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Monday, September 30, 2019

My Blogging Schedule Update

Image Credit

It's the last day of September for this year of 2019 and I'd like to take this opportunity to announce a change in when I will be publishing entries here on Blogger from October 1, 2019 through the end of the year, December 31, 2019.

December 31, 2019 will mark my ten year anniversary of publishing this blog. I published my first entry on December 31, 2009.

My blog has gone in different directions since that time and on August 1, 2019, I announced in my blog entry the following: "Time continues to march ahead rather I do or not! I had planed to have submissions out as well as have videos posted by June 21! Now, today, is August 1st and neither are ready, although they are both mighty close.

Therefore before any more time passes or I enter the state of denial... that I can do everything, I need to accept that I can only do so much in a day, especially if I want to do it well. In accepting this fact, I realize I need to free up some time. The only way I see to that at this juncture is to adjust my blogging schedule.

As you may have noticed dear reader, for the past several months, I've published posts on a daily basis. However, during this time of my now being fully committed to the process of completing Imperfect Strangers as well as Steidl's proposal, I have decided to post every other day, except for Tuesdays (on that day I'll always post to keep up the momentum of my Tuesday's Truths series).

I will stick to this schedule (with the exception of an occasional extra posting on a non-scheduled day)  until the end of the month of September (2019)."

Now, on this last day of the month of September in the year 2019, I am thankful to report my pulling back on my posting allowed me to accomplish my goal of finishing my book, Imperfect Strangers (and sending it to a publisher who requested it) as well as posting a video update about the book which can be viewed within my Vimeo and/or You Tube Channels.


That schedule adjustment also permitted me to finish a book of my photography (working title It's The Little Things) and submit it to a publisher.

Beginning tomorrow, and until at least until the end of the year December 31, 2019 (at which time I will reevaluate my blogging schedule), I plan to return to the schedule I've been using in order to meet the deadlines of projects related to my books.

However, because the time period of October 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019, coincides with many occasions and events that I've written about in bygone years, I may publish posts on non-scheduled  days. At minimum, I will meet my commitment to the schedule of postings I laid out in August 2019: Every other day, except for Tuesdays (on that day I'll always post to keep up the momentum of my Tuesday's Truths series).

Thanks again for reading and please tuned!

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Honoring September's Morning Glory Flower (with a Memory of Barbara Brine)




The photographs atop this entry (and directly below) feature Morning Glories who climb up a metal fence in an area of Central Park located on the northern edge of Sheep's Meadow (mid-Park at 69th Street just north of Sheep Meadow) known as Nell Singer Lilac Walk. I saw them a little over a few weeks ago when taking a walk with CF.





A web-page for the Official Website of Central Park describes the Nell Singer area by saying it "boasts many varieties of its signature fragrant flower from around the world. Artfully composed he walk was designed for the greatest visual effect. Come spring, it's a wonderland of white, pink, and purple blossoms. Twenty years later, Conservancy gardeners undertook the major task of replanting the beds. Today, the little path along the meadow is a spring highlight for Park lovers."

I'm surprised this web source does not state that Morning Glory's grow up the fence (enclosing Sheep's Meadow), for as you can see this vine's flowers are spectacular.

With this month of September coming to an end the day after end tomorrow, I thought I should take the opportunity to publish this non-scheduled day entry in order to give a shout out to this flower type since she, along with the Asters (the flower variety seen in the pictures below that were taken within Shakespeare Gardens in Central Park), are considered to be the birth flower of the month of September.



According to a web-page for The Old Farmer's Almanac, "Asters are mainly symbols of powerful love. Perhaps because of their positive symbolism, according to folklore they were once burned to ward off serpents."

Re the Morning Glory, the aforementioned page has this to say: "Morning glories are simple symbols of affection. Those who rise early may be able to watch their lovely blooms open. Morning glory flowers generally curl closed later in the day, hence their name!"

