As soon as Larry moved in with Betty, he joined the turtle patrol. She lived on the beach as a child. It’s no surprise she bought a beach house.
Larry was a conservationist all his life. He walked the beach to stay healthy while ensuring the safety of the turtles. Watching the hatchling emerge and make their way to shore was environmentally impactful.
Recently, the red tide was getting worse. The smell of dead fish washing ashore could be seen from their porch. An overabundance of algae, some said. No one knew for sure, all speculation.
*****Red tide is a common name for algal blooms, which are large concentrations of aquatic microorganisms, such as protozoans and unicellular algae (e.g. dinoflagellates and diatoms). The upwelling of nutrients from the seafloor, often following massive storms, provides for the algae and triggers bloom events. Harmful algal blooms can occur worldwide, and natural cycles can vary regionally.
A tribute today to the great Leonard Cohen on his birthday.
Gone from this world but your words will live on in our hearts.
Thanks for the Dance.
~~~~~~~~~
On November 7, the sad news was announced that the prominent poet, novelist, musician, singer, songwriter, and paint artist, Leonard Cohen had died. He was born on September 21,1934 in Westmount, Quebec, Canada.
His work explored religion, politics, isolation, sexuality, and personal relationships. He won the Chester Mac Naghten Literary Competition for the poems “Sparrows” and “Thoughts of a Landsman.”
During New York City’s folk scene in Greenwich Village, I had the pleasure of being exposed to his words from other poets who were reciting his poems and aspiring to be as good.
It’s a formidable loss of an incredibly revered visionary artist.
If it be your will that I speak no more
And my voice be still as it was before
I will speak no more, I shall abide until
I am spoken for, if it be your will
If it be your will that a voice be true
From this broken hill, I will sing to you
From this broken hill, all your praises they shall ring
If it be your will to let me sing
From this broken hill all your praises they shall ring
If it be your will to let me sing
If it be your will, if there is a choice
Let the rivers fill, let the hills rejoice
Let your mercy spill on all these burning hearts in Hell
If it be your will to make us well
And draw us near, and bind us tight
All your children here in their rags of light
In our rags of light, all dressed to kill
And end this night, if it be your will, if it be your will
Tears flowed faster than Esmeralda could wipe them away. She was inconsolable. Five years of waiting was all for nothing. The dreams of a better life negated by a virus.
Pedro was fortunate to have found a job as a dishwasher at MaMa’s pizzeria when he arrived in America. Leaving his family behind was a high price paid but worth it. It meant a better life for his family. Drug cartels were taking over his town. Random shootings with crime rampant too edged him on for a better way of living.
The landlord trashing his life onto the sidewalk: Defeated!
Welcome – make yourself at home. Pick a pretty cup or mug for coffee, hot chocolate, herbal tea. or a cup of my new favorite chai tea. Sit in a comfy chair so we can chat.
A little music might be nice … enjoy my selection.
It’s a warm overcast day with rain forecast for the rest of the weeks in September. All this is due to Hurricane Sally. Spared by her wrath, we are only experiencing a lot of flooding from the outer rain bands. Unfortunately, it looks like New Orleans and Alabama will have an abundant amount of water and wind damage.
Emotions have been roller coaster rides with exuberantly happy days and some sad days too. I suppose it’s all part of the COVID series of emotional lifestyle changes.
Let me begin with the joyous moments I’ve been experiencing.
I celebrated my birthday on July 20th. I am an on the cusp moon child baby. Since in isolation and under quarantine, hubby created a special dinner with flowers and candles added for an intimate restaurant atmosphere. We danced away our dinner calories afterward. Since we don’t have a restricted bedtime, we added a midnight swim in our pool. The water was warm since our weather has been quite hot this year. BTW … no fires ignited from the amount of candles. ~~~ : – )
Vincent Alfonso Carrozza November 25, 1994 September 17, 2018 … R.I.P.
In August, my middle daughter celebrated her 50th birthday. She did have a big celebration in South Carolina; however, we were concerned about COVID and decided not to attend. Hubby and I are at a high-risk health level. I did send a gift of a specially created portrait, created by artist/author Rochelle Wisoff-Fields, of her son. He died in September of 2018. Far too young at 24. It was a tragedy for our family. He will always be in our hearts.
