Monday Motivation

It is a beautiful Monday morning in the Ozarks of SWMO. The early sun is bright, but not yet too hot. The avian community is doing its noisy morning routine of feeding and chirping loudly as they go about their business. The traffic sounds from the nearby highway are man made background noises that rudely infiltrate the natural sound of birds, bugs, and the occasional sounds of horses or cows from the rural farmlands that are not too far away.
My coffee is good and life in the Ozarks is pretty sweet right now.

As I look out at the field that needs to be mowed soon, I am picking out an area to solarize for my native grasses and wildflowers area, 
The process of solarizing will involve measuring out a 40' by 100' (12 m x 30 m), cutting that area as low to the ground as I can, watering it heavily, and then covering it with clear plastic for the rest of the summer and let the sun heat and kill the existing non-native, invasive fescue grass. I need to have the area ready and hope that the rain in the forecast for later this week will be accurate.
The solarization process recommends burying the edges of the plastic to trap in the heat which adds a lot of work and I may find a work-around for that part.

I also have a smaller area that I need to solarize closer to the house. It's a plot that I had tilled a couple of years ago for flowers that is now full of Johnson grass and weeds. I was going to plant popcorn and sunflowers there this season, but it needs to be re-worked and I think solarization is going to be the way to go.

I'm not sure what motivates me to do this stuff. I definitely think a native meadow that doesn't need to be mowed and feeds the birds and pollinators is better than mowing the fescue pasture land that works nicely for grazing cows but pretty much sucks for anything else.
It will take some time to convert the field doing just 4,000 sq ft at a time, but it is doable and less expensive than doing a field kill and replant all at once. 

That's my next project and will pay my pool tax for the coming week. 
My weekend project was building this poolside table for drinks, snacks, phone, etc. As with most of my projects, it was made more difficult by the fact that I have no experience and don't really know what I'm doing. At least it will be functional.

All-in-all, it's Just another day in the life of John.
Happy Monday!
Here's to a grand week!

John

Christian Nationalism: maybe it's a good thing

I do not really think that there is anything good about Christian Nationalism.
However, I do see some good coming from the boldness of our current nationalist movement in the US.

The Christian Nationalist movement that we see now has always existed in a much more subtle form. It has existed in the God and Country services, in the congregational reciting of The Pledge of Allegiance at camps and vacation Bible schools, even in the quiet display of the American flag in churches across the country. 
Christian Americans have been trying to convince all Americans that we are a Christian nation in subtle ways for a very long time. 

Now that it has made the national spotlight and is rearing its ugly head at the highest levels of government, many mainline Christians are beginning to see it for what it is and are questioning or leaving their long time faith communities that support or are okay with this perverse type of Christianity. People are beginning to see that they have been following a religion rather than following Jesus and are waking up.
Yes. I said it. They are becoming "woke" and realizing that being woke is a good thing.

I do not, in any way, expect to see a large national revival of Christianity sweeping our nation.
I do expect to see, or rather feel, the subtle change in the spirit of a nation as more and more followers of Jesus begin to be less about following religion and more about following the actual teachings of Jesus.

Megachurches are just monstrosities build to glorify themselves and scream "Look at us! Look at us!" They are not temples built to honor God. They are what happens when capitalism corrupts religion. They have money, they have influence, and they have power. They have become their own gods.

People that follow Jesus will do so without fanfare.
They will take care of the earth and take care of each other and few people will take notice.
People that follow Jesus will encourage other people to do the same -- not by loud preachers and fiery sermons, nor with flashy worship services, but just by simple words of encouragement and actions of love.

I still have a few friends that are church pastors. I am not much of a church person myself these days, but I respect the work they are doing and the challenges they face. The world would certainly be a better place with more people like them and fewer loners like me.
This Sunday morning they will encourage gatherings of a few dozen to a few hundred people. They will encourage them to follow the Jesus of the Bible and not the Jesus of Christian Nationalism. They will love their people and encourage them to love one another.

