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Happy 2011!

Posted on January 1, 2011 by Debora

New year, new look for my blog. Felt like time for a change.

I have four resolutions and I’m feeling pretty good about them, but I don’t want to jinx myself by uttering them aloud. I’ll just post four updates throughout the year as I fail each one; it’s more efficient that way.

And now here is my Second Annual List of Inspirational Notes and Quotes For the New Year. Long ago I had the idea of beginning each new blog post with a relevant quote, but then I realized it was way easier to cram all of the literary bits and snippets I collect into one big pile right at the beginning of each year, when people are more in the mood for that sort of thing.

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On Simplicity:

Everything we possess that is not necessary for life or happiness becomes a burden, and scarcely a day passes that we do not add to it.
–Robert Brault

We don’t need to increase our goods nearly as much as we need to scale down our wants. Not wanting something is as good as possessing it.
–Donald Horban

Reduce the complexity of life by eliminating the needless wants of life,  and the labors of life reduce themselves. 
–Edwin Teale

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
–Leonardo DaVinci 

If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. 
–Cicero

On Frugality:

Frugality is one of the most beautiful and joyful words in the English language, and yet one that we are culturally cut off from understanding and enjoying. The consumption society has made us feel that happiness lies in having things, and has failed to teach us the happiness of not having things.
–Elise Boulding

Our affluent society contains those of talent and insight who are driven to prefer poverty, to choose it, rather than submit to the desolation of an empty abundance.
–Michael Harrington

Too many people spend money they haven’t earned,  to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.  
–Will Rogers

My life can be so arranged that I can live on whatever I have. If I cannot live as I have lived in the past, I shall live differently, and living differently does not mean living with less attention to the things that make life gracious and pleasant or with less enjoyment of things of the mind.
— Eleanor Roosevelt

On Gardening:

“When the world wearies and society fails to satisfy, There is always the garden.”– Minnie Aumonier

When I go into the garden with a spade, and dig a bed, I feel such an exhilaration and health that I discover that I have been defrauding myself all this time in letting others do for me what I should have done with my own hands.
–Ralph Waldo Emerson

A person who undertakes to grow a garden at home, by practices that  will preserve rather than exploit the economy of the soil, has his mind  precisely against what is wrong with us…. What I am saying is that if  we apply our minds directly and competently to the needs of the earth,  then we will have begun to make fundamental and necessary changes in  our minds. We will begin to understand and to mistrust and to change  our wasteful economy, which markets not just the produce of the earth,  but also the earth’s ability to produce. 
–Wendell Berry

I see humanity now as one vast plant, needing for its highest fulfillment  only love, the natural blessings of the great outdoors, and intelligent  crossing and selection. In the span of my own lifetime I have observed  such wondrous progress in plant evolution that I look forward optimistically  to a healthy, happy world as soon as its children are taught the principles of simple and rational living. We must return to nature and nature’s God. 
–Luther Burbank

Learning to produce our own food is essential if we are  to ever truly take control of our own lives. It liberates  us from the role of passive consumer, remote from real  decisions, alienated from nature. 
—Primal Seeds

Man’s heart away from nature becomes hard.
–Standing Bear

I am not bound for any public place, but for ground of my own where I have planted vines and orchard trees, and in the heat of the day climbed up into the healing shadow of the woods. Better than any argument is to rise at dawn and pick dew-wet red berries in a cup.
–Wendell Berry 

I am led to reflect how much more delightful to an undebauched mind, is the task of making improvements on the earth, than all the vain glory which can be acquired from ravaging it, by the most uninterrupted career of conquests.
– George Washington

“I have never had so many good ideas day after day as when I worked in the garden.” –John Erskine

“God almighty first planted a garden. And indeed, it is the purest of human pleasures.”
— Francis Bacon

The farther we get away from the land, the greater our insecurity.
– Henry Ford

To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves.
– Mahatma Gandhi

The one small garden of a free gardener was all his need and due,  not a garden swollen to a realm; his own hands to use, not the  hands of others to command.”  
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Sam Gamgee

On Living Well:

This is maturity: To be able to stick with a job until it’s finished; to do one’s duty without being supervised; to be able to carry money without spending it; and to be able to bear an injustice without wanting to get even.
–Abigail Van Buren

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have  into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos  to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast,  a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes  sense of our past, brings peace for today,  and creates a vision for tomorrow. 
–Melody Beattie

In matters of style, swim with the current;
in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
–Thomas Jefferson

