Every winter I wind up saying:

Rain rain go away!

So why did I move to Oregon?

Egads! It's dark out at 7:50AM!

Every winter I wake up in the dark and wonder why I moved to Oregon!

Then it all starts changing – the rain becomes showers, then drizzle, and then it stops.  The mornings get lighter earlier, dusk comes later and – Spring arrives!

 Spring is very green!

Spring brings goslings!

Spring is when we can sit outside with our coffee in the morning sun and laughingly say:

This is why we put up with an Oregon winter!

Family secrets: a topic I have had in my head for decades.

Growing up, I learned that my father’s family had Native American heritage – but it was not to be discussed, as it was a family secret!

When I asked my paternal relatives about it – I got told, “We don’t talk about that!”

end. of. conversation.

I may not have asked more questions of them – but the topic sure stayed in my head. And no I have not done much genealogical research – but I do poke around the web seeking information.

Then my mother’s family – always a mystery. Her paternal relatives did not like the woman their son married so there was little interaction [or so I was told.] Her father died when my mom was young and my grandmother would never speak of her spouse’s family so that too was an

end. of. conversation.

But – as it turned out – my father’s family had yet another secret!

My cousins and I knew our grandmother had a sister – we called her Aunt Sadie. As she lived near my grandparents, she was at all the family functions – and as far as we knew, she was the only sibling.

But not that many years ago I learned that her family included even more siblings!

My grandmother had another sister who lived and died in relatively close physical proximity to my her! Some of us, her children and grandchildren, sort of knew there was a relative who was married to a wealthy man but the exact “relation” was one of those family secrets.

Only after this woman died, and without a will, did we get to know the exact relationship. She was my grandmother’s and Aunt Sadie’s sister! We knew this only because as she died without a will, we, the grandchildren, stood to inherit her estate.

We had to prove we were related to her and that there were no other relatives in closer gemological proximity. To that end, our attorney hired a genealogist who researched my grandmother’s family.

Wow! Sitting in that Manhattan courtroom listening to the genealogist was funny and sad – at the same time. 

Family secrets? Tons of them!

I’m not going into all of it here as there are many many hours of her testimony, but the one I do want to mention is that my grandmother had at least 8 siblings!

I will always wonder what happened to those relatives – the records are spotty and incomplete – but my psychology head has a wild time imagining all the possible whys that led this family to get so secretive.

What other secrets were there that kept siblings living near each other but not in contact? What kept the remaining NYC sister from seeking out her sister’s grandchildren?

Many questions…but no answers……

Does your family have secrets? I know many do as when I mentioned this family matter to friends, I was often told of the secret[s] in theirs!

Say no to lo-fat and no-fat? Yes!

For years I have said that the low fat and no fat "alleged" foodstuffs [I have trouble calling it food] were at best no help and worse – bad for you.

My take is that the rate of obesity has kept pace with the number of low and no fat foods we have in the supermarket.

Why do I say the lo and no fats are bad?

We actually need fat in our diets – and removing it means we eat more of the lo/no stuff in an attempt to appease our bodies – which know they are lacking something.

But our ego says NO NO NO to all fat because the media has told us it is BAD BAD BAD – and so we ignore our body's message – that is it missing something it needs.


Caveat – some lower fat foods are ok – but be sure it is food – not chemicalized "stuff."

We all need a mix of carbohydrates, fat and protein. There is never going to be one type of diet that fits all of us. We come from different types of ethnicity and we need to figure out what works best for us – not those other people.

But whatever it is you eat, it must contain all the food groups

. Many parents who themselves might be overweight [or afraid of being overweight] feed their children low fat and no fat foods.

Adults need fat in their diet and so do children. It's a human condition and not an adult v. child thing.

 A growing body needs ALL components – fat, carbohydrates, protein – as well as fruits and veggies…


Eat well – it helps you and your kids.

And because stress is good for you!

Stress is as natural a part of a human life as is breathing. Stress is most simply our body’s reaction to “something” in our environment that is making us a bit out of balance [or homeostasis.] Physically, and mentally, we want to be in balance and so we react to this balance shift. It is our mental and emotional reaction to this shifting that determines the type and level of stress.

Stress has negative, positive and neutral definitions:

• something that causes mental or emotional strain
  
• omething that we put extra emphasis or significance on
  
• the mechanical/physical definitions related to torque

Just being alive and interacting with our social and physical environment creates stress or “off balance-ness” and we can add more by how much we emphasize or give importance to what we are doing in those environments.

And physically – just standing, sitting and breathing create mechanical and/or physical stress.

We just aren’t used to thinking of the positive or mechanical sides of stress when we think STRESS! We think it’s like the image above!

Think for a moment that the positive and negative definitions can fit the exact same stressful situation. One can be very happy and enthusiastic about something with significance and yet be negatively stressed about it as well…think weddings or having a baby….

We are never stress-free. We are human. Our stress may be good or it may be bad - but it is here to stay in our lives.

So what do we do about our stress if it’s always here?

Learn about it and use it to our advantage!

