Saturday, March 29, 2014

HITHER DITHER

Run
Rush
Crush of a heavy schedule
I ain’t got time to bleed, breathe, sleep
Guilt for what hasn’t been done
Overwhelmed by the TO DOs
A vacation is what I need
Two quiet weeks in the sun
But too many unfinished tasks
No money for margaritas
I’ll rest when I’m dead.

Shake my ashes on a beach in Hawaii
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

POOR PRIVS

Many people have participated in a physical rendering of financial elitism. The group starts out standing in a line. They take steps forward or backward, depending upon the instructions. The goal is to show the members of the group who have had the most advantages. Advantages directly translate into financial opportunity. (Examples: If you have a trust fund in your name, take three steps forward. If you went into debt to pay for college, take two steps back.) Alas, every time that I have participated in this type of display I end up in the end of the group. It’s a lonely place and the reaction is pity, concern or scorn from the other members of the group. Thus, I have created an alternative exercise.

It will show that being limited income gives you special skills that the financially secure may not develop. NOTE: The person announcing the list should always state that this demonstration is not meant to shame anyone. It is a highly emotional experience. It is okay for people to internally step forward or backward and even walk off to stand on the sidelines. No one is forced to participate.

IMA’S POOR PRIVILEGES:
If you wore hand-me-downs from relatives (not for fashion), take two steps forward.
If you have never received heat-share, take one step back.
If you have eaten food past the expiration date and risk stomach upset, take a step forward.
If you have darned or worn darned socks, take one step forward.
If you have never used public transportation, take three steps back.
If you know how to pick tiny bits of meat off every bone, take a step forward
If you have worn shoes with holes on the bottom, take two steps forward.
If you don’t take physical risks because you are afraid of the cost of the medical office or Emergency Room visit deductible or medications, take two steps forward.
If you have worn socks darned two times, take two steps forward.
If you live “green” with your home temperature below 65 degrees in the winter to save on the cost of heating bills, take two steps forward.
If you have worn clothes with patches for fashion, take two steps back.
If you have a garden for food, take two steps forward.
If you use the public library as your book and video source, take three steps forward.
If you have never been to a food-shelf as a recipient, take one step back.
If your primary source for clothing is the thrift store, take two steps forward.
If you have received government food commodities, take three steps forward.
If you don’t worry about retirement because you know that you will be working until you die, take three steps forward.
If your kids have received reduced or free meals at school, take a step forward for each child.
If you don’t wash clothes until they are dirty or smelly, take two steps forward.
If you share leftover garden produce with the local food-shelf, take three steps forward.

My score is +24 steps, what is yours? Please post in the comments section.
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Sunday, March 23, 2014

OPEN YOUR EYES

Cable tv offers several Ghost Hunting shows comprised of pure folly. The host waltzes around with a camera crew and scares off any legitimate entity. It’s more of a psychological drama with an overlay of music so you can’t hear anything. A modern version of the 1800s parlor séances with faux spiritualists. I’ve discussed ghosts previously on this blog.

As I have stated before, most reported hauntings are logically explained to not paranormal. Of the .01% remaining, the vast majority are electromagnetic (EM) imprints with no intelligent spirit involved, more like a few seconds of silent film flickering. A space-time continuum event. Of the tiny remainder, .001% perhaps a legitimate ghost or spirit is involved but it is usually neutral. Positive or negative entities are extraordinarily rare. I don’t believe in angels or demons since that would involve believing in “God and Devil.” If an intelligent superior being(s) exist, it is one being not separated into ubiquitous Good verses Evil. Just as sentient beings are capable of both good and bad deeds, it would be both. I do believe in a soul but who knows where it goes after the body ceases to function.

To detect a real spirit, you have to be quiet and calm. Otherwise, you interfere with the EM imprint. Walking around and shouting isn’t going to draw out an entity. I am sensitive to EM fields and seen some interesting shadows. Besides nasty Ouija Boards, I’ve only encountered one that frightened me (poltergeist in a friend’s home located in an old barn). Perhaps positive shadows aren’t as noticeable.

A long time ago at my friend Teddy’s house, we saw flashing lights in the ceiling of the basement (no wiring was in that area) and heard a strange sound. We went upstairs and a cold breeze came through the room even though it was 75 degrees with no open windows. His family had lights go on and off, odd music, voices in the house for years. It was probably a temporary wormhole that brought the sounds of another era to the house. They haven’t seen or heard anything for twenty years. I wonder if the wormhole was two-way, could the people in the past hear the noises of the present? Perhaps they thought the house was haunted, too. A space-time conundrum with no resolution.

