December 19, 2013 by clumpaday

Deliveries and Doorways

Uncategorized
Holiday Preparations, Life, PA, Peanut Brittle, Photos, Strasburg
2 Comments

Clump 121: Mail cards and packages.

Ah, I can breathe more easily now. Sending a bunch of presents and cards to their intended destinations is cathartic. What a clump!

I had heard on the radio that traditionally December 19, today, is the post office’s busiest day of the year. Amazingly, when I finally arrived, there was no line. A Christmas miracle! The postman asked if I was sending anything fragile. I said just the peanut brittle … he (good-naturedly) threatened not to send out my packages, since I hadn’t brought him any.

It’s not really the holiday season in our house until my husband starts making his mother’s peanut brittle.

Before I got to the post office, on the way home from visiting my mom, I stopped in Strasburg and couldn’t help taking a few photos.

These were the same type of lovely boughs and berries that had been arranged so beautifully at Meeting on Sunday.

This was the porch of a shop … not someone’s home. I’ve gotten bold with my prying camera, but not that bold!

If you ever want creative house decorating ideas, Strasburg is the place to go.

This was a cute little reminder on the porch of the shop, a fitting holiday sentiment.

Thank you to you, my kind friends who make life good.

December 18, 2013December 18, 2013 by clumpaday

Gifting and Grinching

Clump #120: Assemble cards and packages.

I thought I’d be further along by now. I tried to get much of my holiday preparations finished in November, so the fact that I’m still at it this late in December is discouraging. One danger of starting early — but not finishing early — is that I’ve had holiday-to-do-list thoughts clouding my head for too long. I’m hoping to get to the post office tomorrow. I checked the USPS website, and it looks like Friday is the last day to send domestic mail, First Class, to arrive by the 24th, after which the level of priority and price go up.

I had bought these candles, below, at a holiday open house in November. The lady who sold them to me said she bought them for everyone she knew last Christmas. Something special that someone might not buy for themselves and can be used up, not adding too much to the gift recipient’s clutter. The beeswax candles on the left made someone very happy today, which made me happy. Getting to the good part!

One other holly-jolly happening was the arrival of my younger daughter, home from school. We watched the movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas together. One of the all-time greats.

And the perfect cure for creeping grinchiness.

We even watched the special features and learned that Dr. Seuss’s mother had wanted him to become a doctor, so when he chose a pen name he used Dr. and his mother’s maiden name, Seuss. He was voted “Least Likely to Succeed” by his classmates, because, “How could he make a living doodling?” There was some speculation that he was the Grinch; he lived in a house at the top of a tall hill and looked down at La Jolla, CA.

Christmas comes whether you are ready or not. I still haven’t found a way to reconcile the true meaning of Christmas with the real-life crush of too much to do/buy/clean/bake/send …

“It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

–Dr. Seuss

December 17, 2013 by clumpaday

Wooden Sticks and Warriors

Clump #119: Finish shopping (?) and print Christmas newsletter.

As the bag says below, the printing of Ye Old Christmas Newsletter was, indeed, “easy” … after it was written, reviewed, edited, and returned to me by four other people. When I was at Staples I remembered to get some Ticonderoga pencils, “The World’s BEST PENCIL.” And maybe not the worlds BEST stocking stuffer, but certainly up there, in my book. I love giving practical gifts like socks, nice soap, lint removers … what a fun mom!

Seems like only yesterday that it was Thanksgiving and we were enjoying our friends’ bonfire. Where did the time go?! iI haven’t been sharpening too many pencils, but I have been doing a bit of procrastinating. Below, my younger daughter was throwing some old, decrepit matches, from the avalanching-cabinet-cleaning-clump, into the flames.

Appropriately, it was the same weekend we saw the movie The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. As an aside, I discovered many similarities between it and the Disney animated movie, Mulan. Finding this picture made it all the more clear.

