Venus and the Moon

Early Saturday morning I went out in the freezing cold to photograph Venus and the moon  before sunrise. I was going to post the photo on Facebook when a memory popped on Facebook. It surprised me so much, I am posting it here as well. This is the photo that Facebook showed me.

On January 29, 2011 at 6:45 am I photographed Venus and the crescent moon when we were still living in the Sierra Foothills.

On January 29, 2022 at 6:45 am I ran out and photographed Venus and the crescent moon here. 

It really surprised me that exactly eleven years to the day and hour after that first photo the moon and Venus paired up again in the sky like this. 

I'm always running out to take a look at the sky, and that twinkling Venus winked at me Saturday morning, and the moon just grinned. 

One Pretty Day

  The day started with such a beautiful sunrise with lovely crepuscular rays.

It was such a delight to see that, to know that the day was going to be perfect for a walk at the marsh. 

But first I had to photograph the raven on the pole.

We see the ravens here all the time. They love to hang out on our neighbor's roof and fly back and forth on to the pole. They do squawk loudly from time to time, but we don't mind. We shout our hellos.

It surprised us when we got to the marsh and started our walk to see this interesting darkness over the mountains. I loved the sunlight reflected on the metal roof. The darkness didn't last long. In fact behind us the skies were still blue and full of light. (It really was that dark, isn't that wild?)

So we continued on with our walk. Said hello to all the Avocets who are only here for a brief time on their. journey north. 

Then we came to this part of the walk and saw the birds on one side of the mud flat, resting and enjoying their quiet time. I liked the moment, very yin yang. 

It was a very pretty day out there, a peaceful place to contemplate the passing of Thich Nhat Hanh 🙏

Two Photos From My Twin

  My twin brother Michael loves to take long walks and photograph the beauty he sees. He knows how much Roger and I miss Capitola.

So he sent us this photo the other day. A sunset view of one of favorite places.

He also sent this photo of a sunset at Schwann Lake. The serenity is perfect. 

A deep meditative breath in the moment. Our earth's beauty is the calming balance to these times.

Where Do You Find Hope?

Do you ever feel like it's all getting to be too much? Every freakin' headline? Are we in the hand basket on our way to you know where? What's going on in the United States, particularly in Washington DC? I thought when that monstrous buffoon was gone we'd start to dig our way out of the pile of stupidity he had left behind. But no... that's not what's happening at all. I have renamed the Supreme Court the Supremely Stupid Court. No vaccine mandates at the workplace? Really? We're in trouble here. I don't see any way for us to get out of it either. Not when supposedly Democratic Senators vote on behalf of big business and instead of their constituents. I don't usually write about politics, but I've seriously had enough. 

Oh wait a minute... I think I must have written posts like this many times already over the 17+ years we've been blogging here. What draws me back in? I think it must be hope. Where do I get that? It's like an addictive drug. It's free. People hand it out everywhere. Addicts know where to find it. 

It's the sky for me. I wake up every morning and run to take a look. Here are views of January 10 through January 13. 

See what I mean? Even a rainbow shows up on a warm sunny morning,  after the brief showers had been over for hours. 

The sky... it gives me hope. Maybe it'll teach me to stop looking at headlines. 

Where do you find hope?

 

When A Fib Is A Flutter

Roger got his Zio patch results a week or so ago. He was diagnosed with Atrial Flutter and not Atrial Fibrillation. They are very similar although as the Mayo Clinic says:

In atrial flutter, your heart's upper chambers (atria) beat too quickly. This causes the heart to beat in a fast, but usually regular, rhythm.

Atrial flutter is a type of heart rhythm disorder (arrhythmia) caused by problems in your heart's electrical system.

Atrial flutter is similar to atrial fibrillation, a common disorder that causes the heart to beat in abnormal patterns. People with atrial flutter have a heart rhythm that's more organized and less chaotic than that of atrial fibrillation. Sometimes you may have episodes of both atrial flutter and atrial fibrillation.

People with atrial flutter may not have symptoms. However, the disorder can increase the risk of stroke, heart failure and other complications. There are effective treatments for atrial flutter, including medication or procedures designed to scar small areas of heart tissue (ablation).

In the fourteen days he wore the patch the atrial flutter only occurred 3% of the time. So, we felt quite relieved by the news, No change in medication necessary yet. We're still walking one or two miles a day, and he's doing quite well. So we're hoping things stay calm and good. 

The other good news is that we actually had some sunshine. For those of us who have forgotten what a sunshiny day is all about, it occurs when the sky is clear, the persistent rain has stopped, and pretty things happen in many ways like these sun rays in the tree out front. (I hope you'll click on the pic and take a look.)

On Sunday we actually sat out on our deck, rolled up our sleeves and enjoyed the blissful moment of blue blue skies and warm warm sun. Yes, we know it's only January and winter has a long way to go, but we sure did enjoy the moment.

Hope all is well for you. 

Have You Ever Loved Someone...

 

Crepuscular Rays on New Year's Eve

Have you ever loved someone so much that no matter how much they hurt you you still support them? Have you ever loved someone so broken that while you are supporting them, giving them the space to speak their mind, their pain, their utter insanity, they still find the time to break your heart with words that cannot be forgotten? Have you ever loved someone so much that even after all the heartbreak they have caused, you still call to check in and make sure they're okay, and tell them that you are there for them.

Sunrise on January 2nd

If yes, how did that work out for you?