This Getting Up Early and Getting Things Done is Bushwah

 I'm getting a little obsessed with photographs - again. I started an IG thing where I post a 'photo of the day' that I take from my files, in the order that they are stored. Today tho I posted a photo that I took this afternoon of the trees/view from my window. The trees are so full and lush. It has rained every day for the past week - it has been dreary and damp making everything SO green and plush. 

With that in mind, I've been putting an image at the top of each post - the way 'they' say you are supposed to. I've never been sure who 'they' are exactly. People who write blogs and/or read blogs should be insulted by this rule. 'They' say if you don't have an image at the start of a post people won't read it. Because all your readers can't really read. You have to give them pictures to get, and keep, their attention. I prefer to have readers that actually know how to use words, and understand words, basically intelligent adults. 

The reason why the image of my bedroom is up there is because it makes me happy. I walk into my bedroom and immediately - big smile. Damn, but I do so love bright colors.

As for the getting up early thing - I've been up and out of bed by 6:30/7:30am for several days now. And instead of lollygagging around, I get breakfast eaten, newspapers read, crosswords solved and then shower and dress and even fit in some work. This all gets done by 11:30am/Noon. 

I try to take an early nap because I'm still getting to sleep around 1 or 2 in the morning - so not logging a lot of sleep. But, if I'm lucky, a nap only last 20 minutes or so. 

Yet, here it is 4:30pm and I've managed to piss away the afternoon, having done nothing productive except edit some photos and put this together. 

This morning's 'work' was laundry and some odd bits of cleaning, BTW.

I'm definitely going to sleep in tomorrow. 

It's Too Early For Me to Be Productive

 

Folder: Birds 12/2020

I started this at 11:30am. At that ungodly hour I had breakfasted, showered, dressed, played some games, checked on my grocery order, vacuumed up some big chunks of junk and did a few bits and bobs of admin work. 

Phew! That's a lot for me by this time of the day, especially given that I was up around 7:30am - not having slept much last night. Not insomnia but rather overactive brain.  I could not get it to shut up and shut down. My brain just went on and on...

An obsessive thought that I'm having lately is:

I'm old, I'm ill and I'm going to die soon and that's alright. But - I can't imagine being dead. Not being alive. I can't imagine not being alive.

I have a problem thinking of myself as old. It's not that I am youth obsessed, because I am most definitely not. It's that I don't understand, is that the right descriptor?, I don't understand what it is to be old. I don't look in the mirrow and see old. I don't feel old even tho this old body really doesn't function all the well. 

It makes me laugh, these thoughts. I find them amusing. I find the way my minds works amusing, and sometimes confusing but usually very entertaining.

I'm listening to the sound track from Jonathan Livingston Seagull - I know it's a hokey sort of book, and maybe soppy sentimental music but I like the book and the music. Sue Me. 

Finding Ways to Amuse Myself

 

I'm finding it too convoluted to explain why there is a photo of BB at the top of this post. This is the Day 2 entry of an IG project I've just started. (Day 1 was also a photo of BB, that's just how it's working out, date-wise and alphabetically. Tomorrow will actually be a bird pic, or maybe a bird movie. Don't know have decided yet but the folder is labeled "Birds 12/20/20")

I'm kinda bummed, and it's all my own fault, that I don't have any followers and readers and participants anymore. After my husband's death things got dark on my blog and then I changed URL's and platforms and blog names and....yadda, yadda, yadda.

So no one knows where I am, and pretty much no one cares, and why should they?

Also I don't comment much on other people's blogs because - honestly? Nothing to say, nothing to comment on and I vowed never to rain on anyone's parade - plus I really hate all those innocuous comments people make so as not to have an opinion or different POV. Everybody be nice now! What it is, is, everybody be boring now!

I miss talking about fluff stuff - like a terrific product I discovered or a tv show or movie I either hated or loved. I mean, no one is reading LOL So no one to share with. I am talking into a vacuum.

But it's my fault! Just like I talk to myself in real life, I'm talking to myself in internet world.

Things that fascinate me and I'm dumping them here because they get lost in my computer files...

Clearing out the last of the old yellow notebook, I found this on the last page - The language is Occitan. Which is the language of the Languedoc region of France.  I copied this out of a book, a novel, that I read. The story had something to do with the Cathars and the history of the region and its people. I do not remember the name of the book but I had/have a long term interest in this part of the world and its history, particularly the religious history.

Also in this part of the world is Basque Country - and in the last few weeks I read an article about the Basque language and people and it, the language, and the people, are unique. The Basque language has no relation to any other European language.