Happiness grows at our own firesides, and is not to be picked in stranger’s gardens.
–Douglas William Jerrold

One of the best ways of enslaving a people is to keep them from education… The second way of enslaving a people is to suppress the sources of information, not only by burning books but by controlling all the other ways in which ideas are transmitted.
— Eleanor Roosevelt

A person is just about as big as the things that make him angry.
–Anon

One reason why birds and horses are happy is because they are not trying to impress other birds and horses.
–Dale Carnegie

“I cannot wander about being wise and brilliant all of the time, it certainly isn’t expected of me. However, I have discovered an ingenious system for being discovered should I become lost. Here’s how it works.The moment you discover you are lost, simply remain calm and don’t panic. Just sit down and remove your pocket knife from your pocket and begin to sharpen it. Within minutes, some know-it-all will come along and inform you that you are incorrectly sharpening your knife.”
–Tom Firth

Categories: Animals, books, frugality, Gardening, Health, Horses, Humor, Life, Love, Self-Sufficiency | 2 Comments

Travels With Charley

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Debora

Just finished John Steinbeck’s Travels With Charley. About halfway through I started jotting down stuff that struck me as particularly insightful, to share here. I’m sure the first half of the book was equally quotable, but I’m too lazy to go back through it and look for particulars.

Actually, there was one early passage that I did search out:

American cities are like badger holes, ringed with trash — all of them — surrounded by piles of wrecked and rusting automobiles, and almost smothered with rubbish. Everything we use comes in boxes, cartons, bins, the so-called packaging we love so much. The mountains of things we throw away are much greater than the things we use. In this, if in no other way, we can see the wild and reckless exuberance of our production, and waste seems to be the index. Driving along I thought how in France or Italy every item of these throw-out things would have been saved and used for something. This is not said in criticism of one system or the other but I do wonder whether there will come a time when we can no longer afford our wastefulness — chemical wastes in the rivers, metal wastes everywhere, and atomic wastes buried deep in the earth or sunk in the sea. When an Indian village became too deep in its own filth, the inhabitants moved. And we have no place to which to move.”

That was written in 1961. We’ve gotten better at disposing of our waste, but we’re producing more of it than ever before. Makes you wonder where the tipping point will be.

On urban growth and lamenting lost beauty:

This sounds as though I bemoan an older time, which is the preoccupation of the old, or cultivate an opposition to change, which is the currency of the rich and stupid.”

It was that last bit that caught my interest, because somehow I’d missed the connection before. It’s true though: nearly all the people I’ve known who are steadfastly opposed to change — the “same = good, different = bad” philosophy — are people who’d been born into a certain level of wealth and exist in a state of determined stagnation. They cling to whatever cultural circumstance their ancestors accumulated their wealth in, instead of continuing to grow and thrive in a changing world. Most end up with less than they started with, or with nothing at all, because they won’t adapt, and they tend to blame their lost prosperity on the people who are adapting and thriving.

On creativity vs criticism:

In all ages, rich, energetic, and successful nations, when they have carved their place in the world, have felt hunger for art, for culture, even for learning and beauty. The Texas cities shoot upward and outward. The colleges are heavy with gifts and endowments. Theaters and symphony orchestras sprout overnight. In any huge and boisterous surge of energy and enthusiasm there must be errors and miscalculations, even breach of judgment and taste. And there is always the non-productive brotherhood of critics to disparage and to satirize, to view with horror and contempt.”

That passage was one of many that made me wish I’d read this book years ago, because it wasn’t until very recently that I began to realize that the people who are doing all the criticizing are the ones who aren’t creating anything of their own. “The non-productive brotherhood of critics,” what an apt description.

This was my favorite:

When people are engaged in something they are not proud of, they do not welcome witnesses. In fact, they come to believe the witness causes the trouble.”

This is stone cold truth. It’s pretty much the story of my life, but I only came to recognize and understand it in the past couple of years.

I think I’m going to have to reread the rest of Steinbeck’s books. Other than “Travels With Charley” I haven’t read anything of his since high school, and I think I’d enjoy them more now. He seemed like someone I’d love to spend an afternoon conversing with; he saw straight to the truth of things and wasn’t afraid to talk about it. And he seemed like someone who wouldn’t have considered it a waste of his time to spend an afternoon conversing with a stranger .

I think I want to be John Steinbeck when I grow up, but without all the drinking and violence and with more gardening.

