Beautiful Blogger Award for Beautiful Bloggers

WOW— Not one, but two of the coolest bloggers in the blogosphere–Sarah, the SpeakUp Librarian and Kym at Cuteness of Curiosity gave me the same award.  Thanks bunches!  I’m so flattered!  Now I have much to do before accepting.

1)      Thank the person who nominated me for this award.

2)      Copy the award & place it on my blog.

3)      Link to the person who nominated me for this award.

4)      Tell us 7 interesting things about yourself.

5)      Nominate 7 bloggers.

6)      Post links to the 7 blogs I nominate.

I have to say this was the hardest part.  There are so many good blogs I read every day.  Some of them have already been nominated.  But these are the blogs that catch my attention every time they post, mainly because of where I’m at in my life journey right now.  Each of them inspires me in a different way.   My life is much enriched by their posts and I thank each of them for being who they are.  Listed alphabetically by blog name, they are:

• Robyn Carter at the Ambling Rambler, a dear friend and gifted photographer who maintains the BEST photo blog in New Zealand.
• MM of At the Rim who writes about late-deafened issues in the UK.  Never one to mince words, his posts are straight forward, from the gut, and he has a wicked sense of humor.
• K.L. at ASL-Cochlear Implant Community.  I don’t have a deaf child, but I see a lot of myself in K.L.’s approach to parenthood.   I love reading her thoughts, which are always backed up by research
• Michael J. Contos at Contoveros, a self-described Zen Christian, who writes about life and spirituality.  I only discovered his blog last week, but it’s awesome and inspirational.
• Dianrez—always an intelligent voice of reason.  She loves a great discussion.
• LaRonda Zupp at Ear of My Heart, another late-deafened vlogger/blogger who has come back from a long hiatus.  I missed her while she was gone.  She never fails to transcribe her signed messages.  For that I’m grateful.
• Ecodeaf –a blog for environmentalists.   She inspires me to live more simply.

Interesting facts about me.  HA!  There’s nothing interesting about me!!
1.  I have owned an HD TV for three years and still haven’t figured out how to operate it.  Sad, but true.
2.  I have perfect pitch, though I no longer play any musical instruments (besides the djembe) due to acquired deafness.
3.  After raising three kids, I feel like I’m just now finding myself for the first time.  And I am loving this stage of life—being fifty-two with adult children who turned out OK.   In the past couple years I have: taken belly dancing lessons, taken drum lessons, danced with a gypsy group, taught myself to crochet and knit, learned ASL, become a Buddhist (sort of—working on that), and taken up Jazzercize because this is my year to get fit!
4.  I like change and doing new things.  I get extremely bored with routine and repetition.

5.  I am a terrible daydreamer, and have been known to get turned around even a block away from home.

6.  I have been going to the opera regularly for many, many years.  I love live theater, and especially opera because of the subtitles.  I have plans to see the Magic Flute at the Met in NYC this spring.
7.   I have had three operations in the past four years.  Knock on wood that 2010 will be a better health year.

 

Photo Hunt: Undesirable

This is my friend’s dog, named Chewy.  He was a cuddly puppy when this picture was taken.  Now he’s a very, very big dog who is still a puppy.  I wrote a Suess-ish type poem about him.

I Do Not Want A Dog Named Chewy

I do not want a dog named Chewy.
Who chews on things,
And leaves them gooey

With slobbery , goobery
Icky dog drool
He needs to go to
Obedience school

I do not want a dog at all
I do not like they way dog’s bawl
Or whine or bark
Or yip or growl

I do not like to step in poo
I hate to clean off stinky goo
Stuck on my shoes
When they’re brand new.

I do not like the way dogs smell
They make me gag and feel unwell
Basically
They smell like hell

I do not want a
dog who whines
Or lifts his leg on
“Wet Paint” signs.

I do not want a dog who barks
I do not like dog doo in parks

I love my cat: I love her purr
I love the way she licks her fur
She’s always clean
That’s for sure

My cat is smart; my cat is nice
She’s very good at catching mice
Her snaring skills are precise.

She doesn’t beg; she’s not a pest
Most the time she is at rest
In her little kitty nest.

She does not growl
She does not bite
She does not wake
Me up at night.

Please take your dog
And go away.
I really do not want to play.

But HEY!  Chewy is
so cute today.

 

gum

There is a gum wall in Seattle. Yep. People leave their chewed gum on a wall. It’s quite colorful. I have been chewing a lot of gum lately. Gives my mouth something to do when it’s not talking! I have been wondering how often others chew gum. Please vote in my poll below.

gum

Originally uploaded by (michelle)

How often do you chew gum?

