Our Inaugral Trip.....

Over the past couple of weeks we have been experiencing some unseasonably warm weather. Last week in particular the mercury rose to 31 Celsius in and around where I live. I was fortunate to have 3 days off last week, so hubby decided we should go out on the boat. Thursday morning was sunny and hot!!! We decided that we would head out on the boat late morning unsure as to whether we would spend the night but packing in order to make it a possibility.
Our journey started by cruising up Bayne Sound...

I didn't take this photo but it is an aerial shot of Deep Bay marina, where we moore the boat, we headed north out of the bay towards Comox....the Island in the distance is called Denman Island and the Island behind that is Hornby Island.

Anyhow we made our way up the sound. The waters were calm and the conditions were perfect. One of the many things this area is well known for are the oysters. There are many many oyster farms along the coastal waters.....as we were making our way up the sound we came across one such farm which was actively in use...the workers were clearing the cages of the oysters.....

It was really quite a production they had going on. Anyhow having watched them for a little while we continued on our journey. We made it up to Comox harbour got fuel and made arrangements for moorage for the night. After that we headed northeast to an area called Goose Spit...


Again, this is not a photo I took but it shows you the park in correlation to Comox. This area is very popular for boaters of all ages. In Comox harbour they offer sailing lessons for all ages and the hold regatta out and around Goose Spit area.

The following day we were up early with the sun and birds....especially the loud crows and seagulls. We left the harbour by 0800 after hearing word that there were high winds and swells, we change our course for return and opted to return via the sound again rather than heading to Lambert Channel. We experienced about 3 foot swells and we rolled a bit...hubby enjoyed it....I on the other hand was a tad nervous. Once past the open waters and in the shelter of the two islands the waters settled and we actually dropped a line and trolled for a little while. By mid morning we had made our way back towards Deep Bay but we were not ready to call it a day. The winds had settled down and hubby convinced me we should head towards Lambert Channel and Hornby Island. So that is what we did and I was so thankful. There was a chop on the water but manageable. We made it to a place called Ford Cove on Hornby Island a lovely quaint little spot, but what amazed me the most was the rock formations and how the water had eroded the stoneIn this photo you are looking from the beach in Ford Cove on Hornby Island and you see the east side of Denman Island and in the background are the mountains of Vancouver Island.

I think this photo is pretty cool....you can see all kinds of faces and figures in the stone.....

In this photo you see how the ocean eroded the stone to make a web like pattern.....again....way cool!

It's amazing how the vegetation just adapts to the surroundings.......After walking around and checking out the store and shops we made our way back to the boat and continued on to another cove where the Denman Island ferry comes to Hornby Island. There we went to the famous Thatch Pub, known for it's thatched roof and eggs benny on Sundays.

We moored the boat on that rickety dock and yes the tide was out as well...we made our way to the pub for a beer. We met a lovely lady who was from Oregon who said she has been coming to Hornby for over 20 years and was staying in Ford Cove but was out for her hike. There are many wonderful hiking trails on Hornby and she is an avid hiker and said she never tires of the Island. After our chat we made our way back the boat and decided that we would drop the fishing line again and see what we could catch. Got lots of bites but nothing on the line.....boo hoo.

Eventually we made our way back to Deep Bay. After tidying up the boat and loading up we decided that seeing as we didn't catch any fish that we would go and have fish and chips for dinner.

This was a great start to the boating season.

The Eight Meme

So my dear friend Skittles aka Barb tagged me for this meme.....