Also I think there might be a few more road trips in the future for the kids and me. Their world has been much smaller, so far, than mine was at their age, and I don’t want them to fall into the small-minded thinking habits that little isolated towns tend to encourage. They need to see giant redwoods and the Grand Canyon and immense waterfalls and elegant, timeless architecture: creation on a grand scale. They need to experience the kind of awe and wonder that changes a person forever.

Guess it’s time to update the To Do list. That new mud room might have to wait.

Categories: books, Life, Road trip, Travel | Tags: John Steinbeck | 8 Comments

Misty Pomegranate-Colored Musings

Posted on November 10, 2010 by Debora

Sunday night we got another nice rain, and Monday night we got our first frost of fall. Yesterday most of the pomegranates on my tree had suddenly developed those little splits in their skins that means they need to be harvested soon or they’ll go to waste. So I spent most of yesterday taking pomegranates apart, putting the seeds in containers, and putting the containers in the freezer, which was…about as tedious as it sounds. But also satisfying, because around January and February a handful of half-thawed pomegranate seeds tastes like a fresh little boost of happy.

Still pretty tedious, though. The mind wanders while the hands work, and my mind had lots of time to wander on Tuesday. Some thoughts it offered up for my consideration:

1. I’m amazed at how many people see love as a weakness to be exploited. These people are seriously shortchanging themselves. Love is the most powerful force in the universe, and they will live and die without ever tapping into that vast, amazing power.

2. People have to receive before they can understand the value of giving. People have to be listened to before they can understand the value of listening to others. They have to be accepted and respected, in all their quirky uniqueness, before they can accept and respect others who are different from them. If you convince a child that her feelings don’t matter, she will grow up believing that no one’s feelings matter. Feelings either matter or they don’t. If you’re constantly telling your child not to be so sensitive whenever your thoughtless words and actions wound him, don’t be surprised if he grows up to be insensitive and thoughtless of others. If you try to teach your child humility by treating her as if she has no great value or importance, don’t be surprised if she grows up treating herself (and others) like garbage. This often involves chemical addictions and promiscuity. If you try to impose your will on your child by force, don’t be surprised if he grows up believing that might makes right. If you try to impose your will on your child through lies and manipulation, don’t be surprised if he grows up to be a manipulative liar.

3. A common misconception among Christians is that they are (or should be) somehow exempt from the natural consequences of their own poor choices. This is an unrealistic expectation. You may be “saved by grace,” but you still have to water your garden, tend lovingly to your personal relationships and feed the dog, or they will all wither and die. If you lie and cheat and steal people will stop trusting you. If you are unreliable people will stop investing in you. Being “a Christian” doesn’t absolve you of any earthly repercussions or responsibilities. It’s silly (and totally missing the point) to think it should.

4. One person’s “normal” is another person’s “completely unacceptable.” One person’s “attractive and desirable” is another person’s “eww.” What one person admires and reveres, someone else will feel nothing but contempt for. A way of life that feels like heaven to one person will feel like hell to another. What feels like glorious success to one person will feel like dismal failure to another. I don’t think there are any exceptions to this rule. To borrow Alan Alda’s phrase, “all laws are local.” You have to walk the path God designed you for, and accept that not everyone is going to understand.

So much for the navel-gazing. In other news:

5. I’m currently reading “Travels With Charley” by John Steinbeck. It’s one of the books that came with my house when we bought it twelve years ago and it’s been in my “to read” pile all this time, and I finally got around to it. It is an incredible book, and I highly recommend it if you’re interested in shrewd, amusing and often brilliant observations on human nature and eerily accurate predictions (it was written in 1961) about the impact of technology on American life.

6. I decided to make some of my kids’ Christmas presents this year, to save money. Somehow it didn’t occur to me that this would suck up the last vestiges of my spare time. If my blog goes dark for a while, that’s why. Turns out there is a finite number of minutes per day, and that number is not negotiable. Who knew?

7. A closing quote borrowed from one of my favorite bloggers, wordsmith Scott White of Caveat Emptor:

Once I met a man with a hundred hands. “It must be amazing to be able to get so many things done,” I said. “Alas,” he replied, “if only I had a few more brains and a longer reach, maybe that would be true.” Then I understood the value of people working together.

Categories: books, Christianity, Christmas, Family, frugality, Gardening, Health, kids, Life, Love, Nutrition, Self-Sufficiency, trees, Weather, Winter | 9 Comments

I’m Back! Sorta!