Both are about strong female characters forced into battle, where brains win over brawn. In both movies the leads get dolled up in fancy dresses (Katniss in The Hunger Games gives new meaning to “a dress to die for”), designed for marriage, not by choice, but by expectation. The warrior-woman character in each film makes a stunning move at a moment when they turn their gaze upward, as opposed to the expected ground level.

Enough movie and culture analysis … let me just say that I feel like I won the battle of the present list today. I’m a mall and catalog warrior … hear me roar! Timely tip for those still in the heat of battle: I read that tomorrow, December 18, is a day when over 1,000 retailers will be offering no-cost shipping, guaranteed to arrive before Christmas day. More info at FreeShippingDay.com.

I think it’s important to give yourself a reward for clumps conquered. My recent guilty pleasure of choice is The Voice. And don’t think I haven’t drawn comparisons to The Hunger Games, a game played to the death, like the Romans feeding the Christians to the lions. (Coaches Adam Levine and Blake Shelton make the show.)

Tonight is the finale of season five. For anyone interested, here’s my prediction: 1st place: Tessanne Chin (right); 2nd place: Jaquie Lee (left); 3rd place: Will Champlin (center). Fingers crossed! Go Tessanne!

December 16, 2013 by clumpaday

Who’s Holding the Bag?

Clump #118: Try to finish Christmas shopping.

I’ve got a secret for the men reading this post. Right now at this time of year, everywhere they go, women are performing the verbal equivalent of a secret handshake. It’s a simple: “Are you finished?” No other details need to be stated. The question is usually answered with a heavy sigh, maybe even a roll of very tired eyes, and then an assessment of how far she is from the holiday-shopping-finish line. I thought I would reach it today, but no such luck. I feel like that rabbit running along with a carrot dangling from a stick attached to its head. Just one more thing, and I’ll be finished … wait, one more thing, and then … oh, but don’t forget …

Added to the mix, I’ve been thinking about the kerfuffle over Megyn Kelly’s assertion on Fox News that Santa is white, and for that matter so is Jesus ( here is Jon Stewart’s hilarious and thought-provoking treatment of it on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart).

And I was listening to this holiday classic, The Man With the Bag:

Old Mr. Kringle
is soon gonna jingle
The bells that’ll tingle
all your troubles away
Everybody’s
waiting for the man
with the bag
Cause Christmas
is coming again

It occurred to me that, not only is our symbol for all this magic white, he is also a man. Ahem. And I do mean magic.

One year our son was old enough to doubt, but young enough to want to still believe. He tested the magic by asking for a pumpkin for Christmas. Kind of a mixture of A Charlie Brown Christmas and It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Let me tell you, I summoned all the magic I could conjure. Looking at our sinking pumpkin outside the other day (a little behind in my holiday transitioning, perchance?), I must have had angels working for me to deliver the goods in good condition.

Last night I had a valuable coupon that was about to expire, so I trudged to our local mall to “finish up” … HA! And guess who I saw leaving the building as I was entering? Ho-ho! He agreed to a photo and, rather than asking whether I’d been bad or good, he asked whether I was going to send it to anyone. I told him I would put it on my blog, but he wasn’t interested in the specifics. (My hands shook like a bowl full of jelly!)

Mr. Kringle said he was feeling hot and tired. So … I guess maybe a patriarchal figure can relate to a woman’s plight, after all.

December 15, 2013 by clumpaday

Sing Hallelujah!

Clump #117: Clear spare change out of drawer and donate to a good cause.

Today’s clump wasn’t big or difficult, but it sure felt good. I took all the spare change that my husband had accumulated in his bureau drawer (with his permission of course), and donated it to a bring-in-your-change fundraiser at our Quaker Meeting for victims of the typhoon in the Philippines.

Before Meeting we participated in a rousing rendition of The Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.

The member who directed us remarked that the holidays tend to be a time of year for stress and strain, tiffs between people, etc., so she recommended, “Just say ‘Hallelujah,’ and it will all be fixed.”