Hubby and I celebrated our 55th anniversary the 3rd week in August. Our usual celebrations of anniversaries or birthdays on cruises have been interrupted by COVID. Instead, we found a wonderful concert to attend on social media after a fabulous dinner we both participated in making. A midnight swim was a must for calorie burning. A blessed ending to a journey we’ve walked for a very long time. I believe it is One that will be A Lifetime Forever.
A Wonderful Anniversary Song
The final bit of news is about an unexpected call from a stranger. I’ll have to post that next time.
Hope you’ll join in and post some news on your blog. Leave your url in my comments so others and I can visit.
Please continue to stop by my blog for more updates, news and challenges I’ll be posting whiles in my little piece of paradise.
Have a wonderful week … be safe … keep your spirits up
Namaste I honor the place in you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place in you which is of Love, and of Truth, of Light and of Peace. When you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me. We are One.
It rains every day in Florida during the summer. There’s a pattern to the summer rainfall.
Mornings are sunny while afternoons are cloudy until about 2 p.m.; then, we get a downpour of rain followed by sunny skies once again. Of course, this pattern changes when there’s a hurricane or tropical storm brewing in the gulf, all part of the summer weather pattern. So far this year there haven’t been any.
What we do have is rain … and more rain … and more rain. My feet have almost changed into flippers.
I’m not a fan of rain. It brings my spirits down. Cloudy, gloomy days drain my energy and enthusiasm. I need to see bright sunny days. I want to see sunshine rays sparkle on the water behind my home. I want to hear the birds singing.
Don’t get me wrong. I know that flowers and trees need rain. My orchids shout that. My grass is a very, very healthy green too. I know there are dry arid places with shortages of water that would cherish this rain.
In fact, I enjoy the rain. I know that’s a contradiction. But, I can take a nap (yes … nap) and listen to the rain falling as it taps rhythmically on my roof and windows. However, its been a long, long time since I’ve seen the sun. Too many days for me to count.
I’m sure you’re wondering – What does rain have to do with nurturing?
I’m glad you asked.
Today, while I was sitting on my patio, I began to look at rain differently. The heavy showers reminded me of the challenge that rain is for me. Then, I began to see it in a different light.
Rain is like the things that happen to us in life. Every day we’re faced with challenges. For everyone the challenges are different. If we look at every drop of rain as a challenge we’ve overcome our outlook would be much more positive.
Our lives are sprinkled with droplets of problems and stresses we have to rise above; especially during this uncertain time.
Life pours worries, obstacles, misfortunes, stumbling blocks, and, at times, nightmares filled with thunderous lightning of difficulties into our lives. Stress builds like puddles in a gully.
How would we gauge our troubles and woes if we never had grey rainy days?
We can very easily get upset about these issues that life has decided to pour on us. But without these storms, how would we appreciate the rainbow that appears after downpours of rain?
So instead, I’ve decided to appreciate every drop of rain because without it I wouldn’t be able to appreciate that I’m alive and able to enjoy it. I’ve decided to look at rain in less of a monotonous humdrum way. I recognize without the changes rain gives us, life might be very dull. I decided to be grateful for the rain as it’s creating beautiful colors in my garden by nurturing my grass, trees, and orchids.
I think I’ll go out and find a rainbow while I dance in the rain ….
Sunday was family day. Staten Island was Father’s favorite place to go because of the beautiful beaches, plus his good friend, Mr. Frank, had a big home surrounded by a white picket fence, and backyard for us five kids.
Mr. Frank was a Santero. During WWII, he migrated to Cuba from Germany. His live-in housekeeper was from Haiti. She made the best rosemary fried chicken for us.
The spiritual rituals, Mr.Frank performed were in the basement. Saintly statues, lit candles, incense, cigars, red and white fabrics, were part of the alter. He was frightening.
The term “Santería” translates into English as the “way of the saints.”[1] This is the most popular name for the religion, although some practitioners consider it offensive and avoid it in favor of alternatives.
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