October 8, 2024 a thought for today, Gifts make their way through stone walls. Traditional Proverb

My first upload for yesterday was the first in a four day series of “autumn foliage”. This season we don’t seem to have the variety of vivid colors in the leaves as we normally do. I think it was due to the hot summer we were experiencing. 

The next upload for yesterday is “greenery”.  Right now and since we have gotten some rain there is a lot more greenery than a couple of weeks ago. The older trees have stayed green for the most part most of the summer. Some of the younger bushes and trees had a bit of a problem. 

The last photo challenge upload for yesterday was “magic”. I thought to myself “how to I make an image of magic?”. This is my answer for the day....a weed coming up through the blacktop on the driveway.

Life today. This is a beautiful autumn day.....a little on the chilly side, otherwise gorgeous. The agenda is the best kind today....whatever pops up and on the sloooow side. 

Sweet Pea and I went out on a photo search a little earlier. One of the images I need is autumn foliage. This is a strange year for that subject as a photo image. I found some that will work but I have a feeling I will have to reach out to the archive for the others I am going to need. The colors just aren’t what has been the norm for years. 

The first upload for today is “dolls”. Luckily the twins have left some of their favorite toys in a large toy chest that we keep for visiting young people. I was able to find two dolls in the  menagerie. One of them was without clothing. So I search for a piece of cloth the size to fit. I came upon my black mantilla that would do nicely. I posed the “girls” to wave to their onlookers. 

I am using the pressure cooker to make the beef for the beef and noodles I am having for dinner. Since I don’t make homemade noodles any more I have found a good bagged pasta that comes as close as I can to the “real thing”. The rest of dinner will be quick to make. 

The prescription situation I was having problems with finally straightened out. I am getting the eye medicine at a price I can manage. It will be tight but at least it’s not $600 a month.  

The grass seems to have bounced back from the drought that we were having. It is going to need mowed again this week.

The next upload for today is another in the series of “autumn foliage”. This is one that Sweet Pea and I had found on our search.

The word for today is mirror.  The face is the mirror of the mind, and eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart. St. Jerome.  Behavior is the mirror in which everyone shows their image. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.  If you find the mirror of the heart dull, the rust has not been cleared from its face. Rumi.  Speech is the mirror of action. Solon.  Conscience is the mirror of our souls, which represents the errors of our lives in their full shape. George Bancroft. Friends hold a mirror up to each other; through that mirror they can see each other in ways that would not otherwise be accessible to them, and it is this mirroring that helps them improve themselves as persons. Aristotle. We should feel sorrow, but not sink under its oppression; the heart of a wise man should resemble a mirror, which reflects every object without being sullied by any. Confucius.  The world is a mirror, an imaging of Love's perfection. Rumi. Maturity is when all of your mirrors turn into windows. Henry David Thoreau.  The one who has a good friend doesn't need any mirror. Rumi.  Water is the mirror of nature. Francis of Assisi. 

The next upload was “a favourite tree”. I have no idea how many trees there are in this neighborhood. Like them all. They each have their own character and visible scars to tell of their experiences. So I had difficulty in picking just one for this “assignment”.

This article is about: “How ‘One Health’ clinics support unhoused people and their pets”. It is written but a professor of health sciences , pandemics and society and academics research. I have mixed emotions about this situation. I think the pet can be angels and life savers, literally to these people. I think they probably love each other with their whole heart and soul. On the other hand I worry about the health and life of the animal. The homeless don’t have the finances to take care of the pet if it is sick. Also how will others around the owner handle being around the pet. The article began by mentioning how pets can be expensive but health care should be readily available for our pets. It went on to share that “around 25 per cent of unhoused people have a companion animal that supports them”. It mentioned, as I believe also, that “beyond the social benefits of living with a pet, the connections that companion animals provide can lead to positive physical and psychological benefits”. To further stress that point, it mentioned that pets as companions can help in recover situations leading to better “emotional and mental health for unhoused people”. One of the downsides to “unhoused” people having pets is that they may have problems getting “critical services and health care as well a finding safety in community spaces. Do to the unhoused situation there they readily pay a vet and “short term shelters” don’t take animals. I learned in the article that there are places that may offer help, one such is ‘One Health’ clinics. The unhoused have getting the pet their vaccinations, have problems feeding the pet (and themselves). One problem for the pair is when heating and cooling is needed, the pets are not welcome. The One Health clinics are “integrated interdisciplinary clinics that provide services for people and their pets”. In these clinics there are “routine vaccinations, treatment for fleas and ticks, and referral for more complex procedures such as spay and neutering” for the pets. Apparently these type clinics treat both the unhoused folks while at the same time there is space to see the pets.  The clinic mentioned in this article are found in Seattle. I believe there are clinics in our area that can attend to some of the needs of the pets. The article ended with “by transforming our approach to human and animal care, we can begin to address some of the systemic barriers that disproportionately affect marginalized communities.”

I am thinking about making beef and noodles.

Joy

                       safety in mind