P.S. 2 down on my ebook writing list is one on stress – stay tuned for it's publication

Comments Thoughts?

The idea of a white Christmas, one with snow on the ground, has become an annual wish for many.

One hears weather forecasters daily asking, “Will we have a white Christmas?” Adding “Stayed tuned for your forecast.” We have many children and adults wistfully looking out the windows to see if there is snow on the ground.

What we have is a national nostalgia for an event that comes from the song “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.” The song, from the early 1940’s, has become not a dreaming of – but a longing or wishing for.

We like the idea of a light snow on the trees and the ground, we love seeing pictures and cards of snow covered outdoor Christmas trees all decorated and glistening in the snow.

But a white December 25th largely depends on where you live and for many keeping it a dream is far better than it being an actuality.

In reality, a very white December 25th can mean feet of snow to shovel, no traveling, no shopping and no fun [at least for the adults.]

So be careful what you wish for – you might get these types:

One like the top photo [of my car]  from a holiday season in Vermont where there was about 5 feet of snow between 12/24 and 1/1.

Or, as in this photo, one like we had in Portland Oregon a few years ago when many put celebrations on hold til early January as no own could drive, fly or buy.

I often drive. I often walk too – but I tend to not walk along the paths I drive on – so it's kind of neat to see what I can see when I am on foot. 

It's a whole new perspective.

It's a bit like being in the passenger seat and having a different visual experience – except that these were photos were taken from points where cars are not allowed – like a sidewalk or a park.

                 Paul Bunyon – up close

Paul Bunyon from across the street

Then through the park

Sometimes I let my camera run and grab video of the scenes from the train rides – but I have not edited those videos – that's a task for a rainy winter day.

Thoughts? Comments? Thank you…

Often I sit and listen to the sounds around me.

Sometimes it's an F-15 or 2, more often it's one of the many airplanes taking off from PDX, the traffic I hear from I-5 and Marine Drive, or the water critters and pets that live here.

None of this is bothersome to me as I love the sounds of cities.

But every once in a while it's just the birds in this tree. And for whatever reason, the other sounds are not in the background at all!

Listen to my birds with me in the video below.

Comments? Thoughts? Thank you.

Woke up very early and this was my gift for getting up!  It was awesome.

Spectacular sunrise – complete with a plane taking off from PDX. [see video]

I don't think I've ever before seen a sky that looked like this.

The morning sky in Portland is like no other place I've lived!  Love it!

[Well except when it's cloudy and rainy and yukky - but then I dont get up and take pictures]

Comments? Thank you.

On Facebook this morning – I posted:

Seems I posted this last year [according to FB] but it's worth a repeat!

This is Labor Day weekend – take some time to think about what the Labor movement brought to all workers! Quaint ideas like living wages, overtime and 40 hour work weeks.

After reading and responding to some of the comments, I had this thought:

What if this coming Labor Day were to be our last one ever?

It’s not hard to imagine this scenario with all the newly-minted Republican governors trying to eliminate labor benefits – and with many R’s trying to eliminate unions in general.
 

Caveat: I have mixed feelings about Unions myself. I’ve never belonged to one but my father was a strong union person and I was the Staff Attorney for a major union in Washington, D.C. Working inside is like the adage about watching sausage being made. It left me with more negatives than positives.

But – I have many many friends who are strong labor organizers, members and/or advocates of all things that I also advocate for and so I stand by unions.

Yet we have now come to a time where too many are not only demonizing unions, they are calling for the turning back of all that unions and the labor movement have accomplished over time.

So let’s do the imagining of this as the last Labor Day in the USA.

Minimum wages? Gone! You get paid what your boss or business owner feels like paying you. Don’t like it? Go find another job!

40-hour workweek with time and a half for over time? HA! You work as long as your boss wants you to at your now-less-than-minimum-wages. For all the hours you work.

Vacation time or sick leave? Nope! Get sick? Don’t get paid. Vacation? You lazy bum – you are fired!

Safe conditions at work? You wuss. You’ll do as we say – and stop asking for safety materials or safe conditions. Man up or be fired!

Got hurt at work? Sorry but you just lost your job since you had to take time off.

Insurance? Another wussy idea! Don’t get sick or hurt and you will be fine. Family has medical issues? Work more hours or send your kids out to get a job. We’ve eliminated all child labor laws and changed the laws regarding schooling too. They can go to work for as many hours as they can – at a lower wage than you make.

Pensions? Retirement funds? We aren’t gift horses. Our shareholders need that money more than you do. Save up for your own retirement or better yet – work until you die!

Social Security? We’re working on eliminating that as well. Can’t have all you workers draining our finances because you aren’t capable of saving on your salary. Find a way to cut your own expenses or get 2nd and 3rd jobs! Stop being so lazy!

Unimaginable? Not really.
Stoppable? Only if we elect to office those who are progressive and people-oriented.

The choices are ours – you get what you vote for!

Comments? Thank you!

Have a great Labor Day Weekend

PS – I'd normally put this on my political blog but postings there won't save