Trails of Nature

TRAILS OF PEACE

2026-10-18T12:23:35.696-07:00

It is said in the Mayan calendar that the Eagleand the Condor may fly together again in "the new era". I am ignorant of the depth and knowledge of this prophecy but...I do think that this song I found years ago...18 or so, may touch some of the meaning from so long ago...in a place 'not so far away'...enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_WDJjydgg&t=184s

Nature prevails..

danielle

Student Protests - The 60's ARE BACK!

2026-02-08T09:14:00.000-08:00

Under a newscast showing Arkansas high school protests today, I entered this comment:

"While I absolutely agree with rules and regulations, freedom of speech IS threatened this past year - nationally. Maybe - students could organize ON SCHOOL PROPERTY, WITH MEDIA COVERAGE, possibly with written speeches that could B turned is for credit? Possibly organized in SCHOOL parking lots, with teacher supervision with possible - "history or sociology" credit. In other words...COMPROMISING/INCLUDING all interests for the best outcome of ALL interested. And certainly - to raise awareness for the national/constitutional issues that appear to B threatened on a national scale, of late.

KUDOS...that our young people are picking up the "baton" for a new "60's" PEACEFUL, AWARENESS AND PARTICIPATION in the issues that will/and DO affect their upcoming world!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx6mLlUr7pE

I have heard so much rumbling amongst my SENIOR community over the years about how the "new generation" of people - do nothing, just feed off the govt...do not care about what's becoming/happening to their upcoming world.

Well folks...not so anymore. At least in the Arkansas School Districts.

Two commenters under the news broadcst so far:

You are so lucky you’re not my kid. Don’t ever walk off school property

And...

Idiots will do anything for attention and a free day out of school

Maybe - IF this is the "general" parental response to our young folks 'getting a brain' and growing 'independent, reasoning/thinking'...then maybe I better understand the national STATE OF AFFAIRS.

In the 60's, we took notice, participated in our community/national state of affairs. Yes! That world around us into which we were about to enter, to work in, to bring up OUR children, etc.

The young generation (actually ALL our society members that are capable) have a RESPONSIBILITY to be a working/acting/interested part of....WHERE WE live!

What ARE our history courses teaching in our schools? Have we not learned what reticense and apathy and greed have done to societies along our hstorical timeline?

Reasonable, intelligent, well-read, peaceful discourse...

Maybe, I am just OLD. Maybe that march in Washington, all those years ago, where I joined a PEACEFUL, crowd of around 50,000 people from ALL over the country...was useless. Maybe...taking time and energy to speak to our Congress people...is a fools event.

I am in the 80 year old realm now. Maybe...

I should..."act my age".

NATURE PREVAILS.

Words of war: uncertain trails

2025-08-01T15:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, and today... Russia and America, doing some verbal 'jousting' about nuclear war . Positioning nuclear subs...threatening WAR; war that on todays scale would leave behind few people and a scarred land that would lie in pain and impotence for eons.

My 'friends'; is this the best we can do? In 2025? Have we not learned our lessons yet? With all the wars before this? Of Hiroshima? The chemical dregs of Vietnam? My DH died from medical remnants of just those "dregs".

I've mentioned before about "manners"...a behavior that smooths our interactions, rubs us with respect and kindness, allows us to interact kindly and with "humanity" with differences...provides respect for each other...just plain makes the world a better place.

Yet in my job/dealing with the school sytem I notice the lack of manners. I see it in the public sector when interacting with everyday persons in stores, out and about.

And CERTAINLY in Washington! I wrote here many months ago about "kindergarden in session". Not getting better. Politicians DAILY are name calling, screaming into cameras, people are getting fired from long standing jobs because - get this; THEIR DIFFERENCES OF OPINIONS AND BELIEFS from the ruling politicians!

Did I move from America? Are we not the MELTING pot of the world where we embrace many races, creeds, beliefs?

RESPECT FOR DIFFERENCES.

RESPECT FOR LIFE AT ALL STAGES, ALL COLORS, ALL CULTURES.

RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER.

I am sad, very sad. I pray more and more these days.

And relish my old age increasingly - because I will - not so far ahead....be gone from this maddness.

SHALOAM, SHALOAM world; you need it.

Nature prevails; maybe she is sad as well.....

Old Lady rant; trails of 'scary'...

2024-01-09T06:57:00.000-08:00

At 76 years of age, my life on this rock is getting financially scarey. Home owners insurance has literally TRIPLED in price. How are we seniors suppossed to keep our homes - and eat too???!!! And afford medical care! and gas. And well...just survive...

My current insurance company (ASSURANT) closed my claim while I am still attemping to get my remaining damages properly quoted and submitted. When they sent me the original quote it was messed up.

Yesterday - the new adjuster (on the phone) assigned to my case (who was rude and dismissive with me during our short convesation) told me I now needed to PROVE that the out buildings were damaged during that previous hailstorm. And the FAX of the entire/corrected roof bids that I sent several days ago -THAT HAS A FRONT PAGE STATING IT W A S RECEIVED AT THAT FAX #...he told me never got there. RIGHT.

Then today, I look on my website for ASSURANT - my claims are CLOSED!!! And when I went through our long term car coverage insurance company that will most likely be the best quote...the yearly price has tripled!!!

NOTE: AFTER GETTING THE COLORADO DIV. OF INSURANCE INVOLVED, SEEMS LIKE THIS CLAIM JUST MAY GET STRAIGHTENED OUT. AFTER 6 MONTHS.

Now....He GOT the second fax...same stuff...same fax#!

How are seniors suppossed to survive in this out-of-control economy??!!

Yes; finances are getting scarey. THINK about this when you vote for a new 'fearless leader" this fall.

Think...about the millions of people that are getting into our country. Do you know that several states (in the southern area along our border with Mexico)....are filing (whatever it is called that a state files...) for INVASION!!! INVASION! Think about that!

We are in serious trouble ahead...

-China and Russia buddying up...

-Taiwan about to be invaded by China; and we are Taiwan's ali (and should be since they are fighting for democracy verses - communism for their people!) Will that action drag us into war?....

We need a leader strong enough to stand up to China and Russia; a leader who will close our borders (as every other nation does!!) so we can survive; a leader who will bring down prices/costs of all kinds for our everyday citizens; a leader who will bring AMERICA back up from it's proverbial "knees" and re-create PRIDE in this nation again. A leader who can be strong yet KIND enough to bring our severely divided nation - at least back to respecting each other again. With manners....remember those 'little things' like...

-'excuse me' and

-'thank you' and

-'may I help you' and

-'I'm sorry'.

..things? "Things" that are the LUBRICANT that helps us ALL not 'rub each other wrong'. It's the "peacekeepers', the Loving words that don't take much energy or work...but that keep us all smiling at each other. Much like our Amazing Creator made us to be. Yup! Bring in a little 'spirituality'...good for our long lost humility and respect.

America...still - the beautiful...

imho...

Nature prevails, even in sad times...

Trails of Friendship; Forever Blessings

2023-07-20T14:04:00.000-07:00

20 July, 2023

Pondering, on my last 18 months of life, or so...thinking about the friends that supported me during this new and difficult journey that I have embraced....in the absence of my forever Love, Don.