Their beauty was not lost on my dearly departed friend, Barbara Brine, who was born on October 19th in 1934. Her obituary states, "Barbara Theresa Brine (Bebe) was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 19, 1934, lived most of her adult life on Manhattan's Upper West Side, and died on August 22, 2014 in Centerville, Massachusetts..."

Friday, September 27, 2019

A Rainy Day in my Garden

THE JAPANESE MAPLE IS FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

Raindrops keep falling on my leaves,"but that doesn't mean my eyes will be turning red, no cryings not for me;" instead I am continuing to heed the wisdom of Elizabeth Lawrence when I spend time in my garden — even on rainy days!

Ms. Lawrence is known to remind folks that "even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn."

Not only have I taken the time to watch the leaves turn, I've taken the time to appreciate "rain drops on foliage," as evidenced in the pictures atop this entry featuring leaves from my Japanese Maple (AKA 'Tamukeyama') as well as leaves from my Smoke Bush.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Bras CAN be for the Birds — Especially Pigeons! (Thursday's Testimony)

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Before I tell you about the picture atop this entry of a paratrooper wearing a pigeon vest, please take a moment to consider the image directly below...

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... it appeared in my news feed this morning from Jem Humphrey who wrote often calls herself "The crazy Pigeon Lady." Here's what she said re this picture. "Good morning! Lets begin the day with some beautiful words from Archimedes about our favorite bird!"

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

WW* is From Pammie, Friend of Anne Lamott (*Wednesday's Wisdom)


Wise words in the quote within the book passage posted atop this posting. The book is Bird by Bird by Anne Lamont. They tell of an exchange she has with her friend Pammie, who is dying from cancer at the time. Pammie's words are something I too need to keep in mind when I am bogged down with trivial concerns. I don't have that kind of time either.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

It's Punctuation Day! Tuesday's Truths WK 144

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Welcome to my one hundred and forty-fourth segment of Tuesday's Truths which is coinciding with a holiday known as National Punctuation Day, a holiday which can save lives, as evidenced in the picture of a poster which is posted atop this entry.

Monday, September 23, 2019

It's 2019's first day of fall in NYC.


In honor of the onset of Autumn in New York, I'm sharing some comic strips by Patrick McDonnell whose strips (Mutts) almost always warm my heart.





On this first day of fall in NYC, we don't have much fall color and won't for a few weeks, so, on this first day of fall, I'll leave you a poem (Song for Autumn) by Mary Oliver, and with photos of what the leaves on the trees in Riverside Park will look like in the coming months, that as if they repeat what they've done in by gone years.


Song for Autumn
(By Mary Oliver)

In the deep fall
don’t you imagine the leaves think how
comfortable it will be to touch
the earth instead of the
nothingness of air and the endless
freshets of wind? And don’t you think
the trees themselves, especially those with mossy,
warm caves, begin to think

of the birds that will come — six, a dozen — to sleep
inside their bodies? And don’t you hear
the goldenrod whispering goodbye,
the everlasting being crowned with the first
tuffets of snow? The pond
vanishes, and the white field over which
the fox runs so quickly brings out
its blue shadows. And the wind pumps its
bellows. And at evening especially,
the piled firewood shifts a little,
longing to be on its way.



Saturday, September 21, 2019

A View From The Triplets's Bridge

THESE BIRD TYPES ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

I had some very sweet moments witnessing a House sparrow eavesdropping on a convo between an adult and fledgeling American robin who were spending time in a brook that runs under The Triplets Bridge in Central Park (as seen in the image directly above).

Very near to this scene, a family of House sparrows were bonding...

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

... and another American robin seemed to be enjoying his/her reflection while taking a drink, evidenced in the following pictures.

ROBINS ARE FEATURED IN VOLUME 3

ROBINS ARE FEATURED IN VOLUME 3

The American robin bird variety was not the only one enjoying the brook's water, a lone blue jay fledging was making discoveries as you can see in the next series of photos.

