seriouslyscorpio

thoughts of the moment and of my life

Author Archives: seriouslyscorpio


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cruis’in the caribbean


It was a nice cruise…..especially since we were leaving 2 days after the accident off the coast of Italy.  Sure got us thinking about how to exit, in case of emergency.  Always look around, planes and ships….serious business

But this is not about that…you know.  This is about what it says in the ads and what life is really like, on some of our stopovers.  We enjoy the opportunity to meet people, and enjoy new places.  We are very lucky to have seen a lot of the United States and know, without a doubt, it is the best place ever.

Having said that….our 5 stops offered us a little of what the Caribbean is like.  Its beauty, its people, its history, its colorful buildings, etc.  I cannot deny there is  all of the above….but very little of the magic one dreams about.

There is no running water on some islands…no running water!!  The only water one gets, comes from rain, caught in a container!  Sounds romantic unless you have 4 kids, and 2 dogs and 10 plus loads of wash a week.  Does not work well in a place with no running water.

There is no sewage disposal on some islands….mmmmm  need I say more.

YOu  may not wear any type of camo clothing on a certain island…..don’t want to mistake you for either a bad guy,or the real police.

Unfinished houses are passed down from parents to children.  If the current family makes any overage during the year, they add a cement block or two and put in more rebar. It continues to be built slowly,  not in months but years/generations.

Most make their money off tourism…..tourism that lasts from November to April.  They sell all the same things one can find in any tourist town…t-shirts, pens, cards, dolls, towels, etc.

Most island businesses who are successful in the tourism portion of town, sell alcohol, diamonds, tanzanite, and perfume.   “Big deals”, they say are offered……doubt it very much.  Bailey’s sells for the same there as it does here. Most brand name hard stuff, sells for about the same too.

Don’t want to rain on your parade…..just offering some insight as to how 3rd world some of these island are.  Their land is beautiful, their lifestyle is not to be envied. (At least that is my opinion)

And lastly, I sometimes felt like the ‘queen’ coming off a magnificent cruise ship….Would they trade places with me……in a moment.  I was embarrassed. I hear of so many  US tourists ‘showing off’ on their journeys to other lands.   I wanted to be sure I was not one of them.

I am one lucky SOB…..I know it!  I think most of you are too.  Just keep some of these things in mind when you travel.  Be gracious, be understanding, be careful, and be thankful!        later


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southwest florida


82, hardly any humidity….beautiful southwest fla—stay on the east side of the gulf….enjoy the same beauty and have a better chance to stay alive


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so sorry God


been looking at Greece and Syria, not to mention Africa, Mexico, and Iran. I apoligize for those who do not try to do unto others as they want others to do unto them. If I keep trying with my own neighbor, maybe it will spread to Greece and Syria


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CRUIS’IN WITH THE OLDIES


We’re home…..it was fun…..will do it agin……not tomorrow.   All those statements are true, even tho it sounds as tho it was not a ’10’.  Cruising is  be so ‘so ordinary’, ‘so fabulous’, and yet ‘so shocking’…..More about shocking later.

The ship is very nice….100′ shorter than the last ship we were on, but half as many people.  They had to drag me to my first crise.  I mean, it really sounded boring.  Same stuff to do on the cruise as I do at home, so why pay to fly and cruise….Well, I was wrong, in a way.   Cruising is truly a way to get away…I am forced to do what I want to do sometimes, a good example being..reading.  I love to read, but I put chores first, so when I get into bed to read, I last about  4 pages.  I tell myself to read in the AM, but then chores get in the way again. I read 5 books in 2 weeks…..Good for me!

Cruising and eating have to go hand in hand.  I can read and eat, I can watch TV and eat. I can sit by the pool and eat. I can drink and eat. I can do almost anything, except exercise, and eat.  Same with drinks, any kind,  any time, any where, doing almost anything.  Now that is not something I crave, nor need to do, but it was nice to be served a Tequila Sunrise  by the pool.