But for the hands that have held mine; the hearts that have shared mine; the voices that have soothed me when my 'song' could not be sung; souls that saw and touched mine and wept with me, smiled with me, hoped and prayed with me.

I look back; it seems so long ago that I wailed and screamed and raged against the loss of my soulmate. I wrote poems and sang songs for him; I dreamed and wrangled thru my memories, sometimes with pain and suffering that seemed insurmountable and oh-so-cruel.

Sometimes I turned backwards, searching for my 'real', my use-ta-was...my life without the void that hung over me then like a thunderhead bigger than any possible reality I could bear. Times were so many when I begged and raged - taking turns with "accepting" and praying...continuing to live in moments that threatened to lifetimes!

My friends were - many times more than not - the ways that took me to my next moment...my next awareness of my 'new me'.

My friends in many places,... were my 'lites at the end of my tunnels', the sounds I followed that were luckily louder and more realistic than the noise of complete loss that threatened at times - to consume me - to deafen my being.

You all know who you are, who you "were" when you were needed.

My gratitude and appreciation are deep and my abiding joy for those rescues and friendship and Love - no matter how small or large; this is the Love I give you back, that I give you now..

You are all in your own special ways...a part of the Blessings I carry forever.

Thank you.

I read somewhere recently; "People die; Love does not".

Danielle

Nature prevails...even in death

Love Life trails: Be - who you are

2023-05-20T13:26:00.000-07:00

Saw a neat article online about a garbage man...and a 3 year old...and well - LIFE! At it's fullest and...... alive!!

"Discovery of your purpose and potential sets you free from other people's perscriptions of what they think you should be."

DELVAR DOPSON

Nature prevails...

...in Love and Life

A TRAIL of tree

2022-12-09T04:30:00.003-08:00

I AM A TREE

Oh Alas – I am a tree

My roots are deep,

My branches – free.

I stand alone

My work is calm,

Sometimes a Pine...

Sometimes a Palm.

Oh Alas - I am a tree

My roots are deep

My branches free.

Sometimes I sway

Sometimes I bend

Sometimes I break...

And then I mend.

Oh Alas - I am a tree

My roots are deep

My branches free.

So many birds

Come visit me.

I feel their Love

They comfort me.

Oh Alas – I am a tree

My roots are deep

My branches free.

The storms that pass

They test my strength

They push and pull...

And then at length..

Sometimes I break

Sometimes I die

But Oh Alas...

I am a tree.

Nature prevails..especially in the forest

Composed, written, published on 12/9/2022

By Danielle Simone

TODAY'S... BRAVE NEW WORLD

2022-11-13T04:33:00.004-08:00

A simple question; nothing complicated, nothing about UFOs or deep mathematical computations, or 'why are we here?'...you know - those mind boggling questions that keep one up till the wee hours.

A simple question.

https://thecomeback.com/politics/brittney-griner-new-russian-prison.html

After you have scanned the beginning of this article, maybe you - SOMEONE...ANYONE...could commemt below...to help my old, aging brain with just a TAD of understanding about our life on this planet.

WHY DOES A PRODUCTIVE, AMBITIOUS, YOUNG human being...who decides to bend the rules a bit (bring some herbs onto a plane with her)...get to go to PRISON?????

*******WHILE THE LEADER OF THE COUNTRY WHO SUPPORTS THIS RULING*****

CONTINUES TO MURDER THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS of children and other ALIVE, innocent, human beings......... IN ANOTHER COUNTRY (not even his own)

***and REMAINS free as a bird?*****

Inquiring minds want to know!

If ANYONE has a clue here - can help me understand this inigma, I am open to listening - maybe learning something apparently VERY IMPORTANT that I have missed ...along my 75 years.

Thank you.

Nature prevails...

Forever trails...TODAY

2022-08-27T18:48:00.005-07:00

TODAY

Possess this day with awe and caring

It is a gift given quickly and only once

Stain it not with tears of regret

Look to yesterday with reverence

For it is a teacher, a 'wise one'

A pathway for tomorrow

A memory – a vision

Indeed – it changes not

For it is by all rights – dead

Tomorrow is also a vision, but without substance

It is a dream, a wish, a story yet to be told

A feeling waiting to be birthed

Yesterday passes,

Tomorrow waits,

Ah....but for TODAY

Danielle Simone

8/14/1990

Nature prevails....forever

LIFE TRAILS - When am I ME?

2022-08-17T15:34:00.007-07:00

Until humankind defines 'when life begins' for our individuals, the 'pro-life, pro-abortion' scenerio will prevail.

EX: I saw a sign = "Pro-choice, not pro-abortion". OMG; "pro-choice" for whom - the mother or the baby? See? Semantics - a gobbeldy gook playground of words where everyone is on a different platform - heading EVERYWHERE.

And we humans so enjoy that self-righteous ability we have to be able to "proclaim" a 'side' of an issue and bully foward. Exactly HOW, I plead...does that type of communication, bring us together as a species, as opposed to constantly pitting us AGAINST one another...throughout life?

Questions to ask:

-If a HUMAN has intercourse with another HUMAN, is that pregnancy a HUMAN fetus or a PIG fetus? I heard a confident comment once from a young girl..."Abortion is a woman's 'right' because you can't tell the difference between an early human fetus from a pig fetus..." OK.

-If nothing changes but GROWTH, from conception to birth....define the reasoning in terms of "Thy Shalt Not Kill" (One of our society's pervasive rules), that allows the difference to STOP that 'life'....along that path.

-If genetics are exactly the same from the moment of conception till birth....back to the pig fetus arena.

-If not "alive" from conception....then after 5 weeks, is that a 'pig heart' that starts beating?

-Interesting irony that we - who did NOT get aborted...have the right to abort - someone else. Oh - that's right...it's not a SOMEONE yet; back to the pig fetus. (My, but pigs are popular reasoning....).

-I was giving a talk behind a podium at a college seminar on the abortion issue over 30 years ago. One very young lady said; "If an amniocentesis showed MY fetus to be abnormal - like missing legs or something, I would certainly want the right to prevent that child from having a life of suffering!" (Love that self-righteous energy...). So...I (with my one hand)...stepped sideways away from the podium - standing then in front of her and said: "I am so grateful that my Mom didn't make that decision"....FOR ME!!!

-Since Roe VS Wade, men now have absolutely no legal say about their unborn child.....the responsible, caring men, who might want that child they just created... And the men who want free (unresponsible sex), now have legal license to do so....no longer their problem. Interesting...

WHEN DOES LIFE BEGIN? At some intermittent point when the 'product' can defend itself? Well folks, then I guess "Moms" have the "right to terminate"....for awhile AFTER birth as well; when will that logic creep out of the box?

The point is that this law was not created after long-term reasoned exploration; NOT.

Life is precious. Females were chosen (by whom or whatever created this Universe), to care for the unborn. Is that a curse.... or a priviledge? Regardless, that little bundle of genetics inside us....is helpless. Think about that...