8 THINGS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO:

1. Spending time with hubby this evening
   
2. Getting the soil and plants for my garden
   
3. The tomatoes ripening and the peppers to be ready for eating
   
4. My daughter coming to visit
   
5. Thursday and Friday so I can go boating with hubby
   
6. Fishing with hubby
   
7. Camping and more boating
   
8. Seeing what tomorrow brings
   

8 THINGS I DID YESTERDAY:

1. Went to the washroom on the dock only to find out it wasn't opened yet
   
2. Fishing
   
3. Cruised Bayne Sound
   
4. Went to Ford Cove for the first time
   
5. Bought a framed print of a beautiful purple Iris
   
6. Went to Thach Cove
   
7. Had a cider in the pub
   
8. Had fish and chips for dinner
   

8 THINGS I WISH I COULD DO:

1. Have more patience
   
2. Paint a picture
   
3. Be mechanically inclined
   
4. Be content
   
5. Enjoy the moment
   
6. Be a dancer
   
7. Write a song
   
8. Spell better
   

8 SHOWS I WATCH:

1. American Idol
2. Morning news
   
3. Deadliest Catch
   
4. UFC
   
5. Hell's Kitchen
6. What ever is on at the time
   
7. Movies
   
8. More of whatever is on at the time
   

8 FAVORITE FOODS:

1. Fish - any kind - any way
2. Shell fish prawns and crab
   
3. yogurt
   
4. Spaghetti(veggie)
5. Chicken
   
6. Salads of any kind
   
7. This time of year Fruit and lots of it
   
8. My homemade double chocolate chip cookies
   

8 PLACES I’D LIKE TO TRAVEL:

1. County Cork Ireland(my grandparents birth place)
   
2. Dubrovnik(my father's birth place)
   
3. Texas(to meet my friend Shelley)
   
4. New Foundland
   
5. Spain
   
6. The Alaska Highway
   
7. Cycle more of the Kettle Valley
   
8. Drive across Canada with my hubby

So now I am to tag 8 people......but I am not going to do that....if you want to play along please copy and paste and have some fun....just let me know it you did the meme so I can come and check out your responses.

Finding balance

I didn't mean to stay away so long....I really didn't.

Since I have started back working full-time it certainly doesn't leave me much time for anything and as a result my blogging has suffered. When I am struggling to get all the things done that I can on my two days off, blogging is the last thing on my list.

With the wonderful summer like weather upon us I find myself outdoors, cutting and trimming the lawn, cutting back brush, and tending the garden. Even though I'm an early riser some days getting up at 0700 doesn't even give me enough time to do all that I want to do in a day.

I have read so much lately about finding balance in one's life. Finding time for self, others and your community. I have really tried to do something for myself everyday...it's like they say pay yourself first, but sometimes there just isn't enough to go around. That's how I feel about myself. My days are full....but with what. In reflection I find that working 5 days a week a real adjustment for me.

Having worked most of my nursing career doing 12 hour shifts with 4 on and either 4 or 5 off it's hard to go to 5 on 2 off. Case in point. With my 8 hour shifts we do a lot of on call and hence mandatory overtime. An afternoon shift which is 1600-midnight with being on call till 0600 the next morning can and has translated into a 15 hour shift and then you have to come back that afternoon and possibly do it all over again. It's a bit of an adjustment and one that the jury is still out on. I enjoy my job, but I am not sure about the 8 hours. Everyone has told me that even though we shut down operating rooms in the summer the overtime is crazy. I don't mind overtime I just want my life as well.

So this leads me back to finding balance in my life. I am still not 100% post surgery. I have try to get in my yoga and weight training as much as possible, but again sometimes that suffers as when I come home from work, doing a work out is about the last thing I want to do.

As of late birding has been one of my passions. I have really taken a keen interest in learning about the birds in my area. My bird feeder and property are a great start. This spring alone I have observed close to two dozen different varieties of birds on my property. I started a birding blog in order to help me journal the birds that I have seen and to use it as a reference point and connecting with other birders. As you can imagine this to takes time....so although I may not be busy making a post on this blog I am busy posting on my birding blog.

Family is also very important to me. With my children and siblings living on the mainland I take every opportunity I can to connect with them. Trips to the mainland are often a whirlwind. At the beginning of May my brother hosted a "Decade" birthday. His eldest son was turning 30. As it turns out 2009 is the year of the "Decade" birthdays in my family. We have someone in the family celebrating a decade birthday starting from 10 all the ways up to 70, so my brother decided to host the party......This was the cake.....there are "11" names on that cake......it was a pretty darn scrumptious cake....Every weekend in May was full with family visits and celebrations.