I will sit on my deck, listen to the birds, watch the clouds roll in, and tap out meaningless words on my Chromebook.
Even as I write that the world needs more people like them and fewer people like me, I am not making plans beyond finding myself in this present of mine. I don't think I'll be a church guy anymore. It is far easier for me to hear God while I am tending to flowers than it is when I am in church.
I am hopeful that raising the mirror to see Christian Nationalism in our churches and in ourselves will encourage more people to seek the true Jesus and leave the religion and all of its idolatrous trappings behind.

Love God.
Love one another.

That's not the doctrine of Christian Nationalism.
It's the teaching of Jesus.

John

Tax free Friday

Early to bed
Early to rise...

I was tired last night and called it quits earlier than my usual midnight to 1 AM bedtime. Going to bed at 11ish means I'm awake before 6, but that's okay. It's a pretty morning to be out on the deck. I don't expect to be out here too long. I think I'm going to go out for coffee this morning -- mostly because I just didn't feel like making any and also it has been a minute since I've done that.
Currently I am sipping a diet coke while listening to the morning avian community get about their day.

In spite of the Midwest July heat, I have been getting a fair amount of outdoor work done. I consider it to be a self-imposed pool tax. 
Work first
Pool second

Having said that, I am considering a tax free Friday. 
If my daughter in-law can do her Work-from-pool Friday, I can do a tax free Friday!
There are things that need to be done and things that I will do, but it's nice to give myself an out once a week. 
Honestly, I'm pretty generous when it comes to giving myself time off!

Hmmm...
Time to find a coffee shop.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Don't tax yourself too much.

John

Unsubscribed

Last month I unsubscribed from Kindle Unlimited.
It wasn't because I didn't use it. I used it all of the time. I unsubscribed because it seemed to be wasting money to read when there are many sources for free e-books, including the Libby app which allows me to get books for my Kindle reader from my local library.
Unfortunately, my local library is rather small and seems to have a limited number of e-books available, but I still feel like it's a better deal than paying to read.

I am currently reading John Grisham's The Whistler (fiction), as well as Richard Rohr's The Tears of Things (non-fiction). The Grisham book is from the Libby app. Rohr's was purchased from Amazon with credits I had earned on Kindle.
I'm on the waiting list for a couple of other books from Libby.
In addition to that, Chris needed to drop off a couple of books at the library yesterday, so naturally, I grabbed a couple of fiction books (Lee Childs, Jack Reacher). 
What was I thinking?

What are you reading?
What are your book sources?
Actual books, e-reader, both?
Does anyone still read magazines -- online or print?

Just wondering.

John

What is wrong with you?

Self esteem
I believe that self esteem is how you feel about yourself. 
It is an assessment of your overall value as you see yourself.
It is not a comparison to others.
At least, it's not supposed to be.

I think that people tend to compare themselves to others rather than make personal assessments based solely on one's own abilities, talents, and contributions. 
Not only does this give us a false perspective on personal value, but it also makes tearing others down a convenient (yet false) way of making ourselves look better.

I believe that people that are often critical and judgmental of others have very low self esteem.
I should probably point out that I don't have any psychological background or education. This is just an observation and a part of my personal growth.

I have found peace in learning not to compare myself to others
While I do enjoy it when others think well of me, my identity isn't tied to what others think of me.
I am confident and comfortable just being who I am.

By most standards, I have little to offer to society.
I have no formal education.
I have no power or influence.
I have no wealth.
I offer no product or service to make the community a better place.
My sole contribution to society is that I am a consumer, and I really try to keep that to a minimum.

It is weird how somebody with so little value to society can be at peace with who they are, and yet here I am.
If I were to spend the rest of my mornings sipping coffee on the deck,
the rest of my days tending to flowers, reading books, and relaxing in the pool,
and the rest of my nights back on the deck smoking a cigar, sipping a drink and listening to the night sounds,
I would be a happy boy.
I'm pretty sure that Chris would be bored with such a life, but I could honestly be okay with it.

Yes, I like to travel a bit.
Yes, I want to visit my kids and see my family now and then.
Yes, I like occasional interactions with friends, such as meeting for a meal or going out for coffee or a beer.
But with or without those things that bring added joy -- I am content and at peace with who I am.

