Lifestyle of Learning 2023 Edition: Volume 8

 September 16 - 30

"People travel to wonder at the height of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering." -St. Augustine 

- I watched some YouTube videos by Jay's Garden Journal on sheet mulching and berms.

- I have been listening to the following podcasts: Bible John: The Creation of a Serial Killer, X22, Witnessed: Devil in the Ditch, Undetermined, Zone 7, LISK, Gone South.

- I read Little Vic by Doris Gates, Left Behind by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins, and Character for Life: An American Heritage by Don Hawkinson.

- I went to a local festival where I viewed cool art, mostly photography, tried apple cider donuts, watch dancers perform original choreography, listened to a guitar playing and singing duo, and watched a couple of local theater troupes perform.

I listened to a lecture by William Potter titled "Sabers, Spears, and Catapults: A Providential History of Warfare Technology."

- I am reading 1984 by George Orwell; Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis; Mitten Strings for God by Katrina Kenison; A Treasury of Great Poems: English and American by Louis Untermeyer; and Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock.

- I went for a walk at a botanical center. It had a really cool mosaiced sundial. You stand on the month that it is presently and your shadow lands on the time, roughly.

- I took an online  course on Classic Children's Literature, including Beauty and the Beast, The Snow Queen, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,  Aesop's Fables, The stories of Beatrix Potter and A.A. Milne,  Treasure Island, and The Wind in the Willows. I scored 100% on all quizzes!

- I have been to this botanical gardens many times and had never seen the history walk. This time, I stumbled upon it and thoroughly enjoyed the biographical sketches etched into the stone.

- I am receiving, and am reading, emails from a memoirist who was offering a free online course. I couldn't take the course but I can get the emails read. I am hoping for inspiration and assistance.

- I saw a hawk at the park that I believe may be a broad winged hawk, light morph, immature.

- I listened to a five part lecture series on The Inklings.

-I am utilizing what I learned at the GGOB training to help develop a minigame at work.

- I am using the resources at the Memoir Network. I have begun making a memory list.

-I viewed a production of Peter Pan Jr. as presented by a small community theatre.

- I resumed watching journal related videos and I have done some journaling. 

The "Use It Up" Challenge Returns

 My son who has been living in London for the last five years is moving home. He will reside in the downstairs apartment, which is where hubby has been storing his food items. Hubby will need space for his groceries in the main fridge and freezer so I MUST pare down. I MUST push hard with this challenge, NOW!

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September 3: B- avocado toast and boiled egg; L- bologna sandwich, chips and cheddar ale dip; D - chicken cacciatore,  rice, zucchini with tomatoes and oatmeal scotchies.  Pantry = 5, Freezer = 1

September 4: B- protein drink, boiled egg; L- bologna sandwich, chips and cheddar ale dip; D- vegan tacos with homemade salsa, oatmeal scotchies.  Pantry = 1, Freezer = 1.

September 5: B- avocado toast with boiled egg; L- chicken nachos; D- boiled eggs and toast.

September 6: B- boiled eggs and toast; snack- peanut butter granola; L- bologna sandwich and chips and salsa; D- steak, baked potato. Pantry = 1. Fridge = 1.

September 8: B- boiled eggs, banana; L- peanut butter sandwich; D- shredded pork burrito, cheesecake. Freezer =1.

September 9: B- boiled eggs; D- steak, baked potato, broccoli with cheese sauce. Freezer = 1.

September 10: B- protein powder and a bagel; L- nachos. Pantry = 1. Fridge = 1.

September 11: B- boiled egg; L- Panera and apple pie; D- pasta with meat sauce. Pantry = 4; Freezer = 1.

September 12: D- Rama Thai

September 13: B- boiled eggs and peanut butter sandwich;  L- pasta with meat sauce; D- tacos.

September 14: B- boiled eggs and almonds; L- tostadas; D- brisket and baked potato.

September 15: B- boiled eggs and almonds; L- brisket and baked potato; snack- apple; D- pizza Freezer = 1.

September 16: B- bagel with peanut butter; L and D-  tamales. Freezer = 1.

September 17: B- avocado toast with egg; snack- apple cider donuts; L- nachos. Pantry = 2.

September 18: B- scrambled eggs, apple cider donut; L- nachos; D- boiled eggs, yogurt parfait. Pantry = 1, Fridge = 3.

