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 |   A terminal for all blogs coming in or going out. A view into my life. |
Started July 1st 2019 for contests, etc. as other blogs are filling up and have other purposes.  I'm starting a new blog because
I'll be linking to
I've started an appendix (I no longer have one personally) to keep track of my Space Cadet journals for Space Blog. It's a work constantly under construction. Mind the mess.
I needed to start a folder for contests as there are so many deadlines and details to remember.
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| "Pink rain falling on dirty snow", a tribute to my friend Cecilie who wears a tiara and loves pink. Life size tiles or canvas. Pink, dirty white, dun; silver, rhinestones. With poem and video. or "Boy in the cracked mirror", a woman looking back at the boy she used to be. Glazed tiles with a border evoking ancient uncovered tiles (pieces missing, irregular borders...) With poem and video. or... "Copper melting on silk", a multi-media study in oranges and greens of copper, silk, glass and malachite. But what subject? You see... I dream a lot. I can usually generate ideas like a fountain. Sure, some may resemble vomit... but ideas are not my problem. Taking those ideas and making them a reality is my problem. Will any of the above get done as envisioned? Not likely. There's a 0.001% chance at this point. But... maybe a poem or two. Likely, a >50% chance. So what do I need to do by the end of this week other than dream: 1. Postcard sent to Gary.  2. Postcards to other friends? I have the US stamps. 3. Trip decisions. Looked into Manila from Taiwan this January. My friend Rhyan will be there. 4. Anywhere else in March/April other than Spain, Portugal, Morocco? Been looking at Tunisia. Greece? 5. Packing, cleaning, washing ... needs to be started. 6. Business cards or booklets ... very important for Taiwan. 7. Watering and fertilizing ALL the plants! 8. Decide on new phone, new computer for travel. This will cost money.  The more I do by the end of the week, the better it will be next week with a shorter list. A list of 5 is the normal limit. In other snews: This contest needs one more person to solve it:
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| I'm out of sorts. Free floating anxiety, ennui, health concerns. Nothing further decided about my trips. That's actually part of the problem. I need to decide... soon. So much of budget traveling is preparation and/or compromise and flexibility. I don't think not having a coffee this morning helped. Nor drinking two cups this evening. My flash fiction today touches on the idea of having a friend in need and deed, a guardian let's say.
At least I wrote it! I also wrote a postcard to a friend. Now I need to remember to fertilize and water the plants. They'll need some TLC before I leave in two weeks. Lists: I need to make lists... and remember to read them and check them off. |
Cubby  may be going to Texas. I responded: Under $40/night is a steal anywhere in the USA.  I'll be in Spain/Portugal in March/April because prices of flights were cheap and it's off-season so I won't pay high prices for lodging either. Madrid, Bilbao, Lagos and Porto <$20; Lisbon <$15. Tunisia may be a problem if I go there as Tunis is expensive but maybe Tazarka or Sousse. Morocco can be <$10 if one chooses wisely (Chefchouen, Tangier, Fes but Casablanca is expensive!). My stays are dependent on price. Some cities are out of my range. My next trip, in two weeks, is Taiwan. Lots of places under $15/night. I want to visit Kentucky someday... hard to find anything under $50... in the entire state. It's truly expensive to travel in the USA. Trains go very few places outside of the East and West Coast corridors and Chicago. Buses are no longer cheap. In 2007 one could travel coast to coast for $99, and there was a way one could buy a ticket to travel for a month or two. No longer. Bus to Minneapolis for January 6th: $201 and 23 hours. ($118 on January 23rd) On Alaska to MSP; $288 on January 6th, 7 hours indirect. ($149 is cheapest on Jan.23rd). Train... there isn't one. The cheapest bus to Miami Florida is $173 and 72 hours. By plane? The fastest (with American) at 8 hours (2 hour layover in DFW) is $289; a longer 16 hour flight ( 9 hour layover) costs only $175. I can get from Helsinki via Lisbon (5 hours and 9 hours) to Miami for $354 on January 22nd. A direct 2 hour flight MAD (Madrid) to (TUN) Tunis is $97 on January 23rd (with Air Europa) A direct 4 hour flight