Monthly Archives: July 2017

Pelicans

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Pelicans

They float upon the gentle swells,
with chins tucked in politely.
Of all the birds, most dignified,
their movements never sprightly.

They look like grumpy butlers
named Oliver or Jeeves
in morning coats of softest gray
with wings tucked in their sleeves.

They may be only scouting
the source of their next meal,
for soon they take off to the air
with energy and zeal.

And soon they’re diving down again,
straight like an arrow shot,
down into the shallows
to see what can be caught.

Bobbing once again,
they lift their bills and then let slide
all that’s in their pouches
to another place inside.

I wonder if the fishes flop
all the long way down,
and this is why the pelicans
then fold their arms and frown?

 Version 2

The prompt today is shallow. This poem is a rewrite of a poem published a few years ago..

Maskart

Today was mask day at camp. Hardly an understated one in the bunch!

(Click on any photo to enlarge them all.)

Hibiscus after Rain

Two bouts of heavy rain in the past two days have left my newest hibiscus rather waterlogged. I had to hold its head up to get one of these shots:

(Click on first photo to see larger views of all)

 

 

For Cee’s Flower Prompt.

Makeovers

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Makeovers

What truths lie hidden back of where
you wear your countenance and hair?
Behind the mask you show the world,
possibilities are stacked and curled.
Beings within us piled on shelves—
other thoughts and dreams and selves.
The self we are tomorrow may
change from who we are today.

Today our art project in camp is going to be masks.  I’ll publish photos tonight.  Above is the mask I made to demonstrate one possibility.

The Prompt today is hidden.

What Can We Do to Improve our Town?

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This is what the kids at Campamento Estrella (Camp Star) in San Juan Cosala, Mexico had to say today about saving their world:

(Please click on first photo to enlarge all.)

 

Green Tea and Me

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Green Tea and Me

The taste of green tea is a taste to which I do not cotton.
Instead of tasting fresh and green, to me it just tastes rotten.
Although it is a liquid that I must daily swallow,
it clearly is a flavor in which I don’t choose to wallow.

Health drives us to those foods and liquids we would never choose.
Makes us eat our kale and fish oil, takes away our booze.
If we want to keep our blood pressure from simply soaring,
we’ll be giving up our salt for flavors much more boring.

So nature takes our simple pleasures from us one by one.
Things like buttered popcorn become a smoking gun.
If we want our  bodies to cooperate and function,
we’ll gobble less for pleasure and nibble more for unction.

The prompt today was tea.

Boxing Day with Kittens. Kitty Videos!!!!

With kittens, everything is a toy.  I put the long box their Whiskas Kitten Souffle packets came in on the floor of their playroom when it was empty and it took them about two seconds to devise a number of games to play with it, but no matter how they plotted, they always turned into a dead end.  I then opened up the other end and whole new games ensued.  Eventually, one of the kittens–I think it was Kukla–commandeered the box for her own.  I eventually gave up making videos of the fun and went into the living room.  Frannie jumped up on my lap and it was awhile before I noticed that she had noticed the videos I was trying to put on Youtube.  Her ears perked up and her eyes never left the screen.  It occurred to me I should be filming this and by the time I got my SD card out of the computer and into my camera, she had jumped up on the keyboard.  The last of the four videos is of her admiring herself.  Kittens are half pep pill and half tranquilizer.  They’ve certainly changed my life! Hope you enjoy these videos. Wish I knew how to edit them. (I must have messed up loading the second video so I’ll post it in another post tomorrow.  Have to get up early for day 3 of the kids camp tomorrow so should retire soon!)

Four kittens make good use of an empty Whiskas box:

 

Once I opened the other end of the Whiskas box, Kukla took permanent possession, but had plenty of visitors:

 

Frannie was sitting on my lap while I was trying to put the video of her and her siblings on YouTube. Suddenly, she seemed to notice she was a media star and jumped onto the keyboard to watch.

Hibiscus

Version 2

 

For Cee’s Flower Prompt.

Scissors, Tissue Paper and General MacArthur

Before I leave to get busy with paper, scissors and glue at Campamento Estrella today, I want to share this crafty tradition passed on by my mother.  It was my favorite family tradition.

The Daily Post prompt was traditional.

lifelessons's avatarlifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown

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Every year, my mom helped us make May baskets to fill with candy and leave on the doorsteps of our friends. As mentioned in an earlier post, we’d ring the doorbell and run. If the recipient caught us, they could kiss or pinch us—their choice.

Some years we bought fancy handled nut cups from the dime store and used them, but I liked best to make my own. One year, my mother showed us something special to use for May baskets. Her family knew how to make these incredible tissue-paper ornaments that, with a cupcake liner filled with candy glued into the bottom, hung down in a web-like form. We’d pin them at the top and when you held them up they would fall down in a lacy accordion effect so they were a foot or two high. The only way you could really get the effect…

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Campamento Estrella 2017, Day 1

Day one of Campamento Estrella (Camp Star) In San Juan Cosala, Jalisco, Mexico was a huge success. The point of the camp is to make each child feel like a star, and this year the counselors seemed to feel pretty happy as well. Art, poetry, dance, games, studying about the history of their town and how to improve it, kind treatment of animals and  health and hygiene are all stressed this year. Friday will culminate in a performance and refreshments for parents and other family members.  This is our third year for this camp.  Thanks once again to Agustin for playing such a vital part as well as providing the garden area of Viva Mexico for us to use for the camp.

Click on first photo to view all and read caption.