At this moment in time, there are enough news reports around the world that appear to exist with the sole intention of either demoralizing or alarming you.
I am not on social media anymore, even though I do peep in on Twitter comments linked from news articles. I live in rural Missouri and there are so many things that make me smile. Here are some:
Ava, where I live, has had a 1,000 year rivalry with Mountain Grove, the town in which I work. I rib the older guys when we win a game against them and they line up early to give it back to me when they win.
My neighbors Rich and Shelley are building a successful, locally raised and humanely cared for, livestock business. I purchase raw milk, eggs, beef and homemade cheese from them every couple of weeks. We trade back and forth and they always give me the dime tour on new additions to their growing endeavor.
My garlic. I grow hundreds of garlic plants. Planted in the fall and ready to be picked in July. Seeing them go from just a few inches above ground to nearly 4ft tall in summer is a joy. The top flowers into this beautiful 'Scape', which is not a true flower but the butterflies and honeybees inspect it for nectar, then knock off some seeds which helps in spreading out some 'volunteers' all over my property.
My ornamental crabapple tree. It is blossoming now and within a couple of weeks, I will be able to place my ear next to the tree as its entirely is engulfed with the low buzzing sound of the flowers completely covered with honeybees busy working the nectar.
Strawberries. We get wild strawberries out here. They grow pretty early, are small and the sweetest thing you will ever taste. If I am out mowing or just walking my fence line with my coffee, I will catch sight of a couple of them and scoop them up to eat before the deer and rabbits find them.
Jake's beagles. My neighbor's son has 4 beagles. He lets those damned things run all over the county and you can hear them for miles, hunting and scaring up rabbits. I get so pissed off and then they show up to say hello. They are a couple of feet long, long floppy ears and when they see me they roll over on their backs and I say: 'Oh......alright. You are all very cute'. I pet them and then they run off again to terrorize more rabbits.
The morning quiet. I get up around 4:30 every morning. I make my coffee and sit outside with nothing except that strong, rich brew. I listen to the stillness, gaze at the splashed stars of the Milky Way and am thankful for being where I am.
Those are some of the things, and that makes living in this time more enjoyable.
Absolutely brother. The best way to agitate @$$holes, is to keep on keeping on. Out delivering fill dirt this morning. And loving every minute of it. God is great 👍. Living life is always awesome.
I try to stay off social media as much as possible because it's so easy to get sucked in to the swirling black hole of depression about garbage humanity that I just don't find it valuable for much other than some specific things like using facebook marketplace or finding a good recipe or cute haircut on pinterest or coming here for some pep. When I made the conscious choice to make that change about 8 years ago (decided to give it all up for lent one year) it was totally attitude changing and I've never gone back.
There's a whole beautiful, amazing world beyond the computer/phone screen and I'd rather enjoy that than be sucked into the outrage machine; wasted energy. As my mom always said, garbage in garbage out. I've been blessed with a wonderful husband, extended family and friends, and lovable hilarious pets I've little reason to be upset about much close to home. I get to laugh every day, feel loved, and give love. Isn't that what it's really about in the end anyway?
There are a couple things I particularly like doing, besides the usual - spending time with friends and family. It's maybe a weird answer, so bear with me if you're interested.
I like making stuff. Always have. I spend all day getting paid to make stuff for other people, but what gives me joy is making stuff for myself and people close to me.
I make tools - physical and software - that have no use to anybody but me and people I like. I don't post them anywhere, or talk about them in detail to anyone. They solve one particular problem that one particular person has in a way that a general purpose tool cannot. This just tickles me pink.
Art! I make art too. Draw, paint, sometimes sculpt, dabble a little bit in other things. I make art that has no political valence whatsoever. It just pleases me to look at. It makes nobody any money, it spreads no message, it attracts no thumbs up and heart emojis. That alone amuses me, but if it's pleasant to look at, and people I like enjoy it, so much the better. It's for me and for them and not for the whole fucking world.
If you haven't lately, try doing something private. Just between you and your friends and loved ones. If you like making stuff like I do, make someone something one-off custom fit. Resist any dream of mass production, commercialization, or cottage industry. Don't try to contribute to the endless flood of generic, dystopian crap. Make something just one person will love. Charge for it if you like - I'm not anti-commerce - I just mean, don't give the beast data, and don't give it a cut. The satisfaction of craftsmanship and the appreciation you'll get for it are worth an infinite number likes, shares, and subscribes.
Quick response to the article title. Making sure my wife and children are doing well and happy makes me happy these days. It’s a never ending battle to try and protect my children from filth and trash on TV, internet and pop culture.
