November 6, 2020 thought for the day: Speak little and well if you wish to be esteemed a person of merit. French Proverb

 What a year!! All of the television coverage is disruptive to normal life. The surprises don’t seem to be over yet. First the pandemic, then the protests/demonstrations, now the bombardment on television of the election. Adjusting to the changes these kinds of major human events bring must be dealt with. They, in their happenstance,  must be lived with. The problem, for me at least and for others I presume, are made far, far more difficult by the constant reporting. The “reports” could be on a tape that rolls over and over maybe they actually are. The reporters pack on a one-two punch after another, one being the actual event and then the repetitive and self-promoting stance continues even when the listener is down for the count. We need news to form opinions, to know how to make decisions that need to be made and for general knowledge of current events but there comes a point when it is more than informative, it becomes destructive. We reached that point months ago, and they are still mercilessly piling it on. There are more personal happenings in daily living that tend to take a negative turn also, tacked onto the major ones just mentioned can cause life to become overwhelming for some, do the reporters care?

Yesterday’s photo challenge was titled “in the middle”. As usual I spent some time pondering the subject. The thing that I kept coming back to was the round-a-bouts that are appearing in many spaces today. 

Sue had some errands to run this morning so once those were out of the way I stopped to fill up the gas tank. For once, we didn’t make a stop for fast food, 

I made a couple of calls that needed to be made and then got started on getting the message list prepared for hand out. 

Yesterday was one of the four days of the month that I have a second photo of the day “assignment”. This one was “curves”. There are curves at the park where paths split and curve away from one another. I drove to the park and tried to find a “perfect” image. I could vision it with the eye but for some reason couldn’t get it to composite properly on the screen. We have several street, and alleys, in my neighborhood where the roadways curve. That’s one I settled on for this submission. 

The word today is patience.  Wise to resolve, and patient to perform, Homer.  But remember that the pain of parting from friends will be felt by everybody at times, whatever be their education or state. Know your own happiness. You want nothing but patience; or give it a more fascinating name: call it hope, Jane Austen.  Keep your friendships in repair, Ralph Waldo Emerson. Let nothing disturb thee; Let nothing dismay thee; All things pass; God never changes. Patience attains All that it strives for, Teresa of Avila.  There is nothing so disagreeable, that a patient mind can not find some solace for it, Seneca the Younger. Friendship is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, George Eliot.   The disciples of a patient Saviour should be patient themselves, Charles Spurgeon. It is impossible for a man to be cheated by anyone but himself, Ralph Waldo Emerson.  Dispose thyself to patience rather than to comfort, and to the bearing of the cross rather than to gladness, Thomas a Kempis.

Today’s theme is “bird”. When I was waiting for Sue as she took care of some things in the store, I looked around for birds. After some concentration and patience I saw some coming and going from lights and cables. 

I had never heard of pickleball so I had t visit this story. This “sport” began some time in the mid-1960s when a family here is Ohio turned their abandoned badminton court into a space for this gam. They started our using ping-pong paddles and a perforated plastic ball. The game gathered interest. “By the 1970s, the sport was gaining traction. By 1990, pickleball was being played in all 50 states.” Grove City just had a “soft” opening, October 17, of a new pickleball court in Windsor Park. People in the area have been playing pickleball at the YMCA and at the Kingston Court. The article says that the sport was brought to Grove City with snowbirds coming back from Florida. There is a USA Pickleball Organization that says that the sport “combines elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. It is both an indoor and outdoor sport.  The courts are open during the regular park hours. They hope to be open until 10pm once lighting can be added to the outdoor courts. It is a game that all ages can enjoy and seems to be popular with senior citizens. It has become so popular in Grove City that a community group was formed in April of 2019. It has grown to 150 members with additional folks following it on social media. Since we are still dealing with the pandemic regulations they are in force at the courts too, wash and sanitize hands before and after, bring personal water bottles, and do not share equipment. Staying in small groups and six feet apart while playing. Another suggested idea was to leave the main gate open to keep from touching the gate repeatedly. 

No cooking tonight.....pizza. 

Joy