So back to finding balance. It's something I strive for. What do you do to find balance in your life? Or do you think your life is already well balanced?

Head or Tails Tuesday

The theme/prompt for THIS week, June 2, is:
HEADS - "Motion"

This is a Search and Rescue boat doing some training out on the Westcoast of Vancouver Island....I did not take this photo...but I wish I had....

What a wild ride that would have been....I would to have loved the opportunity to have been on that boat....happy sailing!!!

If you would like to join in on the fun please check out Home of Heads or Tails by Skittles

Camera- Critters #60

It's Sunday and so that means it's Camera Critters.....Most of you know I am into birding and I have been photographing a lot of the birds which have been visiting my property as of late....here is a sampling of some of the birds.....

Tree Swallow

House Finch(Male)

This one I am not sure of....it has markings of a sparrow but also characteristics of a finch....any ideas?

If you would like to join in on the fun please check out Misty's Place for all of the instructions.

Happy Sunday to you all!

Heads or Tails Tuesday

The theme/prompt for today, May 5, is:

EDGE - "Any Past Theme"

Make any kind of post using any past theme! as your prompt. This is a good chance to do a theme you may have missed or just want to do again in a different way.

Well I think I would like to do mine on the week's theme "Down on the farm"

I have never lived on a farm....but growing up in a large family living in the city often we would get the question "why don't we live on a farm?" I never understood that as a child, but as I got older I realized people must have thought that with having so many children there would naturally be enough of us to help run a farm. I laugh at that. We were the farthest thing from being farmers. My mother was brought up having high tea on Sundays with little sandwiches and hence so were we. Digging horse manure or chicken poop was just not going to cut it.

Now many years later I still don't live on a farm...but I do live in the country in a beautiful area where I am surround by horses. The neighbours to the east of us have a couple of cows, and horses and I think chickens. That is about as close to farming as I am ever going to get.

Here's a lovely shot of one of the horses on the property across the road from us

Not really a farm animal but a frequent visitor to the property.

If you would like to join in on the fun please check out Skittle's Place home of Head's or Tails Tuesday!

Heads or Tails Tuesday

I am bit late on making this post but better late than never.....The theme/prompt for today, April 21, is:

TAILS - "Once upon a time"

Once upon a time there was a dog named Bert. Mighty Bert as he is known to most is a soft, gentle and playful dog. Bert's day usually consists of waking up...being let outside to do his business....he takes a walk around the property surveying the area and then shows up at the back door waiting for breakfast.

Well this morning Bert surprised us. Bert went out for his walk....not long after I see Mighty Bert coming down the drive....but what is that he is carrying....I take a closer look.....oh my goodness he has a rabbit in his mouth! A rabbit....well I can't imagine Bert chasing and catching any of these rabbits they are just to darn fast...and although Bert still has a lot of spring in his step, I don't think he has enough to catch a bunny.

So there he is with this bunny in his mouth and he is trying to find a place to burying it....he finds a place..and I watch him curious to see what he is going to do and to just observe his antics..... he finds a spot and begins to dig and digs some more... he puts the bunny in the hole and starts to cover it with his nose. I figure that had to hurt him as with Berts Lupus his nose is often raw. Once it was buried he moved away....but not for long. After awhile he obviously didn't like where he had buried it so he dug it up..and took it to the end of the property to bury it there....didn't like that spot either. So he brought it up to around the house....by this time hubby was watching as well, Bert by this time had put the bunny down....at that point hubby went and got some plastic bags and disposed of the bunny. The End.

If you would like to join in on the fun please check outHeads or Tails created by the one and only Skittles.