The creepiest episode was at Vijay’s home. He had just moved in and I was sitting on the couch. I saw the cushion sink down and felt a weight on my arm. I asked Vijay what was going on. He said that it was the ghost dog that still lived there. I was totally creeped out. The ghost dog played with his living dog for years. After he got a second living dog the ghost dog went away. When we took a tour I told him that there was an elderly women in the upstairs East bedroom, he grimly smiled. She didn’t want to leave after 60 years. She would take the new occupant’s scissors and move them into her sewing room and move medication into the bathroom. The living residents became accustomed to her antics but had to acknowledge her to the realtor when they were selling the home. Truth in selling principal. It took them a long time to find someone willing to buy a nice house with a benign ghost resident.

Thump in the night.
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Thursday, March 20, 2014

FULLY FED ARTISTS


Support local visual artists (independent business owners) by attending free art crawls/fairs, and open building/studio/gallery events in the Twin Cities MN area (St. Paul, Minneapolis, & surrounding communities). Attendees are strongly encouraged to purchase at least one piece of artwork at each event. BUY LOCAL ART and build the community's creative capital!

Join the Facebook group: www.facebook.com/artmobtwincitiesmn

Art Mob Twin Cities MN Event Requirements:
* The Twin Cities area will be defined as Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, and Washington Counties,
* The artist must reside within the Twin Cities area,
* The event must occur within the Twin Cities area,
* The event must be free and open to the public, and
* Artwork (at least 50% by Twin Cities living artists) must be FOR SALE at the event, focused on visual arts.
* Two week or more advance notice is required for posting the event. (NOTE: Include website, location, hours, and duration of the exhibit or events.)
* Individual artists and non-art related businesses will not be promoted (see below), sorry.

This group will focus on the visual arts. "Visual arts" are defined as a two or three-dimensional object which can be physically transported. Medium (glass, wood, fiber, paint, et al) can incorporate sculpture, painting, weaving, carving, arts-n-crafts, large, small, and everything in-between. Artists may combine mediums and media.

Events may include art crawls, art fairs, openings, gallery activities, and any soiree where locally created artwork is for sale. We will not post closings, sorry. If you would like to post an event, send the page a MESSAGE via the Facebook group AT LEAST TWO WEEKS before the gathering. It is acceptable for a gallery/studio to host a visiting artist, but the visiting artist must be a resident within the Twin Cities area.

Non-arts related businesses will be excluded with the exception of a special art show, we will post the opening as long as the local artist's work is for sale. Otherwise, 50% or more of the merchandise for sale must be by local artists. Unfortunately, all fund-raising events for charities, individuals, and other activities will be excluded because, though worthy, they do not match our goal.

This group was created out of frustration. I was seeking a calendar of visual arts events in the Twin Cities. Many such calendars exist for other art forms but nothing comprehensive for the two and three-dimensional forms, thus Art Mob Twin Cities MN was formed. More and more artists are listing their events and our numbers are growing! We want artists to be able to have at least a middle-class life on their artwork. Plus, it would be nice to have a Minnesota Visual Arts Awards Show, perhaps call it the Visi to recognize the achievements of artists. There are award shows for other forms of art such as books, music, performance so why not Visual Arts??? I am coordinating this group as a volunteer, my civic duty, and I am not online every single day. My telephone is dumb (it doesn’t even text). Plus, I have to work and sustain existence so the page is only updated when I have the time.

NOTE: We are not able to advertise individual artists unless they are sponsoring a special event where artwork will be for sale. If they are participating in a posted larger event (such as an art crawl or open studios at a building), they should add a note on the actual event notification.

BUY LOCAL ART!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Monday, March 17, 2014

IMA’S BOOKWORM REVIEW, VOLUME V, ISSUE 4

Young Adult (YA) book series by two different authors, recommended by friends.
SPOILER ALERT: Characters and plotline will be discussed.

Katherine Marsh:
Night Tourist Two and a Half Worms
Twilight Prisoner Three Worms

The first book begins with a bit of a shocker but fades into the mundane. Intertwines history, poetry, and literary alliterations in a creative manner. The main character, Jack, may have a processing disorder but receives no treatment. Second book is stronger. Ending needed extension. Jack’s romantic life is odd, though predictable. Series is good for youth, but rather dull for adults.

