Shannybo63’s Neighborhood

Sometimes technology empowers me. Things work smoother and faster and I can write, connect, watch, create and generally do and be more, as result of magic of technology.

Then there are times when technology thwarts me at every turn. Things break, slow down or just become ridiculously complicated. When that happens, technology can suck the energy out of just about every task big and small.

After months of everything working relatively smoothly, I seem to find myself thwarted by machines, captive to electrical conundrums, bogged down by bad connections and generally wading through the muck of technology gone wrong.  

The Television Has Fallen Ill

The televisions have had memory cards replaced, firmware upgrades and new panels installed. The cordless phones have taken to randomly deciding to let me know who's calling or not, as it pleases them. The programmable thermostat seems to want to decide for itself when the heat should go full blast or completely off. Bulbs in my bedroom and the backyard refuse to power up and provide light. My Blackberry's trackball has developed a sluggishness and a stickiness that makes me suspect that some of that nasty green goo from Ghost Busters is oozing just behind the faceplate.

But the most vexing problems are with my computer and its relationship to programs and the Internet. It's slow. Really realley sl-o-o-o-o-o-o-w. Which is maddening enough, but it loses things. It forgets things. It doesn't want to connect to sites and people it should connect to. It misbehaves, acting like it doesn't care to help me do the things I need and want to do. This defiant, sluggish laptop was purchased in May of this year.

Can You See The Ghost In The Machine?

I've tried all the usual (but not extreme) remedies that those of us with an above average comfort level with personal technology know to do in these situations. I've tried them two and three times or more.

It might be time for more drastic measures. But before I go that far, one of my business partners offered up his "Technology Cleansing Ritual".

I think it might be worth a shot.

When you are in the snowy cold of Minnesota, take your laptop, remove any jewelry and do the following:

 

1.       Gather freshly cut parsley and place it in a pan of distilled water. Let it soak for nine minutes. Sprinkle the water throughout the house while visualizing a calm environment.

2.       Go outside, face Seattle and chant the following: I will uphold the Redmond creed. High in spirit, I shall succeed. Power of the Elements Five, will help my data stay alive. From grains of earth to the moving air, past the burning fire that magic flares, flow with water, lakes, and streams; around the spirit's aura and dreams.  Keep my karma high aloft and let me play with Microsoft.

3.       Avoid eating any liver or organ meat for one month.

 

You should be good to go!

J  

Watch this stunningly beautiful, breath-taking vision of Picasso's anti-war masterpiece Guernica animated by Lena Gieseke.

Serves as my reminder to choose fear's opposite

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.”

“This is one of the miracles of love: It gives a power of seeing through its own enchantments and yet not being disenchanted.”

I'm not sure I'll get to making all of it, but I am set for the following menu for Thanksgiving.

There are a couple of extra chairs at the table if you're interested!

Now I'd better get prepping because so far all I've made is the cranberry sauce.

Thanksgiving 2009

Deviled eggs

Variety of cheeses with French bread

 

Corn Lemongrass Soup with crab and mussels

Arugula Fennel Mint Prosciutto Pomegranate Salad

 

Turkey – brined and deep fried

Cranberry sauce – with ginger and Cointreau

Traditional Stuffing with pancetta          

Mashed new potatoes with skins on, and mascarpone and chives

Gravy -

Pearl onions roasted with a port reduction and bay

Green beans sauteed with wildrice, mushrooms, bell peppers and pinenuts

 

Crème Brule

Pumpkin pie with whipped creme

There's much to be grateful for and I try to remind myself of that every day.

Some days I forget. 

But I'm glad there's one day of the year when we in the United States are invited to take stock of the abundance in our lives. I hope each of you are with people who are grateful for YOU this year and who express it.

Happy Thanksgiving!  

Dizang asked Fayan, "Where are you going?"
Fayan said, "Around on pilgrimage."
Dizang said, "What is the purpose of pilgrimage?"
Fayan said, "I don't know."
Dizang said, "Not knowing is most intimate."