Sometimes I wonder if they think we have cotton between our ears

I love Reader's Digest. I am not a subscriber but my father in law is and I get all of his editions once he has read them. Yippee for me. I love most of it's regular articles..the word power, laughter, best medicine and the likes. Like any magazine it has it's monthly focus, April's focus was titled " It's a Wonderful World, how you can make it even better" Well needless to say it did peek my curiosity. What they have done in this edition is taken folks from around the world and demonstrated what they have done to conserve energy or save the planet.

There was a lot of informative information but the one that really caught my attention was the one from the US titled "Conserve Your Energy" an armchair environmentalist approach to saving the planet. The author John Tierney highlights his points on saving the planet.

His first tip was one on "Skip a trip"...well no problem there...I don't have the bucks to take a trip..haven't had any for about 3 years now...so there you go..according to him I could have saved the planet all this carbon dioxide from the flights I would have taken .....then of course he goes on about how to save energy by sealing your house...you know put the stripping around the doors or windows blah blah blah....or better yet drive fuel efficient cars, use cruise control, monitor your water-heating bills,use your dishwasher, use your laptop and let it nap. The one the really caught my attention was "Stay Married" Dang ...where was he when I was getting divorced......gosh according to him I would have been more energy efficient if I had stayed married apparently getting a divorce I now use twice the amount of energy......well dah....there are two households...but I gather that is his point.... but according to him I gather he is saying I should save the planet before my sanity ......hmmmmmmmm. I don't think I needed a degree to figure that one out.

So I am wondering is he saying we shouldn't have vacation property either? Has anyone informed the rich and famous about this? I mean really how many actors and singers have homes all over the world, their summer homes, the winter get aways...oh the horrors of it all that they should have to consider closing down one of their vacation properties. So he thinks we can save the environment by not taking flights and maintaining vacation properties...ok then..fine. But if I go camping....don't I need a vehicle to get there? Don't I need some form of fuel to cook my meals? And well any camper is going to want their evening fire...wouldn't that contribute to the air borne gases? What is one to do?

If I understand Mr. Tireney correctly...I would be doing the planet a world of good(no pun intended) if I just lived my life in a bubble.....but wait...the bubble can't be made out of plastic..cause gosh that is so bad for the planet.....so some kind of dome constructed from man made products which of course were environmentally friendly and had the least amount of impact on the environment...I mean I wouldn't want to be destroying any endangered forest.....ok...that's it environment at all cost.....I think the Eskimos had the right idea....snow. I wish I was a good artist at this point...I have this vision of me living in this quasi igloo ....living only off of food that I had planted myself from seed of course.....and my form of transportation would be either by foot or dog sled. Yes in the ideal world.....

For heaven sakes....I am energy conscious.....I rarely use my dryer...my husband made me an indoor clothes line so I can hang my laundry.....if weather permits clothes are out on the line....I wash my clothes in cold water.....when I have to use the oven I often bake something in addition to the meal I am cooking.....the dishwasher gets turned on only when full.....showers are to a minimum.....yes I use wood to heat my house...but with having mostly glass windows...the house heats itself....I wear sweaters in cooler days......I recycle.....I reuse containers rather than buying new plastic containers for storage.....I buy in bulk decreasing my usage of plastics...I could go on. What I want to know is, what is our governments doing to decrease their impact on the environments? Great they put a carbon tax on us....hmmmmm not sure how that helps the environment...how does that stop the big corporations from exploiting the environment with it's toxic waste? No...it's just another money grabbing concept from the government to line the coffers of the already well to do.

If we are going to talk about environmental savings....let's talk about making things such as solar energy more affordable....give grants to the car industries to build more energy efficient vehicles and pass those saving on to the consumer and do away with the gas guzzlers.....there are many things the government could do...but they take the easy way out...and put it on the back of the working individuals.....and people like Mr. Tierney I think is living in a bubble and is oblivious to the daily workings of the every day working person who is trying to do their bit to save this planet.