(polls)

 

PhotoHunt: Two Weeks Worth

This week’s Photo Hunt was curved.  I couldn’t resist posting this pretty little wreath in my neighbor’s window.  I realize this is probably a bit of a cop out, since wreaths are everywhere.  To be honest I almost posted something else, then decided what the heck– it’s the holidays.

A beautiful 'curved' wreath decorates a neighbor's window

Below is last week’s theme picture of technology, which happens to tie in nicely with my blog theme.   Most of us ‘deafies’ are high tech.  Here are a few of my gadgets, which you’ve already seen in the collage that I made when the Photo Hunt theme was electric.  I arranged my things differently this time.  Notice all the ‘face me’ buttons.   I own a couple more, but I thought three was enough for the photo.  I am particularly fond of the lips, though I rarely wear any of the buttons.  My experience has been that no one ever pays attention.  Be sure to notice the zebra striped hearing aids.  I love having aids with a design, and hope to get some skins to put on them for even more variety– because it’s very cool to wear aids with style even though no one ever sees them.

a few gadgets that help

For more PhotoHunt pictures go to photo hunters.  Be sure to watch for next week’s theme– ‘undesirable’.   I am already finding that a difficult one.  I never take pics of ‘undesirable’ things.  Do you?

 

A Prayer For You

I made this short video in an attempt to illustrate what Buddhism currently means to me.  I’m new at Buddhism, and do not claim to be Buddhist.  Buddhism is both a philosophy and religion.  The Dalai Lama says, “My religion is kindness.”   Through meditation I am learning to make kindness a guiding force in my life, but I am only human and too often forget.

 

Intercultural Workshop Leaves Out Deaf Culture

Today I went to a workshop on intercultural communication.  It was an interesting program about how to communicate effectively with people who can’t speak/understand English well.  The first part was about misunderstanding due to cultural values and expectations, as well as difficulties learning to speak a new language.

A great emphasis was put on using gesture for communication.  Another point was about how people tend to misunderstand or misinterpret other peoples’ actions based on their own cultural expectations.  In other words, Americans make eye contact, but Mexicans may find that uncomfortable.  In some countries, women should never approach men.  Some countries nod when they mean no and shake their heads when they mean yes.  Some expect to barter and negotiate  library fines, because they do that in their own countries.  This can all lead to confusion, insult and anger.

At one point our program director provided a list of possible reasons why a person might ignore time limits on a computer, especially after being reminded by a librarian.  I was surprised to see deafness or lack of hearing not listed, and brought that to her attention.  She was appreciative then moved on to what she called the “cultural triangle.”

All the while she was talking about the triangle, she gestured with her two hands making the triangle shape.

Even though I am not a native ASL speaker, I became uncomfortable.  I looked away and tried hard to ignore it.  Maybe I am hyper aware because I am new at ASL, but it really, really bothered me.

We ran over time, so I couldn’t take her aside after class.  Now I wish I had her email.  I would like to tell her more about deaf people and Deaf culture. In the future she might be able to include that in her class.  Many of the communication options such as gesturing, drawing, and even speaking more clearly would have been helpful to deaf/Deaf as well as people from other countries, but I doubt others in the class would have connected those dots without someone pointing it out.  Many of the attendess were from other countries themselves.

I feel my ability to communicate with non-English speakers is enhanced due to a natural inclination toward gesturing, sensitivity to body language and inability to understand speech.

I am thinking of possibly talking to Human Resources about offering a class on accommodating the differently abled in the library.

 

Photo Hunt: Birds

This week’s Photo Hunt theme is birds. These sea birds enjoyed resting on a rocky beach  in Puerto Penasco, Mexico. Here are some more sea birds further north, in Long Beach, Washington state.  Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get close enough to get a good shot. They began to scatter and fly away.  I don’t have a telephoto lense.  Wish I did.

Below is one of my favorite bird enthusiasts.  His name is Dad.  I have many great pictures of people watching birds, but  few photos of any actual birds.  This was taken on an Audubon outing a couple summers ago.

For more bird photos go to photo hunters

 

A Meme for Today

Taken from Jelly, who wanted someone to ’steal’ it.  I hope someone will steal it from me, or pass it on or whatever.

Outside my window:  clouds, gray, pine needles everywhere.

I am thinking about: work, food, staying warm, a December wedding, my daughter coming home for the weekend (YAY).

I am thankful for:

• my family, their support, love, and the way they overlook my many faults
• heat
• seasons
• friends
• furry friends
• the smell of cinnamon
• that I have lived long enough to learn from past mistakes.

I am wearing: jeans, black turtleneck, polka-dot socks — all thrift store finds. I am feeling happy that my outfit was recycled, that my $10.00 didn’t go toward supporting slave labor, that it came preshrunk so I already knew how it would wash up when I bought it.  I got compliments on this outfit — mainly because of the $1.00 beads I used as a name tag holder which perfectly accessorized everything.

