A commonly used herbicide [on lawns] is killing spruce trees in a many-state area –
The poison flags are all over so many subdivisions…
Large, self-propelled lawnmowers – noisy – have become so common…many are small tractors on small tracts of lawns…faux farmers, the homeowners…
And the noises…the leaf/grass blowers… the not caring what is going on in adjacent yards…
Gasoline-powered weedwhackers; grass trimmers; lawn mowers; power washers- all of them so, so much noise…
The young folks walk with earbuds…they garden with cacophony…they are never still…never really alone…they have their noises.
Their brave new world.
Reflections on the above: it is a delight to retreat form the day noise pollution to The Study buttressed with AC…
But at night…at night we crave the noises of the night….the crickets; the non-threatening thunder; the rain; the sound of the distant passing car; the meow of a neighbor’s cat…the sound of the wind and the wind in the leaves…
Funny how some sounds soothe…and some do not. How some sounds are noise...and some are not.
A USAF jet fighter at an air show….the sound of freedom as we are fond of saying.
The sound of a semi on the highway…not so comforting.
But it could be…in a different context.
Anyway…different contexts…different effects.
npr frets that spouses of transferred military personnel have trouble getting jobs…that it is a resultant hardship to frequent transfers.
You think?
We wonder if npr is implying that government should guarantee jobs for military spouses…
Perhaps that virtually all uncertainties should be removed from our lives…that government should remove all obstacles…
We understand that we are a nation divided between three groups: conservative; liberal; and independent.
At least three groups.
The first two are roughly equal.
The third is smaller and shiftable…unpredictable…the wild card.
There is no third party…and will not be.
Thus, the pols must play to their bases…and to the independents…
And then there is the media…really another constituency…or constituencies…
Quite a job…that of a politician…
Have to check a lot at the door as you go in…
Friday, July 29, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
SUCH IS THE WAY
Two funerals.
One wedding.
One baby shower.
The beat goes on.
The beat goes on is quite a statement, quite an observation.
One retires…and is replaced.
Drove through our old neighborhood on the way home this morning from a late breakfast at an elegant bakery…just for the fun of it. Had not done so for a year or two.
All the old neighbors are gone but one. Frank Merwin was the last to leave.
Our house is there…but different…apparently more than holding its own.
Dear Wife’s childhood house is no more, torn down and replaced by a much bigger one.
We are now nearing the senior status in our present neighborhood.
The beat goes on.
None of this is news.
Lots of sayings, pithy ones at that, attest to the truthfulness of one’s replaceability [I know, probably not a word].
We have long been advised to make hay while the sun shines. And those stones that roll gather no moss.
And early birds do very well with worms.
The message is plain.
The roads diverge in the wood.
We should beware of which one to take…and not to take too much time deciding.
Important national and personal anniversaries come and go…over and over again…and eventually, fewer and fewer observe.
There are new anniversaries to observe.
A new beat to march to.
Such is the way of life.
One wedding.
One baby shower.
The beat goes on.
The beat goes on is quite a statement, quite an observation.
One retires…and is replaced.
Drove through our old neighborhood on the way home this morning from a late breakfast at an elegant bakery…just for the fun of it. Had not done so for a year or two.
All the old neighbors are gone but one. Frank Merwin was the last to leave.
Our house is there…but different…apparently more than holding its own.
Dear Wife’s childhood house is no more, torn down and replaced by a much bigger one.
We are now nearing the senior status in our present neighborhood.
The beat goes on.
None of this is news.
Lots of sayings, pithy ones at that, attest to the truthfulness of one’s replaceability [I know, probably not a word].
We have long been advised to make hay while the sun shines. And those stones that roll gather no moss.
And early birds do very well with worms.
The message is plain.
The roads diverge in the wood.
We should beware of which one to take…and not to take too much time deciding.
Important national and personal anniversaries come and go…over and over again…and eventually, fewer and fewer observe.
There are new anniversaries to observe.
A new beat to march to.
Such is the way of life.
FRANK MERWIN R.I.P.
13 December 1922 – 11 July 2011…
In no particular order: husband; father; businessman; musician; WW2 USMC; gentleman; and good friend.
And other characteristics.
Rest in Peace.
We miss you already.
In no particular order: husband; father; businessman; musician; WW2 USMC; gentleman; and good friend.
And other characteristics.
Rest in Peace.