Camera- Critters #54

This week I thought I might focus my critters on the ones that I have seen close to the water on in the water.....

Poor little crab...got himself all turned upside down....

An ocean shot would not be complete without a photo of a seagull....


And around here you have to have a photo of sea lions...in March when the herring are running the sea lions turn up in an abundance....this guy looks like he has had his fill on the herring...

Who would have thought you go prawning and what do you get in your trap...but a crazy huge star fish.

If you would like to join in on the fun check Camera Critters hosted by Misty Dawn

Saturday Scavenger Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "Purple"

Purple pansies in my garden

The purple uniforms for the women's roller derby team

The purple sky at sunset

If you would like to join in on the fun please check out

tnchick for all the instructions. Happy hunting!

Happy Friday

I must be getting older. I can't believe how time flies by. I mean here we are coming to the end of another week and Easter has come and gone. I had a lovely Easter weekend. My girls weren't able to make it over but I was able to celebrate it with my extended family on my hubbies side. I had prepared a ladies brunch as the men decided they wanted to go golfing...little did they know it was going to rain half way through their game. But I think they enjoyed themselves all the same.

Brunch was a gathering of generations. I was fortunate to have both great-grandma's, Grandma, mom and baby Lachlan for Easter, along with my nephew's girlfriend. It was a lovely time. Even though the years divided us we were kindred spirits and were able to converse on many levels. My nephew's girlfriend was very interesting she is a lovely young women studying language and psychology in the endeavour to become a psychologist. She posed some very good questions and kept the conversation lively.My great nephew Lachlan was a charmer....gooing and drooling he just kept us all smiling.

from L-R Great-grandma Mamare, my niece(aka mom),Lachlan,Grandma, and Great-grandma Marilynne

Now here we are. It has been a busy week for me. I worked 4 days this week for my gradual return to work. Next week I do three 8 hour shifts and then I should be back to my regular shifts by the 29th of this month. Yippee!!! Gosh it has been a long road one I hope I don't have to travel ever again. However, with that being said it certainly has taught me more than I ever could have imagined. I have really had to learn patience's. That does not come easily for me. Well in my professional life I am very patient but in my personal not so much. I have had to learn that I can do with out a lot of things and even though I think the world is going to come tumbling down on me....it never did. I worried myself sick at times about paying the bills.....but as it turns out I didn't have collectors calling or did I have anyone knocking at my door saying they were going to take things away. No, I fretted for nothing. I caused myself angst for fear of the "What if". Those what if's never happened. Some how things more times than not just fell into place. It's like that book I was telling you about....take care of now and the future is taken care of....and you know....having lived it ....I find those words to be true.

During those difficult times I tried to live by the motto that this to shall pass....and then I found this saying by Cortia Kent...............

"Flowers grow out of dark moments"

I wish you all bountiful bouquet of of flowers!

500 and still counting......

Well I can't believe it.....here I am celebrating my 500th post! Who would have thought. Well I certainly didn't think I would still be blogging. I didn't think I would have that much to say that would warrant 500 posts.

Looking back this all started because of my sister and her request for trying to keep our very large family connected. When I moved to the Island this seemed like a natural thing to do. Sharing my experiences moving from the big city to a very small town.

I have found myself participating in weekly meme such as the Saturday Photo hunt, Camera Critters, and Heads or Tails Tuesday. I have tried to play along as often as I can, but being a shift worker often doesn't allow me the time to meet the weekly commitment. I even tried to make a commitment to myself with Humour Thursday. I thought it would be fun to dedicate a day of the week to spreading some humour....but I fell short of that as well and do it when I can ....or when I think about it.....bad blogger.

My blog has never been dedicated to any specific category, rather I blog about whatever catches my fancy at the time. I wish I could be committed to just talking about one topic whether it be politics, health care which I am very passionate about, gardening, birding....anything. Rather I find myself dabbling in a bit of it all. I guess that is just my eclectic taste, some might say I easily become bored. I like to think I like to mix things up a bit.