LIS (Lisbon) to (OSL) Oslo is $144 on January 23rd (with TAP) There's an indirect flight for $72 on the 22nd. And lodging? See my comments above! In Hualien, Taiwan for 4 nights I can stay in the Cave Hostel for $38 for 4 nights. It has a rating of 8.8 on booking.com. It's about 1/2 mile from the train station. There are higher rated hotels closer at less than $50/4 nights. In Missoula, Montana for 4 nights on the same dates it costs $182 at a Motel 6, rated 7.9, out by the airport, over 3 miles, a long walk from downtown. The Motel 6 in the center is $228 and has a miserable rating of 6.9. In Norway, there are 57 assorted places with beds under $50/night on the same dates. In Montana 27; In Mississippi 41; Texas has many around $120/4 nights if you can get to them. Taiwan has 3,564 under $55/night. Australia, 467; Canada 678; USA? 1,094. Booking.com only lists under $55. Georgia the country has 7,748. For $82 I can stay the whole month at Indie Mindi in Tbilisi (9.0 rating). The cheapest in Macon, Georgia, USA was $725/February. A place in Atlanta is available for $1,001 (with a very good 8.1 rating). Unless I really really want to hang out in Atlanta for one month I'm better off in Taiwan where for one month I can budget $1,000 for lodging, transportation and food included. Plus, Taiwan is safer than anywhere in the USA. And the people friendlier, imho. 878 |
StephBee - GOT Survivor  finally blogged! She's a romance write so she blogged about the RWA (Romance Writers of America) and a recent controversy over depiction of Chinese characters.So... knowing me... I strode right up to the fringe of the mess (don't have my hip-boots on so I didn't go further). Well... hello! It's been awhile.  I don't write as much when I travel but I've been home 2 months now... so... .Really been writing flash fiction... which comes with its own set of rules. I need more support than I'm getting. Let's face it. I'm just plain needy. As for drama ... ... ... I try to avoid it as I don't handle it well. China? I'm watching Chinese video series (Fairy Fox, Beloved Enemy) and read a couple detective novels. It's important to understand the Confucian take on life because it forms a basis for why people act like they do. I'm wrapping my head around it. The culture in general is very hierarchical and competitive. That said... there are other influences (like Buddhism and Christianity) that have molded individuals. One can be Chinese (Han or not) without being a stereotype. I've seen some of this in my travels. Twice to Taiwan, going back January 14th. But the Taiwanese have had more influence from Japan and Europe than the mainland so, once again, it's important to get to know individuals beyond the stereotypes, yet acknowledge the cultural constraints. Which gets to stereotyping people and the characters we use or abuse in our writings. In flash-fiction one is limited by word count. Can you develop a character in less than 1,000? 500? 300? 100? The fewer words means fewer characters, fewer interactions, less and less description, fewer adjectives and adverbs. It's X does Y to Z in its simplest form. In flash the main character or two is only partly developed. Only one aspect of their persona may be revealed in this one moment when something needs to be resolved... or not. It can be tempting to rely on stereotypes that the reader might already have. What set of presumptions is evoked by: wearing a MAGA hat, rosary clasped between wrinkled hands, shouting "oy oy oy", dressed in a drab Mao era uniform, a red dress slit up to her (or his) ... White may evoke purity and goodness in Westerners. It's the color of Death in the Far East. Yellow may invoke sunniness or jealousy, but in the Turkish language of flowers it means "drop dead". It would be very easy to overly use clichés and stereotypes about people one knows; even easier if you don't know them! When I go back to Taiwan, I resolve to take better notes. And because this was on my mind I wrote a flash fiction placed in Taiwan:
