It's Monday -- or moon day

Yep, Monday corresponds to Moon day. 
Even in Spanish -- lunes (days of the week are not capitalized in Spanish) is moon day.
If you are interested, the moon currently sits at the New Moon phase, placing it between the sun and earth so we face the dark side and see no moon. It reached New Moon at around 1 AM in Missouri.
Other than that, it is just another Monday.

If you tend to watch the sky -- the northern Taurids meteor shower peaks in a couple of nights. In the early morning hours of the 12th (Wed night/Thurs morning) look towards the constellation Taurus as the radiant point for this smaller, but pretty decent shower. The Taurids tend to travel into the upper atmosphere more slowly than most showers (I don't know why) so the meteors tend to be brighter and easier to spot.
Because today is the New Moon, the slight crescent moon will set early, making it an ideal night for meteor watching.
Unfortunately, skies over the Ozarks are currently forecast to be overcast.
Sacrebleu!

Today, however, looks to be sunny and warm for November. I am going to try to spend some time outside where I can enjoy the sun's fading warmth. 
Mid-November
Upper 60s (20c)
Life is good

John

Fun Fact Friday

Did you know ... ?

John
 

Wednesday Words: about grace and gratitude

Today's Wednesday Word is not one that has a surprising meaning or background story. It is simply one that I have had a little change of perception or attitude about. We see it in different forms -- grace, gracious, gratitude -- all from the Latin gratia.

I was thinking about this because last week I had lunch with a friend and former pastor/preacher. As we sat down to eat, he asked if I wanted to bless the food (give thanks, say grace, etc,). I declined and let him do that.

Here's the thing (for me).
I don't ever want to reach the point where I take the good things of life for granted. I always want to express my gratitude, but I do believe there are different ways to do that. 

"Oh, this is really good!" is an expression of appreciation and of gratitude.
The enjoyment of sharing a meal with a friend is an expression of gratitude.
A smile, a hug, an acknowledgement of a gift or favor received -- all are ways of being grateful. 

At this moment I am sitting in a coffee shop, sipping an iced cold-brew, using the hot-spot feature of my new smart phone, and typing words on my Chromebook that will travel great distances and be read by a handful of people.
How could I not be thankful for the life that I have?
I often joke (sort of) about being a curmudgeon-in-training or about being a grumpy old man.
I'm not.
Mostly, I do want people to leave me the f--- alone, but that's just because I am so thankful for the quiet time that life provides for me!

Today, I will do a little of the outdoor work that I've been putting off because of the midsummer heat and then I will be thankful for the simple little pool that I have as I enjoy a cigar and evening drink. 

Will you be grateful today?
How do you express gratitude in ways other than simply saying -- Thank you?

Thanks for reading!

John

Wednesday Words -- Lights out!

How about a new alliterative category for Wednesday?
I'm about tapped for wisdom. Although I've often been called a wise-a$$ or a wise-guy, I've seldom been thought of as a truly wise man.

And besides, words can be fun.
For an older generation of kids that played outside all day, the streetlights coming on was often the signal for kids to head home for the evening. Not always, though. We played kick the can, hide and seek, tag, and many other games with the neighborhood kids well after dark.
The electric street lights came on automatically and stayed on all night. Nobody had the job of lighting the gaslights when the sun set or extinguishing them when it was time for everyone to be safely at home for the night.
Although there are many good reasons for streetlights to remain on throughout the night, it's weird to remember that electricity or even gas jets haven't been around for most of the history of humanity. For most of our history, turning out the lights meant putting out a fire. Nighttime light came from candles, lanterns, or fireplaces.
Today, lights out is as simple as flipping a switch.

Our word curfew comes from the French couvre feu which means cover fire.
The French were the first to use street lamps in an effort to reduce nighttime crime in Paris. When it was time for the street lamps to be extinguished (couvre-feu), it was time for everyone to be at home.
Instead of be home when the streetlights come on; it was be home before they go off -- curfew!

And now you know.

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
 

Brrr...

Much of the Ozarks is waking up to frigid temperatures this morning. "Feels like" -4 (-20c) means that it's coffee by the fireplace for me today. I will have absolutely no reason to venture out into the cold until this evening when I will make my way into the shelter to keep a few dozen people and their pets company throughout the night. 

I haven't felt like writing much lately, but I have been reading. 
It has been a long time since somebody has talked to me about reading The Bible, but one of the overnight guests at the shelter asked if I'd ever read through the complete book before. 
I have, but it has honestly been some time since I have made it a part of my daily habit. I am not going to read through it from beginning to end again. I can't think of a single reason to do that. But I am going to read through the new testament with a different perspective than I have in the past.

It is difficult to set aside nearly all that I was taught about The Bible as I read through it again, but much of what I learned was weaponizing the ancient text to control a society into blindly serving some made up, bullshit religion and worshiping a god of its own design. I'm pretty much over the religion of Christianity that worships Jesus, but fails to do -- even actively opposes -- the things that he taught concerning how to live in harmony with one another. 
Studying the life and teaching of Jesus without the cloak of religion is both challenging and freeing, but takes a little more time and effort than simply reading the gospels. I am hoping that I will have the persistence to see it through.

     * * * * *

Switching topics to Things I Learned This Week

Did you know that the word myriad once represented a specific number of things rather than being a countless quantity?
To the ancient Greeks a myriad was ten thousand.

Did you know that poecilonym (PEE-sill-oh-nim) and polyonym are both synonyms for synonym?

Both from my Word Nerd calendar.

Have a great week!
John

FOMO isn't a thing for me.

FOMO -- the fear of missing out

It was just a few minutes before midnight when I found out that yesterday (Jan 2) was World Introvert Day. 
I almost missed it!

On the other hand, I did observe it the way any solidly introverted person would -- I stayed home, potted a few plants, read a little bit, watched a movie on my Chromebook, and avoided contact with other people. It turned out to be a wonderfully fitting observance of the day.
I did have to make a quick run to get some food for the cat, but that was my only exposure to the outside world for the day. Although today is not World Introvert Day, I will carry on in much the same way as I do every day.

It looks like the nighttime temps may drop below the freezing point this weekend, so I may have to put in a night or two at the shelter. Daytime temps will be in the 60s (upper teens for you Celsius folk) for next week and I hope to get some of the outdoor work done that I mentioned in yesterday's post. It's also been a little while since I've been able to sit and enjoy a cigar so that will likely happen next week, too.

I have a pretty low expectations kind of life. It suits me quite well. 
I don't do drama.
I am happy to let people do their own thing and work out their own issues.
I am beginning to understand the Buddhist and Toltec beliefs that attachments (to people and things) cause suffering (Buddhist) and that we are addicted to suffering (Toltec).
Perhaps we could all use a little suffering intervention.

Ah well, life goes on.

If you are one of those that wants to learn something every day -- 
From my Word Nerd calendar:
Overmorrow is the day after tomorrow.
And for a bonus:
Ere-yesterday is the day before yesterday.

John