Murder...is murder, whether by state rules in prisons, or federal rules for pregnancy.

Life prevails, in utero as well as in the crib as well as in the schools as well as in adulthood and certainly as well as in old age.

WORD TRAILS

2022-08-08T09:35:00.010-07:00

I NEVER run out of words; makes me crazy as I am sure it does to those around me. But - me...and life; nothing stands still on this Rock, at least not for long. As the Buddhist belief proclams, 'Nothing is permanent". As my dear friend has always touted...'THINGS CHANGE!" Her favorite saying... TC!

Today, thinking of life in general; it's trials, hardships, grief, JOYS, 'perfect moments' (I always say..."Life is not perfect,but there ARE many - "perfect moments") to embrace and absorb - if you listen, allow yourself to genuinely and LOVINGLY feel/sense/intuit and watch...and maybe 'pray'...whatever that might - or might not mean to your personally.

Some songs below for you to enjoy, as you ponder their meanings and as well, your 'meanings' for your life and the life of all creatures on Earth.

And maybe elsewhere...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VByX24L6xFM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXjI2kuNkhE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdBVJbzkoqo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCSZE_st_i0

Watch the next sunrise over your nearest body of water

Consider life...as a new baby chick begins to break out of it's tiny shell

Watch a butterfly's many types of existence thru it's different stages (and WE think we have it hard!)

Watch your child's face as you tell them how proud you are of them

Bring your lonely friend some choclate - AND...a couple hours of your time to LISTEN

Tell the tired looking Mom ahead of you in line, how pretty she is

Watch a cluster of thousands of geese begin to fly off the water in unison

Call (NOT TEXT OR EMAIL) your parent - you know, the one you think is trash...and tell them you are thankful for your life.

On my birth day - the last one while my Mom was alive on this Earth (I did NOT know that - at the time), I called her early that AM - before she called me as she usually did, and told her - in depth - just how grateful I was for my existence - my being ABLE to celebrate this day in my ongoing life - because of her birthing of me. It was indeed - a perfect moment between us...one I now have - without her.

I'm sure you can think of some of life's 'perfect moments' of your own.

Never forget to be GRATEFUL...for all that we have - especially when we are feeling just the opposite; it's truly anazing when we begin to recognize what we DO enjoy in this journey.

***Play in your garden...weeds can be teachers - of patience, and peace and exercise.

As tweety says...

NATURE PREVAILS, especially in our quiet moments...

Political Trails

2021-11-21T08:55:00.005-08:00

I hope that our political situation becomes one that is more 'people - centered', than presidential edict - centered. Our sacred Constitution...it WAS - and still should be - our guide; that was it's original purpose. It is - our only hope to continue the democracy we need.

I hope we Americans start to participate in politics as we used to - such that the control over the 'people' in America - gets back into the hands 'of the people', as opposed to in the form of increasing presidential edicts, health organization takeovers and any one else in" charge" of "mandates".

Our children; and the fear they have learned with COVID; how will that affect our future society...world-wide, as they filter into governmental positions, teaching positions...parental responsibilities of their own.?

I hope that COVID herd immunity increases quickly, and that this virus, as with it's cousins of the past, wears out! I hope that maybe - in 2022, we can ALL get back to some semblance of normal, whatever that will be, after our 2 plus years of fear...infused into our culture .

I hope that we can bring back into our American culture, the respect and support of our aging population. We are a resource to be utilized, not a burden to be shut away into long-term-care places where we wither and die. Seniors have a lifetime of experience; knowledge, wisdom - a LONG view that can aide our leaders - from government all the way down to schools and community. That 'view' can assist us all in understanding "changes" throughout all aspects of our culture. But we have to learn to respect aging again - learn to "listen" again to the experience, wisdom and patience that comes with it. This long-view can greatly assist in preventing the repetition of historical mistakes - in all walks of life.

I hope we all learn to be kinder, more patient with each other...more Loving in ALL the interactions we have in this world...in all our lifetimes.

Nature prevails.

"I lead you into the darkness...so you could find the light."

Buffalo Trails; get in line

2021-10-20T06:12:00.000-07:00

20 October, 2021

This is no longer America.

This is no longer a free nation where our Constitution reigns sovereign. “Laws” are now dictated through EXECUTIVE ORDER...more and more, rather than through Congress – through the avenue of CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTION.

It is not. And it's been coming for a long time.

We have basked in the laurels of the freedoms we had for too long; kept busy with our big boats, our personal problems, and our blind faith that we were safe within our boundaries.

HA!

Our borders are open; we owe just about everything we live by (food, clothing, cars, toys, tools, etc, ) to China; the government now has complete access to our private bank accounts; our medical choices are forced by fear into a confusion of when the next person just might kill us by breathing out in our airspace - by a contrived pandemic to which we are responding as though it were – instead...a plague!

Our entire planet of population – including our children - are being forced to take a vaccine that even the producers of this vaccine admit could change both our immune systems AND our reproductive cycles for the REST OF OUR LIVES!

Did you not suspect an “agenda” when we were URGED by the government to direct deposit our funds – TO SAVE TREES?! And then it became MANDATORY! They did not have access to our bank accounts then. We STILL had a choice to hold our paychecks – the money that WE EARNED...in our hands; not now.

Were you not suspicious when a law was passed in early 2000 that made it MANDATORY to fill out multi-paged census forms (under penalty of jail time) if we did not give the government the personal/private/NON OF THEIR BUSINESS info in these forms?! I spoke to a census CEO in Washington during the time when census workers were climbing fences and engaging in all manner of trespassing to get these forms completed. This CEO repeatedly said to me: ”We would never put anyone in jail for not filling out a form”. And I repeatedly responded...”But now - you CAN!”

Have you watched in disbelief how police are roaming the outdoor – OUTDOOR (where my “air” and your “air” are highly unlikely to be shared), cafe's in France – checking vaccine passports? Are you aware that everyday, law-abiding Australians are being beaten to the ground – regardless of young or old age...simply because they are QUIETLY PROTESTING against the MANDATORY vaccine?

Where are we going as Americans – as a planet – as a species? Why is there such a sudden big push to 'get everyone in line'? Do you not see how we are being manipulated to separate from each other? To distrust each other? The fear – yes FEAR that is being spread over this planet like a bug bomb in a bar...

How do you think this is affecting our growing, vulnerable children? Think about it! They will now have cemented in their first “life tapes” in their psyches, that – anyone – ANYONE...could kill them if they get too close. OMG. Think about that. How that changes our entire culture, the entire basis that we function within. Gone are the days we felt comfortable hugging someone in the grocery store or on the street when we met community “friends”.

Wake up people; this road we are walking...being pushed ahead on by government...just may follow the trails of the long ago Buffalo hunters on our great plains. And you know what THAT looked like...

from the other side of that cliff.

GMO TRAILS: Where are we going?

2021-08-26T06:39:00.001-07:00

I found an article that speaks to GMO products. I found it to be concise, factual and comprehensive.

It also happens to be written by my child. Kudos, Tony, for your knowledge, bravery and Loving soul!

