, swirly letters will get you to drink sufficient water everyday to keep from being horribly dehydrated.  2. Only 12 to 25 dollars, depending on the kind of drinkware. It reminded me of Mama saying “Those business people know what they are doing.” Followed by “They do not fool me.”  3. The Husband just read a headline aloud about the Texas legislature voting on secession. Go ahead, Texas. Be your own country. See how far you get on your own.  4.   Should Texas manage to separate itself from the Union, which is illegal and considered treason, with what countries would Texas align? Russia?  I read that Texas has the 10th largest economy in the world, even more than Russia.   5. Would there be an exodus of radical right to Texas?   Would an independent Texas go back to condoning slavery?  What would happen to Austen? 6. Yesterday evening and through most of the wee hours

Today’s questions are from Sunday Stealing , hosted by Bev Sykes who publishes the blog  Funny the World .   1. If you could live in a house shaped like anything what would it be?  Round. When I was younger I liked the idea of living in a yurt. 2. What do you think is in outer space?  I trust what NASA and scientists say is out there.  3. Where is the most wonderful place you’ve ever been?    Here, at home, with the Husband. 4. If you were invisible for a day, what would you do?  In a way I’ve been invisible all my life.  I’m female, dark-skinned, with Asian eyes, obese, and now an old person. But if I were like the Invisible Man, I probably would spook some dishonest politicians to fly right. 5. What is the worst smell in the world?  Greed, closely followed by fear. 6. If you could, what animal would you be?    A whale who’s having a whale of a time.  7. What is the greatest thing ever invented?  The thing (a modem?) that allowed the public to access the Internet.  8. What is your fav

This week’s prompt for Friday Writings , at Poets and Storytellers United is “ be genuine / in life and ink / rebel against hypocrisy.”  Just Because Just because  you don’t want to learn nor understand, basic knowledge becomes misinformation to you. Just because  you don’t believe the facts  based on the knowledge  you don’t want to learn and understand, lies become your truth. Just because  what you thought was love had hurt you,  now nobody can have love. I sing joy, love, happiness, and peace, just because. -30- To join in, or to check out other participants’ work, click over to  Friday’s Writings .

Once upon a time I felt brave to take a beginning drawing class from a working artist. She was totally into calderas. All over her studio were canvasses, finished and not, of all sizes of calderas, realistic to abstract. They were all awesome and amazing! Such passion! I wondered if I ever would be passionate about something like she was of painting volcanic calderas.  I painted this landscape for our upcoming July calendar. When I was younger, July was all about backpacking in the Sierra Nevadas, thus the mountain scene. I have no idea what I’m doing when I paint. It just happens.  Today’s link up is with  Art for Fun Friday . Come along and visit with me. 

This morning  I read an article about procrastinators not being lazy people. Quite the opposite, according to some experts of human behavior. That’s good to now. Procrastination, I know it well. Today, for instance, I didn’t get around to writing what I planned to share with this week’s Thursday 13 , but I did sew a pocket on a putter-around-the-house shirt, as well as turn its long sleeves into short ones. That, according to those experts is a common ploy with procrastinators, to distract oneself with a different task or project.  Here are 13 synonyms for procrastinate from Merriam-Webster: dawdle poke plod shilly-shally  fool around delay slow up mope dilly dally tarry loll decelerate filibuster That last synonym was a surprise. The shoe does fit for a certain party in the Senate. Okay, off to  Thursday 13   I go to check out more lists of 13. Come join me.  

 “I like those red trees,” said Mama more than once when she saw crape myrtle trees in bloom.  Then she would imagine the mess the dried blooms and leaves on her lawn. Shudder.  Mama liked a neat yard. She picked up leaves everyday in the back because of all the fruit trees. I understand now why she did. Pincher bugs didn’t dare show their faces in Mama’s domain. Those bugs fear me not. I’ll control them yet. Last year the local high school, where I graduated, had a buy-a-crape-myrtle-tree-to-honor-someone fundraiser. Mama got her tree, by golly! And, I don’t have to clean up after it. Mama would’ve liked that.  The high school campus is fenced and locked during non-school hours so we may not ever see the tree. The school kindly sent the above photo of Mama’s tree. I believe Mama’s spirit is tickled pink that she has a plaque on the high school campus. I can see her smile. Sharing with Mosaic Monday . Come along and visit. . . .

The prompt for Friday Writings , at Poets and Storytellers United,  was inspiration from beloved books.  Junie B. Jones was a character, and series,     created by the late Barbara Park, a children’s book author. Readers were introduced to this lively, rambunctious, imaginative, creative, delightful going-on-six kindergartner in 1992. Before Ms. Parks’ spirit soared into the Universe, she had written 32 Junie B. Jones adventures. I learned today that the series was on the American Library Association’s list of 100 banned and challenged books throughout the 20-oughts because Junie B. spoke like a regular kid with bad grammar and spelling. Bah, humbug. (Update: Thanks to Magaly, I double-checked myself and found I misunderstood. The ALA does not ban books, but creates lists of books that people ban to keep us, the public, informed. So, I take that back. I am not all disappointed with the ALA. My mother-in-law’s spirit is most likely relieved.) I was in my 40s when I came across Junie B.