August 8, 2025 a thought for today, Once on the down grade, even rocks have wheels.. Mexican Proverb

One of the uploads for yesterday was “my choice”. One of my series of “still life”. My sister was in the mood to collect bowls for a while. This is one of them along with some of the fruit I picked up at the store.

The next challenge was “loud”. This was one of those challenges that is hard to
show as an image. We usually connect the word loud to something we hear or some wild colors in clothing or wild critter. This large truck and equipment tend to add to the sense of hearing and don’t operate quietly. 

The last upload for yesterday was “a little chaos”. This image is one that has become quite familiar in the last several months.  We always have the signage, poles and wires. With the added orange barrels and torn up highway there is even more “chaos”. 

Life today. Yesterday was full. Thursdays always are but this one seemed a little more so. Maybe that was because on the day before that I had moved patio umbrella by myself and was feeling the aftereffects. I was concerned about it being to close to some electric wires.  After all I’m no spring chicken. Anyway, I got to the church early and once again waited for the computer to boot up, about one hour. This time while I was waiting I played with my phone to see if I could connect to the church copier and print the bulletin as a pdf file from my phone. It worked. I have to figure how to “tell it” to print two sided. Finally the computer came alive and I finished the printing. I hadn’t realized we were having a food delivery from Mid Ohio so was a bit surprised when I heard several voices and things being moved.  

When I left there and dropped off the mail I stopped at the Dollar Store to see what I could find some things to use as parts of my still life photography. It was a minor adventure for me since I don’t do much “in store” shopping any more.  I found a few things that I think will work. 

One of the uploads for today is “something that sparkles”. I shot several images of the sun’s rays hitting things that gave off a kind of sparkle. I chose this one of some of my silverware. 

Then I got home and back to the computer I started the laundry. Then worked with Sue on a piece of art from Sonja, her great granddaughter. I scanned the original and printed. Then Sue put it in a frame. 

I had a meeting at church in the evening. It was just me and two others,  the meeting went well and ended in good time. 

Today started on the easy side. It has been mostly computer work with a couple of breaks to light straighten a couple of spots and shooting some photos. I really don’t plan to do a lot more today expect for the online grocery shopping for tomorrow pick up.  

It is gorgeous outside but the temperature is on its way on the up side again, summer days. It’s good to have air conditioning. 

Next is an image for the “my choice” challenge. This one is from my series of “sill life”. The cutting board is one of the items I found at the Dollar Store. 

The word today is face.  The face is the mirror of the mind, and eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart. St. Jerome.  If you find the mirror of the heart dull, the rust has not been cleared from its face. Rumi.  God has given you one face, and you make yourself another. William Shakespeare.  Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face. Victor Hugo.  Face the facts of being what you are, for that is what changes what you are. Soren Kierkegaard.  No man for any considerable period can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be the true. Nathaniel Hawthorne.  No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace as I have seen in one autumnal face. John Donne.  It is not fitting, when one is in God's service, to have a gloomy face or a chilling look. Francis of Assisi.  Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone who with their soul encourages another person to be brave and true. Charles Dickens.  This is the mark of a really admirable man: steadfastness in the face of trouble. Ludwig van Beethoven.  Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own. Jonathan Swift. 

The last photo challenge for the day is “in the fridge”. This is only a few of the things in my fridge. It’s  usually more of a tangle of things than this one shows. 

Article: I am naive, at my age, I shouldn’t be. But I’m really not sure what poison ivy looks like. I have always had an attraction to plants of all kinds and never considered that there may be ones may not like me.  So I stay clear of wherever they might be. As for bees, they are cute little fellows as long as there is a distance between thee and me. So learning more about both could be another of those roads to wisdom. The title is “ A toxicologist’s guide to poison ivy’s itch and bee stings’ burning pain – 2 examples of nature’s chemical warfare”. I’m sure it isn’t that the plant “doesn’t like me”, in actuality as the article relates “plants and animals deploy toxins most often in order to defend themselves”. I believe most living being have “defensive” ways to “protect” themselves. Many people have had contact with poison ivy or know people who have. The article says it is a  “ubiquitous source of itch”. It then gives the description saying “this plant is recognizable by its characteristic arrangement of leaves growing in groups of three with edges that vary from smooth to jagged”. I learned that it can grow as “a single small plant, a mass of ground cover, a small bush, or a climbing vine”.  It is common knowledge that when contact is made with this plant there can be a period of “suffering from itchy rashes”. There are relatives of poison ivy known as poison oak and poison sumac. The article related that 75 per cent of people will “develop an allergic reaction on contact with urushiol” a chemical found in these plants. This “chemical” is an oily substance that spreads easily and may spread to skin, clothes, tools, “even pets”, with contact causing an itchy rash. This rash may appear in up to 12 to 48 hours after exposure.  I learned that it is not contagious and does not spread. Once contact is made with the plant it is wise to wash the area with soap and water and change clothing if possible. The article then went on to talk about bee and wasp stings. They usually sting to defend there hives, nests or to protect themselves from “perceived threats”. They “store venom in their abdominal sacs”. When they sting the venom moves to their stinger. The venom contains several chemical including histamine and epinephrine that affect blood vessels and the immune system”. While the poisonous plants cause a rash the bee stings cause pain with irritation to the immune system causing a reaction then a rash may follow. The article was sure to share that some people react more seriously than others due to immune system differences. Getting stung multiple times at once can be “life-threatening”. In any case, if the stinger remains stuck in the skin is should be removed immediately because “bee stingers are barbed and can continue to deliver venom for up to a minute”. Most of the time a “steroid cream or antihistamine may reduce to itching and swelling”.  If the reactions are more serious like “full body hives, vomiting or difficulty breathing” emergency care is needed immediately.

This is another of one of those DoorDash/Grubhub nights for dinner. 

Joy

Several years ago I use to be one of the photographers and dog walkers at Columbus Humane. This lone little blossom found itself among the brick and stone outside the entrance door.