****************************************

https://horsegulchblog.com/2013/02/how-can-you-say-genetically-modified-crops-are-safe/

9Feb2013

How can you say that genetically modified crops are safe?

Posted by Tony Schlauch

How can you say GM crops are safe?

I am writing this in response to Garth Buchanan’s op-ed piece in the Herald on 1/5/13, titled “Genetically modified crops are as safe as other produce”. His first assertion is that genetic engineering is a type of cross breeding. This is almost laughable. Since when do frogs, spiders, and bacteria breed with corn, soy beans, and beets? He also states that these engineers have more control over the resulting organism. This is false. The engineers have very little control over where the genes get overwritten, and then select for traits they are looking for after it grows, if it grows.

He says that scientists “believe” that risks can be controlled. Besides not sounding very scientific, most fifth graders understand how plants propagate and understand that once released into the environment these genes cannot be contained in any way. The Supreme Court also agrees stating that you cannot build a fence high enough to control wind and bees. Besides the risk to wild populations since most GM crops produce sterile seed, it is a huge risk to the neighboring farmer that saves his or her own seed. This has forced many farmers to buy their seed from Monsanto, which holds 90% of the market share, or other companies.

He would also have us believe that these GM crops use less water, fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. This is false. In fact the majority of GM crops, about 80%, are Round-up Ready, which are engineered to be able to be sprayed with Round-up almost to the day of harvest. We are seeing large increases in the use of Round-up with each successive year. These crops also require more fertilizer as Round-up is a chelator which binds to nutrients not allowing the plant to absorb them. Eventually the soil becomes basically sterile. We are also seeing the rise of super weeds that are resistant to Round-up (glyphosate). So of course they are developing 2-4-d ready crops. 2-4-d is one of the main components of Agent Orange. In 2007 over 208 million pounds of glyphosate were applied to US soil. This is essentially salting the earth. No GM crop that is drought resistant was approved until last year, and does not show much promise.

We are also supposed to believe that there are no health risks to humans. This is false. Over the last twenty years the rates of inflammatory related diseases have gone up at the same rates as GM produce usage. That is because our body does not recognize it as food and attacks it causing an allergic reaction and inflammation. Until September of 2012, no lifetime feeding study had been performed on any animal. The FDA has only required 90-day rat-feeding studies to be performed mostly by the industry, not the FDA or independent scientists. The companies only have to show that the rats did not die at significantly higher rates. No attention is paid to what happens after 90 days or to the significant physiological changes that happen even in only 90 days. The lifetime study published in peer reviewed Food and Chemical Toxicology was performed on rats for two years. The results are scary: increased mortality rates, tumors, kidney and liver malfunction, just to name a few. I encourage the reader to look this up. There are even studies that show the genes are transferring to the next generation, moving from plant to animal.

I am so tired of “scientists” hiding behind the FDA. The current Deputy Commissioner for Foods is Michael Taylor, a lawyer with long ties to Monsanto. The FDA has a long history of being headed by the same people who are making untold billions off of this industry. Surely there is no conflict of interest there. Yes I am being sarcastic. The same goes for the USDA. Look up who has steered these regulatory agencies over the last twenty years. Then look up where they worked before and after holding these regulatory positions. The conflict of interest will be clear. How can we trust the same people making billions off of this industry to determine its safety? We might as well let the wolves guard the hen house.

Let us touch on the labeling issue. Mr. Buchanan would have us believe that this will cause people everywhere to starve. Why is it, then, that over 80% of the world’s population already has labeling? If countries like India and China can feed their populations with labeling I think America can. Look at the next packaged food that you buy; there is a large amount of information there that is required by law. Will adding the words “Contains GMO,” really cost the industry so much that food prices will skyrocket? No, it will not. What they are afraid of is that people will become informed and stop buying GM foods, which is what happens in most countries where labeling is required.

I am not a Luddite. I do not believe that technology is inherently bad. However, over the last 120 years we have been inundated with new technologies at an ever increasing rate with little or no oversight. Each time we are told it is completely safe and not to worry or listen to the “Luddite” naysayers. Then we find there are significant dangers and we pay the price with disease and death. Do not worry though technology has a fix, then we find out that the “fix” has problems too. We need to start analyzing new technologies, especially food and drug related ones, extensively and long term before accepting them into our lives or possibly even allowing them at all. Of course this will slow “progress,” but it will result in a better quality of life for all of us, instead of just the heads of these companies and their stockholders.

Tony Schlauch

**********************************************************

Well said, Son! I am SO proud.

Nature prevails....

SPIRIT TRAILS: Do it anyway...

2021-07-30T09:49:00.002-07:00

My spirit is 'wandering' today...having PEACEFUL PRESENCE, after a long, quiet spiritual walk. I was in touch with 'my spirit' as I walked – and my guardian angel, Tanya – and a bit with Mother Mary, too. Tho I walked fast and taxed my heart and lungs a bit (finally, after 2 weeks of pushing every other day – just to GET OUT THERE!), today I felt I was in a different “space'.

My body was more a leader than a participant. I was more in tune with my inner feelings...inner energy, which is why I believe I had that extra energy, greater than usual.

My counselor and I trade book titles and sayings and poems – we boost each other (or at least she boosts me!). I hope I help...

Anyway, we shared several poems which I now share with you below. I hope they help your day to be more Loving, more 'energized'...filled with ethereal thoughts of the 'greater good'.

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.

Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind,
people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful,
you will win some false friends and some true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank,
people may cheat you.
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building,
someone could destroy overnight.
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness,
they may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today,
people will often forget tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have,
and it may never be enough.
Give the best you've got anyway.

You see,
in the final analysis it is between you and God;
it was never between you and them anyway.

MOTHER THERESA

Some say this was rewritten by her from a poem by Kent M. Keith;

The Paradoxical Commandments

by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

************************************************************************************

Then there is one of my favorites...a poem whose words sustained me several times along my earlier life-road, when the world weighed heavy on my heart and soul;

INVICTUS …A POEM FREQUENTLY RECITED BY NELSON MANDELA

by English poet

William Ernest Henley

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate,

I am the captain of my soul.

Nurturing Verse

Poems on nature
put beauty in reach;
their paintings may bid us reread!

But verses of nurture
can morally teach
to beautify life with a creed.

— David L. Hatton, 5/31/2018

https://allpoetry.com/poem/13920183-Nurturing-Verse-by-Pastordavidrn

May your day be filled with all that Nature has to offer. Talk to a bird nearby; notice the perfection in a cloud; feel the temperature of the breeze as it passes your cheek; appreciate your home, family and friends - while remembering there are many on this Earth without these blessings! Smile at your neighbor – even as his dog roams your lawn; pull over and let the tailgater behind you - buzz past you; give your mailperson a warm hello (they may especially need it today); tell your spouse he or she is your sunshine – even if they are scowling today.

BE your spirit today – give out as much Love and kindness as you can.

As Mother Theresa said...”Do it anyway”!

Nature prevails....even in the shadows.

Vaccine Trails: TO YOUR DOOR!