Total Pantry =  15

Total Fridge =  5

Total Freezer =  7

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"A resourceful person can see opportunity when others only see obstacles." - Garrett Gunderson 

Lifestyle of Learning 2023 Edition: Volume 7

September 1 - 15

"I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."  -Isaac Newton

- I am listening to bluegrass music to familiarize myself with songs, develop my ear and learn more about strumming patterns.

- I completed the Hillsdale online course 'Introduction to Western Philosophy'. It covered Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Bacon, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Nietzsche,  and C.S. Lewis.

- I listened to storyteller Jim Weiss weave a story of the Master of the Renaissance, to include Ghiberti, Donatello, Brunelleschi, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.

- I continued to practice playing the mandolin.

- I am currently reading Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock; A Treasury of Great Poems English and American by Louis Untermeyer; Character for Life by Don Hawkinson, all of which will take me quite some time to get through. 

- I read 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1,2 and 3 John, Jude and Revelation. For the first time in my life I have read the Bible in its entirety!

- I completed Balancing the Sword: A Comprehensive Study Guide to Life's Manual by Allen B. Wolfe.

- I listened to The Story of Bach in Words and Music by VOX Music Masters. Prior to listening to this, I knew that Bach came from a long line of musicians, that he was a renowned organist, and was Kapellmeister (I didn't remember this title, though) for a royal court and, thus, worked with a chamber orchestra. I didn't know, however, that after Bach's death his music was largely unknown until Mendelssohn revived interest in his works. As a follow up to the story I listened to, I found this article to be interesting.

- I am actively researching boondocking and other things related to my dream travels.

- I listened to podcasts: LISK, Zone 7, X22, Killing Dad: The Miscreants, and Murder at Ryan's Run which gave an update on the current happenings related to MOVE.

- I read How to Be Your Own Selfish Pig: And Other Ways You've Been Brainwashed by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay.

- I attended an Audubon society event that involved counting Chimney Swifts as the entered columns to roost. It is fascinating to watch them circle the columns, undulating and appearing to dive before they tumbled into one of the columns. Thirteen swifts entered one column. Twenty five in another and thirty four in yet another. In the final column eight hundred and eighty eight entered in order to roost for the evening. 960 swifts, altogether!

- I listened to the lecture, "Providential Battles: Twenty Battles that Changed the World" by William Potter. It included the following battles: Salamis, Arbela, Cannae, Tours, Crecy, Constantinople, Tenochtitlan, Lepanto, Armada, Quebec, Saratoga, Yorktown, Trafalgar, Waterloo, Alamo, Antietam, 1st Marne, Britain, Midway, and Stalingrad.

- I did some weight lifting.

- I read Mark Levin's Ameritopia which contrasted utopianism and Americanism by examining Plato's Republic, Thomas More's Utopia, Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan, Karl Marx' Communist Manifesto, John Locke's Nature of Man, Charles de Montesquieu and his thoughts on republicanism, and Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America and gave an analysis of the influence of some of these writings on the founders and others on contemporary America.

- I played Colorku.

- I went for a hike. I observed a Great Blue Heron preening.

- I read The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli and found that he wasn't as Machiavellian as I had imagined, or at least as I had come to understand the term. It was an interesting read.

- I listened to The Story of Vivaldi and Corelli in Words and Music by VOX Music Masters. I learned that Corelli is considered the father of modern violin.

- I listened to an abridged dramatic versions of Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream and The Taming of the Shrew.

- I attended a craft show of young entrepreneurs. The range of products offered and the professionally on display was impressive. Inspiring!

-I attended a quilt show that had antique and contemporary quilts on display. I was enthralled by the variation of double wedding quilt and the bread basket quilt. I had never seen anything like these before. I learned that there are many opportunities for quilters to learn something new, as was evidenced by the quilters who had attended the Crazy Chicken Mystery class. That tickled me!

- I began an online course by Hillsdale on  Children's Literature.

- I learned the difference between buzzards and vultures. I had it in my head that they were essentially synonymous; I think from cartoons of my youth where they would have signage referencing buzzards and also have vulture sitting on a fence post. Buzzards are of the genus Buteo, as are hawks. Vultures are of the Cathartes genus. Vultures are exclusively scavengers. Buzzards are primarily birds of prey. Now I know!

- I attended a special training session on the Great Game of Business.

- I have started listening to a lecture by William Potter titled "Sabers, Spears and Catapults: A Providential History of Warfare Technology."

- I did a little research and learned that during migration, swifts form large colonies and can fly up to 500 miles per day and they can do everything in air except roost and nest.

- I am challenging myself with the questions in the game Mind Trap.