I enjoy blog hopping the most. Finding out what is going on in the blog world. Who has discovered what....what's going on with individual families, who's having a baby, who knitting or quilting. The writers, the artists, the photographers all grab at me...the folks who lead alternate life styles and by that I mean the eco-friendly or the homes on a barge. The travel blogs oh I have been so enticed by their writings and expeditions. When they momentarily take me to a far off land where I can day dream and think of it being me on that safari, oh climbing the mountain or just sipping on a nice glass of ice tea lazing in the sun reading a good book. Ah yes blogging....it's a wonderful world. One that I am glad to be part of.

I thank all of you who visit my blog on a regular basis and encourage me when I need encouragement. I thank you for staying by me when I didn't think I wanted to blog anymore. I'm feeling a big group hug coming on.

So my thanks to you all....and I hope to be around for another 500!!!!

Organ donation....Let's put a face with it.....

There is a recent controversy stirring in the news these days about a couple who had agreed to donate their daughter's heart. These poor parents have a 2 month old daughter who has a very rare disease and has been hanging onto life via the help of a ventilator. All the specialist told the parents that there was no hope for their daughter. With that being said the parents were asked if their daughter were to pass away would they consider donating her heart. The parents agreed. This has stirred up much controversy. The father has been very outspoken about organ donation and trying to explain to people the importance of organ donation.

Their daughter was taken off the ventilator and continued to beat the odds and was breathing on her own. Here's more on the story of Kaylee Wallace

This story struck home. In reading the story of little Kaylee I thought it necessary to put a face to organ donation. My niece was a recipient of double lung transplant. If it wasn't for the selfless act of the parents of the child from whom she received the organs she wouldn't of had the couple of good years she had. I'd like to share her story with you.

I don't speak of my niece much, actually I don't think I have ever mentioned her in any of my posts. But this month will be 4 years since my dear sweet niece Rachel Katrina Gojevic passed away. Rachel or Rae Bow as we use to call her because she was always bright just like a rainbow, lost her battle with Cystic Fibrosis at a young age of 21.

Rachel was such a fighter. She spent a good portion of her life in Children's hospital. Rachel unfortunately struggled most of her life trying to fight off the ailments of the disease. Cystic Fibrosis is a very cruel disease you struggle for every breath and every breath is a gift. It was evident at a very early age that Rachel was going to required organ transplant if she was going to make it past her teens.

I can remember when she was young it didn't matter where we were if Rachel needed her physio she got it. Laying her on your knee and pounding on her chest and then back....and then giving her the Ventolin treatments......oh my goodness....in the early stages it was 4 times a day she had to endure those treatments...it increased as her condition deteriorated. By the time she was 12 she received a double lung transplant. That gave sweet Rae a good 2 years and provided her with the ability to truly live her life. She didn't waste anytime. She joined danced classes...she loved art so she took art classes....she was finally able to get out there and participate in life.

During that time she had a wonderful boyfriend, and a huge circle of friends and the world was her oyster. Rae Bow became a spokes person for the Cystic Fibrosis chapter in our area. She spoke at many public functions. She was the poster child/person for the Cystic Fibrosis fundraiser at the college where I took my nursing. Every year the college held a fundraiser called Shinorama, the students would dress up in costumes and go around town trying to raise funds and awareness about Cystic Fibrosis. At Easter we would volunteer at Zeller's and print names on Easter Eggs for a donation. As a family we did a lot of fundraising for CF and tried our best to bring awareness about the disease.

Unfortunately the disease took hold once more and Rachel's life was cut far to short. Just prior to her passing for Rachel's' 21 birthday she went on a cruise with her grandma "nanny" as she use to call her. By the time of the cruise Rae Bow was on oxygen 24/7 and wheelchair bound. The cruise ship did everything they could to accommodate her and her needs. They were wonderful with her. Although she had been feeling unwell during the trip she made the best of it. She went to the casino's and enjoyed the entertainment and even though she couldn't eat much I remember her blog posts about the food.

