To Live Long and Prosper...

adapted from DecalMonster.com

FNDP - Polynesian Style

Summer is here and it’s time to have fun!

So for tonight’s dance party, we have a romp of Polynesian fusion with dancers from across the Pacific Islands (Tahiti, French Polynesia, Cook Islands, Samoa, New Zealand, Hawaii, Australia & more!) and music by one of my current favorites, Te Vaka.

If this doesn’t bring a smile to your face, then I just plain don’t know what to tell you…

Now get out there and have yourself a weekend, by golly!

Earthly Delights

For all the chopping of brush, chainsawing of trees, and mowing of lawn that’s been going on around here, one thing I hadn’t gotten to was my flower garden. It was weeded and ready to go but my usual sources of inexpensive seedlings have either closed down or have been wiped out by this year’s unusually high demand. (Has anyone else noticed how remarkably nice peoples yards look this year?) Time after time, I’ve been met by shelves that are picked over to near-emptiness, with only the occasional forlorn straggler slumped limply in a corner. (And never in the color I want.)

I felt the lack, but it wasn’t such a big deal that getting flowers became A Mission. I pretty much shrugged and said, “oh well… next year.”

So, yesterday’s big event was to finally head to my favorite farmer’s market. It’s a bit of a hike but it’s a) fairly big, b) close to a fantastic coffee place, and c) open on Saturday. (WHY do so many farmers markets take place mid-day of mid-week???) 

My head swimming with visions of leafy greens, strawberries, and rhubarb, I set out. I was running late, having availed myself of the Saturday morning stay-in-bed opportunity, but I was still hopeful. Naively so, as it turned out. There were leafy greens aplenty, but not a berry or stalk in sight. I added some shallots and potatoes to the armful of greens and took my leave - weighing the delights of berries against the benefits of sleep as I went, and questioning my priorities.

My subconscious must have decided to take pity on me, however, because on the way home, I actually noticed (in time to turn off the road, even) that a little home-style farm stand that I’d thought closed a couple of years ago seemed to be open. I parked and went for a closer look.

Fifteen minutes later, I got back into my car, which was now stuffed with rhubarb, strawberries, blueberries, even some very early corn… AND… flowers! 

I am now chock-a-block with gorgeously healthy zinnia, vibrant ruffled petunia, lantana, and a couple of anonymous but very pretty filler plants. So this afternoon, after yet another round of mowing, I’ll be spiffing up the flower garden in hopes of colorful summer pleasure.

A Riddle For the Ages

So there I was, chugging along the road on my way home, when a sharp tap on the brakes was required. Ahead of me, an extremely dignified chicken paused to confirm that I was indeed going to stop, then resumed its stately, solitary, and apparently pointless crossing from one vacant lot to another.

Seriously? I mean, I know 2020 is a joke, but really???

Tweaks and Adjustments

The struggle has been real lately. After weeks of an extra hour of sleep each night due to working remotely, they not only called us back to the office every day, but they decided they might as well jumpstart summer hours while they were at it. That’s great for every other department in the place, but for my group, (the only one without a truncated summer schedule) it means getting in to work even earlier than previously, in order to be done by the time the building closes. So, I went right from +60 to -45 on the sleep-o-meter… and I am still reeling.

It’s not just the sleep, tho’. 

It’s also trying to maintain new protocols in a place that holds 15 years of sheer habit. 

          I’m leaving my room, hands are washed, and… crap! Where’s my mask? 

          A quick run to the supply closet and back… wait! Did I wash my hands? 

          “I need to touch your machine… please step to the other side of the room while I do so… Now you grab a wipe to swab it down while I hit the sanitizer… so I can safely proceed to my office, where I will wash my hands again.”

None of it’s hard, it’s all stuff I’m willing to do, but the constant degree of alertness required is killing me! If the evolution of homo sapiens had depended upon my level of vigilance, the Neanderthal would be the apex predator of today, because I am one oblivious sonofagun. 

I even get distracted while washing my hands, for cripes sake! I step to the sink, soap up, start thinking about the next thing I need to do, then realize I’m drying my hands and I have no idea how long I actually scrubbed. So I have to start over again, making sure to sing the alphabet song this time, to count off 20 seconds. Sometimes I try humming the song, instead of singing - you know, for a change of pace - except, I’ve found that if I do that, I’ve got about a 50-50 shot at losing track of what letter I’m on, again necessitating yet another re-do.

There has to be a better way!

Oh...

Yeah, that should do it!

Alternate Realities

OR...

Maybe two of these ships hit a time distortion and ended up on Earth in 2020.

That would do it, too, ya know...