Even as I write that and watch the golden finches fly back and forth between the black eyed susans and sunflowers, I know that I am far from perfect. If I am going to really enjoy life for a long time I need to improve on my quality of life and change some habits.
I'm getting more serious about that.
Being overweight and out of shape is more what I am than who I am.

So...
What is wrong with you?
Honestly, you are really the only one that needs to answer that question. 
1. It shouldn't be a comparison to others, and 
2. An honest assessment should also ask and answer -- What's right with you?

I'd offer this as a starting point --
Nothing is wrong with you.
You are probably not perfect. Like me (and most others), there are definitely things you need to work on.
But I truly believe that you are created by The Creator as an expression of love -- to love and to be loved.
I hope that you will see that in your own self assessment.

John

Monday evening

It's Monday evening and I just finished book #33 for the year. 
It's a nice evening temperature-wise and the deck is a pretty nice place to spend the evening. 
I may need to get some kind of mounted light fixture so that I can enjoy the pool at night. That may also require a bug zapper of some type. We don't have the nighttime bats like the Puerto Vallarta kids have.
Today was the 7th day of having the pool. It was filled last Tuesday and I have been in it every day.
I'll try to get the lawn mowed early tomorrow so that I can spend the afternoon relaxing in the pool. We should have just gotten one of these when we moved in six years ago.

I was out for breakfast with a friend this morning so my normal morning routine was disturbed. I am spending my Chromebook and quiet time on the deck this evening. 

I avoided writing about the nation's 250th anniversary celebration over the weekend. Honestly, I am a little torn on the subject. I do very much love the life I have here in the USA, but I have become more critical of many of the methods that we employ to maintain this way of life. The deep divide that exists, not only between the US and her allies, but between political factions within the US deeply concerns me. 
Whether it is within our borders or between our allies (or even our enemies), intimidation and violence shouldn't always be the first method of attack. We should have matured beyond the playground bully stage of life.
We have earned a reputation that I do not like and fear that it will take quite some time to overcome. I truly wish that we (humanity) could have more of a global community and look out for one another. 

In astronomic news, we have passed the point on our annual trek around the sun where we reached the farthest point from the sun and the slowest part of our orbit. The earth will begin to pick up a little speed as we get closer to the sun. 
I haven't done much star gazing lately. I should do that again. Recently the night sky (day sky, too) has been a bit hazy with some Saharan dust high in the atmosphere. Soon we will be contending with smoke from the Colorado fires. Our summer weather patterns are a little strange this year. 

I hope you have had a good Monday to begin your week. 

John

Friday Fun Fact

Did you know that applause and explosion come from the same root?

Our current use for explode or explosion is quite different from its original theatrical use in ancient Rome. 
A loud rhythmic clapping was a way to force a poor actor off of a stage in humiliation. The loud, organized clapping was so disruptive that the performance could not continue and the target would be forced to exit in shame.
Ex = out
plaudre = clap
They literally clapped them off the stage.

Applause (also clapping, but less organized and less disruptive) expressed approval of the performance, while what came to be explode expressed extreme disapproval -- both clapping, but very different intentions.

I'm not sure how the loud, disruptive noise morphed into our current understanding of explosion, but figure it probably came into being after the invention of gunpowder and its thunderous clap of released energy.
I'm sure this weekend's firework celebrations of the USA's 250th year will be filled with both explosions and applause!

John
 

Wednesday Wisdom

Today's wisdom is stolen from a well known sneaker brand --
Just do it!

I get the idea of delayed gratification and waiting until the time is right, but sometimes the priorities are wrong. Sometimes there isn't a good reason to wait or the thing we are waiting for isn't well defined.
Whether "Just do it" refers to exercise, taking a trip, or getting into a cold pool -- Do it. Do it now.

I have wanted to get a pool for quite some time, but always managed to talk myself out of it. It is easy to talk myself out of anything that costs money. I'm too cheap to spend much money on things for myself (other than decent cigars, bourbon, or tequila). We finally got one!
It's a pretty inexpensive one, but it's also a bit of an experiment on if it will be worth it. 
My pre-experiment hypothesis is that it most definitely will be. In fact, the real danger is that pool usage will interfere with actually getting work done. I may have to impose some rules about work time before pool time -- kind of a Just do it after I've mowed the field!