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| Two blog responses since I can't come up with any brilliant ideas at the moment. I've been focused on my upcoming trips and the details necessary to make them both worthwhile. So to HikerAngel: "A long long time ago... I grew up in the Land of Snow. Still look forward to every First Flake and say good-bye to The Last. I was never fond of its nasty cousins Sleet and Cold Rain. Today we had sunshine, perhaps snow tomorrow. To Joy: I have difficulty wrapping my head around this [attitude versus action]. My wounds and traumas don't quite allow me to self-examine at times. I just want to scream, "leave me alone". When I was homeless it was probably attitude that kept me there but also kept me alive. I did survive! My attitude kept me from acting. I felt wounded and frightened and hid in my cave. But... it also helped me survive that cave, that jail-lite that no one wants to recognize for its demeaning nature. What got me out? Having a case-worker, a therapist, a lawyer, a lawyer's side-kick, and a psychologist help me get "disability". Once I had income (I was practically penniless for over two years) I had the key to set me free. Mind you, I needed help at first. Kinda like a man kept in a dark hole allowed to go outside. The light can blind. Little-by-little my situation improved and life went back to 'normal'. I then acted to leave that all behind. But my attitude has shifted because of that experience, as have my actions. Today: Sunshine. Tomorrow: maybe snow!      Today: Checked on budget for my two trips. Soon: need to transfer money to my debit card. Everyday: Be thankful because of... or in spite of... |
| Lazy Man Hoppin John Well, my attempt before I looked it up! It's basically a peas and rice dish. Version 1: I had some left-over ham and pearl onions. I chopped them up and sautéed in butter with (softened) onion flakes, cilantro and cumin, added about 1/2 tsp of peanut butter and half a can of black eye peas. Turned out great! Version 2: Well, I had a half can of peas left so once again I added cumin and cilantro to some butter and sautéed leeks (because I had leeks). I added 1 1/2 cups of water and extra (4 tsps) butter. When everything was nice and hot, I added corn-bread stuffing. Once again... turned out great. Now... it technically wasn't hoppin john... but close enough. One advantage of living alone is that I don't have to cook to someone else's tastes, diet or judgement. Black eye peas are traditional in the south (like Oklahoma where my father was raised) for good luck, served on New Year's Eve. I just started a week early.  853 |
| He's just a boy, breast feeding, crying, sleeping, pooping. I was one once as well and I'm slowly getting back into that cycle. Except for breast-feeding. My mother at 97 is too old. And not going home. I found that out today when my sister called. After 25 years in the same apartment she's been persuaded to give it up and live in assisted living... Now I feel even older. But back to the boy. He's just a boy and will be for many years. Mother, father, brother ... maybe even other siblings. We'll never know for sure. They mostly provide the wallpaper behind the story, the part that's always ignored. But he won't be. He'll rage when he's 12 ... just like many boys. Disappear in his 20s then reappear to convince some poor fishermen that there's a better way to fish ... and live. We know him by many names but he still remains shrouded in uncertain mists and myths. They say that his birthday is today. But no one knows for sure. We do know however ... that once he was just a boy.  In other snews: my flash fiction today was inspired by tah2o:
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| I don't do well at parties. I used to give them to bring diverse people together. Nowadays I don't even do that. I withdraw into myself in certain groups at certain times. This is one of those times. I do not celebrate Christmas nor New Years. Nor do I have a close group of friends with similar interests that I can just hang out with. Today was Tuesday at the House of the Half-Dead (a.k.a. Senior Center). Good crowd for lunch; it was empty yesterday. Lots of folks go on vacation but we were only missing one person in our group. Joyce started this... every Tuesday... now for years. Fortunately, BINGO was cancelled so it was quiet after lunch. I usually leave early. Scored some candy (including Dove). So I decided to hang around after the others left. worked on side-trips. From Taiwan: Hong Kong, Shanghai, Manila, Buson... From Spain: Morocco, Athens... Took notes. I'd like to add one new country on each trip and a few new places. I've never been to Madrid nor Bilbao, but I'll be visiting both. Here I sit alone in my rooms. Am I sad? Not particularly. Am I lonely? Not particularly. But... I remember other times in my life when I lived with family or friends or... Not anymore. I try not to be here from December 15th to January 15th. This is a ghost town and usually cold and dreary. Today was mild with a couple rays of sunshine. I'm hoping it snows. It's brighter. Social media? Other than the Happy Holidays stuff... not much. Same with WDC. I don't interact as much with people this time of year. Fortunately I got to sit with my neighbor Van for a chat. I was able to talk about my trip. I'd be more enthusiastic these days if I could share, but most people are seriously involved with other issues at the moment. Which is good for them, not so good for me. So yes, I'm allowed to be sad and lonely. It's that time of year. 835 |