Veronica Roth:
Divergent Three Worms
Insurgent Two and a Half Worms
Allegiant Two and a Half Worms

First book, Divergent, begins with the main teenage character, Tris, embarking on a new lifestyle. The examination of societal influences is excellent but the internal assessment is rather shallow. It is unlikely that pregnancy would be risked at such a time. Insurgent novel follows and focuses on the technical aspects of conflict but the emotions could have been delved into more deeply. The final chapter does provide a unique twist. Needed a map of the city and the greater Chicago area.

The third book, Allegiant, is overwhelmed with conspiracy theories. The troublemaking teens would have been monitored. It also introduced the narrative of a different character, which is a dissimilar style than the first two books and rather perplexing. It would of helped to use a variant font for each character. The ending was good but the final action chapters needed more bulk. Too many logic flaws for this series to be recommended.

BOOKWORM RATINGS:
FIVE WORMS = Perfection
FOUR AND A HALF WORMS = Excellent
FOUR WORMS = Very Good
THREE AND A HALF WORMS = Good
THREE WORMS = Fair, but readable
TWO AND A HALF WORMS = So-So
TWO WORMS = Oh-Oh
ONE WORM = No-No

Youth deserve excellent books!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing: all rights reserved.

Friday, March 14, 2014

FLEE CLOUDS

Out the window I stare
Hoping for the sun to blare
Brilliantly
Burning away the snow
To spring, I wish to go!

Start seedlings now.
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved.

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

WASTED YOUTH

When I was very young I did not appreciate the excessive amount of energy that I had despite lack of sleep. I did not value my teenaged idealism. I thought that good people doing good deeds would change the world for the better. I did not fully realize my lack of responsibility and stress during college.

Lots of people took advantage of my naïveté. They mocked, ridiculed, and humiliated me for not knowing. I had to adopt some stoicism to protect my heart. I could not blindly trust others anymore. Sad for me but required for survival. Adulthood is what I yearned for and was disappointed after attainment. It is a difficult struggle to seek optimism and hold onto a few strands of idealism in a harsh negative world.

I have met several teenagers who make life miserable for the people who love them. They should stretch their wings of independence but they don’t need to be so mean or vicious. My niece said and did a lot of hateful things. She was so desperate for attention that she convinced a guy that she was pregnant and then didn’t actually get pregnant for a couple months after the “fact.” He was obviously not very bright to have unprotected sex with her and not question an eleven-month gestation. She had another child and they married. They are still a couple but haven’t lived together for two years, largely because he is an alcoholic. She and the kids reside with my sibling #2 and hubby, which makes all the adults miserable. My sister doesn’t want to kick out my niece because the grandkids would suffer more. A bad situation caused by a young adult who wanted to prove that she could hold onto a relationship. It’s the innocent children who will continue the pain.

We humans have to wise up and stop this stupidity. To purposely harm others, especially those who are vulnerable, is reprehensible. The old adage, “What goes around, comes around” is true. When you do bad deeds, those bad deeds will come back to you or else harm the people that you care about somehow. I don’t believe in fate but I do believe that like attracts like. When you do good, good will come back and visa versa. It may not be obviously apparent but it seems to happen.

I wish that I would have jumped over my fears and taken more risk as a young adult. I should have traveled, lived on every continent, and had many lovers. I was too afraid. However, I refuse to fall into the well of sorrow or regret, that is tantamount to self-torture. No, I’m not dead yet. I have made the choice to have a home and be the personal assistant to two felines. I love to garden, read, partake in the arts, and blog but yearn for something more. It would be splendid to have the money to travel, live elsewhere, and collect lovers. Right now money is my main problem. I don’t know why I haven’t been able to attract lovers or a better job that is for other blog entries.

Carpe diem!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Saturday, March 8, 2014

SICK OF SICK

Part II of the Sickly Chronicles (Part I published on March 2nd)
Slowly drove to work on Monday due to the snow. My symptoms are less but several people in the office are now ill. I presume that they all blame me. Draining to shovel on Monday, clean out the end of the driveway after snowplows on Tuesday, and rake the roof on Wednesday. Feeling a bit better every day, though the occasional phlegm attack and congestion continue. Opted out of evening plans due to fatigue. At least my voice is becoming less scratchy.