We got one of the pools with an inflatable ring at the top. the base is quite a bit wider than the top ring, so a poolside table for drinks, Chromebook, Kindle reader, etc. is a bit tricky. I'm currently looking at floating tables or I may just craft something from a few boards and a cut up pool noodle. In any case, I am not waiting to find something to use the pool. 
I waited a whole hour after it was filled yesterday to get in! The water temp was a cool 68 (20C) degrees, but I was in and enjoying the vibe for about an hour. I'll be doing more research on maintaining a pool and largely learning as I go. 
Looking back, I can't think of a good reason why we didn't do this when we first moved into this house six years ago. 

Today's plan :
Weed eat the yard around the house and flowerbeds (I mowed it yesterday)
Load the smoker with a half pork tenderloin and some burgers
Mow the field
Get in the pool

I'd better get busy!

John

Half-way Point

June comes to an end as does the first half of the calendar year for 2026.
Rather than review the high and low points of the past six months from a national or global perspective, I am just going to take a very narrow look from my own viewpoint.

Early in the year, I finished my sixth winter of working in the crisis cold weather shelters for the homeless community of Springfield MO. The organization around the shelters continues to get better even if the overall number of available beds has not. I really don't know what next season will look like for me. I know there is a need and a place for me within the shelter where I've been working, but I would also like to spend more time in a much warmer climate during the winter months. 
As soon as the season ended this past spring, I headed to Puerto Vallarta for several weeks. April was a lovely time to be there, but January would be a better time to be away from here!  

The spring here has been quite lovely. Even the early summer temps haven't been too bad. Our house stays relatively cool with shaded porches on both front and back and a nice airflow through the house. We make use of the attic fan that our builder says nobody uses anymore and we have been pretty comfortable without using the air conditioner. 
I think we used it back in March when we had an unusual stretch of several 90 degree days, but that's been it. It may come on today or during this week's run of high temps. 

I am back to my cold-brew iced coffee for the mornings. I am thinking about fighting nature and moving to an earlier bedtime and wake-up. I enjoy my slow mornings, but that often puts my outdoor work into the hotter part of the day. If I get up a couple of hours earlier I can still have my slow mornings and start work before it is too hot. Overall, it's not that much of a deal. Summer is my thing and sweat doesn't bother me that much.

The yard work feels good, but I am out of shape for the heavier stuff. I really need to work on that. I am carrying far too much weight and not getting enough exercise. It's an old tune that I keep repeating, but I think I'm finally going to do something about it. I've started using the exercise cycle several times this past month. I'm going to make that a regular thing in the coming months. Setting exercise as a habit is going to be more difficult than it once was. Truly I have been less mentally motivated to move as I have gotten older.
Plus, I like to eat -- too damn much!
It's true -- you can't out-exercise your bad diet.
Damn!

Let's see what the second half of 2026 holds.

John

Monday

As happens on many occasions, after spending a day of manual labor I am extremely happy that I was fortunate enough to be able to sit on my butt in a climate controlled environment to pay bills and put food on the table. 
I will be back at it again today, but at least this is voluntary and I take frequent well deserved breaks to sit my fat, old ass down and keep from hurting myself too badly.

It does make me realize that recognizing and admitting to the physical limitations of aging are difficult things. We all know older people that shouldn't be driving, or walking without assistance, or living on their own (or shoveling dirt during triple digit heat index) anymore. 
We remember being able to do those things but neglect the gradual changes and the cumulative impact those changes have over the years. 

I do need to be more purposely active to battle some of the aging effects, but I also need to make peace with some of the new limitations I am encountering. Today, I will be doing both -- working hard in the heat and taking frequent breaks because it is the safe thing for a fat, old guy to do. 
At the end of the project I will have an above ground pool to relax in. I'm sure it will be worth it.

John

PS -- just a friendly reminder to my US readers