2021-07-19T06:12:00.009-07:00

It sounds SO "community" oriented - so "helpful". But is it really? Might it be the CDC, WHO and your "caring" local health organization taking - yet - a bit more freedom from us? Getting us just a LITTLE BIT more used to the "government" ((in this case the LOCAL government)) used to being told what to do. It is hard to refuse HELP...when it is at your front door!!!

Please read the following article.

https://americasfrontlinedoctors.org/frontlinenews/door-to-door-covid-shot-pushers-report-unvaccinated-to-government-health-departments/

Question this new approach to KEEPING US SAFE. Ask yourself - if there is another - more FREEDOM ORIENTED way to do this? Could - maybe...the shots be AVAILABLE at the local (EACH TOWN/COMMUNITY) building, and do a 911 call as they do with a tornado and OFFER rides for anyone INTERESTED in the vaccine? Or do a MASS MAILING telling. ..OFFERING EVERYONE the vaccine locally?

AT YOUR DOOR....think about it folks. IT IS OUR FREEDOM WE ARE TALKING ABOUT!!!!

WAKE UP!! This SAFETY thing is WAY out of control.

My Real Estate broker from years ago when I was a Realtor in Denver, a wise, intelligent, educated person said to me one day, when there was a Police car out front of the building that said TO SERVE AND PROTECT;

"Danielle...see that word PROTECT? Be careful, just be careful, as the years go by".

I was young - in my 30's - the world looked FREE and available to me. The IGNORANCE of youth. It was the 1970's...right after the 1960's...when people could march for their rights - speak up without the fear of today. I marched in Washington in 1974 - along with about 50,000 other citizens. We talked to Congress-people, stated our requests - our 'redress' from our REPRESENTATIVES. Is that still possible? NO!! Back then...I thought I could do anything! FOREVER. After all - I lived in the USA!!!

Am I overreacting? Or are we really letting our precious freedom of movement, decisions about our bodies, our freedom to speak on any subject - respectfully and openly (WITHOUT BEING CENSORED BY SOCIAL MEDIA!) slowly slip away - under the umbrella guise of SAFETY?

Interesting....first we are ENCOURAGED to put our communications with each other - away from private HOUSE phone conversations...into public arenas...THEN - we are censored in those arenas. Are we being led like sheep, to do someone else's bidding so we are more 'transparent' to the 'powers that be'? This is a question EACH AMERICAN MUST ask themselves; HOW FAR WILL WE COMPLY...to be SAFE.

STAR-TREK anyone? The BORG...RESISTANCE IS FULTILE! You MUST COMPLY!

This PANDEMIC is only several points higher in death toll than the regular yearly FLU. Why the worldwide scare that transformed AN ENTIRE PLANET- into overwhelming fear and hiding - in only 2 months?! AN ENTIRE PLANET, FOLKS!

What if it REALLY WAS A PLAGUE?!

JUST HOW SAFE must we be...from ourselves...

***********************FROM OURSELVES?!************************

THE GOVERNMENT'S JOB IS TO KEEP US SAFE FROM OUTSIDERS - NOT OURSELVES! There is a LARGE - VERY LARGE price to pay for "ourselves safety".

As I drove out of New York State years ago - the seat belt law had just passed there. I recall the then - Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan on the radio. The crux of his comment was..."The government just got their hands inside your car; how long till they have them...inside your house?" Door to door vaccine push?...gettin' pretty close, me 'tinks.

Think about that.

Read serious articles about how we are "connected" to the Chinese government. Then - read how easily the Chinese Government CONTROL THEIR CITIZENS. Do we want to live under that type of "governing"? Just how dependent are we to the Chinese? If our nation chose to say NO to them...how bad would it be if they stopped ALL CHINESE PRODUCTS that we use in the USA from coming into our country? THINK ABOUT THAT.

There IS a price to pay for GROWING UP and being RESPONSIBLE FOR OURSELVES! We are not-so-slowly...giving up that responsibility. Along with that goes - our FREEDOM. Aren't we supposed to wear our BIG BOY/GIRL PANTS WHEN WE TURN 21?!

We are allowing ourselves to be treaded like CHILDREN...safe but controlled.

*****Where are we going? Look at history.

*****What PRICE are we paying - and willing to continue paying....to be "SAFE"? SAFE from what; more importantly - safe from WHO...ourselves? I myself - an Italian who will hug just about anybody - given half a chance; even I am more cautious now when I approach ANYONE; Where are my 6 feet?' I hear in my mind. OMG...what enculturation in less than 2 years!

OMG, what have we taught our children?!!!!!

NATURE PREVAILS.

2021-07-05T06:42:00.001-07:00

100 years: a long trail

2021-06-26T04:34:00.002-07:00

22 June, 2021

(I wrote this on the above date but could not post till today, 26 June, 2021

Happy Birthday, Mommy. You are now a centenarian! Wow, it's been a long ride...

Know that you are Loved. Know that I respect, honor and consider myself blessed with the amazing genes you passed on to me. They have taken me thru a few of life's corners - without which I might have fallen.

I see some of your beauty and strength in my child - how he perseveres thru life's struggles and always wakes up on the positive side of his bed - a trait straight from your heart.

I recall your strength as you raised us; your perseverance as you worked hard and long to keep food on our table; how you Loved and cared for us with all that your heart and soul could bear.

I see Grandmere in your smile, Grandpere in your steadfast ability to not give up, tho Grandmere had those qualities as well. I recall your sorrow as you told the story of watching your parents stand together next to their home that had burned to the ground, crying together like lost souls.

I thank you for allowing me to spend time with Grandmere when I was in my early teens; I recall sitting with her on her back porch, drinking strong Italian coffee from her beautiful little demitasse cups, overlooking her large garden of flowers that she tended to, so devotedly; her plum trees across the driveway from the porch. I recall the smell of her kitchen when she made her spring salads - the spices she put in her dressing that you passed down to us. I recall the sound of the well hand pump in her sink years before she changed out to a more modern pump - how it sounded as the water came slowly up from its depths....how cold it was and how wonderful it tasted.

I keep in my memory the early morning dawns as you and I hung laundry in the back yard in Lower Bank - how you taught me to tighten my tummy muscles every time I reached down to the basket for another piece of clothing; I recall how you and Pat slowly, diligently, built that $50,000 house (in the 1960's value) from a simple chicken coop. My memory holds the warmth of your care when I had a bad cold - how you made me perspire with loads of blankets, PJ's and then would change out everything for another natural and successful battle with the fever.

I recall the event when Daddy broke your favorite end table and how I reacted; a freeze-frame moment for all three of us.

I recall the bell you installed at the end of the house that called us in for meals and other necessities and how you insisted we stay outside and play. Tho we moaned and complained, that taught us to be creative, taught us to get along and play together, gave us fresh air and sunshine...while it gave you your necessary time to reboot as "Mommy".

Your picture on Gabby, our beautiful Egyptian Arabian Mare that we took in Las Animas when you visited us at Road 17...how you Loved to ride; I recall your stories of your rides in Central Park, NYC, I can still see in my mind your riding jodhpurs and boots that you kept in Lower Bank.