| I don't always have a bright outlook on life. Certainly my attitude sucks. I can be an emotional sponge so the last three years have been awful. There's nothing I can do about the insanity of political leaders except vote or protest (I don't have energy nor interest in protesting). So my attitude about that shakes under dark clouds. Speaking of which, it's raining. I love mist and fog in Spring and Summer, but this is cold rain. I'd rather see snow. It's 1 degree above freezing. I so need to get out-of-here! Yes, I could go out. I went out once today and will go out once tomorrow. On Wednesday the grocery store may be open so that's a possible walk. I walk more when it's between 10º and 25º when it's not pouring rain. So... cue Taiwan. I struggled last night with bad nerves and not feeling well due to the late hour. And then there were issues on-line with Delta. $3,000 for a ticket that shows as $700 at google flights? Ouch. Made other arrangements to get the price where it should be... but sucky flights. I'll need to get over my attitude soon! There's so much to look forward to. I'll need to send personal messages to everyone connected to Taiwan. I hope to see some folks like I did last time. Re dusting... Robert did a blog about Hoover and vacuum cleaners... I don't dust. I should. Lord knows this place isn't picking up after itself. I've barely lifted a finger in two months other than wash dishes and wash clothes. I try not to make messes when I stay in hostels. I appreciate that the toilets and rooms are being cleaned daily. No... I don't make up my bed but that's not an issue. I want others to know that the bed is MINE! When I lived in Costa Rica I had very few things other than clothes, little clutter other than plants. I swept and mopped every day. One has to. But here? Don't ask. It will be so nice to close the door on my clutter when I leave... soon... January 14th. |
| The early bird catches the worm. The second mouse gets the cheese. Good Morning? Robert Waltz  makes a valid point. Not all of us function at the break of day. I'm not a morning person. Not exactly a night owl either. Afternoons are probably the most energetic time for me although I been know to take a nap. In Missoula, Montana, the winter sun reluctantly peeks from behind the mountain around 9 a.m. Some days it's not bright until 10. Other days there's a grey pall over it all for a week. In summer sunset is after 9 and it's twilight for another hour. Not in Costa Rica. The sun burns through your eyelids at 6 a.m. and sets with the pitch black curtain pulled down in 15 minutes 12 hours later. Before electricity, there were good reasons why rural people slept at 8 and got up at 4. In Costa Rica many still do. Then there's Tromsø where the sun sets for two months (one month more to go) and stays up for two. I've been there in both seasons. I was very sleepy in winter even though the college town parties and folks are out and about at midnight. I was also there for 6 days in summer when a storm set over us and I didn't see the sun at all. So what am I? I'm not sure. My energy level does not seem to be well regulated. 1. Sun matters. Sitting here in the rays energizes me. 2. I'm light sensitive. Unnatural light can keep me from falling off to sleep. Natural isn't quite so bad. 3. I'm sound sensitive. And most places have a rhythm of sound depending on the day of the week and the season. Some sounds soothe. Booming bars don't. 4. My eating habits are irregular as well. 5. My depression and anxiety can affect my ability to function. Neither seems to be cyclic. I cope. Since I haven't worked for years I have little obligatory structure. In Costa Rica I tend to function okay in the morning (kinda). Here in Montana that's a major struggle. Early morning is anything before 11. When I travel it depends on the rhythm of wherever I'm staying and whether I'm sharing a room or not. But responding to the title: Usually I can find a bit of cheese; I'm not into worms. |
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