18:56 - 03.01.08
Coda
"If your heart acquires strength, you will be able to remove blemishes from people without thinking evil of them."Gandhi
A lot to aspire toward, I think. I was reflecting on what I had posted to you yesterday, dear diary. The conversation with my sister's sister-in-law. I was recalling that when I acted as a liaison to the media, while representing various volunteer projects I was involved in, I was always amazed at how what I thought I stated with utmost clarity and coherence, was then written about by the reporter and their editor - or two. Taken one step further, even when the article seemed to reflect exactly what I had been trying to communicate I would still get phone calls, some very hostile, in which the caller would rage about something that had never been said or even implied - at least not from my perspective. In fact sometimes the articles that I thought were the most accurate reflection of what had been discussed were the ones that attracted the greatest opprobrium. What I am trying to say, in brief, is that maybe I wasn't hearing what my sister's sister-in-law meant to say correctly or maybe she hadn't really heard correctly what her brother had said to her earlier. Decided that I have enough to fret about in real time - like cratering finances - that I don't need to go looking for problems. Besides what one focuses on often manifests as a self-fulfilling prophecy. That was the point I was trying to make when I spoke of the one female stalker who wanted me to read her astrology chart so that she got everything she wanted in the way she demanded. She not only caused herself great harm in the end but also hurt a lot of other people including her children. If I want to engage in that kind of thinking, it should be about getting a phone call telling me that I have just been hired for my dream job in exactly the way that I want that to manifest. At least that's a positive way to use one's mental energy - right? I suppose I could also try to manifest a phone call where I'm told a secret benefactor has decided to provide me with enough income and benefits, money to renovate or move houses, and travel so that all I need to do is research, study, write and write some more, re-engage in the volunteer work I love, and look after my grandbabies. Ok, so even I know the difference between positive and magical thinking, but I can dream can't I? Whatever is going on - or not with other parts of the family is something over which I have no control, so why even waste energy worrying or reacting to it. The confusion tha thas been created makes it clear that I don't have all the information I need to make any assumptions at all.
Monday I headed back to number four son's home to look after my youngest grandson. He was still feeling pretty rough, so my son explained which of the unpacked boxes might contain that baby's teething and cold remedies. First part of the morning was spent digging through those - putting everything back the way I found it so that it could be located by the packers, my son and his wife, later. My grandson had really filled his diaper by then and seemed to feel much better just for that. Cleaned him up, gave him the camillia and rubbed his chest with a eucalyptus ointment. He was quite a happy little guy after that. A hungry one too, so I cooked an early lunch as well. Because his digestion was a bit upset from all the rich food at Christmas he just pecked at his food over the course of the day. Truthfully my stomach has been bothering me for over a week for the same reasons so it was very easy to empathize with him.
My son had rented the "Order of the Phoenix" movie, so it was playing in the background as the day progressed. I had to skip back on several scenes as my grandson's needs took precedence over watching it in it's entirety seamlessly from end to end. In some ways that was a good thing, since the movie was dense with detail and some of the scenes deserved savouring more than once. This movie was much better than the last in terms of staying close to the novel and I appreciated that, although I still think the house elves should have been kept in the script. A visit to JK Rowlings website later revealed that she had opened the door to her "room of requirement" and was offering up a tantalizing spoiler about the offspring of the Hogwarts alumni. Hmmmmm. She has mentioned a number of times that she wouldn't likely write any backstories - although I think some prequels would be very useful to fully appreciate the seven books she has already written - but I don't recall her saying she wouldn't write about years down the road. The last book - "The Deathly Hallows" - was set in 1997 you see. The epilogue was placed 19 years later in 2016. After the Mayan prophecy period. Ok I'm mixing magic here but maybe not either. Once that movie ended I put the Disney version of Hercules on for a change of pace. My grandson crawled onto my lap and fell asleep at that point round about 3 in the pm. I tidied the house up while he slept and had just enough time to clean him up when he awoke so that his Dad walked in on a happy, contented and clean little boy.
I left immediately after being that New Year's Eve isn't really time I want to be out late. Transit was free for the evening so that was a pleasant gift to end the year 2007. The busses and train were filled with people already celebrating the coming year. The bus drivers were all really upbeat too. Maybe they got really good bonuses for helping the rest of the city celebrate in transit. A lot of boisterous happy young adults mostly. Arrived home and checked in with my youngest. His voice was now gone in addition to the cough and trouble breathing so he had no plans for the night. He spent most of the evening on the phone talking with his girlfriend in Ohio. I caught up on correspondence, sending more astrological info to number three son's girlfriend for example, and watched celebrations unfold around the globe - like Hogmanay in Scotland for example. Shortly after the midnight hour someone was setting off fireworks in the park across the street. That's illegal here in this province and comes with a hefty fine if one doesn't have a permit for it. There was a big party downtown at the main plaza with plenty of fireworks there for all to see. My youngest and I each had a glass of Sangria to toast in 2008 then both of us went back to what we were doing. Quite honestly looking after a 15 month baby who has more energy than the everready bunny wore me out much earlier in the day. New Years Day was a day off - just playing games and doing puzzles.
The day after New Years Day was set aside for cleaning up after the past two weeks includung making that last pot of turkey soup extracted by boiling the bones. When I had originally prepared the turkey, I thought Mr Melchizedek was going to climb into the sink in order to get a share of the prize. My son was standing well back, howling with laughter at the sight. None of the cats were interested in the cooked product but interest rose again when the bones were discarded. Took the garbage out right away as a result. No more risking sick cats.
Yesterday, headed out for the bank to pay the licence fees for the cats. The fine for not having a licence is $250 per pet. Took the money out of what I had left to buy groceries, but that still beats finding ourselves fined $1000 for wanting to eat instead. The teller asked for photo id. I questioned why when I was paying with cash. No reason given. As she was processing the felines' paperwork she stated that she had been very ill over Christmas holidays. Sure enough, not long after I got home from the grocery shopping I found myself with a miserable hacking cough,swollen glands in the neck and throat, burning lungs and sinus pain. Bleagh. Dirty money indeed - must have been the change she gave me. Sales at the grocery store did allow me to purchase a lot more than I might normally have managed, but still no fruit or veggies. The goodies from my Dad's neighbour contained most of a large veggie plate, so that wasn't as much of an issue either. Lucky so many gifts arrived in unexpected forms - I am grateful.
Today I felt really restless and edgy - hard to settle down to anything. Could be the neighbour's behaviour again. Several times during the night, evry night since the weather started to cool down, he goes out and starts up his truck leaving it idling for an hour or so at a time. One could set their alarm by the timing. At first I wondered if they had no power and needed the heat from the exhaust - a very dangerous practice - to keep their home warm. But often there are lights on in the house throughout the night too. It's a puzzle for certain and it really bothered me for some reason last night. I battled with Mr washing machine. It died completely Christmas morning. My youngest tried to get it going last night and finally succeeded in getting it to run half a cycle. It seemed to have bit the dust again today, but I finally realized that it had blown a fuse in the laundry room circuit. Dragged my footstool downstairs so as to climb on the washer in order to reach the electrical panel. Usually I can manage without that stool but since my luck wasn't really manifesting all that well I decided not to risk a fall or something. Once the switch was located and flipped that machine ran a full cycle like it was brand new. Probably just wanted attention eh? right now my yoga tape is trying to get my attention so I'd best go start my asanas. Good night dear diary.
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