The Book of Serenity, Case 20

This kind of intimacy is real intimacy. No gap. No ideas about who this is or what that is. Just being one, right here, right now, complete, whole, undivided. Just this.

This intimacy is the heart of Zen practice.

Who knew Coolio had a cooking show? On the web, but still...

This video is in pretty poor taste, but it's funny and it is hands down the best way to make a delicious turkey.

 
Here's our bird from last year coming out of the fryer. Yum! Last year I made two turkeys, a roasted one and a fried one. The roasted one was great, but this year, there's only one way the bird is getting cooked. Coolio style.

Thanksgiving 2008 063

If we were children I would bake you a mud pie
Warm and brown beneath the sun
Never learned to climb a tree but I would try
Just to show you what I'd done

Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe, I had you
Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe

If I were old, my dearest, you would be older
But I would crawl upon your lap
Wrap a blanket 'round our frail little shoulders
And I'd die happily like that

Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe, I had you
Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe, if I had you

So lace your hands 'round the small of my back and I will kiss you like a king
I will be your bride, I'll keep you warm at night
I will sing, I will sing

It was now and we were both in the same place
Didn't know how to say the words
With my heart ticking like a bomb in a birdcage
I left before someone got hurt

Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe, I had you
Oh what I wouldn't do
If I had you, babe, if I had you

Mark asked me what the Holidazzle Parade was and so I thought I'd show him. It's a Minneapolis tradition and even though I've been back in my hometown for the past several Christmas seasons, we've not made it downtown to see it since I lived there. Maybe I will go this year, assuming it's not several frigid degrees below zero or I can find a nice warm spot in the skyways. 

Holidazzle Parade - Meet Minneapolis photo
Originally uploaded by meetminneapolis

At the start of the day I thought I knew what today's "Note From The Universe" meant and I laughed out loud at its perfect timing and choice of words.

However, at the end of this day, I am less certain what it means than when the day started.

But it is Friday the 13th and perhaps it's time to think some entirely new thoughts.

The Universe is looking out for me. I just need to keep listening. 

I've been having a few health issues lately. Nothing serious I suspect, but enough to seek medical attention. I had an appointment last week with some lab tests, another one today and another tomorrow. Three different doctors in the same (giant) medical group, a medical group with a good reputation. But as far as I can tell they don't deserve it. Tomorrow will tell with the third doctor, a specialist, but the first two doctors I've seen have seemed rushed, disengaged and generally on auto-pilot. Like the pilots who missed the airport at Minneapolis/St. Paul International.

Today's doc wrote me a prescription for an anti-inflammatory when I told her I was taking 2-4 Advil per day for joint pain. I asked her why it would be better to take the prescribed meds than what I was doing. Her answer was something about it being more convenient for me to just take one pill that lasted all day. Convenience wasn't an issue for me, but uh...okay.

Take This And Call Me...Wait, What Did you Say?

I filled the prescription at the pharmacy, but before taking anything, I do what I always do, read the warning label. Whoa, this was some powerful stuff! After reading what Walgreen's had to say about it, I went to the Internet for more. On WebMd there was a big warning at the top of the page, not in the fine print.

This drug may infrequently cause serious (rarely fatal) bleeding from the stomach or intestines. Also, related drugs rarely have caused blood clots to form, resulting in heart attacks and strokes. This medication might also rarely cause similar problems. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the benefits and risks of treatment, as well as other possible medication choices.

If you notice any of the following rare but very serious side effects, stop taking and seek immediate medical attention: black stools, persistent stomach/abdominal pain, vomit that looks like coffee grounds, chest pain, weakness on one side of the body, sudden vision changes, slurred speech.

On other sites there were more reasons to suspect that this was probably not the drug for me. I'm not sure what she was thinking or if she was thinking actually.

I'll just stick with the morning dose of two Advil. And see what the doctor tomorrow has to say, assuming I can get more than 15 minutes of his time and undivided attention.