One of Rachel's last blog posts she wrote about her trip and what a wonderful time she had. She also wrote how unwell she was and that she would have to go into the hospital.

Rae bow's kidney's began to fail the end was near......On April 23 2005 that little angel just gently and quietly passed away, surrounded by family. Although her passing was difficult for all of us we recognized that Rae would no longer have to struggle. Her journey had ended....but ours was just beginning....learning to live our lives without her. But had it not been for the parents who offered their child's organs up for donation Rae's passing may have been much sooner, and to them I say thank you. Thank you that through their grief they found the courage to donate and give our Rae an extended life.

As I look out my window this morning and the sun shining, I know that bright spirit of hers is out there and living and when I see an Rainbow of course she immediately comes to mind and I shed a tear and feel as though she is saying I am ok aunty.....

Happy Easter......

Happy Easter to all my blogging friends. Wishing you all a wonderful day and a Bright and Happy Spring!!!

The fasts are done; the Aves said;
The moon has filled her horn
And in the solemn night I watch
Before the Easter morn.
So pure, so still the starry heaven,
So hushed the brooding air,
I could hear the sweep of an angel's wings
If one should earthward fare.
~Edna Dean Proctor, "Easter Morning"~

What do you think?.....

So I am driving into town today and as I turn onto the highway there are "Caution signs" indicating there is work going on ahead. I just so happened to have to stop at the light and I took a look at what they were doing. Where I live there is a lot of Broom...although a lovely plant when in bloom the Broom is a royal pain...it takes over everything. Currently there is big campaign on to try and control the growth of the Broom. There actually is a group called the Broom Busters who you can contact and they will let you use their equipment if you want to go out and help cut back the Broom.

This group of people however were not the Broom Busters. No sirree, it was very evident who they were, all dressed in their bright orange coveralls with big black letters on the back which says "Corrections". Yes they were actual convicts from the local prison doing work detail of clearing the Broom. I thought right on, it's about time we see these folks doing something constructive and productive. It was a glorious day perfect for being outside. So rather then being behind the prison walls possibly scheming or getting into trouble they were out there being supervised and clearing the broom. To me it seemed like a win win situation. The prisoners get to be outside doing something constructive and the public wins as the Broom gets cleared.

Now with that being said, I can't help but wonder why so many of these programs have been done away with. I can remember where I grew up there was a prison not far from us. It was situated on wonderful parcel of land with a lake and acreage. In the early days as part of work detail and work experience they use to have the prisoners go into the fields and grow crops. They got paid minimal for doing these tasks but again to me it seemed like a win win. They again get outdoor, did something productive, got some exercise and grew crops, the food was used by the prison and anything left was sold to the local market with the monies going into inmate programs. They did away with that program, some prisoners and prison rights activist felt it was infringing on the inmates rights. Hmmmmmmmmm.......didn't they forfeit their rights when they committed their crime? Just seems so odd to me.

There are a lot of programs on the TV lately portraying the prison life. Lots of prisoners are on 23 hour lock down. I'm not sure how that helps reform a prisoner or even if the prison system believes it has a responsibility to help reform the prisoners, but it is something they do. I have heard the over crowding of the prisons makes things very unsafe for a variety of reasons, but that's a whole other topic. Again I can't help but wonder how does locking someone down for 23 hours promote anything positive. It leaves the inmates lots of idle time....and you know what they say "idle hands". If these folks are to eventually be reintegrated into society why aren't they provided an opportunity to learn a trade, do something productive rather that sitting in their cells 23 hours a day thinking about their next con, or who knows what.

I am sure there are lots of theories and rationale as to why the 23 hour lock downs are better than the prisoners doing a little community work/service. I also recognize the prison system is a very complex environment. There are some hard core prisoners in the system, but what about those petty crime inmates. Those prisoners that just made some bad life choices and given the right tools could easily reintegrate into society. Prison gaurds are trained professional and put their lives on the line everyday, but why can't they supervise some of these inmates in performing community duties? Maybe working with them to teach the inmates some life skills. Maybe I have simplified things here, but I still think there must be a better way.