I am remembering:

• to practice mindful eating habits
• to drink liquids
• to eat green leaves.

I keep forgetting: to pick up another neti pot.

I am reading: Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick. Interesting stuff.

On my mind: Today is my day off. I have no plans, but I tend to be a planner, so I’m cementing plans while typing here. It’s stacking up like this 1) tidy up a little 2) eye appointment 3) jazzercize 4) do nails 5) meditate 6) eat popcorn/watch a chick flick with daughter

Pondering these words: Perfect is the enemy of good– a reminder to aim for good, rather than perfection, which isn’t attainable anyway.

From the kitchen: coffee brewed with cinnamon– a blend I picked up from my last trip to Mexico.

Around the house: books, blankets, candles; where is molly??

in other stuff:
Yesterday I got a crown. This was the first time of having dental work done by this particular dentist and I’m happy with her work. I was just thinking how all of my doctors and dentists are women now, except for the spine specialist– who I’ll keep because he has accidentally cured my migraine headaches.  I am way overdue for physicals and tests of every kind.  I vow to make that a priority in the new year.

I have had a sore throat and stuffy nose for almost three weeks. I know it’s just a cold, but I can’t help thinking that it might be H1N1.  I have been told that I am one of those rare people who carries strep but isn’t affected by it all that much.  I get a small sore throat while others can’t swallow or eat.  I feel just a little guilty that I might be passing strep around, but I haven’t had time to see a doctor– and I don’t know for sure that it is strep.

I am happy to have the day after New Years off, so I can attend a meditation retreat. Wednesday someone brought a special cushion to meditation that she got at a Buddhist temple and she let me try her bench and cushion together. It was way more comfortable than it looks. The day after Thanksgiving we’re having a mini day long retreat, and a Zen Buddhist priest will be working with us on meditation technique. I am tired of the same meditation practice and looking forward to some guidance.

I sometimes wonder how much I should post about my involvement with this Buddhist group in my blog here.  I do not consider myself a Buddhist spiritually.  Because Buddhism is both a religion and philosophy, I would say that I share Buddhist philosophy and practice Buddhist meditation. None of it has changed my concept of God.  Yet my spirit has changed.  This is why I hesitate to write about it.  I’m not sure how much I identify with Buddhism because I’m still learning.  I don’t want a label that isn’t mine.  But the change inside is big, to the point that I sometimes want to share what’s happening with that.  It is a part of my life and journey right now.

 

Photo Hunt: Music

I am super late with my Photo Hunt post this week.   I have posted about what it’s like to love playing the piano and then losing your ability to hear the piano, and then picking up a new instrument that you can hear better.  In my case it was the djembe.  For awhile I adored my little djembe, and then. . . eh.

It’s fun to play when I can convince people to dance to it, but that hardly ever happens. 

She is  a nice size for my hands.  She was made in Indonesia and was hand painted.    As much as I’ve written about her, and my attempts to play, only today did I learn what the word djembe means, after looking it up in wikipedia.  It literally means gather together.  “Dje” means gather, and “be” means everyone.  The whole point of the djembe is that it’s meant to be shared.  It’s a social experience.  Hence, the popularity of drum circles I guess.

To see more Photo Hunt pictures with a musical theme, go here PhotoHunt

 

 

Thank You Veterans

Like most families, many men in my family have served in the armed forces.  Most recently my cousin was a Navy Seal.  I never knew the rigorous training they went through until reading the Perfect Storm, in which an entire chapter details what they go through.  Richard doesn’t talk about it.    As a kid he was sassy and rebellious.  Who would have guessed he would grow up to be a hero?

Many of my family members and ancestors have fought in wars, been injured or died.  Some of them were spared by pure luck, while others perished by strange accident.  Even in peace time, a veteran is someone who gives up his/her life for a few years to make the world a better place.   Peace time can turn to war quickly.  When a young person joins the armed services, their futures are uncertain.  Though I consider myself a pacifist, I realize we always need to be ready to fight for the ideals we Americans believe in.  I guess I’m not a true pacifist after all.

I would like to list those known heroes in my family who have served–

• Richard, Navy Seal
• George, WWII.
• Bruce, WWII, died in action.
• Tom, WWII.
• Sam, WWI, lost a leg.
• Wesley, WWI.
• Glen, WWI.
• Tom, WWI.
• Eric, WWI.
• John, WWI, died in action.
• Joshua, Civil War, Union.
• Charles, Civil War. Union.  Died, age 16.

Every family has a hero.  Today is their day.

I want to say THANKS!