Your picture taken at Grumman Aircraft in your welding outfit - holding your welding hat -your gorgeous smile.

I recall your sad story about how you and your first husband, Nick Simone had such a close and 'together' relationship before your wedding, and how you did everything together during an era when women were separate and segregated; and how that allowed you to make your decision to marry him, and how that situation changed after the wedding, and the sadness that ensued for you.

I recall your drinking, and the pain and separateness that it caused - for all of us. But now, in my 70's, with my own "age" and life struggles around me...I understand so much better. And I give you my apologies for the coldness I gave you thru those times/years. The chasm of 'age' in this life and the loneliness and pain it engenders...is sad, beyond words. If only I could hold you one more time and ask your forgiveness for my ignorance of youth.

One last thing; I ache every time I think of all your birthdays that I did not celebrate with you as you so deserved. I am sorry. But today - on your hundredth birthday...I salute and hug you with all that I am. I miss you with a vengeance that will follow me thru forever. And I look forward to meeting you in our future - wherever and whenever that may be.

Happy hundred dearest Me-Mere. Love and kisses forever.

Renee C Arcuri was born on June 22, 1921. She died on October 18, 1998 at 77 years of age.

https://www.ancientfaces.com/person/renee-c-arcuri-birth-1921-death-1998/9094689htt

Danielle

Nature prevails....for infinity

TRAILS OF LIVING: Questions

2021-05-26T12:52:00.011-07:00

“Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to live the questions themselves. Don't search for the answers which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. The point is to live everything. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.” Rainer Maria Rilke

This came in my email today. At 74, I hear it's familiarity...”Don't rush answers”...”Think through the question before you seek to answer it”.... “Have patience with yourself”, etc. We've all heard different versions of this basic thought process.

But to LIVE this process – throws a new wrench into this more bantered around way of giving ourselves yet another 'tool' in our life 'toolbox'. ”One can NEVER have too many 'tools'! Harbor Freight has this understanding down pat! Just ask my DH.

Ms. Rilke widens, deepens, gives this process more power to enable us to find our way in life. After all - “living”...is what we do in this life, right? RIGHT!

Reminds me me of an old Beatles song...”Let it be”...INDEED.

Maybe at times...we ARE our worst enemy as it were; maybe WE are the ones who place boulders in our paths, create the hill we cannot climb, make our life-plate too heavy, make our lives more complex and difficult to manage.

I've heard biblical quotes that speak to this process; to be STILL so that we can “hear” answers, be quiet enuf to understand how the “divine” in us is guiding. That – INMO, for me anyway, is why meditation is so difficult; that “monkey-mind” will not shut up! It wants to RUN through life, and we follow behind like perfectly performing little puppies! When any three of my cats jumps up on the computer table near my keyboard; I get wound up and attempt to gently push them away with accompanying LOGIC such as...”Please – not now – I am right in the middle of a thought”...or – “Not now, I'm on my bank line and you might step on the keyboard and mess something up!” What I am doing is missing THEIR moment - which COULD be mine - if I slowed down - LIVED instead of ran.

Then I recall Hugh Prather in “Notes to myself”; “I am holding my cat so it can sleep; what else is there!” Indeed! Life is all about LIVING each moment; being at peace with each moment – NOT what we WANT in that moment...but just the unadulterated, “Thy will not my will”, the BE STILL NESS of LIVING - JUST THE MOMENT. And then, as Rilke suggests, before we know it – we are Living the next moment...and the next, and the next. The point being, we do not have to run to that next moment...and the next, etc. They come regardless; life stops for nothing or no-one. So pretty soon those answers we sought oh so long ago...are already here! Amazing how that can happen.

When we are “STILL”, moments/life fill in around us. Our way becomes more filled with wonder and sunshine and imagination and beauty and just all the “roses” we may normally miss because we “ran” past them. And yes – the “thorns” may become more prominent as well. But up-close-and-personal, “thorns” have their own, unique beauty...and purpose. Rain and sunshine...cold and hot...big and small, etc.

The bottom line being...LIVING. LIVE your moments. And maybe sometimes, we may receive “answers” to what “questions' you were totally unaware.

Peace be with you in each of your endless LIVED 'moments' today.

Nature prevails...

Life trails: Jan Verhoeff

2021-04-13T15:48:00.067-07:00

Jan Verhoeff died the other day.

She was a teacher, a friend, a blogger, a Mom, a wife, a student, a champion of conservative values. Her honesty, kind and caring heart, her astute and discerning intelligence touched many hearts and souls.

She will be remembered for her courage of convictions; she had a winning way of explanation and understanding that brought many listeners around to her train of thinking. As a pupil of her writing expertise, I enjoyed her writing classes and learned a great deal about many phases of writing, particularly with online ins and outs.

She wrote several books, worked many, many blogs on a daily basis - actually made her living in part, from them. I was amazed, years back to understand that she wore through keyboards on an almost monthly basis. Writing was her forte - began at an early age and continued until her passing, a few weeks ago.

She also championed home schooling - was a part of the administrative end of homeschooling in Colorado, as well as a homeschooler of her four children. Her children all went on to be amazing citizens, Loving, caring parents and kind spouses. Her immediate family embraced the true Christian Love of family and the values therein. She was a "Mom of Mom's"! I saw a saying that was quoted as a "Sudanese proverb"; in my opinion, it sums up Jan's mothering to a tee:

"We desire to bequeath two things to our children; the first is roots, the other is wings." (1)

Her talents were diversified and wide, including riding and caring for horses, running small businesses, a seamstress of quality fare, etc. She had the ability to remain calm in many types of "storms". She was a MEMORABLE caregiver to her Mother through her sickness and passing. She balanced pleasure with business, friendship with reality, intelligence with finances. Her capacity for strength was innately deep. She enjoyed cooking and eating; she found fun and creativity in her kitchen as well as in many other areas of her life.

As I write this, it is surreal to re-read my words - a seemingly fictitious story of unimaginable reality. But it is true, Jan has passed. When I dialed her phone a few minutes ago, I broke into tears as I heard her voice on the answering machine.

Rest well, dear heart. Know the presence of angels and the Love of your Creator. No more life stress; no more pain. You are in our hearts and memories forever.

(1) Clive Cussler and Robin Burcell, THE ORACLE

Political trails: kindergarden "in session"

2021-02-11T05:42:00.011-08:00

My rant for today. But - you decide; is is REALLY all just "rant"?

Each day I awake and wonder at the changes occuring in the world today. As a "senior citizen", I watch an already "alien" world around me - just from the normal changes that occur over a 50-plus year span. All "seniors" have to deal with 50 years worth of changes in their lives; it is "reality". Therein - the "alien-ness" around us.

We are told to 'get with the times'...'let go of the past'...'grow up' (that's always a trip to hear at our ages), etc. Indeed - just how much of the impact and 'reality' of your upbringing, your enculturation, your mor`es, your values, your beliefs, etc., can one ignore/change/let go of, before you are no longer YOURSELF! And then - who the h__ are you instead??!