What do you think? Do you think there should be inmate reform programs or better yet community service programs similar to what I observed today.

Heads or Tails Tuesday

I just love this header...to cute....

The theme/prompt for today, April 7, is:

TAILS - "List Three"

List three things from any category. Your choice. (Remember, this is TAILS
and that means your post should be a real list of some sort.)

The possibilities are almost endless this week! Some examples would be: Movie stars or movies, singers, songs or bands, pets or animals, drinks, foods or recipes, locations or vacation spots, toys or games.. etc. etc. etc.!
If you would like to join in on the fun please check out Skittle's Place Home of Heads or Tails Tuesday.

My first list would have to be 3 Sports I enjoy:

1. Slo Pitch
2. Fishing with my hubby
3. Skiing both water and snow

3 Foods I like to eat:

1. Seafood(any kind except shrimp as I am allergic to shrimp)
2. Anything hubby makes( He is an awesome cook)
3. Chicken cooked anyway

I have what some would say an eclectic taste in music 3 genres of music

1. Coffee House
2. R& B
3. New Country

I just so happen to have 3 daughters their names are

1. Siobhan
2. Candice
3. Roisin

So that is my lists of "3". Hope you all have a great week!

Saturday Scavenger Photo Hunt

This weeks theme is stripes.....if you would like to play along please checkout tnchick for all the instructions. I loved the stripes in this yellow butterfly that was outside my window last spring.

Something to ponder

Do you ever find yourself dwelling on things in the past? I do. I do it a lot. I think about things both positive and negative, but I tend to dwell on the negative. People say that you shouldn't live in the past but rather we should learn from the past. To learn is good. They also say don't worry about the future, don't worry about something that might be. How true. So what does that leave us, the Present, the Now.

I am currently reading this book The Power of Now A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle. To say it is enlightening for me would be an understatement. It has given me many concepts to ponder. It also provides for some very interesting topics of conversations. For me it challenges the concept of how we identify ourselves.

I don't know about you but I have often identified who I am based on where I have come from. My past experiences good and bad have made me who I am today. Is that such a bad thing?

According to Eckhart, by holding onto feelings and emotions from the past holds us hostage to our emotional pain center, Echart describes these feelings as "pain-body", that we identify these feelings/emotions as being who we are"....you have made an unhappy self out of your pain-body and believe that this mind-made fiction is who you are. In that case, unconscious fear of losing your identity will create strong resistance to any disidentification. In other words, you would rather be in pain ~ pain-body ~ than take a leap into the unknown and risk losing the familiar unhappy self."

An interesting concept. So if I understand him correctly he is saying I would rather stay unhappy because that is familiar to me, rather than risk the unknown to possibly become a better me. Food for thought don't you think?

Eckhart really wants to teach the reader how to let go of the past and not worry about the future but live in the NOW. Is that possible? Part of me wants to believe this to be possible. I was saying to my husband the other day....I can work on letting go of my past, but what about the future. It has been ingrained in us to always plan for the future, like the squirrels rushing around and gathering nuts and storing them in preparation for the "possible" long winters. But if I don't take care of the future, then who will....then it dawned on me.....if I live in the NOW and take care of the NOW then tomorrow will be taken care of. Simple concept really, but not an easy one to really grasp to live by. Is that Nirvana?

I have really simplified Eckharts concept of NOW. One of the things that I really liked in his book is how he spoke about those moments in our lives when no words can express how you are feeling living the moment. Like holding your child for the first time, or when you see something so breathtaking or you are in total awe of your surroundings no words can express how beautiful, tranquil and invigorating that experience is for you.

We can all live and hold onto our past, or worry and busy ourselves planning for the future, but then we often forget about living and enjoying the present. What a pity don't you think?