Yes there were art auctions, nights of bingo, magicians, comedians, dancing, games, the spa, restaurants, bars, a library, pools, quiet spots, and a casino, but most of all…..THERE WERE OLD PEOPLE!!!!!!!        I LOVE OLD PEOPLE!!

Probably 96% of those aboard were over 60.  Folks came from US, UK, Spain, India, Argentina, and Jersey…….It was a delight.

We sang Queen together, we talked about our home towns, our countries, our politics (local and foreign), our clothes, our retirement and former occupations, our families,and our lives as  we know them.  It was great…it was powerful, it was a learning experience and a confirming experience.

We were with a group…’that made it’, thru 30 to 60 years of marriage, family expectations and family sadness, illnesses,  and loss of parents. We talked of 50 and 60 year high school reunions, and the warmth of long friendships.  We talked of war and we talked of peace. 

“How lucky we are”…..they repeated, “to be sitting here today”.  We “oldies” are confident and hopeful group, but not proud in a ‘haughty’ since. We have seen the past, lived the past, done our best and look forward to tomorrow.  We are strong, opinionated, political, moral and ethical, and our values do not waiver. 

We have seen leaders come and go, we’ve seen strife, and victory….and we’ve been a part of it.  Our beliefs are strong, our faith remains, and we are not a selfish group.  You see our pictures……when ‘been there, done that’ is looked up.

So cruis’in is really pretty good……isn’t it……(took the chevy to the levy but the levy was dry……and good ole boys were drinkin whiskey and rye, sayin……(cm’on you know the words))

later

 

 


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VALUES…..(WE’RE NOT TALKING MACYS)


In the paper today, there is a quote from Margaret Thatcher…..”One of the great problems of our age is that we’re governed by people who care more about feelings than they do about thoughts and ideas”…..

I will add that it seems we are also veering from our values due to the sensitivity of our friends, kids, jobs, churches, and our own cravings.  Hey!  There is nothing wrong with saying “no”. There is nothing wrong with saying, “this is not right”. There is nothing wrong with saying  “yes, we can get away with it, but no, it’s not right”. There is nothing wrong with saying “YOU ARE WRONG” when your values, morals, and ethics scream inside your brain.

When did we start going down this path? Did our little kiddies pull the wool over our eyes when we were vulnerable? Shame on us…Did our friends manipulate us into believing they would walk if we didn’t go along with the opinions and even their actions? 

Now go look in the mirror……..Did you fall for it?  If so…..shame on you!

Keep looking in that mirror and make a plan to make a change….starting now,  not after you go to the game and yell obscenities, not after finance committee meeting concerning balancing the budget, not after you snicker at the less fortunate, not after you cheat on your taxes, but NOW!

ATTENTION…….morals, values, and ethics have not been modified to fit our lifestyle….I don’t care what the kids say……

BOTTOM LINE…….make the change…..be at the head of the line…..stand tall…

 

later     


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CRUIS’IN……ON A SHIP, THAT IS!!


just back from a cruiseon NCL….dang, lots to talk about. So glad I am an American, so so glad.
later


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HOME AGAIN, HOME AGAIN!!


back from a cruise….lots to write about…..love your country in spite of its shortcomings……lots more coming….thanks for hanging in there….

got to unpack and hide all the food!!     later


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GIVE IT UP FOR………


Here we are, bumping along.  There are ‘up’ days, ‘medium’ days, (normal) and ‘down days’. (Really all three are normal, right)  So here we are, bumping along, and then……there we go.  Exit bumping. Exit normal days.  Exit life..we’re dead!

Now what shall become of us…..woulda, coulda, shoulda thoughts ‘should’a’ occurred prior to the ‘exit’ sign above us, but sometimes our ducks are not just ‘all in a row’, if you know what I mean. 

Wait, what about that little card?  I had that somewhere…dang where is it, my wallet, my purse, my top left drawer in the bedroom, with my passport, dang!