I have witnessed infantile humanness in the political arena for many years; it shows up now and then; after all - we are all HUMAN. But - what I am watching on the current political front...for several years now...is more than deeply distressing, it is dangerous. Why? Because there are Constitutional issues getting trampled and thrown about like confetti. As the Constitution erodes...where goes America?....

Truthfully...it reminds me all too much of a kindergarden recess; Aren't the ELECTED supposed to behave professionally? Name-calling, all the EMOTIONAL ranting, the time/money - OUR MONEY folks, spent in Washington on who's right - who's wrong, etc. What about American issues - REAL ONES?! Like the messed up tax system? Like the national debt? Like the no-accountability of corporations these days? Have you tried to resolve an issue with a utility or other large business lately? IF...you can ever get released from the PHONE TREE...

But back to real issues, like the steady rise in prices - at the store, at the garage, at the parks, online, etc? How does that match the extra 5 dollars most seniors received in their new monthly income over the past few years?! You know... the REAL issues - the ones that address our eating and working and - oh yeah - being free?! Oh, I just remembered...."get with reality, Grandma; this is the NEW NORMAL!!!".

This 'growing up' at 70 something is hard; maybe I should go back to school. OOOPS...they're closed now...to keep us SAFE! Back home...to watch kindergarden on TV. HOME school...there you are., as my Grandmere used to say in her broken French accent. Now THERE was a lady with brains! A whole lot more than I hear coming from...you know where.

But - this a a rant, a blog, a personal opinion; I can call life...as I see it. Unfortunately, there is a much bigger RANT going on; by a WHOLE LOT more people...back east; yup - you know where.

And the media?! Where is the factual, issue-driven content that NEWS is supposed to share with the people? When I took my journalism courses in college, YELLOW journalism was a no-no!

Oh, that's right...I need to 'get with the times'...GROW UP. Oh my, but I DO have a great deal of GROWING UP to do.

I hope I die of natural causes LONG before I have GROWN UP....A SECOND TIME in my life. Once....was enuf.

At least then...there was hope.

Loving Trails: MISS YOU!

2020-10-18T13:27:00.011-07:00

October 18, 1998. A freeze-frame moment, for any child; the day their Mother passes on.

I held her hand. I put a rose on her chest. We were all standing around her bed - all 5 of her children. A surreal moment in time...in space....in emotion...in reality. Life goes on.

It seems so long ago in my menory; yet...I can still 'be there', be in that moment. When her breath stopped, so did mine. We all cried..a quiet, haunting cry. Tho a family tied together by death, we were also - each of us, alone in our personal place with our Mother. Each of us with our own memories, our own regrets, our own particular pain.

But the grief bound us all together - to that moment. We all lost our rock; we all lost the person who held us together even in our disagreements and periods of not speaking. She kept us tethererd to our roots, the genes that bound us to a legacy of strength and courage and Love like none other!

The years of pasta made in that large, dented, old pot; the memory of who might be the first awake the next morning to reap the treasure of frying up the wonderful remans in gobs of butter and Parmesan.

Her Pea, Pickle and Celery salad, her cole slaw in a huge jar that we worked at for days to finish. Her salads with home-made dressing birthed from her French and Italian genetics based in pure olive oil, as only she could concoct!

We knew better than to touch ANYTHING in her tool box. Our Mother not only raised us with ternderness and Love and caring, but also built houses and welded airplane parts at Grumman Aircraft during WWII; one of the only woman there - and one of the BEST welders! I recall a picture of her then, with her welding hat on and a smile the size of Texas! Beautiful; strong; confident.

I am the oldest of her 5 children; I always recall the story of how she finally put a safety pin in her regular skirt two weeks before I was born. Her stomach muscles were just as strong as her courage and intelligence.

I recall her story about skipping two grades in grammar school. She wanted to be a biologist, but life took over. But her children became 'her life' as she would tell anyone who would listen. And from the time I, as the oldest, was 13, she raised us by herself - working two jobs most days. There were times in my youth when I had her clothes in my hands as she raced in from one job - ran thru the shower and I literally helped her dress as she scurried back out the door, since she had so little time between jobs.

She would have died an thousand deaths rather than ask for money to help raise her family. She raised show dogs (Miniature Collies) on the side, to help us eat. I recall one Thanksgiving; there was little food in the house - certainly nothing resembling a Thanksgiving dinner. That morning, a buyer called to see if she had puppies left from her advertisement months before; she had one - almost full grown. The buyer came from hours away and bought that dog. I took her to work that nite and used the car to go to the grocery store to buy dinner. One of our most meaningful Thanksgivings!

Was she the best Mom on the planet? No; there is no such animal! But her depth of Love, her courage in the face of life as it was dealt to her, her capacity for forgiveness, her ability and strength of character to persevere and press on when her road had the incline of a cliff - was genetic; and I thank her every day for those genes.

Her sense of fairness; I recall one time when there was a chocolate candybar for us to share. She so carefully split it into five even pieces. She never showed favoritism; always strived to Love us equally.

When we would go for drives in the country, she would point to a stunning sunset or an awesome mountain range and tell us; "That is God's work...HIS beauty!"

She told me once: "Make sure you go out every day and give three honest complements". I never forgot that. And I practice it often. Her depth of Love...

She taught me to enjoy books, introduced me to my favorite story - HEIDI. Which, as I see things in my 'rearview mirror'...scripted my life in many ways.

We had our periods of "quiet"; when I was convinced she was an unfit parent...when I swore I would never stoop to speak to her again. Yet - each time I re-learned a tad more about those endless life-lessons...humility, forgiveness, understanding - and - of the true meaning of what FAMILY, Love and respect... are all about. It takes hard work at times as life teaches us to bow to Love instead of pride...humility instead of 'self' and ego.

Now, as I experience that age where she was when she passed - with the life understanding that ONLY comes with that age, some regrets linger in my darker shadows of memory. The many things I SHOULD have said, the many things I so wish - I had NOT. The many questions I now have about our family history, recipes only she knew, information of my youth, etc., of which I had no interest at my yournger age - then. I understand now, the chasm of age that separates us from the undetrstanding that parents have, that AGE has - that youth does not - CANNOT comprehend. One of the sadder parts of life.

I miss her with all that I am. I "sense" her sometimes...a certain word spoken, a smile shared, feel her presence while I prepare a home made pasta sauce; 'feel' her energy as I build a chicken fence or use tools to create a closet shelf...as I fondly recall that untouchable 'tool box'.

I recall her wedding picture; she was a beauty to behold, tho I suspect she never really understood that part of herself; her humility and poise said it all.

Rest in peace, "Me-mere". Know you are missed and Loved...forever.

Renee C Arcuri was born on June 22, 1921. She died on October 18, 1998 at 77 years of age.

https://www.ancientfaces.com/person/renee-c-arcuri-birth-1921-death-1998/9094689

Butterflies; free to come...and free to go their own way.

Your oldest,

Danielle

Lasagna trails; CoVID FREE!