We miss you already.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
EXCITING TIMES
‘Tis a very good thing that I do not make a living writing for this modest site.
Spring has ended.
Summer is well along … evolving into a week of 90+ degree temps…and lots has been going on.
As planned, The Study’s property has been pruned and cut and made presentable.
There has been planning and planting and hauling and weeding and digging and mowing and stacking.
There has been a wedding in Chicago.
There have been funerals…of folks we haven’t known…and of folks we have known very well.
They are growing more and more common.
And so on…
In other words, we have been distracted.
And something of writer’s constipation has been unhappily very much with us….
Lots of things to think and talk and write about….and yet…the concepts and the words can be uttered…but not easily written.
And there is so much going on…in our own sphere(s)…and certainly in the world which make coffee and cocktail hours so much fun, besides the fellowship and the coffee and cocktails.
We are losing a favorite book store.
Our politicians reflect/mirror the confusion and political incapacity our our people.
We contemplate the purchase of extensive stockade fencing…good fences make good neighbors…if you are lucky.
Does our country still believe it is exceptional in that special, technical sense?
Do Americans still believe that their nation has a mission…that the Biblical injunction applies…”To whom much is given, much is expected”…or words to that effect?
American misadventures continue in Libya.
We draw down in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The American Empire ebbs and flows in fits and starts.
Our Son takes Granddaughters to Colorado and they catch trout and eat them on a frontier farm/ranch…a real one….not a touristy one.
We plan trips to Copper Harbor, Michigan and to Dear Friends in Texas…road trips…sight seeing all the way, God willing.
Dear Sophie Matilda and I grow more and more alike…getting older and more and more thoughtful…by no means more efficient.
Coffee and cigars and Irish Whisky have never tasted better…and discussion and debate have never been more enjoyable.
As we garden and plant and admire the greenery around The Study, I find myself resembling more and more my Dear Grandparents of so many years ago.
Perhaps there is something of a circle in this maturity business.
We wonder if it would be a good idea to buy an ereader. The Color Nook looks like a winner.
Spectacular law cases appear and are resolved.
The media fixates on titillating crimes…one after another.
Celebrities make us ashamed of our species.
And of course sometimes, even often, the opposite happens. Public characters do grand things.
These are exciting times.
Spring has ended.
Summer is well along … evolving into a week of 90+ degree temps…and lots has been going on.
As planned, The Study’s property has been pruned and cut and made presentable.
There has been planning and planting and hauling and weeding and digging and mowing and stacking.
There has been a wedding in Chicago.
There have been funerals…of folks we haven’t known…and of folks we have known very well.
They are growing more and more common.
And so on…
In other words, we have been distracted.
And something of writer’s constipation has been unhappily very much with us….
Lots of things to think and talk and write about….and yet…the concepts and the words can be uttered…but not easily written.
And there is so much going on…in our own sphere(s)…and certainly in the world which make coffee and cocktail hours so much fun, besides the fellowship and the coffee and cocktails.
We are losing a favorite book store.
Our politicians reflect/mirror the confusion and political incapacity our our people.
We contemplate the purchase of extensive stockade fencing…good fences make good neighbors…if you are lucky.
Does our country still believe it is exceptional in that special, technical sense?
Do Americans still believe that their nation has a mission…that the Biblical injunction applies…”To whom much is given, much is expected”…or words to that effect?
American misadventures continue in Libya.
We draw down in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The American Empire ebbs and flows in fits and starts.
Our Son takes Granddaughters to Colorado and they catch trout and eat them on a frontier farm/ranch…a real one….not a touristy one.
We plan trips to Copper Harbor, Michigan and to Dear Friends in Texas…road trips…sight seeing all the way, God willing.
Dear Sophie Matilda and I grow more and more alike…getting older and more and more thoughtful…by no means more efficient.
Coffee and cigars and Irish Whisky have never tasted better…and discussion and debate have never been more enjoyable.
As we garden and plant and admire the greenery around The Study, I find myself resembling more and more my Dear Grandparents of so many years ago.
Perhaps there is something of a circle in this maturity business.
We wonder if it would be a good idea to buy an ereader. The Color Nook looks like a winner.
Spectacular law cases appear and are resolved.
The media fixates on titillating crimes…one after another.
Celebrities make us ashamed of our species.
And of course sometimes, even often, the opposite happens. Public characters do grand things.
These are exciting times.
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