I am not on social media anymore, even though I do peep in on Twitter comments linked from news articles. I live in rural Missouri and there are so many things that make me smile. Here are some:
Ava, where I live, has had a 1,000 year rivalry with Mountain Grove, the town in which I work. I rib the older guys when we win a game against them and they line up early to give it back to me when they win.
My neighbors Rich and Shelley are building a successful, locally raised and humanely cared for, livestock business. I purchase raw milk, eggs, beef and homemade cheese from them every couple of weeks. We trade back and forth and they always give me the dime tour on new additions to their growing endeavor.
My garlic. I grow hundreds of garlic plants. Planted in the fall and ready to be picked in July. Seeing them go from just a few inches above ground to nearly 4ft tall in summer is a joy. The top flowers into this beautiful 'Scape', which is not a true flower but the butterflies and honeybees inspect it for nectar, then knock off some seeds which helps in spreading out some 'volunteers' all over my property.
My ornamental crabapple tree. It is blossoming now and within a couple of weeks, I will be able to place my ear next to the tree as its entirely is engulfed with the low buzzing sound of the flowers completely covered with honeybees busy working the nectar.
Strawberries. We get wild strawberries out here. They grow pretty early, are small and the sweetest thing you will ever taste. If I am out mowing or just walking my fence line with my coffee, I will catch sight of a couple of them and scoop them up to eat before the deer and rabbits find them.
Jake's beagles. My neighbor's son has 4 beagles. He lets those damned things run all over the county and you can hear them for miles, hunting and scaring up rabbits. I get so pissed off and then they show up to say hello. They are a couple of feet long, long floppy ears and when they see me they roll over on their backs and I say: 'Oh......alright. You are all very cute'. I pet them and then they run off again to terrorize more rabbits.
The morning quiet. I get up around 4:30 every morning. I make my coffee and sit outside with nothing except that strong, rich brew. I listen to the stillness, gaze at the splashed stars of the Milky Way and am thankful for being where I am.
Those are some of the things, and that makes living in this time more enjoyable.
Incredible
Your whole situation sounds wonderful. You've got it figured out!
Absolutely brother. The best way to agitate @$$holes, is to keep on keeping on. Out delivering fill dirt this morning. And loving every minute of it. God is great 👍. Living life is always awesome.
🙏🙏🙏🙂🙂🙂
I try to stay off social media as much as possible because it's so easy to get sucked in to the swirling black hole of depression about garbage humanity that I just don't find it valuable for much other than some specific things like using facebook marketplace or finding a good recipe or cute haircut on pinterest or coming here for some pep. When I made the conscious choice to make that change about 8 years ago (decided to give it all up for lent one year) it was totally attitude changing and I've never gone back.
There's a whole beautiful, amazing world beyond the computer/phone screen and I'd rather enjoy that than be sucked into the outrage machine; wasted energy. As my mom always said, garbage in garbage out. I've been blessed with a wonderful husband, extended family and friends, and lovable hilarious pets I've little reason to be upset about much close to home. I get to laugh every day, feel loved, and give love. Isn't that what it's really about in the end anyway?
That Is what we've lost
Have we lost it pete? Or have we been looking past it? Where humans and nature meet, that's where we can find it.
I still believe that one of greatest qualities of the Right is humor. The left are a humorless bunch.
There are a couple things I particularly like doing, besides the usual - spending time with friends and family. It's maybe a weird answer, so bear with me if you're interested.
I like making stuff. Always have. I spend all day getting paid to make stuff for other people, but what gives me joy is making stuff for myself and people close to me.
I make tools - physical and software - that have no use to anybody but me and people I like. I don't post them anywhere, or talk about them in detail to anyone. They solve one particular problem that one particular person has in a way that a general purpose tool cannot. This just tickles me pink.
Art! I make art too. Draw, paint, sometimes sculpt, dabble a little bit in other things. I make art that has no political valence whatsoever. It just pleases me to look at. It makes nobody any money, it spreads no message, it attracts no thumbs up and heart emojis. That alone amuses me, but if it's pleasant to look at, and people I like enjoy it, so much the better. It's for me and for them and not for the whole fucking world.
If you haven't lately, try doing something private. Just between you and your friends and loved ones. If you like making stuff like I do, make someone something one-off custom fit. Resist any dream of mass production, commercialization, or cottage industry. Don't try to contribute to the endless flood of generic, dystopian crap. Make something just one person will love. Charge for it if you like - I'm not anti-commerce - I just mean, don't give the beast data, and don't give it a cut. The satisfaction of craftsmanship and the appreciation you'll get for it are worth an infinite number likes, shares, and subscribes.
Quick response to the article title. Making sure my wife and children are doing well and happy makes me happy these days. It’s a never ending battle to try and protect my children from filth and trash on TV, internet and pop culture.