Monthly Archives: July 2022

Beautiful Weekend

Here in Vermont, we had near perfect weather over the weekend. Saturday’s high temperature was only 73 degrees. Sunday morning, I woke up to 44 degrees with a high of 79. There’s barely been a cloud in the sky all weekend. After days of debilitating migraines, I was feeling good most of the weekend, so I decided to get outdoors for a bit.

Saturday, I drove over to Waterbury Arts Festival in Waterbury. The town has always had two great things goin for it: Prohibition Pig, the best BBQ in Vermont, and the Ben and Jerry’s Factory. They also hold an annual arts festival with food venders and over a hundred artists. I thought it would be a fun activity, and it was. When I got there, it was around lunchtime, and the food vendors were very busy. I decided to walk around and check out the artists. I don’t think there were a hundred artists there, but they had some cool stuff. It was all just too expensive for me. There were two highlights though. The first was the music. They had a band playing called The DEW, three high school boys playing bass, drums, and guitar. They played some great rock and roll covers, which seemed mostly from the 90s before they were even born, but they really sounded great. The second was a booth called Chubby Chicks. They had gourmet jams, preserves, and pickles. I got a jar of the “Berry Peachy” Jam which is strawberries and peaches. It was delicious. I also bought a jar of “Pidge’s Pickles,” their bread and butter pickles. While the jam was tasty, the pickles were phenomenal. Hands down, they were the best bread and butter pickles I’ve ever had. I ate half the jar over the weekend. I had to stop myself before I ate them all.

When I woke up Sunday, the day was so beautiful that I decided I wanted to see one of the local waterfalls. With so many mountain streams, Vermont has numerous waterfalls across the state. However, when I tried to find one that was less than an hour away, I couldn’t. So, I decided to google “trails near me.” Three trails popped up and one was just three miles away and had a review that stated, “Great little find not too far out of the way.  Easy walking trails and beautiful sites, the falls is worth the 30 minute trek.” I thought, “Perfect, just what I was looking for.” I loaded the information on my phone and headed over there and set out on my hike to the falls. The falls were a bit disappointing:

On the left is the picture of the waterfall that was on Google; on the right is what is there now. It was a nice hike though and I made the loop, walking to the waterfall, up on the ridge above the falls, and back down to the original trail. The whole time, I only saw two people and that was just as I was almost back to my car. It was about a 2.5 mile trek, and it took me more than 30 minutes, but I made it and enjoyed the hike.
When I went to bed last night, I was tired and a little sore. I had walked nearly two miles Saturday at the arts festival and another 2.5 miles on the trail. That may not seem like a lot to some of you, but I’m not used to that much walking in a weekend. I’m glad I was able to get out this weekend. The coming week and next weekend has thunderstorms in the forecast. Maybe if there’s enough rain, the little waterfall will look more like the picture from Google.


Pic of the Day


A Future and a Hope

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

— Jeremiah 29:11

I think a lot of people, especially those who are left-leaning, worry about what the future holds. They see a segment of the U.S. population who are fueled by greed, hate, and fear. They don’t want the less fortunate to be helped with food, shelter, or healthcare. Yet, they call themselves Christian though in Matthew 25:31-46, one of the most vivid parables Jesus ever spoke, tells us that God will judge us in accordance with our reaction to human needs. They hate simple things like equality, truth, love, and happiness. They fear all those who are not like themselves. It’s a scary time because the political and religious rights have become more emboldened by the Supreme Court, conservative news channels, and loudmouth politicians with no substance. 

But as J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, “In this hour, I do not believe that any darkness will endure.” There is hope for a better future. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Though things may look bleak, we can change that outcome, but we must be diligent. We can’t sit back and let our ideals and freedoms be trampled upon. The Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho wrote, “None of us knows what might happen even the next minute, yet still, we go forward. Because we trust. Because we have Faith.” Faith in democracy and faith in God will get us through these dark times.

In a world of over seven billion people, it’s easy to feel small—to feel as if our day-to-day lives aren’t worth much, especially when we’re drowning in a sea of the mundane. It may feel like no matter what we do, we cannot change things for the good. If you look at some of the close elections in 2020, there is one thing we learned, every vote counts and each vote can make a difference. We have to have faith that good will win over evil. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”

God has a purpose and a plan for each and every one of us. We all have unique gifts and talents. Dante Alighieri wrote, “Do not be afraid; our fate Cannot be taken from us; it is a gift. ” We all have unique perspectives, certain friend groups, and various workplaces. God uses this rich diversity to carry out his will, and his plans are always bigger, bolder, and better than anything we could ever imagine.


Pic of the Day


Moment of Zen: Ice Cream


Pic of the Day


Aura

Yesterday, just as I was stepping into the shower, I saw a migraine aura. People who deal with migraine aura experience visual, sensory or motor disturbances just before a migraine attack. This phenomenon usually lasts an hour or less, and symptoms may range from seeing sparks and zigzags to the inability to speak clearly. For me, it is mostly the sparks that I see, and it usually lasts just a few minutes. I don’t always see an aura before a migraine, but a migraine always begins sometime in the next twenty-four hours after the aura appears. 
When I was younger, the migraine began almost exactly 

When I was younger, the migraine began almost exactly twenty-four hours after I saw an aura. In the last few years, I normally have about thirty minutes to an hour before the migraine sets in. Yesterday’s was a slow progression. It started out mild, so I went to work and tried to work most of the day with my office lights off, but by mid afternoon, that wasn’t working for me anymore. The pain was intensifying and continued to get worse over the course of the evening. Eventually, I just went to bed.


Pic of the Day


The Boy with Glasses 😲

I had planned to write a different post today, but time kept getting away from me, so I thought I’d post this picture of a group of school boys ogling vintage beefcake physique model Steve Kotis in the 1950s. I usually don’t post vintage pics. BosGuy does a much better job with his Thursday Vintage Gay posts. However, this picture of Steve Cotis just tickled me, because I can (and I bet a lot of you can too) relate to the boy in glasses checking Kotis out. I think we all know what that kid was looking at. It’s just such a great picture in my opinion.


Pic of the Day