2020-05-15T08:35:00.002-07:00

Meatless CoViD Lasagna

INGREDIENTS

-8 rolls toilet paper (the stronger, off-brands are better)

-1 container anti-bacterial wipes (ANY brand Amazon has left)

-small roll paper towels

-5 small bottles alcohol (currently large bottles are bought by local hospitals to clean their light bulbs, underneath stairwells and the underside of rain gutters)

-tomato sauce (or ketsup)

-beans (all dates prior to 1975 are safe/ CoViD FREE!)

-9 cloves garlic (best from your own garden; ensure your neighbor has NOT coughed on the plants)

-onions

-Parmesan cheese

-small spray bottle

************************

Undo all rolls of TP; spray BOTH SIDES with alcohol till moist. Hang on shower rod or clothesline (only if clothesline is at LEAST 6 feet from edge of property) to dry completely. Sometimes takes a week or more in wet environments.

Take half of package of antibacterial wipes; clean BOTH sides of paper towels for at least 20 seconds to ensure lack of possible viral remains!

If you can't find tomato sauce on the shelves in your local grocery, usually ketchup will work. Just make sure you held back a few antibacterial wipes to thoroughly wipe ALL surfaces of the ketchup bottle (for at LEAST 20 seconds) to ensure SAFETY!

Fry up onions till black – CoVid doesn't like heat above 574 degrees.

Remove onions; wipe pan with several antibacterial; wipes - just in case your pan hid a few of those pretty purple things with the little protrusions all around them. One cannot be TOO safe these days.

Rinse black onion remains with alcohol; set aside. (alcohol evaporates; let them dry)

Alternately layer toilet paper and paper towels with Parmesan cheese sparingly; there may not be any more containers available till mid summer, and beans.

Top with tomato sauce. Or ketsup. And a few more crumbles of Parmesan.

Lastly, spray top of finished Lasagna (and entire Lasagna pain including underneath) with alcohol spray. Several people have used diluted spray and remained CoVid-free. A personal choice.

Bake at LEAST 5 hours at a minimum of 500 degrees to ensure there are NO SURVIVING CoVid particles. They are pretty tough little guys. After all, they encircled an ENTIRE PLANET...in 6 weeks.

Let cool, at least 6 feet from any other food.

Soak all eating utensils in remaining alcohol for at least – 8 hours. (over nite is safer)

Wash hands between EACH BITE; SAFETY is paramount!

Do NOT call urgent care IF...this meal causes stomach cramps. Health care workers have more important 'fish to fry'! (They probably don't like Lasagna anyway. At least not the CoVid version.)

Incinerate any Lasagna remains – just in case you were BREATHING when you were eating.

Enjoy.

NATURE PREVAILS!!

LOCKDOWN: ANY OPEN TRAILS AHEAD?

2020-04-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

15 May, 2020

A lengthy article that covers many aspects of the political and CDC viewpoints.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-health-202/2020/05/13/the-health-202-most-states-lifting-coronavirus-lockdowns-haven-t-met-federal-guidelines-for-reopening/5ebaaf55602ff11bb117afb5/

State by state short info blurbs on lifting restrictions.
https://www.usatoday.com/storytelling/coronavirus-reopening-america-map/

Interesting info on long-term Covid 19 cases. This virus appears to be one of - 'do what I want to the body - when I want and how I want'. Scarey!
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/15/weird-hell-professor-advent-calendar-covid-19-symptoms-paul-garner

1 May, 2020

List of all states and their projected opening from lockdowns:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/04/19/coronavirus-lockdown-reopening-states-us-texas-florida/5155269002/.

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/30/coronavirus-states-lifting-stay-at-home-orders-reopening-businesses.html

Pushing back on lockdown:

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/495743-protesters-in-at-least-10-states-demand-end-to-coronavirus-lockdown

Colorado governor: Announcing the reopening, Polis told Coloradans they were entering “the time of individual responsibility and choices,” and he trusted them to “make good choices.”
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/like-test-dummies-colorado-is-ending-its-covid-19-lockdown-but-is-the-state-ready

Michigan is making a statement:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2020/may/01/armed-protesters-michigan-state-capitol-demanding-end-to-coronavirus-lockdown-video

Italy is opening with reservations:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/05/contagion-risk-remains-high-italy-ready-reopen-200501171703457.html

Herd immunity seems to be a difficult definition which includes both natural immunity and vaccine-induced immunity.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/01/opinion/coronavirus-herd-immunity.html
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11078115

Why...is the news not bombarded with ways to raise individual immunity? That seems to me to be the bottom line for fighting ANY bacteria or virus? To be as healthy as possible thus letting our own bodies do the job for which they are intended - and CAN do; to fight off pathogens.

YOUR THOUGHTS ??

Social Distancing; a Lonely TRAIL

2020-03-26T07:41:00.001-07:00

A colorized image of cells from a patient infected with the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The virus particles are colored pink. The image was captured from a scanning electron micrograph.

NIAID/Flickr

In the midst of a new Pandemic, American life grinds to a scary, sometimes fatal halt. Toilet paper shelves laid bare; minimum traffic on freeways during the current non-existence of RUSH HOUR. Planes with cold engines parked in long lines on the sidelines of airport taxiways.

Many MANY employees losing work hours that will - not so far down this pandemic road - lead to less or no food in their refrigerators! Children sequestered at home with little understanding about the stress in their parents' eyes and tones of voice and their new restrictions and separation from their friends. The separation of teens from each other when PEERS are their new backbone.

National Guard called into action with training in CROWD CONTROL and feeding Americans.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/coronavirus/2020/03/24/latest-guard-update-more-than-10000-troops-mobilized-for-covid-19-response/

So much rhetoric online about the 'Constitution tossed aside' as the general public is treated with increasingly 'war zone' detention. So much blame targeted at the President - the various leaders for this and that wrong-doing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4OKsUNRMzY

New CREATIVE terms used to restrain the freedoms we Americans took so for granted not even three months ago; now called SHELTER IN PLACE, etc. Is this legal? Is this reasonable protection to halt this Pandemic?

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/03/21/coronavirus-lockdown-orders-shelter-place-stay-home-state-list/2891193001/

IS IT Constitutional?

***And if not - what ARE the alternatives? How do we as a nation, retain our freedom to BE...while saving each other from infection and POSSIBLE/PROBABLE death - if infected?! Where is that line, that demarcation where our "protection" becomes our "enslavement"?

Just how far should we allow our leaders to PROTECT us....from OURSELVES? Where-oh- where...is that line? And who...has the right/responsibility to create it - let alone enforce it?

A lengthy article in THE ATLANTIC from 2 days ago speaks to these issues ad nauseum, yet necessarily. For when THIS conversation stops, our Constitutional protections fade. According to this article, and the poll quoted therein, most Americans, non-partisanly - only a few days ago, are more than willing to defer their freedoms for the intent purpose of slowing the Pandemic death toll.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-america-constitution/608665/

I wonder how much sleep our world, national and local leaders obtain during these insane weeks. An old curse (of seemingly conflicted origin), was brought to mind by a friend the other day; "May you live in INTERESTING times."

Please comment below. Share your feelings, your REASONABLE thoughts on this INTERESTING time - right here, right now, at your local SHELTER-IN-PLACE.

"DANGER, WILL ROBINSON, DANGER!"