So, What's Been Going On?

Here it is the month of May, and three months since I last posted. A lot has been going on. I hope you will feel the change. It's positive. I have to admit, amidst the change, I had "moved out"... at least part-way. I never moved, entirely in, wherever it was that I went... rather, I was inbetween two places, carrying my belongings around in my car, like some lost gypsy. Now, I have "moved back in"... entirely. Sometimes we just need a little breathing space... sometimes we just need to make a statement... like, "Hey! I count!" And sometimes we just have to make decisions, and realize that perfection only exists in our minds, or in our dreams. Then again, sometimes our lives are only made up of that which we can perceive and dream of... so, let us dream on and manifest, in our lives, in awesome ways! Me? I only want Peace... and Love.

This picture was taken well over a month ago. Indeed, a storm was brewing. There was hellfire and brimstone... no, really :-) just a little hail. The sky would vacilate between an awesome array of colors and patterns, that appeared to be long, moving curtains of ice and rain, making their way across the vastness of the sky above us. We would go through very strong winds, and see the tops of trees snap from their mighty heights, whilest a tornado was sweeping through the lands. These are some of the peach trees that were being pruned and thinned as we were driving by, right before the storm. The skies were just lovely, in their angst, against the sweet bright pink of Spring. Once the storm was over, we could smell the intoxifying scent of pine, for miles around. Mother Earth had cleansed herself!

But, before the calm, I was scared! What a baby, I was! We had been out joy riding when the storm started gathering. We began trying to find safe haven, once we saw the trees were dancing furiously, and their tops began snapping and flying through the air. When we finally found a place to stop that wasn't situated between tall stands of pine, on either side of us, swaying to and fro, and just waiting their turn to snap, we found ourselves parked next to a power line. Not good! We waited a few, just enough to allow decent vision, then turned around and made our way back through those same terrifyingly and wildly swaying tree tops, and found ourselves situated inbetween two fields of peach trees, with nothing to block the force of wind on either side of us... and man, was that wind blowing, and that truck shaking! We saw huge pecan trees uprooted, along the way... but, we survived... and it was just a baby storm compared to what some folks experience. Nevertheless, it is still scarey being amidst the unknown, unpredictable power of Mother Earth, when she gets in a rage! Bless her, as she scatters her seed.


















It was coincidence, on the day this pic was taken, while traversing the roads of our local State Park, that we would run into his sister and her significant other. And we would, all four of us, get locked inside the park. That was just too funny, but not to worry. We would pull up the wooden fence posts, while we could not manage the heavy lock and chain, and make our way out quietly, leaving not a trace of us behind... well, save a few muddy tire tracks, having had to drive across the sodden grass. It was hilarious, really. We figured if anyone did see us, we could only get arrested for breaking in, not breaking out? Lol! The warden had made his last rounds and, apparently, he was cutting out early... so, he went about to the last few remaining nature lovers, and instructed us on what to do when we leave. He was going to put the lock on the gate and not snap it closed... it would only appear locked, to keep anyone else from coming in. But he gave some of us different instructions. He told some of us to snap the lock shut when we left... and told others to put the lock back on and not snap it shut. I know this, because he told me to snap it shut... but he didn't tell Gary the same. In my mind, however, I knew that there were other people in the park, besides ourselves, and if we left first, and snapped it shut, the others would be locked in. It would appear that those others did not think of the same thing. Oh, well... it worked out and created a fun adventure, all four of us having to work, together, to free us from our demise.

I love the clear reflection in this pic. This is one of my favorite spots in the whole world because, for me, it holds sooo many awesome memories... from a very early age. Church hayrides, grilled hotdogs and hamburgers, and roasted marshmellows over late night fires... footballs that got accidentally tossed in the pond and waiting patiently for it to make it's way back to shore, with narry a care in the world... rolling down hills, cool breezes, basketball, swimming and paddle boats, long hot mosquitoey trails thru the woods... and alligators that would fill the ponds, once swimming was banned, to avoid integration... *sad*... love gained and lost... *sigh*... motorcyle rides and wild hair... and walking across trees that had fallen themselves into natural bridges and swinging our legs over the side, way up high... picnics by the stream, with thousands of tiny yellow butterflies on green grasses... and babies who waded, bottoms bare, in these cool black waters. Yes, it's one of my favorite places of all time. It always will be, I have roots there.