- I am reading Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins; 1984 by George Orwell; and Little Vic by Doris Gates. After having read or listened to alot of non-fiction, I thought it was time to read some fiction. Little Vic is a book I loved in my youth that I am enjoying revisiting. The other two dovetail nicely with some of my other studies.

- I discovered this: http://www.offbeatoregon.com/1206c-forestry-building-biggest-log-cabin-burned.html

Checking in on My 23 Hard Things in 2023 Goals

It's time to check in on my progress in reaching my 23 Hard Things in 2023 goals. I believe I made significant progress during August. I felt like I had traction, mojo... something. Let's check it out!

 1) Write 12 snail mail letters. DONE. Despite the fact that I completed this goal in June, I have continued to write letters. Although this doesn't come naturally to me, I know that these letters are valued by those that receive them. I love those people and I want them to really know that. I still have a list of people to write. I press on. I wrote two more letters this month; one to a grand-nephew and another to the wonderful man who was my stepfather, forever my stepfather in my heart. I have now written 14/12 letters. 

2) Initiate three dates with hubby. DONE. As previously mentioned, we had a stay-at-home date. We played Battleship. I also invited him to go hiking at the nature center. After the hike, we went by Sonic for some refreshing iced tea and then went to the lake to look at the water lilies. Today we took a 40 minute drive to try a new BBQ joint, dined together, then stopped at an orchard. That is three dates. I still intend on inviting him to play miniature golf one day. 3/3.

3) Purge 1200 items. DONE. I completed this goal in July but still attempt to purge 100 items per month. In August, I purged 444 items! 1670/1200.

4) Read 48 books. No problemo. Including the books of the Bible that I have read, I read 30 books in August. If I discount the books of the Bible I have read 45 of the 48. Altogether, 91/48.

5) 12 of the 48 books read need to be books that I own. DONE. 20/12.

6) Have one adventure per month. For me, an adventure can be anything that takes me out of my comfort zone. In August, I went to an old theatre in a neighboring city and viewed old Roy Rogers movies, took myself to the zoo, hiked at a state park, repaired my mandolin (believe it or not, going to the music store was uncomfortable for me, I pushed myself and got it done), and am learning to play that mandolin. Wonderful!

7) Make and maintain a minimum of six monthly journals. DONE.  I have now completed eight (almost) of these journals and will be moving to a new format this month. Goal completed though!

8) Make a minimum of 36 blog entries. I made four entries in the month of August. 18/36.

9) Repair camera. DONE.

10) Repair mandolin and learn one song. DONE. Repaired and I can play the song Cindy!

11) Dance. I'm not dancing daily (although that was never the expressed goal) but I am dancing, usually informally. I am, however, doing some disco tutorials. I'm Your Boogie Man... er... Woman!

12) Learn to tiptoe (move like a child). DONE.

13) Learn to skip (move like a child). I can skip but not gracefully. I'm still working on this.

14) Do one cartwheel, although a round off will do (move like a child). Not even close.

15) Remove tree from front yard. DONE.

16) Repair front porch stairs. DONE.

17) Write a letter to Carole's mother. It is written but not mailed. I am now uncertain as to whether I should send this letter. I am praying on it.

18) Take vitamins a minimum of 275 days this year. 203/244, need 72/120.

19) Floss teeth a minimum of 275 days this year. 176/244, need 99/120.

20) Track expenditures a minimum of 275 days this year. 224/244, need 51/120.

21) Do not go to Andy's alone. Ok... alright... let me address this one... sigh. I have not persisted with this goal throughout the summer. I had $75 in gift cards that I thought I would use with the kiddos when they were together but that never happened. I used the gift cards all by myself. I used the last of the gift card mid-August but then decided that I could continue to treat myself throughout my birthday month. Happy Birthday to me! Now, however, I have determined that the best gift I could give myself is to not go to Andy's alone for the remainder of the year. Happy Birthday to me!

22) Try 15 new smoothie, salad and vegetarian recipes. I made garlic parmesan white beans, peanut butter granola, veggie quesadillas (the filling was super delish), and avocado toast/sandwich (believe it or not, I had never made any variation of avocado toast before). 8/15.

23) Complete at least 75% of Balancing the Sword Volume 1. I have surpassed the 75% point and am on track to be 100% complete by the end of this month. It is my intent to save Volume 2 for next year, so, because I am thoroughly enjoying my morning Bible study, I will search my bookshelves for other Bible study materials to use for the last three months of 2023.

I am super pleased with my progress. I am going to have to stay very focused if I am to be successful with all of them (like flossing my teeth, ugh). I can do it though!

