February 21, 2022 a thought for today, The one chased away with a club comes back, but the one chased away with reason does not. South African Proverb

Yesterday I had three photos a day projects. The first one was “t is for....”. Mine choice was trees. To add a bit of further interest I separated the foreground from the trees and the added a motion filter to the tree section. 

Part of my family have been visiting in Virginia and Bob has been letting Duke, my grand-dog, out three times a day and feeding him and the cat. Bob had to be at work today so Sue and I went over to let Duke out. He is about fourteen years old and has a severe case of arthritis so it is hard for him to move about. Getting him up and down the steps is a chore. But...mission accomplished for today. We will be repeating it tomorrow. I took the keys to Bob at work so he can take care of things there later today. 

The second photo for yesterday was titled “a concert”. Well.....I haven’t been to a concert in years and don’t have any photos of that nature in my archives so.... I put together this one at the church choir room the keyboard, some tambourines, and a drum.  

Before we left I did my virtual visits checking news and answering any messages that came in since last I checked. When we got back from our adventure, I checked myself into my desk chair and got back to the bulletin and parts of the newsletter. 

The third photo challenge was called “kitchen utensils”. I have a drawer of utensils that I don’t use often. I simply opened the drawer and made the image. 

I thought Sweet Pea was on her last meatball treat so I laid out the ingredients to make the next batch. When I went to the freezer to pull something out for dinner I found another container of meatballs from the last batch. But since the meat was thawed and the ingredients were out I went ahead and made the next three-week supply. Then I cleaned up the dirty dishes in the sink. Next to take up was working on getting the photos of the day thought through, set up for photographing, shooting and taking to the trusty “darkroom” (Photoshop). One of the shots was for the letter “u”. I used an umbrella. I set it up on the porch, my phone ran, I answered, the umbrella took off in a gust of wind....fortunately it made a left hand turned and went to the back of the driveway between two houses ..... so.... no escape.

The first of today’s photos is “u is for....”. Here is the umbrella that nearly got away from me earlier on

a gust of wind. 

The word for today is quality.  The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature. Marcus Aurelius.  Quality is not an act, it is a habit. Aristotle.  It is quality rather than quantity that matters. Lucius Annaeus Seneca. It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanation from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit. Robert Louis Stevenson.  To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts. Henry David Thoreau. It is the peculiar  quality of a fool to perceive the faults of others and to forget his own. Marcus Tullius Cicero.  You can judge the quality of their faith from the way they behave. Discipline is an index to doctrine. Tertullian.  Endurance is the crowning quality, And patience all the passion of great hearts. James Russell Lowell.  Education alone can conduct us to that enjoyment which is, at once, best in quality and infinite in quantity. Horace Mann. It is the quality of the moment, not the number of days, or events, or of actors, that imports. Ralph Waldo Emerson. Amnesty is as good for those who give it as for those who receive it. It has the admirable quality of bestowing mercy on both sides. Victor Hugo.   To understand the true quality of people, you must look into their minds, and examine their pursuits and aversions. Marcus Aurelius. 

The second photo for today is “gold”. I don’t wear much jewelry and I can’t think of anything gold objects. There are some with gold icons but nothing interesting. This one I found as I was searching for some crochet hooks in my sewing supplies. My son gave this to me years ago. 

I’m a sucker for human interest about animals....hope I don’t bore you....maybe a bit of interest and information. This article is about a woman whose home caught fire and she struggled to find her pets to save them. One of the dogs was saved her other two plus two that she was boarding died in the fire. She is grateful that the fire didn’t happen at night when their, hers and her two daughters and the pets, chances would have less for survival. She is a professional dog trainer. The one pet that was saved was rescued by firefighters and taken by ambulance to a veterinary hospital. She says she has saved some doge through their training but couldn’t save her own. She has insurance but not enough so friends have started a GoFundMe account for her. People who are trying to help have had their pet trained by her. She was a “dog nanny” to one persons beagle. The story of how she started training dogs started with working in a veterinary clinic. But the training part started when she adopted a Rottweiler when she was in college. She learned that starting an adventure in the lives of dogs with a Rottweiler may not be such a good idea. This breed is large and muscular and takes patience and understanding. Her home is being rebuilt and she wants to continue her dog training job and to help others deal with the loss of their pets. Her own loss adds to the understanding of that loss. 

It’s spaghetti, homemade from the freezer, for dinner tonight. 

Joy