Well, not to worry now……as in ‘Elvis has exited……”. But, for the sake of this article, you do (or did) have that nice card.   This card is way past nice, it is the best of the best, the cat’s meow, the Taj Mahal, lotto, and more.   “Why”, you ask?  Simple……If  you only have one kidney that works, if you are blind, if your liver is shot, if your heart only pumps because of a machine, or heavy medication, this little card will be all the above and more.

You, the one newly exited,  offer the gift of life, with this little card. People and organizations world-wide have come together to offer those in need, a new chance at life, and you, my friend, are the integral part.  It is you who have, at one time, usually when you renewed your driver’s license, made the choice to donate your useful organs. Of course, at that time, death was at least 10 light years away, so it was not thought about prayerfully, but now!!!!!…….as you move on to the beautiful place you chose….that decision made in life is making life for others possible. 

The stuff worked for you while you had it and needed it, but now, it is surplus. For that child needing a new kidney, it is beyond words. For the soldier, blind from serving his country, it is the open door to life and work and family. For these thankful recipients, it is not surplus, it is opportunity………

……to begin to just ‘bump along’.

 


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DEATH AND DY’IN BACK IN MY LITTLE TOWN


Creation, flawless as it is, is sometimes hard for us humans to understand. I know we all have different opinions when it comes to creation, and this discussion is not about that…..Mother Nature has pretty well put together how things work, the sun, the seasons, the temperature, the  chloroform idea, the magnetic field, and on and on.  I know there are a few forms of life we question when they over run our picnic tables, or swallow a deer whole, but since I wasn’t called on at the time of ‘making stuff’, I should be happy that I don’t have more or less anything.

But every now and then, I walk into sadness.  I know, we all have families, and friends who have passed, or have a certain type of chronic illness,  but at least, as humans, we have the ability to communicate our sorrow, our understanding, and our help.

My sadness comes for those, I can’t communicate with.   I know animals die in the forest, I know plants wither, but when it happens en mass, it is striking to the heart.   On the beaches of  south Florida, this time of year, the fighting conches are mating and dying.  They are wonderful little ‘people’ who spend their lives int he Gulf of Mexico.  They come in all sizes, shapes, and colors, and have a ‘foot claw’ that helps them move along in the sand.  They aren’t scary and don’t bite or sting or spit.  They are just wonderful little beings.

They become more human when you see them look up at you with their little telescopic eyes….they stick out of their shell, one on each side, and watch. Their eyes are on the end of the long telescopes…it is so cool!

Laws supposedly prohibit anyone from taking more than two live shells per day from the gulf…….right….. we could fill the local jails with people who bag these creatures by the hundreds …..and then are appalled at anyone who tells them to put the little guys back.  Another story….another time.

So now is the time of the year when the conchs come to mate.  I repeat, I know life and death are certain, but it causes one to pause when low tide uncovers the dead and dying by the thousands.  They leave us for their hereafter, and it doesn’t happen quickly…..Mother Nature steps in to see that their remains are taken care of by the local birds and hermit crabs. Admittedly, she has thought of everything, in spite of our doubts, but the whole thing is just hard to watch.  I am part of the cleanup  committee too.  Their colorful shells are carefully cleaned and used for decoration, crafts, and sent to schools where little ones learn about the sea.

All I’m say’in is, dang, when you are hit in the face with thousands of anything dying, it should have an effect on you.  How we treat  our fellow-man, how we treat our earth, and how we should care for every creature with love and respect, should cross our minds each time we walk around a life and not on it.

Handling sickness and death with love and compassion…..whether it is your friend, your pet, or the fighting conch is something we should strive for. Although we cannot change migration without dire consequences, we can feed those who are hungry and care for those who are alone and afraid.

Little eyes are little eyes, no matter who they belong to…….


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BAKING IMPERFECTION UNDERESTIMATED!!!!


The little one next door (1 1/2 yrs) doesn’t mind a an imperfect cookie…or fudge with a few ‘chewies’…..his eyes sparkle as he holds out his little hand for a cookie corner.It is the simple things that make us continue to wonder, isn’t it. There truly is joy in the smallest of things. We must merely open our eyes and hearts.