Nasty snowstorm was forecast for Thursday so I opted to stay home and go in on Friday instead. Alas, I should have gone in then because we were deluged with ten inches of snow. It wasn’t safe to drive on Friday and I called in ill. I spent two hours removing snow with my pathetic snow-blower. Thankfully, a neighbor with a huge snow-blower removed the cement-like snow pushed in by the snowplow. Raked the roof on Saturday, which was also exhausting. I had originally planned to visit my Dad but glad that I stayed home. Ran out of books to read, no videos from the library, and nothing on regular TV. I began calling friends to fill my time.

Saturday night I attempted to sleep lying down for the first time in two weeks. I only coughed a few times, which was followed by blowing of the nose but it was great. I slept a lot better than when I was propped up by pillows. Sunday I had enough energy to clean. A friend of mine requested that I host a party but I declined because I can’t handle the stress right now.

Fourteen days of suffering is quite enough but it continued. The phlegm and congestion lessened a wee bit every day. Of course, I suffered a coughing spat during an interview. I hope that doesn’t count against me. The prolonged cold dry weather, via the Polar Vortex, probably extended my symptoms. I was feeling crabby and exhausted so I cancelled more plans and hibernated at home. At day 23 I finally felt better.

Cough into your elbow!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

IMA’S BOOKWORM REVIEW, VOLUME V, ISSUE 3

Firefly by Janette Jenkins Three and Half Worms
Fictional tale about Noel Coward. Lots of swearing and reminiscences can be a bit difficult to follow. The novel was a delightfully naughty read.

Pandemic by Scott Sigler Three and Half Worms
Continuation of a series. Reads like an action movie with scientists who save the world from a form of zombies. A sailor with an autoimmune disorder would have been discharged and not permitted to be on active duty. Alcohol is strictly forbidden on Navy ships. Besides those two issues, the book was well written.

Equilateral by Ken Kalfus Three Worms
Steampunk fantasy of epic proportion. Well written but there is nary a single person of diversity which can be esteemed, which is disappointing.

By Blood We Live by Glen Duncan Two and a Half Worms
Continuation of a vampire and werewolf series. Blood, gore and violent sex interspersed with beautiful descriptions. Choppy dialogue and logic problems needed more back-story. Why do male authors assume that females are as obsessed about sex as they are?

The Infatuations by Javier Marias Two and a Half Worms
Good insight about grief and love overshadowed by babbling, foreshadowing, and apathy. Tighter editing would of helped. [Translated]
Put a read on it!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing: all rights reserved.

Sunday, March 2, 2014

SICKY SICK

Cough, cough, cough, slight gag and out comes a bit of phlegm. Yuck! I have been suffering from a prolonged episode of the ubiquitous cold. I am diligent about washing my hands but somehow became exposed to this nasty virus. I cough out a bit of grossness and then have to blow my nose that sometimes triggers more hacking.

Thankfully, the sputum and snot are milky in hue. I don’t have an infection, which would be indicated by a yellow or green color. It is irritating to feel so tired. My stomach muscles ache from so much coughing. I can’t lay down because it leads to choking. I have had to prop myself up on pillows to sleep at night and it isn’t very comfie. I have been consuming an antihistamine to make sleeping easier. A mild headache comes and goes but one aspirin is enough to block the discomfort. An interesting side effect is experiencing no hot flashes.

I began to show symptoms on a Tuesday and by Wednesday I suspected that I had a cold. I knew on Thursday but the indicators weren’t too intense. However, I awoke with a full-blown illness on Friday. I had already scheduled to take the day off. Running a few errands were enough to exhaust me. I cancelled my weekend plans to rest. Silly cats refused to get me soup, hot tea, or fresh kleenexes.

I still felt horrid on another Polar Vortex vexed Monday so I called in ill. Shuffled to work on Tuesday and was exhausted by noon. I had an afternoon meeting to attend and my co-workers humiliated me because they insisted that I sit alone at the end of a table away from them. They would have been exposed the week before but are idiots when it comes to illness. I complied but felt rather angry.

Suffered through the week. Errands on Friday were tiring. No sweetheart for Valentine’s Day, which is depressing for various reasons. I had to work on Saturday and drive home in heavy snow, which is nerve-wracking. I cancelled my evening plans due to being worn out, still sniffling, and not wanting to drive on slippery roads. Felt a bit better on Sunday, cleaned some and had to shovel. Dreaded the forecast for snow overnight.

To be continued…

Wash your hands!
Copyright © 2014 by Ima B. Musing; All rights reserved