Not everything can be fixed by saying “Hallelujah,” as many people in the Philippines could attest.

But I think it’s been scientifically proven that you can not feel holiday stresses or blues while singing the majestic Hallelujah Chorus.

December 14, 2013December 18, 2013 by clumpaday

Oh My Nerves!

Clump #116: Clear off kitchen island and table.

This photo of a gingerbread man made me laugh. It was part of an article in The New York Times, “20 Recipes for Cookies and Bars.” Something about the placement of eyebrows on his face makes him look like he’s saying, “Help! I’m overwhelmed!” Or maybe that’s just me.

Everywhere you turn in this countdown to Christmas, there’s an article or flyer or book advertising new and better holiday recipes, meals, gifts, crafts, decorations, etc., etc. Enough!

When I was in my twenties I worked in the Accounting Office at a University. Right now I can hear the snickering of people reading who know my poor math skills. Be that as it may, the chairman of our department called our office “The Nerve Center,” which seemed appropriate, since we kept the grant money flowing that funded the research. I’ve often thought of the kitchen island as our family nerve center. Even though it’s just the two of us now, when we get busy and a bit overwhelmed, everything gets plopped down there; and the escalating clutter further escalates the stress levels: “Where did I put the…”

Our nerve center was in overload and shutting down. Nothing works when the nerve center is blocked.

So thanks to a clearing session lasting the span of the soundtrack of A Charlie Brown Christmas, the island energy is flowing freely again. Even our rooster, Raoul, seems impressed.

I have to add one more morose photo that would go with yesterday’s set. My husband and I went to the grocery store early this morning. On our way out of the parking lot we saw this line of vultures on the roof of the Old Country Buffet. It gave new meaning to the expression “All you can eat.”

Also, reading an email discussion thread today from the International House of Reiki gave me the image of exactly what I was striving to say in yesterday’s post. A writer named Paul Norden joined the conversation and mentioned a few books that had inspired him. One was Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche; Mr. Norden wrote, the experience of reading it was “…like a sage who comes and shines a light into the basement of a poor man’s house, illuminating the riches that are there.”

Since I refuse to end with a photo of vultures, here are some poinsettias from the red, green, pink, and white floral sea in the market today.

And, for good measure, a fittingly stress-relieving “quote of the day” from Frans Stiene of The House of Reiki, via Pema Chodron:

“The happiness we seek is our birthright. To discover it we need to be more gentle with ourselves, more compassionate toward ourselves and our universe. …

The happiness we seek cannot be found through grasping, trying to hold on to things. …

It cannot be found through getting serious and uptight about wanting things to go in the direction we think will bring happiness. We are always taking hold of the wrong end of the stick. …

The point is that the happiness we seek is already here and it will be found through relaxation and letting go rather than through struggle.”

–Pema Chodron

December 13, 2013December 13, 2013 by clumpaday

Be Here Now

Uncategorized
Horses, Life, Photos, thich nhat hanh, Winter
2 Comments

Clump #115: Wind down Christmas present list.

I couldn’t do anything right today. I was reminded of a mom from our neighborhood where I grew up. She had just come from a tennis game, and my dad asked her how she had played. She shot back (with a slight southern twang), “I couldn’t hit a pea into the Grand Canyon!”

The photos I took on the way to see my mom today were notable in how many I managed to blur with my finger over the lens in the upper left corner. What was my problem?! Here’s the goose with the incredible wardrobe, looking jolly (note the white beard!), and my finger:

A lovely shadow drama played out on the side of a house, marred by sloppy camera handling:

Believe it or not, this pair was part of a cute grouping of snow people making up a happy scene. The other photos of the group suffered from poor lighting; this one somehow managed to appear sinister:

And the stain on this sidewalk looked like the ghost of a Christmas tree:

Oh dear. The lack of closure on my Christmas shopping is getting to me. There were other horses in the field below who looked interested in coming over, but then they turned and walked farther away. Maybe the horses and I are all suffering from sunlight deprivation.