Lifestyle of Learning 2023 Edition: Volume 6

August 21 - 31

"After all, what is the chief sign of growing old? Is it not the feeling that we know all there is to be known? It is not years which make people old: it is ruts, and a limitation of interests. When we no longer care about anything except our own interests, we are then old, it matters not whether our years be twenty or eighty. It is rejuvenation for the teacher, thus growing old, to stand ignorant as a child in the presence of one of the simplest of nature's miracles - the formation of a crystal, the evolution of the butterfly from the caterpillar, the exquisite adjustment of the silken lines in the spider's orb web. I know how to "make magic" for the teacher who is growing old. Let her go out with her youngest pupil and reverently watch with him the miracle of the blossoming violet and say: "Dear Nature, I know naught of the wondrous life of these, your smallest creatures. Teach me!" and she will suddenly find herself young." - Anna Botsford Comstock

-I went for a hike at our local nature center. I saw massive water lilies and a beautiful mature Great Blue Heron.

- I have gone to the gym to lift weights.

-I made a peanut butter granola. I have only made granola one time in my life and I'm not certain why I have not made it more considering the fact that I love granola. My all-time favorite cold cereal, even in my youth, was a granola cereal, C.W. Post. Man, I loved that stuff. I have several different recipes queued up and am excited to give them a try.

- I read Pillage by Obert Skye and the sequel, Choke. While reading this book, I was transported back to our homeschooling days. I spent many an enjoyable evening reading this book aloud to the boys. Additionally, we had the opportunity to hear Obert Skye speak and to meet him at a literature festival. Good times!

-  I learned so very much while reading the book about Edward Curtis. Prior to reading the book, I was familiar with his photography. I was unaware, however, that he was an ethnographer intent on preserving the languages and customs of the native tribes found in the States. He filmed dances and recorded languages. Written pronunciation guides were included in his books. These guides and other documentation have been used, relatively recently, by several tribes to revive their language and traditions. He also made an "opera" that was performed at Carnegie Hall and across America. It was involved Curtis narrating as photos and film clips were projected on a screen with musical accompaniment by an orchestra. The orchestra played music written by Gilbert that was based off of recordings of music from a host of tribes. Although not typically credited with this feat,  he, arguably,  made the first feature length documentary. He did take some creative license but it was all based on fact and, notably, had a full Indian cast. This film was largely lost to time after being shut down. There are efforts to restore it. This is all so amazing to me. I never knew. He was a visionary that sacrificed so much. Much is owed him.

- I have identified an Amanita mushroom. I am hoping to learn more about how to identify mushrooms.

- I have read John, Acts and Roman's in the Bible and have done the corresponding comprehension questions in Balancing the Sword.

- I dined at an Indian restaurant with Bishop and dining with Bishop is always a learning experience. He was very knowledgeable about the food. I had Chana Masala, yum. We also had great conversation. I shared with him much of what I have found interesting about the Edward Curtis book and this led to quite a bit of conversation about different Native American groups, historical policies of the American government related to the Native Americans, and we posited theories about culture formation.

-  I shared with Bishop some of what I had learned about the Osage Indians. He, in turn, shared with me some information about the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Tribe in Minnesota. They are the wealthiest tribe in the United States. The 480 members of the tribe each receive approximately $84,000 per month from the profits of the casino owned by the tribe. This led us to research the Sioux. The Sioux are a confederation of closely allied bands that have related mutually intelligible dialects of the Siouan language. The bands are Nakota, Dakota, and Lakota. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux are Dakota.

- I read From Chaos to Clarity by Mike Signorelli; Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward S. Curtis by Timothy Egan; Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck; These is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine 1881-1901.

- I am currently reading The Prince by Machiavelli; Ameritopia by Mark Levin; and Handbook of Nature Study  by Anna Botsford Comstock.

- I am doing disco tutorials.

- I am watching episodes of the Great Baking Show. I am learning about traditional British foods that I had never known of; such as, malt loaf. I may endeavor to make some of these foods.

- I assembled and bound, using the pamphlet stitch, a bunch of journals. Making the journals en masse really helped solidify the process in my mind.

-I am doing the mandolin tutorials found on YouTube at MandoLessons. I have learned the chords in the Key of G - G,C,D. I am learning to play the song 'Cindy'. I can play it but need to keep practicing the transition from G to D and the strumming patterns. I have learned the scale in G and am trying to figure out how to pick the melody of the song Cindy, by ear. Additionally,  I practiced the songs (chords) You are my Sunshine and Take Me Home, Country Roads.