And then there is Catalonia, also in this general area (northern Spain, Southern France, the Pyrenees) which also has its own language separate from Spanish and French.

Whew!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Copy and Pasted:

The Basque Country has a unique culture characterized by its own language, Euskera, which is unrelated to any other European language, while Catalonia has a strong emphasis on the Catalan language, which is related to both French and Spanish. Additionally, the Basques have maintained a distinct identity for millennia, with traditions and customs that differ significantly from those in Catalonia and Languedoc, which share more linguistic and cultural similarities with their respective regions.

Cultural Differences Between the Basque Country, Catalonia, and Languedoc

Language

Region	Language	Language Characteristics
Basque Country	Euskera	Unique language, unrelated to any other European language.
Catalonia	Catalan	Related to both French and Spanish; widely spoken.
Languedoc	Occitan	Related to Catalan; has various dialects.

Identity and Traditions

• Basque Country: The Basques have maintained a distinct identity for millennia, characterized by unique customs, festivals, and a strong sense of community. Their culture is deeply rooted in ancient traditions and has survived despite historical repression.
• Catalonia: Catalonia emphasizes its cultural identity through the Catalan language and a rich tradition of literature, music, and festivals. The region has a strong nationalist movement that seeks greater autonomy and recognition of its cultural heritage.
• Languedoc: Languedoc shares cultural similarities with Catalonia, particularly in language and some traditions. However, it does not have the same level of nationalist sentiment as Catalonia, focusing more on regional pride within the broader context of France.

Historical Context

• Basque Country: The Basques have a long history of resistance to external influences, maintaining their language and customs despite pressures from the Spanish state.
• Catalonia: Catalonia has experienced significant political movements aimed at independence, particularly in recent years, reflecting a strong desire for self-determination.
• Languedoc: Historically, Languedoc was a center of the Occitan language and culture, but it has been more integrated into the French state, leading to a less distinct regional identity compared to the Basque Country and Catalonia.

These differences highlight the unique cultural landscapes of the Basque Country, Catalonia, and Languedoc, shaped by their languages, identities, and historical experiences.

For my own reference (and yours if you like rabbit holes):

Occitan Language

Languedoc - Wikipedia

Catharism - Wikipedia

Catalan Language - Wikipedia

Basque Language - Wikipedia

More Notebook Transcriptions

 I suppose I should have scanned the page - lots of scribbling and crossing out and yet - left unfinished - written sometime in 2012 or 2013(?)

On a day when the pain
          is too much
And the promise of sun and
          Spring is broken
When the chill in the air
          is the chill in your brain
And you find yourself wearing
          the dress with the stain.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Also, from 2013 - this is just a bit of musing about sleep, the dark, the night. For some reason I thought it significant enough that I saved it to a folder named "Snippets & Quatrains".

xxxxxx

I was told that even as a infant I did not sleep at night. Neither did I cry.

I was told, that when I could move around some, I would be found at the foot of my crib, under the covers. As if I was hiding.

Later I learned, on my own, that indeed I was hiding. I wasn't afraid of the dark, I was afraid of what hid in the dark.

xxxxxx

I love the dark, I love the night. I can hide in the dark, and the night covers me.

But I still fear what comes in the dark, the monsters under the bed.

xxxxxx

I don't like to sleep with a lot of covers. I tend to kick the covers off my feet and then dangle my feet over the edge of the bed. But not for long. I quickly pull my feet back because there are monsters hiding under my bed. Waiting to pull me down and under and then...

x x x x x x

I’ve Been Known – Scribbles in my notebook from August 17, 2024

(In my continued discarding of all things I'm tossing my notebook that contains scribbles from long ago to now - some were turned into finished products, some just sit as - scribbles.)

On this particular day there was a theme it seems - the same ideas worked and re-worked..

***

I’ve been known to slam doors

so hard the world shook.

To burn bridges

And toast marshmallows in the flames

With no regrets.

***

I’ve been known to not

forgive, forget.

The burden of your harm sits

on your soul

not mine.

***

I’ve been known to lie awake

wandering through my past

Not to relive it but to learn

Not let it go but to nod

at my resilience.

***

I’ve been known to not let go,

Tho doors were slammed and bridges burned

The reasons why are lessons learned.

***

I’ve been known to let it go

Bridges burned, doors were slammed

The reasons why were lessons learned

I’ve walked away with no regret.

***

I’ve been known to love too much

too deep, too long.