Here was the same scene last Spring:

Ahh … Spring! Sometimes savoring the present moment is not easy at all.

I was turning over in my head today the wonderful comment I received about yesterday’s post featuring the Thich Nhat Hanh quote (from his 2014 calendar): “Our practice is always to go back to the present moment, to the here and the now. Only in the here and the now can we touch life deeply.” The commenter referred to it as a “reminder.” I usually think of sage wisdom as something to take in. But I began to realize the best wisdom is truly a Re-Minder. Something we already know, that we need to bring back to our mind from deep inside.

When you “touch life deeply,” “in the here and now,” amazing things happen.

Like seeing a polar bear leap from a mound of snow.

December 13, 2013December 13, 2013 by clumpaday

Presents in the Present

Clump #114: Try to finish Christmas shopping.

A recap: I challenged myself to get holiday-related tasks taken care of in November, so that I might have a stress-free December: Project Enjoy Christmas. I am sorry to say that I’m still feeling holiday stress in December. I am, however, further ahead than my norm for mid-December. Maybe I should be satisfied with crawling before running, much less skipping and leaping for joy.

I also challenged myself to clump and post every day. Amazingly (to me), I’ve kept that momentum going. Once I get out of the rhythm of daily posts, the excuses become too seductive and the days not blogging too numerous.

Today I happened to crack open a calendar I bought for next year, one with quotes from Thich Nhat Hanh and beautiful illustrations by Nicholas Kirsten-Honshin. I had forgotten that the cover was a picture of a bird with a red berry in its beak.

It seems to me that the berry represents the present moment, and the bird is devouring it. Was I subconsciously thinking of this image while seeking out photos of red berries in the landscape? Hmm.

I was telling some friends yesterday that taking pictures for this blog has been a lesson about the present moment. So often I see something I ache to take a picture of, but, for whatever reason, it’s inconvenient to stop. I’ll tell myself that I can come back later, and I’ll try to bookmark the exact location. But it’s never the same. I’m like the proverbial fisherman, bragging about the big one that got away: “Oh, the way the sun was lighting up those gorgeous cows, right next to my car! If only I had the time/could find a place to park/had my camera …” I’ve been taught this lesson over and over and over. It’s never the same. The sunlight is different, the leaves have fallen, the snow has melted … the cows have gone home. Change is the order of business around here, and that one moment is the only one exactly like it that you ever get.

To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.

I guess I need to have more patience with myself. In the organization realm I’m a two-year-old wanting to be a big girl.

The change I’m seeking is a little covered-over now, but it’s waiting to shine.

December 10, 2013 by clumpaday

Clean and White

Clump #112: Confront plastic Bag O’ Junk.

For the life of me, I can’t remember when, why or how this bag of random junk got stashed together. A mystery for the ages. But today I broke it down into things I can do: toss out, give away, or, in at least three cases, return to someone else. I enlisted my husband’s help and we puzzled over the pile together.

A few of the contents: foreign coins. Great timing! I’m going to see my younger daughter tomorrow and she can drop them off at her college’s Travel Abroad Office.

So, a little lesson for myself. When an area is cluttered, it follows that the floor below is filthy.

What’s left? My mother’s and my accordion recipe files. They are not going anywhere … yet. I’m sure the recipes could be winnowed down, but that is a clump for another day.

Clean at last:

We had a big snow storm here today, and the world was transformed. It was a day of cleaning inside and out.

I couldn’t stop taking pictures. These are just a few that seem like I was photographing in black and white.

I’ve been whining a bit (just a bit?!) lately about the loss of color in the landscape. Man oh man, I couldn’t complain today! I had a difficult time doing errands without pulling over every two seconds to capture another shot.

The minimal palette is divine.

At this very moment, the Christmas CD I’m listening to is Kelly Clarkson singing the song White Christmas.

May all your holiday days be clear and white, bright and light, and filled with beautiful sights.

Clump A Day

postcards from the clogosphere

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