And this picture below... tadah!... is where I now work :-)
Yes, that's right! I HAVE A JOB! Yahoooooooo!











I am a tour guide and this is the canal that I work on! She's lovely! She's beautiful! And I love my job! ... I could stand more hours, a higher rate of pay... and btw, I could use some benefits... but, I LOVE MY JOB!















No, this is not me. This is one of my co-workers, and she was guiding the Friday Moonlight Music Tour when I snapped this picture. I thought she looked quite lovely that night, and I managed to get several shots, as she was rapting herself in blues tunes, as they bellowed out over the waters of our canal.


And this is the guy... who made our hearts bleed and smile and bleed and smile some more... Jeff Liberty, he is.
















































































I included the last one so that you could see how he was wearing his tambourine, a one man blues ensemble. Might as well put that foot to use, since, as he says, "If you're playing guitar right, you're gonna be tapping your foot, anyway!"



















This is our fearless captain, Captain Reggie. He's a really nice guy.



Normally, he's sitting down, but he was preparing to take us under some huge water pipes, at our water pumping station.






And this is Reggie scrunching down, so he doesn't knock his block off on the water pipes... did I say the tour is exciting???
















And these are a couple of love birds, lying down on the bow of the boat, our designated smoking area, so that they don't get their blocks knocked off, either... for real!

















I couldn't resist this one, she was so beautiful and filled with such gentle Peace... and innocent, wearing her hair in plaited pig tails.

















My life continues to be one long and strange journey. And I do not know where this part of my journey will lead. Many, many years ago, I had an astrological chart drawn up... two, actually, over time. Both of them gave me the same information, for the time period that I was in... and that is, that I was to be working on "communication." Indeed, the very first part of my journey, in so far as my adult life was concerned, was in the communications field, while I was a radio-teletype operator with the United States Army. Much later, I would become a mail carrier, and stay in that profession for 15 years. I was still in the communications field, one might say... as I was transporting communications, so that others might communicate. Then my life became about travel, for just a short time... traveling, across seas, and into unknown realms, etherically speaking, even. Now, I am still communicating, but I am using this communication in an educational way. Even so, it's a struggle, just learning to communicate, anything, effectively. I always hated history, for the simple reason that I never had any history teachers that could keep my attention, and it was only about taking notes, copiously, and memorizing dates and events, in so far as I was concerned. Since taking this job, I have become seemingly addicted to the study of history, and am having lots of fun googling and researching, to add to my repertoire.

I must admit, it does take a lot of energy! In the mornings we have lots of school children, on school trips, and this requires quite a bit of animation, to keep their attention. So, I'm learning how to adjust the tour to the needs of the children, and even do puppet shows for the smallest ones. For others, our focus is on what they are learning in school. Each group of kids is entirely different from the next, no matter what age and grade level, so we really have to go with the flow. And that's a nice thing, because nothing can be fun if it is too structured.

And then there are the adults, who come in all ages and attention spans. The elderly are really a lot of fun, because they just don't care about what anyone else thinks, and aren't putting on any airs... they're just there to have good fun, and they usually do!

I love being outdoors... in the air, near the water, and in the sun! I love feeling useful and appreciated! And I love working with a bunch of happy people who have respect for one another, who aren't lazy, and who love their jobs, and do their jobs well... unlike the back biting hell hole that I was laid off from. Ouch! And I love learning the history, so that I can share it with others. This is the first job I've ever had, that I did not hate getting out of bed for... instead, I'm up early, arrive early, and am anxious to start my day.

I have no idea where this will lead me. Eventually, I will need higher wages. Eventually I will need benefits. I actually got accepted back into one of the local colleges, before I was offered this job, but I did not qualify for a grant, so was not able to attend. Eventually, I will probably return to school. For now, this is a nice reprieve... a nice place to regather my wits, rebuild my confidence... and regenerate my spirt.

Who knows what the future holds. Not I. In the meantime, all I can do is be happy, and let life do it's thing. As Scarlet said, "I'll worry about that tomorrow."

I wish Peace, for you all.


... and pssst... Sing, I wear my love beads to work, often... they're a perfect accessory to my tour guide get-up (shorts and sandals and more shorts and sandals!) and the kids can really relate :)