BLUE JAYS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
BLUE JAYS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
BLUE JAYS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
BLUE JAYS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

Additionally, a lone Mourning dove as well as a pair of European starlings took advantage of this lovely spot, as you might surmise from the two photographs posted below.

THESE BIRD TYPES ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
THESE BIRD TYPES ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

By the way,  all of these this bird types are featured in my book series, Words In Our Beak.

THE WORDS IN OUR BEAK BOOK SERIES

Thursday, September 19, 2019

IMAGINATION will take you EVERYWHERE (Thursday's Testimony)


The quotation on the image atop this entry is correct is spot on. As a writer, I find it's most essential to use my imagination. Stephen King seems to concur.

In his book, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, King states,"If not for heart and imagination, the world of fiction would be a pretty seedy place."

It was great to exercise my imagination to write the book series, Words In Our Beak, where the stories are set in my rooftop garden and told from the perspective of a female cardinal. The three volume book series is part fiction in that a cardinal is doing the story telling but the information she provides is factual, making this series both fiction and nonfiction.

THE WORDS IN OUR BEAK BOOK SERIES

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Still time to Celebrate Palindrome Weeks in THIS Century! Tuesday's Truths WK 143

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If you look at your calendar, you may notice that this past Tuesday's date (9-10-19) is a palindrome – and the dates will remain a palindrome for the next 10 days (9-19-19).  As of today, 9-17-19, we are seven days into one of the last Palindrome Weeks of the Century; and this fact is what I'm reporting in this one hundred and forty third episode of my Tuesday's Truths series.

Gael Fashingbauer Cooper of c.net informs readers, "There's been a Palindrome Week every year since 2011... " She goes on to say, "As Time and Date notes, 'every century has nine years with 10 Palindrome Days in a row. These years are always in the second decade of the century.' The next time this neat number game appears is in 2021...

The pattern doesn't hold if you write your dates with the day first, as the Brits and Aussies do, but they'll have to make their own palindromes. 'Tacocat' works, or 'A Santa Lived As a Devil At NASA,"'if you want to get creative about it."

Other news sources have also been speaking about this ""event," including The Orlando Sentinel who remind readers in an article "Merriam-Webster (states) a 'palindrome' is a word, verse, sentence or number that reads the same backward or forward. Common examples of this are 'racecar,' 'radar,' 'level' and 'mom.'"

And there you have it, dear reader, in this one hundred and forty third episode of my series, you may have learned everything you need (or even want) to know about the term palindrome.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Sunday's Sentiment

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Upon my seeing this Peanuts Comic Strip of Charles Schultz's characters in a classroom holding their papers up to read them, I thought of a passage from my hopefully forthcoming book (Imperfect Strangers).

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Remembering Nine Eleven


It's already the eighteenth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist's attacks! As I've stated in my prior entries re this tragedy, I interviewed for a job at One World Trade Center, just thirty-one days prior to the terrorists attacks: August 10, 2001.

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

The Technique of Anthropomorphizing (Tuesday's Truths WK 142)


I appreciate cartoonist, Jonny Hawkins, use of anthropomorphism ("the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities) in the cartoon posted directly above.

Hawkins's vision of a butterfly's conversation with another butterfly is reminiscent of Cam's rendering tales of conversations that birds have with one another.

Monday, September 9, 2019

Monday's Musings re "on the fence"

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This past Thursday, September 5th,  in NYC, public schools reopenned. I'm certainly glad those years are over for me as a student but I do hope to pick up presentation gigs at area schools. I'm certainly not on the fence about doing that!

Speaking of being on the fence, it seems the male cardinal in this series of pictures (below) while being on the fence physically was not on the fence about his disdain of having his picture taken.

I'm not on the fence about that either, I loathe being photographed.

CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"
CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

As you most likely know, dear reader, cardinals are featured in my three volume book series, Words In Our Beak.