October 2, 2024 thought for today, The best and shortest road towards knowledge of truth is Nature. Traditional Proverb

My first photo upload for yesterday was one in my series this week of “tools”. This is a set of my tools for my calligraphy and related paper crafts, cards and such. 

My second upload for yesterday was “work”. There has been a lot of this kind of “work” going on in  our area all summer and seems to be going to continue through the autumn. 

My last upload for yesterday is “flowers”. I don’t have any blooms left in my yard this season so I shot these images while I was on a visit to Kroger. 

Life today. This is one of those days that I rolled over. Looked at the clock and found that I could fall back to sleep for a while with nothing on my agenda. After I got up, things just rolled on like a wave cresting from there. My agenda for the day grew as I checked my calendar. Then I had a visit I hadn’t expected but it really wasn’t time for time with me as I thought when I saw their faces coming in the door. Maybe my age is making me more sensitive. 

Then the man who mows the lawn showed up later in the day than I expected. I prefer early morning activities. 

An upload for today is another of my five day series in “tools”. These are obviously garden and yard tools. Some very old and still sturdy and even one for our visiting kids. 

I think I am a little more sensitive right now because of something to do with the disasters in other parts of the country. The Task Force One from here in Columbus’ activities right now. Bob, my son, was very involved with that task force several times, one being 911. So this has come back full force with memories of Bob and how proud he was to help. I know he would be there now if he could be. 

I had planned to make a dessert for Sue and me but it takes some time that seems to be running out for the rest of the day. I have started other things that need to be finished. I guess some things on the agenda will be moved until tomorrow. Oh, well, all of this just passing things not life changing. I just have to “straighten up and fly right”. I need to add a chapter to my bible readings for tonight. Proverbs will help especially if I take it to heart.

The next upload for today is called “folded”. This is one of our lawn chairs. It has been well used for little league games and a fishing trip or two.  

The word today is mean.  I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and I mean to keep on doing so until the end. Abraham Lincoln.  A noble man compares and estimates himself by an idea which is higher than himself; and a mean man, by one lower than himself. The one produces aspiration; the other ambition, which is the way in which a vulgar man aspires. Marcus Aurelius.  Courage is a mean with regard to fear and confidence. Aristotle.  Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning. Benjamin Franklin.  How strangely will the Tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words! Samuel Adams.  First learn the meaning of what you say, and then speak. Epictetus.  Be slow to speak, and only after having first listened quietly, so that you may understand the meaning, leanings, and wishes of those who do speak. Thus you will better know when to speak and when to be silent. Saint Ignatius.  Man - a being in search of meaning. Plato.  Words differently arranged have a different meaning, and meanings differently arranged have different effects. Blaise Pascal.  To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else. Emily Dickinson.  Just living is not enough... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower. Hans Christian Andersen.  Words may show a man's wit but actions his meaning. Benjamin Franklin.  If I am given a formula, and I am ignorant of its meaning, it cannot teach me anything, but if I already know it what does the formula teach me? Saint Augustine.  

The last photo challenge for today is “textures in nature”. The textures and growth habits of this and other evergreen trees. Their pointy “leaves/needles” and some with the pine cones. 

This article fits in with what has been happening around the country weather wise in the last few days. I mentioned in an earlier blog that I feel that weather happenings should be a message, an irrefutable message, and eventually end in wisdom. The article is not so specific to country wide, it is more toward our city. “How Safe Is Columbus From A Major Flood?” It began to mention how “flooding has shaped the city we know today, leading to significant infrastructure projects to protect against future disasters”. Later it will discuss how “effective there systems are”. In 1797 at a time “when Lucas Sullivant began planning his settlement in Franklinton” flooding became a big concern in his concerns for the city. By 1798 “a flood forced him to relocate further inland”. I learned that between 1790 and 1898 there were ten major floods “affecting the banks of the Scioto River and areas like Franklinton, one of the city’s earliest settlements”. Levees 30feet wide and 15 feet high were built. Then came the “Great Flood of 1913". It lasted for three days at a rate of five inches in a twenty-four-hour period. At the time the ground was frozen so the water level rose quickly. Franklinton was “submerged under 7 to 17 feet of water”. Ninety-three people died, bridges were closed, houses were “lifted off their foundations”. That lesson inspired event dams and reservoirs were constructed, Griggs Dam was one of the first in 1905. They controlled the water level and were a vital source of water to the city. There was another major flood in Columbus in 1959, “an earthen levee broke”. After that there were more control measures put in place. In 1983 Franklinton was designated a floodplain. Franklinton began to change and go into a decline. Residents and businesses relocated to the Hilltop. In the 1980s the “U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposed a floodwall to protect the city. Stretching 7.2 miles, the floodwall and levee system was designed to shield downtown Columbus, particularly Franklinton, from future floods”. There were still problems. Much of the flood wall was still at risk for poor drainage in floods. However the combination of the “reservoirs, levees, and the floodwall creates a comprehensive system designed to control water flow and prevent floods from overwhelming the city”. One upward thinking thing from the “flood damage reduction regulations” encouraged development outside the flood prone areas. A good thing tied to that outlook was to “promote greenways and passive recreational spaces to further mitigate flood risks”. Though these systems have been put in position there could still be water/weather related problems meaning for us to be kept informed and prepared for unexpected events. 

I am feeling like tuna casserole for dinner. 

Joy                                 easy does it