Posted on September 20, 2010 by Debora

I got my first computer in 1991 or ’92, a gift from a dear friend who wanted to help me stay in touch with my old buds after I moved to The Land That Time Forgot (as another old friend likes to call Anza). The Internet wasn’t really a thing yet; we communicated through Bulletin Board Systems via 2400-baud modems. It was great.

Until this summer, I hadn’t been without a computer and global connection for more than a few days in over 18 years. Sure, there was that time in ’06 when my modem died and and it almost two weeks before I could get back online with a shiny new wireless connection, but I was heavily into PBeM gaming at the time and every unconnected day was agony, so I spent a fair amount of time at the library or on other people’s PC’s.

Computers have been a fairly significant part of my adult life, is what I’m saying.

When my hard drive crashed ten weeks ago I was surprised by my own lack of panic. Granted, it’s been an unusually busy summer for me and I wasn’t getting online as much anyway, but it was still my primary source of recreation and socialization. Or so I thought.

Apparently that’s not the case anymore.

Somewhere along the way, without me quite noticing, Luke and Elizabeth have become my primary source of recreation and socialization. This was not only revealed but also enhanced by the absence of an Internet connection. As a family we became more interactive, more creative, more conversational, more attuned to one another and to our own lives. Luke, who had never been much of a recreational reader, inhaled a huge pile of books over the past couple of months. Elizabeth took up sculpting with Model Magic and delighted herself and the rest of us with the results. We conversed and shared and laughed together more than we’d ever done before. Without the everpresent siren call of the Glowing Rectangle, life was just…nicer. I was tempted to not get my Mac fixed at all.

So why did I? Well, it turns out that life can also be freaking inconvenient without an Internet connection. I don’t have tv reception or a newspaper subscription, so my Mac handles a multitude of everyday tasks for me. I couldn’t check the weather forecast, make hotel reservations, update my Netflix queue, update my iPod, look up recipes, get driving directions, check my bank balance, check the news, find answers to the neverending stream of questions that my children ask…you get the idea. I had to actually drive 40 miles to the Temecula Library to check out actual books on subjects Luke or Elizabeth wanted to learn about, instead of just consulting the Googles in the comfort of my own home. For me, my Mac is a tool that I have become unwilling to do without.

I learned something during the past ten weeks, though. My computer adds some good important stuff to our lives, but if we’re not careful it also takes some even more important stuff away from us. I want to spend less time online and more time just being with my family. I want my kids to spend less time online and more time tapping into their own creativity. That’s a priority for me now; I plan to work toward making it happen every day.

Ironically, just when I’ve resolved to spend less time blogging and such, I have a ton of fun stuff to blog about from my time offline. The kids are back in school now though, and I’ve almost finished all my projects, so I should eventually be able to get it all posted.

I gotta admit, it’s good to be back. The Internet is a lovely place to visit…I just don’t want to live there.

Categories: books, Family, Friends, Gaming, kids, Life, Love, Role-Playing Games | 9 Comments

Sampler Saturday: The Library, The Parlor, The Laboratory, and The Garden

Posted on March 27, 2010 by Debora

CHAPTER 6
The Library, The Parlor, The Laboratory, and The Garden
by Elizabeth, age 12

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“Which way shall we go?” Elizabeth asked.

“First door to the left.” Roxie said.

The first door to the left led into a library. It was a small library, but it was a library. Instead of books as far as the eye could see, there were only two small bookcases.

There was a hole in the wall, small enough for a gem. Elizabeth reached into her bag and pulled out a ruby, and stuck it into the hole. One of the bookcases slid to the side, revealing a secret passageway. The three all walked through.

The passageway led into a small room, complete with a fireplace, a globe, and a rug to sprawl out upon. (Which was just what Espio did.) There was no fire going, but Elizabeth took her torch and cast it into the fireplace. Moments later a warm and cheery fire crackled merrily, applying warmth to the room.

“How would you two like some hot cocoa?” Elizabeth asked, pulling the mugs, hot cocoa mix, thermos, and marshmallows from the supply bag. “I’m making myself some, but I can also make you some if you like. Oh Roxie! I’m so sorry! I brought enough mugs for me and Espio! I didn’t know you’d be joining! I’m so sorry!”

“That’s alright.” Roxie said. “I can share with Espio.” She turned towards Espio, who wasn’t so sure, but he said she could have her share. Continue reading →

Categories: Animals, books, Dragons, Fiction, Friends, Gaming, Humor, kids, Life, Love, Sampler Saturday | Leave a comment